Unknown. Interim rule
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/register/2003/09/18/03-23857A 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-2003-09-18.xml --- 68 181 Thursday, September 18, 2003 Contents Agriculture Agriculture Department See Forest Service See Natural Resources Conservation Service Alcohol Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau PROPOSED RULES Alcohol; viticultural area designations: Douglas, Jackson, and Josephine Counties; OR, 54696-54700 03-23887 Centers Centers for Disease Control and Prevention NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 03-23825 54732-54733 03-23826 Coast Guard Coast Guard RULES Regattas and marine parades:
Chesapeake Challenge, Choptank River, MD, 54662-54664 03-23777 James River Cancer Swim, 54660-54662 03-23778 PROPOSED RULES Ports and waterways safety: San Francisco Bay, CA; regulated navigation area, 54700-54704 03-23414 Commerce Commerce Department See Economics and Statistics Administration See Foreign-Trade Zones Board See Industry and Security Bureau See National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54715-54716 03-23865 03-23869 Comptroller Comptroller of the Currency NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54785-54787 03-23802 Economics Economics and Statistics Administration NOTICES Meetings:
Economic Analysis Bureau Advisory Committee, 54716-54717 03-23700 Education Education Department NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.: Postsecondary Education— Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education Comprehensive Program (2004 FY), 54719-54722 03-23889 Employee Employee Benefits Security Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54742 03-23842 Energy Energy Department See Federal Energy Regulatory Commission EPA Environmental Protection Agency RULES Air pollutants, hazardous; national emission standards:
Asbestos, 54789-54793 03-23846 Air programs: Stratospheric ozone protection— Refrigerant recycling; correction, 54677-54678 03-23850 Air quality implementation plans; approval and promulgation; various States; air quality planning purposes; designation of areas: New Mexico, 54672-54677 03-23747 PROPOSED RULES Air pollutants, hazardous; national emission standards: Asbestos, 54793-54796 03-23847 Air quality implementation plans; approval and promulgation; various States; air quality planning purposes; designation of areas:
New Mexico, 54705 03-23748 NOTICES Meetings: Water-efficient products; market enhancement opportunities; stakeholders, 54728 03-23851 Executive Executive Office of the President See National Drug Control Policy Office FAA Federal Aviation Administration RULES Airworthiness directives: Eurocopter France, 54653-54654 03-23830 Turbomeca S.A.; correction, 54653 03-23816 PROPOSED RULES Airworthiness directives: Airbus, 03-23831 54691-54696 03-23832 Boeing, 54680-54682, 54684-54686 03-23820 03-23822 Eurocopter France, 54686-54690 03-23834 03-23835 McDonnell Douglas, 54682-54684, 54690-54691 03-23821 03-23833 NOTICES Administrative regulations:
Aviation Safety Action Program information; protection from disclosure, 54767-54771 03-23769 Advisory circulars; availability, etc.: Certification of Part 23 airplanes; flight test guide, 54771 03-23871 Passenger facility charges; applications, etc.: MBS International Airport, MI, 54771-54772 03-23872 Tulsa International Airport, OK, 54772 03-23770 Reports and guidance documents; availability, etc.: Aircraft rescue and fire fighters; mobile live fire training, 54772-54774 03-23873 FCC Federal Communications Commission RULES Radio services, special:
Private land mobile services— 150-170 and 421-512 MHz frequencies; transition to narrowband technology; correction, 54678-54679 03-23794 NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54728-54729 03-23796 FDIC Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54785-54787 03-23802 Federal Energy Federal Energy Regulatory Commission NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54722-54723 03-23805 Electric utilities (Federal Power Act):
Undue discrimination; remedying through open access transmission service and standard electricity market design; technical conferences, 54725-54726 03-23814 Hydroelectric applications, 54726-54727 03-23806 03-23807 Meetings: El Paso Natural Gas Co.; tariff compliance filing; technical conference, 54728 03-23808 *Applications, hearings, determinations, etc.:* ANR Pipeline Co., 54723 03-23810 Dominion Cove Point LNG, LP, 54723-54724 03-23809 Georgia Strait Crossing Pipeline LP, 54724 03-23804 Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., 54724-54725 03-23813 TransColorado Gas Transmission Co., 54725 03-23811 Williston Basin Interstate Pipeline Co., 54725 03-23812 Federal Highway Federal Highway Administration NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent:
Placer and Sutter Counties, CA, 54774-54775 03-23836 FMC Federal Maritime Commission NOTICES Casualty and nonperformance certificates: American West Steamboat Co. LLC et al., 54729-54730 03-23788 Discovery World Cruises Inc. et al., 54730 03-23787 Ocean transportation intermediary licenses: Cargo Carriers Ltd. et al., 54730 03-23786 Caribbean Cold Storage, Inc, et al., 54730-54731 03-23785 United Global Services
(NY)Corp. et al., 54731 03-23784 Federal Motor Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration NOTICES Motor carrier safety standards: Driver qualifications— Black, Grady L., Jr., et al.; vision requirement exemption applications, 54775-54776 03-23881 Federal Railroad Federal Railroad Administration NOTICES Exemption petitions, etc.: Michigan State Trust Railway Preservation, Inc., 54776-54777 03-23772 Railroad Safety Advisory Committee; working group activity update, 54777-54779 03-23773 Federal Reserve Federal Reserve System NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54785-54787 03-23802 Banks and bank holding companies: Change in bank control, 54731 03-23818 Formations, acquisitions, and mergers, 54731-54732 03-23819 Food Food and Drug Administration RULES Animal drugs, feeds, and related products: Ractopamine, 54658-54660 03-23892 Sponsor name and address changes— Delmarva Laboratories, Inc., 54658 03-23779 NOTICES Meetings: Biological Response Modifiers Advisory Committee, 54733-54734 03-23780 Veterinary Medicine Advisory Committee, 54734 03-23781 Reports and guidance documents; availability, etc.: Donor suitability and blood product safety in cases of suspected severe acute respiratory syndrome or exposure to SARS; assessment recommendations, 54734-54735 03-23890 MISSING FOR: Foreign-Trade Zones Board Foreign-Trade Zones Board NOTICES *Applications, hearings, determinations, etc.:* Indiana, 54717 03-23860 Forest Forest Service NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent: Daniel Boone National Forest, KY, 54706-54707 03-23815 Huron-Mainstee National Forests et al., MI, 54707-54715 03-22252 Umpqua National Forest, OR; canceled, 54715 03-23824 Health Health and Human Services Department See Centers for Disease Control and Prevention See Food and Drug Administration See Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Homeland Homeland Security Department See Coast Guard Housing Housing and Urban Development Department NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54736-54737 03-23883 03-23884 Organization, functions, and authority delegations: Public Housing Hub Directors et al.; supersedure and redelegation of authority, 54737-54739 03-23882 Industry Industry and Security Bureau RULES Export administration regulations: Revisions based on 2002 missile technology control regime plenary agreements, 54655-54658 03-23888 Interior Interior Department See Land Management Bureau See Minerals Management Service IRS Internal Revenue Service RULES Income taxes, etc.: Automatic time extension to file certain information returns and exempt organization returns; correction, 54660 03-23876 NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 03-23877 54787-54788 03-23878 03-23879 International International Trade Commission NOTICES Import investigations: Plastic grocery and retail bags, 54740 03-23803 Senior Executive Service: Performance Review Board; membership, 54740 03-23861 Justice Justice Department NOTICES Pollution control; consent judgments: Bollman Trucking Co. et al., 54740-54741 03-23790 Madison County Executive Airport Authority, 54741 03-23789 Labor Labor Department See Employee Benefits Security Administration See Labor Statistics Bureau NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54741-54742 03-23844 Labor Labor Statistics Bureau NOTICES Meetings: Federal Economic Statistics Advisory Committee, 54743 03-23843 Land Land Management Bureau NOTICES Public land orders: Colorado, 54739 03-23827 Merit Merit Systems Protection Board RULES Practice and procedure: Expeditious adjudication of appeals, 54651-54652 03-23857 Minerals Minerals Management Service NOTICES Royalty management: Audit, inspection, and investigation delegation to States— Alaska, 54739-54740 03-23858 NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration RULES Grants and cooperative agreements: NASA Grant and Cooperative Agreement Handbook; format and numbering scheme, 54654-54655 03-23862 National Drug National Drug Control Policy Office NOTICES Meetings: New England Governor's Summit, 54743 03-23838 Senior Executive Service: Performance Review Board; membership, 54743 03-23801 National Highway National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NOTICES Motor vehicle safety standards: Nonconforming vehicles— Defect and noncompliance decisions; annual list, 54779-54784 03-23776 Motor vehicle safety standards; exemption petitions, etc.: Mazda North American Operations, 54784-54785 03-23875 NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54717-54718 03-23863 03-23864 Permits: Scientific research, 54718-54719 03-23870 National Science National Science Foundation NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent: High-energy neutrino telescope, South Pole, Antarctica, 54743-54745 03-23856 NRCS Natural Resources Conservation Service NOTICES Field office technical guides; changes: Louisiana, 54715 03-23793 Nuclear Nuclear Regulatory Commission NOTICES Operating licenses, amendments; no significant hazards considerations; biweekly notices, 54747-54757 03-23251 Petitions; Director's decisions: FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co., 54757-54758 03-23840 *Applications, hearings, determinations, etc.:* Carolina Power & Light Co., 54745 03-23839 Tennessee Valley Authority, 54745-54747 03-23841 National Office of National Drug Control Policy See National Drug Control Policy Office Postal Postal Service RULES Domestic Mail Manual: Parcel return services experiment, 54664-54672 03-23917 SEC Securities and Exchange Commission NOTICES Self-regulatory organizations; proposed rule changes: American Stock Exchange LLC, 54758-54761 03-23798 Emerging Markets Clearing Corp., 54761-54762 03-23800 National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc., 54762-54763 03-23799 State State Department NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.: Middle East and North Africa— Educational Advising Program, 54764-54766 03-23859 Substance Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration NOTICES Meetings: Substance Abuse Prevention Center National Advisory Council, 54735-54736 03-23783 Substance Abuse Treatment Center National Advisory Council, 54736 03-23782 Thrift Thrift Supervision Office NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 54785-54787 03-23802 Transportation Transportation Department See Federal Aviation Administration See Federal Highway Administration See Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration See Federal Railroad Administration See National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NOTICES Aviation proceedings: Agreements filed; weekly receipts, 54766 03-23774 Certificates of public convenience and necessity and foreign air carrier permits; weekly applications, 54766-54767 03-23775 Treasury Treasury Department See Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau See Comptroller of the Currency See Internal Revenue Service See Thrift Supervision Office Veterans Veterans Affairs Department PROPOSED RULES Freedom of Information Act; implementation; withdrawn, 54704-54705 03-23626 Separate Parts In This Issue Part II Environmental Protection Agency, 54789-54796 03-23846 03-23847 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. 68 181 Thursday, September 18, 2003 Rules and Regulations MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD 5 CFR Part 1201 Practices and Procedures AGENCY: Merit Systems Protection Board. ACTION: Interim rule. SUMMARY: The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB or the Board) is amending several provisions of its practices and procedures regulations to improve the agency's service to its customers by facilitating the expeditious adjudication of appeals. The amendments allow the judge to grant a joint or unilateral request for suspension of a case for only one 30-day period rather than two 30-day periods. Moreover, the amended regulations no longer provide for the automatic granting of such requests; instead, requests for the suspension of a case may be granted at the discretion of the judge. As a result of these amendments, the maximum amount of time that a case may be suspended has been reduced from 60 to 30 days. The amended regulations also impose a condition on the judge's exercise of discretion in granting unilateral requests for an additional suspension period. Such requests may be granted for good cause shown pursuant to the amended regulations. The amended regulations also specify a 30-day limit on the amount of time the judge may grant for a unilateral request. Two new subsections have also been added to the regulations governing discovery procedures. These subsections permit the administrative judge to impose limits on the frequency or extent of the use of discovery methods and the number of discovery requests. The Board has decided to follow the guidance of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in adopting these changes to its discovery procedures. The regulations governing discovery procedures have also been amended to reduce the number of days for filing subsequent discovery requests from 10 days to 7 days. DATES: Effective date: September 18, 2003. Submit written comments on or before October 20, 2003. ADDRESSES: Send comments to Bentley M. Roberts, Jr., Clerk of the Board, Merit Systems Protection Board, 1615 M Street, NW., Washington, DC 20419;
(202)653-7200, fax:
(202)653-7130 or e-mail: *mspb@mspb.gov.* FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bentley M. Roberts, Jr., Clerk of the Board, Merit Systems Protection Board, 1615 M Street, NW., Washington, DC 20419;
(202)653-7200, fax:
(202)653-7130 or e-mail: *mspb@mspb.gov.* SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: These changes in the Board's rules of practice and procedure respond in part to the directives contained in the President's Management Agenda (2002). The President's management reform initiative directs agencies to “reshape their organizations to meet a standard of excellence in attaining the outcomes important to the nation.” Among other actions, agencies are directed to reduce the time they take to make decisions. Both appellants and agencies have also expressed concern about the amount of time it takes to adjudicate or otherwise process a case through the Board. As a result, the Board has reviewed its practice and procedure regulations and determined that certain timelines affecting the adjudication process could be shortened without adverse effects on the rights of the parties to a fair and impartial adjudication of appeals before the Board. List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 1201 Administrative practice and procedure, Civil rights, Government employees. Accordingly, the Board amends 5 CFR part 1201 as follows: PART 1201—[AMENDED] 1. The authority citation for part 1201 continues to read as follows: Authority: 5 U.S.C. 1204 and 7701, unless otherwise noted. 2. Revise § 1201.28 to read as follows: § 1201.28 Case suspension procedures.
(a)*Joint requests.* The parties may submit a joint request for additional time to pursue discovery or settlement. Upon receipt of such request, an order suspending processing of the case for a period up to 30 days may be issued at the discretion of the judge.
(b)*Unilateral requests.* In lieu of participating in a joint request, either party may submit a unilateral request for additional time to pursue discovery as provided in this subpart. Unilateral requests for additional time of up to 30 days may be granted for good cause shown at the discretion of the judge.
(c)*Time for filing requests.* The parties must file a joint request that the adjudication of the appeal be suspended within 45 days of the date of the acknowledgment order (or within 7 days of the appellant's receipt of the agency file, whichever date is later).
(d)*Untimely requests.* The judge may consider requests for suspensions that are filed after the time limit set forth in paragraph
(c)of this section. Such requests may be granted at the discretion of the judge.
(e)*Early termination of suspension period.* The suspension period may be terminated prior to the end of the agreed upon period if the parties request the judge's assistance relative to discovery or settlement during the suspension period and the judge's involvement pursuant to that request is likely to be extensive.
(f)*Limitation on suspension period.* No case may be suspended for more than a total of 30 days under the provisions of this section. 3. Revise §§ 1201.72 and 1201.73 to read as follows: § 1201.72 Explanation and scope of discovery.
(a)*Explanation.* Discovery is the process, apart from the hearing, by which a party may obtain relevant information, including the identification of potential witnesses, from another person or a party, that the other person or party has not otherwise provided. Relevant information includes information that appears reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence. This information is obtained to assist the parties in preparing and presenting their cases. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure may be used as a general guide for discovery practices in proceedings before the Board. Those rules, however, are instructive rather than controlling.
(b)*Scope.* Discovery covers any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to the issues involved in the appeal, including the existence, description, nature, custody, condition, and location of documents or other tangible things, and the identity and location of persons with knowledge of relevant facts. Discovery requests that are directed to nonparties and nonparty Federal agencies and employees are limited to information that appears directly material to the issues involved in the appeal.
(c)*Methods.* Parties may use one or more of the methods provided under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. These methods include written interrogatories, depositions, requests for production of documents or things for inspection or copying, and requests for admission.
(d)*Limitations.* The judge may limit the frequency or extent of use of the discovery methods permitted by these regulations. Such limitations may be imposed if the judge finds that the discovery sought is:
(1)Cumulative or duplicative, or is obtainable from some other source that is more convenient, less burdensome, or less expensive;
(2)The party seeking discovery has had sufficient opportunity by discovery in the action to obtain the information sought; or
(3)The burden or expense of the proposed discovery outweighs its likely benefit. § 1201.73 Discovery procedures.
(a)*Discovery from a party.* A party seeking discovery from another party must start the process by serving a request for discovery on the representative of the other party or the party if there is no representative. The request for discovery must state the time limit for responding, as prescribed in § 1201.73(d), and must specify the time and place of the taking of the deposition, if applicable. When a party directs a request for discovery to an officer or employee of a Federal agency that is a party, the agency must make the officer or employee available on official time to respond to the request, and must assist the officer or employee as necessary in providing relevant information that is available to the agency.
(b)*Discovery from a nonparty, including a nonparty Federal agency.* Parties should try to obtain voluntary discovery from nonparties whenever possible. A party seeking discovery from a nonparty Federal agency or employee must start the process by serving a request for discovery on the nonparty Federal agency or employee. A party may begin discovery from other nonparties by serving a request for discovery on the nonparty directly. If the party seeking the information does not make that request, or if it does so but fails to obtain voluntary cooperation, it may obtain discovery from a nonparty by filing a written motion with the judge, showing the relevance, scope, and materiality of the particular information sought. If the party seeks to take a deposition, it should state in the motion the date, time, and place of the proposed deposition. An authorized official of the Board will issue a ruling on the motion, and will serve the ruling on the moving party. That official also will provide that party with a subpoena, if approved, that is directed to the individual or entity from which discovery is sought. The subpoena will specify the manner in which the party may seek compliance with it, and it will specify the time limit for seeking compliance. The party seeking the information is responsible for serving any Board-approved discovery request and subpoena on the individual or entity, or for arranging for their service.
(c)*Responses to discovery requests.*
(1)A party, or a Federal agency that is not a party, must answer a discovery request within the time provided under paragraph (d)(2) of this section, either by furnishing to the requesting party the information or testimony requested or agreeing to make deponents available to testify within a reasonable time, or by stating an objection to the particular request and the reasons for the objection. Non-parties may respond to discovery requests by electronic mail if authorized by the requesting party.
(2)If a party fails or refuses to respond in full to a discovery request, or if a nonparty fails or refuses to respond in full to a Board-approved discovery order, the requesting party may file a motion to compel discovery. The requesting party must file the motion with the judge, and must serve a copy of the motion on the other party and on any nonparty entity or person from whom the discovery was sought. The motion must be accompanied by:
(i)A copy of the original request and a statement showing that the information sought is relevant and material; and
(ii)A copy of the response to the request (including the objections to discovery) or, where appropriate, a statement that no response has been received, along with an affidavit or sworn statement under 28 U.S.C. 1746 supporting the statement. ( *See* appendix IV to part 1201.)
(3)The other party and any other entity or person from whom discovery was sought may respond to the motion to compel discovery within the time limits stated in paragraph (d)(4) of this section.
(d)*Time limits.*
(1)Parties who wish to make discovery requests or motions must serve their initial requests or motions within 25 days after the date on which the judge issues an order to the respondent agency to produce the agency file and response.
(2)A party or nonparty must file a response to a discovery request promptly, but not later than 20 days after the date of service of the request or order of the judge. Any discovery requests following the initial request must be served within 7 days of the date of service of the prior response, unless the parties are otherwise directed. Deposition witnesses must give their testimony at the time and place stated in the request for deposition or in the subpoena, unless the parties agree on another time or place.
(3)Any motion to depose a nonparty (along with a request for a subpoena) must be submitted to the judge within the time limits stated in paragraph (d)(1) of this section or as the judge otherwise directs.
(4)Any motion for an order to compel discovery must be filed with the judge within 10 days of the date of service of objections or, if no response is received, within 10 days after the time limit for response has expired. Any pleading in opposition to a motion to compel discovery must be filed with the judge within 10 days of the date of service of the motion.
(5)Discovery must be completed within the time the judge designates.
(e)*Limits on the number of discovery requests.*
(1)Absent prior approval by the judge, interrogatories served by parties upon another party or a nonparty may not exceed 25 in number, including all discrete subparts.
(2)Absent prior approval by the judge, parties may not take more than 10 depositions.
(3)Requests to exceed the limitations set forth in paragraphs
(a)and
(b)of this section may be granted at the discretion of the judge. In considering such requests, the judge shall consider the factors identified in § 1201.72(d) of this part. Dated: September 15, 2003. Bentley M. Roberts, Jr., Clerk of the Board. [FR Doc. 03-23857 Filed 9-17-03; 8:45 am]
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