February 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We are amending rules under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Securities Act of 1933 to clarify and provide additional flexibility regarding the format of the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials that is sent to shareholders and to permit issuers and other soliciting persons to better communicate with shareholders by including explanatory materials regarding the reasons for the use of the notice and access proxy rules and the process of receiving and reviewing proxy materials and voting pursuant to the notice and access proxy rules. The amendments also revise the timeframe for delivering a Notice to shareholders when a soliciting person other than the issuer relies on the notice and access proxy rules and permit mutual funds to accompany the Notice with a summary prospectus.

EPA has received applications to register pesticide products containing an active ingredient not included in any previously registered pesticide products. Pursuant to the provisions of section 3(c)(4) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), EPA is hereby providing notice of receipt and opportunity to comment on these applications.

The FHWA is issuing this notice to advise the public that an environmental impact statement will be prepared for a proposed transportation project in Cook County, Illinois.

This notice announces that a public meeting of the Medicare Evidence Development & Coverage Advisory Committee (MEDCAC) (``Committee'') will be held on Wednesday, April 21, 2010. The Committee generally provides advice and recommendations concerning the adequacy of scientific evidence needed to determine whether certain medical items and services should be covered under the Medicare statute. This meeting will focus on the currently available evidence regarding the risks, benefits, and outcomes of radiation therapy, inclusive of external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and brachytherapy, for the treatment of localized prostate cancer. This meeting is open to the public in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 2, section 10(a)).

The Acting Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Regulatory Information Management Services, Office of Management invites comments on the submission for OMB review as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The Glenn/Colusa County Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) will meet in Willows, California. Agenda items covered include: (1) Introductions, (2) Approve Minutes, (3) RAC Admin Updates, (4) Public Comment, (5) FY08 and FY09 New Project Presentations and Voting if Time Allows, (6) FY10 New Project Presentations and Voting if Time Allows, (7) General Discussion, (8) Meeting Schedule, (9) Adjourn.

This notice sets forth the schedule and summary agenda for a partially closed meeting of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), and describes the functions of the Council. Notice of this meeting is required under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C., App.

Section 1128(b) of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA) amended the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 (Safety and Soundness Act) to provide for the establishment, monitoring and enforcement of new affordable housing goals effective for 2010 and 2011 for the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) (collectively, the Enterprises). Section 1332(a) of the Safety and Soundness Act, as amended by HERA, requires the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to establish three single-family owner- occupied purchase money mortgage goals and a single-family refinancing mortgage goal. Section 1333(a) of the Safety and Soundness Act requires FHFA to establish a multifamily special affordable housing goal, as well as providing for a multifamily special affordable housing subgoal. FHFA is issuing and seeking comments on a proposed rule that would establish new affordable housing goals for 2010 and 2011, consistent with the Safety and Soundness Act, as amended. The proposed rule would also revise and update the rules for counting mortgages for purposes of the affordable housing goals to ensure clarity and consistency with the new goals.

The Office of Citizen Exchanges, Youth Programs Division, of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) announces an open competition for the Youth Ambassadors Program with North America, Central America and the Caribbean. Public and private non-profit organizations meeting the provisions described in Internal Revenue Code section 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3) may submit proposals to recruit and select youth and adult participants, to provide them with three-week exchanges focused on civic education, community service, and leadership, and to support follow-on projects in their home communities. It is anticipated that exchange delegations will travel from select countries to the United States, and that U.S. exchange delegations will travel to select countries.

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator), has made a preliminary determination that the subject Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) application for the Northeast Fisheries Science Center's (NEFSC) Study Fleet Program contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. The EFP would exempt fishing vessels from minimum fish sizes and possession and landing limits for the purpose of collecting fishery dependent catch data and biological samples.

We (Fish and Wildlife Service) will ask the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve the information collection (IC) described below. As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, we invite the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on this IC. This IC is scheduled to expire on November 30, 2010. We may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

On November 9, 2009, the Department of Commerce (the Department) published in the Federal Register the preliminary results of the administrative review of the antidumping duty order on carbon and certain alloy steel wire rod from Trinidad and Tobago. See Carbon and Certain Alloy Steel Wire Rod From Trinidad and Tobago; Preliminary Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 74 FR 57648 (November 9, 2009) (Preliminary Results). We gave interested parties an opportunity to comment on the Preliminary Results, and received no comments.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) retained ICF International (ICF) to perform an independent study of the burden of patent-related paperwork, beginning with a report describing the methodologies for performing such a study (Methodology Report). ICF has now provided the USPTO with its Methodology Report, in which ICF

The Commission hereby gives notice of the scheduling of an expedited review pursuant to section 751(c)(3) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1675(c)(3)) (the Act) to determine whether revocation of the antidumping duty order on hand trucks and certain parts thereof from China would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury within a reasonably foreseeable time. The Commission has determined to exercise its authority to extend the review period by up to 90 days pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1675(c)(5)(B). For further information concerning the conduct of this review and rules of general application, consult the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure, part 201, subparts A through E (19 CFR part 201), and part 207, subparts A, D, E, and F (19 CFR part 207).

This document announces the procedures and minimum opening bids for the upcoming auction of Lower and Upper Bands Licenses (Auction 87). This document is intended to familiarize prospective bidders with the procedures and minimum opening bids for the auction.

NMFS has received an application from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (L-DEO), a part of Columbia University, for an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to take small numbers of marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to conducting a marine seismic survey in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) during April to June 2010. Pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), NMFS requests comments on its proposal to authorize L-DEO to incidentally take, by Level B harassment only, small numbers of marine mammals during the aforementioned activity.

NMFS is announcing the opening and closing dates of the Atka mackerel directed fisheries within the harvest limit area (HLA) in Statistical Area 542 (area 542) and Statistical Area 543 (area 543). This action is necessary to fully use the 2010 A season HLA limits of Atka mackerel in areas 542 and 543 of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) hereby gives notice that it has submitted the following information collection request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Emergency Processing under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). FRA requests that OMB authorize the collection of information identified below on or before March 15, 2010, for 180 days after the date of approval by OMB. A copy of this ICR, with applicable supporting documentation, may be obtained by calling FRA's Clearance Officers, Mr. Robert Brogan (tel. (202) 493-6292) or Ms. Kimberly Toone (tel. (202) 493-6132). These numbers are not toll-free. A copy of this ICR may also be obtained electronically by contacting Mr. Brogan at Robert.Brogan@dot.gov or by contacting Ms. Toone at Kimberly.Toone@dot.gov. Comments and questions about the ICR identified below should be directed to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), Attn: FRA OMB Desk Officer, 725 17th St., NW., Washington, DC 20503. Comments and questions about the ICR identified below may also be transmitted electronically to OIRA at oira_ submissions@omb.eop.gov.

FRA announces the forty-first meeting of the RSAC, a Federal Advisory Committee that develops railroad safety regulations through a consensus process. This meeting has been rescheduled from the weather- postponed February 11, 2010, meeting (75 FR 3959). The RSAC meeting topics will include opening remarks from the FRA Associate Administrator for Railroad Safety, and status reports will be provided by representatives from the following Working Groups: Conductor Certification, Passenger Safety, Track Safety Standards, and Medical Standards Working Groups. Status updates will be provided on the following tasks arising out of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (RSIA): Positive Train Control, Passenger Hours of Service, and Railroad Bridge Safety Management. A new task regarding minimum training standards may be offered to the Committee for consideration. FRA may request the Committee's agreement to consider one or more items of business by mail ballot, including proposed requirements for passenger system safety programs. This agenda is subject to change, including the possible addition of further proposed tasks under the RSIA.