September 17, 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Secretary waives the regulations that generally limit project periods to 60 months and that restrict project period extensions involving the obligation of additional Federal funds. As a result, for the 60-month projects initially funded in fiscal years (FYs) 2007 and 2008 under the AIVRS program, the Secretary is extending the project periods until September 30, 2014.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is establishing in regulation the readjustment counseling currently provided in VA's Vet Centers to certain veterans of the Armed Forces and members of their families, and implementing provisions of the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 regarding readjustment counseling.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for pollock in Statistical Area 620 in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the C season allowance of the 2013 total allowable catch of pollock for Statistical Area 620 in the GOA.

This rule streamlines the FHA financial statement reporting requirements for lenders and mortgagees who are supervised by federal banking agencies and whose consolidated assets do not meet the thresholds set by their supervising federal banking agencies for submission of audited financial statements (currently set at $500 million in consolidated assets). HUD's regulations currently require all supervised lenders and mortgagees to submit annual audited financial statements as a condition of FHA lender approval and recertification. Through this rule, in lieu of the annual audited financial statements, small supervised lenders and mortgagees would be required to submit their unaudited financial regulatory reports that align with their fiscal year ends and are required to be submitted to their supervising federal banking agencies. Small supervised lenders and mortgagees would only be required to submit audited financial statements if HUD determines that the supervised lenders or mortgagees pose heightened risk to the FHA insurance fund. This rule does not impact FHA's annual audited financial statements submission requirement for nonsupervised and large supervised lenders and mortgagees. The rule also does not impact those supervised lenders and mortgagees with consolidated assets in an amount that requires that lenders or mortgagees submit audited financial statements to their respective supervising federal banking agencies. Additionally, this final rule, consistent with the proposed rule, makes three technical changes to current regulations regarding reporting requirements for FHA-approved supervised lenders and mortgagees.

This proposed rule would increase the assessment rate established for the California Walnut Board (Board) for the 2013-14 and subsequent marketing years from $0.0175 to $0.0189 per kernelweight pound of merchantable walnuts. The Board locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of walnuts grown in California. Assessments upon walnut handlers are used by the Board to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The marketing year begins September 1 and ends August 31. The assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

This proposed rule would increase the assessment rate established for the Avocado Administrative Committee (Committee) for the 2013-14 and subsequent fiscal periods from $0.25 to $0.30 per 55- pound bushel container of Florida avocados handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order, which regulates the handling of avocados grown in South Florida. Assessments upon Florida avocado handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period begins April 1 and ends March 31. The assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or we) is announcing that we have filed a petition, submitted by the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, proposing that the color additive regulations be amended to expand the use of synthetic iron oxide to include soft and hard candy, mints, and chewing gum. The petition also proposes to lower the specification limit for lead in synthetic iron oxide for human food use.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain The Boeing Company Model 767-200, -300, -300F, and -400ER series airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of cracked and corroded nuts on an outboard flap support rib. This AD requires, for certain airplanes, repetitive inspections of the cap seal for damaged sealant on nuts common to certain outboard flap support ribs, and related investigative and corrective actions if necessary. For certain other airplanes, this AD also requires repetitive inspections of the cap seal for damaged sealant on nuts common to certain outboard flap support ribs, related investigative and corrective actions if necessary, and if necessary, a detailed inspection to determine the nut type installed in the outboard flap support rib and corrective actions. This AD also provides terminating action for the repetitive inspections under certain conditions. We are issuing this AD to detect and correct cracked and corroded nuts and bolts and the installation of incorrect nuts on certain outboard flap support ribs, which could lead to additional nut and bolt damage in the joint, result in loss of an outboard flap, and adversely affect continued safe flight and landing of the airplane.

NMFS proposes regulations to implement Amendment 95 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska (FMP). This proposed action would modify halibut prohibited species catch (PSC) management in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) to establish halibut PSC limits for the GOA in Federal regulation; reduce the GOA halibut PSC limits for trawl and hook-and-line gear; proportionately reduce a subset of trawl halibut PSC limits (also called ``sideboards'') for American Fisheries Act, Amendment 80, and Central GOA Rockfish Program vessels; and adjust the accounting methods for halibut PSC sideboard limits for Amendment 80 vessels, as well as halibut PSC used by trawl vessels from May 15 through June 30. This action is necessary to reduce halibut bycatch in the GOA, and is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the FMP, and other applicable law.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), determine the Neosho mucket, a freshwater mussel, as endangered, and the rabbitsfoot, a freshwater mussel, as threatened, under the Endangered Species Act. The Neosho mucket occurs in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. The rabbitsfoot occurs in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia. This final rule implements the protections provided by the Act for these species. We will issue a final determination on the designation of critical habitat for these species in the near future.