Department of Commerce – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announces that the National Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee Law Enforcement Subcommittee (NAIAC LE or Subcommittee) will hold an open meeting via web conference on Friday, April 5, 2024, from 3 p.m.-5 p.m. Eastern Time. The primary purpose of this meeting is for the Subcommittee Members to report the working groups' findings, identify actionable recommendations, and discuss updates on goals and deliverables. The final agenda will be posted on the NIST website at https://www.nist.gov/itl/national-artificial-intelligence-adv isory- committee-naiac.

The Bureau of the Census (Census Bureau) will conduct the following current mandatory business surveys in 2024: Annual Integrated Economic Survey, Annual Business Survey, Business and Professional Classification Report, and the Business Enterprise Research and Development Survey. We have determined that data collected from these surveys are needed to aid the efficient performance of essential governmental functions and have significant application to the needs of the public and industry. The data derived from these surveys, most of which have been conducted for many years, are not publicly available from nongovernmental or other governmental sources.

The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment preceding submission of the collection to OMB.

The Space Weather Advisory Group (SWAG) will meet for a half day on April 12, 2024.

The Secretary of Commerce, through the Office of Trade and Economic Analysis (OTEA), issued an amended Export Trade Certificate of Review (Certificate) to Aerospace Industries Association of America, Inc., on March 11, 2024.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold public meetings of the Council including a joint session with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management Board.

In accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, its implementing regulations, and NMFS' MMPA Regulations for Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Geophysical Surveys Related to Oil and Gas Activities in the Gulf of Mexico, notification is hereby given that a Letter of Authorization (LOA) has been issued to Shell Offshore Inc. (Shell) for the take of marine mammals incidental to geophysical survey activity in the Gulf of Mexico.

In this final rule, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) makes changes to the end-user controls of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to add end-user controls, and in certain cases expand existing end-user controls, on certain persons identified on the List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN List) maintained by the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

The Caribbean Fishery Management Council's (Council) Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold a two-and-a-half- day public hybrid meeting to address the items contained in the tentative agenda included in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that NMFS has issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company LLC (Transco), to incidentally harass marine mammals during construction activities associated with a natural gas pipeline stabilization project in Sandy Hook Channel, New Jersey (NJ).

The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) determines that the Government of Mexico (GOM) and the respondent companies selected for individual examination, Compa[ntilde][iacute]a Industrial Azucarera S.A. de C.V. and its affiliates and Ingenio Presidente Benito Juarez S.A. de C.V. (collectively, respondents), were in compliance with the terms of the Agreement Suspending the Countervailing Duty Investigation on Sugar from Mexico, as amended (CVD Agreement), during the period of review (POR) from January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2022. Commerce also determines that the CVD Agreement met the statutory requirements during the POR.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a public webinar of its Risk Policy Working Group to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). This meeting will be held in-person with a webinar option. Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate.

As a result of the determinations by the U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) that revocation of the antidumping duty (AD) order on tapered roller bearings (TRBs) from the People's Republic of China (China) would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping and material injury to an industry in the United States, Commerce is publishing a notice of continuation of this AD order.

This final rule sets forth changes to the Antarctic Marine Living Resources Convention Act of 1984 (AMLRCA) regulations, including those that implement the trade-monitoring program for frozen and fresh Dissostichus species, commonly marketed or referred to as Chilean seabass or Patagonian toothfish. Specifically, this action: revises regulations that specify the circumstances under which NMFS would deny issuance of a preapproval certificate that is required to legally import frozen Dissostichus species; adds regulations that specify the circumstances under which NMFS would deny issuance of a re-export or export document that is required to legally re-export or export both frozen and fresh Dissostichus species; clarifies that the applicable authorization must be received prior to re-export or export; and removes the prohibition on the importation of Dissostichus species harvested from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Statistical Areas 51 and 57. NMFS also makes other non- substantive technical and procedural updates.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued a memorandum to the patent examining corps to assist patent examiners in addressing means-plus-function and step-plus-function claim limitations, and to create a clearer record for the applicant, the public, and the courts. The issued memorandum will help ensure consistent analysis by USPTO employees in addressing means-plus- function and step-plus-function limitations and will result in clearer communications to applicants from the USPTO as to the interpretation of means-plus-function and step-plus-function limitations and any related deficiencies. Clearer USPTO communications provide both the applicant and the public with notice as to the claim interpretation used by the patent examiner during prosecution, and if the applicant intends a different claim interpretation, the issue can be clarified early in prosecution.

The U.S. Department of Commerce (Commerce) is revoking, in part, the antidumping duty and countervailing duty orders on crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, whether or not assembled into modules (solar cells), from the People's Republic of China (China) with respect to certain off-grid small portable crystalline silicon photovoltaic (CSPV) panels as described below.