Department of Homeland Security September 28, 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection will be submitting 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 (PRA). The information collection is published in the Federal Register to obtain comments from the public and affected agencies.

Comments are requested on proposed flood hazard determinations, which may include additions or modifications of any Base Flood Elevation (BFE), base flood depth, Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) boundary or zone designation, or regulatory floodway on the Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), and where applicable, in the supporting Flood Insurance Study (FIS) reports for the communities listed in the table below. The purpose of this notice is to seek general information and comment regarding the preliminary FIRM, and where applicable, the FIS report that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has provided to the affected communities. The FIRM and FIS report are the basis of the floodplain management measures that the community is required either to adopt or to show evidence of having in effect in order to qualify or remain qualified for participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). In addition, the FIRM and FIS report, once effective, will be used by insurance agents and others to calculate appropriate flood insurance premium rates for new buildings and the contents of those buildings.

On June 15, 2012, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) established the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy. The policywhich describes the Secretary of Homeland Security's (Secretary's) exercise of her prosecutorial discretion in light of the limited resources that DHS has for removal of undocumented noncitizensdirected U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to create a process to defer removal of certain noncitizens who years earlier came to the United States as children, meet other criteria, and do not present other circumstances that would warrant removal. Since that time, more than 825,000 people have applied successfully for deferred action under this policy. On January 20, 2021, President Biden directed DHS, in consultation with the Attorney General, to take all appropriate actions to preserve and fortify DACA, consistent with applicable law. On July 16, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas vacated the June 2012 memorandum that created the DACA policy and what the court called the ``DACA program,'' and it permanently enjoined DHS from ``administering the DACA program and from reimplementing DACA without compliance with'' the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). However, the district court temporarily stayed its vacatur and injunction with respect to most individuals granted deferred action under DACA on or before July 16, 2021, including with respect to their renewal requests. The district court's vacatur and injunction were based, in part, on its conclusion that the June 2012 memorandum announced a legislative rule that required notice-and-comment rulemaking. The district court further remanded the ``DACA program'' to DHS for further consideration. DHS has appealed the district court's decision. Pursuant to the Secretary's broad authorities to administer and enforce the immigration laws, consistent with the district court's direction to consider a number of issues on remand, and after careful consideration of the arguments and conclusions on which the district court's decision is based, DHS puts forward for consideration the following proposed rule. DHS invites public comments on the proposed rule and possible alternatives.