January 19, 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (``PRA''), the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (``ONRR'') is proposing to revise a currently approved information collection to expand its scope to include the mineral estate underlying Osage County, Oklahoma (``Osage Mineral Estate''). Through this revision, ONRR seeks authority to collect information related to the paperwork requirements under the Bureau of Indian Affairs' (``BIA'') proposed regulations to post a surety or bond, or demonstrate financial solvency. ONRR uses forms ONRR-4435, ONRR-4436, and ONRR-4437 as part of these information collection requirements.

This notice announces the broadly applicable alternative test method approval decisions that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) made under and in support of New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2022.

This rule revises U.S. Department of the Interior regulations implementing the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act to provide for annual adjustments of civil penalties to account for inflation under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 and Office of Management and Budget guidance. The purpose of these adjustments is to maintain the deterrent effect of civil penalties and to further the policy goals of the underlying statute.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific cod by catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 meters (m)) length overall (LOA) using hook-and-line or pot gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the 2023 Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) allocated to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 m) LOA using hook-and-line or pot gear in the BSAI.

FMCSA announces its decision to deny the application from Ronnie Brown III requesting an exemption from five provisions of the Federal hours of service (HOS) regulations and the electronic logging device (ELD) regulations. FMCSA analyzed the application and public comments and determined that the exemption would not achieve a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be achieved absent such exemption.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA, Agency, or we) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the Agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Federal Agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice. This notice solicits comments on information collection associated with the Accreditation Scheme for Conformity Assessment (ASCA) Program.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announces and invites comments on its intention to change its bid adequacy procedures (BAPs), which ensure the United States receives fair market value (FMV) from Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil and gas lease sales. BOEM proposes to discontinue the use of both tract classification and delayed valuation methodology. Instead, BOEM proposes to use a statistical lower bound confidence interval (LBCI), at the 90 percent confidence level, as a measure of bid adequacy. BOEM is also proposing other, minor adjustments to its BAPs to clarify and streamline its processes.

This rulemaking amends the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) organic regulations to strengthen oversight and enforcement of the production, handling, and sale of organic agricultural products. The amendments protect integrity in the organic supply chain and build consumer and industry trust in the USDA organic label by strengthening organic control systems, improving farm to market traceability, and providing robust enforcement of the USDA organic regulations. Topics addressed in this rulemaking include: applicability of the regulations and exemptions from organic certification; National Organic Program Import Certificates; recordkeeping and product traceability; certifying agent personnel qualifications and training; standardized certificates of organic operation; unannounced on-site inspections of certified operations; oversight of certification activities; foreign conformity assessment systems; certification of producer group operations; labeling of nonretail containers; annual update requirements for certified operations; compliance and appeals processes; and calculating organic content of multi-ingredient products.

We are proposing to amend the animal disease traceability regulations to require that eartags applied on or after a date 6 months (180 days) after publication in the Federal Register of a final rule following this proposed rule be both visually and electronically readable in order to be recognized for use as official eartags for interstate movement of cattle and bison covered under the regulations. We are also proposing to clarify certain record retention and record access requirements and revise some requirements pertaining to slaughter cattle. These proposed changes would enhance the ability of Tribal, State and Federal officials, private veterinarians, and livestock producers to quickly respond to high-impact diseases currently existing in the United States, as well as foreign animal diseases that threaten the viability of the U.S. cattle and bison industries.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), received two enhancement of survival permit (permit) applications pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (ESA). If granted, the requested permits would authorize take of the fisher (Pekania pennanti), incidental to otherwise lawful activities, if the species becomes federally listed under the ESA. These applications are associated with a template candidate conservation agreement with assurances (CCAA) developed by the Service for the conservation of the fisher. We have also prepared draft environmental action statements documenting our preliminary determination that the permit decisions may be eligible for categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act. We provide this notice to open a public comment period and invite comments from all interested parties.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to submit an information collection request (ICR), ``Clean Water State Revolving Fund and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs'' (EPA ICR No. 1803.09 OMB Control No. 2040-0185) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Before doing so, the EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section. This is a proposed renewal of the ICR, which is currently approved through August 31, 2023, for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF). This ICR consolidates the DWSRF and Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) ICRs (ICR No. 1803.08 and ICR NO. 1391.12, respectively) because they affect the same set of respondents in similar ways. Additional information collection requirements made necessary by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) are similar for both programs. Therefore, EPA is consolidating the DWSRF and CWSRF ICRs, in addition to updating and renewing them, to provide a more coherent picture of the information components of EPA's SRF program. An Agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information nor is a person required to respond unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

On December 5, 2022, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) published a proposed rule to establish three danger zones in the waters of Carr Creek and Whitehall Bay in the vicinity of the Naval Support Activity Annapolis. The comment period ended on January 4, 2023. The Corps received numerous requests to extend the comment period, so we are reopening the comment period for 45 days. Comments previously submitted on the proposed rule do not need to be resubmitted, as they have already been incorporated into the administrative record and will be fully considered in the Corps' decision-making process for this rulemaking action.

This notice provides an update of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poverty guidelines to account for last calendar year's increase in prices as measured by the Consumer Price Index.

The Capital Magnet Fund (CMF) is administered by the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund). Through the CMF, the CDFI Fund provides financial assistance grants to certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and to qualified Nonprofit Organizations that have the development or management of affordable housing as one of their principal purposes. All Awards provided through this Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) are subject to funding availability.

On December 20, 2022, the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) issued its final determination under section 129 of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA), regarding the countervailing duty (CVD) investigation of ripe olives from Spain. On January 12, 2023, the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) directed Commerce to implement the section 129 final determination, which renders Commerce's determinations in the CVD investigation not inconsistent with the World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement findings in United States Antidumping and Countervailing Duties on Ripe Olives from Spain, WT/ DS577 (December 20, 2021) (DS577). As a result, Commerce is now implementing the section 129 final determination.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA, Agency, or we) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the Agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Federal Agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice. This notice solicits comments on information collections associated with the Adverse Event Program for Medical Devices (Medical Program Safety Network (MedSun)).

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (``CFTC'' or ``Commission'') is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA''), Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment. This notice solicits comments on collections of information related to the Commission's position limits rule.