Unknown. Final rule

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--- schema: federal-register doc_type: fedreg source_file: FR-2012-12-19.xml --- 77 244 Wednesday, December 19, 2012 Contents Agency Agency for International Development NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75105 2012-30612 Agriculture Agriculture Department See Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service See Food and Nutrition Service See Food Safety and Inspection Service See Forest Service See National Agricultural Statistics Service See Rural Housing Service NOTICES Renewals and Requests for Nominations:

Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers, 75105-75106 2012-30471 Animal Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service RULES Importation of Sand Pears from China, 75007-75011 2012-30532 Antitrust Division Antitrust Division NOTICES Membership Changes under the National Cooperative Research and Production Act: Connected Media Experience, Inc., 75190-75191 2012-30620 ODVA, Inc., 75191 2012-30618 Antitrust See Antitrust Division Arts and Humanities, National Foundation See National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Blind or Severely Disabled, Committee for Purchase From People Who Are See Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled Centers Disease Centers for Disease Control and Prevention NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities;

Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75165-75169 2012-30560 2012-30562 2012-30563 2012-30564 Information and Comment Requests: Silver Nanoparticles (AgNPs), 75169-75171 2012-30515 Children Children and Families Administration NOTICES Data Collections: Mother and Infant Home Visiting Program Evaluation—Strong Start, 75171 2012-30367 Coast Guard Coast Guard RULES Safety Zones: Gilmerton Bridge Center Span Float-in, Elizabeth River; Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Chesapeake, VA; Correction, 75016-75017 2012-30507 Security Zones:

On the Waters in Kailua Bay, Oahu, HI, 75017-75019 2012-30628 PROPOSED RULES Safety Zones: Woldenburg Park, Mississippi River, New Orleans, LA, 75079-75082 2012-30626 Commerce Commerce Department See Foreign-Trade Zones Board See Industry and Security Bureau See International Trade Administration See National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration See Patent and Trademark Office NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 2012-30504 75143-75144 2012-30535 2012-30536 Committee for Purchase Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled NOTICES Appointments to Performance Review Board for Senior Executive Service, 75150 2012-30477 Comptroller Comptroller of the Currency NOTICES Joint Report:

Differences in Accounting and Capital Standards Among the Federal Banking Agencies; Report to Congressional Committees, 75259-75263 2012-30608 Defense Department Defense Department PROPOSED RULES Federal Acquisition Regulation: Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors, 75089-75091 2012-30550 NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Federal Acquisition Regulation; Anti-Kickback Procedures, 75164-75165 2012-30559 Federal Acquisition Regulation;

Contract Funding—Limitation of Costs/Funds, 75163-75164 2012-30514 Meetings: Task Force on Care, Management, and Transition of Recovering Wounded, Ill, and Injured Members of Armed Forces, 75150-75151 2012-30522 Drug Drug Enforcement Administration PROPOSED RULES Schedules of Controlled Substances: Placement of Lorcaserin into Schedule IV, 75075-75079 2012-30531 Education Department Education Department NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75151 2012-30508 Agency Information Collection Activities;

Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Foreign Graduate Medical School Consumer Information Reporting Form, 75151-75152 2012-30509 Employee Benefits Employee Benefits Security Administration NOTICES Approval for South Carolina for Avoidance of 2012 Credit Reduction under the Federal Unemployment Tax Act, 75195 2012-30518 Employment and Training Employment and Training Administration NOTICES Meetings: Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship, 75195-75196 2012-30529 Environmental Protection Environmental Protection Agency RULES Approvals and Promulgations of Implementation Plans:

South Carolina 110(a)(1) and

(2)Infrastructure Requirements for the 1997 and 2006 Fine Particulate Matter National Ambient Air Quality Standards; Correction, 75035-75037 2012-30437 Difenzoquat; Data Call-in Order for Pesticide Tolerances, 75037-75039 2012-30617 Pesticide Tolerances: Propiconazole, 75039-75045 2012-30447 PROPOSED RULES Pesticide Petitions Filed for Residues of Pesticide Chemicals in or on Various Commodities, 75082-75085 2012-30450 Significant New Use Rule: Ethoxylated, Propoxylated Diamine Diaryl Substituted Phenylmethane Ester with Alkenylsuccinate, Dialkylethanolamine Salt, 75085-75089 2012-30355 NOTICES Meetings: Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Committee, 75152 2012-30582 Pesticide Products: Registration Applications, 75152-75153 2012-30434 Registration Applications to Register New Uses, 75153-75155 2012-30614 Product Cancellation Order for Certain Pesticide Registrations, 75155-75157 2012-30433 Reports; Availability, etc.: Seventy-First Report of the TSCA Interagency Testing Committee to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, 75350-75353 2012-30615 Requests to Voluntarily Cancel Certain Pesticide Registrations, 75157-75159 2012-30357 Executive Office of the President See Presidential Documents Federal Aviation Federal Aviation Administration PROPOSED RULES Airworthiness Directives: Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH Helicopters, 75073-75075 2012-30588 Special Conditions: Airbus, A350-900 Series Airplane; Flight Envelope Protection (Icing and Non-icing conditions); High Incidence Protection and Alpha-floor Systems, 75066-75071 2012-30441 Embraer S.A., Model EMB-550 Airplanes; Electrical/Electronic Equipment Bay Fire Detection and Smoke Penetration, 75071-75073 2012-30493 NOTICES List of Units of the National Park System Exempt from the Provisions of the National Parks Air Tour Management Act, 75254 2012-30561 Federal Communications Federal Communications Commission NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75159-75160 2012-30597 Federal Deposit Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Foreign Banks, 75160-75161 2012-30445 Joint Report: Differences in Accounting and Capital Standards Among the Federal Banking Agencies; Report to Congressional Committees, 75259-75263 2012-30608 Federal Election Federal Election Commission NOTICES Filing Dates: Illinois Special Election in 2nd Congressional District, 75161-75162 2012-30505 Federal Highway Federal Highway Administration NOTICES Final Federal Agency Action on Proposed Transportation Project in Illinois, 75254-75255 2012-30472 Federal Maritime Federal Maritime Commission NOTICES Agreements Filed, 75162 2012-30579 Ocean Transportation Intermediary License Applicants, 75162-75163 2012-30573 Federal Railroad Federal Railroad Administration RULES Locomotive Safety Standards, 75045-75057 2012-30289 Federal Reserve Federal Reserve System NOTICES Changes in Bank Control: Acquisitions of Shares of Bank or Bank Holding Company, 75163 2012-30525 Formations of, Acquisitions by, and Mergers of Savings and Loan Holding Companies, 75163 2012-30526 Joint Report: Differences in Accounting and Capital Standards Among the Federal Banking Agencies; Report to Congressional Committees, 75259-75263 2012-30608 Fiscal Fiscal Service NOTICES Surety Companies Acceptable on Federal Bonds; Terminations: Ullico Casualty Co., 75263 2012-30422 Universal Insurance Co., 75263 2012-30421 Fish Fish and Wildlife Service RULES Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants: Termination of Southern Sea Otter Translocation Program, 75266-75297 2012-30486 PROPOSED RULES Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants: 90-day Finding on a Petition to Delist the Southern Selkirk Mountains Population of Woodland Caribou, 75091-75093 2012-30554 NOTICES Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants: Enhancement of Survival Permit Application; Draft Black-footed Ferret Programmatic Safe Harbor Agreement and Environmental Assessment, 75185-75186 2012-30470 Food and Drug Food and Drug Administration NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Emergency Use Authorization of Medical Products, 75171-75173 2012-30513 Comprehensive Assessment of Process for Review of Device Submissions; Request for Comments, 75173-75174 2012-30511 Draft Guidances for Industry; Availability: Providing Submissions in Electronic Format, etc., 75174-75176 2012-30510 Meetings: Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committee, 75176-75177 2012-30517 Public Hearings: Impact of Approved Drug Labeling on Chronic Opioid Therapy, 75177-75179 2012-30516 Food and Nutrition Food and Nutrition Service NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Claim for Reimbursement (National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs), etc., 75112-75117 2012-30556 Federal Claims Collection Methods for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Recipient Claims, 75117-75118 2012-30599 Generic Clearance to Conduct Formative Research, 75110-75112 2012-30549 Summer Food Service Program, 75106-75110 2012-30543 Food Safety Food Safety and Inspection Service NOTICES Meetings: National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection, 75118-75119 2012-30530 Foreign Trade Foreign-Trade Zones Board NOTICES Applications for Expansion under Alternative Site Framework: Foreign-Trade Zone 277, (New Magnet Site) Western Maricopa County, AZ, 75144-75145 2012-30567 Applications for Subzones: Sea World Inc., Foreign-Trade Zone 61, Guaynabo, PR, 75145 2012-30557 Forest Forest Service NOTICES Environmental Impact Statements; Availability, etc.: Oil and Gas Development, Dakota Prairie Grasslands, ND, 75119-75120 2012-30407 Meetings: Black Hills National Forest Advisory Board, 75120 2012-30586 General Services General Services Administration PROPOSED RULES Federal Acquisition Regulation: Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors, 75089-75091 2012-30550 NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Federal Acquisition Regulation; Anti-Kickback Procedures, 75164-75165 2012-30559 Federal Acquisition Regulation; Contract Funding—Limitation of Costs/Funds, 75163-75164 2012-30514 Health and Human Health and Human Services Department See Centers for Disease Control and Prevention See Children and Families Administration See Food and Drug Administration See National Institutes of Health See Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Homeland Homeland Security Department See Coast Guard See U.S. Customs and Border Protection PROPOSED RULES Standards to Prevent, Detect, and Respond to Sexual Abuse and Assault in Confinement Facilities, 75300-75347 2012-29916 NOTICES Meetings: Presidents National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee, 75182 2012-30558 Housing Housing and Urban Development Department NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Healthy Housing Demonstration Grantees, 75184-75185 2012-30600 Industry Industry and Security Bureau RULES Revisions to Authorization Validated End-User Provisions: Requirement for Notice of Export, Reexport or Transfer (In-Country) and Clarification Regarding Termination of Conditions on VEU Authorizations, 75011-75014 2012-30482 NOTICES Impact of Implementation of Chemical Weapons Convention on Commercial Activities Involving Schedule 1 Chemicals, 75145-75147 2012-30480 Interior Interior Department See Fish and Wildlife Service See Land Management Bureau See National Park Service See Ocean Energy Management Bureau Internal Revenue Internal Revenue Service RULES Guidance Regarding Deduction and Capitalization of Expenditures Related to Tangible Property, 75016 2012-30490 International Trade Adm International Trade Administration NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Interim Procedures for Considering Requests under the Commercial Availability Provision of the United States-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement, 75147-75148 2012-30555 Limitations of Duty-Free Imports: Apparel Articles Assembled in Haiti, 75148 2012-30341 Requests for Applications: United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, 75148-75150 2012-30309 International Trade Com International Trade Commission NOTICES Investigations: Certain Food Containers, Cups, Plates, Cutlery, and Related Items and Packaging Thereof, 75187-75188 2012-30524 Certain Video Analytics Software, Systems, Components Thereof, and Products Containing Same, 75188-75189 2012-30488 Terminations of Investigations: Certain Electronic Devices Having A Retractable USB Connector, 75189 2012-30534 Certain Light-Emitting Diodes and Products Containing Same, 2012-30444 75189-75190 2012-30446 Justice Department Justice Department See Antitrust Division See Drug Enforcement Administration Labor Department Labor Department See Employee Benefits Security Administration See Employment and Training Administration See Labor Statistics Bureau NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Applications, Grants, and Administration of Short Time Compensation Provisions, 75193 2012-30491 Iqbal Masih Award for the Elimination of Child Labor, 75194-75195 2012-30570 Pell Grants and the Payment of Unemployment Benefits to Individuals in Approved Training, 75192-75193 2012-30569 Pharmacy Billing Requirements, 75193-75194 2012-30565 Records of Preshift and Onshift Inspections of Slope and Shaft Areas of Slope and Shaft Sinking Operations at Coal Mines, 75191-75192 2012-30568 Labor Statistics Labor Statistics Bureau NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75196-75198 2012-30523 Land Land Management Bureau NOTICES Closures: Target Shooting Public Safety Closure on Lake Mountains in Utah County, UT, 75186-75187 2012-30571 Millenium Millennium Challenge Corporation NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 75198 2012-30705 NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration PROPOSED RULES Federal Acquisition Regulation: Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors, 75089-75091 2012-30550 NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Federal Acquisition Regulation; Anti-Kickback Procedures, 75164-75165 2012-30559 Federal Acquisition Regulation; Contract Funding—Limitation of Costs/Funds, 75163-75164 2012-30514 National Agricultural National Agricultural Statistics Service NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75120-75121 2012-30506 National Foundation National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities NOTICES Meetings: Humanities Panel, 75198 2012-30521 National Highway National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75255-75257 2012-30621 Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Medium- and Heavy-Duty Truck Fleet Survey, 75257-75258 2012-30520 National Institute National Institutes of Health NOTICES Meetings: National Center For Advancing Translational Sciences, 75180 2012-30457 National Heart, Lung, And Blood Institute, 75180-75181 2012-30456 National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, 75181 2012-30458 National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2012-30453 75179-75180 2012-30454 National Oceanic National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RULES Fisheries of the Northeastern United States: Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Fishery, 75057-75064 2012-30589 Schedule of Fees for Access to NOAA Environmental Data, Information, and Related Products and Services, 75014-75016 2012-30519 PROPOSED RULES Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic: Snapper-Grouper Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 18B, 75093-75101 2012-30566 Fisheries Off West Coast States: West Coast Salmon Fisheries; Amendment 17 to the Salmon Fishery Management Plan, 75101-75104 2012-30598 National Park National Park Service NOTICES List of Units of the National Park System Exempt from the Provisions of the National Parks Air Tour Management Act, 75254 2012-30561 Nuclear Regulatory Nuclear Regulatory Commission PROPOSED RULES Rescinding Spent Fuel Pool Exclusion Regulations, 75065-75066 2012-30528 NOTICES Standard Format and Content for Post-Shutdown Decommissioning Activities Report, 75198-75199 2012-30610 Ocean Energy Management Ocean Energy Management Bureau NOTICES Determinations of No Competitive Interest: Offshore Maine, 75187 2012-30624 Patent Patent and Trademark Office RULES Changes to Implement Micro Entity Status for Paying Patent Fees, 75019-75035 2012-30674 Postal Regulatory Postal Regulatory Commission NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 75199-75200 2012-30606 New International Mail Contracts, 75200 2012-30487 Presidential Documents Presidential Documents PROCLAMATIONS Special Observances: Bill of Rights Day (Proc. 8916), 75355-75358 2012-30740 Honoring the Victims of the Tragedy in Newtown, CT (Proc. 8917), 75359 2012-30744 Public Debt Public Debt Bureau See Fiscal Service Rural Housing Service Rural Housing Service NOTICES Funding Availabilities: Multi-Family Housing Preservation and Revitalization Demonstration Program for Fiscal Year 2013, 75121-75143 2012-30190 Saint Lawrence Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation NOTICES Meetings: Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Advisory Board, 75258-75259 2012-30580 Securities Securities and Exchange Commission NOTICES Applications: Adams Express Co. and Petroleum and Resources Corp., 75207-75211 2012-30548 Alliance Bernstein Active ETFs, Inc., et al., 75200-75207 2012-30551 Orders Granting Conditional Exemptions under Securities Exchange Act of 1934: Portfolio Margining of Swaps and Security-Based Swaps, 75211-75223 2012-30553 Orders Suspending Trading: Spencer Pharmaceutical Inc., 75223 2012-30665 Self-Regulatory Organizations; Proposed Rule Changes: BOX Options Exchange LLC, 75234-75235 2012-30498 C2 Options Exchange, Inc., 2012-30495 75228-75229, 75235-75238 2012-30496 2012-30502 Chicago Board Options Exchange, Inc., 75230-75231 2012-30501 International Securities Exchange, LLC, 75241-75242 2012-30497 NYSE Arca, Inc., 75224-75225, 75239-75241 2012-30499 2012-30503 NYSE MKT LLC, 75225-75228 2012-30494 2012-30500 Options Clearing Corp., 75243-75250 2012-30547 The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC, 75229-75230, 75232-75234 2012-30545 2012-30546 State Department State Department NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Application for Employment as a Locally Employed Staff or Family Member, 75252-75253 2012-30540 ECA Exchange Student Surveys, 75251-75252 2012-30538 Gilman Evaluation Survey, 75251 2012-30539 Applications for Presidential Permits to Operate and Maintain Pipeline Facilities on the U.S.-Canadian Border: Kinder Morgan Cochin, LLC, 75253 2012-30542 Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: Wait, Later This Will Be Nothing: Editions by Dieter Roth, 75253-75254 2012-30541 Statistical Reporting Service See National Agricultural Statistics Service Substance Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 75181-75182 2012-30465 Transportation Department Transportation Department See Federal Aviation Administration See Federal Highway Administration See Federal Railroad Administration See National Highway Traffic Safety Administration See Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Treasury Treasury Department See Comptroller of the Currency See Fiscal Service See Internal Revenue Service Customs U.S. Customs and Border Protection NOTICES Accreditations and Approvals as Commercial Gaugers and Laboratories: Intertek USA, Inc., 75182-75184 2012-30611 2012-30616 2012-30619 NMC Global Corp., 75183-75184 2012-30613 2012-30623 Separate Parts In This Issue Part II Interior Department, Fish and Wildlife Service, 75266-75297 2012-30486 Part III Homeland Security Department, 75300-75347 2012-29916 Part IV Environmental Protection Agency, 75350-75353 2012-30615 Part V Presidential Documents, 75355-75359 2012-30740 2012-30744 Reader Aids Consult the Reader Aids section at the end of this page 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. 77 244 Wednesday, December 19, 2012 Rules and Regulations DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 7 CFR Part 319 [Docket No. APHIS-2011-0007] RIN 0579-AD42 Importation of Sand Pears From China AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: We are amending the fruits and vegetables regulations to allow the importation of sand pears ( *Pyrus pyrifolia* ) from China into the United States. As a condition of entry, sand pears from areas in China in which the Oriental fruit fly ( *Bactrocera dorsalis* ) is not known to exist will have to be produced in accordance with a systems approach that includes requirements for registration of places of production and packinghouses, sourcing of pest-free propagative material, inspection for quarantine pests at set intervals by the national plant protection organization of China, bagging of fruit, safeguarding, labeling, and importation in commercial consignments. Sand pears from areas in China in which Oriental fruit fly is known to exist may be imported into the United States if, in addition to these requirements, the places of production and packinghouses have a monitoring system in place for Oriental fruit fly and the pears are treated with cold treatment. All sand pears from China will also be required to be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate with an additional declaration stating that all conditions for the importation of the pears have been met and that the consignment of pears has been inspected and found free of quarantine pests. This action will allow for the importation of sand pears from China into the United States while continuing to provide protection against the introduction of quarantine pests. DATES: *Effective Date:* January 18, 2013. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Farrell Wise, Supervisory Agriculturist, Regulatory Coordination and Compliance, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737;

(301)851-2280. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background The regulations in “Subpart—Fruits and Vegetables” (7 CFR 319.56-1 through 319.56-56, referred to below as the regulations) prohibit or restrict the importation of fruits and vegetables into the United States from certain parts of the world to prevent the introduction and dissemination of plant pests. The regulations currently allow for the importation of both Ya pears ( *Pyrus bretschneideri* ) and fragrant pears ( *Pyrus* sp. nr. *communis* ) from China. The national plant protection organization

(NPPO)of China requested that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) amend the regulations to allow sand pears 1 ( *Pyrus pyrifolia* ) from China also to be imported into the United States. 1 We previously referred to *Pyrus pyrifolia* as “Chinese sand pear.” However, we have discovered that the accepted international nomenclature for *Pyrus pyrifolia* is simply “sand pear.” Hence, throughout this document, we refer to *Pyrus pyrifolia* as sand pear. As part of our evaluation of China's request, we prepared a pest risk assessment (PRA), titled “Importation of Fresh Fruit of Chinese Sand Pear, *Pyrus pyrifolia,* from China, including the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, into the Entire United States, Including all Territories” (July 2009). The PRA evaluated the risks associated with the importation of sand pears into the United States from China, and identified 16 pests of quarantine significance present in China that could be introduced into the United States through the importation of sand pears. The PRA presented a number of potential options to mitigate the risks posed by these plant pests. Based on these options, we prepared a risk management document (RMD). The RMD recommended specific measures to mitigate these risks. Based on the recommendations of the RMD, on December 16, 2011, we published a proposed rule 2 in the **Federal Register** (76 FR 78168-78172, Docket No. APHIS-2011-0007) to authorize the importation of sand pears from China into the United States. We solicited comments concerning the proposed rule for 60 days ending February 14, 2012. We received five comments by that date. They were from the NPPO of China, a State department of agriculture, an organization representing State departments of agriculture, a technical committee representing the U.S. pear industry, and a private citizen. The comments we received are discussed below, by topic. 2 To view the proposed rule, supporting documents, and the comments we received, go to *http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2011-0007.* Comments Regarding the Pest Risk Assessment The PRA identified the following pests of quarantine significance as being likely to follow the pathway on imported sand pears from China: • *Acrobasis pyrivorella,* pear fruit moth. • *Alternaria gaisen* Nagano, the cause of black spot of pear. • *Amphitetranychus viennensis* (Zacher), Hawthorn spider mite. • *Aphanostigma iaksuiense* (Kishida), an aphid. • *Bactrocera dorsalis,* Oriental fruit fly. • *Caleptrimerus neimongolensis* Kuang and Geng, a mite. • *Carposina sasakii* Matsumora, peach fruit moth. • *Ceroplastes japonicus* Green, Japanese wax scale. • *Ceroplastes rubens* Maskell, red wax scale. • *Congothes punctiferalis* (Guenée), yellow peach moth. • *Grapholita inopinata,* Manchurian fruit moth. • *Guignardia pyricola*

(Nose)W. Yamamoto, a phytopathogenic fungus. • *Monilinia fructigena* Honey in Whetzel, the cause of brown rot. • *Phenacoccus pergandei* Cockerell, a mealybug. • *Planococcus kraunhiae* (Kuwana), a mealybug. • *Venturia nashicola* Tanaka & Yamamoto, pear scab fungus. One commenter stated that recent research conducted on diseases of *Malus* spp. has discovered that the causal agent of apple and pear ring spot, which had long been considered to be *G. pyricola*

(Nose)W. Yamamoto, is in fact *Botryosphaeria dothidea.* The commenter pointed out that *B. dothidea* is widely prevalent in the United States, and stated that it thus should not be considered a pest of quarantine significance. The commenter also stated that, based on this research, *G. pyricola* should not be considered a pest of quarantine significance for sand pears from China. The commenter cited a peer-reviewed article 3 (referred to below as Tang *et al.* ) detailing the research that had been conducted. 3 Tang *et al.,* “Phylogenetic and pathogenic analyses show that the causal agent of apple ring rot in China is *Botryosphaeria dothidea,* ” *Plant Disease* 4 (April 2012), 486-497. We agree that Tang *et al.* provides evidence in support of *B. dothidea* being a causal agent of apple ring spot. However, we do not consider this evidence sufficient to remove *G. pyricola* from the list of pests of quarantine significance for sand pears from China. The research detailed in Tang *et al.* appears to have focused primarily on *Malus* spp. Researchers included only a few fungi of *Pyrus* spp. for evaluation, and the discussion section of Tang *et al.* refers exclusively to fungi isolated from *Malus* spp. It is even unclear whether *B. dothidea* was the only *Botryosphaeria* species that researchers isolated from *Pyrus* spp. The scope and nature of the research conducted on *Pyrus* spp. is unclear in Tang *et al.* In order for us to consider removing *G. pyricola* from the list of pests of quarantine significance for sand pears from China, Tang *et al.* would have to specify that the research conducted on *Malus* spp. is directly applicable to *Pyrus* spp. It does not do so; hence we continue to consider *G. pyricola* a pest of quarantine significance for sand pears from China. Another commenter stated that the list of pests of quarantine significance for sand pears from China should be expanded to include two additional pests, *Alternaria yaliinficiens,* a phytopathogenic fungus, and *Monilia polystroma,* the cause of Asiatic brown rot. The commenter pointed out that *A. yaliinficiens* is frequently detected on Ya pears in China, and *M. polystroma,* a well-documented pest of sand pears, is known to exist in China. We have been able to find no evidence suggesting that sand pears are a host of *A. yaliinficiens,* and the commenter did not provide any references on this subject. Ya pears are *Pyrus bretschneideri,* a separate species from sand pears. We agree that *M. polystroma* is known to exist in China, and sand pears are a known host of this pest. However, to date, *M. polystroma* has only been detected in Heilongjiang province. This province does not produce sand pears for export and is geographically isolated from the provinces in China that account for the bulk of pear exports from China, Hebei and Shandong. There is, moreover, no evidence of artificial spread of *M. polystroma* within China. For these reasons, at this time, we do not consider *M. polystroma* likely to follow the pathway of sand pears imported from China. We will, however, continue to monitor the presence of *M. polystroma* in China and, if necessary, take appropriate action to prevent its introduction. A commenter asked that the PRA be updated to include a list of all pests of quarantine significance that have been detected on sand pears from China exported to other countries. Foreign countries are free to designate plant pests as being of quarantine significance, without reference to the designations of other countries. Thus, there is no guarantee that a foreign country's pest list for sand pears is equivalent to our own. Moreover, foreign countries' conditions for importation of fruits and vegetables often vary significantly from those of the United States. Accordingly, a foreign country's pest interception data for a particular commodity should not be considered a reliable predictor of possible pest interceptions for that same commodity at ports of entry within the United States. We are therefore not amending the PRA in the manner requested by the commenter. The same commenter pointed out that the PRA contained a list of pest interceptions on Ya and fragrant pears from China imported into the United States between 1995 and 2009, but this list did not include information for 2010 or 2011. The commenter also pointed out that the list did not group detections based on the port of entry at which the pest was detected. The commenter asked that the list be updated to include information through 2011 and to sort this information by port of entry. We do not consider such updates to be necessary. Interceptions in 2010 and 2011 do not disclose any additional pests of quarantine significance that had not previously been detected on the pears. Moreover, the list was provided in order to illustrate the starting point from which we conducted our evaluation of the pests of quarantine significance that could follow the pathway on sand pears from China imported into the United States. Hence, changing the scope of the list or its presentation would not alter the results of our evaluation. Comments Regarding the Proposed Rule One commenter stated that, based on the number of pests of quarantine significance likely to follow the pathway on sand pears imported into the United States from China, the plant pest risk associated with the importation of sand pears from China was significant, and we should therefore not authorize such importation. Similarly, two commenters stated that the proposed conditions for importation of sand pears from China in the proposed rule did not take into consideration the unique climate of Florida, which the commenters asserted is more conducive to the establishment of fruit flies than that of other States. The commenters pointed out that imported fruit containing dead fruit fly larvae had been discovered in Florida, and stated that these detections call into question the efficacy of APHIS' systems approaches for these pests. We agree that there are many pests on the pest list for sand pears from China, and one of these, *B. dorsalis,* could become established in Florida, if introduced. However, for the reasons described in the RMD that accompanied the proposed rule, we have determined that the measures specified in the proposed rule will effectively mitigate the risk associated with the importation of sand pears from China into any area of the United States. The commenters did not provide any evidence suggesting that the mitigations are not effective. To that end, we note that the discovery of dead larvae in imported fruit does not call into question the efficacy of the systems approaches under which the fruit has been imported. Rather, it suggests the systems approaches have been effective in neutralizing the larvae. A commenter asked whether the proposed rule had provisions that would address the risk that *V. nashicola* or *M. fructigena* would follow the pathway on sand pears from China. As detailed in the RMD that accompanied the proposed rule, there are several provisions of the proposed rule that address the risk posed by phytopathogenic fungi such as *V. nashicola* and *M. fructigena.* These include: Registration of places of production and packinghouses with the NPPO of China, inspections for quarantine pests at set intervals, bagging of fruit, safeguarding, labeling, and importation in commercial consignments. One commenter stated that fertility management, that is, the use of nutrient-rich soil composed primarily of decaying organic matter, has been demonstrated to be effective in reducing population densities of certain plant pests on host plants. The commenter suggested that fertility management be explored as an alternative to the systems approach of the proposed rule, or, at least, certain provisions of that approach. APHIS will continue to monitor the efficacy of this and other possible mitigation measures for sand pears from China. If we determine alternate measures to be effective in reducing the risk associated with the importation of sand pears from China, we may initiate rulemaking to add them to the regulations. In the proposed rule, we proposed to require all sand pears imported into the United States from China to be grown at places of production that are registered with the NPPO of China. We also proposed that the NPPO of China would have to inspect registered places of production prior to harvest for signs of infestations and allow APHIS to monitor the inspections. Finally, we proposed that, if any of the pests of quarantine significance likely to follow the pathway on sand pears from China were detected at a registered place of production, we could reject individual consignments from that place of production or prohibit the importation of sand pears from the place of production for the remainder of the season. The NPPO of China stated that it had entered into a memorandum of understanding

(MOU)with APHIS regarding inspections of sand pears that would take place at ports of entry in the United States if the proposed rule was finalized. The NPPO stated that it was their understanding that these port-of-entry inspections obviated pre-harvest inspections of registered places of production. Accordingly, the NPPO asked that we modify the proposed rule to remove references to such pre-harvest inspections. We are making no change in response to this comment. The MOU referenced by the NPPO pertains to general inspections of imported fruits and vegetables that APHIS conducts in accordance with § 319.56-3 of the regulations. As specified in the MOU, such inspections are meant to complement, rather than supplant, the provisions of the proposed rule, including pre-harvest inspections of registered places of production. Moreover, we note that such pre-harvest inspections are necessary not only to prevent infested fruit from being imported to the United States, but also so that APHIS has assurances that places of production have implemented and are maintaining all provisions of the proposed rule that pertain to them, such as bagging of sand pears destined for export to the United States. Miscellaneous In our December 2011 proposed rule, proposed paragraph (f)(1) of § 319.56-55 contained minimum requirements for the trapping systems that places of production and packinghouses would need to have in place for *B. dorsalis* in order to export sand pears from areas in China south of the 33rd parallel to the United States. Additionally, proposed paragraph (f)(4) proposed to require pears from such areas to be treated in accordance with 7 CFR part 305, which contains our requirements governing approved treatments of imported commodities. Since the proposed rule was issued, we have adopted a general Agency policy of adding minimum trapping requirements to operational workplans. Among other reasons, this allows us to change the frequency and distance at which traps must be placed in response to changes in population densities for *B. dorsalis* in an exporting region. We have also begun to add standards for application of treatments to operational workplans; among other reasons, this allows us to prescribe in greater detail best practices for the application of various treatments. Hence, in this final rule, we are amending paragraph (f)(1) to specify that the trapping systems must meet the requirements of the operational workplan, and (f)(3) to specify the treatments must be applied in accordance with not only 7 CFR part 305 but also the operational workplan. In the proposed rule, we proposed to add the conditions governing the importation of sand pears from China as § 319.56-55. In this final rule, they are added as § 319.56-57. Therefore, for the reasons given in the proposed rule and in this document, we are adopting the proposed rule as a final rule, with the change discussed in this document. Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act This final rule has been determined to be not significant for the purposes of Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget. In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 604, we have performed a final regulatory flexibility analysis, which is summarized below, regarding the economic effects of this rule on small entities. Copies of the full analysis are available on the Regulations.gov Web site (see footnote 2 in this document for a link to Regulations.gov) or by contacting the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT . This rule will amend the regulations to allow, under certain conditions, the importation into the United States of sand pear from China. This fruit is produced in the United States in limited quantities, primarily in Illinois, Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland. Farms producing pears are classified within the North American Industry Classification System under Other Noncitrus Fruit Farming. The average 2007 market value of crops sold by farms classified within the industry Fruit and Tree Nut Farming (which includes Other Noncitrus Fruit Farming) was less than $188,000, an amount well below the Small Business Administration's small-entity standard of annual receipts of not more than $750,000. We infer that the majority of farms producing pears, including sand pears, are small entities. China is expecting to export 24,000 metric tons of sand pear annually to the United States. This amount is less than 5 percent of average annual production of all varieties of pear produced in the United States. We do not know the quantity or value of sand pear produced in the United States, or the quantity or value of sand pear imported from other countries. Nor do we know the substitutability of sand pear for other types of pears produced domestically. While the United States is a net exporter of pears overall, it is likely that the U.S. supply of sand pear is largely imported. Without information on the domestic and foreign quantities supplied and the substitutability of sand pear for other pear varieties, we are unable to evaluate potential effects of the rule for U.S. producers. Executive Order 12988 This final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice Reform. This rule:

(1)Preempts all State and local laws and regulations that are inconsistent with this rule;

(2)has no retroactive effect; and

(3)does not require administrative proceedings before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule. Paperwork Reduction Act In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 *et seq.* ), the information collection or recordkeeping requirements included in this rule have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB)under OMB control number 0579-0390. E-Government Act Compliance The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is committed to compliance with the EGovernment Act to promote the use of the Internet and other information technologies, to provide increased opportunities for citizen access to Government information and services, and for other purposes. For information pertinent to E-Government Act compliance related to this rule, please contact Mrs. Celeste Sickles, APHIS' Information Collection Coordinator, at

(301)851-2908. Lists of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 319 Coffee, Cotton, Fruits, Imports, Logs, Nursery stock, Plant diseases and pests, Quarantine, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Rice, Vegetables. Accordingly, we are amending 7 CFR part 319 as follows: PART 319—FOREIGN QUARANTINE NOTICES 1. The authority citation for part 319 continues to read as follows: Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7701-7772, and 7781-7786; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3. 2. A new § 319.56-57 is added to read as follows: § 319.56-57 Sand pears from China. Fresh sand pears ( *Pyrus pyrifolia* ) from China may be imported into the United States from China only under the conditions described in this section. These conditions are designed to prevent the introduction of the following quarantine pests: *Acrobasis pyrivorella,* pear fruit moth; *Alternaria gaisen* Nagano, the cause of black spot of sand pear; *Amphitetranychus viennensis* (Zacher), Hawthorn spider mite; *Aphanostigma iaksuiense* (Kishida), an aphid; *Bactrocera dorsalis,* Oriental fruit fly; *Caleptrimerus neimongolensis* Kuang and Geng, a mite; *Carposina sasakii* Matsumora, peach fruit moth; *Ceroplastes japonicus* Green, Japanese wax scale; *Ceroplastes rubens* Maskell, red wax scale; *Conogothes punctiferalis* (Guenée), yellow peach moth; *Grapholita inopinata,* Manchurian fruit moth; *Guignardia* pyricola

(Nose)W. Yamamoto, a phytopathogenic fungus; *Monilinia fructigena* Honey in Whetzel, the cause of brown fruit rot; *Phenacoccus pergandei* Cockerell, a mealybug; *Planococcus kraunhiae* (Kuwana), a mealybug; and *Venturia nashicola* Tanaka and Yamamoto, pear scab fungus. The conditions for importation of all fresh sand pears from China are found in paragraphs

(a)through

(e)of this section; additional conditions for sand pears imported from areas of China south of the 33rd parallel are found in paragraph

(f)of this section.

(a)*General requirements.*

(1)The national plant protection organization

(NPPO)of China must provide an operational workplan to APHIS that details the activities that the NPPO of China will, subject to APHIS' approval of the workplan, carry out to meet the requirements of this section.

(2)The pears must be grown at places of production that are registered with the NPPO of China.

(3)The pears must be packed for export to the United States in pest-exclusionary packinghouses that are registered with the NPPO of China.

(4)Sand pears from China may be imported in commercial consignments only.

(b)*Place of production requirements.*

(1)All propagative material entering a registered place of production must be tested and certified by the NPPO of China as being free of quarantine pests.

(2)The place of production must carry out any phytosanitary measures specified for the place of production under the operational workplan.

(3)When any sand pears destined for export to the United States are still on the tree and are no more than 2.5 centimeters in diameter, double-layered paper bags must be placed wholly over the pears. The bags must remain intact and on the pears until the pears arrive at the packinghouse.

(4)The NPPO of China must visit and inspect registered places of production prior to harvest for signs of infestations and allow APHIS to monitor the inspections. The NPPO must provide records of pest detections and pest detection practices to APHIS, and APHIS must approve these practices.

(5)If any of the quarantine pests listed in the introductory text of this section is detected at a registered place of production, APHIS may reject the consignment or prohibit the importation into the United States of sand pears from the place of production for the remainder of the season. The exportation to the United States of sand pears from the place of production may resume in the next growing season if an investigation is conducted and APHIS and the NPPO conclude that appropriate remedial action has been taken.

(c)*Packinghouse requirements.*

(1)During the time registered packinghouses are in use for packing sand pears for export to the United States, the packinghouses may only accept sand pears that are from registered places of production and that are produced in accordance with the requirements of this section.

(2)Packinghouses must have a tracking system in place to readily identify all sand pears that enter the packinghouse destined for export to the United States back to their place of production.

(3)The NPPO of China or officials authorized by the NPPO must inspect the pears for signs of pest infestation and allow APHIS to monitor the inspections. If any of the quarantine pests listed in the introductory text of this section is detected in a consignment at the packinghouse, APHIS may reject the consignment.

(4)Following the inspection, the packinghouse must follow a handling procedure for the pears that is mutually agreed upon by APHIS and the NPPO of China.

(5)The pears must be packed in cartons that are labeled with the identity of the place of production and the packinghouse.

(6)The cartons must be placed in insect-proof containers, and the containers sealed. The containers of sand pears must be safeguarded during transport to the United States in a manner that will prevent pest infestation.

(d)*Shipping requirements.* Sealed containers of sand pears destined for export to the United States must be held in a cold storage facility while awaiting export.

(e)*Phytosanitary certificate.* Each consignment of sand pears imported from China into the United States must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of China with an additional declaration stating that the requirements of this section have been met and the consignment has been inspected and found free of quarantine pests.

(f)*Additional conditions for sand pears from areas of China south of the 33rd parallel.* In addition to the conditions in paragraphs

(a)through

(e)of this section, sand pears from areas of China south of the 33rd parallel must meet the following conditions for importation into the United States:

(1)The place of production of the pears and the packinghouse in which they are packed must have a trapping system in place for *B. dorsalis.* At a minimum, the trapping system must meet the requirements of the operational work plan.

(2)The place of production or the packinghouse must retain data regarding the number and location of the traps, as well as any pests other than *B. dorsalis* that have been caught, and make this information available to APHIS upon request. (3)(i) The place of production or packinghouse must notify the NPPO of China, and the NPPO of China must notify APHIS, regarding the detection of a single *B. dorsalis* in a place of production, packinghouse, or surrounding area within 48 hours of the detection.

(ii)If a single *B. dorsalis* is detected in a registered place of production, APHIS will prohibit the importation into the United States of sand pears from the place of production until any mitigation measures determined by APHIS to be necessary to prevent future infestations are taken.

(iii)If a single *B. dorsalis* is detected in a registered packinghouse, the packinghouse may not be used to pack sand pears for export to the United States until any mitigation measures determined by APHIS to be necessary to prevent future infestations are taken.

(4)The pears must be treated in accordance with 7 CFR part 305 and the operational workplan. (Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 0579-0390.) Done in Washington, DC, this 13th day of December 2012. Kevin Shea, Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. [FR Doc. 2012-30532 Filed 12-18-12; 8:45 am]

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