April 13, 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Coast Guard is withdrawing its correction published on March 29, 2012, to a direct final rule published on December 14, 2011 and withdrawn on April 6, 2012. The correction was published to correct an inadvertent transposition in the titles of two tables in our amendatory instructions and to publish vessel inspection tables in their entirety so that the format of the tables would be consistent with current Federal Register format requirements. The direct final rule was withdrawn on April 6, 2012, because we received two adverse comments and the direct final rule will not become effective as scheduled. Therefore, we must also withdraw the vessel inspection tables published as part of the correction because they are not consistent with the current regulatory text.

The Coast Guard has issued a temporary deviation from the operating schedules that govern the SR 529 Bridge across the Snohomish River, mile 3.6 near Everett, WA. and the SR 529 Bridge across Steamboat Slough, mile 1.1, near Marysville, WA. This deviation is necessary to accommodate the Total Health Events Heros Half Marathon scheduled for April 29, 2012. This deviation allows the bridges to remain in the closed position to allow safe movement of event participants.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) publishes this final rule, which amends the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) by establishing a new Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) series, 0Y521, on the Commerce Control List (CCL) and makes corresponding changes to the EAR. The ECCN 0Y521 series will be used for items that warrant control on the CCL but are not yet identified in an existing ECCN. As BIS explained in the proposed rule issued on July 15, 2011 (76 FR 41958), this new temporary holding classification is equivalent to United States Munitions List (USML) Category XXI (Miscellaneous Articles), but with a limitation that while an item is temporarily classified under ECCN 0Y521, the U.S. Government works to adopt a control through the relevant multilateral regime(s); to determine an appropriate longer-term control over the item; or determines that the item does not warrant control on the CCL. Items will be added to the 0Y521 ECCNs by the Department of Commerce, with the concurrence of the Departments of Defense and State, when it identifies an item that should be controlled because it provides a significant military or intelligence advantage to the United States or because foreign policy reasons justify such control. The 0Y521 series was described in the July 15, 2011 proposed rule that identified a framework for how articles, which the President determines, as part of the Administration's Export Control Reform Initiative, no longer warrant control on the USML would be controlled under the CCL. In this rule, however, the 0Y521 provisions are being published in final form, with necessary corresponding changes, separate from the other July 15 rule proposals. Public comments on the other July 15 proposals remain under BIS review.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is taking final action on two of six technical amendments that were withdrawn in a June 4, 2010, Federal Register partial withdrawal notice. The two amendments that are the subject of today's final rule are: A correction of the typographical error in the entry ``K107'' in a table listing hazardous wastes from specific sources; and a conforming change to alert certain recycling facilities that they have existing certification and notification requirements under the Land Disposal Restrictions regulations. The other four amendments that were withdrawn in the June 2010 partial withdrawal notice will remain withdrawn unless and until EPA determines action is warranted in the future.

This final rule amends the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation's regulation on Benefits Payable in Terminated Single- Employer Plans to prescribe interest assumptions under the regulation for valuation dates in May 2012. The interest assumptions are used for paying benefits under terminating single-employer plans covered by the pension insurance system administered by PBGC.

We are adopting as a final rule, without change, an interim rule that amended the Karnal bunt regulations to make changes to the list of areas or fields regulated because of Karnal bunt, a fungal disease of wheat. Specifically, we removed areas and fields in Riverside County, CA, from the list of regulated areas based on our determination that those fields or areas meet our criteria for release from regulation. The interim rule was necessary to relieve restrictions on certain areas that were no longer necessary.

The Commander, Seventh Coast Guard District, has issued temporary deviations from the regulations governing the operation of the following two bridges that span across the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in Fort Lauderdale, Florida: The East Sunrise Boulevard (SR 838) Bridge, mile 1062.6; and the East Las Olas Bridge, mile 1064. The deviations are necessary due to the high volume of vessel and vehicle traffic anticipated during the Lauderdale Air Show. With the exception of opening for passage of public vessels of the United States, vessels in distress, and tugs with tows, the bridges will not open in the evening during during the Lauderdale Air Show.

EPA is approving a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Delaware. This revision amends the control of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from industrial cleaning solvents facilities; automobile and light-duty truck coating operations; paper, film, and foil coating units; flat wood paneling products; and flexible packaging printing presses. EPA is approving this SIP revision to meet the requirements to implement reasonably available control technology (RACT) controls on emission sources covered by EPA's control techniques guidelines (CTG) in accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is proposing to amend the Farm Loan Programs (FLP) regulations for loan making and servicing, specifically those on real estate appraisals, lease, subordination and disposition of security, and Conservation Contract requirements. FSA is proposing the changes to streamline the loan making and servicing process and give the borrower greater flexibility while protecting the financial interests of the Government.

Title X of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act transferred rulemaking authority for a number of consumer financial protection laws to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (``CFPB''). As a result, the Commission is rescinding the following rules under the Fair Credit Reporting Act: ``[Identity Theft] Definitions''; ``Free Annual File Disclosures Rule''; ``Prohibition Against Circumventing Treatment as a Nationwide Consumer Reporting Agency''; ``Duration of Active Duty Alerts''; and ``Appropriate Proof of Identity.'' In addition, the Commission is rescinding two rules addressing mortgage advertising and mortgage assistance relief services under the 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act: ``Mortgage Acts and Practices-Advertising Rule'' and ``Mortgage Assistance Relief Services Rule.'' The Commission is also rescinding its rules governing ``Disclosure Requirements for Depository Institutions Lacking Federal Deposit Insurance'' under the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act and its ``Procedures for State Application for Exemption from the Provisions of the [Federal Debt Collection Practices] Act.'' These rules have been republished by the CFPB.

This amendment revises the Department of Labor's (DOL) regulations governing administrative claims submitted to DOL pursuant to the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), the Military Personnel and Civilian Employees' Claims Act (MPCECA), and for payment of claims arising out of the operation of the Job Corps. The regulations governing such claims were last revised in 1995. MPCECA has since been amended to allow payment of up to $100,000 if the claim arose from an emergency or extraordinary circumstance. Further, the implementing authority for the Job Corps was changed to the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) since the last time the regulations were updated. These regulations are being amended to reflect those changes, improve the clarity and ease of use of the regulations, and to harmonize the regulations governing these claims between those regulations in titles 20 and 29 of the CFR, which includes deleting the references to these claims in 20 CFR part 638 as these revisions have rendered those sections unnecessary. Finally, the regulations in title 20 have also been updated to reflect the recently revised regulations regarding claims of Job Corps students under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA).

This action delays the effective date and reopens the comment period for a Direct Final Rule that was published on February 16, 2012 (77 FR 9163). In that document, the FAA published amendments to remove the definitions of Category IIIa, IIIb, and IIIc operations because the definitions are outdated and no longer used for aircraft certification or operational authorization. The International Aviation Civil Organization (ICAO) has requested additional time to adequately analyze the Direct Final Rule and prepare comments.

We solicit public comment on possible revisions to regulations under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act for permits to take eagles where the take is associated with, but not the purpose of, otherwise lawful activities. During the 2 years that the regulations have been in effect, some stakeholders have expressed concerns with some provisions of the rule. We are giving interested members of the public the opportunity to review the regulations and recommend revisions that would create a more efficient permit process while continuing to adequately protect eagles.

The United States EPA is proposing new source performance standards for emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) for new affected fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating units (EGUs). The EPA is proposing these requirements because CO2 is a greenhouse gas (GHG) and fossil fuel-fired power plants are the country's largest stationary source emitters of GHGs. The EPA in 2009 found that by causing or contributing to climate change, GHGs endanger both the public health and the public welfare of current and future generations. The proposed requirements, which are strictly limited to new sources, would require new fossil fuel-fired EGUs greater than 25 megawatt electric (MWe) to meet an output-based standard of 1,000 pounds of CO2 per megawatt-hour (lb CO2/MWh), based on the performance of widely used natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) technology. Because of the economics of the energy sector, the EPA and others project that NGCC will be the predominant choice for new fossil fuel-fired generation even absent this rule. In its base case analysis, the EPA does not project any new coal-fired EGUs without CCS to be built in the absence of this proposal through 2030. New coal- fired or pet coke-fired units could meet the standard either by employing carbon capture and storage (CCS) \1\ of approximately 50% of the CO2 in the exhaust gas at startup, or through later application of more effective CCS to meet the standard on average over a 30-year period. The 30-year averaging option could also provide flexibility for owners and operators of coal or pet coke units implementing CCS at the outset of the unit's operation that were designed and operated to emit at less than 1,000 lb CO2/MWh to address startup concerns or short term interruptions in their ability to sequester captured carbon dioxide. The EPA is not proposing standards of performance for existing EGUs whose CO2 emissions increase as a result of installation of pollution controls for conventional pollutants, or for proposed EGUs, which are referred to here as transitional sources, that have acquired a complete preconstruction permit by the time of this proposal and that commence construction within 12 months of this proposal. As a result, those sources would not be subject to the standards of performance proposed in today's rule.