December 30, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

On November 20, 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a rule titled, ``Treatment of Data Influenced by Exceptional Events.'' The EPA is extending the comment period on the proposed rule and the notice of availability of the related draft guidance that was scheduled to close on January 19, 2016. The new comment closing date will be February 3, 2016. We are extending the comment period at the request of several stakeholders to allow interested parties additional time to thoroughly review and analyze the noted documents and provide meaningful comments.

DoD is proposing to amend the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to consolidate requirements that are applicable to DoD contracts for private security functions performed in designated areas outside the United States, make changes regarding applicability, and revise applicable quality assurance standards.

The Forest Service published a notice in the Federal Register on November 20, 2015, initiating a 45-day comment period on the proposed rule on Roadless Area Conservation; National Forests System Lands in Colorado. The closing date for the 45-day comment period was January 4, 2016. The Agency is extending the comment period to January 15, 2016.

DoD is issuing a final rule amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to notify contractors of requirements relating to Afghanistan taxes for contracts performed in Afghanistan.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) withdraws its June 17, 2015, notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), which would have required each commercial motor vehicle (CMV) operated by a United States-domiciled (U.S.-domiciled) motor carrier engaged in interstate commerce to display a label applied by the vehicle manufacturer or a U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Registered Importer to document the vehicle's compliance with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSSs) in effect as of the date of manufacture. FMCSA withdraws the NPRM because commenters raised substantive issues which have led the Agency to conclude that it would be inappropriate to move forward with a final rule based on the proposal. Because the FMVSSs critical to the operational safety of CMVs are cross-referenced in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs), FMCSA has determined that it can most effectively ensure that motor carriers maintain the safety equipment and features provided by the FMVSSs through enforcement of the FMCSRs, making an additional FMVSS certification labeling regulation unnecessary.

On June 23, 2015, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) to amend the test procedure for commercial prerinse spray valves. That proposed rulemaking serves as the basis for this final rule. Specifically, this final rule incorporates by reference relevant portions of the latest version of the industry testing standard from the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) Standard F2324-13, ``Standard Test Method for Prerinse Spray Valves,'' including the procedure for measuring spray force. This final rule also adopts a revised definition of ``commercial prerinse spray valve,'' clarifies the test procedure for products with multiple spray settings, establishes rounding requirements for flow rate and spray force measurements, and removes irrelevant portions of statistical methods for certification, compliance, and enforcement.

OSHA is scheduling an informal public hearing on its proposed rule ``Occupational Exposure to Beryllium and Beryllium Compounds.'' The proposed rule was published in the Federal Register on August 7, 2015 and the 90-day public comment period ended on November 5, 2015. This document describes the procedures that will govern this hearing.

The Department of the Treasury (Treasury), Bureau of the Fiscal Service (Fiscal Service), is amending its regulation governing the offset of tax refund payments to collect past-due support obligations. This rule will limit the time period during which Treasury may recover certain tax refund offset collections from States, when the States have already forwarded such funds to custodial parents as required or as authorized by applicable laws. This change will limit the time period during which Treasury may require States to return the offset funds to six months from the date of such collection, if Treasury has determined that the underlying refund was not due to the taxpayer.

PHMSA is withdrawing the notice proposing to stop the transportation of flammable liquid material in unprotected external product piping on DOT specification cargo tank motor vehicles as mandated by the ``Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act'' or the ``FAST Act''. Although PHMSA is withdrawing its rulemaking proposal, the agency will continue to consider methods to improve the safety of transporting flammable liquid by cargo tank motor vehicle. PHMSA will also continue to analyze current incident data and improve the collection of future incident data to assist in making an informed decision on methods to address this issue further, if warranted.

The Secretary proposes to amend the Impact Aid Program regulations issued under title VIII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA or ``the Act''). The proposed regulations govern Impact Aid payments to local educational agencies (LEAs). The program, in general, provides assistance for maintenance and operations costs to LEAs that are affected by Federal activities. These proposed regulations would update, clarify, and improve the current regulations.