2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Coast Guard is establishing a special local regulation on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in Bucksport, South Carolina during the Grand National Drag Boat Races, a series of high-speed boat races. The event will take place on Saturday, June 20, 2015 and Sunday, June 21, 2015. Approximately 30 high-speed race boats are anticipated to participate in the races. This special local regulation is necessary to provide for the safety of life and property on navigable waters of the United States during the event. This special local regulation will temporarily restrict vessel traffic in a portion of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. Persons and vessels that are not participating in the races will be prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the regulated area unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Charleston or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is temporarily changing the enforcement date of the special local regulation for the recurring OPA Atlantic City Grand Prix boat race, held in the waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, adjacent to Atlantic City, New Jersey. The change of enforcement date for the special local regulation is necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the event. This action will restrict vessel traffic in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean adjacent to Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the event, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on June 20, 2015 and June 21, 2015.

This document corrects the designation of a paragraph in Item 6 of Part I to Form 1-A in a final rule published in the Federal Register of April 20, 2015, regarding the Amendments for Small and Additional Issues Exemptions under the Securities Act (Regulation A).

NMFS is implementing management measures for the 2015 summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass recreational fisheries. The implementing regulations for these fisheries require NMFS to publish recreational measures for each fishing year. The intent of these measures is to constrain recreational catch to established limits and prevent overfishing of the summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass resources.

The Coast Guard has issued a temporary deviation from the operating schedule that governs the US Route 50 Bridge across the Isle of Wight (Sinepuxent) Bay, mile 0.5, at Ocean City, MD. The deviation is necessary to facilitate the Annual July 4th Fireworks show. This deviation allows the bridge to remain closed to navigation to accommodate heavy volumes of vehicular traffic following the fireworks show.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Fokker Services B.V. Model F.28 Mark 0070 and 0100 airplanes. This AD was prompted by a report of two cases of heavy (hard to move) aileron control caused by aileron cables stuck in a clump of ice in the wheel bay. This AD requires installing drain tubes on the center wing rear spar. We are issuing this AD to prevent accumulated water near or on the aileron control cables, which could freeze and result in reduced control of the airplane.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Pratt & Whitney Division (PW) PW6122A and PW6124A turbofan engines. This AD requires initial and repetitive borescope inspections (BSIs) of the high-pressure compressor (HPC) 7th stage integrally bladed (IB) rotor aft integral arm for cracks until replacement of the HPC 7th stage IB rotor using non-silver-plated nuts. This AD was prompted by reports of crack finds in the HPC 7th stage IB rotor. We are issuing this AD to prevent HPC 7th stage IB rotor fractures, which could lead to uncontained engine failure and damage to the airplane.

EPA issued a notice in the Federal Register of May 29, 2015, concerning EPA's Proposal to Mitigate Exposure to Bees from Acutely Toxic Pesticide Products. This document extends the comment period for 30 days, from June 29, 2015 to July 29, 2015. Multiple stakeholders requested that EPA extend the comment period due to the complexity and importance of this issue. EPA is granting the extension.

This document contains temporary regulations relating to multiemployer pension plans that are projected to have insufficient funds, at some point in the future, to pay the full benefits to which individuals will be entitled under the plans (referred to as plans in ``critical and declining status''). The Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014 (``MPRA'') amended the Internal Revenue Code to incorporate suspension of benefits provisions that permit these multiemployer plans to reduce pension benefits payable to participants and beneficiaries if certain conditions are satisfied. MPRA requires the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation and the Secretary of Labor, to approve or deny applications by these plans to reduce benefits. As required by MPRA, these temporary regulations, together with proposed regulations being published at the same time, provide guidance implementing these statutory provisions. These temporary regulations affect active, retired, and deferred vested participants and beneficiaries of multiemployer plans that are in critical and declining status as well as employers contributing to, and sponsors and administrators of, those plans. The text of these temporary regulations also serves, in part, as the text of the proposed regulations (REG-102648-15) set forth in the notice of proposed rulemaking on this subject in the Proposed Rules section of this issue of the Federal Register.

This document contains an interim final rule prescribing the application process and notice requirements for partitions of eligible multiemployer plans under title IV of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), as amended by the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014 (MPRA). The interim final rule is published pursuant to section 122 of MPRA in order to carry out the provisions of section 4233 of ERISA. PBGC is soliciting public comments on the interim final regulation.

This NPRM proposes to update Head Start program performance standards, last revised in 1998, to meet Congress's requirements and improve the quality of Head Start. In the Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007, Congress instructed the Office of Head Start to update its performance standards by regulation and ``ensure that any such revisions in the standards [do] not result in the elimination of or any reduction in quality, scope, or types of health, educational, parental involvement, nutritional, social, or other services.'' The proposed performance standards incorporate extensive consultation with experts and findings from scientific research, reflect best practices, lessons from program input and innovation, integrate recommendations from the Secretary's Advisory Committee Final Report on Head Start Research and Evaluation, and reflect this Administration's deep commitment to improving the school readiness of young children. The proposed program performance standards will improve the quality of services, reduce bureaucratic burden on programs, and improve regulatory clarity and transparency. They provide a clear road map for current and prospective grantees to provide high quality Head Start services and to strengthen the outcomes of the children and families they serve.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is affirming, with changes and a request for comment, the interim final rule ``Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-to-Eat Meat and Poultry Products,'' which was published in the Federal Register on June 6, 2003. FSIS is making minor changes to the regulatory provisions in response to comments that the Agency received, on the basis of experience in implementing the provisions, and because the way FSIS obtains establishment profile information electronically has changed. FSIS is clarifying in the regulations that establishments may not release into commerce product that has been in contact with Listeria monocytogenes (Lm)-contaminated surfaces without reprocessing the product. In addition, FSIS is removing the requirement for establishments to report production volume and related information to FSIS because the Agency now routinely collects this information through its Public Health Information System (PHIS).

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) proposes to establish the 12,897-square mile (8,254,151-acre) ``Loess Hills District'' viticultural area in western Iowa and northwestern Missouri. The proposed viticultural area is not located within, nor does it contain, any other established viticultural area. TTB designates viticultural areas to allow vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow consumers to better identify wines they may purchase. TTB invites comments on this proposed addition to its regulations.

The Environmental Protection Agency EPA proposes to modify the use restrictions of the Galveston, TX Dredged Material Site, Freeport Harbor, TX, New Work (45 Foot Project), Freeport Harbor, TX, Maintenance (45 Foot Project), Matagorda Ship Channel, TX, Corpus Christi Ship Channel, TX, Port Mansfield, TX, Brazos Island Harbor, TX and Brazos Island Harbor (42-Foot Project), TX Ocean Dredged Material Disposal Sites (ODMDSs) located in the Gulf of Mexico offshore of Galveston, Freeport, Matagorda, Corpus Christi, Port Mansfield and Brownsville, Texas, respectively. These sites are EPA designated ocean dumping sites for the disposal of suitable dredged material. This proposed action is being taken because there are current restrictions in place with language that prevent disposal of suitable dredged material from locations other than the federal channels. The United States Army Corps of Engineers Galveston District has requested EPA amend the restrictions to allow disposal of suitable dredged material from the vicinity of federal navigation channels to alleviate pressure on the capacity of their upland dredged material placement areas, when necessary.

FMCSA amends its Hazardous Materials Safety Permits rules to update the current incorporation by reference of the ``North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria and Level VI Inspection Procedures and Out-of-Service Criteria for Commercial Highway Vehicles Transporting Transuranics and Highway Route Controlled Quantities of Radioactive Materials as defined in 49 CFR part 173.403.'' Currently the rules reference the April 1, 2014, edition of the out-of-service criteria and, through this final rule, FMCSA incorporates the April 1, 2015, edition.

This action decreases the possession and landing limit for Gulf of Maine cod to zero for Northeast multispecies common pool vessels for the remainder of the 2015 fishing year. NMFS is taking this action because the common pool has caught 44.5 percent of its Trimester 1 Total Allowable Catch Gulf of Maine cod quota in the first month of the trimester. This action is intended to prevent the overharvest of the common pool's fishing year 2015 allocation of Gulf of Maine cod and prevent the closure of the Gulf of Maine to all common pool vessels before the end of the Trimester.

The Coast Guard has issued a temporary deviation from the operating schedule that governs the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Chambers Creek Railway Bridge across Chambers Creek, mile 0.0, at Steilacoom, Washington. The deviation is necessary to minimize the effects of train noise on the 2015 U.S. Golf Association Championship held at Chambers Bay Golf Course. This deviation allows the bridge to open only upon 1 hour notice from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on June 14, 2015 and 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day from June 15, 2015 to June 22, 2015. At all other times the bridge will open on signal in accordance with its normal operating regulation.

This action proposes to amend Class E airspace at El Paso, TX. The closure of West Texas Airport has made this action necessary for continued safety and management within the National Airspace System. Additionally, the geographic coordinates for El Paso International Airport and Biggs Army Airfield (AAF) would be adjusted.

The NTSB proposes a new subpart within part 800 of its regulations to outline the NTSB's rulemaking procedures.

Much of the information set out in certain regulations regarding HHS's programs and activities is obsolete. Also, electronic resources are now available that did not exist when this part was first codified. This rule removes these obsolete regulations.

Under the Federal Clean Air Act (Act), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving revisions to the New Mexico State Implementation Plan (SIP). These revisions update the transportation conformity rules and remove the general conformity provisions.

FMCSA proposes to amend the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) by requiring United States-domiciled (U.S.- domiciled) motor carriers engaged in interstate commerce to use only commercial motor vehicles (CMV) that display a certification label affixed by the vehicle manufacturer or a U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Registered Importer, indicating that the vehicle satisfied all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) in effect at the time of manufacture. If the certification label is missing, the motor carrier must obtain, and a driver upon demand present, a letter issued by the vehicle manufacturer stating that the vehicle met all applicable FMVSS in effect at the time of manufacture.

NMFS implements accountability measures (AMs) for the commercial sector for the lesser amberjack, almaco jack, and banded rudderfish complex in the South Atlantic for the 2015 fishing year through this temporary rule. Commercial landings for the lesser amberjack, almaco jack, and banded rudderfish complex, as estimated by the Science and Research Director, are projected to reach their combined commercial annual catch limit (ACL) on June 23, 2015. Therefore, NMFS closes the commercial sector for this complex on June 23, 2015, through the remainder of the fishing year in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the South Atlantic. This closure is necessary to protect the lesser amberjack, almaco jack, and banded rudderfish resources.

On March 23, 2015, we (NMFS and USFWS, or the Services) published a proposed rule to revise the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas; hereafter referred to as the green turtle) listings under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). We proposed to remove the current range- wide listing and, in its place, list eight distinct population segments (DPSs) as threatened and three as endangered. We opened a public comment period that lasted through June 22, 2015, announced a public hearing in Honolulu, Hawaii, and solicited requests for additional public hearings. With this document, we announce additional public hearings in Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), and American Samoa. To allow adequate time for comments after the last public hearing, we extend the public comment period through July 27, 2015.

The Office of Personnel Management is issuing proposed regulations to implement section 2 of the Border Patrol Agent Pay Reform Act of 2014, as amended, which established a new method of compensating Border Patrol agents for overtime work. Payments under this new provision will become payable beginning with the first pay period beginning in January 2016. These regulations affect only Border Patrol agents in the U.S. Customs and Border Protection component of the Department of Homeland Security.