Agencies and Commissions December 29, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for public comment draft regulatory guide (DG) DG-5043, ``Training and Qualification of Security Personnel at Nuclear Power Reactor Facilities.'' The proposed revision to the regulatory guide (RG) updates training and qualification guidance that incorporates lessons learned since the original publication of the guide.

The General Services Administration (GSA) uses the single standard mileage rate established by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as the mileage rate for privately owned automobiles (POA). In addition, the IRS' mileage rate for medical or moving purposes is used to determine the POA rate when a Government-furnished automobile is authorized. This IRS rate also establishes the standard mileage rate for moving purposes as it pertains to official relocation. Finally, GSA's annual privately owned airplane and motorcycle mileage reimbursement rate reviews have resulted in new CY 2016 rates. GSA conducts independent airplane and motorcycle studies that evaluate various factors, such as the cost of fuel, the depreciation of the original vehicles costs, maintenance and insurance, and/or by applying consumer price index data. FTR Bulletin 16-02 establishes the new CY 2016 POV mileage reimbursement rates for official temporary duty and relocation travel ($0.54 for POAs, $0.19 for POAs when a Government furnished automobile is authorized, $1.17 for privately owned airplanes, $0.51 for privately owned motorcycles, and $0.19 for moving purposes), pursuant to the process discussed above. This notice of subject bulletin is the only notification to agencies of revisions to the POV mileage rates for official travel and relocation other than the changes posted on GSA's Web site.

In accordance with the requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 which provides opportunity for public comment on new or revised data collections, the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) will publish periodic summaries of proposed data collections. Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed information collection is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information has practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the RRB's estimate of the burden of the collection of the information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden related to the collection of information on respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. 1. Title and purpose of information collection: Employer Reporting; 3220-0005. Under Section 9 of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), and Section 6 of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA), railroad employers are required to submit reports of employee service and compensation to the RRB as needed for administering the RRA and RUIA. To pay benefits due on a deceased employee's earnings records or determine entitlement to, and amount of annuity applied for, it is necessary at times to obtain from railroad employers current (lag) service and compensation not yet reported to the RRB through the annual reporting process. The reporting requirements are specified in 20 CFR 209.6 and 209.7. The RRB currently utilizes Form G-88A.1, Notice of Retirement and Verification of Date Last Worked, Form G-88A.2, Notice of Retirement and Request for Service Needed for Eligibility, and Form AA-12, Notice of Death and Compensation, to obtain the required lag service and related information from railroad employers. Form G-88A.1 is sent by the RRB via a computer-generated listing or transmitted electronically via the RRB's Employer Reporting System (ERS) to employers. ERS consists of a series of screens with completion instructions and collects essentially the same information as the approved manual version. Form G-88A.1 is used for the specific purpose of verifying information previously provided to the RRB regarding the date last worked by an employee. If the information is correct, the employer need not reply. If the information is incorrect, the employer is asked to provide corrected information. Form G-88A.2 is used by the RRB to secure lag service and compensation information when it is needed to determine benefit eligibility. Form AA-12 obtains a report of lag service and compensation from the last railroad employer of a deceased employee. This report covers the lag period between the date of the latest record of employment processed by the RRB and the date an employee last worked, the date of death or the date the employee may have been entitled to benefits under the Social Security Act. The information is used by the RRB to determine benefits due on the deceased employee's earnings record. The RRB proposes no changes to Forms G-88A.1, G-88A.2 or AA-12. In addition, 20 CFR 209.12(b) requires all railroad employers to furnish the RRB with the home addresses of all employees hired within the last year (new-hires). Form BA-6a, Form BA-6 Address Report, is used by the RRB to obtain home address information of employees from railroad employers who do not have the home address information computerized and who submit the information in a paper format. The form also serves as an instruction sheet to railroad employers who submit the information electronically by magnetic tape, cartridge, or CD ROM. The RRB proposes no changes to Form BA-6a. Completion of the forms is mandatory. Multiple responses may be filed by respondent.

The Commission is noticing a recent Postal Service filing concerning a Type 2 rate adjustment and the filing of a related negotiated service agreement with Canada Post. This notice informs the public of the filing, invites public comment, and takes other administrative steps.

The Commission is noticing a recent Postal Service filing concerning the addition of Priority Mail Contract 170 to the competitive product list. This notice informs the public of the filing, invites public comment, and takes other administrative steps.

The United States Copyright Office is undertaking a public study to assess the operation of section 1201 of Title 17, including the triennial rulemaking process established under the DMCA to adopt exemptions to the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. To aid this effort, and to ensure thorough assistance to Congress, the Office is seeking public input on a number of key questions.

The OCC, the Board, and the FDIC (collectively, the Agencies) are amending their Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations to adjust the asset-size thresholds used to define ``small bank'' or ``small savings association'' and ``intermediate small bank'' or ``intermediate small savings association.'' As required by the CRA regulations, the adjustment to the threshold amount is based on the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). The Agencies also propose to make technical edits to remove obsolete references to the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) and update cross-references to regulations implementing certain Federal consumer financial laws in their CRA regulations.