January 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The General Services Administration is amending the mail management section of the Federal Management Regulation (FMR). The proposed changes will help agencies show accountability for their costs regardless of whether they choose to use commercial payment processes.

This document contains a correction to a notice of proposed rulemaking (REG-158747-06) that was published in the Federal Register on Friday, December 5, 2008 (73 FR 74082) relating to withholding under section 3402(t) of the Internal Revenue Code. The proposed regulations reflect changes in the law made by the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005 that require Federal, State, and local government entities to withhold income tax when making payments to persons providing property or services. These proposed regulations provide guidance to assist the government entities in complying with section 3402(t). The regulations also provide certain guidance to persons receiving payments for property or services from government entities.

This rule identifies communities, where the sale of flood insurance has been authorized under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), that are scheduled for suspension on the effective dates listed within this rule because of noncompliance with the floodplain management requirements of the program. If the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) receives documentation that the community has adopted the required floodplain management measures prior to the effective suspension date given in this rule, the suspension will not occur and a notice of this will be provided by publication in the Federal Register on a subsequent date.

Base (1% annual chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs are made final for the communities listed below. The BFEs and modified BFEs are the basis for the floodplain management measures that each community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of being already in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

In response to the Government of Burma's continued repression of the democratic opposition in Burma, and consistent with Executive Order 13047 of May 20, 1997, Executive Order 13310 of July 28, 2003, Executive Order 13448 of October 18, 2007, and the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act (Title IX of Pub. L. 106-387), the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) previously amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) on October 24, 2007 to impose a license requirement for most exports, reexports, or transfers of items subject to the EAR to persons whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to those Executive Orders. In light of the Government of Burma's continued repression of the democratic opposition in Burma and unwillingness to respond to the calls of the Burmese people for genuine dialogue that will lead to a democratic transition in Burma, this final rule amends the EAR to extend these existing licensing requirements to persons whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to Executive Order 13464 of April 30, 2008.

The Copyright Office published in the Federal Register on December 29, 2008, a notice pertaining to its triennial rulemaking proceeding in accordance with a provision of the Copyright Act which was added by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and which provides that the Librarian of Congress may exempt certain classes of works from the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. This document makes technical corrections to clarify the record of the proposed rulemaking.

This interim final rule amends the HOPE for Homeowners Program regulations established by the Board of Directors (Board) of the HOPE for Homeowners Program (Program) and published on October 6, 2008. The regulations are being amended to provide additional flexibility and options to lenders as authorized by amendments to section 257 of the National Housing Act made by the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, which was signed into law on October 3, 2008, and to make additional changes designed to improve the Program. Specifically, the regulations are amended to expand the Program to include 2-to-4 unit properties as eligible Program properties, which is consistent with the definition of ``single family residence'' under the National Housing Act. The regulations are also amended to provide for the option of an upfront payment in lieu of a future appreciation payment from the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (Secretary) to a holder of an existing subordinate mortgage. The upfront payment would be offered by the Secretary as an incentive to facilitate agreement by all mortgage lien holders to release their liens on the mortgage to be refinanced under the Program. The amendments made by this rule also include increasing the maximum term of Program mortgages from 30 to 40 years, as well as increasing or modifying the allowable loan-to-value and debt-to-income ratios for new mortgages under the Program. The regulations are also amended to modify the equity sharing provision of the Program for borrowers who may have equity in their homes at the time they are accepted into the Program, and to make the timeframe for lenders to obtain endorsement for Program loans consistent with other FHA programs. All these amendments are designed to expand the number of eligible borrowers and participating lenders and servicers, and improve the Program's operations consistent with the requirements and purposes of the Program. In addition, the regulations are amended to clarify the provisions regarding mortgagor eligibility, total monthly mortgage payment, and shared appreciation in the value of the refinanced property.

The Commonwealth of Virginia has petitioned for approval of alternate requirements governing certain aspects of Federal odometer law. NHTSA is issuing a final determination granting Virginia's petition.

This regulation extends time-limited tolerances for the pesticides listed in Unit II. of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. These actions are in response to EPA's granting of emergency exemptions under section 18 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) authorizing use of these pesticides. Section 408(l)(6) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) requires EPA to establish a time-limited tolerance or exemption from the requirement for a tolerance for pesticide chemical residues in food that will result from the use of a pesticide under an emergency exemption granted by EPA.

This rule identifies communities, where the sale of flood insurance has been authorized under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), that are scheduled for suspension on the effective dates listed within this rule because of noncompliance with the floodplain management requirements of the program. If the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) receives documentation that the community has adopted the required floodplain management measures prior to the effective suspension date given in this rule, the suspension will not occur and a notice of this will be provided by publication in the Federal Register on a subsequent date.

This action contains a minor correction to the final Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustment Rule, which was published on December 11, 2008 (73 FR 75340) and will be effective on January 12, 2009. As mandated by the Debt Collection Improvement Act (DCIA), the rule adjusts for inflation the statutory civil penalties that may be assessed for violations of EPA-administered statutes and their implementing regulations. A corrected version of Table 1 of the regulation appears at the end of this action.

EPA issued a final rule in the Federal Register of December 10, 2008, concerning the establishment of tolerance residues of novaluron in or on sugarcane, cane and tomato. This document is being issued to correct an amendment to the section as published in that document.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on 270 species from a petition to list 475 species in the southwestern United States as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We find that for these 270 species the petition does not present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that listing these species may be warranted. Therefore, for these 270 species, we will not initiate a further status review in response to this petition. We ask the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the status of these 270 species or threats to them or their habitat at any time. This information will help us monitor and encourage the conservation of these species. An additional 5 species of the 475 included in the petition do not fall within the scope of the petition or are not a listable entity and, therefore, were not considered in this finding (see Petition).

The Coast Guard proposes to amend the commercial diving regulations. We request public comment on industry standards and current practices that might be incorporated in our regulations or accepted as regulatory equivalents; the use of third-party auditing; new requirements for compliance documentation; the adoption of recommendations made following the investigation of a 1996 fatality; and possible additional regulatory revisions. This rulemaking will promote the enhancement of maritime safety which is a strategic goal of the Coast Guard.

The Surface Transportation Board (Board or STB) proposes to amend its rules to provide that where an agreement for rail carriage contains the disclosure statement to be set forth in this new rule, the Board will not find jurisdiction over a dispute involving the rate or service under the agreement and will treat that agreement as a rail transportation contract governed by 49 U.S.C. 10709; and conversely where an agreement for rail carriage fails to contain the disclosure statement, the Board will find jurisdiction over a dispute involving the rate or service under the agreement, absent clear and convincing evidence that the parties intended to enter into a rail transportation contract governed by 49 U.S.C. 10709; and the shipper was made aware that it could request service under a common carrier tariff rate that would be subject to STB jurisdiction.

The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), an agency delivering the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Rural Development Utilities Programs, hereinafter referred to as Rural Development or the Agency, is amending its regulations to administer the Water and Waste Loan and Grant Programs. This action implements provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill for interest rates on direct loans and modifies the interest rate structure currently being used for the direct loan program. Interest rates on loans subject to 5 or 7 percent interest rate limitations (poverty and intermediate rates, respectively) will adjust with changes in the market rate. The poverty and intermediate interest rates will be established at rates equal to a percentage of current market yields for outstanding municipal obligations. The intended effect is to make part 1780 current with statutory authority. In the final rules section of the Federal Register, the Agency is publishing this action as a direct final rule without prior proposal because Rural Development views this as a non-controversial action and anticipates no adverse comments. If no adverse comments are received in response to the direct final rule, no further action will be taken on this proposed rule, and the action will become effective at the time specified in the direct final rule. If the Agency receives adverse comments, a timely document will be published withdrawing the direct final rule and all public comments received will be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on this action.

Base (1% annual chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs are made final for the communities listed below. The BFEs and modified BFEs are the basis for the floodplain management measures that each community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of being already in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

This final rule amends regulations for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) by adding three requirements mandated by the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 in amendments to the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (CNA) concerning retail vendors authorized by WIC State agencies to provide supplemental food to WIC participants in exchange for WIC food instruments. The intent of these provisions is to enhance due process for vendors; prevent defective infant formula from being consumed by infant WIC participants; and ensure that the WIC Program does not pay the cost of incentive items provided by above-50-percent vendors in the form of high food prices. Finally, this rule also adjusts the vendor civil money penalty (CMP) levels to reflect inflation.

NMFS is adjusting the 2009 total allowable catch (TAC) amounts for the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) pollock and Pacific cod fisheries. This action is necessary because NMFS has determined these TACs are incorrectly specified. This action will ensure the GOA pollock and Pacific cod TACs do not exceed the appropriate amounts based on the best available scientific information for pollock and Pacific cod in the GOA. This action is consistent with the goals and objectives of the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska Management Area (FMP).

NMFS proposes a regulation to implement the annual harvest guideline (HG) for Pacific sardine in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the Pacific coast for the fishing season of January 1, 2009, through December 31, 2009. This HG is proposed according to the regulations implementing the Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and establishes allowable harvest levels for Pacific sardine off the Pacific coast. The proposed initial HG for the 2009 fishing year is 65,732 mt and is proposed to be divided across the seasonal allocation periods in the following way: January 1-June 30, 22,006 mt would be allocated for directed harvest with an incidental set-aside of 1,000 mt; July 1-September 14, 25,293 mt would be allocated for directed harvest with an incidental set-aside of 1,000 mt; September 15-December 31, 11,933 mt would be allocated for directed harvest with an incidental set-aside of 4,500 mt. If during any of the seasonal allocation periods the applicable adjusted directed harvest allocation is projected to be taken, fishing would be closed to directed harvest and only incidental harvest would be allowed.

NMFS announces that the State of North Carolina is transferring commercial summer flounder quota to the Commonwealth of Virginia from its 2008 quota. By this action, NMFS adjusts the quotas and announces the revised commercial quota for each state involved.

This document contains a correction to the final rule published Thursday, December 18, 2008 at 73 FR 76914, relating to the rules and procedures that govern the standards of representation and professional conduct for practitioners who appear before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR).

On February 22, 2008, FEMA published in the Federal Register a proposed rule that contained an erroneous table. This notice provides corrections to that table, to be used in lieu of the information published at FR Doc. E8-3362. The table provided here represents the flooding source, location of referenced elevation, effective and modified elevation, and communities affected for Trinity County, California. Specifically, it addresses Hayfork Creek.

This document corrects the table to a proposed rule published in the Federal Register of December 9, 2008. This correction clarifies the table representing the flooding source(s), location of referenced elevation, the effective and modified elevation in feet and the communities affected for Madison County, Mississippi, and Incorporated Areas; specifically, for flooding source ``Reunion Lake 1,'' than was previously published.

We are approving an amendment to the Montana regulatory program (the ``Montana program'') under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (``SMCRA'' or ``the Act''). Montana proposed revisions to its statute as discussed in SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION, II. Proposed Amendment, to clarify ambiguities and improve operational efficiency.