Agencies and Commissions March 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Following receipt of a letter on behalf of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) dated February 16, 2016, advising that several petitioners have withdrawn requests for waivers of the competitive need limitation under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program and that USTR accordingly was withdrawing its request for advice regarding such petitions, the U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission) has amended the scope of its investigation and will not provide advice regarding the withdrawn petitions.

The United States Copyright Office is extending the deadline for the submission of written comments in response to its December 31, 2015 Notice of Inquiry regarding the operation of section 512 of Title 17.

Applicant seeks an order declaring that it has ceased to be an investment company. Applicant transferred its assets to Aberdeen Global Equity Fund, a series of Aberdeen Funds, and, on February 25, 2015, made a final distribution to its shareholders based on net asset value. Expenses of $248,555 incurred in connection with the reorganization were paid by applicant's investment adviser. Filing Date: The application was filed on December 31, 2015. Applicant's Address: 1735 Market Street, 32nd Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19103.

On February 12, 2016, the Commission published a summary of Commission's document, Report No. 3037, 81 FR 7491, announcing that oppositions to Petitions for Reconsideration must been filed by February 29, 2016, and replies to an opposition must be filed on or before March 25, 2016. This document corrects the due date for replies to an opposition.

The Commission is noticing a recent Postal Service filing concerning an amendment to Priority Mail Contract 123 negotiated service agreement. This notice informs the public of the filing, invites public comment, and takes other administrative steps.

The Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation program to provide the general public and federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95) (44 U.S.C. Sec. 3506(c)(2)(A)). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirement on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, CNCS is soliciting comments concerning its proposed renewal of the Alumni Outcomes Survey. The purpose of this survey is to better understand the long-term civic participation and career pathways of AmeriCorps alumni, the acquisition of career skills obtained through national service, and the utilization of the Education Awards and its effect on future post-secondary outcomes and career choices. The information collected is not required to be considered for or to obtain grant funding support from AmeriCorps. Copies of the information collection request can be obtained by contacting the office listed in the ADDRESSES section of this Notice.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to amend its regulations to incorporate by reference proposed revisions of three regulatory guides (RGs) which would approve new, revised, and reaffirmed Code Cases published by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). This proposed action would allow nuclear power plant licensees, and applicants for construction permits, operating licenses, combined licenses, standard design certifications, standard design approvals and manufacturing licenses, to use the Code Cases listed in these draft RGs as alternatives to engineering standards for the construction, inservice inspection, and inservice testing of nuclear power plant components. These engineering standards are set forth in ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Codes and ASME Operations and Maintenance Codes, which are currently incorporated by reference into the NRC's regulations. The NRC is requesting comments on this proposed rule and on the draft versions of the three RGs proposed to be incorporated by reference. The NRC is also making available a related draft RG that lists Code Cases that the NRC has not approved for use. This draft RG will not be incorporated by reference into the NRC's regulations.

NASA is making technical amendments to the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) to provide needed editorial changes.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Regulatory Secretariat Division will be submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve an extension of a previously approved information collection requirement for Proposal to Lease Space, GSA Form 1364 and Lessor's Annual Cost Statement, GSA Form 1217. The approval requested includes four versions of the GSA Form 1364; GSA Forms 1364, 1364A, 1364A-1, and 1364WH. These forms are used to obtain information for offer evaluation and lease award purposes regarding property being offered for lease to house Federal agencies. This includes financial aspects of offers for analysis and negotiation, such as real estate taxes, adjustments for vacant space, and offeror construction overhead fees. A total of six lease contract models have been developed to meet the needs of the national leased portfolio. Five of the lease models require offerors to complete a GSA Form 1364 and four require a GSA Form 1217. The GSA Form 1364 versions requires the submission of information specifically aligned with certain leasing models and avoids mandating submission of information that is not required for use in evaluation and award under each model. The GSA Form 1217 requires the submission of information specific to the services and utilities of a building in support of the pricing detailed under GSA Form 1364. The forms relate to individual lease procurements and no duplication exists. Three lease models, Streamlined, Standard, and Succeeding/ Superseding, use GSA Form 1364. The 1364 captures all rental components, including the pricing for the initial tenant improvements. The global nature of the 1364 provides flexibility in capturing tenant improvement pricing based on either allowance or turnkey pricing, as required by the solicitation. The Simplified Lease Model uses GSA Forms 1364A and 1364A-1. This model obtains a firm, fixed price for rent, which includes the cost of tenant improvement construction. Therefore, leases using the Simplified model do not include post-award tenant improvement cost information on the form. The 1364A includes rental rate components and cost data that becomes part of the lease contract and that is necessary to satisfy GSA pricing policy requirements. The 1364A-1 is a checklist that addresses technical requirements as referenced in the Request for Lease Proposals. The 1364A-1 is separate from the proposal itself and is maintained in the lease file; it does not become an exhibit to the lease. The 1364A-1 may contain proprietary offeror information that cannot be released under the Freedom of Information Act. The Warehouse Lease Model uses GSA Form 1364WH. This model is specifically designed to accommodate the special characteristics of warehouse space and is optimized for space whose predominant use is for storage, distribution, or manufacturing. The 1364WH captures building characteristics unique to warehouse facilities and allows for evaluation of offers based on either area or volume calculations. The Streamlined, Standard, Succeeding/Superseding, and Warehouse Lease Models use GSA Form 1217. GSA Form 1217 captures the estimated annual cost of services and utilities and the estimated costs of ownership, exclusive of capital charges. These costs are listed for both the entire building and the area proposed for lease to the Government, broken down into specific categories. The GSA Form 1217 was not included in the previous information collection notice and supporting statement. The previous omission was an error that is corrected by inclusion in this information collection request.

The U.S. Copyright Office has prepared a Provisional Information Technology Modernization Plan (``IT Plan'') at the direction of Congress that details necessary IT upgrades to transform the Office to better meet the needs of the current and future copyright system. As further directed by Congress, the Register is seeking public comments to help inform the Office on the funding strategy and implementation timeline for the IT Plan.