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

NMFS is notifying the owners and operators of registered vessels of their assignments for the 2008 B season Atka mackerel fishery in harvest limit area (HLA) 542 and/or 543 of the Aleutian Islands subarea of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to allow the harvest of the 2008 B season HLA limits established for area 542 and area 543 pursuant to the 2008 and 2009 harvest specifications for groundfish in the BSAI.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Scallop Committee in September, 2008 to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate.

NMFS announces that the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council proposes to amend the Fishery Management Plan for Crustacean Fisheries of the Western Pacific Region (Crustaceans FMP). If approved by the Secretary of Commerce, Amendment 13 to the Crustaceans FMP would designate deepwater shrimp of the genus Heterocarpus as management unit species, and require Federal permits and data reporting for deepwater shrimp fishing in Federal waters of the western Pacific. Amendment 13 is intended to improve information on deepwater shrimp fisheries and their ecosystem impacts, and to provide a basis for future management of the fisheries, if needed.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (Office) is adjusting certain patent fee amounts for fiscal year 2009 to reflect fluctuations in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The patent statute provides for the annual CPI adjustment of patent fees set by statute to recover the higher costs associated with doing business. In addition, the Office is correcting the addresses for maintenance fee payments and correspondence, and deposit account replenishments.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (Office) is adopting new rules governing the conduct of disciplinary investigations, issuing warnings when closing such investigations, disciplinary proceedings, non-disciplinary transfer to disability inactive status and reinstatement to practice before the Office. The Office is adopting a new rule regarding recognition to practice before the Office in trademark cases. The Office also is adopting a new rule to address a practitioner's signature and certificate for correspondence filed in the Office. These changes will enable the Office to better protect the public from practitioners who do not comply with the Office's ethics rules and from incapacitated practitioners.

NMFS extends the public comment period on the proposed rule to revise National Standard 1 (NS1) guidelines, including guidance on how to comply with new annual catch limit (ACL) and accountability measures (AM) requirements for ending overfishing of fisheries managed by federal fishery management plans. NMFS has received various requests to extend the comment period for the proposed rule beyond its current 90- day comment period. The extension of the comment period for another two weeks is intended to ensure that NMFS provides adequate time for various stakeholders and members of the public to comment on the proposed guidance on ACLs and AMs and other proposed revisions to the NS1 guidelines. The comment period ending date is extended from September 8, 2008, to September 22, 2008.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) Salmon Advisory Subpanel (SAS) will hold a work session by telephone conference to develop recommendations for the September 2008 Council meeting.

This announcement provides notice that the decision record has been closed for an administrative appeal filed with the Department of Commerce by Mr. G. Walter Swain.

The Office of Law Enforcement Standards (OLES), in cooperation with the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Interoperability and Compatibility (DHS/OIC) and representatives of the public safety community, will hold a public working group on September 9-11, 2008, at Twisted Pair Communications in Seattle, Washington. The purpose of the first two days of the meeting (September 9-10, 2008) is to bring manufacturers together to establish voice over IP (VoIP) connectivity between radio communication system bridging devices. The purpose of the last day of the working group (September 11, 2008) is to bring practitioners and industry together to discuss the development of an enhanced implementation profile for VoIP between radio system bridging solutions. The results of this and subsequent roundtable discussions will be used in the development of specific implementation profiles for VoIP usage in public-safety owned systems. There is no charge for the roundtable; however, because of meeting room restrictions, advance registration is mandatory and limited to three representatives from any one organization. There will be no on- site, same-day registration. The registration deadline is September 2, 2008. Please note registration and admittance instructions and other additional information under the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this notice.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for species that comprise the shallow-water species fishery by vessels using trawl gear in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary because the third seasonal apportionment of the 2008 Pacific halibut bycatch allowance specified for the shallow-water species fishery in the GOA has been reached.

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.

On December 19, 2005, the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council), in cooperation with NMFS, announced its intent to prepare a supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS) for Amendment 11 to the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish (MSB) Fishery Management Plan (FMP)(Amendment 11). Since then, the Council and NMFS have determined that the Amendment 11 document is an independent action and therefore will be handled as an EIS, rather than SEIS. The Council has chosen to consider management measures in this action in addition to limited access in the Atlantic mackerel (mackerel) fishery, including: The implementation of annual catch limits (ACLs) and accountability measures (AMs) for Atlantic mackerel and butterfish required under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2006 (MSRA); an update of the description and identification of essential fish habitat (EFH) for all life stages of mackerel, Loligo squid (Loligo), Illex squid (Illex), and butterfish (including gear impacts on Loligo egg EFH); and possible limitations on at-sea processing of mackerel. For purposes of scoping, this supplemental NOI seeks comments on only the above listed new measures that may be included in Amendment 11. Additional scoping will take place via solicitation of public comment at Council meetings and related Council committee meetings as Amendment 11 is considered and developed.

NOAA Fisheries announces two inseason actions in the ocean salmon fisheries. Inseason action 5 modified the commercial fishery from the U.S./Canada Border to Cape Falcon, Oregon. Inseason action 6 modified the recreational fishery from U.S./Canada Border to Cape Falcon, Oregon.

On April 7, 2008, the Department of Commerce published its preliminary results of the administrative review of the antidumping duty order on certain orange juice from Brazil. The period of review (POR) is August 24, 2005, through February 28, 2007. We are rescinding the review with respect to one company because this company had no entries of subject merchandise during the POR. Based on our analysis of the comments received, we have made certain changes in the margin calculations. Therefore, the final results differ from the preliminary results. The final weighted-average dumping margins for the reviewed firms are listed below in the section entitled ``Final Results of Review.''

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.

NMFS adjusts the 2008 Winter II commercial scup quota. This action complies with Framework Adjustment 3 (Framework 3) to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan, which established a process to allow the rollover of unused commercial scup quota from the Winter I period to the Winter II period.

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Northeast Region, NMFS (Assistant Regional Administrator), has made a preliminary determination that the subject exempted fishing permit (EFP) application submitted by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI), which would exempt Atlantic sea scallop (scallop) vessels from small dredge program gear restrictions, should be issued for public comment. The Assistant Regional Administrator has also made a preliminary determination that the activities authorized under the EFP would be consistent with the goals and objectives of the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan (FMP). However, further review and consultation may be necessary before a final determination is made.