2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We, NMFS, are issuing an interim final regulation to conserve the Gulf of Maine Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus). On February 6, 2012, we listed the Gulf of Maine DPS of Atlantic sturgeon as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). When a species is listed as threatened under the ESA, we are required to issue protective regulations under section 4(d) of the ESA. Such protective regulations are ones deemed ``necessary and advisable for the conservation of the species'' and may include any act prohibited for endangered species under section 9(a)(1) of the ESA. This regulation extends the prohibitions listed in section 9 of the ESA to Gulf of Maine DPS Atlantic sturgeon. The prohibitions set forth in this rule are considered necessary and advisable for the conservation of this species. Given that the changes made to this rule are based on the new information that was not submitted as public comment on the proposed rule, we are publishing this rule as an interim final rule and are soliciting additional public comment. This document also announces the availability of a final Environmental Assessment that analyzes the environmental impacts of promulgating this interim final regulation.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region IX is publishing a direct final Notice of Deletion of portions of the El Toro Marine Corp Air Station Superfund Site (Site), located in Irvine, California, from the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL, promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is an appendix of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). This direct final partial deletion is being published by EPA with the concurrence of the State of California through the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), because EPA has determined that all appropriate response actions at these identified parcels under CERCLA have been completed. However, this partial deletion does not preclude future actions under Superfund. This partial deletion pertains to all Site media, including soil and groundwater, of parcels I-A, II-A, III-A, II-J, II-Q, II-S, II-T, III-C, I-C, II-U, I-B, I-E, I-G, I-H, I-I, I-J, I-L, I-M, I-P, II-G, II-I, II-P, III-D, I-K, I-N, I-O, I-S, II-E, II-L, II-M, II-R, I-Q, I- R, II-B, II-K, and II-O of the Site. The current remaining areas of the Site will remain on the NPL and are not being considered for deletion as part of this action.

Effective October 1, 2013, the Department of Commerce (Department), through internal department organizational orders, changed the name of ``Import Administration'' to ``Enforcement and Compliance.'' Consistent with this action, this rule makes appropriate conforming changes in part 400 of title 15 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The rule also sets forth a Savings Provision that preserves, under the new name, all actions taken under the name of Import Administration and provides that any references to Import Administration in any document or other communication shall be deemed to be references to Enforcement and Compliance.

We are amending the fruits and vegetables regulations to allow the importation of commercial shipments of fresh beans, shelled or in pods (French, green, snap, and string), from Jordan into the continental United States. As a condition of entry, the beans must be produced in accordance with a systems approach that includes requirements for packing, washing, and processing. The beans must also be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate attesting that all phytosanitary requirements have been met and that the consignment was inspected and found free of quarantine pests. This action allows for the importation of fresh beans, shelled or in pods, from Jordan into the continental United States while continuing to provide protection against the introduction of plant pests.

We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Rockwell Collins TPR-720 and TPR-900 Mode select (S) transponders that are installed on airplanes. This proposed AD was prompted by the identification that the TPR-720 and TPR-900 Mode S transponders respond intermittently to Mode S interrogations from both ground-based and traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS-) equipped airplanes. This proposed AD would require testing and calibration of the alignment of the transponders. We are proposing this AD to correct the unsafe condition on these products.

The Coast Guard issues this final rule to remove from its regulations on Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) activities a reference to the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) and a related TWIC definition and recordkeeping reference because they are inconsistent with a requirement in the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. These regulations deal with the employment of personnel on the OCS to U.S. citizens or resident aliens. The TWIC reference incorrectly provides that a TWIC alone may be accepted by an employer as sufficient evidence of the TWIC holder's status as a U.S. resident alien, as that term is defined. This rule clarifies the regulations.

On June 24, 2011, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) submitted for Clean Air Act (CAA) State Implementation Plan (SIP) approval, revisions to Ohio Administrative Code (OAC) rules: 3745-18- 01, 3745-18-03 to 3745-18-52, 3745-18-54 to 3745-18-77, 3745-18-79, 3745-18-81 to 3745-18-89, and 3745-18-91 to 3745-18-94. The rule revisions primarily update facility information and remove SO2 requirements for shutdown facilities throughout the SIP. EPA believes that the revisions improve the clarity of the rule without affecting the stringency and therefore is approving all of the submitted revisions except for specific paragraphs in OAC 3745-18-04.

The FAA is correcting the final flightcrew member duty and rest rule published on January 4, 2012. In that rule, the FAA amended its existing flight, duty and rest regulations applicable to certificate holders and their flightcrew members operating certain domestic, flag, and supplemental operations. This document corrects several issues requiring a technical correction in the codified text of the final flightcrew member duty and rest rule.

National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) is updating the NGA Privacy Act Program by adding the (k)(2) exemption to accurately describe the basis for exempting the records in the system of records notice NGA-003, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Enterprise Workforce System. In this rulemaking, the NGA proposes to exempt portions of this system of records from one or more provisions of the Privacy Act because of criminal, civil and administrative enforcement requirements. This direct final rule makes non-substantive changes to the NGA Program rules. These changes will allow the Department to add exemption rules to the NGA Privacy Program rules that will exempt applicable Department records and/or material from certain portions of the Privacy Act. This will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of DoD's program by ensuring the integrity of the security and counterintelligence records by the NGA and the Department of Defense. This rule is being published as a direct final rule as the Department of Defense does not expect to receive any adverse comments, and so a proposed rule is unnecessary.

On September 17, 2013, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) located within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) held a public meeting concerning inward leakage performance requirements for the class of NIOSH-certified non-powered air-purifying particulate respirators approved as half-facepiece respirators for protection from particulate-only hazards. The purpose of this meeting was to share information and to seek stakeholder feedback, in identified topic areas, concerning the development of inward leakage performance standards. Questions concerning the identified topics of specific interest were included in the meeting notice published in the Federal Register on September 4, 2013. Written comments were to be received by October 18, 2013. HHS/CDC received a request from a stakeholder for additional time to comment on this notice. In consideration of this request HHS/CDC is reopening the public comment period through December 31, 2013.

The EPA is proposing to amend certain provisions of the Fluorinated Gas Production source category of the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule. The proposed changes would reduce the level of detail in which emissions were reported, establish a new set of default global warming potentials, eliminate the mass-balance emission calculation method, and clarify the emission factor method. We are also proposing confidentiality determinations for the new and substantially revised reporting requirements of the Fluorinated Gas Production source category.

The Coast Guard will enforce the special local regulations in 33 CFR 100.1101 during the San Diego Parade of Lights, held on December 8, 2013 and December 15, 2013. This event occurs on the San Diego Bay in San Diego, CA. These special local regulations are necessary to provide for the safety of the participants, crew, spectators, sponsor vessels of the parade, and general users of the waterway. During the enforcement period, persons and vessels are prohibited from entering into, transiting through, or anchoring within this regulated area unless authorized by the Captain of the Port, or his designated representative.

The Coast Guard proposes to update the list of marine events that occur annually within the Eleventh Coast Guard District. These updates include adding specific marine events to the list of marine events held annually in the Eleventh Coast Guard District as well as removing marine events that no longer occur. In addition to updating the list of marine events held annually in the Eleventh Coast Guard District, the Coast Guard proposes to amend the special local regulations by standardizing the language and format of listed events. When these special local regulations are activated, and thus subject to enforcement, this proposed rule would restrict vessels from transiting inside the regulated area.

On October 2, 2013, the Office of the Federal Register published a proposal to amend our regulations governing the approval of agency requests to incorporate material by reference into the Code of Federal Regulations. Given the recent government shutdown and technical issues with Regulations.gov, we are extending the comment period. We are also correcting the docket number and adding a link to the docket.

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is amending regulations to allow for the addition of an optional cotton futures classification procedureidentified and known as ``registration'' by the U.S. cotton industry and the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE). In response to requests from the U.S. cotton industry and ICE, AMS will offer a futures classification option whereby cotton bales may be certificated for the purpose of an exchange's cotton futures contract using Smith-Doxey data to verify that submitted bales meet more restrictive quality requirements and age parameters established by that exchange. AMS anticipates that the futures classification option will be available in time for the implementation of ICE's Cotton Resolution No. 2, which is scheduled to commence with the March 2014 contract month.

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.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or we) is extending the comment period for the ``Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Rule: Standards for Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption'' that appeared in the Federal Register of August 19, 2013. We are taking this action to allow interested persons an opportunity to provide comment on the scope of issues the Agency should include in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), including their significance, as part of the scoping process for the EIS.

EPA is taking final action to approve a change to the Florida State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the State of Florida. The change removes from the Florida SIP a provision entitled ``Synthetic Organic Fiber Production.'' EPA has determined that this provision was erroneously incorporated into the SIP. Therefore, EPA is taking final action to remove this rule from the federally-approved Florida SIP because the rule is not related to the attainment and maintenance of the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS).

These special conditions are issued for the Boeing Model 777- 200, -300, and -300ER series airplanes. These airplanes, as modified by The Boeing Company, will have novel or unusual design features associated with the architecture and connectivity capabilities of the airplane's onboard network computer systems, which may allow access to or by external computer systems and networks. This onboard network system will be composed of a network file server, a network extension device, and additional interfaces configured by customer option. Connectivity to, or access by, external systems and networks may result in security vulnerabilities to the airplane's onboard network system. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.

DoD is issuing a final rule amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to add a new subpart and associated contract clause to address requirements for safeguarding unclassified controlled technical information.

This rule is being promulgated to add a new visa classification symbol to the nonimmigrant classification table in our regulations. This amendment is necessary to implement legislation that created an additional nonimmigrant classification as described herein.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (``Commission'' or ``CFTC'') is adopting new rules and related forms to enhance its identification of futures and swap market participants. These final rules will leverage the Commission's current position and transaction reporting programs by requiring the electronic submission of trader identification and market participant data on amended Forms 102 and 40, and on new Form 71. The new and amended forms require the reporting of certain trading accounts active on reporting markets that are designated contract markets or swap execution facilities. Among other information, the forms collect ownership and control information with respect to both position-based special accounts and trading accounts that meet specified volume-based reporting levels.

This document cancels a public hearing on proposed regulations that propose revisions to examples that illustrate the controlled group rules related to regulated investment companies.

This final rule revises HUD's regulations governing the protection of wetlands and floodplains. With respect to wetlands, the rule codifies existing procedures for Executive Order 11990 (E.O. 11990), Protection of Wetlands. HUD's policy has been to require the use of the 8-Step Process for floodplains for wetlands actions performed by HUD or actions performed with HUD financial assistance. This rule codifies this wetlands policy and improves consistency and increases transparency by placing the E.O. 11990 requirements in regulation. In certain instances, the new wetlands procedures will allow recipients of HUD assistance to use individual permits issued under section 404 of the Clean Water Act (Section 404 permits) in lieu of 5 steps of the E.O. 11990's 8-Step Process, streamlining the wetlands decisionmaking processes. With respect to floodplains, with some exceptions, the rule prohibits HUD funding (e.g., Community Development Block Grants, HOME Investment Partnerships Program, Choice Neighborhoods, and others) or Federal Housing Administration (FHA) mortgage insurance for construction in Coastal High Hazard Areas. In order to ensure maximum protection for communities and wise investment of Federal resources in the face of current and future risk, this final rule also requires the use of preliminary flood maps and advisory base flood elevations where the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has determined that existing Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) may not be the ``best available information'' for floodplain management purposes. This change in map usage requirements brings HUD's regulations into alignment with the requirement in Executive Order 11988 that agencies are to use the ``best available information'' and will provide greater consistency with floodplain management activities across HUD and FEMA programs. The rule also streamlines floodplain and wetland environmental procedures to avoid unnecessary processing delays. The procedures set forth in this rule would apply to HUD and to state, tribal, and local governments when they are responsible for environmental reviews under HUD programs.

This action implements revisions to the Pacific coast groundfish trawl rationalization program (program), a catch share program, and includes clarifications of regulations that affect the limited entry trawl and limited entry fixed gear sectors managed under the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Management Plan (FMP). This action implements trailing actions for the program that are either original provisions of the program, such as quota share (QS) permit application and transfer regulations, or are provisions that increase flexibility or efficiency, or address minor revisions/clarifications.