February 5, 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

EPA is proposing disapproval of revisions to the SIP for the State of Texas that relate to Emergency Orders. This includes portions of SIP revisions that relate to Emergency Orders that were submitted by Texas on August 31, 1993; December 10, 1998; February 1, 2006; and July 17, 2006. EPA is proposing disapproval of these revisions because these regulations do not meet the requirement of the Clean Air Act (the ``Act'' or ``CAA''), EPA regulations, and applicable policy and guidance. EPA is proposing this action under section 110 and parts C and D of Title I of the Act. EPA is returning the non-air portions of the aforementioned SIP submittals to the State because these provisions cannot be included in the SIP.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing a final regulation that adopts, without change, the interim final rule (IFR) entitled ``Criteria Used to Order Administrative Detention of Food for Human or Animal Consumption'' that published in the Federal Register on May 5, 2011, (the 2011 IFR). This final rule affirms the IFR's change to the criteria for ordering administrative detention of human or animal food as required by the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Under the new criteria, FDA can order an administrative detention if there is reason to believe that an article of food is adulterated or misbranded. This final rule does not make any changes to the regulatory requirements established by the IFR. The final regulation also responds to comments submitted in response to the request for comments in the IFR.

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) establishes the approximately 74,900-acre ``Elkton Oregon'' viticultural area in Douglas County, Oregon. The viticultural area lies totally within the Umpqua Valley viticultural area and the multi-county Southern Oregon viticultural area. TTB designates viticultural areas to allow vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow consumers to better identify wines they may purchase.

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) establishes the approximately 4,800-square mile ``Indiana Uplands'' viticultural area in south-central Indiana. TTB also modifies the boundary of the established 26,000-square mile Ohio River Valley viticultural area to eliminate a potential overlap with the Indiana Uplands viticultural area. The modification decreases the size of the Ohio River Valley viticultural area by approximately 1,530 square miles. TTB designates viticultural areas to allow vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow consumers to better identify wines they may purchase.

We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain DASSAULT AVIATION Model MYSTERE-FALCON 900 and FALCON 900EX airplanes. This proposed AD was prompted by reports of chafing between the tail strobe power supply and a hydraulic line. This proposed AD would require modifying the tail strobe power supply wire routing. We are proposing this AD to prevent chafing between the tail strobe power supply and a hydraulic line, which could result in hydraulic fluid leakage and possible fire due to arcing, and consequent loss of control of the airplane due to structural failure of the tail.

The Coast Guard proposes to add three new fireworks events and to correct the location of five existing events to ensure public safety during annual firework displays at various locations in the Captain of the Port (COTP), Puget Sound Area of Responsibility (AOR). When these safety zones are activated and subject to enforcement, this rule would limit the movement of vessels within the established firework display areas. These additions and corrections are necessary to prevent injury and to protect life and property of the maritime public from hazards associated with firework displays.

This document contains corrections to a notice of proposed rulemaking (REG-141066-09) that was published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, December 18, 2012 (77 FR 74798). The proposed regulations provide comprehensive guidance for the award program authorized under the Internal Revenue Code section 7623, as amended. The regulations provide guidance on submitting information regarding underpayments of tax or violations of the internal revenue laws and filing claims for award, as well as on the administrative proceedings applicable to claims for award under section 7623.

This rule would increase the assessment rate established for the South Texas Onion Committee (Committee) for the 2012-13 and subsequent fiscal periods from $0.025 to $0.03 per 50-pound equivalent of onions handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of onions grown in South Texas. Assessments upon onion handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period begins August 1 and ends July 31. The assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

Data used for comparison with the lead (Pb) national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS), must be collected using either a Federal Reference Method (FRM) or a Federal Equivalent Method (FEM) as defined in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The EPA is proposing to establish a new FRM for measuring Pb in total suspended particulate matter (TSP) collected from ambient air. The proposed method is intended for use by analytical laboratories performing the analysis of Pb in TSP to support data collection for the Pb NAAQS. The EPA is also proposing to make the existing FRM for Pb a new FEM, and retain currently designated FEMs. This proposed action avoids any disruption to existing Pb monitoring networks and data collection and would also not affect the FRM for TSP sample collection (High-Volume Method).

In this document, the Commission adopts interim rules prohibiting all referrals for rewards programs (as described in the synopsis below) and any other form of direct or indirect inducements, financial or otherwise, to subscribe to or use, or encourage subscription to or use of, Internet Protocol Captioned Telephone Service (IP CTS); requiring each IP CTS provider, as a precondition to providing service to new IP CTS users, to register each new IP CTS user, to obtain from the user, as part of the registration process, self-certification that the user has a hearing loss that necessitates IP CTS to communicate in a manner that is functionally equivalent to communication by conventional voice telephone users, and where the consumer accepts IP CTS equipment at a price below $75 from any source other than a governmental program, to also obtain from the user a certification from an independent, third party professional attesting to the same; and requiring IP CTS providers to ensure that equipment and software used in conjunction with their service have a default setting of captions off at the beginning of each call, so that the consumer must take an affirmative step to turn on the captions each time the consumer wishes to use IP CTS. The Commission's action is intended to address certain practices related to the provision and marketing of IP CTS that appear to be contributing to a recent and dramatic spike in reimbursement requests to the Interstate Telecommunications Relay Service Fund (TRS Fund or Fund), of sufficient magnitude to constitute a serious threat to the Fund if not promptly and decisively addressed.

This action amends Class D and Class E airspace and removes Class E airspace in the Tri-Cities, TN, area, to accommodate the new Area Navigation (RNAV) Global Positioning System (GPS) Standard Instrument Approach Procedures at Tri-Cities Regional Airport. This action enhances the safety and airspace management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations within the National Airspace System. This action also updates the geographic coordinates, airport name, and airspace designation. Also, this action corrects errors in the Class E descriptor.

This document contains final regulations relating to the tax treatment of noncompensatory options and convertible instruments issued by a partnership. The final regulations generally provide that the exercise of a noncompensatory option does not cause the recognition of immediate income or loss by either the issuing partnership or the option holder. The final regulations also modify the regulations under section 704(b) regarding the maintenance of the partners' capital accounts and the determination of the partners' distributive shares of partnership items. The final regulations also contain a characterization rule providing that the holder of a noncompensatory option is treated as a partner under certain circumstances. The final regulations will affect partnerships that issue noncompensatory options, the partners of such partnerships, and the holders of such options.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce the reopening of the public comment period on the August 16, 2012, proposed endangered status for six west Texas aquatic invertebrate species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We also announce the reopening of comment on the August 16, 2012, proposed designation of critical habitat for the six west Texas aquatic invertebrate species and the availability of a draft economic analysis of the proposed designation and amended required determinations in the proposed rule. We are reopening the comment period to allow all interested parties an opportunity to comment simultaneously on the proposed rules, the associated draft economic analysis, and the amended required determinations. Comments previously submitted need not be resubmitted, as they will be fully considered in preparation of the final rules.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing a source-specific federal implementation plan (FIP) requiring the Navajo Generating Station (NGS), located on the Navajo Nation, to reduce emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NOX) under the Best Available Retrofit Technology (BART) provision of the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) in order to reduce visibility impairment resulting from NGS at 11 National Parks and Wilderness Areas. NGS, which was built over 35 years ago, is the largest coal-fired power plant in the West in terms of generating capacity. It is central to the economies of the Navajo Nation and Hopi Tribe and supplies power to the states of Arizona, Nevada, and California. Electricity produced by NGS is also used to power the Central Arizona Project, which supplies surface water to three counties and numerous Indian tribes in Arizona. NGS is projected to continue operating at least until 2044. EPA is proposing to require NGS to achieve a nearly 80 percent reduction of its current overall NOX emission rate. Our analysis indicates that installation of controls to achieve this reduction would result in significant visibility improvement that is well-balanced with the cost of those controls. For a number of reasons, including the importance of NGS to numerous Indian tribes located in Arizona and the federal government's reliance on NGS to meet the requirements of water settlements with several tribes, EPA is proposing an alternative to BART that would provide flexibility to NGS in the schedule for the installation of new control equipment. We also describe other compliance schedules for consideration and comment. We recognize that there may be other approaches that could result in equivalent or better visibility benefits over time and that there may be changes in energy demand, supply or other developments over the next several decades that may change electricity generation on the Navajo Nation. EPA encourages a robust public discussion of our proposed BART determination and alternative, the additional alternatives described herein, and other possible approaches. EPA is prepared to issue a supplemental proposal if approaches other than the proposed BART determination or proposed alternative articulated in this notice are identified as satisfying the requirements of the Clean Air Act and meeting the needs of the stakeholders. EPA is committed to continuing to engage with stakeholders to develop a final FIP that maintains benefits to tribes and the regional economy while improving visibility in many of our nation's most treasured National Parks and Wilderness Areas.