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

The Coast Guard is amending its regulations on merchant mariner documentation to implement section 3509 of the John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007 (Warner Act), which allows for the issuance of merchant mariner documents (MMDs) to certain non-resident aliens for service in the stewards departments of U.S.-flag large passenger vessels endorsed for coastwise trade. Coast Guard regulations currently prohibit the Coast Guard from issuing MMDs, which are required for service on large passenger vessels, to non- immigrant aliens. This interim rule amends Coast Guard regulations to allow the Coast Guard to issue MMDs to qualified non-resident aliens who are authorized to be employed in the United States. This rule also sets the requirements that these aliens must meet in order to qualify for MMDs, and the requirements for the large passenger vessels that may choose to hire these aliens. This interim rule only applies to large passenger vessels, as defined under the Warner Act.

Base (1% annual chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) and modified BFEs are made final for the communities listed below. The BFEs and modified BFEs are the basis for the floodplain management measures that each 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).

The Coast Guard will enforce the special local regulations (SLR) for the annual ``Blessing of the Pleasure Craft Fleet'' sponsored by the Corinthian Yacht Club in the navigable waters of San Francisco Bay on April 29, 2007. This action is necessary to control vessel traffic and to ensure the safety of event participants and spectators during the formation and transit of vessels involved in the ceremonies. During the enforcement period spectator vessels may not anchor, block, loiter, nor impede the through transit of participants or official patrol vessels within the area described during the event without permission from the Coast Guard Patrol Commander.

The United States Coast Guard is establishing a security zone encompassing waters within 2-nautical miles of Church Point at 37- 12.45N, 076-46.66W, Jamestown Island, VA, for America's 400th Anniversary celebration. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic within the security zone. This security zone is necessary to protect attendees of this event from potential maritime hazards and threats and enhance public and maritime security.

This Notice informs the public that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has changed the name of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the name of the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The Coast Guard is proposing to amend its regulations to establish additional safety zones on the waters of the Columbia River located in the Area of Responsibility (AOR) of the Captain of the Port, Portland, Oregon during annual fireworks displays. The Captain of the Port, Portland Oregon is taking this action to safeguard watercraft and their occupants from safety hazards associated with these displays. Entry into these zones is prohibited unless authorized by the Captain of the Port.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary special local regulation for the ULHRA National Series Hydroplane Race to be held on the waters of the Columbia River in the vicinity of Columbia Park, Kennewick, WA. These special local regulations limit the movement of non-participating vessels in the regulated race area. This temporary rule is needed to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the event.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has submitted the following information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The submission describes the nature of the information collection, the categories of respondents, the estimated burden (i.e., the time, effort and resources used by respondents to respond) and cost, and includes the actual data collection instruments FEMA will use. Title: EMI Independent Study Course Enrollment and Test Answer Sheet. OMB Number: 1660-0046. Abstract: The IS program office collect data from FEMA Form 95-23 to create and update student records and provide students with credit for training completion. The system also allows FEMA to track completions and failures of course exams. The data on the electronic form will be encrypted and sent to the server to be parsed into the Independent study database. The paper version of the form will be scanned and parsed into the database or key entered into the database. Affected Public: Individuals or Households, Federal Government, and State, Local or Tribal Government. Number of Respondents: 883,117. Estimated Time per Respondent: 45 minutes. Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,854,546. Frequency of Response: 4 Comments: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments on the proposed information collection to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management Budget, Attention: Nathan Lesser, Desk Officer, Department of Homeland Security/FEMA, and sent via electronic mail to oirasubmission@omb.eop.gov or faxed to (202) 395-6974. Comments must be submitted on or before May 21, 2007.

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: United States-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act. This is a proposed extension of an information collection that was previously approved. CBP is proposing that this information collection be extended with a change to the burden hours. This document is published to obtain comments from the public and affected agencies. This proposed information collection was previously published in the Federal Register (72 FR 7770) on February 20, 2007, 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 notice amends the notice of an emergency declaration for the State of Iowa (FEMA-3275-EM), dated March 30, 2007, and related determinations.

The Coast Guard is revising the drawbridge operations for the Pekin Railroad Drawbridge, Mile 151.2, at Pekin, Illinois and the Chessie Railroad Drawbridge, Mile 254.1 at Seneca, Illinois across the Illinois Waterway. The present regulation found in Sec. 117.393(b) is being revised to reflect the actual procedures that have always been followed. That regulation was intended to be temporary, for test purposes only, and was inadvertently permanently included in the Code of Federal Regulations. This rule eliminates the ``Specific Requirements'' for remote operation, and the bridge will continue to operate, as required by the Coast Guard, under the ``General Requirements''. In addition, the Coast Guard is revising the regulation governing the operation of the Chessie Railroad Drawbridge across the Illinois Waterway, Mile 254.1, at Seneca, Illinois. The existing regulation requires the drawspan to open on signal. This revision is necessary to reflect a change in operating procedure.

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: Accreditation of Commercial Testing Laboratories and Approval of Commercial Gaugers. This is a proposed extension of an information collection that was previously approved. CBP is proposing that this information collection be extended with no 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 (72 FR 7445) on February 15, 2007, 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.

The Coast Guard proposes establishing a temporary safety zone for the Town of Weymouth's Fourth of July Celebration Fireworks in Weymouth, Massachusetts currently scheduled to occur on June 30, 2007 with a rain date of July 1, 2007 temporarily closing all navigable waters of the Weymouth Fore River within a five hundred (500) yard radius of the fireworks launch barge located at approximate position 42[deg]15.2 N, 070[deg]56.7 W. The safety zone is needed to protect the maritime public from the potential hazards posed by a fireworks display. The safety zone will prohibit entry into or movement within this portion of the Weymouth Fore River during its effective period.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish a 500 meter safety zone around the oil and natural gas production facility Independence Hub in Mississippi Canyon Block 920 of the Outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico. This safety zone is needed to protect the crew of the Independence Hub and vessels operating in the vicinity of the facility. Vessels are prohibited from entering this proposed safety zone with the following exceptions: an attending vessel; a vessel under 100 feet in length overall not engaged in towing; or a vessel authorized by the Eighth Coast Guard District Commander.

The U. S. Coast Guard is establishing a safety zone in support of a satellite rocket space launch originating from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) Pad 0B launch complex. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic within 12-nautical miles of Wallops Island, VA as described herein. This safety zone is necessary to facilitate the launch process and protect mariners from the hazards associated with the satellite launch.

The Coast Guard is changing the operating regulations governing the Venetian Causeway (West) drawbridge, Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, mile 1088.6, and Venetian Causeway (East) drawbridge, Biscayne Bay, Miami, Miami-Dade County, Florida. This rule requires these drawbridges to open on signal, except that from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays the drawbridges will open on the hour and half-hour. This rule changes the Federal holiday dates and aligns them with all Federal holidays.

The Commander, First Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the Atlantic Beach Bridge across Reynolds Channel, mile 0.4, at Lawrence, New York. Under this temporary deviation a one-hour advance notice will be required for bridge openings from April 9, 2007 through April 27, 2007, between 7 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., daily. This deviation is necessary to facilitate scheduled bridge maintenance.

This final rule amends Department of Homeland Security regulations to permit petitioners to file O and P nonimmigrant petitions up to one year prior to the petitioner's need for the alien's services. This amendment will enable petitioners who are aware of their need for the services of an O or P nonimmigrant well in advance of a scheduled event, competition, or performance to file their petitions under normal processing procedures. This way, petitioners will be better assured that they will receive a decision on their petitions in a timeframe that will allow them to secure the services of the O or P nonimmigrant when such services are needed.

The National Maritime Security Advisory Committee (NMSAC) will conduct a meeting by teleconference to discuss the DHS Strategy to Enhance International Supply Chain Security.

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 document, 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. This document announces that at all land border ports in Vermont and New Hampshire and at the land border ports in North Dakota in which ACE has not yet been required, truck carriers will be required to file electronic manifests through the ACE Truck Manifest System.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish special local regulations for the ``Carolina Cup Regatta'', a power boat race to be held on the waters of the Pasquotank River, Elizabeth City, North Carolina. These special local regulations are necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the event. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic in portions on the Pasquotank River adjacent to Elizabeth City, North Carolina during the power boat race.

Notice is hereby given that, pursuant to 19 CFR 151.12 and 151.13, Intertek Caleb Brett, Inc., 6050 Egret Court, Benicia, California 94510, has been re-approved to gauge petroleum and petroleum products, organic chemicals and vegetable oils, and to test petroleum and petroleum products for customs purposes, in accordance with the provisions of 19 CFR 151.12 and 151.13. Anyone wishing to employ this entity to conduct laboratory analysis or gauger services should request and receive written assurances from the entity that it is accredited or approved by the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection to conduct the specific test or gauger service requested. Alternatively, inquiries regarding the specific tests or gauger services this entity is accredited or approved to perform may be directed to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection by calling (202) 344-1060. The inquiry may also be sent to https://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/import/operations support/labsscientificsvcs/organdoperations.xml.