Department of Homeland Security January 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice advises the public of the quarterly Internal Revenue Service interest rates used to calculate interest on overdue accounts (underpayments) and refunds (overpayments) of customs duties. For the calendar quarter beginning January 1, 2007, the interest rates for overpayments will remain at 7 percent for corporations and 8 percent for non-corporations, and the interest rate for underpayments will remain at 8 percent. This notice is published for the convenience of the importing public and Customs and Border Protection personnel.

This document amends the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regulations to clarify the responsibilities of importers of food, drugs, devices, and cosmetics under the basic CBP importation bond and to provide a reasonable period of time to allow the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to perform its enforcement functions with respect to these covered articles. The amendments include a provision for a specific conditional release period of 30 days for any food, drug, device, or cosmetic which has been released under bond and for which admissibility is to be determined under the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act). The amendments also clarify the amount of liquidated damages that may be assessed when there is a breach of the terms and conditions of the bond and authorize any representative of FDA to obtain a sample of any imported article subject to section 801 of the Act, as amended.

The Departmental Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Related Homeland Security Functions (popularly known as ``COAC'') will meet on February 14, 2007 in Washington, DC. The meeting will be open to the public.

This notice amends the notice of a major disaster declaration for the State of Nebraska (FEMA-1674-DR), dated January 7, 2007, and related determinations.

The Privacy Office of the Department of Homeland Security is making available four Privacy Impact Assessments on various programs and systems in the Department. These assessments were approved and published on the Privacy Office's Web site between December 1, 2006 and December 31, 2006.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone around the lifting beams of the cranes being used to lift deck sections into place on the New Tacoma Narrows Bridge. The zone will encompass all waters within 500 feet of the area directly below the lifting beams for the duration of the lowering, hookup, raising, and securing evolutions, and will only apply to the beams on the cranes that are in use. The beams being used for the day's evolutions will be clearly marked on each end with a white flashing light. The Coast Guard is taking this action to safeguard the public from the hazards associated with navigating in the vicinity of moving construction equipment and heavy loads. These hazards may include risk of collision with the lifting beams and risks associated with falling loads, should there be an equipment failure. Entry into this zone is prohibited unless authorized by the Captain of the Port, Puget Sound or his designated representatives.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone around the Barge ``MARMACK 12'', Official Number 1024657, while it is being used for the New Tacoma Narrows Bridge Construction Project. The zone will extend 500 feet in all directions from the barge, and will be in effect at all times during the duration of this rule. This zone is only in effect while the barge is on the navigable waters of the United States, in the Tacoma Narrows. The Coast Guard is taking this action to safeguard the public from possible collision with the barge and the deck sections it is carrying, and from hazards associated with navigating in the vicinity of the barge during construction operations. Entry into this zone is prohibited unless authorized by the Captain of the Port, Puget Sound or his designated representatives.

This document amends the rules dealing with customs financial and accounting procedures by revising the fees charged for certain customs inspectional services under section 13031 of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, as amended, and incorporates two technical corrections to the existing fee chart.

This is a notice of the Presidential declaration of an emergency for the State of Oklahoma (FEMA-3272-EM), dated January 14, 2007, and related determinations.

The Coast Guard is changing the operating regulation governing the operation of the Stickney Point (SR 72) Bridge across the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, mile 68.6, Sarasota, Florida. The rule will require the drawbridge to open on the hour, twenty minutes past the hour and forty minutes past the hour.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the United States Coast Guard (Coast Guard), issues this final rule to further secure our Nation's ports and modes of transportation. This rule implements the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 and the Security and Accountability for Every Port Act of 2006. Those statutes establish requirements regarding the promulgation of regulations that require credentialed merchant mariners and workers with unescorted access to secure areas of vessels and facilities to undergo a security threat assessment and receive a biometric credential, known as a Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC). After DHS publishes a notice announcing the compliance date for each Captain of the Port (COTP) zone, persons without TWICs will not be granted unescorted access to secure areas at affected maritime facilities. Those seeking unescorted access to secure areas aboard affected vessels, and all Coast Guard credentialed merchant mariners must possess a TWIC by September 25, 2008. This final rule will enhance the security of ports by requiring such security threat assessments of persons in secure areas and by improving access control measures to prevent those who may pose a security threat from gaining unescorted access to secure areas of ports. With this final rule, the Coast Guard amends its regulations on vessel and facility security to require the use of the TWIC as an access control measure. The Coast Guard also amends its merchant mariner regulations to incorporate the requirement to obtain a TWIC. This final rule does not include the card reader requirements for owners and operators set forth in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) issued in this matter on May 22, 2006. Such requirements will be addressed in a future rulemaking. Although the card reader requirements are not being implemented at this time, the Coast Guard will institute periodic unannounced checks to confirm the identity of the holder of the TWIC. With this final rule, TSA applies its security threat assessment standards that currently apply to commercial drivers authorized to transport hazardous materials in commerce to merchant mariners and workers who require unescorted access to secure areas on vessels and at maritime facilities. This final rule amends TSA regulations in a number of ways. To minimize redundant background checks of workers, TSA amends the threat assessment standards to include a process by which TSA determines if a security threat assessment conducted by another governmental agency or by TSA for another program is comparable to the standards in this rule. TSA amends the qualification standards by changing the list of crimes that disqualify an individual from holding a TWIC or a hazardous materials endorsement. TSA expands the appeal and waiver provisions to apply to TWIC applicants and air cargo employees who undergo a security threat assessment. These modifications include a process for the review of adverse waiver decisions and certain disqualification cases by an administrative law judge (ALJ). TSA also extends the time period in which applicants may apply for an appeal or waiver. Finally, this rule establishes the user fee for the TWIC and invites comment on one component of the fee, the card replacement fee. Under this rule, TSA will begin issuing first generation TWIC cards at initial port deployment locations. These TWIC cards will not initially support contactless biometric operations, but the TWIC cards will be functional with certain existing access control systems in use at ports today. TSA and the Coast Guard have established a working group, comprised of members of the maritime and technology industries, through the National Maritime Security Advisory Committee (NMSAC), a federal advisory committee to the Coast Guard. This working group, in consultation with the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST), is tasked with recommending the contactless biometric software specification for TWIC cards. TSA will publish a notice detailing the draft contactless biometric software specification for TWIC cards no later than the date by which it publishes the final TWIC fee as required by this Rule. Currently those notices are expected to be published in February 2007. TSA will subsequently publish a final specification for TWIC contactless biometric software functionality and the associated specifications for TWIC card readers. TSA plans also to write electronically the contactless biometric software application to all issued TWIC cards after publication of this specification. After initial field testing, this additional contactless biometric function will be included with all TWIC cards produced after publication of the contactless biometric software specification. Although this rule goes into effect on March 26, 2007, the requirements to hold a TWIC, and to restrict access to secure areas of a facility or OCS facility, will be effective only after the regulated party is notified by DHS. These notifications will be published in the Federal Register and will require compliance on a COTP by COTP basis. Those seeking unescorted access to secure areas aboard affected vessels, and all Coast Guard credentialed merchant mariners must possess a TWIC by September 25, 2008.

The Commander, Eighth Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the BNSF Railway Company Vertical Lift Span Bridge across Berwick Bay, mile 0.4 (Atchafalaya River, mile 17.5), at Morgan City, St. Mary Parish, Louisiana. This deviation provides for the bridge to remain closed to navigation for 12 consecutive hours to conduct scheduled maintenance to the drawbridge.

The Commander, First Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the Amtrak railroad bridge across the Mystic River, mile 2.4, at Mystic, Connecticut. Under this temporary deviation, the bridge may remain in the closed position from February 2, 2007 through February 4, 2007. This deviation is necessary to facilitate scheduled bridge maintenance.

The Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) of the Department of Homeland Security has submitted the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995: Visa Waiver Program Carrier Agreement (Form I-775). This is a proposed extension of an information collection that was previously approved. CBP is proposing that this information collection be extended without a change to the burden hours. This document is published to obtain comments form the public and affected agencies. This proposed information collection was previously published in the Federal Register (71 FR 67149) on November 20, 2006, allowing for a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments. This process is conducted in accordance with 5 CFR 1320.10.

This is a notice of the Presidential declaration of a major disaster for the State of Kansas (FEMA-1675-DR), dated January 7, 2007, and related determinations.

This notice amends the notice of a major disaster for the State of Hawaii (FEMA-1664-DR), dated October 17, 2006, and related determinations.

Technical information or comments are requested on the proposed Base (1% annual chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and proposed BFEs modifications for the communities listed below. The BFEs are the basis for the floodplain management measures that the community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of being already in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

This is a notice of the Presidential declaration of an emergency for the State of Colorado (FEMA-3270-EM), dated January 7, 2007, and related determinations.

This is a notice of the Presidential declaration of an emergency for the State of Colorado (FEMA-3271-EM), dated January 7, 2007, and related determinations.

This notice amends the notice of a major disaster declaration for the State of New Mexico (FEMA-1659-DR), dated August 30, 2006, and related determinations.

This notice amends the notice of a major disaster declaration for the State of Missouri (FEMA-1673-DR), dated December 29, 2006, and related determinations.

Pursuant to section 343(a) of the Trade Act of 2002 and implementing regulations, truck carriers and other eligible parties are required to transmit advance electronic truck cargo information to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) through a CBP-approved electronic data interchange. In a previous notice, CBP designated the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Truck Manifest System as the approved interchange and announced that the requirement that advance electronic cargo information be transmitted through ACE would be phased in by groups of ports of entry. The previous notice identified the first group of ports where use of the ACE Truck Manifest System is mandated. This notice announces the second group of land border ports that will require truck carriers to file electronic manifests through the ACE Truck Manifest System.

On January 23, 2006, the Coast Guard published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to revise the regulated navigation area in Savannah, Georgia, to address changes in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) tankship mooring locations following the creation of two new berths within a slip at the Southern LNG facility on the Savannah River. The previous rule only addressed facility and vessel requirements when an LNG vessel was underway or was moored parallel to the navigational channel outside of the slip. This interim rule describes requirements for three different potential mooring situations following the expansion: an LNG tankship moored outside of the slip, one or more LNG tankships moored inside the slip, and LNG tankships moored both inside and outside of the slip. This interim rule will become effective on February 20, 2007. However, we still encourage you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting comments and related material to the docket. We will accept comments for 60 days from the date this rule is published in the Federal Register, after which we intend to publish a final rule. Any comments received will be considered in the final rule. This interim rule is necessary to ensure safe navigation of the Savannah River and the safe transfer of LNG in the Port of Savannah.

This notice announces the meeting of the Subcommittee of the Chemical Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC) on the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 472 Standard. The Subcommittee on the NFPA 472 Standard will meet to discuss the formation of a new marine emergency responder chapter in NFPA 472, Professional Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials Incidents. This meeting will be open to the public.