February 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific cod by American Fisheries Act (AFA) trawl catcher-processors in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the A season allowance of the 2010 Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) specified for AFA trawl catcher-processors in the BSAI.

FMCSA announces its decision to renew the exemptions from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for 15 individuals. FMCSA has statutory authority to exempt individuals from the vision requirement if the exemptions granted will not compromise safety. The Agency has concluded that granting these exemption renewals will provide a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety maintained without the exemptions for these commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.

FMCSA announces that Volvo Trucks North America (Volvo) has applied for an exemption from the Federal requirement for a driver of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) to hold a commercial driver's license (CDL). Volvo requests that the exemption cover one Swedish field-test engineer who will test-drive CMVs for Volvo within the United States. The Volvo employee holds a valid Swedish CDL. Volvo states the exemption is needed to support a Volvo field test to meet future clean air standards, to test-drive Volvo prototype vehicles to verify results in ``real world'' environments, and, if necessary, to deliver the vehicles in the United States. Volvo believes the knowledge and skills tests and training program that Swedish drivers undergo to obtain a Swedish CDL ensures the exemption would provide a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety obtained by complying with the U.S. requirements for a CDL.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), intend to prepare a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) and Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge located in Alameda, Santa Clara, and San Mateo Counties of California. We provide this notice in compliance with our CCP policy to advise other Federal and State agencies, Tribes, and the public of our intentions, and to obtain suggestions and information on the scope of issues to consider in the planning process.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing an order under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the act) permanently debarring Patrick J. Lais from providing services in any capacity to a person that has an approved or pending drug product application. We base this order on a finding that Mr. Lais was convicted of a felony under Federal law for conduct relating to the regulation of a drug product under the act. Mr. Lais has notified FDA that he acquiesces to debarment, and therefore has waived his opportunity for a hearing concerning this action.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). Currently, the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, Department of the Treasury, is soliciting comments concerning the Financial Education and Counseling (FEC) Pilot Program Application.

The Federal Government is currently undertaking a landmark effort to develop an intellectual property enforcement strategy building on the immense knowledge and expertise of the agencies charged with enforcing intellectual property rights. By committing to common goals, the Government will more effectively and efficiently combat intellectual property infringement. In this request for comments, the Government, through the office of the Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (``IPEC''), invites public input and participation in shaping an effective intellectual property enforcement strategy.

On February 18, 2010, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) announced four steps to modernize, reinvigorate, and ease the use and increase the transparency of implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Enacted in 1970, NEPA is a fundamental tool used to harmonize our economic, environmental, and social aspirations and is a cornerstone of our Nation's efforts to protect the environment. NEPA recognizes that many Federal activities affect the environment and mandates that Federal agencies consider the environmental impacts of their proposed actions before acting. Additionally, NEPA emphasizes public involvement in government actions affecting the environment by requiring that the benefits and the risks associated with proposed actions be assessed and publicly disclosed.

On February 18, 2010, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) announced four steps to modernize, reinvigorate, and ease the use and increase the transparency of implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Enacted in 1970, NEPA is a fundamental tool used to harmonize our economic, environmental, and social aspirations and is a cornerstone of our Nation's efforts to protect the environment. NEPA recognizes that many Federal activities affect the environment and mandates that Federal agencies consider the environmental impacts of their proposed actions before acting. Additionally, NEPA emphasizes public involvement in government actions affecting the environment by requiring that the benefits and the risks associated with proposed actions be assessed and publicly disclosed.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is requesting public comment on a revision to the definition of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) in the ``National Institutes of Health Guidelines for Human Stem Cell Research'' (Guidelines).

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that an Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an existing approved collection. The ICR, which is abstracted below, describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden and cost.

EPA is announcing an extension of the original 30-day public comment period for the draft document titled, ``A Framework for Categorizing the Relative Vulnerability of Threatened and Endangered Species to Climate Change'' (EPA/600/R-09/011). This extension is being granted in response to request from interested parties. The document was prepared by the National Center for Environmental Assessment within EPA's Office of Research and Development. This draft document describes an evaluative framework that may be used to categorize the relative vulnerability of species to climate change. To illustrate the use of this framework, it was applied to six U.S. threatened and endangered species: the golden-cheeked warbler, the salt marsh harvest mouse, the Mount Graham red squirrel, the Lahontan cutthroat trout, the desert tortoise and the bald eagle.

Due to extreme weather conditions in the Mid-Atlantic United States, NIST is extending the deadline for proposal submission for its Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program competition to 5 p.m. Eastern time, Friday, February 19, 2010, for SURF Gaithersburg, and noon Mountain Time, Friday, February 19, 2010, for SURF Boulder.

The Advisory Committee on Earthquake Hazards Reduction (ACEHR or Committee), will hold a meeting on Monday, March 15, 2010 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Tuesday, March 16, 2010, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The primary purpose of this meeting is to develop the Committee's draft report to the NIST Director. The agenda may change to accommodate Committee business. The final agenda will be posted on the NEHRP Web site at https://nehrp.gov/.

Under the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972 (5 U.S.C., Appendix, as amended), the Government in the Sunshine Act of 1976 (5 U.S.C. 552b, as amended), and 41 CFR 102-3.150, the Department of Defense announces that the Air University Board of Visitors' meeting will take place on Monday, April 19th, 2010, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m., and Tuesday, April 20th, 2010, from 8 a.m.-8 p.m. The meeting will be held in the Air University Commander's Conference Room located in building 836. Please contact Dr. Dorothy Reed, 334-953-5159 for further details of the meeting location.

The American Petroleum Institute (API), with the assistance of other interested parties, continues to develop standards, both national and international, in several areas. This notice lists the standardization efforts currently being conducted by API committees. The publication of this notice by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on behalf of API is being undertaken as a public service. NIST does not necessarily endorse, approve, or recommend the standards referenced.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Wilmington District, Regulatory Division has received a request for Department of the Army authorization, pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, from Duke Energy Carolinas, LLC, to construct up to three (3) power generating wind turbines within the Pamlico Sound and to conduct research relating to the development of future offshore wind energy projects. This project is located within a 3-mile square area located approximately 7.3 miles west of Avon and 9.1 miles north of Frisco within the Pamlico Sound, NC. In order to maximize exposure to prevailing winds, the turbines will be oriented in a northwest to southeast configuration (NW corner: Lat. 35.23.9.78 N, Long. 75.39.26.32 W/SE corner: Lat. 35.22.4.26 N, Long. 75.38.20.80 W). Construction will require barge-supported equipment to install the foundations supporting the turbines, rock aprons may be installed to protect the base of each structure, and an approximately 6-inch diameter electric cable will be buried within the bottom of Pamlico Sound for connection to an existing, land-based substation near the communities of either Avon, Buxton, Frisco, or Hatteras, NC. Power generated by this project would be supplied to the electric grid on Hatteras Island. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) will conduct research on the project to evaluate water user conflicts, ecological risks, engineering obstacles, and measures to mitigate the effects of the turbines on the public.

The Federal Communications Commission, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork burden invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the following information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520. An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid control number. No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) that does not display a valid control number. Comments are requested concerning (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Commission, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the Commission's burden estimate; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on the respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology and (e) ways to further reduce the information burden for small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees.