Department of Agriculture March 5, 2020 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Agriculture published a document in the Federal Register of February 28, 2020, pg. 11332, concerning a request for comments on the information collection ``USDA Local and Regional Food Aid Procurement Program'' OMB control number 0551-0046. The document contained incorrect number of respondents and burden hours. The number of respondents should be 8 and the burden hours 31,372 not 22 respondents and 29,172 as published.

The U.S Codex Office is sponsoring a public meeting on March 25, 2020. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States (U.S.) positions to be discussed at the 25th Session of the Codex Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems (CCFICS) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, April 27-May 1, 2020. The U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius and the Under Secretary, Office of Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 25th Session of the CCFICS and to address items on the agenda.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (``USDA'' or ``Department''), with the concurrence of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE), is issuing this final rule for attorneys of USDA's Office of the General Counsel (OGC). The final rule supplements the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch (OGE Standards) issued by OGE by revising the Supplemental Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Department of Agriculture (USDA Supplemental Ethics Regulations) concerning the outside practice of law by USDA OGC attorneys. To more fully address ethical issues unique to OGC attorneys, the final rule imposes additional restrictions on the outside practice of law, subject to certain exceptions.