June 29, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the navigable waters of Myrtle Beach, SC. This safety zone is necessary to protect the public from hazards associated with launching fireworks over navigable waters of the United States. This rule will prohibit persons and vessels from being in the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Charleston or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is establishing a safety zone in Lake Superior near Bayfield, WI. This safety zone is intended to restrict vessels from specified waters in Lake Superior during the Bayfield Fourth of July Fireworks Display. This safety zone is necessary to protect spectators from the hazards associated with the fireworks display.

PHMSA is revising the maximum and minimum civil penalties for a knowing violation of the Federal hazardous material transportation law or a regulation, order, special permit, or approval issued under that law. The ``Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015'' (the 2015 Act), which amended the Federal Civil Penalties, Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (the Inflation Adjustment Act), requires Agencies to update their civil monetary penalties through interim final rulemaking. The maximum civil penalty for a knowing violation is now $77,114, except for violations that result in death, serious illness, or severe injury to any person or substantial destruction of property, for which the maximum civil penalty is $179,933. In addition, the minimum civil penalty amount for a violation relating to training is now $463.

NMFS is prohibitingbeginning June 27, 2016, and ending August 31, 2016Federal longfin squid vessel permit holders from fishing for, catching, possessing, transferring, or landing more than 2,500 lb (907.2 kg) of longfin squid per trip and landing such squid more than once per calendar day. This prohibition is required by regulation because NMFS projects that 90 percent of the 2016 annual Trimester II seasonal catch limit will have been caught by the effective date. In addition, based on this determination, other restrictions regarding catch of longfin squid by federally permitted Illex squid vessels and buying longfin squid by federally permit dealers go into place. This action is intended to prevent over harvest of longfin squid during Trimester II.

The Coast Guard has issued a temporary deviation from the operating schedule that governs the Oregon State (Lewis and Clark River) highway bridge across the Lewis and Clark River, mile 1.0, at Astoria, Oregon. The deviation is necessary to accommodate bridge maintenance activities during the effective time period. The deviation allows the bridge to remain in the closed-to-navigation position such that it need not open to maritime traffic.

NMFS is announcing a change in the dealer landings reporting methodology for Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) from use of handwritten and faxed landings reports to use of an electronic reporting system via the Internet. The online BFT dealer report system is now available, and NMFS has determined that expedited transition to this online system is in the public interest and necessary to maintain accurate reporting given issues with the software currently being used to process faxed documents. This rule specifies the effective date for use of the online system and elimination of the fax option. These requirements apply to all Highly Migratory Species (HMS) dealers with a valid Atlantic Tunas dealer permit issued under applicable regulations.

The Coast Guard has modified a temporary deviation from the operating schedule that governs the S165 (North Landing Road) Bridge across the North Landing River, mile 20.2, at Chesapeake, VA. This modified deviation is necessary to perform emergency bridge repairs and provide for safe navigation. This modified deviation allows the bridge to remain in the closed-to-navigation position.

This action proposes to modify Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at McNary Field, Salem, OR. Two approaches, the Localizer (LOC) Y runway (RWY) 31 and the LOC/Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) Back Course (BC) approach RWY 13 were identified as needing additional airspace to meet airspace requirements. The FAA, also, found modification of the airspace for the LOC/DME BC RWY 13 posed an increased risk to the safety of Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) operations for Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) at the airport.

The General Services Administration (GSA) is issuing a correction to Change 72; GSAR Case 2008-G506; Rewrite of GSAR Part 515, Contracting by Negotiation, which was published in the Federal Register at 81 FR 36423, June 6, 2016.

We, NMFS, are publishing this final rule to implement our determination to list the Nassau grouper (Epinephelus striatus) as threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). We have completed a status review of the Nassau grouper in response to a petition submitted by WildEarth Guardians. After reviewing the best scientific and commercial data available, including the status review and comments received on the proposed rule, we have determined that the Nassau grouper meets the definition of a threatened species. While the species still occupies its historical range, overutilization through historical harvest has reduced the number of individuals which in turn has reduced the number and size of spawning aggregations. Although harvest of Nassau grouper has diminished due to management measures, the reduced number and size of spawning aggregations and the inadequacy of law enforcement continue to present extinction risk to Nassau grouper. Based on these considerations, described in more detail within this action, we conclude that the Nassau grouper is not currently in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range, but is likely to become so within the foreseeable future. We also solicit information that may be relevant to the designation of critical habitat for Nassau grouper, including information on physical or biological features essential to the species' conservation, areas containing these features, and potential impacts of a designation.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking direct final action to approve a December 1, 2015, State Implementation Plan (SIP) submittal from Kansas concerning allocations of Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) emission allowances. Under CSAPR, large electricity generating units in Kansas are subject to a Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) requiring the units to participate in CSAPR's Federal trading program for annual emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX). This action approves Kansas's adoption into its SIP of state regulations establishing state-determined allocations to replace EPA's default allocations to Kansas units of CSAPR allowances for annual NOX emissions for 2017 through 2019. EPA is approving the SIP revision because it meets the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and EPA's regulations for approval of an abbreviated SIP revision replacing EPA's default allocations of CSAPR emission allowances with state-determined allocations. Approval of this SIP revision does not alter any provision of CSAPR's Federal trading program for annual NOX emissions as applied to Kansas units other than the allowance allocation provisions, and the FIP requiring the units to participate in the trading program (as modified by the SIP revision) remains in place. The approval is being issued as a direct final rule without a prior proposed rule because EPA views it as uncontroversial and does not anticipate adverse comment.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is amending its rules of practice and procedure under to adjust the maximum amount of each civil money penalty (CMP) within its jurisdiction to account for inflation. This action is required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (2015 Adjustment Act).