Department of Commerce October 25, 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS announces that the quotas for the Atlantic surfclam and ocean quahog fisheries for 2024 will remain status quo. NMFS also suspends the minimum size limit for Atlantic surfclams for the 2024 fishing year. Regulations for these fisheries require NMFS to notify the public of the allowable harvest levels for Atlantic surfclams and ocean quahogs from the Exclusive Economic Zone even if the previous year's quota specifications remain unchanged. The 2024 quotas were previously announced as projected values. This action confirms the final quotas are unchanged from those projections. This action would not result in harm to these fisheries.

On October 7, 2022, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) released the interim final rule (IFR) ``Implementation of Additional Export Controls: Certain Advanced Computing and Semiconductor Manufacturing Items; Supercomputer and Semiconductor End Use'' (October 7 IFR), which amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to implement controls on advanced computing integrated circuits (ICs), computer commodities that contain such ICs, and certain semiconductor manufacturing items. The October 7 IFR also made other EAR changes to ensure appropriate related controls, including on certain ``U.S. person'' activities. This IFR addresses comments received in response to only the part of the October 7 IFR that controls semiconductor manufacturing equipment (SME) and amends the EAR to implement SME controls more effectively and to address ongoing national security concerns.

On October 7, 2022, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) released the interim final rule (IFR), ``Implementation of Additional Export Controls: Certain Advanced Computing and Semiconductor Manufacturing Items; Supercomputer and Semiconductor End Use; Entity List Modification'' (October 7 IFR), which amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to implement controls on advanced computing integrated circuits (ICs), computer commodities that contain such ICs, and certain semiconductor manufacturing items, and to make other EAR changes to implement appropriate related controls, including on certain ``U.S. person'' activities. This Advanced Computing/ Supercomputing IFR (AC/S IFR) addresses comments received in response to only the part of the October 7 IFR that controls advanced computing ICs and computer commodities that contain such ICs. This rule also makes other changes to make the controls more effective and less burdensome, including by correcting and clarifying the controls to more effectively achieve the policy objectives identified in the October 7 IFR. This AC/S IFR is published concurrently with a second BIS IFR, ``Export Controls on Semiconductor Manufacturing Items,'' which addresses public comments received in response to other portions of the October 7 IFR. Together, these IFRs revise the October 7 IFR controls to more effectively achieve BIS's focused national security policy objectives. These revisions protect U.S. national security interests by further restricting China's ability to obtain critical technologies to modernize its military capabilities in ways that threaten the national security interests of the United States and its allies.