July 10, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Coast Guard will enforce two safety zones for fireworks displays in the Sector Long Island Sound area of responsibility on the dates and times listed in the table below. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waterways during the events. During the enforcement periods, no person or vessel may enter the safety zones without permission of the Captain of the Port (COTP) Sector Long Island Sound or designated representative.

The Coast Guard will enforce the Annual Fireworks Display Safety Zones in the Captain of the Port Columbia River Zone. Each safety zone will be enforced 1 hour before and 1 hour after each scheduled fireworks display described in that rule. The Coast Guard will not enforce zones which are intended for fireworks displays that are not planned to occur this year. This action is necessary to protect watercraft and their occupants from the inherent safety hazards associated with fireworks displays. During the enforcement period, no person or vessel may enter or remain in the safety zone without permission from the Sector Columbia River Captain of the Port.

NMFS proposes regulations to reduce the maximum retainable amount (MRA) of skates using groundfish and halibut as basis species in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) from 20 percent to 5 percent. Reducing skate MRAs is necessary to decrease the incentive for fishermen to target skates and slow the catch rate of skates in these fisheries. This proposed rule would enhance conservation and management of skates and minimize skate discards in GOA groundfish and halibut fisheries. This proposed rule is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982, the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska, and other applicable laws.

We are amending the Virus-Serum-Toxin Act regulations to provide for the use of a simpler labeling format that would better communicate product performance to the user. Under this rulemaking, the previous label format, which reflected any of four different levels of effectiveness, is replaced with a single, uniform label format. We are also requiring biologics licensees to provide a standardized summary, with confidential business information removed, of the efficacy and safety data submitted to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service in support of the issuance of a full product license or conditional license. A simpler label format, along with publicly available safety and efficacy data, will help biologics producers to more clearly communicate product performance to their customers.

In this notice, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) plans to hold a technical conference on July 30, 2015, to discuss issues raised by the petition for rulemaking. The petition for rulemaking is requesting that the Commission issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) requiring changes to the FERC Form No. 6 (Annual Report of Oil Pipeline Companies), Page 700.

NMFS implements accountability measures (AMs) for commercial greater amberjack in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) reef fish fishery for the 2015 fishing year through this temporary rule. NMFS projects commercial landings for greater amberjack, will reach the commercial ACT (commercial quota) by July 19, 2015. Therefore, NMFS closes the commercial sector for greater amberjack in the Gulf on July 19, 2015, and it will remain closed until the start of the next fishing season on January 1, 2016. This closure is necessary to protect the Gulf greater amberjack resource.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is finalizing a determination of attainment regarding the Liberty-Clairton, Pennsylvania 2006 24-hour fine particulate matter (PM2.5) nonattainment area (hereafter ``Liberty-Clairton Area'' or ``the Area''). EPA is determining that the Liberty-Clairton Area has attained the 2006 24-hour PM2.5 National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS), based upon quality-assured, quality-controlled and certified ambient air monitoring data for the calendar years 2012-2014. EPA's final ``clean data determination'' will suspend the requirements to submit for the Liberty-Clairton Area an attainment demonstration, reasonably available control measures (RACM), reasonable further progress (RFP), and contingency measures related to attainment of the 2006 24-hour PM2.5 NAAQS, for so long as the Area continues to attain the 2006 24-hour PM2.5 NAAQS. This final determination will not constitute a redesignation to attainment. This final action is being taken under the Clean Air Act (CAA).

This proposed rule would update Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) rates, including the national, standardized 60- day episode payment rates, the national per-visit rates, and the non- routine medical supply (NRS) conversion factor under the Medicare prospective payment system for home health agencies (HHAs), effective for episodes ending on or after January 1, 2016. As required by the Affordable Care Act, this proposed rule implements the third year of the four-year phase-in of the rebasing adjustments to the HH PPS payment rates. This proposed rule provides information on our efforts to monitor the potential impacts of the rebasing adjustments. This proposed rule also proposes: reductions to the national, standardized 60-day episode payment rate in CY 2016 and CY 2017 of 1.72 percent in each year to account for estimated case-mix growth unrelated to increases in patient acuity (nominal case-mix growth) between CY 2012 and CY 2014; a HH value-based purchasing (HHVBP) model to be implemented beginning January 1, 2016 in which all Medicare-certified HHAs in selected states will be required to participate; changes to the home health quality reporting program requirements; and minor technical regulations text changes. Finally, this proposed rule would update the HH PPS case-mix weights using the most current, complete data available at the time of rulemaking and provide an update on the Report to Congress regarding the home health (HH) study.

The Coast Guard is establishing temporary safety zones in the Port of Goodhope Bay, Alaska, and adjacent U.S. territorial sea on July 1 and October 15, 2015. The temporary safety zones will encompass the navigable waters within a 25-yard radius of moored or anchored offshore exploration or support vessels, and the navigable waters within a 100- yard radius of underway offshore exploration or support vessels. The purpose of the safety zones are to protect persons and vessels during an unusually high volume of vessel traffic in the Port of Goodhope Bay and the adjacent territorial sea due to additional vessel traffic associated with exploratory drilling operations in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas during the summer of 2015.

In this document, the Commission adopts additional rules under the authority of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA) to make emergency information in video programming accessible to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. First, the document requires multichannel video programming distributors to pass through a secondary audio stream containing audible emergency information when they permit consumers to access linear programming on second screen devices, such as tablets, smartphones, laptops, and similar devices. Second, the document requires manufacturers of apparatus that receive or play back video programming to provide a mechanism that is simple and easy to use for activating the secondary audio stream to access audible emergency information.

PHMSA is proposing amendments to the pipeline safety regulations to address requirements of the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act of 2011 (2011 Act), and to update and clarify certain regulatory requirements. Among other provisions, PHMSA is proposing to add a specific time frame for telephonic or electronic notifications of accidents and incidents and add provisions for cost recovery for design reviews of certain new projects, for the renewal of expiring special permits, and for submitters of information to request PHMSA keep the information confidential. We are also proposing changes to the operator qualification (OQ) requirements and drug and alcohol testing requirements and incorporating consensus standards by reference for in-line inspection (ILI) and Stress Corrosion Cracking Direct Assessment (SCCDA).