January 2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA), as amended, prescribes energy conservation standards for various consumer products and certain commercial and industrial equipment, including battery chargers. EPCA also requires the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to periodically determine whether more-stringent standards would be technologically feasible and economically justified, and would save a significant amount of energy. In this final rule, DOE is adopting new energy conservation standards for uninterruptible power supplies, a class of battery chargers. It has determined that the new energy conservation standards for these products would result in significant conservation of energy, and are technologically feasible and economically justified.

Pursuant to an order from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in the consolidated cases of Natural Resources Defense Council, et al. v. Perry and People of the State of California et al. v. Perry, Case No. 17-cv-03404-VC, as affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in the consolidated cases Nos. 18-15380 and 18-15475, the Department of Energy (``DOE'') is publishing elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register four final rule documents that either establish or amend the energy conservation standards for commercial packaged boilers, portable air conditioners, industrial air compressors, and uninterruptible power supplies.

In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) proposes to: Eliminate the outdated equal access and multiple billing options requirements from the TRS mandatory minimum standards and to streamline Commission processes by ceasing Federal Register publication of state requests for TRS program certification, while continuing to publish these certification applications in the Commission's electronic document management system and on the Commission's website.

This document provides notice to state and local governments and to Federal agencies that, beginning on January 8, 2020, the Bureau of the Census (Census Bureau) will temporarily suspend the Population Estimates Challenge Program during the decennial census year (2020) and 2021 to accommodate the taking of the 2020 Census. The suspension of this program is a necessary action in order to ensure that sufficient resources are allocated to conduct the decennial census, allowing the Census Bureau's Population Division staff to effectively evaluate the 2020 Census results. The Census Bureau will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the resumption of the Population Estimates Challenge Program when the stay is lifted.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is amending its spent fuel storage regulations by revising the NAC International, Inc. (NAC) MAGNASTOR[supreg] System listing within the ``List of approved spent fuel storage casks'' to include Amendment No. 8 to Certificate of Compliance No. 1031. Amendment No. 8 revises the technical specifications to delete Technical Specification A5.6 and revise the maximum pellet diameter in the technical specifications, Appendix B, Table B2-3, from 0.325 inches to 0.3255 inches for the CE16H1 hybrid fuel assembly, which includes Combustion Engineering 16 x 16 fuel assemblies. These revisions are discussed in more detail in the ``Discussion of Changes'' section of this document.

In accordance with the Commission's regulations, the Commission issues this update of its filing fees. This document provides the yearly update using data in the Commission's Financial System to calculate the new fees. The purpose of updating is to adjust the fees on the basis of the Commission's costs for Fiscal Year 2019.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is partially approving and partially disapproving a Clean Air Act (CAA) section 111(d) plan submitted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to implement the EPA's Emission Guidelines and Compliance Times for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills (Emission Guidelines). This State plan submittal pertains to the regulation of landfill gas and its components from existing municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills. We are partially approving the State plan because it meets many of the requirements of the Emission Guidelines. However, we are partially disapproving the State plan because it does not fully meet certain provisions of the Emission Guidelines.

This rule revises the Foreign Market Development (FMD) program regulations to incorporate changes that conform the operation of the program to the requirements in the ``Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards'' (Uniform Guidance) and Federal grant-making best practices.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to approve a state plan submitted by the State of Tennessee, through the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) on May 12, 2017, and supplemented on February 9, 2018, for implementing and enforcing the Emissions Guidelines (EG) applicable to existing Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration (CISWI) units. The State plan provides for implementation and enforcement of the EG, as finalized by EPA on June 23, 2016, applicable to existing CISWI units for which construction commenced on or before June 4, 2010, or for which modification or reconstruction commenced after June 4, 2010, but no later than August 7, 2013. The State plan establishes emission limits, monitoring, operating, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements for affected CISWI units. Since all the CISWI units in the State are located at the Eastman Chemical Company in Kingsport, Tennessee, the State has issued the facility an operating permit, the terms of which are the relevant provisions of the EG, and has submitted the permit as part of its State plan.

EPA is issuing significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for certain chemical substances that are the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs) and Orders issued by EPA under TSCA. This final rule requires persons who intend to manufacture (defined by statute to include import) or process any of these chemical substances for an activity that is designated as a significant new use by this rule to notify EPA at least 90 days before commencing that activity. Persons may not commence manufacture or processing for the significant new use until EPA has conducted a review of the notice, made an appropriate determination on the notice, and has taken such actions as are required by that determination.

The Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education proposes priorities under the Competitive Grants for State Assessments (CGSA) program. The Assistant Secretary may use one or more of these priorities for competitions in fiscal year (FY) 2020 and later years. We take this action to focus Federal financial assistance related to student assessments on innovative assessments. We intend the priorities to increase the number of States using flexibility under the Innovative Assessment Demonstration Authority (IADA) and to support high-quality work among those States that do so.

The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) proposes changes to existing National Service Criminal History Check (NSCHC) regulations under the National and Community Service Act of 1990, as amended. These amendments will simplify the NSCHC requirements.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to list the Hermes copper butterfly (Lycaena [Hermelycaena] hermes), a butterfly species from San Diego County, California, and Baja California, Mexico, as a threatened species and propose to designate critical habitat for the species under the Endangered Species Act (Act). If we finalize this rule as proposed, it would extend the Act's protections to this species as described in the proposed rule provisions issued under section 4(d) of the Act, and designate approximately 14,249 hectares (35,211 acres) of critical habitat in San Diego County, California. We also announce the availability of a draft economic analysis (DEA) of the proposed designation of critical habitat for the Hermes copper butterfly.

The EPA is delaying the start date for the revised Photochemical Assessment Monitoring Stations (PAMS) monitoring site network established in EPA regulations. This final action extends the start date from June 1, 2019, to June 1, 2021. The revision gives states two additional years to acquire the necessary equipment and expertise needed to successfully make the required PAMS measurements by the start of the 2021 PAMS season.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (``Commission'' or ``CFTC'') is publishing for public comment a proposed rule (``Proposed Rule'') addressing the cross-border application of certain swap provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (``CEA or ``Act''), as added by Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (``Dodd-Frank Act''). Specifically, the Proposed Rule addresses the cross-border application of the registration thresholds and certain requirements applicable to swap dealers (``SDs'') and major swap participants (``MSPs''), and establishes a formal process for requesting comparability determinations for such requirements from the Commission. The Commission is proposing a risk-based approach that, consistent with section 2(i) of the CEA, and with due consideration of international comity principles and the Commission's interest in focusing its authority on potential significant risks to the U.S. financial system, would advance the goals of the Dodd-Frank Act's swap reform, while fostering greater liquidity and competitive markets, promoting enhanced regulatory cooperation, and advancing the global harmonization of swap regulation.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is discontinuing the rulemaking activity, ``Modifications to Pressure-Temperature Limits,'' and denying the associated petition for rulemaking, (PRM)-50- 69. The NRC determined that its relevant past decisions and current policies are sufficient to protect the public health and safety in this area and that the potential benefits of proceeding with a rulemaking do not outweigh the associated costs. The rulemaking activity will no longer be reported in the NRC's portion of the Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions (the Unified Agenda).

NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amount of Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) from trawl catcher vessels and American Fisheries Act (AFA) trawl catcher/processors to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 meters) length overall (LOA) using hook-and-line or pot gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area. This action is necessary to allow the 2019 TAC of Pacific cod to be harvested.

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.

In this document, the Commission seeks comment on whether to update our rules concerning notice that cable operators must provide to subscribers and local franchise authorities (LFAs) regarding service or rate changes in order to reduce potential consumer confusion. Specifically, we seek comment whether to amend the rules to make clear that cable operators must provide subscriber notice ``as soon as possible'' when service changes occur due to retransmission consent or program carriage negotiations that fail within the last 30 days of a contract. We also seek comment on whether to require notice to LFAs only if required by the LFA pursuant to its statutory authority and whether to adopt several technical edits to the rules to make them more readable and remove duplicative requirements.

These special conditions are issued for the Airbus Defense and Space (Airbus) Model C-295 airplane. This airplane will have novel or unusual design features when compared to the state of technology envisioned in the airworthiness standards for transport category airplanes. The Airbus Model C-295 airplane will have non-rechargeable lithium battery installations. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.

This final rule revises one section of our regulations to provide that the current list of areas in Indian Country with Courts of Indian Offenses (also known as CFR Courts) will be published and updated in the Federal Register and on the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) website. Currently, that section of the Code of Federal Regulations, itself, lists the areas in Indian Country with CFR Courts, requiring a rulemaking each time a court is added or deleted. Allowing for publication in the Federal Register, in lieu of a rulemaking, will better keep Tribal members and the public updated on the current status of the Courts of Indian Offenses.

NASA is proposing to amend the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (NFS) to add new text that requires covered contractors and subcontractors at all tiers to use electronic parts that are currently in production and purchased from the original manufacturers of the parts, their authorized dealers, or suppliers who obtain such parts exclusively from the original manufacturers of the parts or their authorized dealers. If the contractor does not purchase electronic parts as described above, they must purchase the parts from a NASA identified supplier or contractor-approved supplier. The contractor will then assume responsibility and be required to inspect, test and validate authentication of the parts. The contractor will also be required to obtain traceability information and provide this information to the contracting officer upon request. The selection of contractor-approved suppliers is subject to review and audit by the contracting officer.

The Farm Credit Administration (FCA, we, or our) proposes amending the regulation governing how a Farm Credit bank presents information on its related associations when preparing annual bank financial statements on a stand-alone basis. We propose to provide an additional presentation option that would allow the related association financial information to be in a supplement.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Viking Air Limited Model CL-215-1A10 and CL-215-6B11 (CL-215T Variant) airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of cracks on the wing lower skin under the drag angle at a certain wing station (WS). This AD requires a one-time inspection of the wing lower skin under the drag angle at a certain WS to determine if a certain repair or modification has been accomplished; repetitive visual inspections of certain fuselage structures; repetitive eddy current inspections of the front spar along a certain WS reference line, the drag angle, and all fastener holes; repetitive structural gap checks of a certain surface; and corrective actions if necessary. This AD also requires replacing certain rivets with certain fasteners, and corrective actions if necessary. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Fokker Services B.V. Model F28 Mark 0100 airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of smoke in the flight deck, in conjunction with the loss of electrical power. This AD requires replacement of affected generator power transfer contactors (GPTCs), essential bus transfer contactors (EBTCs), and auxiliary power transfer contactors (APTCs), as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is incorporated by reference. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.