Department of Homeland Security April 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This interim rule lists communities where modification of the Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) is appropriate because of new scientific or technical data. New flood insurance premium rates will be calculated from the modified BFEs for new buildings and their contents.

Modified Base (1% annual-chance) Flood Elevations (BFEs) are finalized for the communities listed below. These modified BFEs will be used to calculate flood insurance premium rates for new buildings and their contents.

This rule identifies communities where the sale of flood insurance has been authorized under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) that are scheduled for suspension on the effective dates listed within this rule because of noncompliance with the floodplain management requirements of the program. If the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) receives documentation that the community has adopted the required floodplain management measures prior to the effective suspension date given in this rule, the suspension will not occur and a notice of this will be provided by publication in the Federal Register on a subsequent date.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the waters of Matlacha Pass in the vicinity of the Matlacha Bridge in Matlacha, Florida. The safety zone will be enforced during construction of the Matlacha Bridge from Monday, March 12, 2012 through Tuesday, April 10, 2012. The safety zone is necessary to protect life and property on navigable waters of the United States during the Matlacha Bridge construction. Persons and vessels are prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port St. Petersburg or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish special local regulations during the swim segment of the ``Ironman 70.3 National Harbor'' triathlon, a marine event to be held on the waters of the Potomac River in Prince George's County, Maryland on August 5, 2012. These special local regulations are necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the event. This action is intended to temporarily restrict vessel traffic in a portion of the Potomac River and National Harbor Access Channel during the event.

The Coast Guard is changing the regulations that govern the operation of the S189 Bridge over Blackwater River, mile 9.2, at South Quay, VA. The new rule will change the current regulation requiring a 24-hour advance notice and allow the bridge to remain in the closed position for the passage of vessels. There have been no requests for openings in 11 years.

The Commander, Eighth Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the Rock Island Railroad and Highway Drawbridge across the Upper Mississippi River, mile 482.9, at Rock Island, Illinois. The deviation is necessary to allow the Quad Cities Live Uncommon Walk to cross the bridge. This deviation allows the bridge to be maintained in the closed-to-navigation position for two hours.

This document announces U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP's) plan to conduct a National Customs Automation Program (NCAP) test concerning document imaging. During the test, certain Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) participants will be able to submit electronic images of a specific set of CBP and Participating Government Agency (PGA) forms and supporting information to CBP. Specifically, importers, and brokers, will be allowed to submit official CBP documents and specified PGA forms via the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). This notice also describes test particulars including commencement date, eligibility, procedural and documentation requirements, and test development and evaluation methods. The test will be known as the Document Image System (DIS) Test.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish temporary special local regulations and safety zones for marine events on the navigable waters within the Captain of the Port (COTP) Sector Long Island Sound zone for regattas, fireworks displays and swim events. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the events. Entering into, transiting through, remaining, anchoring or mooring within these regulated areas would be prohibited unless authorized by the COTP Sector Long Island Sound.

The Coast Guard is establishing special local regulations on the waters of Charleston Harbor in Charleston, South Carolina during Charleston Race Week, a series of sailboat races. The races are scheduled to take place on Friday, April 20, 2012, through Sunday, April 22, 2012. Approximately 170 sailboats are anticipated to participate in the races, and approximately 40 spectator vessels are expected to attend the event. These special local regulations are necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters of the United States during the races. The special local regulations consist of three race areas. Except for those person and vessels participating in the sailboat races, persons and vessels are prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the race areas unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Charleston or a designated representative.

This notice announces that the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) has suspended certain regulatory requirements for F-1 nonimmigrant students whose country of citizenship is Syria and who are experiencing severe economic hardship as a direct result of the civil unrest in Syria since March 2011. The Secretary has determined that a suspension of certain regulatory requirements for Syrian citizens who are F-1 nonimmigrant students is warranted because it will provide relief to these F-1 students so they may obtain employment authorization, work an increased number of hours while school is in session, and reduce their course load while continuing to maintain their F-1 student status. F-1 students who are granted employment authorization by means of this notice will be deemed to be engaged in a ``full course of study'' for the duration of their employment authorization, provided that they satisfy the minimum course load requirement described in this notice.

This is a notice of the Presidential declaration of a major disaster for the State of Tennessee (FEMA-4060-DR), dated March 16, 2012, and related determinations.

This is a notice of the Presidential declaration of a major disaster for the State of West Virginia (FEMA-4059-DR), dated March 16, 2012, and related determinations.

This notice amends the notice of a major disaster declaration for the State of Texas (FEMA-1999-DR), dated July 1, 2011, and related determinations.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish seven temporary security zones on the waters and adjacent land 20 feet shoreward of the mean high water marks of Garrison Channel, Hillsborough River, Seddon Channel, Sparkman Channel, the unnamed channel north of Davis Islands, Ybor Channel, and Ybor Turning Basin in the vicinity of Tampa, Florida during the 2012 Republican National Convention. The 2012 Republican National Convention will be held at the Tampa Bay Times Forum building and other venues from August 27, 2012 through August 31, 2012. The Department of Homeland Security has designated the 2012 Republican National Convention as a National Special Security Event. The security zones are necessary to protect convention delegates, official parties, dignitaries, the public, and surrounding waterways from terrorist acts, sabotage or other subversive acts, accidents, or other causes of a similar nature.

The Coast Guard proposes temporary safety zones in the Port of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and adjacent U.S. territorial sea from 12:01 a.m. local time on June 15, 2012, through 11:59 p.m. on July 1, 2012. The temporary safety zones will encompass the navigable waters within a 25- yard radius of moored or anchored offshore exploration or support vessels, and the navigable waters within a 100-yard radius of underway offshore exploration or support vessels. The purpose of the safety zones is to protect persons and vessels during an unusually high volume of vessel traffic in the Port of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and the adjacent territorial sea due to additional vessel traffic associated with exploratory drilling operations in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas during the summer of 2012.

This document amends U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regulations by making technical corrections to reflect the repeal of one of the underlying statutory authorities regarding petitions for relief from a fine, penalty, forfeiture, or liquidated damages under a law administered by CBP. Administrative petitioning rights are not affected by removal of this authority because CBP has other existing statutory authority for these provisions. This document also amends regulations to reflect changes in delegation authority as effected by the transfer of CBP to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and makes non-substantive editorial and nomenclature changes.

The Coast Guard is establishing special local regulations on the Savannah River in Savannah, Georgia during the Savannah Tall Ships Challenge. The Savannah Tall Ships Challenge will take place from Thursday, May 3, 2012 through Monday, May 7, 2012. Approximately 15 vessels are anticipated to participate in the event. These special local regulations are necessary to provide for the safety of life and property on navigable waters of the United States during the event. The special local regulations establish the following three areas: Mooring zones; buffer zones; and a staging area. First, mooring zones will be established around vessels participating in the Savannah Tall Ships Challenge while the vessels are moored at their mooring locations along the right and left descending banks of the Savannah River in Savannah, Georgia. Second, buffer zones will be established around vessels participating in the Savannah Tall Ships Challenge as they transit from their mooring locations on the Savannah River to the staging area. Third, a staging area will be established, where vessels participating in the Savannah Tall Ships Challenge will congregate before commencing their voyage to the next port as part of the 2012 Tall Ships Challenge. Persons and vessels that are not participating in the Savannah Tall Ships Challenge are prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the mooring zones, buffer zones, or staging area unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Savannah or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard is announcing its intent to enter into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with General Dynamics C4 Systems, Inc. (General Dynamics), to test, evaluate, and document the strengths and weaknesses of at least one technical approach for exchanging asset position, status, and brief collaborative messages between the Coast Guard Incident Command Staff (ICS), deployed Coast Guard and non-Coast Guard personnel, and other mobile assets which are engaged within an ICS managed, Incident of National Significance Response. While the Coast Guard is currently considering partnering with General Dynamics, we are soliciting public comment on the nature of and participation of other parties in the proposed CRADA. In addition, the Coast Guard also invites other potential participants to submit proposals for consideration in similar CRADAs.

The Coast Guard is establishing a Regulated Navigation Area (RNA) at the Zidell Waterfront Property located on the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon. This RNA is necessary to preserve the integrity of an engineered sediment cap as part of an Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) required remedial action. This RNA will prohibit activities that could disturb or damage the engineered sediment cap.

This rule identifies communities where the sale of flood insurance has been authorized under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) that are scheduled for suspension on the effective dates listed within this rule because of noncompliance with the floodplain management requirements of the program. If the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) receives documentation that the community has adopted the required floodplain management measures prior to the effective suspension date given in this rule, the suspension will not occur and a notice of this will be provided by publication in the Federal Register on a subsequent date.

On January 9, 2012, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced its intention to change its current process for filing and adjudication of certain applications for waivers of inadmissibility filed in connection with an immediate relative immigrant visa application. USCIS now proposes to amend its regulations to allow certain immediate relatives of U.S. citizens who are physically present in the United States to request provisional unlawful presence waivers under the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, as amended (INA or Act), prior to departing from the United States for consular processing of their immigrant visa applications. Currently, such aliens must depart from the United States and request waivers of inadmissibility during the overseas immigrant visa process, often causing U.S. citizens to be separated for extended periods from their immediate relatives who are otherwise eligible for an immigrant visa and admission for lawful permanent residence. Under the proposal, USCIS would grant a provisional unlawful presence waiver that would become fully effective upon the alien's departure from the United States and the U.S. Department of State (DOS) consular officer's determination at the time of the immigrant visa interview that, in light of the approved provisional unlawful presence waiver and other evidence of record, the alien is otherwise admissible to the United States and eligible to receive an immigrant visa. USCIS does not envision issuing Notices to Appear (NTA) to initiate removal proceedings against aliens whose provisional waiver applications have been approved. However, if USCIS, for example, discovers acts, omissions, or post-approval activity that would meet the criteria for NTA issuance or determines that the provisional waiver was granted in error, USCIS may issue an NTA, consistent with USCIS's NTA issuance policy, as well as reopen the provisional waiver approval and deny the waiver request. USCIS anticipates that the proposed changes will significantly reduce the length of time U.S. citizens are separated from their immediate relatives who are required to remain outside of the United States for immigrant visa processing and during adjudication of a waiver of inadmissibility for the unlawful presence. USCIS also believes that the proposed process, which reduces the degree of interchange between the DOS and USCIS, will create efficiencies for both the U.S. Government and most applicants. In addition to codifying the new process, USCIS proposes amendments clarifying other regulations. Even after USCIS begins accepting provisional unlawful presence waiver applications, the filing or approval of a provisional unlawful presence waiver application will not: confer any legal status, protect against the accrual of additional unlawful presence, authorize an alien to enter the United States without securing a visa or other appropriate entry document, convey any interim benefits (e.g., employment authorization, parole, or advance parole), or protect an alien from being placed in removal proceedings or removed from the United States. Do not send an application requesting a provisional waiver under the procedures under consideration in this proposed rule. Any provisional waiver application filed before the rule becomes final and effective will be rejected and the application package returned to the applicant, including any fees. USCIS will begin accepting provisional waiver applications only after a final rule is issued and the procedural change becomes effective.