2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice announces final agency action on 30 TMDLs prepared by EPA Region 6 for waters listed in Louisiana's Terrebonne River Basin, under section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act (CWA). Documents from the administrative record file for the 30 TMDLs, including TMDL calculations and responses to comments, may be viewed at https://www.epa.gov/region6/water/npdes/tmdl/index.htm. The administrative record file may be examined by calling or writing Ms. Diane Smith at the address below. Please contact Ms. Smith to schedule an inspection.

The Tribal Pesticide Program Council (TPPC) will hold a 1[frac1s2] day meeting, beginning on October 23, 2008, and ending October 24, 2008. This notice announces the location and times for the meeting and sets forth the tentative agenda topics.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for implementing the procedural provisions of NEPA (40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Parts 1500- 1508), and Air Force's Environmental Impact Analysis Process as implemented by 32 CFR Part 989, the United States Air Force (Air Force) is issuing this notice to advise the public of our intent to provide an extension of the public comment period for the Proposed White Elk Military Operations Area (MOA) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The original comment period was scheduled to close on 29 September 2008 (Federal Register: August 15, (Volume 73, Number 159) [Notices] [Page 47948-47949]. The comment period now ends on 13 November 2008.

On or about October 3, 2008, the Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS) of EPA is making available for public review and comment additional sections of a draft document titled, Risk and Exposure Assessment to Support the Review of the NO 2 Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standard: Second Draft which was originally announced in a September 2, 2008 Federal Register notice (73 FR 51297). The additional sections being released at this time are Chapter 8 and a revised Appendix B. The purposes of these two sections are to convey the approach taken to characterize NO2 exposures, to convey the approach taken to characterize health risks associated with those exposures, and to present the results of those analyses.

We are giving notice that the Secretary of Agriculture intends to renew the General Conference Committee of the National Poultry Improvement Plan (Committee) for a 2-year period. The Secretary of Agriculture has determined that the Committee is necessary and in the public interest.

This notice provides the Performance Review Board Chair for the Department of Energy. This listing supersedes all previously published lists of the PRB Chair.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the PRA), Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice. This notice solicits comments on the collection of information concerning the establishment and operation of clinical trial data monitoring committees.

We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Boeing Model 737-100, -200, -200C, -300, -400, and -500 series airplanes. For all airplanes, this proposed AD would require repetitive overhaul of the retract actuator beam of the main landing gear (MLG). For certain airplanes, this proposed AD would require repetitive inspections for damage of the retract actuator beam, and related investigative and corrective actions if necessary. This proposed AD results from reports of broken retract actuator beams of the MLG and the subsequent failure of the MLG to fully retract. We are proposing this AD to detect and correct broken retract actuator beams of the MLG, which could cause damage to the beam arm, hydraulic tubing, and flight control cables. Damage to the flight control cables could result in loss of control of the airplane.

This document affirms as final, with changes, an interim final rule that amended regulations regarding grants to States for the construction or acquisition of State homes for furnishing domiciliary and nursing home care to veterans, or for the expansion, remodeling, or alteration of existing State homes for furnishing domiciliary, nursing home, or adult day health care to veterans. This rule is necessary to update the regulations and to implement statutory provisions, including provisions of the Veterans Millennium Health Care and Benefits Act. This document also incorporates some non-substantive changes to the regulations in the interim final rule and recognizes a change made to 38 CFR 59.50(b) on February 14, 2007.

Notice is hereby given that the Office of Research Integrity (ORI) and the Assistant Secretary for Health have taken final action in the following case: Kirk Sperber, M.D., Mount Sinai School of Medicine: Based on the report of an investigation conducted by the Mount Sinai School of Medicine (MSSM) and additional analysis conducted by the Office of Research Integrity (ORI) in its oversight review, the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) found that Dr. Kirk Sperber, former Associate Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Clinical Immunology, MSSM, engaged in scientific misconduct while supported by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), grants R01 AI45343 and P01 AI44236, and National Cancer Institute, NIH, grant R29 CA256990. PHS finds the Respondent engaged in scientific misconduct by falsifying and fabricating data that were included in NIAID, NIH, grant applications R01 AI45343-01A1, R01 AI45343-04A2, and P01 AI44236-05. Respondent's scientific misconduct occurred while he was a faculty member at MSSM. Respondent is no longer employed at MSSM. Specifically, PHS found that Respondent engaged in scientific misconduct by falsifying and fabricating data in the following publications: 1. In multiple figures reported in Sperber, K., Beuria, P., Singha, N., Gelman, I., Cortes, P., Chen, H., & Kraus, T. ``Induction of apoptosis by HIV-1-infected monocytic cells.'' Journal of Immunology 170:1566-1578, 2003 (``2003 J. Immunol. paper'') (Retracted in December 2005); by duplicating and reusing panels of FACS data in Figures 1A, 2, 4A, 4B, and 7; by duplicating and reusing lanes of polyacrylamide gels in Figure 3, of Western blot analyses in Figures 5A, 5C, 6C, and 9, and of agarose gels in PCR analyses in Figure 5B; and by duplicating and reusing laser confocal micrographs in Figures 10 and 11. Respondent's claims that Figures 1A, 2, 4A, and 7 were representative of experiments repeated five times and that Figures 3, 4B, 5A, 6C, and 9 were representative of experiments repeated three times constitute additional falsifications. The effect of these misrepresentations was to falsely demonstrate the proapoptotic activity of a protein from a novel cDNA clone isolated from an HIV-infected human macrophage cell line and to falsify its presence in brain and lymphoid tissue from patients with HIV-associated dementia. 2. In Figure 10 reported in Rakoff-Nahoum, S., Chen, H., Kraus, T., George, I., Oei, E., Tyorlin, M., Salik, E., Beuria, P., & Sperber, K. ``Regulation of Class II Expression in Monocytic Cells after HIV-1 Infection.'' J. Immunol. 167:2331-2342, 2001 (Retracted in November 2006), by duplicating and reusing four confocal micrographs to misrepresent different panels for the Cath D, 43pol and CD-63, 43neve data; for the Cath D, 43gag and Cath D, 43nef data; for the DAMP, 43 nef and M6PR, 43nef data; and for the M6PR, 43gag and the CD-63, 43gag data. Respondent's reported claim that the results were representative of an experiment repeated five times constitutes an additional falsification. 3. In Figures 3B, 4B, and 6B reporting flow cytometry analyses (FACS) in Chen, H., Yip, Y.K., George, I., Tyorkin, M., Salik, E., & Sperber, K. ``Chronically HIV-1-Infected Monocytic Cells Induce Apoptosis in Cocultured T Cells.'' J. Immunol. 161:4257-4267, 1998 (Retracted in November 2006); by reusing two FACS histograms, each to represent 2 different experiments in Figure 3B; by reusing the same FACS histogram as the negative control for CD-4 cells and for the CD-8 cells in Figure 4B; and by duplications of the top two panels, the middle two panels, and the bottom two panels of data as graded dilutions of different fractions in Figure 6B to falsely show that a soluble factor from 43HIV cells induced apoptosis. Figure 6B was also presented in grant application AI45343-01A1 as Figure 5B. Respondent's reported claims that the results in Figures 3B, 4B, and 6B were each representative of experiments that were repeated three times constitute additional falsifications. PHS also finds that Respondent engaged in scientific misconduct by falsifying and fabricating the following data in NIAID, NIH, research applications R01 AI45343-04A2 and P01 AI44236-05: 4. The results of Figures 1, 6C, 7, 9, 10 and 11 from the 2003 J. Immunology paper were reported in NIAID, NIH, grant application R01 AI45343-04A2; nearly all of the figures in the paper were falsified, so that the claims in the grant application derived from those figures were also false. 5. Two figures in NIAID, NIH, grant application P01 AI44236-05 contained falsified data: In Figure 1b, panels of confocal microscopy images of intestinal biopsies from four patients were falsified by duplication; and in Figure 3, one panel of PCR data was duplicated and similarly misrepresented as data from the same four biopsy specimens. Dr. Sperber has entered into a Voluntary Exclusion Agreement in which he neither admitted or denied HHS' findings of scientific misconduct. However, he recognized that if this matter were to proceed to an administrative hearing, there is sufficient evidence upon which an Administrative Law Judge could make findings of scientific misconduct against him. Dr. Sperber agreed not to contest or appeal the jurisdiction of the PHS or HHS findings of scientific misconduct as set forth above and in the MSSM Report. Dr. Sperber has voluntarily agreed, for a period of four (4) years, beginning on September 12, 2008: (1) To exclude himself from any contracting or subcontracting with any agency of the United States Government and from eligibility or involvement in nonprocurement programs of the United States pursuant to HHS' Implementation (2 CFR Part 376 et seq.) of OMB Guidelines to Agencies on Government wide Debarment and Suspension (2 C.F.R., Part 180); and (2) To exclude himself from serving in any advisory capacity to PHS, including but not limited to service on any PHS advisory committee, board, and/or peer review committee, or as a consultant or contractor to PHS.

The IC Clearance Official, Regulatory Information Management Services, Office of Management invites comments on the submission for OMB review as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The purpose of this notice is to inform the public that the Forest Service intends to prepare an environmental impact statement for amending the Dakota Prairie Grasslands Land and Resource Management Plan (DPG Plan) pursuant to 16 U.S.C. 1604(f)(5) and 36 CFR 219.12. This includes approving certain site specific projects associated with the same lands. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act (RPA) and the National Forest Management Act (NFMA) are among the laws that set forth the requirements for Forest Service planning. This DPG Plan amendment will determine management direction including land-use determinations, management area prescriptions, and standards and guidelines. The need for the DPG Plan amendment results from the recent acquisition of 5,200 acres of private land, the majority of which lie in a solid block east of the Little Missouri River in Billings County, North Dakota. Site specific project proposals relate to: (1) Restoring ecological functions and wildlife habitat, (2) improving livestock grazing opportunities, (3) enhancing heritage and recreation opportunities, and 4) promoting conservation activities. Respondents are encouraged to review grassland planning documents and the final response to the Scientific Review Team Report for more information on woody and riparian communities' restoration, prescribed burning, grazing management issues, and drought management strategies. Documents are available at: https://www.fs.fed.us/r1/dakotaprairie/ and https://www.fs.fed.us/ngp. The Forest Service will be soliciting comments from individuals, state and local governments, American Indians, federal agencies, and organizations on the scope of the analysis specific to this DPG Plan amendment and the site-specific projects proposed.