Department of Commerce February 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) publishes this notice requesting comments on the proposed establishment of an accreditation program for laboratories that perform biometric testing including interoperability, performance, and conformance using internationally recognized standards developed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), NIST, and by the International Committee for Information Technology Standards (INCITES). Additional standards may be identified throughout the development of the accreditation program technical requirements.

This document contains a correction to the final rule to implement joint Amendment 27 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico and Amendment 14 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico (Amendment 27/14) that was published in the Federal Register Tuesday, January 29, 2008.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for the A season allowance of the 2008 Pacific cod sideboard limits apportioned to non- American Fisheries Act (AFA) crab vessels catching Pacific cod for processing by the offshore component in the Western Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the A season allowance of the 2008 Pacific cod sideboard limits apportioned to non-AFA crab vessels catching Pacific cod for processing by the offshore component in the Western Regulatory Area of the GOA.

Notice is hereby given that Whale Center of New England (Mason Weinrich, Principal Investigator), P.O. Box 159, Gloucester, MA 01930 has been issued a permit to conduct research on humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae), fin (Balaenoptera physalus), and sei (Balaenoptera borealis) whales.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) has received requests to conduct administrative reviews of various antidumping and countervailing duty orders and findings with January anniversary dates. In accordance with the Department's regulations, we are initiating those administrative reviews.

NMFS will hold a 3-day Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Advisory Panel (AP) meeting in April 2008. The intent of the meeting is to consider options for the conservation and management of Atlantic HMS. The meeting is open to the public.

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

This document amends the Department of Commerce's (Department) Privacy Act (PA) regulations (15 CFR Part 4) by adding an additional method of authorization to determine the identification of individuals seeking access to records under the Privacy Act, consistent with 28 U.S.C. 1746, which permits statements to be made under penalty of perjury as a substitute for notarization.

NMFS announces final 2008 and 2009 harvest specifications and prohibited species catch allowances for the groundfish fishery of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to establish harvest limits for groundfish during the 2008 and 2009 fishing years and to accomplish the goals and objectives of the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (FMP). The intended effect of this action is to conserve and manage the groundfish resources in the BSAI in accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.

Notice is hereby given that the Department of Commerce is soliciting expressions of interest from U.S. Travel and Tourism industry associations with experience and/or core competency in self regulation to establish and implement a program to qualify inbound U.S. tour operators that meet the requirements of the China National Tourism Administration to facilitate packaged group leisure travel established by the ``Memorandum of Understanding Between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the United States of America to Facilitate Outbound Tourist Group Travel from China to The United States.'' The purpose of this program would be to provide quality assurance and a means for tour operators qualified under the program to be recognized by the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) as able to do business with Chinese travel agencies approved by the CNTA to organize and market packaged group leisure travel from China to the United States. Qualified Associations are those that are broadly representative of the U.S. travel and tourism industry, have experience in self regulation programs for the purpose of quality assurance (including the establishment of standards, systems to accept and adjudicate complaints, and procedures for membership revocation for those who do not comply), and have/or will have such programs identified as a mission of the organization. The Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the United States of America to Facilitate Outbound Tourist Group Travel from China to the United States can be found at https://trade.gov/press/pressreleases/ 2007/china-tourism-mou-english-121107.pdf. Deadline: Expressions of interest will be accepted on an ongoing basis, and should be directed to Isabel Hill, Deputy Director for Planning and Policy, Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, U.S. Department of Commerce, Room 1003, 14th and Constitution Ave, NW., Washington, DC, 20230. Interested Parties: Interested parties should send a letter of interest describing the interest and background of the organization as it relates to this notice. The letter should include a name, title and contact number for the individual responsible for communicating with the Department of Commerce on this matter.

This notice sets forth the schedule and proposed agenda of a forthcoming meeting of the Sea Grant Review Panel. Panel members will discuss and provide advice on the National Sea Grant College Program in the areas of program evaluation, strategic planning, education and extension, science and technology programs, and other matters as described in the Agenda below.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration publishes this notice to announce a 45-day public comment period for the draft document titled, U.S. Climate Change Science Program Synthesis and Assessment Product 4.1: ``Coastal elevation and sensitivity to sea level rise.'' This draft document is being released solely for the purpose of pre-dissemination peer review under applicable information quality guidelines. This document has not been formally disseminated by NOAA. It does not represent and should not be construed to represent any Agency policy or determination. Any public comments submitted in accordance with this notice will be considered when revising the document.

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

On February 19, 2008, the U.S. Department of Commerce issued an Export Trade Certificate of Review to Glokle, Inc. (``GINC''). This notice summarizes the conduct for which certification has been granted.

Export Trading Company Affairs (``ETCA''), International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce, has received an application for an Export Trade Certificate of Review (``Certificate''). This notice summarizes the conduct for which certification is sought and requests comments relevant to whether the Certificate should be issued.