2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Federal Maritime Commission amends its regulations governing access to Commission information and records and its regulations implementing the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The revisions update and consolidate the provisions identifying records available without the need for a FOIA request, including records available on the Commission's public Web site; revise response time procedures for processing FOIA requests; affirmatively indicate that the Commission uses a multitrack system for processing FOIA requests; and modify the criteria for a FOIA request to qualify for expedited processing.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve the portion of the state implementation plan revision submitted by the State of Mississippi, through the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, on January 14, 2015, that addresses the base year emissions inventory requirements for the State's portion of the Memphis, Tennessee-Mississippi-Arkansas (Memphis, TN-AR-MS) 2008 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) nonattainment area. A base year emissions inventory is required for all ozone nonattainment areas. The Memphis 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS marginal nonattainment area is comprised of Shelby County in Tennessee, Crittenden County in Arkansas, and a portion of DeSoto County in Mississippi. EPA will take action on the emissions inventories for the Tennessee and Arkansas portions of the Area in separate actions. In the Final Rules section of this Federal Register, EPA is approving the State's implementation plan revision as a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no adverse comments. A detailed rationale for the approval is set forth in the direct final rule.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is taking action to amend the final rule regulating the disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCR) as solid waste under subtitle D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). After publication in the Federal Register, inconsistencies resulting from typographical errors established two different effective dates in the regulatory text for the final CCR rule. This action corrects these inconsistencies and revises the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) so that it accurately reflects the statutory effective date of six months from the publication date of the rule, coinciding with a date of October 19, 2015. Consistent with Federal requirements, the EPA is also correcting dates for certain provisions that fall on January 18, 2016, which is a Federal holiday, to the next succeeding Federal business day, which is January 19, 2016.

In this document, the Commission improves and expedites the Effective Competition process by adopting a rebuttable presumption that cable operators are subject to Competing Provider Effective Competition. This action implements section 111 of the STELA Reauthorization Act of 2014, which directs the Commission to adopt a streamlined Effective Competition process for small cable operators.

In this document, the Commission proposes to implement certain allocation changes from the World Radiocommunication Conference (Geneva, 2012) (WRC-12) and to update related service rules. The Commission took this action in order to conform its rules, to the extent practical, to the decisions that the international community made at WRC-12. This action will promote the advancement of new and expanded services and provide significant benefits to the American people. In addition, the Commission proposes to address several matters that pertain to unresolved issues from a previous Conference.

The Coast Guard is establishing a regulated navigation area on Biscayne Bay in Miami, Florida, for multiple 4th of July fireworks displays throughout the Miami area. This regulation is necessary to protect the public from hazards associated with boating traffic expected during 4th of July firework displays throughout the Miami area. To ensure the public's safety, all vessels within the regulated navigation area are: Required to transit the regulated navigation area at no more than 15 knots; subject to control by the Coast Guard members with law enforcement authority; and required to follow the instructions of all law enforcement officials in the area.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone from mile 0.5 Ohio River up-bound to mile 0.5 on the Allegheny River and mile 0.5 on the Monongahela River, extending the entire width of the rivers. This action is necessary to ensure public safety due to the inherent hazards associated with launching fireworks from a barge and the explosive nature of the fireworks display. During the enforcement period, entry into, transiting, or anchoring in the safety zone is prohibited to all vessels not registered with the sponsor as participants or official patrol vessels, unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port (COTP) Pittsburgh or a designated representative.

This regulation amends the tolerance exemption for copper in/ on meat, milk, poultry, eggs, fish, shellfish, and irrigated crops when it results from the use of cuprous oxide embedded in polymer emitter heads used in irrigation systems for root incursion prevention. This regulation eliminates the need to establish a maximum permissible level for residues of copper resulting from this use of cuprous oxide.

This rule revises regulations governing the process and criteria by which the Secretary acknowledges an Indian tribe. The revisions seek to make the process and criteria more transparent, promote consistent implementation, and increase timeliness and efficiency, while maintaining the integrity and substantive rigor of the process. For decades, the current process has been criticized as ``broken'' and in need of reform. Specifically, the process has been criticized as too slow (a petition can take decades to be decided), expensive, burdensome, inefficient, intrusive, less than transparent and unpredictable. This rule reforms the process by, among other things, institutionalizing a phased review that allows for faster decisions; reducing the documentary burden while maintaining the existing rigor of the process; allowing for a hearing on a negative proposed finding to promote transparency and integrity; enhancing notice to tribes and local governments and enhancing transparency by posting all publicly available petition documents on the Department's Web site; establishing the Assistant Secretary's final determination as final for the Department to promote efficiency; and codifying and improving upon past Departmental implementation of standards, where appropriate, to ensure consistency, transparency, predictability and fairness.

This rule implements a recommendation from the Cranberry Marketing Committee (Committee) to revise the determination of sales history provisions currently prescribed under the cranberry marketing order (order). The Committee, which consists of 13 growers and 1 public member, locally administers the order regulating the handling of cranberries grown in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and Long Island in the State of New York. Under the order, there are two different sales history calculations that have been established for this program. This action clarifies when the different methods for calculating sales history will be used. This action also removes the fresh fruit exemption from one of the calculations.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing this advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) to obtain information related to the regulation of ``tobacco products'' subject to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the FD&C Act), as amended by the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (Tobacco Control Act), and restrictions regarding the sale and distribution of such tobacco products. Specifically, this ANPRM is seeking comments, data, research results, or other information that may inform regulatory actions FDA might take with respect to nicotine exposure warnings and child- resistant packaging for liquid nicotine and nicotine-containing e- liquid(s) that are made or derived from tobacco and intended for human consumption, and potentially for other tobacco products including, but not limited to, novel tobacco products such as dissolvables, lotions, gels, and drinks. In April 2014, FDA published a proposed rule seeking to deem products meeting the statutory definition of ``tobacco product,'' except accessories to proposed deemed tobacco products, to be subject to the FD&C Act, as amended by the Tobacco Control Act. Specifically, the proposed rule seeks to extend the Agency's ``tobacco product'' authorities to those products that meet the statutory definition of ``tobacco product,'' prohibiting the sale of ``covered tobacco products'' to individuals under the age of 18, and requiring the display of health warnings on certain tobacco product packages and in advertisements. The deeming rulemaking does not address the issues raised in this ANPRM.

This document proposes to amend the rules of practice prescribed by the Judicial Officer relative to debt collection proceedings against current and former postal employees. These amendments are necessary to implement a new electronic filing system.

In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, certain information collection requirements associated with the Commission's Report and Order regarding Amendments to Modernize and Clarify the Commission's rules concerning construction, marking and lighting of antenna structures. This document is being published pursuant to the Report and Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the Federal Register announcing OMB approval and the effective date of the revised information collection requirements.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (``Commission'' or ``SEC'') previously set and extended the compliance date for the ban on third-party solicitation until nine months after the compliance date of a final rule adopted by the Commission by which municipal advisors must register under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (``final municipal advisor registration rule'') and indicated that notice with respect thereto would be provided in the Federal Register. This notice of compliance date is being published to provide the notice of the compliance date.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce 90- day findings on various petitions to list 30 species and one petition that describes itself as a petition to reclassify one species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Based on our review, we find that eight petitions do not present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted, we find that one petition does not present substantial information that the petitioned entity may be a listable entity under the Act, and we find that one petition does not present substantial information that the petitioned entity may be a listable entity under the Act and does not present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted, and we are not initiating status reviews in response to these petitions. We refer to these as ``not-substantial petition findings.'' Based on our review, we find that 21 petitions present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned actions may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this document, we are initiating a review of the status of each of these species to determine if the petitioned actions are warranted. To ensure that these status reviews are comprehensive, we are requesting scientific and commercial data and other information regarding these species. Based on the status reviews, we will issue 12-month findings on the petitions, which will address whether the petitioned action is warranted, as provided in section 4(b)(3)(B) of the Act.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is publishing interpretive guidance to clarify how the Commission will interpret the terms ``spouse'' and ``marriage'' in light of the Supreme Court's ruling in United States v. Windsor.

In this action, the Administrator is proposing to determine that greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere endanger the public health and welfare of current and future generations within the meaning of section 231(a) of the Clean Air Act. She proposes to make this finding specifically with respect to the same six well-mixed greenhouse gases (GHGs)carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoridethat together were defined as the air pollution in the 2009 Endangerment Finding under section 202(a) of the Clean Air Act and that together constitute the primary cause of the climate change problem. The Administrator is also proposing to find that greenhouse gas emissions from certain classes of engines used in aircraft are contributing to air pollutionthe mix of greenhouse gases in the atmospherethat endangers public health and welfare under section 231(a) of the Clean Air Act. Concurrent with these proposed findings, the EPA is issuing an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to provide an overview of and seek input on a variety of issues related to setting an international CO2 standard for aircraft at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), ICAO's progress in establishing global aircraft standards that achieve meaningful reductions in CO2 emissions, and (provided the EPA promulgates final endangerment and cause and contribute findings for aircraft engine GHG emissions) the potential use of section 231 of the Clean Air Act to adopt and implement corresponding aircraft engine GHG emission standards domestically, ensuring transparency and the opportunity for public comment.

The Coast Guard will enforce the safety zone on Lake Macatawa in Holland, MI for the Celebration Freedom Fireworks. This zone will be enforced from 10 p.m. until 11:50 p.m. on July 4, 2015. Should inclement weather force a cancellation of the fireworks on July 4, 2015, this zone will be enforced from 10 p.m. until 11:50 p.m. on July 6, 2015. This action is necessary and intended to ensure safety of life on navigable waters immediately prior to, during, and immediately after the fireworks display. During the aforementioned periods, the Coast Guard will enforce restrictions upon, and control movement of, vessels in the safety zone. No person or vessel may enter the safety zone while it is being enforced without permission of the Captain of the Port Lake Michigan or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard will enforce the Michigan City Summerfest Fireworks Safety Zone on a portion of Lake Michigan, on July 4, 2015. This action is necessary and intended to ensure safety of life on the navigable waters of the United States immediately prior to, during, and immediately after the air and water show. During the enforcement period listed below, the Coast Guard will enforce restrictions upon, and control movement of, vessels in the safety zone. No person or vessel may enter the safety zone while it is being enforced without permission of the Captain of the Port Lake Michigan.

The Coast Guard will enforce various safety zones within the Captain of the Port New York Zone on the specified dates and times. This action is necessary to ensure the safety of vessels and spectators from hazards associated with fireworks displays. During the enforcement period, no person or vessel may enter the safety zones without permission of the Captain of the Port (COTP).

NMFS announces that the State of North Carolina is transferring a portion of its 2015 commercial summer flounder quota to the Commonwealth of Virginia. These quota adjustments are necessary to comply with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan quota transfer provision. This announcement is intended to inform the public of the revised commercial quota for each state involved.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is adopting its proposed rule to revise the table of reduction factors for early commencing dates of survivor annuities for spouses of separated employees who die before the date on which they would be eligible for unreduced deferred annuities. This rule is necessary to ensure that the tables conform to the economic and demographic assumptions adopted by the Board of Actuaries and published in the Federal Register on March 20, 2015.

In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of six months, the information collection associated with the Commission's Second E- rate Modernization Report and Order and Order on Reconsideration (Second E-rate Modernization Order). This notice is consistent with the (Second E-rate Modernization Order, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of those rules.

This action modifies Class D airspace, Class E surface area airspace, Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface, and removes Class E surface area airspace designated as an extension at McNary Field, Salem, OR. After reviewing the airspace, the FAA found it necessary to increase the airspace areas for the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations during Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) at the airport.

EPA is amending the significant new use rules (SNURs) under section 5(a)(2) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for 21 chemical substances which were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs). This action amends the SNURs to allow certain uses without requiring a significant new use notice (SNUN), and extends SNUN requirements to certain additional uses. EPA is amending these SNURs based on review of new data for each chemical substance. This action requires persons who intend to manufacture (including import) or process any of these 21 chemical substances for an activity that is designated as a significant new use by this proposed rule to notify EPA at least 90 days before commencing that activity. The required notification would provide EPA with the opportunity to evaluate the intended use and, if necessary, to prohibit or limit that activity before it occurs.