Department of Commerce August 11, 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

As a result of the determination by the Department of Commerce (``the Department'') that termination of the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Investigation on Uranium from the Russian Federation (``Suspension Agreement'') would likely lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping and the determination by the International Trade Commission (``ITC'') that termination of the suspended antidumping duty investigation on uranium from the Russian Federation would likely lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury to an industry in the United States within a reasonably foreseeable time, the Department is publishing this notice of continuation of the Suspension Agreement on uranium from Russia.

The Department of Commerce is conducting an administrative review of the countervailing duty order on dynamic random access memory semiconductors from the Republic of Korea for the period January 1, 2004, through December 31, 2004. We preliminarily find that Hynix Semiconductor, Inc. received countervailable subsidies during the period of review. If the final results remain the same as these preliminary results, we will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (``CBP'') to assess countervailing duties as detailed in the ``Preliminary Results of Review'' section of this notice. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results (see the ``Public Comment'' section of this notice, below).

NIST invites and requests nomination of individuals for appointment to the Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology (VCAT). The terms of some of the members of the VCAT will soon expire. NIST will consider nominations received in response to this notice for appointment to the Committee, in addition to nominations already received.

NMFS is closing directed fishing for rock sole, flathead sole, and ``other flatfish'' by vessels using trawl gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the 2006 halibut bycatch allowance specified for the trawl rock sole, flathead sole, and ``other flatfish'' fishery category in the BSAI.

This proposed rule would implement the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) Catcher Processor Capacity Reduction Program (Reduction Program) for the longline catcher processor subsector of the BSAI non- pollock groundfish fishery (Reduction Fishery), in compliance with the FY 2005 Appropriations Act. This program is voluntary and permit holders of the Reduction Fishery (Subsector Members) are eligible to participate. Subsector Members must first sign and abide by not only the Capacity Reduction Agreement (Reduction Agreement) but also a Fishing Capacity Reduction Contract (Reduction Contract) with the U.S. Government. These key components of the Capacity Reduction Plan (Reduction Plan) were prepared by the Freezer Longline Conservation Cooperative (FLCC) and would be implemented by the proposed regulations. The aggregate of all Reduction Agreements and those Reduction Contracts signed by Subsector Members whose offers were accepted by \2/3\ votes of the Subsector Members, will together with the FLCC's supporting documents and rationale that these offers represent the expenditure of the least money for the greatest capacity reduction, constitute the Reduction Plan to be submitted to the Secretary of Commerce for approval. Subsector Members participating in the Reduction Program will receive up to $36 million in exchange for relinquishing valid non-interim Federal License Limitation Program BSAI groundfish licenses endorsed for catcher processor fishing activity, Catcher/Processor (C/P), Pacific cod, and hook and line gear, as well as any present or future claims of eligibility for any fishing privilege based on such permit (the Groundfish Reduction Permit) and additionally, any future fishing privilege of the vessel named on the permit. Individual fishing quota (IFQ) quota shares would be excluded from relinquishment. Following submission of the Reduction Plan and approval by the Secretary, NMFS will conduct an industry referendum to determine the industry's willingness to repay a fishing capacity reduction loan to effect the Reduction Plan. A \2/3\ majority vote in favor would bind all parties and complete the reduction process. NMFS will issue a 30-year loan to be repaid by those harvesters remaining in the Reduction Fishery. The intent of this proposed rule is to permanently reduce harvesting capacity in the Reduction Fishery. This should result in increased harvesting productivity for post-reduction Subsector Members and help with conservation and management of the Reduction Fishery.