March 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This rule amends the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) by revising controls to advance U.S. homeland security and foreign policy interests. The revisions include language that should facilitate public understanding of how concealed object detection equipment is treated for purposes of U.S. Government export controls, in particular by detailing the technical parameters of concealed object detection equipment that is subject to the Export Administration Regulations. These amendments reflect issues identified by an interagency working group that is reviewing export control issues related to homeland security. The interagency working group is made up of representatives from the Departments of Commerce, Defense, Homeland Security and State. The purpose of the interagency working group is to ensure that appropriate export controls are in place to protect U.S. export control interests for homeland security related items, while at the same time facilitating the development, production and use of items that will enhance U.S. homeland security and the homeland security of key U.S. allies. To help accomplish these objectives, this rule adds three new entries to the Commerce Control List (CCL) to control certain concealed object detection equipment operating in the frequency range from 30 GHz to 3000 GHz and related software and technology. In addition, to facilitate the export and reexport of these items to certain trusted destinations and end-users, this rule adds new license review criteria to the EAR to create a presumption of approval for certain cooperating countries provided the items are being made to a government end-user or to a person designated by the government end-user pursuant to contract.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for PW Model PW2037, PW2037(M), and PW2040 turbofan engines. This proposed AD would require removing erosion damage on fan blades with cutback leading edges and restoring the leading edge contour. This proposed AD results from reports from PW that fan blade leading edge erosion can result in a fan thrust deterioration mode (FTDM) condition, which reduces the engine's capability of producing full rated take-off thrust. We are proposing this AD to prevent loss of engine thrust from an FTDM condition, which could result in an inability to maintain safe flight.

Requirement R1.3.10 of the Commission-approved transmission planning Reliability Standard TPL-002-0 provides that planning authorities and transmission planners must consider in their planning studies the effects of the operation of their protection systems, including backup and redundant protection systems. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), the Commission-certified electric reliability organization, requests approval of an interpretation of Reliability Standard TPL-002-0. In this order, the Commission proposes to reject NERC's proposed interpretation of Requirement R1.3.10 of Reliability Standard TPL-002-0 and, instead, proposes an alternative interpretation of the provision.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is proposing to amend its adjudication regulations concerning presumptive service connection for certain diseases based upon the most recent National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Institute of Medicine committee report, Veterans and Agent Orange: Update 2008 (Update 2008). This proposed amendment is necessary to implement a decision of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs that there is a positive association between exposure to herbicides and the subsequent development of hairy cell leukemia and other chronic B- cell leukemias, Parkinson's disease, and ischemic heart disease. The intended effect of this proposed amendment is to establish presumptive service connection for these diseases based on herbicide exposure.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for the products listed above. This AD results from mandatory continuing airworthiness information (MCAI) originated by an aviation authority of another country to identify and correct an unsafe condition on an aviation product. The MCAI describes the unsafe condition as:

In this document, we begin a new proceeding to improve the transparency and effectiveness of the Commission's decisionmaking by reforming our ex parte rules. The ex parte process allows parties in most Commission proceedings to speak directly (or have written communications) with Commission staff and decisionmakers, providing a way to have an interactive dialogue that can root out areas of concern,

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is granting in part and denying in part the requests for rehearing and clarification of its determinations in Order No. 697-C, which granted rehearing and clarification of certain revisions to Commission regulations and to the standards for obtaining and retaining market-based rate authority for sales of energy, capacity and ancillary services to ensure that such sales are just and reasonable.

SBA is amending its disaster assistance regulations to reflect statutory changes to the disaster assistance program contained in the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (the Farm Act). Except for several grammatical corrections, this direct final rule conforms the regulations to the Farm Act by adopting the new statutory requirements without change.

The Audio Division denies the petition for rule making filed by Katherine Pyeatt, proposing the allotment of Channel 280A at Stonewall, Texas, as the community's first local transmission service. The reason for the denial is that the proposal is mutually exclusive with a prior-filed and cut-off application for FM Station KXXS that includes a proposal to substitute Channel 280A for Channel 223A at Burnet, Texas. It is Commission policy to protect applications against subsequently-filed and conflicting rule-making proposals. For that reason, the Audio Division denied the petition for rule making and terminated the proceeding without adoption of a final rule.

DoD is issuing the updated Charter of the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA), dated May 14, 2007. The ASBCA is chartered to serve as the authorized representative of the Secretary of Defense and the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force in hearing, considering, and determining appeals by contractors from decisions of contracting officers or their authorized representatives or other authorities regarding claims on contracts under the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 or other remedy-granting provisions.

This regulation establishes tolerances for residues of clopyralid in or on Swiss chard and bushberry subgroup 13-07B. This regulation additionally amends an existing tolerance in or on strawberry. Interregional Research Project Number 4 (IR-4) requested these tolerances under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).

This action changes the using agency of restricted areas R- 3005A, R-3005B, R-3005C, R-3005D and R-3005E, Fort Stewart, GA, to ``Commander, U.S. Army Garrison, Fort Stewart, GA.'' There are no changes to the boundaries; designated altitudes; time of designation; or activities conducted within the affected restricted area.

The Commission proposes to direct the Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) to revise its definition of the term ``bulk electric system'' to include all electric transmission facilities with a rating of 100 kV or above. The Commission proposes that a Regional Entity must seek ERO and Commission approval before exempting any facility rated at 100 kV or above from compliance with mandatory Reliability Standards. The Commission believes that a 100 kV threshold for identifying bulk electric system facilities will protect the reliability of the bulk electric system. The proposal would also provide consistency across the nation's reliability regions regarding the identification of bulk electric system facilities.

This document contains technical corrections to the final regulations, which were published in the Federal Register on Monday, March 1, 2010. The regulations related to terminating the provisions of the Nitrogen Oxides (NOX) Budget Trading Program that apply to electric generating units (EGUs) in Illinois.

In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, the information collection requirements associated with Sec. 25.146 of the Commission's rules, and that this rule will take effect as of the date of this document. On July 25, 2003, the Commission published the summary document of the Fourth Memorandum Opinion and Order, In the Matter of Amendment of Parts 2 and 25 of the Commission's Rules to Permit Operation of NGSO FSS Systems Co-Frequency with GSO and Terrestrial Systems in the Ku-Band Frequency Range; Amendment of the Commission's Rules to Authorize Subsidiary Terrestrial Use of the 12.2- 12.7 GHz Band by Direct Broadcast Satellite Licensees and Their Affiliates; and Applications of Broadwave USA, PDC Broadband Corporation and Satellite Receivers, Ltd. To Provide a Fixed Service in the 12.2-12.7 GHz Band, ET Docket No. 98-206, FCC 03-97, at 68 FR 43942. This published item stated that the Commission will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing when OMB approval for the rule section which contains information collection requirements has been received and when the revised rule will take effect. This document is consistent with the statement in the published summary document of the Fourth Memorandum Opinion and Order.

Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs are made final for the communities listed below. The BFEs and modified BFEs are the basis for the floodplain management measures that each community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of being already in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will hold a public meeting to discuss and receive comments on: the product classes that DOE plans to analyze for purposes of establishing energy conservation standards for fluorescent lamp ballasts; the analytical framework, models, and tools that DOE is using to evaluate standards for these products; the results of preliminary analyses DOE performed for these products; and potential energy conservation standard levels derived from these analyses that DOE could consider for these products. DOE encourages written comments on these subjects. To inform interested parties and facilitate this process, DOE has prepared an agenda, a preliminary technical support document (TSD), and briefing materials, which are available at https://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance standards/residential/fluorescentlampballasts.html.

The Postal Service is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM[supreg]) 705.16 to reflect changes and updates for Express Mail[supreg] Open and Distribute and Priority Mail[supreg] Open and Distribute to improve efficiencies in processing and to control costs.

In this action, EPA is amending the transportation conformity rule to finalize provisions that were proposed on May 15, 2009. These amendments primarily affect conformity's implementation in PM2.5 and PM10 nonattainment and maintenance areas. EPA is updating the transportation conformity regulation in light of an October 17, 2006 final rule that strengthened the 24-hour PM2.5 national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) and revoked the annual PM10 NAAQS. In addition, EPA is

This document adopts as a final rule, interim amendments to title 19 of the Code of Federal Regulations (``19 CFR'') which were published in the Federal Register on January 16, 2009, as CBP Dec. 09- 01 to implement the prohibitions and conditions for importation of Burmese and non-Burmese covered articles of jadeite, rubies, and articles of jewelry containing jadeite or rubies.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is publishing this final rule to amend the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to implement the understandings reached at the September 2009 plenary meeting of the Australia Group (AG). This rule also amends the EAR to implement a decision recommended at the 2009 AG Plenary that was adopted under the AG intersessional silent approval procedures in October 2009.

EPA is proposing to determine that the Coso Junction nonattainment area (CJNA) in California has attained the 24-hour National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal 10 micrometers (PM-10). This proposed determination is based upon monitored air quality data for the PM-10 NAAQS during the years 2006- 2008. In addition, data for 2009 contained in EPA's Air Quality System (AQS) shows the CJNA continued to attain the PM-10 NAAQS through 2009, and preliminary data for 2010 available to date show no exceedances of the 24-hour NAAQS have been recorded at the CJNA monitoring site. EPA is also proposing to determine that, because the CJNA has attained the PM-10 NAAQS, the obligation to make submissions to meet certain Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) requirements is not applicable for as long as the CJNA continues to attain the PM-10 NAAQS.

This document summarizes the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rule agreed to by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) in this Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-40. A companion document, the Small Entity Compliance Guide (SECG), follows this FAC. The FAC, including the SECG, is available via the Internet at https://www.regulations.gov.

The Commission grants the allotment of channel 4 to Atlantic City, New Jersey. The Commission waived the freeze on the filing of new DTV allotments to initiate this proceeding and to advance the policy, as set forth in section 331(a) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, to allocate not less than one very high frequency commercial television channel to each State, if technically feasible.