May 27, 2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

On March 31, 2020, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation published in the Federal Register a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) entitled ``Parent Companies of Industrial Banks and Industrial Loan Companies'' proposing a rule that would require certain conditions and commitments for each deposit insurance application approval, non- objection to a change in control notice, and merger application approval that would result in an insured industrial bank or industrial loan company becoming, after the effective date of any final rule, a subsidiary of a company that is not subject to consolidated supervision by the Federal Reserve Board. The proposed rule also would require that before any industrial bank or industrial loan company may become a subsidiary of a company that is not subject to consolidated supervision by the Federal Reserve Board, such company and the industrial bank or industrial loan company must enter into one or more written agreements with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. The NPR provided for a 60-day comment period, which would have closed on June 1, 2020. The FDIC has determined that an extension of the comment period until July 1, 2020, is appropriate. This action will allow interested parties additional time to analyze the proposal and prepare comments.

NMFS announces the closure of the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area for the remainder of the 2020 fishing year for Limited Access General Category vessels. Regulations require this action once NMFS projects that 100 percent of the Limited Access General Category total allowable catch for the Northern Gulf of Maine Scallop Management Area will be harvested. This action is intended to prevent the overharvest of the 2020 total allowable catch allocated to the Limited Access General Category Fishery.

NMFS proposes to implement annual harvest specifications and management measures for the northern subpopulation of Pacific sardine (hereafter, Pacific sardine), for the fishing year from July 1, 2020, through June 30, 2021. The proposed action would prohibit most directed commercial fishing for Pacific sardine off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and California. Pacific sardine harvest would be allowed only in the live bait fishery, minor directed fisheries, as incidental catch in other fisheries, or as authorized under exempted fishing permits. The incidental harvest of Pacific sardine would be limited to 20 percent by weight of all fish per trip when caught with other stocks managed under the Coastal Pelagic Species Fishery Management Plan or up to 2 metric tons per trip when caught with non-Coastal Pelagic Species stocks. The proposed annual catch limit for the 2020-2021 Pacific sardine fishing year is 4,288 metric tons. This proposed rule is intended to conserve and manage the Pacific sardine stock off the U.S. West Coast.

This rule amends, suspends, or removes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide for the safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.

The Department of Labor is adopting in this document a new, additional safe harbor for employee benefit plan administrators to use electronic media, as a default, to furnish information to participants and beneficiaries of plans subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). The rule allows plan administrators who satisfy specified conditions to provide participants and beneficiaries with a notice that certain disclosures will be made available on a website, or to furnish disclosures via email. Individuals who prefer to receive disclosures on paper can request paper copies of disclosures and opt out of electronic delivery entirely. The Department expects the rule to enhance the effectiveness of ERISA disclosures and significantly reduce the costs and burden associated with furnishing many of the recurring and most costly disclosures. In addition to benefiting workers, this rule will immediately assist employers and the retirement plan industry as they face a number of economic challenges due to the COVID-19 emergency, including logistical and other impediments to compliance with ERISA's disclosure requirements.

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) proposes to establish the 93,738-acre ``White Bluffs'' viticultural area in Franklin County, Washington. The proposed AVA is located entirely within the existing Columbia Valley AVA. TTB designates viticultural areas to allow vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow consumers to better identify wines they may purchase. TTB invites comments on these proposals.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has received a petition for rulemaking from John G. Parillo dated November 23, 2019, requesting that the NRC develop a voluntary rule allowing licensees to adopt revised design basis accident dose acceptance criteria that reflect modern health physics recommendations and modern plant designs, that better balance the protection of the control room operator and of the public, and that relieve the regulatory burden associated with meeting the current control room dose criterion. The petition was docketed by the NRC on February 19, 2020, and has been assigned Docket No. PRM-50-121. The NRC is examining the issues raised in PRM-50-121 to determine whether they should be considered in rulemaking. The NRC is requesting public comment on this petition at this time.

In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved the information collection requirements associated with the eligible space station operator accelerated relocation election, eligible space station operator transition plan, and incumbent earth station lump sum payment election rules adopted in the Federal Communications Commission's (Commission) 3.7 GHz Report and Order, FCC 20-22, and that compliance with the new rules is now required. This document is consistent with the 3.7 GHz Report and Order, FCC 20-22, which states that the Commission will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing a compliance date for the new rule sections and revise the Commission's rules accordingly.

This document includes proposed regulations under sections 36B and 6011 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) that clarify that the reduction of the personal exemption deduction to zero for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017, and before January 1, 2026, does not affect an individual taxpayer's ability to claim the premium tax credit. These proposed regulations affect individuals who claim the premium tax credit.

The Department of Energy (DOE) publishes this final rule to update personnel references within DOE's Office of Electricity and update an email address that is no longer in use. This final rule is needed to conform to the current organizational structure within DOE's Office of Electricity and does not otherwise substantively change the current regulations.