January 11, 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Commerce (Department) is requesting comment on a draft Report about actions to address automated and distributed threats to the digital ecosystem as part of the activity directed by Executive Order 13800, ``Strengthening the Cybersecurity of Federal Networks and Critical Infrastructure.'' Through this Notice, the Department seeks broad input and feedback from all interested stakeholdersincluding private industry, academia, civil society, and other security expertson this draft Report, its characterization of risks and the state of the ecosystem, the goals laid out, and the actions to further these goals.

The Commission is noticing a recent filing requesting that the Commission initiate an informal rulemaking proceeding to consider revisions to the periodic reporting requirements codified at 39 CFR part 3050. This document informs the public of the filing, invites public comment, and takes other administrative steps.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing an exemption from certain power reactor financial protection requirements in response to a September 16, 2015, request from the Southern California Edison Company (the licensee). The exemption would permit the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, Units 2 and 3 (SONGS), to reduce the required level of primary financial protection from $450 million to $100 million, as well as to withdraw from participation in the secondary layer of financial protection effective immediately.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an agency of the United States Department of Commerce is establishing the Genome Editing Consortium with the goal of bringing together stakeholders across the genome editing community to identify and address measurement and standards needs to support this technical area. The Consortium intends to evaluate genome editing assay pipelines, develop benchmark materials, generate benchmark data, develop suggested minimal information reporting for public studies, and generate a common lexicon for genome editing studies, with the intent these resources can be used to increase confidence in evaluating genome editing and lower the risk to utilizing these technologies in research and commercial products. Participation fees will be at least $20,000 annually or in- kind contributions of equivalent value. Participants will be required to sign a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA).

NMFS implements management measures described in Amendment 41 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (Snapper-Grouper FMP), as prepared and submitted by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (South Atlantic Council). This final rule revises commercial and recreational annual catch limits (ACLs), the minimum size limit, commercial trip limits, and the recreational bag limit for mutton snapper in the South Atlantic based on the results of the most recent stock assessment update. The purpose of this final rule is to ensure that mutton snapper is managed based on the best scientific information available to achieve optimum yield (OY) and to prevent overfishing, while minimizing adverse social and economic effects to the extent practicable.

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The FAA is issuing this notice to advise the public of a meeting of Twenty Eighth RTCA SC-222 AMS(R)S Systems Plenary.

We are adopting amendments to the rule that defines a venture capital fund (rule 203(l)-1) and the rule that implements the private fund adviser exemption (rule 203(m)-1) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the ``Advisers Act'') in order to reflect changes made by title LXXIV, sections 74001 and 74002 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act of 2015 (the ``FAST Act''), which amended sections 203(l) and 203(m) of the Advisers Act. Title LXXIV, section 74001 of the FAST Act amended the exemption from investment adviser registration for any adviser solely to one or more ``venture capital funds'' in Advisers Act section 203(l) by deeming ``small business investment companies'' to be ``venture capital funds'' for purposes of the exemption. Accordingly, we are amending the definition of a venture capital fund to include ``small business investment companies.'' Title LXXIV, section 74002 of the FAST Act amended the exemption from investment adviser registration for any adviser solely to ``private funds'' with less than $150 million in assets under management in Advisers Act section 203(m) by excluding the assets of ``small business investment companies'' when calculating ``private fund assets'' towards the registration threshold of $150 million. Accordingly, we are amending the definition of ``assets under management'' in the rule that implements the private fund adviser exemption to exclude the assets of ``small business investment companies.''

The Department of Energy (``DOE'') publishes this final rule to adjust DOE's civil monetary penalties (``CMPs'') for inflation as mandated by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as further amended by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (collectively referred to herein as ``the Act''). This rule adjusts CMPs within the jurisdiction of DOE to the maximum amount required by the Act.

We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for Air Comm Corporation (Air Comm) air conditioning systems installed on various model helicopters. This proposed AD would require replacing electrical connectors and would prohibit the installation of other parts. This proposed AD is prompted by reports of overheated connectors. The proposed actions are intended to address an unsafe condition on these products.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), intend to prepare draft environmental analysis (either an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement) under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for the proposed habitat conservation plan for the California Department of Parks and Recreation Oceano Dunes District (HCP). The HCP is a conservation plan as required under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA), for issuance of an incidental take permit (ITP). The draft environmental analysis will evaluate the impacts of several alternatives related to the proposed issuance of an ITP to the California Department of Parks and Recreation Oceano Dunes District (CDPR, applicant) for incidental take of threatened and endangered wildlife species that could result from activities covered under the HCP. The HCP would also include conservation measures for endangered plants. We also are announcing the initiation of a public scoping process to engage Federal, Tribal, State, and local governments and the public in the identification of issues and concerns, potential impacts, and possible alternatives to the proposed action.