Department of Commerce January 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice sets forth the schedule and proposed agenda of a forthcoming meeting of the Sea Grant Advisory Board (Board). Board 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.

NMFS is notifying the owners and operators of registered vessels of their assignments for the 2009 A 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 2009 A season HLA limits established for area 542 and area 543 pursuant to the 2008 and 2009 harvest specifications for groundfish in the BSAI.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will convene public meetings. The original document published on Tuesday, January 6, 2009 and this document adds additional discussions that will take place at the Tuesday, January 27, 2009, 8:30 am-12:00 pm & 1:30 pm-3:00 pm meeting and is corrected in the SUMMARY section. All other information remains unchanged.

NMFS issues this final rule to implement Amendment 14 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (FMP), as prepared and submitted by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council). This rule establishes eight marine protected areas (MPAs) in which fishing for or possession of South Atlantic snapper-grouper are prohibited. The prohibition on possession does not apply to a person aboard a vessel that is in transit with fishing gear appropriately stowed. The proposal in Amendment 14 to prohibit shark bottom longlines within these MPAs has been implemented by NMFS in a separate rulemaking. The intended effects of this final rule are to protect a portion of the population and habitat of long-lived, slow growing, deepwater snapper-grouper from fishing pressure to achieve a more natural sex ratio, age, and size structure within the proposed MPAs, while minimizing adverse social and economic effects.

Export Trading Company Affairs, International Trade Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, has received an application to amend an Export Trade Certificate of Review (``Certificate''). This notice summarizes the proposed amendment and requests comments relevant to whether the Certificate should be issued.

The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a one day meeting of its Pelagics Plan Team (PPT), in Honolulu, HI, to discuss fishery issues and develop recommendations for future management.

This notice calls for nominees for one non-federal position to the U.S. Delegation to the Intersessional Meeting on the Future of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) that will be held in March 2009, in Rome, Italy. The non-federal representative selected as a result of this nomination process is responsible for providing input and recommendations to the U.S. IWC Commissioner representing the positions of non-governmental organizations.

NMFS, upon application from the U.S. Navy (Navy), is issuing regulations to govern the unintentional taking of marine mammals incidental to training activities conducted within the Hawaii Range Complex (HRC) for the period of January 2009 through January 2014. The Navy's training activities are considered military readiness activities pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended by the National Defense Authorization Act of 2004 (NDAA). These regulations, which allow for the issuance of ``Letters of Authorization'' (LOAs) for the incidental take of marine mammals during the described activities and specified timeframes, prescribe the permissible methods of taking and other means of affecting the least practicable adverse impact on marine mammal species and their habitat, as well as requirements pertaining to the monitoring and reporting of such taking.

The Joint Canada-U.S. Review Panel for Pacific hake/whiting will hold a work session which is open to the public.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will convene a public meeting of the Outreach and Education Advisory Panel (AP).

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.

On November 25, 2008, the Department of Commerce (the ``Department'') received a request on behalf of petitioners, the American Furniture Manufacturers Committee for Legal Trade and its individual members (the ``AFMC'' or ``petitioners''), for a changed circumstances review and a request to revoke in part the antidumping duty (``AD'') order on wooden bedroom furniture from the People's Republic of China (``PRC'') with respect to certain toy boxes. In its November 25, 2008, submission, AFMC stated that it no longer has any interest in antidumping relief from imports of certain toy boxes with respect to the subject merchandise defined in the ``Scope of the Review'' section below. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

On September 30, 2008, the Department of Commerce (``the Department'') published a notice announcing the initiation of an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on granular polytetrafluoroethylene resin from Italy, covering the period August 1, 2007, through July 31, 2008. See Initiation of Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Administrative Reviews and Requests for Revocation in Part, 73 FR 56794, (September 30, 2008). The review was requested by Solvay Solexis, Inc. and Solvay Solexis S.p.A. (collectively, ``Solvay''). We are now rescinding this review as a result of Solvay's withdrawal of its request for an administrative review.

On September 2, 2008, the Department of Commerce (``Department'') initiated a sunset review of the antidumping duty order on barium carbonate from the People's Republic of China (``PRC'') pursuant to section 751(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (``Act''). See Initiation of Five-year (``Sunset'') Review, 73 FR 51275 (September 2, 2008) (``Sunset Initiation''); see also Antidumping Duty Order: Barium Carbonate from the People's Republic of China, 68 FR 56619 (October 1, 2003) (``Order''). On September 16, 2008, Chemical Products Corporation (``CPC''), the petitioner in the original barium carbonate investigation, notified the Department that it intended to participate in the sunset review. The Department did not receive a substantive response from any respondent party. Based on the notice of intent to participate and adequate response filed by the domestic interested party, and the lack of response from any respondent interested party, the Department conducted an expedited sunset review of the Order pursuant to section 751(c)(3)(B) of the Act and 19 C.F.R. 351.218(e)(1)(ii)(C)(2). As a result of this sunset review, the Department finds that revocation of the Order would likely lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping, at the levels indicated in the ``Final Results of Sunset Review'' section of this notice, infra.

The Advisory Committee on Earthquake Hazards Reduction (ACEHR or Committee), will hold a meeting on Friday, January 23, 2009 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). The primary purpose of this meeting is to review and approve the Committee's draft NEHRP reauthorization letter to the Interagency Coordinating Committee (ICC). The draft letter will be posted on the NEHRP Web site at https://nehrp. gov/. Interested members of the public will be able to participate in the meeting from remote locations by calling into a central phone number.

Pursuant to section 703 of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965, as amended, and the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009, EDA announces general policies and application procedures for the FY 2009 Second Supplemental Appropriations Disaster Relief Opportunity. Pursuant to this notice, EDA solicits applications for Economic Adjustment Assistance investments (CFDA No. 11.307). This Economic Adjustment Assistance will help devise long-term economic redevelopment strategies and carry out implementation activities and public works projects to address economic development challenges in regions impacted by hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters during 2008 and covered by a major disaster declaration under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Through the Economic Adjustment Assistance program, selected applicants will utilize EDA's flexible set of program tools to develop and implement on a regional basis long-term economic redevelopment strategies for the recently disaster-impacted regions in the United States. As stated below under ``Electronic Access,'' the complete federal funding opportunity announcement for this notice and request for applications is available at https://www.grants.gov and at https://www.eda.gov, and provides more detailed information regarding the FY 2009 Second Supplemental Appropriations Disaster Relief Opportunity.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) Groundfish Allocation Committee (GAC) will hold a working meeting, which is open to the public.

On November 7, 2008, the Department of Commerce (``Department'') published the preliminary results of its administrative review of the antidumping duty order on honey from the People's Republic of China (``PRC''), covering the period of December 1, 2006, through November 30, 2007. See Sixth Administrative Review of Honey From the People's Republic of China: Preliminary Results and Partial Rescission of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review, 73 FR 66221 (November 7, 2008) (``Preliminary Results''). The Department received no comments on its Preliminary Results.

In response to the Government of Burma's continued repression of the democratic opposition in Burma, and consistent with Executive Order 13047 of May 20, 1997, Executive Order 13310 of July 28, 2003, Executive Order 13448 of October 18, 2007, and the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act (Title IX of Pub. L. 106-387), the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) previously amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) on October 24, 2007 to impose a license requirement for most exports, reexports, or transfers of items subject to the EAR to persons whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to those Executive Orders. In light of the Government of Burma's continued repression of the democratic opposition in Burma and unwillingness to respond to the calls of the Burmese people for genuine dialogue that will lead to a democratic transition in Burma, this final rule amends the EAR to extend these existing licensing requirements to persons whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to Executive Order 13464 of April 30, 2008.