Department of Commerce December 29, 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Commerce (Department) preliminarily determines that certain steel nails from Malaysia are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV), as provided in section 733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). The period of investigation is April 1, 2013, through March 31, 2014. The estimated weighted-average dumping margins are shown in the ``Preliminary Determination'' section of this notice. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination. The Department intends to issue the final determination 135 days after publication of this preliminary determination in the Federal Register.

The Department of Commerce (``Department'') preliminarily determines that certain steel nails (``nails'') from the Republic of Korea (``Korea'') are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (``LTFV''), as provided in section 733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the ``Act''). The period of investigation is April 1, 2013, through March 31, 2014. The estimated weighted-average dumping margins are shown in the ``Preliminary Determination'' section of this notice. Interested parties are invited to comment on this preliminary determination. We intend to issue the final determination 135 days after publication of this preliminary determination in the Federal Register.

The Department of Commerce (Department) preliminarily determines that certain steel nails from Taiwan are not being, or are not likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV), as provided in section 733(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act). The period of investigation is April 1, 2013, through March 31, 2014. The estimated weighted-average dumping margins are shown in the ``Preliminary Determination'' section of this notice. In response to a request from Mid Continent Steel & Wire, Inc. (petitioner) we are postponing the final determination. The final determination will be issued 135 days after the publication of this preliminary determination in the Federal Register. We invite interested parties to comment on the preliminary determination.

The Department of Commerce (``the Department'') has suspended the countervailing duty investigation on sugar from Mexico. The basis for this action is an agreement between the Department and the Government of Mexico (``GOM''), wherein the GOM has agreed not to provide any new or additional export or import substitution subsidies on the subject merchandise and has agreed to restrict the volume of direct or indirect exports to the United States of sugar from all Mexican producers/exporters in order to eliminate completely the injurious effects of exports of this merchandise to the United States.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the countervailing duty order on narrow woven ribbons with woven selvedge (ribbons) from the People's Republic of China (PRC). The period of review (POR) is January 1, 2012, through December 31, 2012. We find that Yangzhou Bestpak Gifts & Crafts Co., Ltd. (Bestpak) received countervailable subsidies during the POR.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) publishes its final List of Fisheries (LOF) for 2015, as required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). The final LOF for 2015 reflects new information on interactions between commercial fisheries and marine mammals. NMFS must classify each commercial fishery on the LOF into one of three categories under the MMPA based upon the level of mortality and serious injury of marine mammals that occurs incidental to each fishery. The classification of a fishery on the LOF determines whether participants in that fishery are subject to certain provisions of the MMPA, such as registration, observer coverage, and take reduction plan (TRP) requirements.

NMFS announces the availability of the ``Draft Programmatic Environmental Assessment (DPEA) for Fisheries Research Conducted and Funded by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC).'' Publication of this notice begins the official public comment period for this DPEA. The purpose of the DPEA is to evaluate, in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts of conducting and funding fisheries and ecosystem research along the U.S. East Coast, including of the Northeast Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) and the Southeast Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem (LME).

NMFS is transferring 21 metric tons (mt) of Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) quota from the General category December 2015 subquota period to the January 2015 subquota period (from January 1 through March 31, 2015, or until the available subquota for this period is reached, whichever comes first). NMFS also is adjusting the Atlantic tunas General category BFT daily retention limit for the January 2015 subquota period to three large medium or giant BFT from the default retention limit of one. 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.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) Fixed Gear Electronic Monitoring (EM) workgroup will meet in Anchorage, AK.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public meeting of its Herring Committee 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 North Pacific Fishery Management Council's Pacific Northwest Crab Industry Advisory Committee (PNCIAC) will meet in Seattle, WA. The meeting is open to the public.

NMFS published in the Federal Register of December 2, 2014, with an effective date of January 1, 2015, a final rule to establish restrictions on the use of fish aggregating devices (FADs) by U.S. purse seine vessels in the western and central Pacific Ocean (``International Fisheries; Western and Central Pacific Fisheries for Highly Migratory Species; Restrictions on the Use of Fish Aggregating Devices in Purse Seine Fisheries for 2015''). The final rule also included a requirement for the owners and operators of such vessels to submit ``daily FAD reports'' to NMFS. As indicated in the December 2, 2014, final rule, some of the FAD restrictions are to go into effect only if NMFS publishes a notice in the Federal Register announcing that they are in effect. NMFS intended to make the requirement to submit daily FAD reports also contingent on issuance of a Federal Register notice, but inadvertently wrote the final rule such that the reporting requirement would go into effect on January 1, 2015, irrespective of issuance by NMFS of a Federal Register notice. This document corrects that error in the final rule by making the requirement to submit daily FAD reports contingent on NMFS issuing a Federal Register notice announcing that it is in effect.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is correcting certain provisions of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) that were amended in past rulemakings appearing in the Federal Register between November 5, 2007 and October 14, 2014. This final rule makes corrections to certain provisions to ensure consistency and clarity in the regulations. In addition, this final rule makes other corrections to the EAR to fix typographical errors to ensure that the regulations accurately reflect the revisions intended by these past rulemakings.