Unknown. Final rule; delay of effective date
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/register/2017/11/14/2017-24675A 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-2017-11-14.xml --- 82 218 Tuesday, November 14, 2017 Contents Agricultural Marketing Agricultural Marketing Service RULES National Organic Program: Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices, 52643-52644 2017-24675 Agriculture Agriculture Department See Agricultural Marketing Service NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 52710-52711 2017-24564 2017-24626 Alcohol Tobacco Firearms Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities;
Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Environmental Information, 52743-52744 2017-24608 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 52712-52713 2017-24607 Children Children and Families Administration NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 52735-52736 2017-24587 Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals:
Family Violence Prevention and Services: Grants to States; Native American Tribes and Alaskan Native Villages; and State Domestic Violence Coalitions, 52736-52737 2017-24609 Coast Guard Coast Guard PROPOSED RULES Drawbridge Operations: China Basin, Mission Creek, San Francisco, CA, 52678-52680 2017-24593 Safety Zones: Delaware River; Marcus Hook, NJ, 52680-52682 2017-24554 Commerce Commerce Department See Economic Development Administration See National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration See Patent and Trademark Office Defense Department Defense Department NOTICES Arms Sales, 52713-52717 2017-24622 Economic Development Economic Development Administration NOTICES Trade Adjustment Assistance;
Petitions, 52711-52712 2017-24594 Education Department Education Department NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Generic Application Package for Departmental Generic Grant Programs, 52717-52718 2017-24578 Lender's Application Process, 52718 2017-24556 Energy Department Energy Department See Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Environmental Protection Environmental Protection Agency RULES Air Quality State Implementation Plans;
Approvals and Promulgations: District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia; Washington, DC-MD-VA Area; Determination of Attainment by the Attainment Date for the 2008 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard, 52651-52655 2017-24537 Iowa; Approval and Promulgation of the State Implementation Plan, the Operating Permits Program, and the 111(d) Plan; Withdrawal, 52667 2017-24635 New Hampshire; Approval of Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements and Single Source Order, 52664-52667 2017-24540 Rhode Island;
Enhanced Motor Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program, 52655-52664 2017-24541 Community Right-to-Know; Adopting 2017 North American Industry Classification System Codes for Toxics Release Inventory Reporting; Withdrawal, 52674-52675 2017-24633 Partial Voluntary Withdrawal of Delegation of Authority; Connecticut; National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Asbestos, 52667-52669 2017-24638 Pesticide Tolerances: Benzovindiflupyr, 52669-52674 2017-24109 PROPOSED RULES Air Quality State Implementation Plans;
Approvals and Promulgations: New Hampshire; Approval of Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements and Single Source Order, 52683 2017-24538 Oregon; Oakridge; PM2.5 Moderate Plan, Finding of Attainment and Clean Data Determination, 52683-52699 2017-24539 Rhode Island; Enhanced Motor Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program, 52682-52683 2017-24542 NOTICES Meetings: Information Session; Implementation of the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014, 52722 2017-24639 Federal Aviation Federal Aviation Administration RULES Airworthiness Directives:
Bombardier, Inc., Airplanes, 52644-52647 2017-24166 PROPOSED RULES Airworthiness Directives: Intreprinderea De Constructii Aeronautice Gliders, 52676-52678 2017-24500 Federal Communications Federal Communications Commission NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 52723-52728 2017-24615 2017-24616 2017-24632 Federal Election Federal Election Commission NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 52728 2017-24680 Federal Emergency Federal Emergency Management Agency NOTICES Major Disaster Declarations:
Georgia; Amendment No. 7, 52739 2017-24618 Meetings: National Advisory Council, 52739-52740 2017-24619 Federal Energy Federal Energy Regulatory Commission NOTICES Combined Filings, 52718-52719, 52721-52722 2017-24580 2017-24581 Filings: Northern Natural Gas Co., 52720 2017-24582 Hydroelectric Applications: South Carolina Electric and Gas Co., 52719 2017-24584 Staff Attendances, 52720-52721 2017-24583 Federal Highway Federal Highway Administration NOTICES Environmental Impact Statements;
Availability, etc.: Taylorsville Mobility Study, Salt Lake County, UT; Rescission, 52766 2017-24623 Federal Agency Actions: California; Proposed Highway/Interchange Improvement; Statute of Limitations on Claims, 52767 2017-24625 Federal Motor Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration NOTICES Hours of Service of Drivers; Exemption Applications: Rail Delivery Services, Inc., 52767-52769 2017-24599 Federal Railroad Federal Railroad Administration NOTICES Applications: Approval to Discontinue or Modify a Railroad Signal System, 52769 2017-24559 Petitions for Waivers of Compliance, 52769-52770 2017-24560 Federal Trade Federal Trade Commission NOTICES Early Termination of the Waiting Period under Premerger Notification Rules;
Approvals, 52730-52735 2017-24589 2017-24590 Proposed Consent Agreements: Red Ventures Holdco, LP and Bankrate, Inc., 52728-52730 2017-24588 Food and Drug Food and Drug Administration RULES Medical Devices: Gastroenterology-Urology Devices; Classification of the Prostatic Artery Embolization Device, 52649-52651 2017-24586 Immunology and Microbiology Devices; Classification of the Automated Indirect Immunofluorescence Microscope and Software-Assisted System, 52647-52649 2017-24585 Health and Human Health and Human Services Department See Children and Families Administration See Food and Drug Administration See National Institutes of Health Homeland Homeland Security Department See Coast Guard See Federal Emergency Management Agency Interior Interior Department See National Park Service See Ocean Energy Management Bureau International Trade Com International Trade Commission NOTICES Meetings;
Sunshine Act, 52743 2017-24709 Justice Department Justice Department See Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Bureau NOTICES Proposed Consent Decrees: CERCLA, 52744 2017-24592 Maritime Maritime Administration NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Determination of Fair and Reasonable Rates for Carriage of Agriculture Cargoes on U.S. Commercial Vessels, 52771-52772 2017-24563 Requests for Administrative Waivers of the Coastwise Trade Laws:
Vessel ARCADIA, 52771 2017-24562 Vessel THE SPACE BETWEEN, 52770-52771 2017-24561 National Archives National Archives and Records Administration NOTICES Records Schedules, 52744-52746 2017-24573 National Credit National Credit Union Administration NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 52746 2017-24711 National Endowment for the Humanities National Endowment for the Humanities NOTICES Meetings: Humanities Panel, 52746 2017-24558 National Foundation National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities See National Endowment for the Humanities National Institute National Institutes of Health NOTICES Meetings:
Advisory Committee to the Director, 52737 2017-24603 Center for Scientific Review, 52737-52738 2017-24570 2017-24571 National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 52738 2017-24572 National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 52738-52739 2017-24602 National Oceanic National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration RULES Fisheries of the Northeastern United States: Atlantic Bluefish Fishery; Quota Transfer, 52675 2017-24641 PROPOSED RULES International Fisheries: Pacific Tuna Fisheries;
Fishing Restrictions for Tropical Tuna in the Eastern Pacific Ocean for 2018 to 2020, 52700-52709 2017-24606 NOTICES Endangered and Threatened Species: Takes of Anadromous Fish, 52712 2017-24591 National Park National Park Service NOTICES National Register of Historic Places: Pending Nominations and Related Actions, 52740-52743 2017-24611 2017-24612 2017-24613 Nuclear Regulatory Nuclear Regulatory Commission NOTICES Meetings: Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards, 52746-52747 2017-24595 Ocean Energy Management Ocean Energy Management Bureau NOTICES Oil and Gas Lease Sales:
Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Lease Sales, 52743 2017-24630 Overseas Overseas Private Investment Corporation NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 52747-52748 2017-24600 2017-24601 Patent Patent and Trademark Office RULES Setting and Adjusting Patent Fees during Fiscal Year 2017, 52780-52817 2017-24390 Pipeline Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration NOTICES Special Permit Applications: Hazardous Materials, 52772-52776 2017-24566 2017-24567 2017-24568 Presidential Documents Presidential Documents PROCLAMATIONS Special Observances:
World Freedom Day (Proc. 9673), 52819-52822 2017-24807 Securities Securities and Exchange Commission NOTICES Applications: Meeder Funds Trust, et al., 52756-52757 2017-24628 Meetings; Sunshine Act, 52748-52749 2017-24681 Self-Regulatory Organizations; Proposed Rule Changes: Bats BZX Exchange, Inc., 52763 2017-24574 Chicago Stock Exchange, Inc., 52762-52763 2017-24629 New York Stock Exchange LLC, 52757-52762 2017-24577 NYSE American LLC, 52749-52756 2017-24576 NYSE Arca, Inc., 52762 2017-24575 Small Business Small Business Administration NOTICES Agency Information Collection Activities;
Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals, 52763-52764 2017-24604 State Department State Department NOTICES Designations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations: Islamic Resistance Movement, 52764 2017-24598 Surface Transportation Surface Transportation Board NOTICES Releases of Waybill Data, 52764 2017-24627 Tennessee Tennessee Valley Authority RULES Privacy Act Regulations; Correction, 52647 C1--2017--24300 Trade Representative Trade Representative, Office of United States NOTICES Additional Information About Participating in the Process Concerning the Administration's Action Following a Determination of Import Injury with Regard to Certain Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Cells, 52764 2017-24596 Generalized System of Preferences:
Import Statistics Relating to Competitive Need Limitations and Deadline for Filing Petitions, 52765-52766 2017-24579 Transportation Department Transportation Department See Federal Aviation Administration See Federal Highway Administration See Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration See Federal Railroad Administration See Maritime Administration See Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Veteran Affairs Veterans Affairs Department NOTICES Meetings: Advisory Committee on Former Prisoners of War, 52776-52777 2017-24557 New Hampshire Vision 2025 Task Force, 52776 2017-24569 Separate Parts In This Issue Part II Commerce Department, Patent and Trademark Office, 52780-52817 2017-24390 Part III Presidential Documents, 52819-52822 2017-24807 Reader Aids Consult the Reader Aids section at the end of this issue for phone numbers, online resources, finding aids, and notice of recently enacted public laws.
To subscribe to the Federal Register Table of Contents electronic mailing list, go to https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/USGPOOFR/subscriber/new, enter your e-mail address, then follow the instructions to join, leave, or manage your subscription. 82 218 Tuesday, November 14, 2017 Rules and Regulations DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Agricultural Marketing Service 7 CFR Part 205 [Doc. No. AMS-NOP-15-0012; NOP-15-06] RIN 0581-AD74 National Organic Program (NOP); Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices AGENCY:
Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA. ACTION: Final rule; delay of effective date. SUMMARY: The United States Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service
(AMS)is delaying the effective date of the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule published in the **Federal Register** on January 19, 2017 (OLPP final rule), until May 14, 2018. DATES: As of November 9, 2017, the effective date of the final rule published on January 19, 2017 (82 FR 7042), delayed on February 9, 2017 (82 FR 9967), further delayed on May 10, 2017 (82 FR 21677), is further delayed until May 14, 2018. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Lewis, Ph.D., Director, Standards Division. Telephone:
(202)720-3252; Fax:
(202)260-9151. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The OLPP final rule amends the organic livestock and poultry production requirements of the USDA organic regulations by adding new provisions for livestock handling and transport for slaughter and avian living conditions; and expands and clarifies existing requirements covering livestock care and production practices and mammalian living conditions. The rule finalized a proposed rule that AMS published in the **Federal Register** on April 13, 2016 (81 FR 21955). The OLPP final rule was scheduled to become effective on March 20, 2017. Consistent with the memorandum of January 20, 2017, to the heads of executive departments and agencies from the Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, entitled, “Regulatory Freeze Pending Review,” on February 9, 2017, AMS delayed the effective date of the OLPP final rule until May 19, 2017. Because significant policy and legal issues addressed within the final rule warranted further review by USDA, AMS delayed the effective date by an additional 180 days from May 19, 2017 to November 14, 2017. In addition, AMS published a notice of proposed rulemaking
(NPRM)that solicited public comments on the direction that USDA should take with respect to the rule. The NPRM presented four options for agency action: “Option 1: Implement,” allowing the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule to take effect on November 14, 2017; “Option 2: Suspend,” suspending the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule indefinitely; “Option 3: Delay,” delaying the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule's effective date beyond November 14, 2017; and “Option 4: Withdraw,” withdrawing the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule. The 30-day public comment period closed on June 9, 2017. AMS received over 47,000 comments on the four options for agency action. Over 40,000 of commenters, including over 34,600 submitted as form letters, supported “Option 1: Implement”; twenty-eight other commenters supported “Option 4: Withdraw”; a few chose “Option 2: Suspend”; and only one chose “Option 3: Delay.” The remaining commenters did not indicate a clear preference. Most commenters supporting “Option 1: Implement” expressed concern animals would be harmed if USDA did otherwise. Some said consumers expect animal welfare to be a part of organic certification and consumers are concerned about humane transport and slaughter procedures. Noting the inclusive nature of the rule development process, these commenters advocated for clear, consistent standards so that organic farmers would be on a “level playing field.” Others said they believed “Option 1: Implement” would strengthen USDA's organic seal broadly and benefit organic farmers. Commenters supporting “Option 2: Suspend” included veterinarians and farmers, and commenters supporting “Option 4: Withdraw” included organic producers and trade associations. These commenters gave similar reasons for their positions, including the economic costs and regulatory compliance burdens; increased consumer prices and reduced availability of organic eggs; biosecurity and food safety risks; and potentially higher avian mortality rates. Some commenters stated that the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule is unnecessary because current regulations are sufficient and the final rule is outside the scope of the NOP's authority and role. Others noted the significant investment costs in land and facilities that would be required to implement the poultry space and outdoor access requirements, making business unsustainable for many organic farmers. This final rule adopts Option 3: Delay, so that important questions regarding USDA's statutory authority to promulgate the OLPP rule and the likely costs and benefits of that rule, can be more fully assessed through the notice and comment process prior to AMS making a final decision on whether the OLPP final rule should take effect. The Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule consisted, in large part, of rules clarifying how producers and handlers participating in the National Organic Program must treat livestock and poultry to ensure their wellbeing. (82 FR 7042.) Although animal welfare is an important USDA priority, AMS believes that OFPA's reference to additional regulatory standards “for the care” of organically produced livestock is limited to health care practices similar to those specified by Congress in the statute, rather than as reflecting a stand-alone concern for animal welfare. AMS intends to seek public comment on this interpretation. AMS also is concerned that the Organic Livestock and Poultry Practices final rule is not consistent with USDA regulatory policy principles, including those expressed in Executive Orders 12866 and 13563, because the requirements in that rule may not represent the most innovative and least burdensome tools for achieving regulatory ends; may impose costs that are not justified by the potential benefits; and may not reasonably be tethered to OFPA's statutory text, nature, and purpose. AMS intends to seek public comment on these questions. Of note, during the course of reviewing the rulemaking record for the OLPP final rule, AMS discovered a significant, material error in the mathematical calculation of the benefits estimates. With the material error, the regulatory impact analysis presented costs and benefits in a table that could be reasonably interpreted to conclude that benefits were likely to exceed the costs. (82 FR 7083-82 FR 7084.) However, AMS believes that the regulatory impact analysis' calculation of benefits was flawed because the incorrect calculation was applied for the 3 percent and 7 percent discount rates. Re-analysis using the correct mathematical calculations suggests that this error was material. It is not appropriate for AMS to allow a final rule to become effective based on a record containing such a material error. AMS intends to seek public comment on the revised calculation of benefits. Due to these significant concerns regarding statutory authority for, and costs and benefits of, the OLPP rule, including the question whether the OLPP final rule was based on a mathematically flawed assessment of benefits, AMS is selecting Option 3: Delay. AMS is issuing this final rule to further delay the effective date for until May 14, 2018 to allow for AMS to issue another notice of proposed rulemaking to receive comments on USDA statutory authority under the OFPA to regulate animal welfare; the likely costs and benefits of the OLPP rule viewed in terms of the statutory objectives of the OPFA, as interpreted above; whether the OLPP rule's requirements represent the most innovate and least burdensome way to achieve regulatory ends; and the revised calculations and analysis of the benefits of the OLPP rule. This delay will provide additional time for AMS to solicit comment on these important issues and review all the comments prior to making a final decision on the direction of the OLPP final rule. To preserve the status quo rather than allow an expansive set of new requirements to become effective only to be delayed, suspended, or withdrawn a short time later and to allow AMS to receive and consider comments on the issues discussed above, this final rule action is effective upon publication because AMS believes that the 30-day delay is impracticable, unnecessary, and contrary to the public interest. When agencies establish good cause for an immediate effective date, Congress intended that, combined with unavoidable time limitations, “the primary consideration was to be the `convenience or necessity of the people affected.' ” *United States* v. *Gavrilovic,* 551 F.2d 1099, 1104 (8th Cir. 1977) (citing S.Rep.No.752, 79th Cong., 1st Sess. 15 (1946); H.R.Rep.No.1980, 79th Cong., 2d Sess. 25 (1946)). Ordinarily, the thirty-day waiting period gives stakeholders and the public a reasonable time to adjust behavior. *Omnipoint Corp.* v. *F.C.C.,* 78 F.3d 620, 630 (D.C. Cir. 1996). In this case, however, a thirty-day waiting period would require stakeholders to begin changing their behavior to comply with the OLPP final rule, when that rule may be delayed, suspended, or withdrawn after the agency has completed review of comments in response to an notice of proposed rulemaking that will present the issues discussed above. It is also contrary to the public interest to allow a final rule that is based on a flawed record to become effective. Thus, and for the reasons stated above, waiting for thirty days to delay the effective date of the OLPP final rule is not warranted by “convenience” and would be unnecessary and contrary to the public interest. Dated: November 8, 2017. Sonia N. Jimenez, Acting Associate Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service. [FR Doc. 2017-24675 Filed 11-9-17; 8:45 am]
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Final rule; delay of effective date
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