2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is correcting a final rule that was published in the Federal Register on October 7, 2020, and will be effective on December 7, 2020. The final rule corrected and updated regulations for source testing of emissions. This correction does not change any final action taken by the EPA on October 7, 2020; this action merely provides further clarification on the amendatory instructions for Method 311.

This action establishes Class D and Class E airspace designated as an extension to Class D or E surface area, and amends Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface for John C. Tune Airport, Nashville, TN, as a new air traffic control tower shall service the airport. This action also updates the geographic coordinates of the airport, as well as Music City Executive Airport, (formerly Sumner County Regional Airport), Lebanon Municipal Airport, and Murfreesboro Municipal Airport. In addition, this action establishes Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface for Vanderbilt University Hospital Heliport, as instrument approach procedures have been designed for the heliport. Controlled airspace is necessary for the safety and management of instrument flight rules (IFR) operations in the area.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Airbus SAS Model A330-200, A330-200 Freighter, A330-300, A340-200, A340-300, A340-500, and A340-600 series airplanes. This AD was prompted by a report that an airplane failed to extend its nose landing gear (NLG) using the free fall method, due to loss of the green hydraulic system. This AD requires repetitive tests of affected free fall actuators (FFA), and replacement of any affected FFA with a serviceable FFA, 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.

This final rule establishes the 2021 opening date for all Atlantic shark fisheries, including the fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean. This final rule also establishes the shark fisheries quotas for the 2021 fishing year, with adjustments based on harvest levels during 2020, and establishes the large coastal shark (LCS) retention limits for directed shark limited access permit holders. NMFS may increase or decrease these retention limits for directed shark limited access permit holders during the year, in accordance with existing regulations, to provide equitable fishing opportunities for commercial shark fishermen in all regions and areas, to the extent practicable. These actions could affect fishing opportunities for commercial shark fishermen in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea.

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended (EPCA), prescribes energy conservation standards for various consumer products, including direct heating equipment (DHE). EPCA also requires the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to periodically determine whether more- stringent, amended standards would be technologically feasible and economically justified, and would result in significant energy savings. After carefully considering the available market and technical information for these products, DOE has tentatively concluded in this document that more-stringent standards for DHE would not save a significant amount of energy. Further, depending on the product class, more-stringent standards for DHE would not be technologically feasible or economically justified. As such, DOE has tentatively determined that amended energy conservation standards are not needed. DOE requests comment on this proposed determination, as well as the associated analyses and results.

We are proposing to amend our electronic records management regulations to add a subpart containing standards for digitizing permanent Federal records so that agencies may dispose of the original source records, where appropriate and in accordance with the Federal Records Act amendments of 2014. We are also making a minor revision to our records schedule review provisions to establish a requirement for agencies to review, every five years, all records schedules that are ten years old and older, based on the date the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) approved the schedule.

This document contains final regulations under sections 245A and 951A of the Internal Revenue Code (the ``Code'') that coordinate the extraordinary disposition rule under section 245A of the Code with the disqualified basis and disqualified payment rules under section 951A of the Code. This document also contains final regulations under section 6038 of the Code regarding information reporting to facilitate administration of the final regulations. The final regulations affect corporations that are subject to the extraordinary disposition rule and the disqualified basis rule or the disqualified payment rule. This document finalizes proposed regulations published on August 27, 2020.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 12-month finding on a petition to list the peppered chub (Macrhybopsis tetranema) as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The peppered chub is a freshwater fish historically found in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas, and is now extirpated in all but approximately 6 percent of its historical range. After review of the best available scientific and commercial information, we find that listing the peppered chub is warranted due to a dramatic reduction in the species' range (a loss of all but one population) and the low resiliency level of the remaining population. The primary stressors affecting the peppered chub are habitat fragmentation and degradation resulting from several sources, as discussed in this document and its supporting materials. Because we have found the species is at risk of extinction, we propose to list the peppered chub as an endangered species under the Act. If we finalize this rule as proposed, it would add this species to the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and extend the Act's protections to the species. We also propose to designate critical habitat for the peppered chub under the Act. The proposed critical habitat designation includes approximately 1,068 river miles (1,719 river kilometers) in four units in Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. We announce the availability of a draft economic analysis of the proposed critical habitat designation.

The Federal Trade Commission (``FTC'' or ``Commission'') is issuing this advance notice of proposed rulemaking (``ANPRM'') to gather information, related to seven topics, that will help to determine the path for future amendments to the premerger notification rules (``the Rules'') under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act (``the Act'' or ``HSR'').

The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is publishing three Venezuela-related web general licenses in the Federal Register: General License 5C, which has been superseded, General License 5D, which has been superseded, and General License 5E, each of which was previously issued on OFAC's website.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Safran Helicopter Engines, S.A. (Safran) Arriel 2D and Arriel 2E model turboshaft engines. This proposed AD was prompted by the manufacturer revising the maintenance and overhaul manuals to introduce new or more restrictive airworthiness limitations and maintenance tasks. This proposed AD would require the replacement of certain critical parts before reaching their published in-service life limits, performing scheduled maintenance tasks before reaching their published periodicity, and performing unscheduled maintenance tasks when the engine meets certain conditions. As a terminating action, this proposed AD would require operators to revise the airworthiness limitation section (ALS) of their existing approved aircraft maintenance program (AMP) by incorporating the revised airworthiness limitations and maintenance tasks. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FHWA is proposing to remove its outdated and duplicative regulations requiring State highway agencies to submit to FHWA, on an annual basis, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Program plans for FHWA approval. Currently, FHWA is responsible for oversight of State highway agencies' EEO programs, which include collection and analysis of internal employment data, development of an internal affirmative action hiring plan, and contractor compliance reporting. These regulations overlap with, and are duplicative of, other Federal requirements enforced by other Federal agencies. Elimination of these regulations would reduce administrative and monetary burdens on Federal-aid recipients.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH Model EC135P1, EC135P2, EC135P2+, EC135P3, EC135T1, EC135T2, EC135T2+, and EC135T3 helicopters. This proposed AD would require removing certain Titanium (Ti) bolts from service and prohibit installing these Ti-bolts in a critical area. This proposed AD was prompted by a report of a broken Ti-bolt. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This action proposes to amend the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at multiple Minnesota Towns and to revoke the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Silver Bay Municipal Airport, Silver Bay, MN. The FAA is proposing this action as the result of airspace reviews caused by the decommissioning of multiple non-federal non-directional beacons (NDBs) within Minnesota. The names and geographic coordinates of various airports would also be updated to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database.

On October 1, 2020, GSA published in the Federal Register a direct final rule entitled Remove Office of General Counsel Review for Final Payments. The rule revised internal agency approval procedures for processing a final payment for construction and building service contracts where, after 60 days, a contracting officer is unable to obtain a release of claims from a contractor. This action withdraws the rule because GSA received an adverse comment.

Discounts for prescription pharmaceutical products are central to this final rule, in which the Department of Health and Human Services (Department or HHS) amends the safe harbor regulation concerning discounts. Amending this regulation changes the definition of certain conduct that is protected from liability under the Federal anti-kickback statute of the Social Security Act (the Act). New regulatory text in the amendment revises the discount safe harbor. By excluding from the definition of a discount eligible for safe harbor protection certain reductions in price or other remuneration from a manufacturer of prescription pharmaceutical products to plan sponsors under Medicare Part D or pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) under contract with them, the Department modifies the existing discount safe harbor in particular contexts. Existing safe harbors otherwise remain unchanged. Safe harbors are also created for two additional types of arrangements. The first protects certain point-of-sale reductions in price on prescription pharmaceutical products, and the second protects certain PBM service fees.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the navigable waters of the Neuse River in New Bern, North Carolina. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on these navigable water near New Bern, NC, during an aerobatic airshow on December 05, 2020. This rulemaking would prohibit persons and vessels from being in the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port (COTP) North Carolina or a designated representative.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (Commission or CFTC) is adopting amendments to the regulations governing which swaps are exempt from the clearing requirement set forth in applicable provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA). These amendments exempt from the clearing requirement swaps entered into by certain central banks, sovereign entities, international financial institutions, bank holding companies, savings and loan holding companies, and community development financial institutions. The Commission also is publishing a compliance schedule setting forth all the past compliance dates for the 2012 and 2016 swap clearing requirement regulations. Finally, the Commission is making certain other, non-substantive technical amendments.

The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) is issuing this final rule to revise Regulation F, which implements the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and currently contains the procedures for State application for exemption from the provisions of the FDCPA. The Bureau is finalizing Federal rules governing the activities of debt collectors, as that term is defined in the FDCPA. The Bureau's final rule addresses, among other things, communications in connection with debt collection and prohibitions on harassment or abuse, false or misleading representations, and unfair practices in debt collection.

In March 2018, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) released a Sixth Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (Sixth FNPRM) seeking comment on ways to stimulate expanded use of and investment in the 4.9 GHz (4940-4990 MHz) band, including allowing licensees the flexibility to engage in spectrum leasing and broadening existing eligibility requirements. On September 8, 2020, the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau and the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau issued a Public Notice freezing the 4.9 GHz band to stabilize it while the Commission considered changes to the 4.9 GHz band rules (Freeze Public Notice). In this document, the Commission adopts rules permitting one statewide 4.9 GHz band licensee per state, the State Lessor, to lease some or all of its spectrum rights to third parties including commercial and public safety usersin those states that the Commission has not identified as a diverter of 911 fees. The Report and Order does not limit or modify the rights of any incumbent public safety licensees. The new rules also eliminate the requirement that leased spectrum must be used to support public safety but requires lessees to adhere to the informal coordination requirements applicable to the band.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) proposes to increase its receipts-based small business size definitions (commonly referred to as ``size standards'') for North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Sectors related to Education Services; Health Care and Social Assistance; Arts, Entertainment and Recreation; Accommodation and Food Services; and Other Services. SBA proposes to increase size standards for 70 industries in those sectors, including 14 industries in NAICS Sector 61 (Education Services), 18 industries in Sector 62 (Health Care and Social Assistance), 11 industries in Sector 71 (Arts, Entertainment and Recreation), 4 industries in Sector 72 (Accommodation and Food Services), and 23 industries in Sector 81 (Other Services). SBA's proposed revisions rely on its recently revised ``Size Standards Methodology'' (Methodology). SBA seeks comments on its proposed changes to size standards in the above sectors, and the data sources it evaluated to develop the proposed size standards.

This final rule authorizes the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Antitrust Division to perform, as the delegate of the Attorney General, all functions that the Attorney General is required or authorized to perform by section 708 of the Defense Production Act (``DPA'').

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific ocean perch in the Eastern Aleutian district (EAI) 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 EAI allocated to vessels participating in the BSAI trawl limited access sector fishery.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or we) is announcing that we have filed a petition, submitted by Ag Chem Resources, LLC, proposing that the food additive regulations be amended to provide for the safe use of tannic acid as a flavoring agent in animal feed.