2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) collect workforce data through the Employer Information Report (EEO-1) (currently OMB Control No. 3046-0007) under the Joint Reporting Committee. The EEOC's legal authority to collect this data derives from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and OFCCP's authority derives from Executive Order 11246. The EEO-1 collects information from private employers and federal contractors regarding the number of employees by job category, and by sex, race, and ethnicity (Component 1). This information is shared between the two agencies to avoid duplicative information collections and minimize the burden on employers. A recent court decision, National Women's Law Center v. Office of Management and Budget, 358 F. Supp. 3d 66 (D.D.C. 2019), appeal docketed, No. 19-5130 (D.C. Cir. May 8, 2019), ordered reinstatement of the approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of a 2016 revision to the EEO-1 that requires filers to additionally submit aggregated employee pay and hours worked (Component 2). However, EEOC, the agency responsible for securing OMB approval of the EEO-1 data collection under the Paperwork Reduction Act, has now given notice that it does not intend to submit to OMB a request to renew Component 2 under the current OMB control number, and it has requested that Component 1 be assigned a new OMB control number. OFCCP will not request, accept, or use Component 2 data, as it does not expect to find significant utility in the data given limited resources and its aggregated nature, but it will continue to receive EEO-1 Component 1 data.

The FHWA, on behalf of UDOT, is issuing this notice to announce actions taken by UDOT and NPS that are final Federal agency actions. The final agency actions relate to a proposed highway project, improvements to State Route 12 (SR-12), from milepost (MP) 14.42 to MP 18.16 in the Bryce Canyon National Park (BCRA), Garfield County, State of Utah. Those actions grant licenses, permits and/or approvals for the project. The Environmental Assessment prepared jointly by UDOT and NPS, and the Findings of No Significant Impact issued by UDOT and NPS, provide details on the Selected Alternative for the proposed improvements.

The Peace Corps will be submitting the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The purpose of this notice is to allow 30 days for public comment in the Federal Register preceding submission to OMB.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing to renew an information collection.

The Peace Corps will be submitting the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The purpose of this notice is to allow 30 days for public comment in the Federal Register preceding submission to OMB.

In accordance with legislation implementing the results of the Uruguay Round of negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, we are informing the public of the international standard- setting activities of the World Organization for Animal Health, the Secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention, and the North American Plant Protection Organization, and we are soliciting public comment on the standard-setting activities.

In this final rule, the Department of Labor (Department) makes two procedural changes to its Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Job Corps regulations to enable the Secretary to delegate procurement authority as it relates to the development and issuance of requests for proposals for the operation of Job Corps centers, outreach and admissions, career transitional services, and other operational support services. The Department is taking this procedural action to align regulatory provisions with the relevant WIOA statutory language and to provide greater flexibility for internal operations and management of the Job Corps program.

We are advising the public that we have determined that 26 taxa of plants for planting are quarantine pests, and that all Myrtaceae taxa (when destined to Hawaii), all subfamily Bambusoideae taxa, and 43 other taxa of plants for planting are hosts of 18 quarantine pests, and therefore should be added to our lists of taxa of plants for planting whose importation is not authorized pending pest risk analysis. We have prepared data sheets that detail the scientific evidence we evaluated in making the determination that the taxa are quarantine pests or hosts of quarantine pests. We are making these data sheets available to the public for review and comment.

The Forest Service published a document in the Federal Register on September 30, 2019, requesting for comments on proposed new recreation fees for three recreation sites on the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. The document contained incorrect information on the type of fee and features of recreation sites required in order to charge that fee type. The Forest Service is reopening the comment period. The previous comment period ended on October 15, 2019. In addition to comments received under this notice, comments previously submitted in response to the notice published during the comment period announced September 30, 2019, will be considered.

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is requesting to renew approval of the ACF-196 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Financial Reporting Form. The ACF-196 is the form used by states to estimate funding needs and request grant awards under the TANF program. In addition, the form is used to report data in substantiation of state claims and to certify the availability of the legislatively mandated state match. ACF will use the financial data provided by states to estimate quarterly funding needs, calculate award amounts, and assess compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements relating to administrative costs and state matching requirements. No changes are proposed to the form.

This proposed notice acknowledges the receipt of an application from Accreditation Commission for Health Care for initial recognition as a national accrediting organization for suppliers of home infusion therapy services that wish to participate in the Medicare program. The statute requires that within 60 days of receipt of an organization's complete application, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) publish a notice that identifies the national accrediting body making the request, describes the nature of the request, and provides at least a 30-day public comment period.

The Board is amending Regulation D, Reserve Requirements of Depository Institutions, to reflect the annual indexing of the reserve requirement exemption amount and the low reserve tranche for 2020. The Regulation D amendments set the amount of total reservable liabilities of each depository institution that is subject to a zero percent reserve requirement in 2020 at $16.9 million (up from 16.3 million in 2019). This amount is known as the reserve requirement exemption amount. The Regulation D amendments also set the amount of net transaction accounts at each depository institution (over the reserve requirement exemption amount) that is subject to a three percent reserve requirement in 2020 at $127.5 million (up from $124.2 million in 2019). This amount is known as the low reserve tranche. The adjustments to both of these amounts are derived using statutory formulas specified in the Federal Reserve Act. The Board is also announcing changes in two other amounts, the nonexempt deposit cutoff level and the reduced reporting limit, that are used to determine the frequency at which depository institutions must submit deposit reports.

The Secretary of Transportation, as represented by the Maritime Administration (MARAD), is authorized to grant waivers of the U.S.-build requirements of the coastwise trade laws to allow the carriage of no more than twelve passengers for hire on vessels, which are three years old or more. A request for such a waiver has been received by MARAD. The vessel, and a brief description of the proposed service, is listed below.

The Secretary of Transportation, as represented by the Maritime Administration (MARAD), is authorized to grant waivers of the U.S.-build requirements of the coastwise trade laws to allow the carriage of no more than twelve passengers for hire on vessels, which are three years old or more. A request for such a waiver has been received by MARAD. The vessel, and a brief description of the proposed service, is listed below.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below is being forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comments. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following information collection was published on August 27, 2019.

This determination of acceptability expands the list of acceptable substitutes pursuant to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) program. This action lists as acceptable additional substitutes for use in the refrigeration and air conditioning sector.

This action proposes to remove Jet Route J-590, amend VHF Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal airways V-11 and V-70, and establish area navigation (RNAV) routes T-362 and T-365. The FAA is proposing this action due to the planned decommissioning of the VOR portion of the Greene County, MS (GCV), VOR/Tactical Air Navigation (VORTAC) navigation aid (NAVAID). The Greene County VOR is being decommissioned in support of the FAA's VOR Minimum Operational Network (MON) program.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a revision to the Chattanooga portion of the Tennessee State Implementation Plan (SIP), provided by the State of Tennessee, through the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) from the Chattanooga/Hamilton County Air Pollution Control Bureau through a letter dated September 12, 2018. The submission revises the open burning regulations in the Chattanooga portion of the Tennessee SIP. EPA is proposing to approve the changes because they are consistent with the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and is also proposing to clarify its prior proposal related to the Bureau's definition of ``volatile organic compounds.''

Through this proposed rule, the Rural Housing Service (RHS or Agency) is proposing to amend its regulations to update and improve the direct Single-Family Housing (SFH) loans and grants programs. The proposed changes would increase program flexibility, allow more borrowers to access affordable loans, better align the programs with best practices, and enable the programs to be more responsive to economic conditions and trends.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposes to amend two provisions within its foreign quarantine regulations to provide additional clarity and safeguards to address the risk to public health from the importation of human remains into the United States.

The Department of Justice is amending the regulations of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) concerning procedures and practices in connection with denials of initial applications, denials of renewals, and revocations of explosives licenses or permits. These regulations are being codified in a new part entitled, ``Rules and Practice in License and Permit Proceedings.'' These regulations are based upon the regulations that ATF relied upon prior to its transfer from the Department of the Treasury to the Department of Justice. This final rule makes minor revisions to regulations governing administrative proceedings related to the denial, suspension, or revocation of a license, and the imposition of a civil fine under Federal firearms law to reference regulations under ATF authority. These revisions remove all references to statutes, regulations, positions, and other terms that are applicable only to the Department of the Treasury. These revisions reflect ATF's position as a regulatory and enforcement agency under the Department of Justice and are consistent with the regulations governing administrative hearing processes for explosives licenses and permits.