Department of Labor October 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) sponsored information collection request (ICR) extension titled, ``Reemployment and Eligibility Assessment Program,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for continued use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Announcement Regarding States Triggering ``on'' and ``off'' in the Emergency Unemployment Compensation 2008 (EUC08) Program. The U.S. Department of Labor (Department) produces trigger notices indicating which states qualify for EUC08 benefits, and provides the beginning and ending dates of payable periods for each qualifying state. The trigger notices covering state eligibility for this program can be found at: https://ows.doleta.gov/unemploy/claims_arch.asp. The following changes have occurred since the publication of the last notice regarding states' EUC08 trigger status: With the week ending September 22, 2012, Utah had served a full 13 week ``off'' period in Tier 2 of the EUC08 program. Given that the trigger rate for Utah has been at the 6.0 percent trigger rate threshold, this state met the criteria to resume a payable period in Tier 2 of the EUC08 program. This payable period started with the week beginning September 23, 2012. For claimants establishing new eligibility in Tier 2, the maximum potential entitlement in Tier 2 is the lesser of 54 percent of the maximum regular Unemployment Compensation (UC) entitlement or 14 times the regular UC weekly benefit amount. With the week ending September 22, 2012, West Virginia and Wisconsin had both served a full 13 week ``off'' period in Tier 3 of the EUC08 program. Given that the trigger rate for these states had been at or above the 7.0 percent trigger rate threshold, these states met the criteria to resume a payable period in Tier 3 of the EUC08 program. The payable period for these states started with the week beginning September 23, 2012. For claimants establishing new eligibility in Tier 3, the maximum potential entitlement in Tier 3 is the lesser of 35 percent of the maximum regular UC entitlement or 9 times the regular UC weekly benefit amount. With the release of national unemployment data by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on September 21, 2012, the estimated three month average, seasonally adjusted total unemployment rate for Maryland met the 7.0 percent threshold necessary to trigger ``on'' in Tier 3 of the EUC08 program. For claimants establishing new eligibility in Tier 3, the maximum potential entitlement is the lesser of 35 percent of the maximum regular UC entitlement or 9 times the regular UC weekly benefit amount. The week beginning October 7, 2012, will be the first week in which EUC08 claimants in Maryland who have exhausted Tier 2, and are otherwise eligible, can establish Tier 3 eligibility. With the release of national unemployment data by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on September 21, 2012, the estimated three month average, seasonally adjusted total unemployment rate for Michigan met the 9.0 percent threshold necessary to trigger ``on'' in Tier 4 of the EUC08 program. For claimants establishing new eligibility in Tier 4, the maximum potential entitlement in Tier 4 is the lesser of 24 percent of the maximum regular UC entitlement or 6 times the regular UC weekly benefit amount. The week beginning October 7, 2012, will be the first week in which EUC08 claimants in Michigan who have exhausted Tier 3, and are otherwise eligible, can establish Tier 4 eligibility. With the week ending October 6, 2012, Texas will have served a full 13 week ``off'' period in Tier 3 of the EUC08 program. Given that the trigger rate for Texas is currently at or above the 7.0 percent trigger rate threshold, and no more unemployment rates will be released before October 19, 2012, Texas will meet the criteria to resume a payable period in Tier 3 of the EUC08 program. This payable period will start with the week beginning October 7, 2012. For claimants establishing new eligibility in Tier 3, the maximum potential entitlement is the lesser of 35 percent of the maximum regular UC entitlement or 9 times the regular UC weekly benefit amount. With the week ending October 6, 2012, Georgia and Mississippi will have served a full 13 week ``off'' period in Tier 4 of the EUC08 program. Given that the trigger rate for these states is currently at or above the 9.0 percent trigger rate threshold, and no more unemployment rates will be released before October 19, 2012, Georgia and Mississippi will meet the criteria to resume a payable period in Tier 4 of the EUC08 program. The payable period will start with the week beginning October 7, 2012. For claimants establishing new eligibility in Tier 4, the maximum potential entitlement in Tier 4 is the lesser of 24 percent of the maximum regular UC entitlement or 6 times the regular UC weekly benefit amount. Based on data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on September 21, 2012, the three month average, seasonally adjusted total unemployment rate for the District of Columbia fell below the 9.0 percent trigger rate threshold to remain ``on'' in Tier 4 of the EUC08 program. As a result, entitlement for claimants in the District of Columbia in the EUC08 program will decrease from a maximum possible duration of 47 weeks to a maximum possible duration of 37 weeks. The week ending October 13, 2012, will be the last week in which EUC claimants in the District of Columbia can exhaust Tier 3, and establish Tier 4 eligibility. Under the phase-out provisions, claimants can receive any remaining entitlement they have in Tier 4 after October 13, 2012.

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) sponsored information collection request (ICR) revision titled, ``Overpayment Recovery Questionnaire,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) sponsored information collection request (ICR) titled, ``1,3-Butadiene Standard,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for continued use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) sponsored information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Lead in Construction Standard,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for continued use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

NACOSH will meet November 15, 2012, in Washington, DC. In conjunction with the committee meeting, the NACOSH Effectiveness Measures Work Group will meet on November 14, 2012.

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) sponsored information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Annual Funding Notice for Defined Benefit Pension Plans,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for continued use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) sponsored information collection request (ICR) proposal titled, ``Self-Employment Training Demonstration Evaluation,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is announcing that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved the revised information collection requirements contained in the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) (29 CFR parts 1910, 1915, and 1926) under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA-95). The OMB control number is 1218-0072.

Pursuant to Section 10 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (Pub. L. 92-463; 5 U.S.C. APP. 1), notice is hereby given to announce an open virtual meeting of the Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship (ACA) on November 14-15, 2012, which can be accessed from the Office of Apprenticeship's (OA) homepage: https:// www.doleta.gov/oa/. The ACA is a discretionary committee established by the Secretary of Labor, in accordance with FACA, as amended 5 U.S.C., App. 2, and its implementing regulations (41 CFR 101-6 and 102-3). All meetings of the ACA are open to the public. A virtual meeting of the ACA provides a cost savings to the government while still offering a venue that allows for public participation and transparency, as required by FACA.

The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This program helps to assure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Mine Safety and Health Administration is soliciting comments concerning the extension of the information collection for 30 CFR 77.1713. OMB last approved this information collection request (ICR) on February 1, 2010.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, March 28, 2012 an announcement of the 2012 LLSIL (Vol. 77, No. 60, page 18865, see https://www.gpo.gov/ fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-03-28/pdf/2012-7377.pdf). The announcement included a reassignment of the Virgin Islands (VI) to the South jurisdiction. This correction returns the VI to the Northeast region, and is retroactive to March 28, 2012. No other corrections are made, and the remainder of the LLSIL tables published on March 28, 2012 remain the same.

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) sponsored information collection request (ICR) titled, ``National Medical Support Notice Part B,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for continued use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) sponsored information collection request (ICR) revision titled, ``Data Sharing Agreement Program,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval for use in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).