Nonlawyer Assistance and Representation; Request for Comments, 55913-55914 [2024-14915]
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55913
Notices
Federal Register
Vol. 89, No. 130
Monday, July 8, 2024
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains documents other than rules or
proposed rules that are applicable to the
public. Notices of hearings and investigations,
committee meetings, agency decisions and
rulings, delegations of authority, filing of
petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are
examples of documents appearing in this
section.
ADMINISTRATIVE CONFERENCE OF
THE UNITED STATES
Nonlawyer Assistance and
Representation; Request for
Comments
Administrative Conference of
the United States (ACUS).
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
AGENCY:
The Office of the Chair of
ACUS is requesting public input on
representation and other forms of
assistance provided by nonlawyers to
participants in federal agency
adjudication. Responses to this request
may inform an ongoing ACUS project,
Nonlawyer Assistance and
Representation, which, if warranted,
may recommend best practices for
agencies to use.
DATES: Comments must be received no
later than 10:00 a.m. (ET) August 31,
2024.
SUMMARY:
You may submit comments
by email to info@acus.gov (with
‘‘Nonlawyer Assistance and
Representation’’ in the subject line of
the message), or by U.S. Mail addressed
to Nonlawyer Assistance and
Representation, Administrative
Conference of the United States, Suite
706 South, 1120 20th Street NW,
Washington, DC 20036. ACUS will
ordinarily post comments on the project
web page (https://www.acus.gov/
projects/nonlawyer-assistance-andrepresentation) as they are received.
Commenters should not include
information, such as personal
information or confidential business
information, that they do not wish to
appear on the ACUS website. For the
full ACUS public comment policy,
please visit https://www.acus.gov/
policy/public-comment-policy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Matthew Gluth, Deputy Research
Director, Administrative Conference of
the United States, 1120 20th Street NW,
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
ADDRESSES:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:22 Jul 05, 2024
Jkt 262001
Suite 706 South, Washington, DC 20036;
Telephone (202) 480–2080; email
mgluth@acus.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Administrative Conference Act, 5 U.S.C.
591–596, established the Administrative
Conference of the United States. The
Conference studies the efficiency,
adequacy, and fairness of the
administrative procedures used by
Federal agencies and makes
recommendations to agencies, the
President, Congress, and the Judicial
Conference of the United States for
procedural improvements (5 U.S.C.
594(1)). For further information about
the Conference and its activities, see
www.acus.gov.
Nonlawyer Assistance and
Representation
Millions of people each year engage
with administrative programs or
participate in administrative
adjudicative processes to access federal
programs (for example, to obtain needed
benefits and services) and resolve legal
issues (for example, to resolve tax and
immigration disputes). Many people
‘‘need assistance to access and obtain
fair outcomes’’ in administrative
adjudications.1 But many people,
particularly low-income people and
members of other underserved
communities, are not always able to
access representation or other forms of
assistance that they need to navigate
administrative adjudications
successfully.
One barrier to accessing
representation or assistance is the
critical shortage of affordable legal
services. Agencies have long innovated
various ways to expand assistance and
widen the pool of available
representatives. For example, many
agencies currently permit participants
in agency adjudications to be
represented by accredited or qualified
nonlawyers. In 1986, ACUS
recommended that agencies ‘‘take the
steps necessary to encourage—as well as
eliminate inappropriate barriers to—
nonlawyer assistance and
representation.’’ 2 Since then, a growing
academic literature has analyzed the
1 White House Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable,
Access to Justice in Federal Administrative
Proceedings: Nonlawyer Assistance and Other
Strategies 19 (2023).
2 Admin. Conf. of the U.S., Recommendation 86–
1, Nonlawyer Assistance and Representation, 51 FR
25641 (July 16, 1986).
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
experience and outcomes people have
when using various forms of nonlawyer
representation. Just last year, ACUS
recommended that agencies allow
participants in many adjudications ‘‘to
be represented by a lawyer or a lay
person with relevant expertise’’ and to
establish ‘‘rules authorizing accredited
or qualified nonlawyer representatives
to practice before the agency.’’ 3
Additionally, a recent recommendation
on regulation of representatives in
agency adjudicative proceedings led to
a working group focused on developing
a model code for representation.4 Yet
there is still much more to understand
about the extent and character of
representation by professionals who are
not lawyers.
ACUS is undertaking a project to map
and define the spectrum of assistance
that parties to administrative
proceedings may (or may not) have
available to them. It will identify areas
in which certain forms of assistance
may be underutilized in administrative
proceedings and, conversely, where
agencies may be relying too heavily on
certain types of assistance.
Specific Topics for Public Comment
ACUS welcomes views, information,
and data on all aspects of strategies that
agencies are using or might use to
expand assistance and/or representation
for members of the public when they
engage with administrative programs or
participate in administrative
adjudicative processes. ACUS also seeks
specific feedback on the following
questions related to assistance and
nonlawyer representation:
Experiences Navigating Administrative
Adjudication
1. What has been your experience
interacting with an administrative
adjudication regarding a benefit or
service that you are applying for or
renewing, for example unemployment
3 Admin. Conf. of the U.S., Recommendation
2023–5, Best Practices for Adjudication Not
Involving an Evidentiary Hearing, 89 FR 1509 (Jan.
10, 2024); Admin. Conf. of the U.S.,
Recommendation 2023–6, Identifying and Reducing
Burdens on the Public in Administrative
Proceedings, 89 FR 1511 (Jan. 10, 2024).
4 George M. Cohen, Regulation of Representatives
in Agency Adjudicative Proceedings (Dec. 3, 2021)
(report to the Admin. Conf. of the U.S.). See also
Working Group on Model Rules of Representative
Conduct, Admin. Conf. of the U.S., https://
www.acus.gov/research-projects/working-groupmodel-rules-representative-conduct.
E:\FR\FM\08JYN1.SGM
08JYN1
55914
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 130 / Monday, July 8, 2024 / Notices
insurance or student loan assistance?
Were you able to receive adequate
assistance from the agency, including
interactions with agency staff and
agency-provided resources, such that
you did not need external legal services
from lawyers or nonlawyers? If not,
what steps did you take to find such
assistance, if any?
2. If you have been represented by
someone in an administrative
adjudication, how would you describe
the experience and outcome? Have you
experienced any unintended
consequences from representation? How
did you find and decide to work with
your representative? Did the agency
assist you with finding your
representative? Was your representative
a lawyer? If not, was your representative
part of an organization or a solo
practitioner? How did you decide to
proceed with your representative, and
what alternatives did you consider?
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Perspectives From Representatives or
Legal Assistance Providers
3. If you have worked as a nonlawyer
representative in administrative
adjudications, how long have you
worked in this capacity? Before which
agency or agencies do you practice?
What tasks do you undertake as part of
your representation? How were you
trained? Are you required to re-certify
regularly or seek ongoing training? Is
training provided by the agency or by a
sponsoring organization? Are you
supervised by a lawyer in any capacity?
4. If you have worked as a nonlawyer
representative in administrative
adjudications, what was the certification
and oversight process from the agency?
In your experience, was that process
efficient and/or successful?
5. If you have worked as a nonlawyer
representative in administrative
adjudications, have you felt that you
were treated professionally and equally
by others in the process? Was the
government represented by a lawyer?
6. If you are a lawyer representing
people in administrative adjudications,
what are your experiences and
interactions with nonlawyer
representatives, if any?
7. If you represent people in
administrative adjudications, what are
your experiences with agency rules and
procedures regarding representation? In
what ways could they be improved?
Landscape of Relevant Agency Programs
8. Are you familiar with specific
agency programs that encourage
nonlawyer representation? Are these
programs working to meet the demand
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:22 Jul 05, 2024
Jkt 262001
of need for assistance and/or
representation in administrative
adjudications? If not, how might they be
improved?
9. Are there specific agency programs
that could be expanded to encourage
more forms of nonlawyer assistance
and/or representation?
10. Are you aware of studies or other
data examining aspects of nonlawyer
representation before federal agencies,
beyond data that is publicly available
through agency websites?
11. What role can public- and privatesector groups play in increasing
nonlawyer representation, and how
should government agencies encourage
such actions, if at all?
addressed to the FTZ Board’s Executive
Secretary and sent to: ftz@trade.gov. The
closing period for their receipt is August
19, 2024. Rebuttal comments in
response to material submitted during
the foregoing period may be submitted
during the subsequent 15-day period to
September 3, 2024.
A copy of the application will be
available for public inspection in the
‘‘Online FTZ Information Section’’
section of the FTZ Board’s website,
which is accessible via www.trade.gov/
ftz.
For further information, contact
Christopher Kemp at
Christopher.Kemp@trade.gov.
Dated: July 2, 2024.
Shawne C. McGibbon,
General Counsel.
Elizabeth Whiteman,
[FR Doc. 2024–14915 Filed 7–5–24; 8:45 am]
[FR Doc. 2024–14792 Filed 7–5–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6110–01–P
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Foreign-Trade Zones Board
Foreign-Trade Zones Board
Dated: July 1, 2024.
Executive Secretary.
[S–112–2024]
[B–11–2024]
Foreign-Trade Zone 214; Application
for Subzone Expansion; Conolidated
Diesel Company; Whitakers, North
Carolina
An application has been submitted to
the Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZ) Board by
the North Carolina Department of
Transportation, grantee of FTZ 214,
requesting an expansion of Subzone
214A on behalf of Consolidated Diesel
Company (Consolidated Diesel), located
in Whitakers, North Carolina. The
application was submitted pursuant to
the provisions of the Foreign-Trade
Zones Act, as amended (19 U.S.C. 81a81u), and the regulations of the FTZ
Board (15 CFR part 400). It was formally
docketed on July 1, 2024.
The application requests authority to
expand Subzone 214A to include the
following new site: Site 5 (0.5 acres)—
7111 US 301, Whitaker. No
authorization for additional production
activity has been requested at this time.
The proposed expanded subzone would
be subject to the existing activation limit
of FTZ 214.
In accordance with the FTZ Board’s
regulations, Christopher Kemp of the
FTZ Staff is designated examiner to
review the application and make
recommendations to the Executive
Secretary.
Public comment is invited from
interested parties. Submissions shall be
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Production Activity Not Authorized;
Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ) 39; Trina
Solar US Manufacturing Module 1, LLC
(Trina Solar); (Solar Panels); Wilmer,
Texas
On March 1, 2024, the Dallas/Fort
Worth International Airport Board,
grantee of FTZ 39, submitted a
notification of proposed production
activity to the FTZ Board on behalf of
Trina Solar, within FTZ 39, in Wilmer,
Texas.
The notification was processed in
accordance with the regulations of the
FTZ Board (15 CFR part 400), including
notice in the Federal Register inviting
public comment (89 FR 18893–18894,
March 15, 2024). On July 1, 2024, the
applicant was notified of the FTZ
Board’s decision that further review of
the activity is warranted. The
production activity described in the
notification was not authorized. If the
applicant wishes to seek authorization
for this activity, it will need to submit
an application for production authority,
pursuant to section 400.23.
Dated: July 1, 2024.
Elizabeth Whiteman,
Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2024–14793 Filed 7–5–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P
E:\FR\FM\08JYN1.SGM
08JYN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 130 (Monday, July 8, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55913-55914]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-14915]
========================================================================
Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 130 / Monday, July 8, 2024 /
Notices
[[Page 55913]]
ADMINISTRATIVE CONFERENCE OF THE UNITED STATES
Nonlawyer Assistance and Representation; Request for Comments
AGENCY: Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS).
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Office of the Chair of ACUS is requesting public input on
representation and other forms of assistance provided by nonlawyers to
participants in federal agency adjudication. Responses to this request
may inform an ongoing ACUS project, Nonlawyer Assistance and
Representation, which, if warranted, may recommend best practices for
agencies to use.
DATES: Comments must be received no later than 10:00 a.m. (ET) August
31, 2024.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by email to [email protected] (with
``Nonlawyer Assistance and Representation'' in the subject line of the
message), or by U.S. Mail addressed to Nonlawyer Assistance and
Representation, Administrative Conference of the United States, Suite
706 South, 1120 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036. ACUS will
ordinarily post comments on the project web page (https://www.acus.gov/projects/nonlawyer-assistance-and-representation) as they are received.
Commenters should not include information, such as personal information
or confidential business information, that they do not wish to appear
on the ACUS website. For the full ACUS public comment policy, please
visit https://www.acus.gov/policy/public-comment-policy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matthew Gluth, Deputy Research
Director, Administrative Conference of the United States, 1120 20th
Street NW, Suite 706 South, Washington, DC 20036; Telephone (202) 480-
2080; email [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Administrative Conference Act, 5 U.S.C.
591-596, established the Administrative Conference of the United
States. The Conference studies the efficiency, adequacy, and fairness
of the administrative procedures used by Federal agencies and makes
recommendations to agencies, the President, Congress, and the Judicial
Conference of the United States for procedural improvements (5 U.S.C.
594(1)). For further information about the Conference and its
activities, see www.acus.gov.
Nonlawyer Assistance and Representation
Millions of people each year engage with administrative programs or
participate in administrative adjudicative processes to access federal
programs (for example, to obtain needed benefits and services) and
resolve legal issues (for example, to resolve tax and immigration
disputes). Many people ``need assistance to access and obtain fair
outcomes'' in administrative adjudications.\1\ But many people,
particularly low-income people and members of other underserved
communities, are not always able to access representation or other
forms of assistance that they need to navigate administrative
adjudications successfully.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ White House Legal Aid Interagency Roundtable, Access to
Justice in Federal Administrative Proceedings: Nonlawyer Assistance
and Other Strategies 19 (2023).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
One barrier to accessing representation or assistance is the
critical shortage of affordable legal services. Agencies have long
innovated various ways to expand assistance and widen the pool of
available representatives. For example, many agencies currently permit
participants in agency adjudications to be represented by accredited or
qualified nonlawyers. In 1986, ACUS recommended that agencies ``take
the steps necessary to encourage--as well as eliminate inappropriate
barriers to--nonlawyer assistance and representation.'' \2\ Since then,
a growing academic literature has analyzed the experience and outcomes
people have when using various forms of nonlawyer representation. Just
last year, ACUS recommended that agencies allow participants in many
adjudications ``to be represented by a lawyer or a lay person with
relevant expertise'' and to establish ``rules authorizing accredited or
qualified nonlawyer representatives to practice before the agency.''
\3\ Additionally, a recent recommendation on regulation of
representatives in agency adjudicative proceedings led to a working
group focused on developing a model code for representation.\4\ Yet
there is still much more to understand about the extent and character
of representation by professionals who are not lawyers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ Admin. Conf. of the U.S., Recommendation 86-1, Nonlawyer
Assistance and Representation, 51 FR 25641 (July 16, 1986).
\3\ Admin. Conf. of the U.S., Recommendation 2023-5, Best
Practices for Adjudication Not Involving an Evidentiary Hearing, 89
FR 1509 (Jan. 10, 2024); Admin. Conf. of the U.S., Recommendation
2023-6, Identifying and Reducing Burdens on the Public in
Administrative Proceedings, 89 FR 1511 (Jan. 10, 2024).
\4\ George M. Cohen, Regulation of Representatives in Agency
Adjudicative Proceedings (Dec. 3, 2021) (report to the Admin. Conf.
of the U.S.). See also Working Group on Model Rules of
Representative Conduct, Admin. Conf. of the U.S., https://www.acus.gov/research-projects/working-group-model-rules-representative-conduct.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ACUS is undertaking a project to map and define the spectrum of
assistance that parties to administrative proceedings may (or may not)
have available to them. It will identify areas in which certain forms
of assistance may be underutilized in administrative proceedings and,
conversely, where agencies may be relying too heavily on certain types
of assistance.
Specific Topics for Public Comment
ACUS welcomes views, information, and data on all aspects of
strategies that agencies are using or might use to expand assistance
and/or representation for members of the public when they engage with
administrative programs or participate in administrative adjudicative
processes. ACUS also seeks specific feedback on the following questions
related to assistance and nonlawyer representation:
Experiences Navigating Administrative Adjudication
1. What has been your experience interacting with an administrative
adjudication regarding a benefit or service that you are applying for
or renewing, for example unemployment
[[Page 55914]]
insurance or student loan assistance? Were you able to receive adequate
assistance from the agency, including interactions with agency staff
and agency-provided resources, such that you did not need external
legal services from lawyers or nonlawyers? If not, what steps did you
take to find such assistance, if any?
2. If you have been represented by someone in an administrative
adjudication, how would you describe the experience and outcome? Have
you experienced any unintended consequences from representation? How
did you find and decide to work with your representative? Did the
agency assist you with finding your representative? Was your
representative a lawyer? If not, was your representative part of an
organization or a solo practitioner? How did you decide to proceed with
your representative, and what alternatives did you consider?
Perspectives From Representatives or Legal Assistance Providers
3. If you have worked as a nonlawyer representative in
administrative adjudications, how long have you worked in this
capacity? Before which agency or agencies do you practice? What tasks
do you undertake as part of your representation? How were you trained?
Are you required to re-certify regularly or seek ongoing training? Is
training provided by the agency or by a sponsoring organization? Are
you supervised by a lawyer in any capacity?
4. If you have worked as a nonlawyer representative in
administrative adjudications, what was the certification and oversight
process from the agency? In your experience, was that process efficient
and/or successful?
5. If you have worked as a nonlawyer representative in
administrative adjudications, have you felt that you were treated
professionally and equally by others in the process? Was the government
represented by a lawyer?
6. If you are a lawyer representing people in administrative
adjudications, what are your experiences and interactions with
nonlawyer representatives, if any?
7. If you represent people in administrative adjudications, what
are your experiences with agency rules and procedures regarding
representation? In what ways could they be improved?
Landscape of Relevant Agency Programs
8. Are you familiar with specific agency programs that encourage
nonlawyer representation? Are these programs working to meet the demand
of need for assistance and/or representation in administrative
adjudications? If not, how might they be improved?
9. Are there specific agency programs that could be expanded to
encourage more forms of nonlawyer assistance and/or representation?
10. Are you aware of studies or other data examining aspects of
nonlawyer representation before federal agencies, beyond data that is
publicly available through agency websites?
11. What role can public- and private-sector groups play in
increasing nonlawyer representation, and how should government agencies
encourage such actions, if at all?
Dated: July 2, 2024.
Shawne C. McGibbon,
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2024-14915 Filed 7-5-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6110-01-P