Department of Commerce August 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Smart Grid Advisory Committee (SGAC or Committee) will hold an open meeting via teleconference/webinar on Tuesday, September 9, 2014 from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET). The primary purposes of this meeting are to provide an update on the NIST Smart Grid Program, provide a recap and analysis of the June 3-4, 2014 meeting, and plan for the next face to face SGAC meeting. The agenda may change to accommodate Committee business. The final agenda will be posted on the Smart Grid Web site at https://www.nist.gov/smartgrid.

NMFS is adjusting the Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) General category daily retention limit from the default limit of one large medium or giant BFT to four large medium or giant BFT for the September, October through November, and December time periods of the 2014 fishing year. This action is based on consideration of the regulatory determination criteria regarding inseason adjustments, and applies to Atlantic tunas General category (commercial) permitted vessels and Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/Headboat category permitted vessels when fishing commercially for BFT.

This notice announces a public meeting of the Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee (Committee). The Committee provides advice to the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on spectrum management policy matters.

NMFS is proposing to issue an amended permit to authorize the incidental, but not intentional, take of two stocks of marine mammals listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), under section 101(a)(5)(E) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), by the California (CA) thresher shark/swordfish drift gillnet fishery (>=14 in mesh) and the Washington (WA)/Oregon (OR)/CA sablefish pot fishery. In accordance with the MMPA, NMFS must issue this permit provided that it can make the determinations that: The incidental take will have a negligible impact on the affected stocks; a recovery plan for all affected stocks of threatened or endangered marine mammals has been developed or is being developed; and as required by the MMPA, a take reduction plan and monitoring program have been implemented, and vessels in the CA thresher shark/swordfish drift gillnet fishery (>=14 in mesh) and the WA/OR/CA sablefish pot fisheries are registered. NMFS has made a preliminary determination that incidental taking from commercial fishing will have a negligible impact on the endangered humpback whale (CA/OR/WA stock) and the endangered sperm whale (CA/OR/ WA stock). Recovery plans have been completed for humpback and sperm whales. NMFS solicits public comments on the draft negligible impact determination (NID) and on the proposal to issue a permit to vessels that operate in these fisheries for the taking of affected endangered stocks of marine mammals.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty (AD) order on polyethylene terephthalate film, sheet, and strip (PET Film) from India. The period of review (POR) is July 1, 2012, through June 30, 2013. This review covers respondents Jindal Poly Films Limited (Jindal) and SRF Limited (SRF). The Department preliminarily determines that Jindal did, and that SRF did not, make sales of subject merchandise at prices below normal value (NV) during the POR. The preliminary results are listed below in the section titled ``Preliminary Results of Review.'' Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the countervailing duty (CVD) order on certain pasta (pasta) from Italy. The period of review (POR) is January 1, 2012, through December 31, 2012. This review covers two exporters/ producers of the subject merchandise, DeMatteis Agroalimentare S.p.A. (DeMatteis) (also known as, ``DeMatteis Agroalimentare SpA'') and Fratelli DeCecco di Filippo Fara San Martino S.p.A. (DeCecco) (also known as ``F.lli De Cecco di Filippo Fara San Martino S.p.A.''), as mandatory company-respondents. We preliminarily find that DeMatteis received countervailable subsidies during the POR, and that DeCecco received de minimis countervailable subsidies during the POR. The Department is also rescinding the review of one company, Delverde Industrie Alimentari S.p.A., which timely withdrew its request for review. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

This notice amends the Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration Notice of Reestablishment of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Advisory Committee (the Committee) and Solicitation of Nominations for Membership of June 23, 2014 (79 FR 35524) to revise the eligibility criteria to permit federally- registered lobbyists to apply for membership on the Committee. The Department of Commerce recently revised its policy regarding appointment of federally-registered lobbyists to Department advisory committees following a policy clarification by the Office of Management and Budget that the eligibility restriction does not apply to advisory committee members who serve in a representative capacity (see 79 FR 47482). Notwithstanding the language in the Committee charter, the Secretary of Commerce (the Secretary) will now consider nominations of federally-registered lobbyists for appointment on the Committee. We are in the process of amending the charter. This notice also extends the deadline for submitting applications to August 29, 2014. All other eligibility criteria continue to apply. In June 2014, the Department of Commerce reestablished the Committee. The Committee advises the Secretary regarding the development and administration of programs and policies to expand the competitiveness of U.S. exports of renewable energy and energy efficiency goods and services, in accordance with applicable United States regulations. The Committee's work on energy efficiency focuses on technologies, services, and platforms that provide system-level energy efficiency to electricity generation, transmission, and distribution. These include smart grid technologies and services, as well as equipment and systems that increase the resiliency of power infrastructure. For the purposes of this Committee, covered goods and services will not include vehicles, feedstock for biofuels, or energy efficiency at it relates to consumer goods. Non-fossil fuels that are considered renewable fuels (e.g., liquid biofuels and pellets) are included.

The SEDAR 41 assessments of the South Atlantic stocks of red snapper and gray triggerfish will consist of a series of workshops and webinars: A Data Workshop; an Assessment Workshop; and a Review Workshop.

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)).

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Whiting Advisory Panel 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.

The Department of Commerce (``Department'') has determined that it made certain significant ministerial errors in the preliminary determination of sales at less than fair value in the antidumping duty investigation of certain crystalline silicon photovoltaic products from Taiwan, as described below in the ``Supplementary Information'' section of this notice. The Department corrected these errors and has recalculated the weighted-average dumping margin for a mandatory respondent and the all-others rate, as described below in the ``Amended Preliminary Determination'' section of this notice.

NMFS proposes regulations under authority of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act (WCPFC Implementation Act) to implement decisions of the Commission for the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (Commission or WCPFC) on fishing restrictions related to the oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus), the whale shark (Rhincodon typus), and the silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis). The regulations would apply to owners and operators of U.S. fishing vessels used for commercial fishing for highly migratory species (HMS) in the area of application of the Convention on the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (Convention). The regulations for oceanic whitetip sharks and silky sharks would prohibit the retention, transshipment, storage, or landing of oceanic whitetip sharks or silky sharks and would require the release of any oceanic whitetip shark or silky shark as soon as possible after it is caught, with as little harm to the shark as possible. The regulations for whale sharks would prohibit setting a purse seine on a whale shark and would specify certain measures to be taken and reporting requirements in the event a whale shark is encircled in a purse seine net. This action is necessary for the United States to satisfy its obligations under the Convention, to which it is a Contracting Party.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for the rex sole sideboard limit by non-exempt American Fisheries Act (AFA) catcher vessels in the Central Regulatory Area of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This action is necessary because the 2014 rex sole sideboard limit for non-exempt AFA catcher vessels in the Central Regulatory Area of the GOA has been reached.

This final rule adjusts the 2014 fishing season quotas for North and South Atlantic swordfish based upon 2013 commercial quota underharvests and international quota transfers consistent with the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) Recommendations 13-02 and 13-03. Additionally, this final rule modifies the regulations to comply with upcoming changes to the North Atlantic swordfish underharvest carryover limits, which become effective in 2015. This final rule affects commercial and recreational fishing for swordfish in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. This action implements ICCAT recommendations, consistent with the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act (ATCA), and furthers domestic management objectives under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act).

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on purified carboxymethylcellulose (purified CMC) from the Netherlands. The period of review (POR) is July 1, 2012, through June 30, 2013. The review covers one producer/exporter of the subject merchandise, Akzo Nobel Functional Chemicals, B.V. (Akzo Nobel). We preliminarily determine that sales of subject merchandise by Akzo Nobel were not made at less than normal value during the POR. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council) Salmon Technical Team (STT) and Model Evaluation Workgroup (MEW) will hold a webinar, which is open to the public.

The New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils, in cooperation with the NMFS Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, seek public comment on a draft amendment to all the fishery management plans under their purview. The omnibus amendment would modify provisions limiting changes to vessel size and horsepower specifications in limited access fleets.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council has submitted Amendment 103 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI FMP) and Amendment 43 to the Fishery Management Plan for Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands King and Tanner Crabs (Crab FMP). If approved, Amendment 103 would close year-round the Pribilof Islands Habitat Conservation Zone (PIHCZ) to directed fishing for Pacific cod with pot gear. Prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific cod with pot gear in the PIHCZ would reduce the bycatch of Pribilof Islands blue king crab (PIBKC), prevent overfishing, and support rebuilding of the PIBKC stock. If approved, Amendment 43 would amend the Crab FMP to revise the rebuilding plan for PIBKC. These actions are intended to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the FMPs, and other applicable law. Comments from the public are encouraged.

In accordance with regulations issued under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, as amended, we hereby give notification that we, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), have issued four 1-year Letters of Authorization (Authorizations) to the U.S. Navy (Navy) to take marine mammals by harassment incidental to their military readiness activities associated with the routine training, testing, and military operations of Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System Low Frequency Active (SURTASS LFA) sonar within the northwest Pacific Ocean and the north-central Pacific Ocean.

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.

As a result of the determinations by the Department of Commerce (``Department'') and the International Trade Commission (``ITC'') that revocation of the antidumping duty order on certain steel threaded rod from the People's Republic of China (``PRC'') would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and material injury to an industry in the United States, the Department is publishing a notice of continuation of the antidumping duty order.