Requests for Documents and Testimony, 17086-17088 [2018-07964]
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17086
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 75 / Wednesday, April 18, 2018 / Rules and Regulations
EPA APPROVED FLORIDA REGULATIONS—Continued
State
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(section)
State
effective
date
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Explanation
State Statutes
112.3143(4) ..
Voting Conflict ...............................
4/19/2012
7/30/2012, 77 FR 44485 .....
112.3144 .......
Full and Public Disclosure of Financial Interests.
Injunctive relief, remedies .............
4/19/2012
7/30/2012, 77 FR 44485 .....
4/19/2012
7/30/2012, 77 FR 44485 .....
4/19/2012
7/30/2012, 77 FR 44485 .....
403.131 .........
120.569 .........
Decisions which affect substantial
interests.
To satisfy the requirements
128 and 110(a)(2)(E)(ii).
To satisfy the requirements
128 and 110(a)(2)(E)(ii).
To satisfy the requirements
110(a)(2)(G).
To satisfy the requirements
110(a)(2)(G).
of sections
of sections
of section
of section
(d) EPA-approved State Sourcespecific requirements.
EPA-APPROVED FLORIDA SOURCE-SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS
State
effective
date
Name of source
Permit No.
Harry S Truman, animal
import center.
Martin Gas Sales, Inc .......
Broward County Aviation
Department.
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company.
NA .....................................
11/26/1996
0570477–007–AC .............
...........................................
1/17/2003
8/15/2003
5/1/2003, 68 FR 23209.
6/17/2003, 69 FR 33862 ..
...........................................
4/16/2005
11/28/2006, 71 FR 68745
Combs Oil Company ........
...........................................
7/31/2009
9/25/2015, 80 FR 57727 ..
Mosaic Fertilizer, LLC .......
Air Permit No.
080–AC.
Air Permit No.
036–AC.
Air Permit No.
074–AC.
Air Permit No.
046–AC.
0570008–
1/15/2015
7/3/2017, 82 FR 30749 ....
0890004–
4/12/2012
7/3/2017, 82 FR 30749 ....
0570039–
2/26/2015
7/3/2017, 82 FR 30749 ....
0890003–
1/9/2015
7/3/2017, 82 FR 30749 ....
Rayonier Performance Fibers, LLC.
Tampa Electric Company—Big Bend Station.
WestRock, LLC .................
*
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*
*
Stefanie K. Davis, Assistant General
Counsel, 202–295–1563, sdavis@lsc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
I. Background
LEGAL SERVICES CORPORATION
45 CFR Part 1603
Requests for Documents and
Testimony
Legal Services Corporation.
Final rule.
AGENCY:
This final rule governs
subpoenas and requests for LSC
documents and testimony by nonfederal litigants in cases in which LSC
is not a party. This rule provides the
public with guidance on where to send
requests and establishes procedures by
which those requests will be processed.
DATES: This final rule is effective on
May 18, 2018.
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SUMMARY:
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16:24 Apr 17, 2018
Jkt 244001
LSC proposed to create a new
regulation, known as a Touhy
regulation, that would establish a
process by which litigants in cases
where LSC is not a party could obtain
documents or testimony from LSC and
its employees. Arising from the
Supreme Court’s decision in U.S. ex rel
Touhy v. Ragen, 340 U.S. 462 (1951),
Touhy regulations define agencies’
procedures for responding to document
or testimony requests, as well as
individual agency employees’ obligation
to follow such procedures.
Between 2013 and 2017, LSC and its
Office of the Inspector General (OIG)
received several subpoenas and requests
for testimony or documents but did not
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Explanation
1/19/2000, 65 FR 2882.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
[FR Doc. 2018–07900 Filed 4–17–18; 8:45 am]
ACTION:
EPA approval date
Sfmt 4700
Order Granting Variance from Rule 62–
252.400.
Requirement that Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company comply with EPA’s
Aerospace CTG at its Pinellas County
facility.
Order Granting Variance from Rule 62–
296.418(2)(b)2.
Specific Conditions pertaining to:
EU004; EU005; and EU006.
Specific Conditions pertaining to:
EU005; EU006; and EU022.
Specific Conditions pertaining to:
EU001; EU002; EU003 and EU004.
Specific Conditions pertaining to:
EU006; EU015; EU007 and EU011.
have internal or external guidance in
place regarding such requests. At the
OIG’s recommendation, LSC added
rulemaking on requests for documents
and testimony to its rulemaking agenda
in 2015. On October 15, 2017, the
Operations and Regulations Committee
(Committee) of LSC’s Board of Directors
(Board) voted to recommend that the
Board authorize rulemaking on part
1603. On October 17, 2017, the Board
authorized LSC to begin rulemaking.
Regulatory action was justified for
four reasons. First, a Touhy regulation
would promote efficiency and
timeliness by identifying those LSC
officials with the authority to respond to
requests or subpoenas for documents or
testimony and establishing a procedure
for LSC’s consideration of such requests.
Second, it would minimize the
possibility of involving LSC in
controversies not related to its
functions. Third, it would prevent the
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 75 / Wednesday, April 18, 2018 / Rules and Regulations
amozie on DSK30RV082PROD with RULES
misuse of LSC’s employees as
involuntary expert witnesses for private
interests or as inappropriate expert
witnesses as to the state of the law.
Fourth, it would maintain LSC’s
impartiality toward private litigants.
On January 21, 2018, the Committee
voted to recommend that the Board
approve this notice of proposed
rulemaking (NPRM) for publication. On
January 23, 2018, the Board accepted
the Committee’s recommendation and
voted to approve publication of this
NPRM with a 30-day comment period.
LSC published the notice of proposed
rulemaking in the Federal Register on
February 1, 2018, 83 FR 4827. The
comment period remained open for
thirty days and closed on March 5,
2018.
On April 8, 2018, the Committee
voted to recommend that the Board
adopt this Final Rule and approve its
publication in the Federal Register. On
April 10, 2018, the Board accepted the
Committee’s recommendation and voted
to adopt and approve publication of this
final rule.
Materials regarding this rulemaking
are available in the open rulemaking
section of LSC’s website at https://
www.lsc.gov/about-lsc/laws-regulationsguidance/rulemaking. After the effective
date of the rule, those materials will
appear in the closed rulemaking section
at https://www.lsc.gov/about-lsc/lawsregulations-guidance/rulemaking/
closed-rulemaking.
II. Discussion of the Final Rule
LSC received no comments on the
proposed rule. Consequently, LSC is
adopting the text of the proposed rule
published in the Federal Register at 83
FR 4827 with minor revisions. At the
Operations and Regulations Committee
meeting on April 8, 2018, the
Committee recommended that LSC
make two technical changes. The first
was to include language in the
definition of employee to make clear
that this rule applies to non-Director
members of Board committees. The
second was to add language to
§ 1603.4(a) clarifying that individuals
seeking testimony from an employee of
OIG must follow the procedures in
§ 1603.4(b) for requesting testimony
from the OIG Legal Counsel, rather than
submitting the request to LSC’s General
Counsel. LSC Management concurred
with the recommendations and revised
the proposed final rule text accordingly.
In a final rule published elsewhere in
this issue of the Federal Register, LSC
is removing the existing version of part
1603 pertaining to state advisory
councils. LSC is replacing it with this
regulation.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:24 Apr 17, 2018
Jkt 244001
List of Subjects in 45 CFR Part 1603
Administrative practice and
procedure; Archives and records;
Courts.
For the reasons discussed in the
preamble, the Legal Services
Corporation adds CFR part 1603 to read
as follows:
■
PART 1603—TESTIMONY BY
EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF
DOCUMENTS IN PROCEEDINGS
WHERE THE UNITED STATES IS NOT
A PARTY
Sec.
1603.1 Scope, purpose, and applicability.
1603.2 Definitions.
1603.3 What is LSC’s policy on
presentation of testimony and
production of documents?
1603.4 How does a person request
voluntary testimony from an employee?
1603.5 How will LSC respond to a request
for expert testimony from an employee?
1603.6 How will LSC respond to a
subpoena for documents?
1603.7 When will LSC certify the
authenticity of records?
1603.8 Does this part give individuals any
rights?
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 2996g(e).
§ 1603.1
Scope, purpose, and applicability.
(a) This part sets forth rules to be
followed when a litigant requests an
employee of the Legal Services
Corporation (LSC), including LSC’s
Office of the Inspector General (OIG), to
provide testimony in a deposition, trial,
or other similar proceeding concerning
information acquired in the course of
performing official duties or because of
such person’s official capacity with
LSC. This part also sets forth procedures
for the handling of subpoenas for
documents and other requests for
documents in the possession of LSC or
the OIG, and for the processing of
requests for certification of copies of
documents.
(b) It is LSC’s policy to provide
information, data, and records to nonfederal litigants to the same extent and
in the same manner that they are made
available to the public. When subject to
the jurisdiction of a court or other
tribunal presiding over litigation
between non-federal parties, LSC will
follow all applicable procedural and
substantive rules relating to the
production of information, data, and
records by a non-party. The availability
of LSC employees to testify in litigation
not involving federal parties is governed
by LSC’s policy to maintain strict
impartiality with respect to private
litigants and to minimize the disruption
of official duties.
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17087
(c) This part applies to state, local,
and tribal judicial, administrative, and
legislative proceedings, and to federal
judicial and administrative proceedings.
(d) This part does not apply to:
(1) Any civil or criminal proceedings
to which LSC is a party.
(2) Congressional requests or
subpoenas for testimony or documents.
(3) Consultative services and
technical assistance provided by LSC in
carrying out its normal program
activities.
(4) Employees serving as expert
witnesses in connection with
professional and consultative services as
approved outside activities. In cases
where employees are providing such
outside services, they must state for the
record that the testimony represents
their own views and does not
necessarily represent the official
position of LSC.
(5) Employees making appearances in
their private capacity in legal or
administrative proceedings that do not
relate to LSC, such as cases arising out
of traffic accidents, crimes, domestic
relations, etc., and not involving
professional and consultative services.
(6) Any civil or criminal proceedings
in State court brought on behalf of LSC.
(7) Any criminal proceeding brought
as a result of a referral for prosecution
by the OIG or by any other Inspector
General in connection with a case
worked jointly with the OIG.
§ 1603.2
Definitions.
(a) Certify means to authenticate
official LSC documents.
(b) Employee means current and
former LSC employees, including
temporary employees, OIG employees,
and members of the Board of Directors
and its Committees.
(c) LSC means the Legal Services
Corporation. Unless explicitly stated
otherwise, LSC includes the OIG.
(d) Testify and testimony include inperson, oral statements before a court,
legislative or administrative body and
statements made pursuant to
depositions, interrogatories,
declarations, affidavits, or other formal
participation.
§ 1603.3 What is LSC’s policy on
presentation of testimony and production of
documents?
In any proceedings to which this part
applies, no employee may provide
testimony or produce documents
concerning information acquired in the
course of performing official duties or
because of the person’s official
relationship with LSC unless authorized
by the General Counsel or the OIG Legal
Counsel pursuant to this part based on
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 75 / Wednesday, April 18, 2018 / Rules and Regulations
his or her determination that
compliance with the request would
promote LSC’s objectives.
§ 1603.4 How does a person request
voluntary testimony from an employee?
(a) All requests for testimony by an
employee in his or her official capacity,
except employees of OIG described in
paragraph (b) of this section, and not
subject to the exceptions set forth in
§ 1603.1(d) of this part must be in
writing and addressed to the General
Counsel.
(b) All requests for testimony by an
employee of the OIG must be in writing
and addressed to the OIG Legal Counsel.
(c) Requests must state the nature of
the requested testimony, why the
information sought is unavailable by
any other means, and the reasons why
the testimony would be in the interest
of LSC.
§ 1603.5 How will LSC respond to a
request for expert testimony from an
employee?
No employee shall serve as an expert
witness in any proceeding described in
§ 1603.1(c) of this part or before a court
or agency of the United States unless the
General Counsel or the OIG Legal
Counsel authorizes the employee’s
participation.
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§ 1603.6 How will LSC respond to a
subpoena for documents?
16:24 Apr 17, 2018
Jkt 244001
§ 1603.7 When will LSC certify the
authenticity of records?
Upon request, LSC will certify the
authenticity of copies of records that are
to be disclosed. The requesting party
will be responsible for reasonable fees
for copying and certification.
§ 1603.8 Does this part give individuals
any rights?
This part is intended only to provide
a process for receipt and processing of
private litigants’ requests for LSC
documents and testimony. It does not,
and may not be relied upon, to create a
right or benefit, substantive or
procedural, enforceable at law by a
party against LSC.
Dated: April 11, 2018.
Stefanie Davis,
Assistant General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2018–07964 Filed 4–17–18; 8:45 am]
(a) Whenever a subpoena
commanding the production of any LSC
record has been served upon an
employee, the employee shall refer the
subpoena to the General Counsel or the
OIG Legal Counsel, as appropriate. The
General Counsel or the OIG Legal
Counsel shall determine whether the
subpoena is legally sufficient, whether
the subpoena was properly served, and
whether the issuing court or other
tribunal has jurisdiction over LSC. If the
General Counsel or the OIG Legal
Counsel determines that the subpoena
satisfies all three factors, LSC shall
comply with the terms of the subpoena
unless LSC takes affirmative action to
modify or quash the subpoena in
accordance with Fed. R. Civ. P. 45 (c).
(b) If a subpoena commanding the
production of any record served upon
an employee is determined by the
General Counsel or the OIG Legal
Counsel to be legally insufficient,
improperly served, or from a tribunal
not having jurisdiction, LSC shall deem
the subpoena a request for records
under the Freedom of Information Act.
LSC shall handle the subpoena pursuant
to the rules governing public disclosure
established in 45 CFR part 1602.
(c) If the General Counsel or the OIG
Legal Counsel denies approval to
VerDate Sep<11>2014
comply with a subpoena for testimony
or has not acted by the return date, the
employee will be directed to appear at
the stated time and place, unless
advised by the General Counsel or the
OIG Legal Counsel that responding to
the subpoena would be inappropriate.
The employee will be directed to
produce a copy of these regulations and
respectfully decline to testify or produce
any documents on the basis of these
regulations.
BILLING CODE 7050–01–P
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
47 CFR Part 20
[WT Docket No. 10–4; FCC 18–35]
Improvement of Wireless Coverage
Through the Use of Signal Boosters
Federal Communications
Commission.
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
In this document, the Federal
Communications Commission takes
further steps to expand access to signal
boosters by removing the personal use
restriction on Provider-Specific
Consumer Signal Boosters, thereby
allowing small businesses, public safety
entities, and other organizations to take
advantage of the signal boosters’
benefits. Specifically, whereas the
existing rules restricted ProviderSpecific Consumer Signal Boosters to
personal use, the Commission will now
permit any subscriber—an individual or
a non-individual—with a proper
registration to use these boosters. This
approach will have cognizable public
interest benefits by permitting more
SUMMARY:
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Fmt 4700
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entities to take advantage of the
recognized benefits of Provider-Specific
Consumer Signal Boosters.
DATES: Effective May 18, 2018.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Amanda Huetinck at
Amanda.huetinck@fcc.gov, of the
Wireless Telecommunications Bureau,
Mobility Division, (202) 418–7090.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a
summary of the Commission’s Second
Report and Order (Second Report and
Order) in WT Docket No. 10–4, FCC 18–
35, released on March 23, 2018. The
complete text of the Second Report and
Order, including all Appendices, is
available for inspection and copying
during normal business hours in the
FCC Reference Center, 445 12th Street
SW, Room CY–A157, Washington, DC
20554, or by downloading the text from
the Commission’s website at https://
apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/
FCC-18-35A1.pdf.
Alternative formats are available for
people with disabilities (Braille, large
print, electronic files, audio format), by
sending an email to FCC504@fcc.gov or
calling the Consumer and Government
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418–0530
(voice), (202) 418–0432 (TTY).
The Commission will send a copy of
the Second Report and Order in a report
to be sent to Congress and the
Government Accountability Office
pursuant to the Congressional Review
Act, see 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A).
I. Second Report and Order
1. The Commission’s Consumer
Signal Booster rules, adopted in a 2013
Report and Order (WT Docket No. 10–
4) (Report and Order), 78 FR 21555,
Apr. 11, 2013, appear to have achieved
the Commission’s goals of expanding
Americans’ access to well-designed
boosters that do not harm wireless
providers’ networks. The rules adopted
in the Report and Order, however, were
conservatively designed and tailored to
meet the needs of individual consumers.
Given the record developed in the
proceeding, the Commission finds that
it can expand the availability of
Consumer Signal Boosters without
creating a risk of unacceptable
interference. Accordingly, in its Second
Report and Order, the Commission
further expands access to signal boosters
by eliminating a restriction on their use
that the Commission now finds
unnecessary. Specifically, based on the
record before it, the Commission
removes the personal use restriction on
the operation of Provider-Specific
Consumer Signal Boosters so that small
businesses, public safety entities, and
other organizations also may take full
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 18, 2018)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 17086-17088]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-07964]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
LEGAL SERVICES CORPORATION
45 CFR Part 1603
Requests for Documents and Testimony
AGENCY: Legal Services Corporation.
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This final rule governs subpoenas and requests for LSC
documents and testimony by non-federal litigants in cases in which LSC
is not a party. This rule provides the public with guidance on where to
send requests and establishes procedures by which those requests will
be processed.
DATES: This final rule is effective on May 18, 2018.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stefanie K. Davis, Assistant General
Counsel, 202-295-1563, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
LSC proposed to create a new regulation, known as a Touhy
regulation, that would establish a process by which litigants in cases
where LSC is not a party could obtain documents or testimony from LSC
and its employees. Arising from the Supreme Court's decision in U.S. ex
rel Touhy v. Ragen, 340 U.S. 462 (1951), Touhy regulations define
agencies' procedures for responding to document or testimony requests,
as well as individual agency employees' obligation to follow such
procedures.
Between 2013 and 2017, LSC and its Office of the Inspector General
(OIG) received several subpoenas and requests for testimony or
documents but did not have internal or external guidance in place
regarding such requests. At the OIG's recommendation, LSC added
rulemaking on requests for documents and testimony to its rulemaking
agenda in 2015. On October 15, 2017, the Operations and Regulations
Committee (Committee) of LSC's Board of Directors (Board) voted to
recommend that the Board authorize rulemaking on part 1603. On October
17, 2017, the Board authorized LSC to begin rulemaking.
Regulatory action was justified for four reasons. First, a Touhy
regulation would promote efficiency and timeliness by identifying those
LSC officials with the authority to respond to requests or subpoenas
for documents or testimony and establishing a procedure for LSC's
consideration of such requests. Second, it would minimize the
possibility of involving LSC in controversies not related to its
functions. Third, it would prevent the
[[Page 17087]]
misuse of LSC's employees as involuntary expert witnesses for private
interests or as inappropriate expert witnesses as to the state of the
law. Fourth, it would maintain LSC's impartiality toward private
litigants.
On January 21, 2018, the Committee voted to recommend that the
Board approve this notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for
publication. On January 23, 2018, the Board accepted the Committee's
recommendation and voted to approve publication of this NPRM with a 30-
day comment period. LSC published the notice of proposed rulemaking in
the Federal Register on February 1, 2018, 83 FR 4827. The comment
period remained open for thirty days and closed on March 5, 2018.
On April 8, 2018, the Committee voted to recommend that the Board
adopt this Final Rule and approve its publication in the Federal
Register. On April 10, 2018, the Board accepted the Committee's
recommendation and voted to adopt and approve publication of this final
rule.
Materials regarding this rulemaking are available in the open
rulemaking section of LSC's website at https://www.lsc.gov/about-lsc/laws-regulations-guidance/rulemaking. After the effective date of the
rule, those materials will appear in the closed rulemaking section at
https://www.lsc.gov/about-lsc/laws-regulations-guidance/rulemaking/closed-rulemaking.
II. Discussion of the Final Rule
LSC received no comments on the proposed rule. Consequently, LSC is
adopting the text of the proposed rule published in the Federal
Register at 83 FR 4827 with minor revisions. At the Operations and
Regulations Committee meeting on April 8, 2018, the Committee
recommended that LSC make two technical changes. The first was to
include language in the definition of employee to make clear that this
rule applies to non-Director members of Board committees. The second
was to add language to Sec. 1603.4(a) clarifying that individuals
seeking testimony from an employee of OIG must follow the procedures in
Sec. 1603.4(b) for requesting testimony from the OIG Legal Counsel,
rather than submitting the request to LSC's General Counsel. LSC
Management concurred with the recommendations and revised the proposed
final rule text accordingly.
In a final rule published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal
Register, LSC is removing the existing version of part 1603 pertaining
to state advisory councils. LSC is replacing it with this regulation.
List of Subjects in 45 CFR Part 1603
Administrative practice and procedure; Archives and records;
Courts.
0
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Legal Services
Corporation adds CFR part 1603 to read as follows:
PART 1603--TESTIMONY BY EMPLOYEES AND PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS IN
PROCEEDINGS WHERE THE UNITED STATES IS NOT A PARTY
Sec.
1603.1 Scope, purpose, and applicability.
1603.2 Definitions.
1603.3 What is LSC's policy on presentation of testimony and
production of documents?
1603.4 How does a person request voluntary testimony from an
employee?
1603.5 How will LSC respond to a request for expert testimony from
an employee?
1603.6 How will LSC respond to a subpoena for documents?
1603.7 When will LSC certify the authenticity of records?
1603.8 Does this part give individuals any rights?
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 2996g(e).
Sec. 1603.1 Scope, purpose, and applicability.
(a) This part sets forth rules to be followed when a litigant
requests an employee of the Legal Services Corporation (LSC), including
LSC's Office of the Inspector General (OIG), to provide testimony in a
deposition, trial, or other similar proceeding concerning information
acquired in the course of performing official duties or because of such
person's official capacity with LSC. This part also sets forth
procedures for the handling of subpoenas for documents and other
requests for documents in the possession of LSC or the OIG, and for the
processing of requests for certification of copies of documents.
(b) It is LSC's policy to provide information, data, and records to
non-federal litigants to the same extent and in the same manner that
they are made available to the public. When subject to the jurisdiction
of a court or other tribunal presiding over litigation between non-
federal parties, LSC will follow all applicable procedural and
substantive rules relating to the production of information, data, and
records by a non-party. The availability of LSC employees to testify in
litigation not involving federal parties is governed by LSC's policy to
maintain strict impartiality with respect to private litigants and to
minimize the disruption of official duties.
(c) This part applies to state, local, and tribal judicial,
administrative, and legislative proceedings, and to federal judicial
and administrative proceedings.
(d) This part does not apply to:
(1) Any civil or criminal proceedings to which LSC is a party.
(2) Congressional requests or subpoenas for testimony or documents.
(3) Consultative services and technical assistance provided by LSC
in carrying out its normal program activities.
(4) Employees serving as expert witnesses in connection with
professional and consultative services as approved outside activities.
In cases where employees are providing such outside services, they must
state for the record that the testimony represents their own views and
does not necessarily represent the official position of LSC.
(5) Employees making appearances in their private capacity in legal
or administrative proceedings that do not relate to LSC, such as cases
arising out of traffic accidents, crimes, domestic relations, etc., and
not involving professional and consultative services.
(6) Any civil or criminal proceedings in State court brought on
behalf of LSC.
(7) Any criminal proceeding brought as a result of a referral for
prosecution by the OIG or by any other Inspector General in connection
with a case worked jointly with the OIG.
Sec. 1603.2 Definitions.
(a) Certify means to authenticate official LSC documents.
(b) Employee means current and former LSC employees, including
temporary employees, OIG employees, and members of the Board of
Directors and its Committees.
(c) LSC means the Legal Services Corporation. Unless explicitly
stated otherwise, LSC includes the OIG.
(d) Testify and testimony include in-person, oral statements before
a court, legislative or administrative body and statements made
pursuant to depositions, interrogatories, declarations, affidavits, or
other formal participation.
Sec. 1603.3 What is LSC's policy on presentation of testimony and
production of documents?
In any proceedings to which this part applies, no employee may
provide testimony or produce documents concerning information acquired
in the course of performing official duties or because of the person's
official relationship with LSC unless authorized by the General Counsel
or the OIG Legal Counsel pursuant to this part based on
[[Page 17088]]
his or her determination that compliance with the request would promote
LSC's objectives.
Sec. 1603.4 How does a person request voluntary testimony from an
employee?
(a) All requests for testimony by an employee in his or her
official capacity, except employees of OIG described in paragraph (b)
of this section, and not subject to the exceptions set forth in Sec.
1603.1(d) of this part must be in writing and addressed to the General
Counsel.
(b) All requests for testimony by an employee of the OIG must be in
writing and addressed to the OIG Legal Counsel.
(c) Requests must state the nature of the requested testimony, why
the information sought is unavailable by any other means, and the
reasons why the testimony would be in the interest of LSC.
Sec. 1603.5 How will LSC respond to a request for expert testimony
from an employee?
No employee shall serve as an expert witness in any proceeding
described in Sec. 1603.1(c) of this part or before a court or agency
of the United States unless the General Counsel or the OIG Legal
Counsel authorizes the employee's participation.
Sec. 1603.6 How will LSC respond to a subpoena for documents?
(a) Whenever a subpoena commanding the production of any LSC record
has been served upon an employee, the employee shall refer the subpoena
to the General Counsel or the OIG Legal Counsel, as appropriate. The
General Counsel or the OIG Legal Counsel shall determine whether the
subpoena is legally sufficient, whether the subpoena was properly
served, and whether the issuing court or other tribunal has
jurisdiction over LSC. If the General Counsel or the OIG Legal Counsel
determines that the subpoena satisfies all three factors, LSC shall
comply with the terms of the subpoena unless LSC takes affirmative
action to modify or quash the subpoena in accordance with Fed. R. Civ.
P. 45 (c).
(b) If a subpoena commanding the production of any record served
upon an employee is determined by the General Counsel or the OIG Legal
Counsel to be legally insufficient, improperly served, or from a
tribunal not having jurisdiction, LSC shall deem the subpoena a request
for records under the Freedom of Information Act. LSC shall handle the
subpoena pursuant to the rules governing public disclosure established
in 45 CFR part 1602.
(c) If the General Counsel or the OIG Legal Counsel denies approval
to comply with a subpoena for testimony or has not acted by the return
date, the employee will be directed to appear at the stated time and
place, unless advised by the General Counsel or the OIG Legal Counsel
that responding to the subpoena would be inappropriate. The employee
will be directed to produce a copy of these regulations and
respectfully decline to testify or produce any documents on the basis
of these regulations.
Sec. 1603.7 When will LSC certify the authenticity of records?
Upon request, LSC will certify the authenticity of copies of
records that are to be disclosed. The requesting party will be
responsible for reasonable fees for copying and certification.
Sec. 1603.8 Does this part give individuals any rights?
This part is intended only to provide a process for receipt and
processing of private litigants' requests for LSC documents and
testimony. It does not, and may not be relied upon, to create a right
or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by a party
against LSC.
Dated: April 11, 2018.
Stefanie Davis,
Assistant General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2018-07964 Filed 4-17-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7050-01-P
