October 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) publishes notice at least once monthly of certain Federal agency requests for records disposition authority (records schedules). Once approved by NARA, records schedules provide mandatory instructions on what happens to records when no longer needed for current Government business. They authorize the preservation of records of continuing value in the National Archives of the United States and the destruction, after a specified period, of records lacking administrative, legal, research, or other value. Notice is published for records schedules in which agencies propose to destroy records not previously authorized for disposal or reduce the retention period of records already authorized for disposal. NARA invites public comments on such records schedules, as required by 44 U.S.C. 3303a(a).

The inventions listed below are owned by an agency of the U.S. Government and are available for licensing in the U.S. in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 207 to achieve expeditious commercialization of results of federally-funded research and development. Foreign patent applications are filed on selected inventions to extend market coverage for companies and may also be available for licensing.

The President's Council on Bioethics (Edmund D. Pellegrino, MD, Chairman) will hold its thirty-fifth meeting, at which it will discuss three topics: exercises of conscience in the practice of the health professions, the problem of medical futility, and the future of public bioethics and national bioethics commissions in the United States. Subjects discussed at past Council meetings (although not on the agenda for the November 2008 meeting) include: therapeutic and reproductive cloning, assisted reproduction, reproductive genetics, neuroscience, aging retardation, organ transplantation, personalized medicine, standards for the determination of death, children and bioethics, and lifespan-extension among others. Publications issued by the Council to date include: Human Cloning and Human Dignity: An Ethical Inquiry (July 2002); Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of Happiness (October 2003); Being Human: Readings from the President's Council on Bioethics (December 2003); Monitoring Stem Cell Research (January 2004), Reproduction and Responsibility: The Regulation of New Biotechnologies (March 2004), Alternative Sources of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells: A White Paper (May 2005), Taking Care: Ethical Caregiving in Our Aging Society (September 2005), and Human Dignity and Bioethics: Essays Commissioned by the President's Council on Bioethics (March 2008). Reports are forthcoming on four topics: controversies in the determination of death; organ donation, procurement, allocation, and transplantation; newborn screening; and medical care and the common good.

DoD is proposing to amend the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to address requirements for the protection of human subjects involved in research projects. The proposed rule contains a clause for use in contracts that include or may include research involving human subjects.

Notice is hereby given that Dr. Kathryn A. Ono, Department of Biological Sciences, University of New England, Biddeford, ME, has applied for an amendment to Scientific Research Permit No. 10080-02.

This proposed rule would adjust quotas for the 2009 fishing season for sandbar sharks, non-sandbar large coastal sharks (LCS), small coastal sharks (SCS), and pelagic sharks managed under Amendment 2 to the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP) based on any over- and/or underharvests experienced during the 2008 Atlantic commercial shark fishing season. The purpose of this proposed action is to provide advance notice of quotas for the Atlantic commercial shark fishery and address any over- and/or underharvests that may have occurred in the Atlantic shark fishery during the 2008 fishing season.

On September 7, 2008, the U.S. Department of Treasury (Treasury) entered into senior preferred stock purchase agreements (the Agreement or Agreements) with the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), which effectively provide protection to the holders of senior debt, subordinated debt, and mortgage-backed securities (MBS) issued or guaranteed by these entities. In light of the financial support provided under the Agreements, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) (collectively, the agencies) are proposing to adopt a 10 percent risk weight for claims on, and the portion of claims guaranteed by, Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. The 10 percent risk weight would apply so long as an Agreement remains in effect with the respective entity.

In response to a request from Ternium M[eacute]xico, S.A. de C.V. (``Ternium Mexico''), and pursuant to section 751(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (``the Act'') and 19 CFR 351.216 and 351.221(c)(3), the Department is initiating a changed circumstances review of the antidumping duty order on circular welded non-alloy steel pipe (``standard pipe'') from Mexico. This review will determine whether Ternium Mexico is the successor-in-interest to Hylsa, S.A. de C.V. (``Hylsa'').

On August 1, 2008, the Department of Commerce (the Department) published the preliminary intent to rescind and rescission in part for the administrative review of the antidumping duty order on certain forged stainless steel flanges (stainless steel flanges) from India manufactured by Pradeep Metals Limited (Pradeep) and covering the period February 1, 2007, through January 31, 2008. See Certain Forged Stainless Steel Flanges from India; Preliminary Intent to Rescind Administrative Review and Rescission in Part, 73 FR 44969 (August 1, 2008) (Preliminary Intent). We are rescinding the review for Pradeep because we have determined that it had no bona fide U.S. sales during the period of review.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its spent fuel storage cask regulations by revising the NAC International, Inc., NAC-UMS Universal Storage System listing within the ``List of Approved Spent Fuel Storage Casks'' to include Amendment No. 5 to Certificate of Compliance (CoC) Number 1015. Amendment No. 5 will modify the CoC to incorporate certain high burnup pressurized water reactor (PWR) fuel as approved contents and to reflect those changes in the associated Technical Specifications (TS). In addition, the amendment to the CoC will include several other changes to the TS and the Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR) to enhance the loading and storage operation of the NAC-UMS Universal Storage System.

This notice announces a meeting of the Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board (EM SSAB), Northern New Mexico. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. No. 92-463, 86 Stat. 770) requires that public notice of this meeting be announced in the Federal Register.

The Commander, First Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the Beach Channel Railroad Bridge at mile 6.7, across Jamaica Bay, at New York City, New York. Under this temporary deviation the Beach Channel Railroad Bridge may remain in the closed position for three weekends in November. This deviation is necessary to facilitate bridge track repairs.

The Commander, First Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the Witt Penn Bridge across the Hackensack River, mile 3.1, at Jersey City, New Jersey. Under this temporary deviation the bridge may remain in the closed position for one day to facilitate bridge maintenance. Vessels that can pass under the draw without a bridge opening may do so at all times.

The Coast Guard is revising the dates and reinstating a temporary regulated navigation area and safety zone on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal near Romeoville, IL. This regulated navigation area and safety zone places navigational and operational restrictions on all vessels transiting through the electrical dispersal barrier IIA.

We are giving notice of a meeting of the General Conference Committee of the National Poultry Improvement Plan.