Department of Commerce January 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Seven Technical Advisory Committees (TACs) advise the Department of Commerce on the technical parameters for export controls applicable to dual-use commodities and technology and on the administration of those controls. The TACs are composed of representatives from industry representatives, academic leaders and U.S. Government representing diverse points of view on the concerns of the exporting community. Industry representatives are selected from firms producing a broad range of goods, technologies, and software presently controlled for national security, non-proliferation, foreign policy, and short supply reasons or that are proposed for such controls, balanced to the extent possible among large and small firms. TAC members are appointed by the Secretary of Commerce and serve terms of not more than four consecutive years. The membership reflects the Department's commitment to attaining balance and diversity. TAC members must obtain secret-level clearances prior to appointment. These clearances are necessary so that members may be permitted access to the classified information needed to formulate recommendations to the Department of Commerce. Each TAC meets approximately four times per year. Members of the Committees will not be compensated for their services. The seven TACs are responsible for advising the Department of Commerce on the technical parameters for export controls and the administration of those controls within the following areas: Information Systems TAC: Control List Categories 3 (electronics), 4 (computers), and 5 (telecommunications and information security); Materials TAC: Control List Category 1 (materials, chemicals, microorganisms, and toxins); Materials Processing Equipment TAC: Control List Category 2 (materials processing); Regulations and Procedures TAC: The Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and Procedures for implementing the EAR; Sensors and Instrumentation TAC: Control List Category 6 (sensors and lasers); Transportation and Related Equipment TAC: Control List Categories 7 (navigation and avionics), 8 (marine), and 9 (propulsion systems, space vehicles, and related equipment) and Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee: (1) The identification of emerging technologies and research and development activities that may be of interest from a dual-use perspective; (2) the prioritization of new and existing controls to determine which are of greatest consequence to national security; (3) the potential impact of dual-use export control requirements on research activities; and (4) the threat to national security posed by the unauthorized exports of technologies. To respond to this recruitment notice, please send a copy of your resume to Ms. Yvette Springer at Yvette.Springer@bis.doc.gov. Deadline: This Notice of Recruitment will be open for one year from its date of publication in the Federal Register.

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.

This notice advises the public that a direct take permit has been issued to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA), for installation and operation of three weirs on tributaries of the lower Columbia River, and that the decision documents are available upon request.

Notice is hereby given that Shane Moore, Moore & Moore Films, Box 2980, 1203 Melody Creek Lane, Jackson, WY 83001, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct commercial or educational photography on killer (Orcinus orca) and gray (Eschrichtius robustus) whales in Alaska.

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 North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory committees will hold public meetings, January 30February 7, 2012, at the Renaissance Hotel in Seattle, WA.

NMFS announces that the spiny dogfish commercial quota available to the coastal states from Maine through Florida for the second semi-annual quota period, November 1, 2011-April 30, 2012, has been harvested. Therefore, effective 0001 hours, January 13, 2012, federally permitted spiny dogfish vessels may not fish for, possess, transfer, or land spiny dogfish until May 1, 2012, when the 2012 spiny dogfish fishing year begins. Regulations governing the spiny dogfish fishery require publication of this notification to advise the coastal states from Maine through Florida that the quota has been harvested and to advise vessel permit holders and dealer permit holders that no Federal commercial quota is available for landing spiny dogfish in these states. This action is necessary to prevent the fishery from exceeding its Period 2 quota and to allow for effective management of this stock.

NMFS published a proposed rule on November 2, 2011 (76 FR 67656) to implement management measures described in Amendment 32 to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (Amendment 32) prepared by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council). During the comment period for that proposed rule, NMFS identified an inconsistency in the codified text of that rule regarding the accountability measures for recreational gag and red grouper that needs correction. This rule proposes to further revise the recreational accountability measures for gag and red grouper to correctly specify what will occur if the ACL is exceeded and the species is overfished. This proposed rule is intended to end overfishing of gag, allow the gag stock to rebuild, and co-manage gag and red grouper by implementing concurrent management measures.

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 announces that the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) has submitted Amendment 20A to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (Amendment 20A) for review, approval, and implementation by NMFS. Amendment 20A proposes actions for the wreckfish individual transferable quota (ITQ) program, including actions to define and revert inactive wreckfish quota shares, redistribute reverted quota shares to remaining shareholders, establish a cap on the number of wreckfish quota shares a single entity may own, and establish an appeals process for redistribution of reverted wreckfish quota shares. The actions contained in Amendment 20A are intended to help achieve the optimum yield (OY) from the wreckfish commercial sector in accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act).

We, NMFS, announce a 90-day finding on a petition to delist the Southern Oregon/Northern California Coast (SONCC) Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESU) of coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). We find that the petition does not present substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will convene public meetings.

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.

In response to requests by interested parties, the Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on honey from Argentina. The review covers imports of subject merchandise from nine companies. The period of review (POR) is December 1, 2009, through November 30, 2010. We preliminarily determine that sales of honey from Argentina have not been made below normal value (NV) by mandatory respondents TransHoney S.A. (TransHoney) and Compa[ntilde][iacute]a Inversora Platense S.A. (CIPSA) during the POR. In addition, we have preliminarily determined a margin for those companies that were not selected for individual examination. If these preliminary results are adopted in our final results of administrative review, we will issue appropriate assessment instructions to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

On February 1, 2005, the Department of Commerce (``Department'') published in the Federal Register the antidumping duty order on certain frozen warmwater shrimp (``shrimp'') from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (``Vietnam'').\1\ The Department is conducting a new shipper review (``NSR'') of the Order, covering the period of review (``POR'') of February 1, 2010, through January 31, 2011. If these preliminary results are adopted in our final results of review, we will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (``CBP'') to assess antidumping duties on entries of subject merchandise during the POR for which the importer-specific assessment rates are above de minimis.

In accordance with the framework procedures for adjusting management measures of the Fishery Management Plan for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf FMP) and the Fishery Management Plan for the Shrimp Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (South Atlantic FMP), this rule would certify two new bycatch reduction devices (BRDs) for use in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) and South Atlantic shrimp fisheries, and revise a harvesting restriction for shrimp vessels fishing in Federal waters of the Gulf. Both BRDs represent modifications to the Composite Panel BRD, which is provisionally certified through May 24, 2012. This rule would incorporate these BRDs to the list of allowable BRDs, and provide technical specifications for the construction and subsequent legal enforcement of these BRDs. Additionally, this rule would revise the shrimp effort reduction threshold for the Gulf shrimp fishery. The intended effect of this proposed rule is to improve bycatch reduction efforts in the Gulf and South Atlantic shrimp fisheries, provide greater flexibility to the industry, reduce the social and economic impacts to fishing communities, and meet the requirements of National Standard 9 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson- Stevens Act).

Notice is hereby given that Kristen Hart, Ph.D., U.S. Geological Survey, Southeast Ecological Science Center, Davie Field Office, Davie, FL has been issued a permit to take loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green (Chelonia mydas), and hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) sea turtles for the purposes of scientific research.