May 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Based on affirmative final determinations by the Department of Commerce (the Department) and the International Trade Commission (the ITC), the Department is issuing antidumping duty orders on citric acid and certain citrate salts (citric acid) from Canada and the People's Republic of China (PRC). On May 22, 2009, the ITC notified the Department of its affirmative determinations of material injury to a U.S. industry. See Citric Acid from Canada and China (Investigation Nos. 701-TA-456 and 731-TA-1151-1152 (Final), USITC Publication 4076, May 2009).

The U.S. Department of Commerce will host a two-hour meeting during which senior U.S. government officials will brief the business community on recent developments in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) on energy issues, including the APEC Energy Working Group meeting in Santiago, Chile in April 20-24, 2009. The agenda will feature key outcomes from the Santiago meeting, U.S. objectives for APEC in 2009, including trade and investment priorities, and a discussion on industry engagement and advancing industry's priorities in APEC through effective public-private partnerships.

The Presidential Memorandum on Government Contracting, issued on March 4, 2009, establishes a framework for improving critical components of the federal acquisition system and management of the Federal Government's ``multi-sector'' workforce of federal employees and private sector contractors. The Memorandum directs the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in consultation with federal agency leadership, to improve and strengthen federal contracting practices and to seek input from the public on the most effective ways to achieve this goal. Section 321 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2009 further directs OMB to clarify the definition of an inherently governmental function and to develop criteria to be used by agency heads to identify other functions that should only be performed by Federal employees. The Presidential Memorandum is available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefingroom/ PresidentialActions/pg2/. Section 321 may be found at https:// www.rules.house.gov/110/text/110_hr5658.pdf.

The Department of Commerce has received requests to conduct administrative reviews of various antidumping and countervailing duty orders and findings with April anniversary dates. In accordance with the Department's regulations, we are initiating those administrative reviews.

The draft supplement no. 2 will be prepared in conjunction with a general reevaluation report (GRR) and will supplement the ``Final Supplement to the Final Environmental Impact Statement, West Tennessee Tributaries Project (Obion-Forked Deer River Basin),'' filed with the Environmental Protection Agency on February 25, 1983. A general reevaluation study will be conducted for the entire WTT project area to determine if there is still a federal interest in pursuing a flood risk management project and, if so, recommend a plan of improvement. The GRR and draft supplement no. 2 to the final environmental impact statement (FEIS) will focus on methods that reduce flood risks within the Obion and Forked Deer watersheds by restoring natural floodplain functions and reducing sedimentation that could cause channel blockages.

EPA published a final rule in the Federal Register on May 22, 2008, that made technical corrections to five test methods. Inadvertent printing errors were made in the publication. Text insertions were misplaced, duplicate insertions were made, and the definition for system bias was inadvertently revised. The purpose of this action is to correct these errors.

The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) published in the Federal Register of January 15, 2009, an interim final rule with request for comment amending the program regulations for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to incorporate programmatic changes authorized by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Act). On March 12, 2009, CCC corrected language in the interim final rule regarding the erroneous application of the payment limitation provisions to joint operations, and extended the comment period to April 17, 2009. This document amends the interim final rule by expanding the ability of CCC to include an expansion of the exception regarding conservation practices on public land. CCC is also using the opportunity presented by this rulemaking to extend the comment period. However, the extended comment period is limited to the provisions in this amendment.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces the adoption of its Endangered Species Act (ESA) Recovery Plan (Recovery Plan) for the Lake Ozette Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESU). This Recovery Plan was prepared by NMFS' Northwest Region and underwent public review. The final Recovery Plan for Lake Ozette Sockeye contains revisions and additions in consideration of public comments received on the draft Recovery Plan.

Based on documentation submitted by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or ``we'') determined that between 2006 and 2008, DOE operated the WIPP facility in compliance with applicable Federal statutes, regulations, and permit requirements designated in Section 9(a)(1) of the WIPP Land Withdrawal Act, as amended. The Secretary of Energy was notified of the determination via a letter from EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson dated May 22, 2009.

NMFS announces the approval of an amended marine conservation plan (MCP) for the Northern Mariana Islands.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency is announcing the 2009 Annual Meeting of the Ozone Transport Commission (OTC). This OTC meeting will explore options available for reducing ground-level ozone precursors in a multi-pollutant context.

Pursuant to section 7(b)(5) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. 1817(b)(5), the FDIC is adopting a final rule to impose a 5 basis point special assessment on each insured depository institution's assets minus Tier 1 capital as of June 30, 2009. The amount of the special assessment for any institution, however, will not exceed 10 basis points times the institution's assessment base for the second quarter 2009 risk-based assessment. The special assessment will be collected on September 30, 2009. The final rule also provides that if, after June 30, 2009, the reserve ratio of the Deposit Insurance Fund is estimated to fall to a level that the Board believes would adversely affect public confidence or to a level that shall be close to or below zero at the end of any calendar quarter, the Board, by vote, may impose additional special assessments of up to 5 basis points on all insured depository institutions based on each institution's total assets minus Tier 1 capital reported on the report of condition for that calendar quarter. Any single additional special assessment will not exceed 10 basis points times the institution's assessment base for the corresponding quarter's risk-based assessment. The earliest possible date for imposing any such additional special assessment under the final rule would be September 30, 2009, with collection on December 30, 2009. The latest possible date for imposing any such additional special assessment under the final rule would be December 31, 2009, with collection on March 30, 2010. Authority to impose any additional special assessments under the final rule terminates on January 1, 2010.

The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled, in accordance with the procedures published on December 1, 2006 (71 FR 69535-69538), has updated the scope of the Program's procurement preference requirements for the products listed below between and among the Committee's A-list, B-list and C-list. A- list products are suitable for the Total Government Requirement as aggregated by the General Services Administration, the B-list are those products suitable for the Broad Government Requirement as aggregated by the General Services Administration, and C-list products are suitable for the requirements of one or more specified agency(ies). The lists below track changes to A-, B-, C-designations that occurred between November 20, 2008 and February 10, 2009.

The Committee is proposing to add to the Procurement List products and services to be furnished by nonprofit agencies employing persons who are blind or have other severe disabilities. Comments Must be Received on or Before: June 29, 2009.

The Audio Division, at the request of Henry B. Shaffer, allots Channel 260A at Williston, South Carolina, as the community's second local FM service. Channel 260A can be allotted to Williston, South Carolina, in compliance with the Commission's minimum distance separation requirements with a site restriction of 18.2 kilometers (11.3 miles) east of Williston. The coordinates for Channel 260A at Williston, South Carolina, are 41-31-30 North Latitude and 120-19-45 West Longitude.

The Audio Division grants a Petition for Rule Making issued at the request of Keilly Miller, proposing the allotments of Channel 259A at Beatty, Nevada, and Channel 262C1 at Goldfield, Nevada, as first local FM transmission services. A staff engineering analysis indicates that Channel 259A can be allotted to Beatty consistent with the minimum distance separation requirements of the Rules with a site restriction 8.6 kilometers (5.3 miles) west located at reference coordinates 36-56-05 NL and 116-51-00 WL. Moreover, Channel 262C1 can be allotted to Goldfield consistent with the minimum distance separation requirements of the Commission's Rules (the ``Rules'') with a site restriction 0.6 kilometers (0.4 miles) northeast of the community located at reference coordinates 37-42-41 NL and 117-13-56 WL.