Unknown. Interim final rule with request for comments

5,327 words·~24 min read·/register/2003/07/09/03-17260

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

--- schema: federal-register doc_type: fedreg source_file: FR-2003-07-09.xml --- 68 131 Wednesday, July 9, 2003 Contents Agricultural Agricultural Marketing Service RULES Prunes (dried) produced in— California, 40754-40757 03-17276 PROPOSED RULES Onions grown in— Idaho and Oregon, 40815-40817 03-17277 Agriculture Agriculture Department See Agricultural Marketing Service See Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service See Forest Service See Natural Resources Conservation Service NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 40895-40900 03-17347 Alcohol Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 41015-41017 03-17328 03-17330 Animal Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service PROPOSED RULES User fees:

Veterinary services— Pet food facility inspection and approval, 40817-40820 03-17332 Army Army Department NOTICES Patent licenses; non-exclusive, exclusive, or partially exclusive: Continuous aimpoint tracking system; correction, 41045 C3-16877 Broadcasting Broadcasting Board of Governors NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 40902 03-17513 Centers Centers for Disease Control and Prevention NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 40952-40954 03-17302 03-17303 Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:

Medical laboratory quality indicators, development and evaluation; monitoring of voluntary practice guidelines as model, 40954-40956 03-17308 Medical technologists, medical laboratory technicians, and pathologists, training; clinical laboratory testing practices, 40956-40958 03-17307 Public Health Laboratory Testing, Initiative to Integrate Clinical Laboratories, 40959-40961 03-17305 Viral Hepatitis Integration and Intervention Projects, 40961-40965 03-17304 Meetings: Advisory Committee to Director, 40965-40966 03-17301 Disease, Disability, and Injury Prevention and Control Special Emphasis Panels, 40966 03-17299 Centers Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 40966-40967 03-17336 Children Children and Families Administration See Community Services Office See Refugee Resettlement Office NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:

Child care research and evaluation projects, 40967-40982 03-17395 Coast Guard Coast Guard RULES Ports and waterways safety: Milwaukee Captain of Port Zone, WI; safety zone, 40770 03-17369 Mission Creek Waterway, China Basin, San Francisco Bay, CA; safety zone, 40772-40774 03-17370 San Juan Harbor, San Juan, PR; safety zone, 40770-40771 03-17372 PROPOSED RULES Ports and waterways safety: Beverly Harbor, MA; safety zone, 40859-40860 03-17367 NOTICES Committees; establishment, renewal, termination, etc.:

National Maritime Security Advisory Committee, 40991-40992 03-17371 Commerce Commerce Department See International Trade Administration See National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOTICES Overseas trade missions: 2003 trade missions— Belfast, Northern Ireland, and Dublin, Ireland; Senior Level Business Development Mission, 40902-40903 03-17306 Commodity Commodity Futures Trading Commission PROPOSED RULES Commodity Exchange Act: Futures commission merchants and introducing brokers; minimum financial and related reporting requirements, 40835-40848 03-17218 Community Community Services Office NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:

Consolidated programs, 40982-40984 03-17396 Consumer Consumer Product Safety Commission NOTICES Table saw blades; performance standards petition, 40912 03-17327 Defense Defense Department See Army Department NOTICES Meetings: Defense Intelligence Agency Advisory Board, 40912-40913 03-17258 Education Benefits Board of Actuaries, 40913 03-17259 Retirement Board of Actuaries, 40913 03-17257 Education Education Department NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:

Elementary and secondary education— Safe and Drug-Free Schools; Learning Foundations Program; correction, 41045 C3-16141 Innovation and improvement— Parental Information and Resource Centers Program; correction, 40913-40914 03-17359 Special education and rehabilitative services— Centers for Independent Living Program; correction, 40914 03-17261 Parents of Children with Disabilities Program; training and information, 40914-40918 03-17360 Employment Employment and Training Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 41019-41020 03-17325 Energy Energy Department See Federal Energy Regulatory Commission EPA Environmental Protection Agency RULES Air quality implementation plans; approval and promulgation; various States; air quality planning purposes; designation of areas:

California, 40789-40791 03-17210 Air quality implementation plans; approval and promulgation; various States: Georgia, 40786-40789 03-17204 North Carolina, 40782-40786 03-16581 Pesticides; tolerances in food, animal feeds, and raw agricultural commodities: Diallyl sulfides, 40803-40808 03-17106 Emamectin, 40791-40803 03-17212 PROPOSED RULES Air pollution control: State operating permits programs— Texas, 40871-40876 03-17338 Air quality implementation plans; approval and promulgation; various States:

Georgia, 40864 03-17205 Maryland, 40861-40864 03-17340 Texas, 40865-40871 03-17339 NOTICES Meetings: Science Advisory Board, 40932 03-17341 Pesticide, food, and feed additive petitions: Interregional Research Project (No. 4), 40939-40944 03-17104 Pesticide registration, cancellation, etc.: Bayer Corp., 40932-40934 03-16929 Bayer Cropscience et al., 40934-40935 03-17211 Mitsui Chemicals, Inc., 40935-40939 03-16928 Toxic and hazardous substances control: 1,1,2-trichloroethane Tier 1 program review testing; enforceable consent agreement, 40944-40947 03-16927 FAA Federal Aviation Administration RULES Airworthiness directives:

Boeing, 40759-40761 03-17432 Airworthiness standards: Special conditions— CenTex Aerospace, Inc.; Raytheon/Beech Model 58 airplane, 40757-40759 03-17249 Class E airspace, 40761-40763 03-17250 03-17253 Jet routes, 40763-40764 03-17362 VOR Federal airways, 40764-40766 03-17361 03-17363 PROPOSED RULES Airworthiness directives: Boeing, 40821-40823, 40827-40829, 40834-40835 03-17316 03-17318 Boeing and McDonnell Douglas, 40823-40827 03-17317 Bombardier, 40829-40831 03-17319 Dornier, 40831-40834 03-17314 NOTICES Air traffic operating and flight rules, etc.:

High density airports; takeoff and landing slots, slot exemption lottery, and slot allocation procedures— Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, VA, 41037-41038 03-17254 Meetings: Seat certification conference, 41038 03-17364 FCC Federal Communications Commission PROPOSED RULES Practice and procedure: Wireless telecommunications services— Communications facilities and historic properties; nationwide programmatic agreement, 40876-40887 03-17415 NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 40947 03-17337 Reports and guidance documents; availability, etc.:

Foreign telecommunications carriers presumed to possess market power in foreign telecommunications markets; list, 40947-40951 03-17245 Federal Energy Federal Energy Regulatory Commission NOTICES Hydroelectric applications, 40921-40923 03-17291 03-17292 Meetings; Sunshine Act, 40923-40924 03-17534 03-17535 Reports and guidance documents; availability, etc.: Public utility market-based rate authorizations; investigation of terms and conditions, 40924-40932 03-17421 *Applications, hearings, determinations, etc.:* ANR Pipeline Co., 40918 03-17297 Colorado Interstate Gas Co., 40918 03-17288 GWF Energy LLC, 40918-40919 03-17289 Horizon Pipeline Co., L.L.C., 40919 03-17294 Northern Natural Gas Co., 40919 03-17287 Northwest Pipeline Corp., 40919-40920 03-17295 Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., 40920 03-17290 Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp., 40920 03-17298 Transwestern Pipeline Co., 40920-40921 03-17296 Williston Basin Interstate Pipeline Co., 40921 03-17293 Federal Highway Federal Highway Administration NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent:

Jefferson and Clearfield Counties, PA, 41038-41039 03-17354 FMC Federal Maritime Commission NOTICES Agreements filed, etc., 40951-40952 03-17399 Federal Reserve Federal Reserve System NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 40952 03-17423 Federal Transit Federal Transit Administration NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent: Los Angeles, CA; light rail transit extension, 41039-41040 03-17366 Food Food and Drug Administration NOTICES Animal drugs, feeds, and related products:

Clindamycin, 40984-40985 03-17262 Forest Forest Service NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent: Umatilla National Forest, WA, 40900-40901 03-17300 Meetings: Resource Advisory Committees— Ravalli County, 40901-40902 03-17309 Health Health and Human Services Department See Centers for Disease Control and Prevention See Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services See Children and Families Administration See Community Services Office See Food and Drug Administration See Refugee Resettlement Office Homeland Homeland Security Department See Coast Guard Housing Housing and Urban Development Department NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 40992-40996 03-16984 03-17394 Indian Indian Affairs Bureau NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:

Education facilities replacement construction priority list, 40996-40997 03-17343 Interior Interior Department See Indian Affairs Bureau See Land Management Bureau See National Park Service IRS Internal Revenue Service RULES Income taxes: Multi-step transactions; effect of elections, 40766-40768 03-17225 Procedure and administration: Fees for copies of exempt organizations’ material open to public inspection; authorization, 40768-40770 03-17224 PROPOSED RULES Income taxes: Multi-step transactions; effect of elections; cross-reference, 40848-40849 03-17227 Procedure and administration:

Fees for copies of exempt organizations’ material open to public inspection; authorization; cross-reference, 40849-40850 03-17228 Information reporting penalties waiver; prompt correction determination, 40857-40859 03-17229 Testimony or production of records in court or other proceeding, 40850-40857 03-17230 NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 41043-41044 03-17387 International International Trade Administration NOTICES Antidumping:

Hot-rolled carbon steel flat products from— South Africa, 40903-40906 03-17374 Petroleum wax candles from— China, 40906 03-17373 Saccharin from— China, 40906-40907 03-17375 Justice Justice Department See Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau NOTICES Pollution control; consent judgments: LTV Steel, Inc., 41014-41015 03-17263 Labor Labor Department See Employment and Training Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 41017-41019 03-17323 03-17324 Organization, functions, and authority delegations:

Secretary of Labor; order of succession, 41047-41049 03-17326 Land Land Management Bureau NOTICES Public land orders: Wyoming, 40998 03-17391 Realty actions; sales, leases, etc.: Wisconsin, 40998-40999 03-17389 Recreation management restrictions, etc.: Bear Creek Recreation Site, OR; occupancy and camping stay limit; supplementary rule, 40999-41001 03-17390 Deschutes Wild and Scenic River, OR; special rules, 41001-41006 03-17388 Withdrawal and reservation of lands: Nevada, 41007 03-17392 Maritime Maritime Administration NOTICES Coastwise trade laws; administrative waivers:

CHIMERA, 41040-41041 03-17284 HDV-35, 41041 03-17285 LIVIN’ DREAMS, 41041 03-17280 RAVEN’S DANCE, 41041-41042 03-17279 RHUMB LINE, 41042 03-17283 SAVANNAH, 41042-41043 03-17282 STORM BAY, 41043 03-17281 NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RULES Fishery conservation and management: Alaska; fisheries of Exclusive Economic Zone— Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands pollock, 40812-40814 03-17238 Pacific ocean perch, 40811-40812 03-17236 03-17237 Northeastern United States fisheries— Northeast multispecies, 40808-40811 03-17320 PROPOSED RULES Fishery conservation and management:

Magnuson-Stevens Act provisions— Domestic fisheries; exempted fishing permit applications, 40892-40894 03-17380 Marine mammals: Commercial fishing authorizations— Zero Mortality Rate Goal; definition, 40888-40892 03-17240 NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent: Atlantic highly migratory species (Atlantic tunas, swordfish, and sharks) and Atlantic billfish fishery management plans; amendments, 40907-40909 03-17378 Marine mammals: Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan; anchored gillnet and lobster trap/pot fishing gear restrictions, 40909-40910 03-17321 Meetings:

Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 40910 03-17243 New England Fishery Management Council, 40910-40911 03-17242 Permits: Marine mammals, 40911-40912 03-17241 03-17379 National Park National Park Service NOTICES Meetings: Chalmette Battlefield Task Force Committee, 41007-41008 03-17266 National Park System Advisory Board, 41008 03-17265 National Register of Historic Places: Pending nominations, 41008-41009 03-17267 Native American human remains and associated funerary objects:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Law Enforcement Office, Albuquerque, NM— Anthropomorphic kachina figures, etc., belonging to Pueblo of Jemez, NM, 41009-41010 03-17269 Cougar foot, eagle feathers, etc., belonging to Navajo Nation, AZ, NM, and UT, 41010-41011 03-17271 Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology, University of California, CA— Inventory from caves near Spedis, WA, 41012 03-17272 Inventory from Churchill County, NV, 41012-41014 03-17273 Inventory from unknown site near New Dungeness, WA, 41011-41012 03-17270 Toledo Area Metropolitan Park District, OH— Inventory from Audubon Islands State Nature Preserve, OH; correction, 41014 03-17268 NRCS Natural Resources Conservation Service RULES Support activities:

Technical service provider assistance, 40751-40754 03-17260 Nuclear Nuclear Regulatory Commission NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 41023 03-17458 *Applications, hearings, determinations, etc.:* Entergy Operations, Inc., 41020-41022 03-17335 Tennessee Valley Authority, 41022-41023 03-17334 Virginia Electric & Power Co., 41023 03-17333 Pension Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation NOTICES Multiemployer plans: Sale of assets; bond/escrow requirement; exemption requests— Baseball Expos, L.P., 41024-41025 03-17349 Florida Marlins, L.P., 41025-41026 03-17350 Personnel Personnel Management Office NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 41026-41027 03-17382 Postal Postal Service RULES Domestic Mail Manual:

Customized MarketMail; classification changes, 40774-40782 03-17351 Refugee Refugee Resettlement Office NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.: Employment Subsidy Program for Refugees with Assimilation Difficulties, 40985-40991 03-17398 Refugee Microenterprise Development Program; correction, 40991 03-17397 SEC Securities and Exchange Commission NOTICES Self-regulatory organizations; proposed rule changes: Chicago Board Options Exchange, Inc., 41027-41030 03-17274 Depository Trust Co., 41030-41031 03-17355 Fixed Income Clearing Corp., 41031 03-17275 National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc., 41032-41033 03-17357 New York Stock Exchange, Inc., 41033-41035 03-17356 Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc., 41035-41036 03-17358 SBA Small Business Administration PROPOSED RULES Small business size standards:

Nonmanufacturer rule; waivers— Small arms ammunition manufacturing; termination, 40820-40821 03-17322 NOTICES Disaster loan areas: West Virginia, 41036 03-17256 West Virginia; correction, 41037 03-17255 State State Department NOTICES Gifts to Federal employees from foreign governments; list; correction, 41045 C3-15209 Transportation Transportation Department See Federal Aviation Administration See Federal Highway Administration See Federal Transit Administration See Maritime Administration Treasury Treasury Department See Internal Revenue Service NOTICES Meetings:

United States Postal Service, President's Commission, 41043 03-17278 Separate Parts In This Issue Part II Labor Department, 41047-41049 03-17326 Reader Aids Consult the Reader Aids section at the end of this issue for phone numbers, online resources, finding aids, reminders, and notice of recently enacted public laws. To subscribe to the Federal Register Table of Contents LISTSERV electronic mailing list, go to http://listserv.access.gpo.gov and select Online mailing list archives, FEDREGTOC-L, Join or leave the list (or change settings); then follow the instructions. 68 131 Wednesday, July 9, 2003 Rules and Regulations DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Natural Resources Conservation Service 7 CFR Part 652 Technical Service Provider Assistance AGENCY:

Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA. ACTION: Interim final rule with request for comments. SUMMARY: This rulemaking amends the technical service provider assistance interim final rule published in the **Federal Register** on November 21, 2002, by providing a limited exception to the certification and payment requirements when the Department is partnering with State, local, or tribal governments to carry out its duties to provide technical services. DATES: Effective date:

July 9, 2003. Comments on this amendment must be received by August 8, 2003. ADDRESSES: Send comments by mail to Melissa Hammond, Technical Service Provider Coordinator, Natural Resources Conservation Service, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, DC 20013, or by e-mail to: *melissa.hammond@usda.gov,* Attention: Technical Service Provider Assistance. This interim final rule may also be accessed via the Internet through the NRCS homepage at *http://www.nrcs.usda.gov,* by selecting Farm Bill 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melissa Hammond, Technical Service Provider Coordinator, Strategic Natural Resource Issues Staff, NRCS, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, DC 20013-2890; telephone:

(202)720-6731; fax:

(202)720-3052; submit e-mail to: *gary.gross@usda.gov,* Attention: Technical Service Provider Assistance. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Discussion This amendment is effective on the date published in the **Federal Register** in order to address the technical service delivery needs this fiscal year. The Department follows the Administrative Procedure Act

(APA)rulemaking procedures specified in 5 U.S.C. 553 in the development of Departmental regulations. The APA provides exceptions to its notice and public comment procedures when an agency finds there is good cause for dispensing with such procedures on the basis that they are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest. The Department has determined that, under 5 U.S.C., 553(b)(B) good cause exists for dispensing with the notice and public comment procedures for this rule. Good cause exists because this interim final rule preserves historical means of working with governmental entities necessary to carry out technical services. Not providing for traditional relationships in carrying out technical services will result in delay in carrying out technical services and therefore implementation of the Farm Bill conservation programs. It is not practical or in the public interest to delay implementation of the technical service provider process established as a result of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (2002 Farm Bill). The 2002 Farm Bill authorized several conservation programs and provided substantial funding to implement the programs. In order to accomplish implementation, significant technical services from the private sector and public agencies are needed. Without moving expeditiously to engage public agencies in addressing this workload this fiscal year, the technical assistance funds will not be available for program participants to plan and apply needed conservation practices during the current fiscal year. This exception facilitates this critical implementation. This limited exception does not reflect a change in the Department's commitment to developing a private sector technical service provider industry. The Department remains committed to developing private sector technical service providers. Also, this exception does not lower the technical standards public agencies must meet in order to be qualified to provide technical services through contribution agreements. Through this amendment, the Department is reaffirming its commitment to the certification process as set forth in 7 CFR part 652 while at the same time recognizing the long-standing, unique, and productive relationships the Department has had with those agencies in delivering technical services by providing for an exception to the certification process under certain limited circumstances and conditions. This limited exception does not change the qualifications or technical requirements for providing technical services. The only change is the method used to recognize those qualifications. Public agencies have qualified technical staff to provide technical services. The limited exception in the rule allows for the efficient and effective recognition of those qualifications. All comments submitted during this rulemaking will be considered during promulgation of a final rule. Section 1242 of the Food Security Act, as amended by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (2002 Farm Bill), require that the Secretary establish a system for approving individuals and entities to provide technical assistance to implement conservation programs under Title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985. At 7 CFR part 652, the Department set forth a process to approve individuals, private-sector entities, and public agencies as technical service providers through a technical service provider certification process. In this rulemaking, the Department is amending 7 CFR part 652 to provide for a limited exception to the certification and payment requirements when the Department is partnering with State, local, or tribal governments to assist the Department in carrying out its duties to provide technical services. This limited exception is necessary in order to continue the Department's long-standing, unique, and productive relationship with conservation districts and other governmental entities in the provision of technical assistance. This exception is only applicable when the Department is partnering with a State, local, or tribal government in carrying out the Department's duties to provide technical services. When a governmental entity seeks to compete for procurement contracts, or cooperative agreements with the Department, or seeks to provide technical services directly to a participant as a technical service provider, the certification requirements of 7 CFR part 652 apply. The Department has limited this exception to governmental entities and declined to expand the exception to non-governmental organizations and others for several reasons. First, the limited purpose of this amendment was to preserve and recognize the Department's long-standing, productive partnership with conservation districts and other governmental entities that have been critical in the Department's delivery of technical assistance. Government entities share the same general mission as the Department as they exist to serve the public. In addition, by carving out a limited exception, the Department also maintains the integrity of the certification process as set forth in 7 CFR part 652, which seeks to treat all parties who wish to provide technical services similarly. Moreover, the Department believes that it would be difficult to justify further expanding this exception in order to include particular groups within the private sector and not others. During the Dust Bowl days of the 1930s, Congress declared soil and water conservation a national priority, and established the Soil Erosion Service to provide temporary emergency assistance by soil and climate experts. The success of this effort led to the establishment of a permanent agency, the Soil Conservation Service, now the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Since the Federal government alone could not solve the problems faced by farmers and ranchers, the challenge was to determine a way to maintain a central national corps of erosion control expertise, while enabling local units of government, individuals, counties, States, and tribes to take the lead in solving the problems of soil erosion. To encourage landowners to adopt and promote land-conservation initiatives, in 1936, the United States Department of Agriculture

(USDA)created a template for State legislatures to consider in establishing conservation districts called the Standard State Soil Conservation District Law. The conservation district was classified as a “special district.” It had limited purposes, unlike a unit of general government, such as a county or city. The powers of the district included conducting surveys and research, disseminating information, conducting demonstrations of conservation practices, and carrying out prevention and control measures. The organization of conservation districts began after State legislatures passed laws based on the 1936 standard. Fifty-two states and territories have adopted conservation district legislation, allowing landowners to create their own districts. Many Native American tribes have also established conservation districts. Integral to the functioning of the conservation district are three-way mutual agreements between the Secretary of Agriculture, State and territorial governors or their designees, and each conservation district. Through the mutual agreements, USDA works with conservation districts to secure local guidance and gain approval for local delivery of conservation programs on the Nation's private lands. Also, NRCS enters into cooperative working agreements with conservation districts to define cooperation between NRCS and conservation districts in the conservation of natural resources. Trained NRCS conservationists work with individual farmers and ranchers, through conservation districts, to solve their specific conservation problems. Districts are governed by a board of directors who are owners or occupiers of land within the conservation district, and are locally elected or appointed. Additionally, each board may appoint several nonvoting associate directors. Board members carry out conservation activities within the district and meet regularly to conduct business. Conservation district employees hired by the district, such as district managers, clerks, conservationists, and technicians, aid in carrying out conservation activities. All conservation district employees are critical members of the local field office conservation team, and work directly and cooperatively with NRCS. District employees obtain training and engineering job approval authority from NRCS to carry out conservation planning and conservation practice implementation. They generally work under the direct technical guidance of NRCS. Conservation planning and application carried out by conservation district employees must meet NRCS policy, procedures, standards, and specifications and is subject to ongoing quality assurance. This relationship, or team effort, between NRCS and conservation districts dates back more than 60 years to the formation of districts, and constitutes a unique, long-standing, well-accepted, and successful partnership for addressing the conservation needs within the district. NRCS desires to continue this relationship with conservation districts and to approve conservation district employees to provide technical services through cooperative working agreements between NRCS and conservation districts, provided that the conservation district employees meet the requisite criteria for providing technical services. In order for conservation district employees to be approved to provide technical service provider technical services in partnership with the Department, they must meet the requirements and skill levels established in the cooperative working agreements prior to being covered under the terms of the cooperative working agreements. The cooperative working agreements will clearly describe the terms and conditions for conservation district employees to provide technical services, including items such as meeting NRCS standards and specifications for technical services and compliance with applicable laws and regulations. When the Department is contributing financial resources through a partnership with a conservation district, such a relationship must be memorialized by a contribution agreement which sets forth all the terms and conditions of the relationship, including scope of work, compliance with standards and applicable laws, etc. Conservation districts must contribute at least 50 percent of the resources needed for implementing the contribution agreement. While NRCS has a unique relationship with conservation districts, NRCS also has existing relationships with many other natural resource related public agencies and tribal agencies interested in providing technical services in partnership with the Department. Many public agencies have unique training and experience related to the delivery of specific conservation technical services that match the needs for technical services needed to plan and implement conservation systems and practices. To maintain those relationships, and to develop new relationships, NRCS may approve other public agency and tribal agency employees to provide technical services through the use of memoranda of understanding

(MOU)between NRCS and those natural resource related agencies interested in partnering with the Department to provide technical services, provided that the public agency employees meet the requisite criteria for providing technical services. In order for public agency employees to be approved to provide technical service provider technical services in partnership with the Department, under the terms of the MOU, they must first meet the requirements and skill levels established in the MOU. As is the case with conservation districts, when the Department contributes financial resources through a partnership with public and tribal agencies, the Department will enter into a contribution agreement memorializing and setting forth the terms of the relationship. Public agencies must contribute at least 50 percent of the technical resources needed for implementing the contribution agreement. The MOUs and contribution agreements with public and tribal agencies will reflect the terms and conditions for the public agency employees to provide technical services as technical service providers, including items such as meeting USDA standards and specifications, compliance with applicable laws and regulations and other applicable terms. Public and tribal agencies providing technical service provider assistance are liable for the technical services provided by their employees and must warrant the technical services provided. Regulatory Certifications Executive Order 12866 Pursuant to Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), it has been determined that this interim final rule is a significant regulatory action, and has been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Pursuant to Section 6(a)(3) of Executive Order 12866, NRCS conducted an economic analysis of the potential impacts associated with the interim final rule for Technical Service Provider Assistance published in the **Federal Register** on November 21, 2002, and included the analysis as part of a Regulatory Impact Analysis document prepared for that interim final rule. The provisions of this interim final rule do not alter the analysis that was originally prepared. A copy of the analysis is available upon request from Gary Gross, Resource Conservationist, Natural Resources Conservation Service, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, DC 20013-2890; or by e-mail to *gary.gross@usda.gov,* Attention: Technical Service Provider Assistance—Economic Analysis; or at the following web address: *http://www.nrcs.usda.gov.* Executive Order 12988 This interim final rule has been reviewed in accordance with Executive Order 12988. The provisions of this interim final rule are not retroactive. The U.S. Department of Agriculture

(USDA)has not identified any State or local laws that are in conflict with this regulation, or that would impede full implementation of this rule. In the event that such conflict is identified, the provisions of this interim final rule preempt State and local laws to the extent that such laws are inconsistent with this rule. Regulatory Flexibility Act The Regulatory Flexibility Act is not applicable to this rule because the Secretary of Agriculture is not required by 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other provision of law to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking with respect to the subject matter of this rule. National Environmental Policy Act The regulations promulgated by this rule do not authorize any action that may affect the human environment. Accordingly, an analysis of impacts under the National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. 4321 *et seq.* , has not been performed. This interim final rule will help implement new and existing USDA conservation programs, which are subject to the environmental analyses pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. Paperwork Reduction Act Section 2702 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 requires that the promulgation of regulations and the administration of Title II of said Act, which authorizes the use of certified technical service providers, be carried out without regard to Chapter 35 of Title 44 of the United States Code (commonly known as the Paperwork Reduction Act). Accordingly, these regulations, related forms, and other information collection activities needed to establish payment rates under these regulations, are not subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget under the Paperwork Reduction Act. NRCS is committed to compliance with the Government Paperwork Elimination Act

(GPEA)and the Freedom to E-File Act, which require government agencies, in general, to provide the public with the option of submitting information or transacting business electronically to the maximum extent possible, and to NRCS in particular. The forms and other information collection activities required for participation in technical services delivery under the technical service provider assistance rule, amended by this rule, are not fully implemented for the public to conduct business with NRCS electronically. However, the required standard forms discussed in this rule will be available electronically through the USDA eForms Web site, at *http://www.sc.egov.usda.gov,* for downloading. The regulation will be available at the NRCS homepage at *http://www.nrcs.usda.gov.* Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 Pursuant to Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995, Public Law 104-4, NRCS assessed the effects of this rulemaking action on State, local, and tribal governments, and the public. This action does not compel the expenditure of $100 million or more by any State, local, or tribal governments, or anyone in the private sector; therefore, a statement under Section 202 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 is not required. Federal Crop Insurance Reform and Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 Pursuant to Section 304 of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994, Public Law 104-354, USDA classified this interim final rule as not major. Civil Rights Impact Analysis A Civil Rights Impact Analysis was completed for the interim final rule for Technical Service Provider Assistance published in the **Federal Register** on November 21, 2002. The provisions of this interim final rule do not alter analysis that was originally prepared. The review revealed no factors indicating any disproportionate adverse civil rights impacts for participants in NRCS programs and services who are minorities, women, or persons with disabilities. A copy of this analysis is available upon request from Gary Gross, Resource Conservationist, Natural Resources Conservation Service, P.O. Box 2890, Washington, DC 20013-2890; or by e-mail to *gary.gross@usda.gov,* Attention: Technical Service Provider Assistance—Civil Rights Impact Analysis; or at the following web address: *http://www.nrcs.usda.gov.* List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 652 Natural Resources Conservation Service, Soil conservation, Technical assistance, Water resources. For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Natural Resources Conservation Service hereby amends Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations as set forth below: Accordingly, Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations part 652 is amended by adding a new section, 652.8, to subpart A. PART 652—TECHNICAL SERVICE PROVIDER ASSISTANCE 1. The authority citation for part 652 is revised to read as follows: Authority: 16 U.S.C. 3842, 7 U.S.C. 6962a. 2. Subpart A is amended by adding a new § 652.8 to read as follows: § 652.8 Limited Exception to Certification Requirements for State, Local and Tribal Government Partners.

(a)In carrying out its duties to deliver technical services, the Department may enter into agreements, as provided for below, with State, local, and tribal governments (including conservation districts) approving such governmental entities to provide technical services when the Department determines that such a partnership is an effective means to provide technical services.

(b)In the case of conservation districts, the cooperative working agreements between NRCS and the conservation districts will be amended to ensure that district employees have the requisite training or experience in order to provide technical services. For other governmental entities, the Department will enter into memoranda of understanding to ensure that employees of the governmental entity have the requisite training or experience to carry out the technical services. The governmental entity is not required to be certified under the provisions of this regulation in order to provide technical services nor do the other provisions of this regulation apply to any partnership relationship entered into under the authority of this section. The responsibilities of the parties will be governed by the terms of the cooperative working agreement or the memoranda of understanding and the contribution agreement, if any.

(c)Any cooperative working agreement entered into with a conservation district or any memoranda of understanding entered into with a State, local, or tribal government will set forth the specific terms of the Department's approval of such an entity to provide technical services in partnership with the Department, as well as the scope of the relationship. If the Department is providing any financial resources to effectuate such a partnership, the Department will use a contribution agreement to memorialize the relationship, which will include in its terms the requirement that any technical services provided will meet NRCS standards and specifications. Conservation districts and other governmental entities must contribute at least 50 percent of the resources needed for implementing the contribution agreement.

(d)Governmental entities that are technical service providers shall not be eligible to receive payment under a program contract or agreement for technical services provided to a program participant if the governmental entity has entered into a memorandum of understanding or contribution agreement under this section to provide technical services to that program participant. Signed in Washington, DC, on June 27, 2003. Bruce I. Knight, Chief, Natural Resources Conservation Service. [FR Doc. 03-17260 Filed 7-8-03; 8:45 am]

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U.S. Code