September 24, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

On June 22, 2009, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau published T.D. TTB-78, which included amendments to the notice requirements applicable to packages of roll-your-own tobacco and pipe tobacco. The temporary regulations provided a use-up period, until August 1, 2009, for manufacturers and importers to continue to remove packages that did not meet the new notice requirements. Those temporary regulations also included a new rule governing when a product in a package bearing the declaration ``pipe tobacco'' would be classified as roll-your-own tobacco for tax purposes. This temporary rule extends the use-up period and delays application of the new classification rule. It also corrects two minor errors in the previously published regulatory texts. We also are soliciting comments from all interested parties on these new amendments through a notice of proposed rulemaking published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.

This action proposes to establish Class E surface airspace and modify existing Class E airspace at Eastern Sierra Regional Airport, Bishop, CA. Additional controlled airspace is necessary to accommodate aircraft using a new Area Navigation (RNAV) Global Positioning System (GPS) Standard Instrument Approach Procedure (SIAP) at Eastern Sierra Regional Airport, Bishop, CA. The FAA is proposing this action to enhance the safety and management of aircraft operations at Eastern Sierra Regional Airport, Bishop, CA.

EPA is proposing to determine that the Chicago (Illinois and Indiana) and Evansville (Indiana) areas have attained the 1997 fine particle (PM2.5) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). The proposed determinations are based upon quality-assured, quality-controlled, and certified ambient air monitoring data that show that the areas have monitored attainment of the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS for the 2006 to 2008 monitoring period. Preliminary data for 2009 suggest that the areas continue to monitor attainment. If these proposed determinations are made final, the requirements for these areas to submit an attainment demonstration and associated reasonably available control measures, a reasonable further progress plan, contingency measures, and other planning State Implementation Plans (SIPs) revisions related to attainment of the standard shall be suspended for so long as the areas continue to attain the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS.

NMFS reopens for 6 days the comment period on the proposed rule to modify the requirements of the Gulf of Maine/Georges Bank (GOM/ GB) Herring Midwater Trawl Gear Letter of Authorization (LOA) for midwater trawl vessels issued All Areas and/or Areas 2 and 3 Atlantic herring limited access permits fishing in Northeast (NE) multispecies Closed Area I (CA I).

The Commission grants a petition for rulemaking filed by WHDH- TV, the licensee of station WHDH-TV, channel 7, Boston, Massachusetts, requesting the substitution of its pre-transition DTV channel 42 for its post-transition DTV channel 7 at Boston.

In the Proposed Rules section of this Federal Register, EPA is proposing approval of Indiana's request to exempt Lake and Porter Counties from the Nitrogen Oxides (NOX) Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) requirement under section 182(f) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) for the 1997 eight-hour ozone standard based on a proposed determination that the area has attained that standard. Based on the proposed approval, EPA is making an interim final determination by this action that, with respect to the NOX RACT requirement, the State, contingent upon continued monitored attainment of the 1997 eight-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS), has corrected the deficiency which was the basis for a sanctions clock. This action will defer the application of the new source offset sanction, which would be imposed on September 24, 2009, and defer the application of the highway funding sanction, which would otherwise apply six months after imposition of the offset sanction. Although this action is effective upon publication, EPA will take comment on this interim final determination as well as on EPA's proposed determination of attainment and proposed approval of the State's requested NOX RACT waiver. EPA will publish a new

EPA is proposing to make a determination, under the Clean Air Act (CAA), that the Chicago-Gary-Lake County, Illinois-Indiana (IL-IN) ozone nonattainment area has attained the 1997 eight-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). This determination is based on complete, quality-assured ambient air quality monitoring data for the period of 2006-2008. Preliminary data for 2009 show that the area continues to attain the standard. EPA is also proposing to approve a request from the State of Indiana to exempt sources of Nitrogen Oxides (NOX) in Lake and Porter Counties from CAA requirements for Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT). The State's NOX RACT waiver request is based on the most recent three years of complete, quality-assured ozone monitoring data, which demonstrate that additional reduction of NOX emissions would not contribute to attainment of the 1997 eight-hour ozone NAAQS in the Chicago-Gary-Lake County, IL-IN area. This action proposes to approve the State's request for a waiver from the NOX RACT requirements for Lake and Porter Counties under the CAA. In the Final Rules section of this Federal Register, EPA is deferring the imposition of sanctions for the State's failure to submit required NOX RACT regulations based on this proposed attainment determination while we complete action on the proposed NOX RACT waiver. This deferral of sanctions will continue unless EPA determines that the area is no longer attaining the 1997 eight-hour ozone NAAQS. However, if EPA proposes and takes final action in the future to redesignate the area to attainment, such action will permanently stop the sanctions clock.

In a document published in the Federal Register on April 16, 2008, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) proposed to amend its adjudication regulations regarding the definition of ``service in the Republic of Vietnam.'' This document withdraws that proposed rule.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is withdrawing a proposed rule published on April 16, 2002, which would have modified the regulations under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Clean Air Act (CAA) to enable the implementation of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) Gold Track Program that was developed under EPA's Project eXcellence in Leadership (Project XL) program. Project XL was a national pilot program that allowed state and local governments, businesses and federal facilities to develop with EPA more cost-effective ways of achieving environmental and public health protection. In exchange, EPA provided regulatory, policy or procedural flexibilities to conduct the pilot experiments. EPA is withdrawing the proposed rule in response to NJDEP's decision not to go forward with the Gold Track Program and not to promulgate an enabling rule. In the rule, EPA proposed to provide New Jersey with authority to provide high-performing companies in New Jersey with the regulatory flexibility to test environmental management strategies designed to produce improved and measurable results. The NJDEP had expressed interest in testing a program designed to achieve environmental excellence through commitments and accountability beyond standard regulatory requirements. Following EPA's April 16, 2002 proposal, the NJDEP communicated to EPA that it did not wish to implement the state rulemaking or the pilot project as originally envisioned. EPA received no public comments on this proposed rule.

EPA is proposing to approve a request submitted by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) on April 1, 2009, to revise the Indiana State Implementation Plan (SIP) for lead (Pb). The State has submitted an update to its Pb maintenance plan for Marion County for continued attainment of the 1.5 micrograms per cubic meter ([mu]g/m\3\) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) promulgated in 1978. This update satisfies section 175A of the Clean Air Act (CAA), and is in accordance with EPA's May 10, 2000 approval of the State's Redesignation Request and Maintenance Plan for the Marion County Pb nonattainment areas. Additionally, this Pb maintenance plan satisfies the requirements for maintenance plans contained in the September 4, 1992 EPA memorandum entitled ``Procedures for Processing Requests to Redesignate Areas to Attainment.''

This document contains proposed regulations regarding the requirements to qualify as a Type III supporting organization that is operated in connection with one or more supported organizations. The regulations reflect changes to the law made by the Pension Protection Act of 2006. The regulations will affect Type III supporting organizations and their supported organizations.

This establishes, amends, suspends, or revokes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.