Army Department – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of the Army is proposing to amend a system of records notice in its existing inventory of records systems subject to the Privacy Act of 1974, (5 U.S.C. 552a), as amended.

The study is being conducted in response to the authority contained in the following United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works Resolution dated April 22, 1988, as quoted below:

The Defense Base Closure and Realignment (BRAC) Commissions were established by Public Law 101-510, the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (BRAC Law), to recommend military installations for realignment and closure. The 2005 Commission's recommendations were included in a report which was presented to the President on September 8, 2005. The President approved and forwarded this report to Congress on September 16, 2005. Since a joint resolution to disapprove these recommendations did not occur within the statutorily provided time period, these recommendations have become law and must be implemented in accordance with the requirements of the BRAC Law. The BRAC Law exempts the decision-making process of the Commission from the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). The Law also relieves the Department of Defense from the NEPA requirement to consider the need for closing, realigning, or transferring functions and from looking at alternative installations to close or realign. Nonetheless, the Department of the Army must still prepare environmental impact analyses during the process of property disposal, and during the process of relocating functions from a military installation being closed or realigned to another military installation after the receiving installation has been selected but before the functions are relocated. These analyses will include consideration of the direct and indirect environmental and socioeconomic effects of these actions and the cumulative impacts of other reasonably foreseeable actions affecting the installations. The Department of the Army intends to prepare individual Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) pursuant to section 102(2)(C) of NEPA, regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality (40 CFR 1500- 1508), and the Army NEPA regulation (32 CFR 651 et seq.) for each of the actions listed below. Opportunities for public participation will be announced in the respective local newspapers. The public will be invited to participate in scoping activities for each EIS and comments from the public will be considered before any action is taken to implement these actions. Environmental Impact Statements are planned for each of the following realignment actions: a. Fort Meade, Maryland. The BRAC realignment action will co-locate and consolidate Department of Defense information and information technology missions at Fort Meade. (1) EIS alternatives could include evaluating siting locations for structures and related projects within Fort Meade that involve new building construction only or new building construction combined with renovation of existing facilities. The alternatives would evaluate areas to provide for construction of, but not be limited to, six to eight 4-story administration buidlings, a full day care child development center, a standard-design Whole Barracks Complex, and a physical fitness center. (2) The proposed BRAC action may have significant environmental impacts due to the infrastructure and facilities construction that will be required to accommodate an estimated increase of over 5,500 personnel. Significant issues to be analyzed in the EIS may include potential impacts to air quality from increased vehicle emissions, installation and regional traffic increases, land use changes, natural resources, water use, solid waste, cultural resources, and cumulative impacts from increased burdens to the facility based on projected growth. b. Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG), Maryland. APG will be receiving numerous Army, Navy and Air Force activities to transform it into a full spectrum research, development, acquisition center for Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) Defense Chemical and Biological Systems. The Army Test and Evaluation Command Headquarters and Civilian Personnel Offices will also be consolidated at APG. (1) Alternatives to be examined in the EIS could include alternative distribution of new activities between APG and the Edgewood Area for military field training exercises; alternative siting schemes for placement of buildings and related infrastructure to accommodate an increase of about 15,000 Army personnel within the APG and Edgewood Area. These may include siting schemes for new building construction only, or new building construction combined with renovation of existing facilities. (2) The proposed BRAC action may have significant environmental impacts due to the large amount of infrastructure and facilities construction that will be required to accommodate an increase of personnel and military training operations. Significant issues to be analyzed in the EIS will include on-post and local air quality conditions, on-post and regional traffic conditions, housing, socioeconomics, noise due to increased vehicle use, threatened and endangered species to include bald eagle habitat, historic buildings and archeological resources, wetlands, biological resources, land use, and community facilities and services. c. Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Fort Belvoir will be receiving numerous Department of Defense activities from leased space within the National Capital Region (NCR); National Geospatial Intelligence Agency units from various NCR leased locations and Bethesda, Maryland; primary and secondary medical care functions from Walter Reed Medical Center to a new, expanded DeWitt Army Hospital; and inventory control point functions for consumable items to the Defense Logistics Agency from the Naval Support Activist, Mechanisburg and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. (1) EIS alternatives may consist of moving all activities to the Fort Belvoir Main Post, moving all activities to the Engineer Proving Ground (EPG), or moving a portion of the activities to the Main Point and a portion to the EPG. Other alternatives could include alternative land locations for specific projects within Fort Belvoir, within the EPG, or a combination of both; new construction only; new construction combined with renovation of existing facilities; alternative facility siting schemes, or other modifications of specific projects. (2) The proposed BRAC action may have significant environmental impacts due to the large amount of infrastructure and facilities construction that will be required to accommodate an estimated increase of over 18,000 personnel. Significant issues to be analyzed in the EIS will include potential impacts to air quality condition in the Northern Virginia region, transportation systems in the Northern Virginia region, traffic conditions with Fort Belvoir, threatened and endangered species, historic buildings and archeological resources, wetlands, biological resources, land use, and community facilities and services. d. Fort Lee, Virginia. Fort Lee will receive the Transportation Center and School from Fort Eustis, Virginia, and the Ordnance Center and School from Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. These functions will be consolidated with the Quartermaster Center and School, the Army Logistics Management College, and Combined Arms Support Command to establish a Combat Service Support Center at Fort Lee. (1) Alternatives to be examined in the EIS may include the usage of only Fort Lee for field training exercises, the usage of other military installations (Fort A.P. Hill) for field training exercises, or a combination of both; alternative land locations for specific projects with Fort Lee and Fort A.P. Hill; new construction only; new construction combined with renovation of existing facilities; alternative facility siting schemes, or other modifications of specific projects. (2) The proposed BRAC action may have significant environmental impacts due to the large amount of infrastructure and facilities construction that will be required to accommodate an estimated increase of over 7,000 personnel. Significant issues to be analyzed in the EIS will include air quality conditions, traffic conditions, noise due to increased training activities, threatened and endangered species, historic buildings and archeological resources, wetlands, biological resources, land use, and community facilities and services. e. Fort Benning, Georgia. Fort Benning will receive the Armor Center and School from Fort Knox, Kentucky; 81st Regional Readiness Center from Fort Gillem, Georgia; and the U.S. Army Reserve Center from Columbus, Georgia. (1) Alternatives to be examined by the EIS may consist of alternative siting locations with Fort Benning for facility construction projects, new construction only, renovation and use of existing facilities, or a combination of both new construction and use of existing facilities, and usage of alternatives land locations within Fort Benning for training activities. (2) As a result of new construction and training activities associated with moving nearly 10,000 personnel to Fort Benning, the BRAC action has the potential to cause significant environmental impacts to threatened and endangered species such as the red-cockaded woodpecker, archeological sites, wetlands, soil erosion, and increased noise impacts to the surrounding public. f. Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Navy and Air Force medical training activities from various locations within the U.S. and the 59th Medical Wing from Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, will move to Fort Sam Houston to form a Department of Defense medical training center. The Army Installation Management Agency (IMA) Headquarters from Virginia, the Northwest IMA Regional office from Illinois, and the Army Environmental Center from Maryland will also move to Fort Sam Houston. (1) Alternatives to be examined in the EIS could consist of alternative locations within Fort Sam Houston for siting facility construction, new construction only, renovation and use of existing facilities (to include historic buildings), or a combination of both new construction and use of existing facilities, and usage of alternative locations within Camp Bullis, a sub-post of Fort Sam Houston, for training activities. (2) As a result of moving approximately 9,000 new personnel to Fort Sam Houston and associated new construction, renovation and training activities, implementing the proposed BRAC action could have potential significant impacts to traffic on and off post, air quality and historic properties, to include contributing elements of the Fort Sam Houston National Historic Landmark District. g. Fort Carson, Colorado. Fort Carson will receive a Heavy Brigade Combat team and a Unit of Employment Headquarters from Fort Hood, Texas, and the inpatient care services from the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado. Another Infantry Brigade Combat Team from overseas could also be transferred to Fort Carson as a result of the BRAC recommendation. (1) Alternatives that may be considered in the Fort Carson EIS could include phasing movement of units to the fort, alternative siting locations within the post of placement of new facilities, construction of only new facilities, utilization and renovation of existing facilities, a combination of new construction and utilization of existing facilities, and utilization of alternative locations within Fort Carson for training activities. (2) Fort Carson will gain approximately 10,000 Army personnel as a result of the BRAC action. Construction of new facilities, renovation of existing infrastructure and additional training activities could have significant environmental impacts on Fort Carson and its environs. Impacts could concur to local air and water quality, archaeological resources, noise and traffic. h. Pinion Canyon Maneuver Site, Colorado. Pinion Canyon Maneuver Site (PCMS) is a subpost of Fort Carson and a primary training area for units stationed at Fort Carson and other Army posts. The new combat units stationed at Fort Carson will increase the training tempo at the PCMS. (1) The EIS to be prepared for the PCMS will examine a number of implementation alternatives that could include alternative placement of new construction projects, alternative locations within the PCMS for training activities, and alternative timing for units to conduct training activities at the PCMS. (2) The Fort Carson BRAC action has the potential to significantly impact natural resources at the PCMS since the approximately 10,000 new personnel to be stationed there will now be training at the PCMS on a regular basis. New construction and increased training activities at the PCMS could have an impact on archaeological resources, natural resources, air and water quality, and soil erosion.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Omaha District is preparing a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to analyze the direct, indirect and cumulative effects of enlarging the Rueter-Hess Reservoir, currently under construction in Parker, CO. The current project was authorized in February 2004 with Corps Permit 199980472. The basic purpose of the proposed action is the same as defined in the original EIS, which is to provide a safe, adequate and sustainable municipal water supply to Parker Water and Sanitation District (PWSD), Parker, CO that is capable of meeting the peak demands for the District's service area for the next 50 years. In addition, the purpose for enlarging the reservoir is to provide peaking storage of Denver Basin groundwater for selected South Metro Denver area water providers and to assist in sustaining the Denver Basin Aquifer. The construction of the proposed project would result in additional temporary and permanent impacts to wetlands and other Waters of the United States, requiring a new section 404 permit. To familiarize the public and interested organizations with the project and potential environmental issues that may be involved; the Corps has prepared a Scoping Document for the project. This document includes a project description, preliminary list of alternatives and various environmental/resource issues that will be addressed in the Supplemental EIS. Copies of the Scoping Document will be available at the public scoping meetings or can be requested by mail. The Supplemental EIS will be prepared according to the Corps' procedures for implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C), and consistent with the Corps' policy to facilitate public understanding and review of agency proposals.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Branch has completed a Draft EIS for the San Juan Creek Watershed/Western San Mateo Creek Watershed Special Area Management Plan (SAMP). The San Juan Creek Watershed/Western San Mateo Creek Watershed SAMP establishes three alternative permitting procedures that balance aquatic resource protection and reasonable economic development for the San Juan Creek Watershed and Western San Mateo Creed Watershed.

In accordance with 37 CFR part 404.6, announcement is made of the availability for licensing of U.S. Patent No. US 6,959,897 B2 entitled ``Low Cost Parachute'' issued November 1, 2005. This patent has been assigned to the United States Government as represented by the Secretary of the Army.

The Department of the Army amends its regulation on Army Board for Correction of Military Records to be in compliance with the United States District Court for the District of Columbia decision (Daniel J. Lipsman v. Secretary of the ArmyCivil Action No. 02-0151 (RMU), Document Nos. 18, 20, decided September 7, 2004, 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17866).

Notice is given of the names of members of a Performance Review Board for the Department of the Army. Effective Date: September 30, 2005.

The Department of the Army is proposing to revise our rules that prescribe policy, criteria, and administrative instructions concerning individual military awards and to incorporate laws enacted and policies approved since the rule was last published in 1956.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston District intends to prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to assess the social, economic and environmental effects of the proposed widening of portions of the Freeport Harbor Entrance and Jetty Channels. The DEIS will assess potential impacts of a range of alternatives, including the No Action and preferred alternatives. The Federal action is consideration of a Department of Army Permit application for work under section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. 403), section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) and section 103 of the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuary Act (33 U.S.C. 1413).

The above agencies announce the availability of the FPEIS that considers developing policies, guidance, and coordinated agency decision-making processes to minimize, to the maximum extent practicable, the adverse environmental effects to waters of the United States and to fish and wildlife resources affected by mountaintop mining operations, and to environmental resources that could be affected by the size and location of excess spoil-disposal sites in valley fills within the Appalachian study area in West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. This FPEIS was prepared as part of a settlement agreement that resolved the Federal claims brought in Bragg v. Robertson, Civ. No. 2:98-0636 (S.D.W.Va.). This FPEIS was prepared consistent with the provision set forth in 40 CFR 1503.4(c) of the Council on Environmental Quality regulations implementing NEPA, which allow the agencies to attach an errata sheet to the statement instead of rewriting the draft statement and to circulate the errata, comments, responses, and the changes, rather than the entire document. The agencies are filing the entire statement with a new cover sheet as the FPEIS. The FPEIS is being made available by mail and can be viewed on the Internet at https://www.epa.gov/region3/ mtntop/index.htm. The FPEIS can also be viewed at local offices of the above agencies and at selected local libraries. Copies of the FPEIS may be obtained by writing to the address listed below.

The Department of the Army is proposing to add a system of records to its existing inventory of records systems subject to the Privacy Act of 1974, (5 U.S.C. 552a), as amended.

This notice sets forth the schedule and summary agenda for the meeting of the Board of Visitors (BoV) for the Western Hemisphere Institue for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC). Notice of this meeting is required under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463). This board was chartered on February 1, 2004 in compliance with the requirements set forth in Title 10 U.S.C. 2166. Dates: December 1-2, 2005. Time: 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (December 1) and 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (December 2). Location: Building 35, 7011 Morrison Ave., Fort Benning, GA 31905. Proposed Agenda: The WHINSEC BoV will receive new members and advisors, receive updates on the status of actions taken on past BoV recommendations and an update on new activities and efforts since December 2004; look into any matters it deems important; while meeting with groups of WHINSEC faculty and students

In accordance with 37 CFR 404.6 and 404.7, announcement is made of the availability for licensing of U.S. Patent Application No. 10/936,992 entitled ``Non-Contact Respiration Monitor,'' filed September 9, 2004. Foreign rights are also available (PCT/US02/29563). The United States Government, as represented by the Secretary of the Army, has rights in this invention.

The Department of the Army is publishing a revision to our rule concerning obtaining information from financial institutions. The regulation prescribes policies for the Department of the Army to obtain information on a customer's financial records from financial institutions.

In accordance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Baltimore District has prepared a Final General Reevaluation Report (GRR) and Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the Poplar Island Environmental Restoration Project (PIERP). The GRR/ SEIS evaluated the vertical and/or lateral expansion of the PIERP, design modifications to the existing project, the addition of recreational/educational opportunities to the existing project, and the potential to accept dredged material from additional channels not specified in the 1996 EIS for the existing project. A Notice of Availability (NOA) for the Draft GRR/SEIS was published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the Federal Register on June 22, 2005 (70 FR 36129). The preferred alternative includes a northern lateral expansion consisting of approximately 575 acres, which would include wetland and upland habitat, and a protected open water embayment; construction of a 5-ft vertical raising of the existing upland Cells 2 and 6 at the PIERP; amending the existing project authorization and Project Cooperation Agreement to include the placement of dredged material from the southern approach channels to the Chesapeake and Delaware (C&D) Canal; incorporation of design modifications required for the completion of the existing project, and development of recreational and educational enhancement for the PIERP.

The Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command (SDDC), as the Department of Defense (DoD) Traffic Manager for the Personal Property Program published the Defense Personal Property System (DPS) Phase II Business Rules for Industry comment. These rules were posted to the Families First Web Site located at https:// www.sddc.army.mil under Families First. This announcement is being made to provide an overview of the comments received by SDDC from the Federal Register notice published on April 26, 2005 (70 FR 21401). All stakeholders were given 30 days to review these draft business rules and provide SDDC their comments. Responses were returned in several ways, including letters, spreadsheets and the Frequently Asked Question process. SDDC received approximately 1300 comments from the industry. Some of the comments were unique, but there were many duplicates. After the initial review of the comments and identification of duplicates, the comments were assigned to SDDC Subject Matter Experts (SME) in each of the associated Functional Areas related to the development of DPS. These SME's performed a detailed review of these comments to determine if revision to the business rules were appropriate. Our review indicated that there were approximately 800 duplicates and 500 unique comments. Some of industries major concerns were: the new best value traffic distribution methodology, establishment of minimum performance score, claims metrics, issues with CWA/invoicing, prompt payment, hard copy documentation, low response customer survey response rate, lack of statistically valid number of Transportation Service Providers (TSPs), non-availability of interface with TSP systems, 13% cost growth limitation on the new program, access to rate filing instructions, tools required to perform rate filing, inadequate time to test the new system, shipment management, TSP/agent relationship and access to multiple SCACs. Our review indicated that all the comments required clarification to the business rules. SDDC is currently in the process of providing these clarifications in the business rules and will publish the Final Business Rule when incorporation of these changes is completed. In the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section, SDDC has identified Industry's major concerns.

In accordance with Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463), announcement is made of the following committee meeting: Name of Committee: Coastal Engineering Research Board (CERB). Date of Meeting: November 2-4, 2005. Place: Hilton St. Petersburg, 333 First Street South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701. Time: 3 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. (November 2, 2005); 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (November 3, 2005); and 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. (November 4, 2005).

The Department of the Army announces the general availability of exclusive, partially exclusive or non-exclusive licenses relative to a novel fiberglass technology (e-glass; s-glass) as described in U.S. Patent Application No. 10/724,704; entitled ``Nano-Textured Solid Surfaces and Methods for Producing Same''; Jensen and McKnight. Any license shall comply with 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a Programmatic Sediment Management Plan that will address sediment management within the four lower Snake River reservoirs and that portion of McNary reservoir contained within the lower Snake River The plan will identify and evaluate ways the Corps can manage sediment within these reservoirs and examine the sediment input (sources) on a programmatic basis in the near-term, mid-term, and long-term. The reservoirs extend from the mouth of the Snake River upstream to the communities of Lewiston, Idaho, and Clarkston, Washington; and include the lower 2 miles of the Clearwater River from its confluence with the Snake River at Lewiston upstream to the U.S. Highway 12 Bridge. In the plan the Corps will also include all tributaries that could significantly contribute sediment to the lower Snake River. The Corps is preparing this plan because sediment management has been an ongoing maintenance issue since the completion of Ice Harbor Dam, the first dam and reservoir on the lower Snake River, in 1961. Rather than addressing sediment-related problems on a case-by-case basis, the Corps has determined that it would be more effective to evaluate sediment management as a whole and on a watershed basis. The intent of the plan is to identify ways to reduce the amount of sediment entering the reservoirs, identify how to manage the sediment once it enters the reservoirs, and identify possible changes to structures or operations to reduce maintenance and associated impacts while still providing for authorized project purposes, including navigation.

In Accordance with 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463), announcement is made of the forthcoming meeting. Name of Committee: Inland Waterways Users Board (Board). Date: October 13, 2005. Location: Heathman Lodge, 7801 NE Greenwood Drive, Vancouver, Washington 98662, (1-360-254-3100). Time: Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m. and the meeting is scheduled to adjourn at 12 p.m. Agenda: The Board will hear briefings on the status of both the funding for inland navigation projects and studies, and the Inland Waterways Trust Fund. The Board will also consider its priorities for the next fiscal year.

On 02 September 2005, in accordance with PL 104-106, Title XXIX, Subtitle A, entitled ``Illinois Land Conservation Act of 1995'', the Department of the Army signed a Secretariat Memorandum to transfer approximately 2,640 Acres of land at Joliet Army Ammunition Plant, Illinois to the Department of Agriculture for use by the Forest Service as the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie. The purpose of this notice is to effect that transfer pursuant to the provisions of Section 2912(e)(2) of PL 104-106. This is a partial transfer of the entire acreage contemplated by the statute. Additional transfers will be made in the future. A map entitled ``2004 USDA Assignment Parcel Locator Map'' and legal descriptions of the MFG area revised 18 January 2005 and of the LAP area revised 11 August 2005 of the property which is the subject of the partial transfer are on file with the U.S. Army Engineer District, Corps of Engineers, Louisville, Kentucky and the Office of the Regional Forester, USDA, Forest Service.

The Los Angeles District intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) to support a cost-shared ecosystem restoration feasibility study with the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission. The proposed project study areas has been degraded by encroachment of non-native plants, placement of fill from Marina Del Rey, interruption of the hydrologic regime, trash accumulation, and varied attempts at bank protection along the creek using rock and concrete. Direct benefits of the proposed project include improved habitat and water quality, reductions in waste and trash, and aesthetics. The watershed is an important resource for both recreational uses and for fish, and wildlife and further degradation could jeopardize remaining. The purpose of the feasibility study is to evaluate alternatives for channel modification, habitat restoration (coastal and freshwater wetlands and riparian), recreation, and related purposes along the lower reach of the Ballona Creek.