March 4, 2009 – 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).

Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from the public, it must receive approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit public comment on proposed collections of information, including extensions and reinstatement of previously approved collections. This document describes one collection of information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval.

Under the provisions of 30 U.S.C. 188(d) and (e), and 43 CFR 3108.2-3(a) and (b)(1), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) received a petition for reinstatement from Tatonka Oil & Gas, Inc. for competitive oil and gas lease WYW160877 for land in Weston County, Wyoming. The petition was filed on time and was accompanied by all the rentals due since the date the lease terminated under the law.

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is reopening the comment period until April 10, 2009 and will hold public meetings concerning the proposed rule for Approval Tests and Standards for Closed-Circuit Escape Respirators that was published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, December 10, 2008.

In 2006, the National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity, an advisory committee to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, the NIH Director and all Federal entities that conduct/ support life sciences research published a report entitled ``Addressing Biosecurity Concerns Related to the Synthesis of Select Agents.'' \1\ The report included a recommendation that the United States Government (USG) ``examine the language and implementation of current biosafety guidelines to ensure that such guidelines and regulations provide adequate guidance for working with synthetically derived DNA and are understood by all those working in areas addressed by the guidelines.'' The USG adopted this recommendation and asked NIH to review the NIH Guidelines for Research with Recombinant DNA (NIH Guidelines) to evaluate whether these guidelines need to be revised to address biosafety concerns for research with synthetic DNA. With the advice of the NIH Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee (RAC), which is responsible for advising the NIH Director on all aspects of recombinant DNA technology, including revisions to the NIH Guidelines, the following proposed changes were developed. As outlined in more detail below, the proposed changes will expand the scope of the NIH Guidelines to specifically cover nucleic acid molecules made solely by synthetic means. The changes apply to basic laboratory research and clinical research. In addition, changes were made to clarify the criteria for determining whether an experiment to introduce drug resistance into a microorganism raises important public health issues such that it must be reviewed by the RAC and approved by the NIH Director. Finally, the proposed amendments speak to the appropriate level of review for recombinant or synthetic experiments involving more than half but less than two-thirds of the genome of certain viruses in tissue culture. These changes were prompted by an increased understanding of the biology of certain viruses that demonstrate there may be biosafety risks with certain viruses that contain less than two-thirds of the viral genome.

The Western Area Power Administration (Western), a power marketing administration within the U.S. Department of Energy, announces the availability of a Request for Interest (RFI). Western is seeking interest from any entity or entities interested in identifying a proposed transmission project, primarily in Western's service area, and/or desiring to participate with Western and possibly others by constructing, financing, owning, operating or maintaining transmission facilities or acquiring transmission rights or entering into long-term transmission service agreements on that project.

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is amending its rules of practice and procedure to adjust the maximum amount of each civil money penalty (CMP) within its jurisdiction to account for inflation. This action, including the amount of the adjustment, is required under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996.

This is a notice of an Administrative declaration of a disaster for the State of Georgia dated. Incident: Severe Storms and Tornadoes. Incident Period: 02/20/2009. Effective Date: 02/26/2009. Physical Loan Application Deadline Date: 04/27/2009. Economic Injury (EIDL) Loan Application Deadline Date: 11/26/2009.

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting, as a final rule, without change, an interim final rule which decreased the assessment rate established for the California Walnut Board (Board) for the 2008-09 and subsequent marketing years from $0.0158 to $0.0131 per kernelweight pound of assessable walnuts. The Board locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of walnuts grown in California. Assessments upon walnut handlers are used by the Board to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The marketing year began September 1 and ends August 31. The assessment rate will remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

The FDIC is issuing this Interim Rule to make a minor modification to the Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program (TLGP) to include certain issuances of mandatory convertible debt (MCD) under the TLGP debt guarantee program.

The MMS is extending the written comment period on the DEIS from March 16, 2009, to March 30, 2009.

On February 10, 2009, the Secretary of the Interior announced a new comprehensive approach to the Nation's offshore energy plan, which includes four parts and affects the Draft Proposed 5-year OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2010-2015 (DPP), published on January 16, 2009, by the previous Administration. The Secretary's four steps are [cir] An additional 180 days for public comment on the DPP and the Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS for the proposed 5-year program to September 21, 2009; [cir] Preparation by MMS and the U.S. Geological Survey of a report setting forth all the information available on our offshore energy resources, with the report to be completed within 45 days of the Secretary's announcement; [cir] Regional meetings to be convened by the Secretary on each coast and in Alaska to gather the best ideas for how to move forward with a comprehensive offshore energy plan, with the meetings to occur in the 30 days following completion of the report; and [cir] Commitment by the Secretary to issuing a final rulemaking on offshore renewable energy resources in the coming months. This Federal Register Notice announces the 180-day extension of time for receipt of comments on the DPP and the Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS for the proposed 5-year program. The original comment period was announced in the Federal Register on January 21, 2009 (74 FR 3631) with a closing date of March 23, 2009. The new closing date is September 21, 2009. The additional time will give states, stakeholders, and affected communities the opportunity to provide input on how, whether, and where the Nation's offshore areas should be considered as part of the Nation's energy strategy. Section 18 of the OCS Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1344) specifies a multi- step process of consultation and analysis that must be completed before the Secretary of the Interior may approve a new 5-year program. The required steps following this notice include the development of a proposed program, a proposed final program, and Secretarial approval. Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the MMS also will prepare an EIS for the new 5-year program. The notice in the Federal Register on January 21, 2009 (74 FR 3631) started the formal scoping process for the EIS under 40 CFR 1501.7, and solicited information regarding issues and alternatives that should be evaluated in the EIS. The EIS will analyze the potential impacts of the adoption of the proposed 5-year program.

This notice sets forth the date of the May 2, 2009 meeting of the Flight 93 Advisory Commission.

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.