November 30, 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The OCC, the Board, and the Bureau are finalizing amendments to the official interpretations for their regulations that implement section 129H of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA). Section 129H of TILA establishes special appraisal requirements for ``higher-risk mortgages,'' termed ``higher-priced mortgage loans'' or ``HPMLs'' in the agencies' regulations. The OCC, the Board, the Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) (collectively, the Agencies) jointly issued final rules implementing these requirements, effective January 18, 2014. The Agencies' rules exempted, among other loan types, transactions of $25,000 or less, and required that this loan amount be adjusted annually based on any annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). If there is no annual percentage increase in the CPI-W, the OCC, the Board, and the Bureau will not adjust this exemption threshold from the prior year. However, in years following a year in which the exemption threshold was not adjusted, the threshold is calculated by applying the annual percentage increase in the CPI-W to the dollar amount that would have resulted, after rounding, if the decreases and any subsequent increases in the CPI-W had been taken into account. Based on the CPI-W in effect as of June 1, 2021, the exemption threshold will increase from $27,200 to $28,500, effective January 1, 2022.

The USIBWC hereby gives notice that the Final Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for Aquatic Habitat Restoration in the Rio Grande Canalization Project, Sierra and Do[ntilde]a Ana Counties, New Mexico and El Paso County, Texas is available.

On January 3, 2019, the Commission adopted final rules to implement a dynamic formula-based approach for calculating the institutional cost contribution requirement for Competitive products, which is also referred to as ``the appropriate share,'' in accordance with the applicable statutory requirements. Subsequently, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit), in a decision issued in April 2020, remanded two issues to the Commission for clarification. This supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking addresses the issues identified by the D.C. Circuit, initiates the Commission's third 5-year review of the appropriate share, reissues the dynamic formula-based approach to calculating the appropriate share as a proposed rule, and invites public comment.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has prepared a draft management plan as part of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (SBNMS or sanctuary) management plan review pursuant to the National Marine Sanctuaries Act. The draft management plan, which would update the 2010 sanctuary management plan, addresses current and emerging threats in SBNMS and reflects changes in new science and technologies, how people use the sanctuary, and community needs. The draft management plan supports continued protection of sanctuary resources through enforcement of existing sanctuary regulations, education and outreach strategies that promote ocean stewardship, and community engagement. Consistent with the information provided in the 2020 Notice of Intent, NOAA is not proposing modifications to the sanctuary regulations at this time, but may consider regulatory changes in the future. NOAA also prepared an environmental assessment, which evaluates the environmental impacts of implementing the draft management plan and ongoing field activities. NOAA is soliciting public comments on the draft updated management plan and environmental assessment at this time.

DoD is issuing a final rule amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to modify internal processes for the conduct of peer reviews.

This final action revises the initial air quality designations for two counties associated with two nonattainment areas for the 2015 primary and secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone. In a July 10, 2020, decision, the District of Columbia Circuit Court remanded to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency), but did not vacate, the April 30, 2018, designations for 16 counties associated with nine nonattainment areas located in seven states. In response, the EPA has re-evaluated the designations for the remanded counties by applying a uniform, nationwide analytical approach and interpretation of the designation provisions of the Clean Air Act (CAA) in considering the specific facts and circumstances of the areas using only data and information available at the time of the original designations. In this final action, the EPA is revising the boundaries of two nonattainment areas, affecting the designation status of two counties in two separate states (Colorado and Texas). The EPA addressed the 14 additional remanded counties in a previous Federal Register document.