September 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is changing its records fees regulation to remove the payment policy section, which sets out methods of payment. This is being done to allow NARA more flexibility in the way it accepts payment.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council submitted Amendment 99 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI FMP) to NMFS for review. If approved, Amendment 99 would enable the holders of license limitation program (LLP) licenses authorizing a designated vessel to catch and process Pacific cod in the BSAI hook-and-line fisheries to use newly built or existing vessels that are not eligible under current vessel length and capacity restrictions. This action is necessary to promote safety-at-sea by encouraging the replacement of older vessels with newer and more efficient vessels that are able to meet modern vessel safety standards. This action is intended to facilitate the increased retention and utilization of groundfish by allowing sector participants to use larger vessels with increased processing and hold capabilities. This action is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), and other applicable laws.

DoD is issuing an interim rule amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to implement a section of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 that amends the allowability of legal costs incurred by a contractor related to whistleblower proceedings.

DoD is issuing an interim rule amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to implement two sections of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 that require compliance with domestic source restrictions in the case of any textile components supplied by DoD to the Afghan National Army or the Afghan National Police for purposes of production of uniforms, and eliminate the application of the enhanced authority to acquire products and services from Iraq.

The Coast Guard is extending the comment period on the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the Special Buzzards Bay regulation published in the Federal Register on July 8, 2013, for 60 days. This will extend the comment period to December 08, 2013. We are extending the comment period to allow the public more time to comment on this subject.

This document summarizes the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rules agreed to by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) in this Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-70. 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.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement a section of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 that addresses the allowability of legal costs incurred by a contractor or subcontractor related to a whistleblower proceeding commenced by the submission of a complaint of reprisal by the contractor or subcontractor employee.

This document announces the agency's decision to implement (with minor modifications) the planned update to the U.S. New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) that the agency announced in its June 26, 2013 request for comments (78 FR 38266). As we discussed in that request for comments, this update will enhance the program's ability to recommend to consumers vehicle models that have rearview video systems that the agency believes (based on currently available data) will decrease the risk of backover crashes. Further, the program will no longer list electronic stability control (ESC) as a Recommended Advanced Technology Feature because ESC is now required for all light vehicles. For many years, NCAP has provided comparative information on the safety of new vehicles to assist consumers with vehicle purchasing decisions. NCAP was most recently upgraded for model year 2011 to include recommended crash avoidance technologies. Those updates, along with today's updates to NCAP, allow consumers to better distinguish not only which vehicle models have advanced crash avoidance safety features but also which of these advanced features are best able to help them avoid crashes.

This rule revises the United States Marshals Service fees to reflect current costs to the United States Marshals Service for service of process in federal court proceedings. A proposed rule with invitation to comment was published in the Federal Register on April 12, 2013, at 78 FR 21862. Only one comment was received within the 60- day comment period and that comment supported adoption of the rule. Accordingly, the proposed rule is finalized without change.

This action establishes Class E airspace at the Glasgow VHF Omni-Directional Radio Range/Distance Measuring Equipment (VOR/DME) navigation aid, Glasgow, MT, to facilitate vectoring of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) aircraft under control of Salt Lake City, and Minneapolis Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCCs). This improves the safety and management of IFR operations within the National Airspace System.

This action establishes Class E airspace at White Mountain Airport, White Mountain, AK, to accommodate aircraft using new Area Navigation (RNAV) Global Positioning System (GPS) standard instrument approach procedures at the airport. This improves the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations at the airport.

The Board invites comment on an interim final rule that provides a one-year transition period during which bank holding companies and most state member banks with more than $10 billion but less than $50 billion in total consolidated assets would not be required to reflect the revised regulatory capital framework that the Board approved on July 2, 2013 (revised capital framework) in their stress tests for the stress test cycle that begins October 1, 2013. For this stress test cycle, these companies will be required to estimate their pro forma capital levels and ratios over the full nine-quarter planning horizon using the Board's current regulatory capital rules. The interim final rule also clarifies when a banking organization would estimate its minimum regulatory capital ratios using the advanced approaches for a given stress test cycle.

The Coast Guard is establishing a special local regulation on the waters of the Gulf of Mexico in the vicinity of Clearwater, Florida during the Clearwater Super Boat National Championship Race. The race is scheduled to take place from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on September 29, 2013. Approximately 35 boats, ranging in length from 24 feet to 50 feet, traveling at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour are expected to participate. Additionally, it is anticipated that 400 spectator vessels will be present along the race course. The special local regulation is necessary to protect the safety of race participants, participant vessels, spectators, and the general public on the navigable waters of the United States during the event. The special local regulation will temporarily restrict vessel traffic in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico in the vicinity of Clearwater, Florida. The special local regulation will establish the following three areas: A race area, where all persons and vessels, except those persons and vessels participating in the high speed boat races, are prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within; a buffer area, where all persons and vessels, except those vessels enforcing the buffer area, are prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within; and a spectator area, where all vessels must be anchored or operate at No Wake Speed.

This rule establishes, amends, suspends, or revokes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) created new section 129C in the Truth-in-Lending Act (TILA), which establishes minimum standards for considering a consumer's repayment ability for creditors originating certain closed- end, dwelling-secured mortgages, and generally prohibits a creditor from making a residential mortgage loan unless the creditor makes a reasonable and good-faith determination of a consumer's ability to repay the loan according to its terms. Section 129C provides lenders more certainty about meeting the ability-to-repay requirements when lenders make ``qualified mortgages,'' which are presumed to meet the requirements. Section 129C authorizes the agency with responsibility for compliance with TILA, which was initially the Federal Reserve Board and is now the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), to issue a rule implementing these requirements. The CFPB has issued its rule implementing these requirements, referred to throughout this proposed rule as the CFPB final rule. The Dodd-Frank Act also charges HUD and three other Federal agencies with prescribing regulations defining the types of loans that these Federal agencies insure, guarantee, or administer, as applicable, that are qualified mortgages. Through this proposed rule, HUD submits for public comment its definition of ``qualified mortgage'' for the types of loans that HUD insures, guarantees, or administers that aligns with the statutory ability-to-repay criteria of TILA and the regulatory criteria of the CFPB's definition, without departing from HUD's statutory missions. In this rulemaking, HUD proposes that any forward single family mortgage insured or guaranteed by HUD shall meet the criteria of a qualified mortgage, as defined in this rule, and HUD seeks comment on all components of its definition.

In this notice of final rulemaking, EPA is disapproving in part the Michigan and Minnesota regional haze State Implementation Plans (SIPs) for failure to mandate best available retrofit technology (BART) for taconite facilities within these states. This final rule supplements a February 6, 2013, action that established Federal emission limits representing BART for these facilities.

This document contains corrections to the final regulations [FR Doc. 2013-169671, which were published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, July 16, 2013 (78 FR 42391). The document amended SBA's regulations governing small business subcontracting to implement provisions of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010. This correction amends a cross-reference contained in the regulations.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (Department) seeks comment on four new proposals to strengthen the legal protections provided to consumers of charter air transportation. First, this proposal would require air taxis and commuter air carriers that sell charter air transportation but rely on others to perform that air transportation to make certain consumer disclosures as recommended by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). This proposal would also create a new class of indirect air carriers to be called ``air charter brokers'' to provide as principals single entity charter air transportation of passengers aboard large and small aircraft. In addition, this NPRM would codify the exemption authority granted to indirect air carriers to engage in the sale of air transportation related to air ambulance services. Finally, the NPRM would make clear and codify that certain air services performed under contract with the Federal Government are in common carriage.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, propose to list the rufa red knot (Calidris canutus rufa) as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). If we finalize this rule as proposed, it would extend the Act's protections to this species. The effect of this regulation will be to add this species to the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife.

The Coast Guard is issuing a final rule that makes non- substantive changes throughout titles 46 and 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The purpose of this rule is to make conforming amendments and technical corrections to Coast Guard shipping and transportation regulations. This rule will have no substantive effect on the regulated public. These changes are provided to coincide with the annual recodification of titles 46 and 49 on October 1, 2013.

NMFS specifies an annual catch limit of 346,000 lb of Deep 7 bottomfish in the main Hawaiian Islands for the 2013-14 fishing year. The action supports the long-term sustainability of Hawaii bottomfish.

In this document, the Commission announces the opening of WT Docket No. 13-225 and seeks comment on a Petition for Waiver and Request for Extension of time filed by DISH Network Corporation (DISH Request), which would enable more flexibility that would serve and promote the underlying objectives of the Commission to utilize all of the AWS-4 spectrum more robustly.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing the availability of a guidance for industry 223 entitled ``Small Entity Compliance GuideDeclaring Color Additives in Animal Foods.'' This small entity compliance guide (SECG) aids industry in complying with the requirements of the final rule that published in the Federal Register of November 17, 2011. FDA issued the regulation in response to the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 (the 1990 amendments), which amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). Specifically, FDA amended its regulations regarding the declaration of certified color additives on the labels of animal food including animal feeds and pet foods.

This action supplements the preamble published in the Federal Register on April 12, 2001 (66 FR 19028). The FAA has reviewed data for automated external defibrillators and enhanced emergency medical kits to amend the ``no go'' provision. Data show that allowing these items to be incomplete, missing, or inoperative for one flight in accordance with the FAA master minimum equipment list does not adversely affect aviation safety. This action provides notice of the data finding and makes available the corresponding policy change for the one-flight relief for use of emergency medical equipment.

The Accredited Laboratory Program is the FSIS program in which non-Federal laboratories are accredited as eligible to perform analyses on official regulatory samples of raw or processed meat and poultry products, and through which a check sample program for quality assurance is conducted. The program is funded by user fees. The current fee regulation is due to expire at the end of the present fiscal year. In order to provide time to develop a proposed rule that will establish a formula for determining the fee, FSIS is extending the current laboratory accreditation fee.