Department of the Navy – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of the Navy (DoN) announces the availability of the inventions listed below, assigned to the United States Government, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy, for domestic and foreign licensing by the Department of the Navy.

The U.S. Naval Academy Board of Visitors will meet to make such inquiry, as the Board shall deem necessary, into the state of morale and discipline, the curriculum, instruction, physical equipment, fiscal affairs, and academic methods of the Naval Academy.

The Department of the Navy hereby gives notice of its intent to grant an exclusive license to Taoglas USA, Inc. of San Diego, CA. The proposed license is a revocable, nonassignable, exclusive license to practice the invention embodied in U.S. Pat. App. Ser. No. 15/ 267,219: BROADBAND CIRCULARLY POLARIZED ANTENNA in the fields of use of automotive and Internet of Things (IoT) throughout the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and all other United States territories and possessions. The Secretary of the Navy has an ownership interest in this invention.

The Department of the Navy (DoN) is amending its certifications and exemptions under the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972, as amended (72 COLREGS), to reflect that the Deputy Assistant Judge Advocate General (DAJAG)(Admiralty and Maritime Law) has determined that USS MICHAEL MONSOOR (DDG 1001) is a vessel of the Navy which, due to its special construction and purpose, cannot fully comply with certain provisions of the 72 COLREGS without interfering with its special function as a naval ship. The intended effect of this rule is to warn mariners in waters where 72 COLREGS apply.

The Department of the Navy (DoN) has prepared and filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency a Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement (EIS/OEIS). It is the role of DoN to maintain, train and equip combat ready naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression, and maintaining freedom of the seas. To fulfil its role, the DoN will continue ongoing military readiness activities, which include training and research, development, testing, and evaluation activities (hereafter referred to as ``training and testing'') conducted within the Hawaii-Southern California Training and Testing (HSTT) EIS/OEIS Study Area (hereafter referred to as the ``Study Area''). In the Draft EIS/OEIS, the DoN re-evaluates potential environmental impacts associated with training and testing in the study area. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is a cooperating agency for this EIS/OEIS. This notice announces the dates and locations of the public meetings and provides supplementary information about the environmental planning effort.

A notice of intent was published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the Federal Register (82 FR 39779) on August 22, 2017 for the supplement to the 2015 Final Northwest Training and Testing (NWTT) Environmental Impact Statement/Overseas Environmental Impact Statement (EIS/OEIS). The 30-day scoping period ends on September 21, 2017. This notice announces a 15-day extension of the scoping period until October 6, 2017.

The Department of Defense has submitted to OMB for clearance, the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act.

The Department of the Navy (DoN) announces the availability of the inventions listed below, assigned to the United States Government, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy, for domestic and foreign licensing by the Department of the Navy.

The Department of Navy's (DoN) intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the transition of the remaining F/A-18A/C/D (Hornet) aircraft, based at Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana, to the F/A-18E/F (Super Hornet), published in the Federal Register on September 10, 2015 (80 FR 175), is hereby modified. The DoN is redesignating the EIS as an Environmental Assessment (EA). The DoN will hold public meetings on August 29 and 30, 2017, to inform the public and answer questions about the Draft EA and the proposed action as well as provide opportunities for the public to comment on the Draft EA.

The Department of Defense has submitted to OMB for clearance, the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act.

The Board of Visitors of the Marine Corps University (BOV MCU) will meet to review, develop and provide recommendations on all aspects of the academic and administrative policies of the University; examine all aspects of professional military education operations; and provide such oversight and advice, as is necessary, to facilitate high educational standards and cost effective operations. The Board will be focusing primarily on the internal procedures of Marine Corps University. All sessions of the meeting will be open to the public.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the U.S. Marine Corps announces a proposed public information collection and seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

The Department of the Navy (DoN) is amending its certifications and exemptions under the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (72 COLREGS), to reflect that the Deputy Assistant Judge Advocate General (DAJAG) (Admiralty and Maritime Law) has determined that certain vessels of the VIRGINIA SSN Class are vessels of the Navy which, due to their special construction and purpose, cannot fully comply with certain provisions of the 72 COLREGS without interfering with their special function as a naval ships. The intended effect of this rule is to warn mariners in waters where 72 COLREGS apply.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 and regulations implemented by the Council on Environmental Quality, the Department of the Navy (DoN) has prepared and filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Overseas EIS (OEIS) for public release on June 30, 2017, to evaluate the potential environmental effects from training and testing activities conducted within the Navy's Atlantic Fleet Training and Testing (AFTT) Study Area. The Study Area is in the western Atlantic Ocean and encompasses the waters along the east coast of North America, the Gulf of Mexico, portions of the Caribbean Sea, Navy pierside locations and port transit channels, waters near civilian ports, and inland waters (e.g., lower Chesapeake Bay). The Study Area covers approximately 2.6 million square nautical miles of ocean area and includes designated Navy operating areas and special use airspace. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is a Cooperating Agency for the EIS/OEIS. With the filing of the Draft EIS/OEIS, the DoN is initiating a 60- day public comment period and has scheduled five public meetings to receive oral and written comments on the Draft EIS/OEIS. This notice announces the dates and locations of the public meetings for this Draft EIS/OEIS and provides supplementary information about the environmental planning effort. Dates and Addresses: The Draft EIS/OEIS public review period will begin June 30, 2017, and end on August 29, 2017. The Navy will hold five public meetings to inform the public about the Proposed Action and the alternatives under consideration, and to provide an opportunity for the public to comment on the Proposed Action, alternatives, and the adequacy and accuracy of the analysis in the Draft EIS/OEIS. Each of the public meetings will be conducted in an open-house format with informational stations staffed by DoN representatives. These representatives will be available during the public meeting to clarify information related to the Draft EIS/OEIS. Federal, state, and local agencies and officials, and interested groups and individuals are encouraged to provide comments in person at any of the public meetings or in writing during the public comment period. The public meetings will be held between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. on the following dates and at the following locations: 1. Wednesday, July 19, 2017, Hotel Providence, 139 Mathewson Street, Providence, RI 02903. 2. Tuesday, July 25, 2017, UNC Institute of Marine Sciences, 3431 Arendell Street, Morehead City, NC 28557. 3. Wednesday, July 26, 2017, Nauticus, 1 Waterside Drive, Norfolk, VA 23510. 4. Tuesday, August 1, 2017, Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center, 1000 Water Street, Jacksonville, FL 32204. 5. Thursday, August 3, 2017, Gulf Coast State College Conference Center, 5230 W. Highway 98, Panama City, FL 32401. Attendees will be able to submit comments in writing or orally using a voice recorder at the public meetings. Equal weight will be given to oral and written statements. Comments may also be submitted by U.S. postal mail or electronically via the project Web site provided below. Written comments may be submitted by mail to Naval Facilities Engineering Command Atlantic, Attn: Code EV22KP (AFTT EIS Project Managers), 6506 Hampton Boulevard, Norfolk, VA 23508-1278 and through the project Web site; all written comments must be post marked or received by August 29, 2017. All statements, oral or written, submitted during the public review period will become part of the public record on the Draft EIS/OEIS and will be considered in preparation of the Final EIS/OEIS. Public meeting details will also be announced in local newspapers and on the project Web site: www.AFTTEIS.com.

The inventions listed below are assigned to the United States Government as represented by the Secretary of the Navy and are available for domestic and foreign licensing by the Department of the Navy. The following patents are available for licensing: U.S. Patent No. 9,180,933: INTEGRATED STERN BULB AND FLAP//U.S. Patent No. 9,228,805: CORRUGATED BLAST FREQUENCY CONTROL PANEL AND METHOD//U.S. Patent No. 9,230,717: UNIVERSAL CABLE JACKET REMOVAL TOOL//U.S. Patent No. 9,238,501: BILGE KEEL WITH POROUS LEADING EDGE//U.S. Patent No. 9,306,360: TORSION ELIMINATING COMPRESSION DEVICE AND METHOD//U.S. Patent No. 9,307,156: LONGWAVE INFRARED IMAGING OF A HIGH TEMPERATURE HIGH INTENSITY LIGHT SOURCE//U.S. Patent No. 9,340,284: CARGO SUSPENSION FRAME FOR AIRCRAFT//U.S. Patent No. 9,365,262: WIGGLE HULL DESIGN HAVING A CONCAVE AND CONVEX PLANING HULL//U.S. Patent No. 9,376,171: MOORING CLEAT WITH OPEN DESIGN FOR NON THREAD ENTRY//U.S. Patent No. 9,376,175: WATER VESSEL WITH INTEGRATED BUOYANCY BULB AND STERN RAMP//U.S. Patent No. 9,381,979: PORTABLE LIGHTWEIGHT APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR TRANSFERRING HEAVY LOADS//U.S. Patent No. 9,417,155: CALCAREOUS DEPOSIT WIPE TEST APPARATUS AND METHOD//U.S. Patent No. 9,421,618: CLAMPING DEVICE FOR SECURING CABLES TO SUBMERGED FERROUS HULL SURFACE.//

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Commander, Navy Installations Command announces a proposed public information collection and seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

The inventions listed below are assigned to the United States Government, as represented by the Secretary of the Navy and are available for domestic and foreign licensing by the Department of the Navy. The following patents are available for licensing: Patent No. 9,618,309 (Navy Case No. 103257): APPARATUS AND ELECTRIC PRIMER OUTPUT DATA TESTING METHOD//Patent No. 9,617,612 (Navy Case No. 103025): STRUCTURES AND METHODS OF MANUFACTURE OF MICROSTRUCTURES WITHIN A STRUCTURE TO SELECTIVELY ADJUST A RESPONSE OR RESPONSES OF RESULTING STRUCTURES OR PORTIONS OF STRUCTURES TO SHOCK INDUCED DEFORMATION OR FORCE LOADING//and Patent No. 9,620,242 (Navy Case No. 200261): METHODS AND APPARATUSES INCLUDING ONE OR MORE INTERRUPTED INTEGRATED CIRCUIT OPERATIONS FOR CHARACTERIZING RADIATION EFFECTS IN INTEGRATED CIRCUITS.

The U.S. Naval Academy Board of Visitors will meet to make such inquiry, as the Board shall deem necessary, into the state of morale and discipline, the curriculum, instruction, physical equipment, fiscal affairs, and academic methods of the Naval Academy. The executive session of this meeting will be held on Monday, September 11, 2017, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and will include discussions of new and pending administrative/minor disciplinary infractions and non- judicial punishment proceedings involving midshipmen attending the Naval Academy to include but not limited to individual honor/conduct violations within the Brigade; the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. For this reason, the executive session of this meeting will be closed to the public.

The Department of the Navy (DoN), after carefully weighing the strategic, operational, and environmental consequences of the proposed action, announces its decision to continue military readiness activities as identified in Alternative 1 in the Gulf of Alaska Navy Training Activities Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement/ Overseas Environmental Impact Statement. This alternative includes one large-scale Carrier Strike Group exercise annually, Anti-Submarine Warfare activities, and the use of active sonar for up to 21 consecutive days between April and October. Implementation of Alternative 1 will enable the DoN to meet current and future training requirements and manage and mitigate environmental impacts.

The inventions listed below are assigned to the United States Government as represented by the Secretary of the Navy and are available for domestic and foreign licensing by the Department of the Navy. The following patents are available for licensing: U.S. Patent No. 9,197,822: ARRAY AUGMENTED PARALLAX IMAGE ENHANCEMENT SYSTEM AND METHOD//U.S. Patent No. 9,199,707: CABLE CUTTING SYSTEM FOR RETRIEVAL OF EXERCISE MINES AND OTHER UNDERWATER PAYLOADS//U.S. Patent No. 9,208,386: CROWD STATE CHARACTERIZATION SYSTEM AND METHOD//U.S. Patent No. 9,217,452: BLIND FASTENER ASSEMBLY AND RELEASE PIN APPARATUS//U.S. Patent No. 9,217,455: QUICK RELEASE COLLAPSIBLE BOLT//U.S. Patent No. 9,246,282: ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTING, ENVIRONMENTALLY SEALING, LOAD TRANSFERRING CABLE TERMINATION FITTING//U.S. Patent No. 9,248,894: CONTROLLED CORROSION RELEASE SYSTEM//U.S. Patent No. 9,318,239: CORROSION RESISTANT, ENVIRONMENTALLY SEALING, ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTING, CABLE CONNECTOR//U.S. Patent No. 9,373,898: SWAGED-ON, EXTERNAL ELECTRODE ANCHORING CONNECTION//U.S. Patent No. 9,441,965: OCEANGRAPHIC ASSEMBLY FOR COLLECTING DATA ALONG MULTIPLE WATER COLUMNS//

Pursuant to the provisions of The Federal Advisory Committee Act, notice is hereby given that the following meeting of the Board of Advisors to the President of the Naval Postgraduate School Subcommittee will be held. This meeting will be open to the public.

The Department of the Navy hereby gives notice of its intent to grant to EnZinc, Inc., a revocable, nonassignable, exclusive license to practice in the field of use of a zinc electrode for use in a nickel-zinc battery for two or three wheeled electric vehicles; the field of use of a zinc electrode for use in a nickel-zinc battery for micro-grid energy storage; the field of use of a zinc electrode for use in a nickel-zinc battery in a start-stop vehicle; the field of use of a zinc electrode for use in a nickel-zinc battery for hybrid- electric vehicles and the field of use of a zinc electrode for use in a nickel-zinc battery for electric vehicles having at least four wheels in the United States, the Government-owned inventions described in U.S. Patent Application No. 13/832,576 entitled ``Zinc Electrodes for Batteries'', Navy Case No. 102,137 and U.S. Patent Application No. 14/ 501,629 entitled ``Three-Dimensional Zinc Sponge Electrodes for Primary and Secondary Zinc-Containing Batteries'', Navy Case No. 102,137 and any continuations, divisionals or re-issues thereof.

The Department of the Navy (Navy) published in the Federal Register on March 13, 2017, a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Land-Water Interface (LWI) and Service Pier Extension (SPE) at Naval Base Kitsap Bangor, Washington. The NOI referenced an incorrect project Web site address.

Pursuant to section (102)(2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, and the regulations implemented by the Council on Environmental Quality (40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) parts 1500-1508), the Department of the Navy (DoN) announces its intent to prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to the July 2016 Final EIS for Land-Water Interface (LWI) and Service Pier Extension (SPE), Naval Base (NAVBASE) Kitsap Bangor, Washington. The Final EIS for LWI and SPE resulted in a Record of Decision (ROD) that was signed on September 8, 2016 for the LWI project only. The SPE proposed action is to extend the existing Service Pier and construct associated support facilities. The purpose is to provide additional berthing capacity and improve associated support facilities for existing homeported and visiting submarines at NAVBASE Kitsap Bangor. The SPE project is needed to provide alternative opportunities for berthing to mitigate restrictions at NAVBASE Kitsap Bremerton, Washington, on navigating SEAWOLF Class submarines through Rich Passage under certain tidal conditions and to improve long-term operational effectiveness for the three SEAWOLF Class submarines on NAVBASE Kitsap. The Supplemental EIS will address the SPE project only and will evaluate resources based upon changes in design and new information relevant to environmental concerns per 40 CFR 1502.9. The DoN will evaluate this new, relevant information and incorporate that information into revised analyses where appropriate. The analysis will address, among others, changes to the Alternative 2 design and new regulatory guidance and requirements.

The Department of the Navy (DoN) announces the availability of the Records of Decision (RODs) by the DoN and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for Land Acquisition and Airspace Establishment to Support Large-Scale Marine Air Ground Task Force Live-Fire and Maneuver Training at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California. The Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Energy, Installations and Environment) signed the DoN ROD on February 10, 2017. The BLM California Desert District Manager signed the BLM ROD on February 9, 2017.