August 11, 2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS announces that the State of North Carolina is transferring a portion of its 2020 commercial summer flounder quota to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Commonwealth of Virginia is also transferring a portion of its 2020 summer flounder quota to the State of Rhode Island. These quota adjustments are necessary to comply with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan quota transfer provisions. This announcement informs the public of the revised commercial quotas for North Carolina, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Rhode Island.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific ocean perch in the Western Aleutian district (WAI) of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI) by vessels participating in the BSAI trawl limited access sector fishery. This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the 2020 total allowable catch (TAC) of Pacific ocean perch in the WAI allocated to vessels participating in the BSAI trawl limited access sector fishery.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all The Boeing Company Model 737-300, -400, -500, -600, -700, -700C, -800, -900, and -900ER series airplanes. An emergency AD was sent to all known U.S. owners and operators of these airplanes. This AD requires inspections of the engine bleed air 5th stage check valve on each engine, and replacement of the engine bleed air 5th stage check valve if any inspection is not passed. This AD was prompted by four recent reports of single-engine shutdowns due to engine bleed air 5th stage check valves being stuck open. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is correcting a final rule that appeared in the Federal Register on July 10, 2020. The final rule amends existing special use regulations to implement section 512 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, as added by section 211 of division O, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (hereinafter ``section 512''). Section 512 governs the development and approval of operating plans and agreements for maintenance and vegetation management of electric transmission and distribution line facilities (powerline facilities) on National Forest System (NFS) lands inside the linear boundary of special use authorizations for powerline facilities and on abutting NFS lands to remove or prune hazard trees.

This document contains final regulations under sections 162, 164, and 170 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). First, the final regulations update the regulations under section 162 to reflect current law regarding the application of section 162 to taxpayers that make payments or transfers for business purposes to entities described in section 170(c). Second, the final regulations provide safe harbors under section 162 to provide certainty with respect to the treatment of payments made by business entities to entities described in section 170(c). Third, the final regulations provide a safe harbor under section 164 for payments made to an entity described in section 170(c) by individuals who itemize deductions and receive or expect to receive a State or local tax credit in return. Fourth, the final regulations update the regulations under section 170 to reflect past guidance and case law regarding the application of the quid pro quo principle under section 170 to a donor who receives or expects to receive benefits from a third party. These regulations affect taxpayers who make transfers to entities described in section 170(c) for business purposes, and taxpayers who receive State or local tax credits in exchange for transfers to such entities or who receive other third-party benefits in exchange for transfers to such entities.

Pursuant to the Federal Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is notifying the public that we have received CAA section 111(d)/129 negative declarations from Arkansas, New Mexico, and Albuquerque-Bernalillo County, New Mexico, for existing incinerators subject to the Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration units (CISWI) emission guidelines (EG). These negative declarations certify that incinerators subject to CISWI EG and the requirements of sections 111(d) and 129 of the CAA do not exist within the jurisdictions of Arkansas, New Mexico, and Albuquerque- Bernalillo County. The EPA is proposing to accept the negative declarations and amend the CFR in accordance with the requirements of the CAA.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to revise the designated critical habitat for the northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). After a review of the best available scientific and commercial information, we propose to revise the species' designated critical habitat by newly excluding approximately 204,653 acres (82,820 hectares) in Benton, Clackamas, Coos, Curry, Douglas, Jackson, Josephine, Klamath, Lane, Lincoln, Multnomah, Polk, Tillamook, Washington, and Yamhill Counties, Oregon, under section 4(b)(2) of the Act. These proposed exclusions are based on new information that has become available since our 2012 revised critical habitat designation for the northern spotted owl. This proposed rule focuses only on new exclusions under section 4(b)(2) of the Act in response to a stipulated settlement agreement; we are not proposing any other revisions to the northern spotted owl's critical habitat designation.