Department of Commerce January 9, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Commerce (``the Department'') is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on multilayered wood flooring (``MLWF'') from the People's Republic of China (``PRC''). The period of review (``POR'') is December 1, 2012, through November 30, 2013. We have preliminarily found that respondent Jiangsu Senmao Bamboo and Wood Industry Co., Ltd. (``Jiangsu Senmao'') made sales of subject merchandise at less than normal value (``NV''). We have preliminarily found that respondent Dalian Dajen Wood Co., Ltd. (``Dalian Dajen'') has not made sales of subject merchandise at less than NV.

As a result of the determinations by the Department of Commerce (the ``Department'') and the International Trade Commission (the ``ITC'') in their five year (sunset) reviews that revocation of the antidumping duty (``AD'') order on electrolytic manganese dioxide (``EMD'') 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 AD order on EMD from the PRC. In addition, as a result of the ITC's determination that revocation of the AD order on EMD from Australia is not likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping and material injury to an industry in the United States within a reasonably foreseeable time, the Department is revoking the AD order on EMD from Australia.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces the approval of Amendment 104 to the Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (FMP). Amendment 104 to the FMP designates six areas of skate egg concentration as Habitat Areas of Particular Concern (HAPC). The HAPC designations for the six areas of skate egg concentration in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI) are intended to highlight the importance of this essential fish habitat for conservation. This action promotes the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the FMP, and other applicable laws.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold meetings of the: Administrative Policy, Data Collection, Reef Fish, Mackerel and Gulf SEDAR Management Committees; in conjunction with a meeting of the Full Council. The Council will also hold a formal public comment session.

Notice is hereby given that Randall S. Wells, Ph.D. (Principal Investigator), Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, c/o Mote Marine Laboratory, 1600 Ken Thompson Parkway, Sarasota, FL 34236, has applied for an amendment to Scientific Research Permit No.15543-03.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (Office) is revising the rules of practice pertaining to patent term adjustment in view of the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Federal Circuit) in Novartis AG v. Lee. The Federal Circuit confirmed in Novartis that any time consumed by continued examination is subtracted in determining the extent to which the period of application pendency exceeds three years, regardless of when the continued examination was initiated. The Federal Circuit, however, decided that the time consumed by continued examination does not include the time after a notice of allowance, unless the Office actually resumes examination of the application after allowance. Accordingly, the Office is revising the rules of practice to provide that the time consumed by continued examination does not include the time after a notice of allowance, unless the applicant files a request for continued examination after such allowance. The Office also is revising the rules of practice to provide that the submission of a request for continued examination after any notice of allowance has been mailed will constitute a failure of an applicant to engage in reasonable efforts to conclude processing or examination of an application and thus result in a reduction of any period of patent term adjustment. The Office is providing an exception to this patent term adjustment reduction provision for a request for continued examination filed solely to submit information cited in a patent office communication in a counterpart application that is submitted to the Office within thirty days of receipt of the patent office communication. Additionally, the Office is clarifying what papers may be submitted after a notice of allowance without the applicant being considered to have failed to engage in reasonable efforts to conclude processing or examination of the application.