September 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) is publishing revisions to the current regulations implementing the non- discrimination and affirmative action regulations of section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended. Section 503 prohibits discrimination by covered Federal contractors and subcontractors against individuals on the basis of disability, and requires affirmative action on behalf of qualified individuals with disabilities. The final rule adopts several key revisions proposed in the notice of proposed rulemaking. The final rule strengthens the affirmative action provisions by, among other things, requiring data collection pertaining to applicants and hires with disabilities, and establishing a utilization goal for individuals with disabilities to assist in measuring the effectiveness of the contractor's affirmative action efforts. However, some of the NPRM's proposals, particularly with regard to the creation and maintenance of certain records and the conduct of certain affirmative action obligations, have been eliminated or made more flexible in order to reduce the compliance burden on contractors. To implement changes necessitated by the passage of the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA) of 2008, the final rule also adopts revisions to the definitions and to the nondiscrimination provisions of the implementing regulations. The specific revisions made, and the rationale for making them, are set forth in the Section-by-Section Analysis below.

NMFS issues regulations under authority of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act (WCPFC Implementation Act) to establish a catch limit of 3,763 metric tons (mt) of bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus) for vessels in the U.S. pelagic longline fisheries operating in the western and central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) for each of the calendar years 2013 and 2014. The limit does not apply to vessels in the longline fisheries of American Samoa, Guam, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Once the limit of 3,763 mt is reached in 2013 or 2014, retaining, transshipping, or landing bigeye tuna caught in the area of application of the Convention on the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (Convention), which comprises the majority of the WCPO, will be prohibited for the remainder of the calendar year, with certain exceptions. This action is necessary for the United States to satisfy its obligations under the Convention, to which it is a Contracting Party.

NMFS issues this final rule to implement management measures for black sea bass described in Regulatory Amendment 19 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (FMP), as prepared by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council). Regulatory Amendment 19 specifies the acceptable biological catch (ABC), and the amendment and this final rule revise the optimum yield (OY), the commercial and recreational annual catch limits (ACLs), and the recreational annual catch target (ACT) for black sea bass harvested in or from the South Atlantic exclusive economic zone (EEZ). This final rule also establishes an annual prohibition on the use of black sea bass pots in the South Atlantic from November 1 through April 30. The purpose of this rule is to provide socio-economic benefits to snapper-grouper fishermen and communities that utilize the snapper-grouper resource, while maintaining fishing mortality at sustainable levels according to the best scientific information available. The rule also prevents interactions between black sea bass pot gear and whales listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) during periods of large whale migrations and during the northern right whale calving season off of the southeastern coast.

We are amending the regulations in order to allow, under certain conditions, the importation of commercial shipments of litchi fruit from Australia into the continental United States, except Florida. As a condition of entry, the litchi fruit must be treated with irradiation and subject to inspection. If irradiation is applied outside the United States, the fruit must be inspected jointly by inspectors from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the national plant protection organization (NPPO) of Australia prior to departure and accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of Australia certifying that the fruit received the required irradiation treatment. If irradiation is to be applied upon arrival in the United States, the fruit must be inspected by Australian inspectors prior to departure and accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of Australia. Additionally, the litchi fruit may not be imported into or distributed within the State of Florida, due to the presence of litchi rust mite in Australia. This action allows for the importation of litchi fruit from Australia into the continental United States, except Florida, while continuing to provide protection against the introduction of quarantine pests.

This action corrects a final rule published in the Federal Register August 8, 2013 that establishes Class D airspace at Bryant Army Airfield (AAF), Anchorage, AK. In that rule, an error was made in the legal description for Bryant AAF, in that the language indicating Class D airspace as part time was left out.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) proposes to amend its regulations governing Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI), Family SGLI, SGLI Traumatic Injury Protection, and Veterans' Group Life Insurance (all hereafter referred to as SGLI). The purpose is to acknowledge and clarify what is implicit in the law: That VA, which has the responsibility under the law to oversee the SGLI program and ensure its proper operation, also has the right to full access to records held by the insurer or on behalf of the insurer from whom VA has purchased a policy. These records include all of the insurer's records related to the operation and administration of the SGLI programs necessary to protect the legal and financial rights of the Government and of the persons affected by the activities of the agency and its agents.

EPA is taking final action to approve changes to the North Carolina State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by the State of North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NC DENR), Division of Air Quality on September 18, 2009, for the purpose of removing Stage II vapor control requirement contingency measures for new and upgraded gasoline dispensing facilities in the State. The September 18, 2009, SIP revision also addresses several non-Stage II related rule changes. However, action on the other portions for the September 18, 2009, SIP revision is being addressed in a separate rulemaking action. EPA has determined that North Carolina's September 18, 2009, SIP revision regarding the Stage II vapor control requirements is approvable because it is consistent with the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act).

This rule prescribes special late-season migratory bird hunting regulations for certain tribes on Federal Indian reservations, off-reservation trust lands, and ceded lands. This rule responds to tribal requests for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (hereinafter Service or we) recognition of their authority to regulate hunting under established guidelines. This rule allows the establishment of season bag limits and, thus, harvest at levels compatible with populations and habitat conditions.

This rule prescribes the hunting seasons, hours, areas, and daily bag and possession limits for general waterfowl seasons and those early seasons for which States previously deferred selection. Taking of migratory birds is prohibited unless specifically provided for by annual regulations. This rule permits the taking of designated species during the 2013-14 season.

This action establishes Class E airspace at the Wasatch VHF Omni-Directional Radio Range Tactical Air Navigational Aid (VORTAC) navigation aid, Wasatch, UT, to facilitate vectoring of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) aircraft under control of Salt Lake City Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC). This improves the safety and management of IFR operations within the National Airspace System. This action also makes a minor adjustment to the geographic coordinates of the Wasatch VORTAC navigation aid.

Chapter 154 of title 28, United States Code, provides special procedures for Federal habeas corpus review of cases brought by indigent prisoners in State custody who are subject to a capital sentence. These special procedures are available to States that the Attorney General has certified as having established mechanisms for the appointment, compensation, and payment of reasonable litigation expenses of competent counsel in State postconviction proceedings brought by such prisoners, and as providing standards of competency for the appointment of counsel in these proceedings. This rule sets forth the regulations for the certification procedure.

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management is issuing a final rule to update the 2007 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes currently used in Federal Wage System wage survey industry regulations with the 2012 NAICS revisions published by the Office of Management and Budget.

We, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), published on December 7, 2012, a proposed rule to list 66 species of reef-building corals (59 in the Pacific and seven in the Caribbean) and to re- classify two species already listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) from threatened to endangered and requesting information related to the proposed action. We are announcing a 6-month extension of the deadline for final determinations for all of the 68 proposed corals. Based on comments received during the public comment period, we find that substantial disagreement exists regarding the sufficiency and accuracy of the data and analyses relevant to the 68 proposed listing determinations. Accordingly, we are extending the deadline for the final listing decisions for 6 months to solicit additional data. We believe that allowing an additional 6 months to evaluate and assess the best scientific and commercial data available would better inform our final listing determinations.

This interim final rule with comment period specifies the process and timeline for expanding CMS' existing Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) Web portal to conform to section 201 of the Medicare IVIG and Strengthening Medicare and Repaying Taxpayers Act of 2012 (the SMART Act). The interim final rule specifies a timeline for developing a multifactor authentication solution to securely permit authorized users other than the beneficiary to access CMS' MSP conditional payment amounts and claims detail information via the MSP Web portal. It also requires that we add functionality to the existing MSP Web portal that permits users to: notify us that the specified case is approaching settlement; obtain time and date stamped final conditional payment summary forms and amounts before reaching settlement; and ensure that relatedness disputes and any other discrepancies are addressed within 11 business days of receipt of dispute documentation.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, Islamorada, Florida during the Pro Hydro- X Tour. The Pro Hydro-X Tour is a series of Jet Ski races. The race course is in an oval configuration. There will be 7 Jet Skis on the course for each race. The Pro Hydro-X Tour is scheduled to take place on September 20, 21, and 22, 2013. Approximately 50 participants are anticipated to participate in this event. This safety zone is necessary to provide for the safety of the participants and general public on the navigable waters of the United States during the event. The safety zone establishes a regulated area that will encompass the race course area. Non-participant persons and vessels will be prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the regulated area unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Key West or a designated representative.

The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (Agency) proposes to amend its regulations to provide that a beneficiary designation form is valid only if it is received by the TSP record- keeper not more than one year after date of the participant's signature.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is modifying its regulation concerning the extension of time limits for submissions in antidumping (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) proceedings. The modification clarifies that parties may request an extension of time limits before any time limit established under Part 351 expires. This modification also requires that an extension request must be made in a separate, stand-alone submission, and clarifies the circumstances under which the Department will grant untimely-filed requests for the extension of time limits.

On July 2, 2013, the FAA published a final rule (78 FR 39576) amending the airplane operating regulations to include certain provisions of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 that affect jet airplanes with a maximum weight of 75,000 pounds or less operating in the United States. We solicited public comment on the final rule even though the FAA is not authorized to change the statutorily mandated prohibition. This action responds to the public comment the FAA received.

This action modifies Class E airspace at Everett, WA, to accommodate aircraft departing and arriving under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) at Snohomish County Airport (Paine Field), WA. This action, initiated by the biennial review of the Snohomish County airspace area, enhances the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations at the airport. This action also adjusts the geographic coordinates of the airport.

FMCSA proposes to adopt regulations governing the lease and interchange of passenger-carrying commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) to: identify the motor carrier operating a passenger-carrying CMV and responsible for compliance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) and all other applicable Federal regulations; ensure that a lessor surrenders control of the CMV for the full term of the lease or temporary exchange of CMVs and drivers; and require motor carriers subject to a prohibition on operating in interstate commerce to notify FMCSA in writing before leasing or otherwise transferring control of their vehicles to other carriers. This action is necessary to ensure that unsafe passenger carriers cannot evade FMCSA oversight and enforcement by operating under the authority of another carrier that exercises no actual control over those operations. This action will enable the FMCSA, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), and our Federal and State partners to identify motor carriers transporting passengers in interstate commerce and correctly assign responsibility to these entities for regulatory violations during inspections, compliance investigations, and crash studies. It also provides the general public with the means to identify the responsible motor carrier at the time of transportation. While detailed lease and interchange regulations for cargo-carrying vehicles have been in effect since 1950, these proposed rules for passenger-carrying CMVs are focused entirely on operational safety.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Airbus Model A330-200, -200 Freighter, and -300 series airplanes. This AD was prompted by a report that a certain wire harness located in the tail cone has wiring of a narrower gauge than design requires. This AD requires replacing the affected wire harness. We are issuing this AD to prevent damage to the affected wiring, which could create an ignition source in an area that might contain fuel vapors, possibly resulting in an uncontrolled fire and subsequent loss of the airplane.

The OCC, Board, FDIC, Commission, FHFA, and HUD (the agencies) are seeking comment on a joint proposed rule (the proposed rule, or the proposal) to revise the proposed rule the agencies published in the Federal Register on April 29, 2011, and to implement the credit risk retention requirements of section 15G of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15. U.S.C. 78o-11), as added by section 941 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act). Section 15G generally requires the securitizer of asset-backed securities to retain not less than 5 percent of the credit risk of the assets collateralizing the asset-backed securities. Section 15G includes a variety of exemptions from these requirements, including an exemption for asset-backed securities that are collateralized exclusively by residential mortgages that qualify as ``qualified residential mortgages,'' as such term is defined by the agencies by rule.

We announce our intention to establish a negotiated rulemaking committee to prepare proposed regulations to address the changes to the campus safety and security reporting requirements in the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act), made by the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA). The committee will include representatives of organizations or groups with interests that are significantly affected by the subject matter of the proposed regulations. We request nominations for individual negotiators who represent key stakeholder constituencies for the issues to be negotiated to serve on the committee, and we set a schedule for committee meetings.

A NPRM published in the Federal Register of September 6, 2013, to amend the Class D airspace ceiling at Addison Airport, Dallas, TX, is being withdrawn. Upon review, the FAA determined that the proposed rulemaking action is premature in that an existing Dallas/Fort Worth Class B airspace rulemaking action is pending.

This rule identifies communities where the sale of flood insurance has been authorized under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) that are scheduled for suspension on the effective dates listed within this rule because of noncompliance with the floodplain management requirements of the program. If the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) receives documentation that the community has adopted the required floodplain management measures prior to the effective suspension date given in this rule, the suspension will not occur and a notice of this will be provided by publication in the Federal Register on a subsequent date. Also, information identifying the current participation status of a community can be obtained from FEMA's Community Status Book (CSB). The CSB is available at https:// www.fema.gov/fema/csb.shtm.