2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's intention to request an extension of approval of an information collection associated with the regulations for the interstate movement of certain land tortoises.

The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that acetone from the Republic of South Africa (South Africa) is being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value. The period of investigation (POI) is January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018.

The Department of Commerce (Commerce) preliminarily determines that acetone from the Republic of Korea (Korea) is being, or is likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value. The period of investigation is January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018.

This notice announces receipt of an exempted fishing permit (EFP) application from United Catcher Boats for pollock catcher vessels (CVs) using pelagic trawl gear in the eastern Bering Sea (BS) and Gulf of Alaska (GOA) to evaluate the efficacy of electronic monitoring (EM) systems in lieu of observers for at-sea monitoring of vessels for compliance with fishery management regulations. If granted, this EFP would allow approximately 49 pollock CVs and nine tender vessels to participate in the proposed EFP to evaluate whether the use of EM systems is a cost and operationally effective means for monitoring vessel compliance with catch and discard requirements. If issued, the EFP would be in effect during 2020 and 2021 for the pollock fishing seasons (both A and B seasons in the BS and A/B and C/D seasons in the GOA). Results from this proposed EFP are intended to inform future North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) analyses in consideration of a regulatory program to implement EM systems aboard pollock CVs using pelagic trawl gear in the BS and GOA as a compliance monitoring tool in these fisheries. This proposed project has the potential to promote the objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act).

We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Respiratory Disorders and Genitourinary Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.

On September 5, 2019, the U.S. Department of Energy (``DOE'') published a notice of proposed determination (``NOPD'') initially determining that energy conservation standards for general service incandescent lamps (``GSILs'') do not need to be amended (hereafter the ``September 2019 NOPD''). This correction addresses typographical errors that appear in the September 2019 NOPD. This document corrects values listed in Tables V.4, V.7, V.9, and V.10, and corrects duplicative numbering of tables and reference to those tables. Neither the errors nor the corrections in this document affect the substance of the rulemaking or any initial conclusions reached in support of the NOPD.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4 announces the deletion of 50 acres of the Escambia WoodPensacola Superfund Site (Site) located in Pensacola, Florida, from the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL, promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is an appendix of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). This partial deletion pertains to 50 acres of former residential property in the former neighborhoods of Oak Park, Escambia Arms, Herman & Pearl and Clarinda Triangle, part of Operable Unit One (soils). The remaining areas of Operable Unit One (about 50 acres) and Operable Unit Two (groundwater) will remain on the NPL and are not being considered for deletion as part of this action. The EPA and the State of Florida, through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), have determined that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA, other than five-year reviews and operation and maintenance, have been completed. However, this partial deletion does not preclude future actions under Superfund.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 9 announces the deletion of the Intel Corp. (Santa Clara III) Superfund Site (Site) located in Santa Clara, California, from the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL, promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is an appendix of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). EPA and the State of California, through the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board, have determined that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been completed. However, the deletion of the Site does not preclude future actions under Superfund.

The U.S. Copyright Office is issuing a notification of inquiry regarding the Musical Works Modernization Act, title I of the Orrin G. Hatch-Bob Goodlatte Music Modernization Act. Title I establishes a blanket compulsory license, which digital music providers may obtain to make and deliver digital phonorecords of musical works. The blanket license, which will be administered by a mechanical licensing collective, will become available on January 1, 2021. The MMA specifically directs the Copyright Office to adopt a number of regulations to govern the new blanket licensing regime, including regulations regarding notices of license, notices of nonblanket activity, usage reports and adjustments, information to be included in the mechanical licensing collective's database, database usability, interoperability, and usage restrictions, and the handling of confidential information. The statute also vests the Office with general authority to adopt such regulations as may be necessary or appropriate to effectuate this new blanket licensing structure. To promulgate these regulations, the Office seeks public comment regarding the subjects of inquiry discussed in this notification.

This rule amends the geographic boundaries of several nonappropriated fund (NAF) Federal Wage System (FWS) wage areas. Based on consensus recommendations of the Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee (FPRAC), the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is defining St. Joseph County, Indiana, as an area of application county to the Lake, Illinois, NAF FWS wage area; Greene County, Missouri, as an area of application county to the Leavenworth-Jackson-Johnson, Kansas, NAF FWS wage area; Lucas County, Ohio, as an area of application county to the Macomb, Michigan, NAF FWS wage area; and the municipality of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, as an area of application municipality to the Guaynabo-San Juan, PR, NAF FWS wage area. These changes are necessary because NAF FWS employees are now working in these locations, but the locations are not currently defined to NAF wage areas. In addition, OPM is removing the municipalities of Ceiba, Isabela, Toa Baja, and Vieques, PR, and the U.S. Virgin Islands of St. Croix and St. Thomas, from the wage area definition of the Guaynabo-San Juan NAF wage area because there are no longer NAF FWS employees working in these locations.

This proposed rule would replace the current regulations that implement section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended by the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (FIRRMA). While this proposed rule retains many provisions of the existing regulations, a number of substantive changes are proposed, primarily to implement FIRRMA.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement the United States Code section that prohibits the award of certain Federal contracts to institutions of higher education that prohibit Reserve Officer Training Corps units or military recruiting on campus.

This document contains proposed regulations that provide guidance regarding the additional first year depreciation deduction under section 168(k) of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). These proposed regulations reflect and clarify the increase of the benefit and expansion of the universe of qualifying property, particularly to certain classes of used property, made by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. These proposed regulations generally affect taxpayers who deduct depreciation for qualified property acquired and placed in service after September 27, 2017. This document also provides notice of a public hearing on these proposed regulations. Finally, this document withdraws a portion of the proposed regulations published on August 8, 2018.

Pursuant to the Wilderness Act of 1964, and in accordance with National Park Service (NPS) Management Policies (2006), Section 6.2.1, the NPS has completed a Wilderness Eligibility Assessment to determine if lands within Obed Wild and Scenic River (Obed WSR) meet criteria indicating eligibility for preservation as wilderness. Based on the assessment, the NPS has concluded that the assessed lands: (1) Are not predominantly roadless and undeveloped; (2) are not greater than 5,000 acres in size or of sufficient size as to make practicable their preservation and use in an unimpaired condition; and (3) do not meet the wilderness character criteria listed in the Wilderness Act and NPS Management Policies (2006). As a result of these findings, the NPS has determined that lands within the Obed WSR do not warrant further study for possible designation as wilderness.

NMFS apportions amounts of the non-specified reserve to the initial total allowable catch (ITAC) and Community Development Quota (CDQ) of Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) arrowtooth flounder and to the ITAC of Aleutian Islands (AI) Greenland turbot, AI sablefish, Bering Sea (BS) sablefish, BS ``other rockfish,'' Bering Sea and Eastern Aleutian Islands (BS/EAI) blackspotted/rougheye rockfish, Central Aleutian Islands and Western Aleutian Islands (CAI/WAI) blackspotted/rougheye rockfish, BSAI northern rockfish, BSAI sharks, and BSAI shortraker rockfish. This action is necessary to allow the fisheries to continue operating. It is intended to promote the goals and objectives of the fishery management plan for the BSAI management area.

This notice is to inform the interested public that the Office of Hazardous Materials Safety (OHMS) of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) will hold a public Research and Development (R&D) Roundtable on October 24, 2019, in Washington, DC OHMS will host the meeting to provide an overview of its next Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) which will help the agency meet its goals of promoting safety and fostering innovation. The meeting will provide an overview of OHMS' R&D program; internal and external processes behind the BAA; limits of the BAA; and the results of the 2017 BAA. All participants will have an equal chance to provide input for future consideration.

The FHWA, on behalf of UDOT, is issuing this notice to announce actions taken by UDOT that are final Federal agency actions. The final agency actions relate to a proposed highway project, improvements to Washington Parkway, from North Green Springs Drive to Interstate 15 (I-15) in Washington City, Washington County, State of Utah. Those actions grant licenses, permits and/or approvals for the project.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or Agency) is announcing the availability of the draft guidance entitled ``The Accreditation Scheme for Conformity Assessment (ASCA) Pilot Program.'' The Pilot Accreditation Scheme for Conformity Assessment Program (hereafter referred to as the ASCA Pilot) is authorized under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). In accordance with amendments made to the FD&C Act by the FDA Reauthorization Act of 2017 (FDARA) and as part of the enactment of the Medical Device User Fee Amendments of 2017 (MDUFA IV), FDA was directed to issue a draft guidance regarding the goals and implementation of the ASCA Pilot. The establishment of the goals, scope, procedures, and a suitable framework for the voluntary ASCA Pilot supports the Agency's continued efforts to use its scientific resources effectively to protect and promote public health by simplifying certain aspects of premarket review, thereby reducing burdens on the Agency for individual submissions. FDA believes the voluntary ASCA Pilot may further encourage international harmonization of medical device regulation because it incorporates elements, where appropriate, from a well-established set of international conformity assessment practices and standards (e.g., ISO/IEC 17000 series). The voluntary ASCA Pilot does not supplant or alter any other existing statutory or regulatory requirements governing the decision-making process for premarket submissions. This draft guidance is not final nor is it in effect at this time.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) invites public comment providing information and feedback on the design of a potential prize competition with a goal of increasing resource recovery from municipal wastewater treatment plants across the United States, and in so doing, lower the ultimate cost of treatment by extracting additional value from the wastewater (i.e., improve energy efficiency). Through this potential prize, DOE would seek novel, systems-based solutions from multidisciplinary teams to implement resource recovery at small-to- medium-sized wastewater treatment plants. Specifically, the intent is to encourage teams of wastewater treatment plants, engineering and design firms, technology developers, resource customers (e.g., farmers, electric and gas utilities), and others to develop holistic community and/or watershed-based resource recovery plans for their respective wastewater treatment systems. Input from this RFI may be used to further develop the competition objectives, rules, metrics, and incentives.