14600 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 52 / Thursday, March 17, 2011 / Proposed Rules 

to bring all documents, records and 

other information as it may find 

necessary and relevant to support its 

position. 

(4) The surety may be represented by 

counsel and shall have a fair 

opportunity to present any relevant 

material and to examine the 

administrative record. 

(5) The complaining agency may be 

requested by the Reviewing Official to 

send a representative to the hearing to 

present any relevant material, and the 

agency representative may examine the 

administrative record. 

(6) Formal rules of evidence will not 

apply at the informal hearing. 

(7) The formal adjudication standards 

under the Administrative Procedures 

Act, 5 U.S.C. 554, 556, 557 do not apply 

to the informal hearing or adjudication 

process. 

(8) Treasury may promulgate 

additional procedural guidance 

governing the conduct of informal 

hearings. This additional procedural 

guidance may be contained in the 

Annual Letter to Executive Heads of 

Surety Companies referenced in 31 CFR 

223.9, the Treasury Financial Manual, 

or other Treasury publication or 

correspondence. 

(9) Upon completion of the informal 

hearing, the Reviewing Official shall 

prepare a written Recommendation 

Memorandum addressed to the 

Assistant Commissioner, Management, 

or incumbent Treasury executive, 

setting forth findings and a 

recommended disposition. The 

Assistant Commissioner, Management, 

or incumbent Treasury executive, will 

be the Deciding Official who will make 

the final decision whether the surety’s 

certificate of authority to write and 

reinsure Federal bonds should be 

revoked based on the administrative 

record. For these purposes, the 

administrative record consists of the 

Federal agency complaint referenced in 

paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, 

the surety response referenced in 

paragraph (c), any other documentation 

submitted to, or considered by, or 

entered into the administrative record 

by the Reviewing Official, the hearing 

transcript, and the Reviewing Official’s 

Recommendation Memorandum. 

(10) The provisions of paragraphs (e), 

(f), and (g) of this section shall apply to 

the adjudication of the agency 

complaint when an informal hearing is 

conducted. 

17. Revise § 223.21 to read as follows: 

§ 223.21 Reinstatement. 

If, after one year from the date of the 

expiration or the revocation of its 

certificate of authority under this part, 

a company can demonstrate that the 

basis for the non-renewal or revocation 

has been eliminated or effectively cured, 

as determined by Treasury in its 

discretion, and that it can comply with, 

and does meet, all continuing 

requirements for certification under 31 

U.S.C. 9304–9308 and this part, the 

company may submit an application to 

Treasury for reinstatement or reissuance 

of a certificate of authority, which will 

be granted without prejudice, provided 

all such requirements are met. 

18. In § 223.22, revise paragraph (c) to 

read as follows: 

§ 223.22 Fees for services of the Treasury 

Department. 

* * * * * 

(c) Specific fee information may be 

obtained from the Assistant 

Commissioner, Management, or 

incumbent Treasury executive, or online 

at http://www.fms.treas.gov/c570. In 

addition, a notice of the amount of a fee 

referred to in paragraphs (a)(1) through 

(4) of this section will be published in 

the Federal Register as each change in 

such fee is made. 

Dated: March 11, 2011. 

Richard L. Gregg, 

Fiscal Assistant Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2011–6277 Filed 3–16–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

38 CFR Part 3 

RIN 2900–AN28 

Dental Conditions 

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Veterans 

Affairs (VA) proposes to amend its 

adjudication regulations regarding 

service connection of dental conditions 

for treatment purposes. The regulations 

currently state several principles 

governing determinations by VA’s 

Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) 

of service connection of dental 

conditions for the purpose of 

establishing eligibility for dental 

treatment by VA’s Veterans Health 

Administration (VHA). We propose to 

clarify that those principles apply only 

when VHA requests information or a 

rating from VBA for those purposes. The 

amendments are to clarify existing 

regulatory provisions and to reflect the 

respective responsibilities of VHA and 

VBA in determinations concerning 

eligibility for dental treatment. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

VA on or before May 16, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be 

submitted through 

www.Regulations.gov; by mail or handdelivery to Director, Regulations 

Management (02REG), Department of 

Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, 

NW., Room 1068, Washington, DC 

20420; or by fax to (202) 273–9026. 

(This is not a toll-free number.) 

Comments should indicate that they are 

submitted in response to ‘‘RIN 2900– 

AN28—Dental Conditions.’’ Copies of 

comments received will be available for 

public inspection in the Office of 

Regulation Policy and Management, 

Room 1063B, between the hours of 

8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through 

Friday (except holidays). Please call 

(202) 461–4902 for an appointment. 

(This is not a toll-free number.) In 

addition, during the comment period, 

comments may be viewed online 

through the Federal Docket Management 

System at www.Regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom 

Kniffen, Regulations Staff (211D), 

Compensation and Pension Service, 

Veterans Benefits Administration, 

Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 

Vermont Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 

20420, (202) 461–9725. (This is not a 

toll-free number.) 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: VA’s 

adjudication regulation regarding 

service connection of dental conditions 

for treatment purposes, 38 CFR 3.381, 

identifies circumstances under which 

dental conditions that may not qualify 

as disabilities for purposes of VA 

disability compensation may 

nevertheless be service connected for 

purposes of VA dental treatment under 

38 U.S.C. 1712 and 38 CFR 17.161. 

Because VHA has primary responsibility 

for determining eligibility for dental 

treatment, VBA will prepare a rating 

decision under § 3.381 only when VHA 

requests such a rating or information 

necessary to assist in its determination. 

This circumstance is not clearly stated 

in the current regulation. Accordingly, 

we propose to amend § 3.381 to state 

this requirement. 

VA’s statute and regulation regarding 

dental conditions, 38 U.S.C. 1712 and 

38 CFR 17.161, contain the eligibility 

requirements for dental treatment. 

Eligibility for dental treatment is 

extremely limited. VHA will provide 

certain dental treatment to veterans: 

• Who have a service-connected 

compensable dental condition (i.e., 

those subject to service connection for 

compensation purposes under the 9900 

diagnostic code series) (Class I) 

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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 52 / Thursday, March 17, 2011 / Proposed Rules 14601 

• Who have a service-connected 

noncompensable dental condition (not 

subject to compensation) shown to have 

been in existence at the time of 

discharge or release from active service, 

which took place after September 30, 

1981 (Class II), if: 

Æ The veteran served at least 180 

days (or 90 days if a veteran of the Gulf 

War era), and 

Æ The veteran’s DD214 does not 

bear certification that the veteran was 

provided, within 90 days immediately 

prior to discharge or release, a complete 

dental examination (including dental xrays) and all appropriate dental 

treatment indicated by the examination 

to be needed, and 

Æ Application for treatment is 

received within 180 days of discharge, 

and 

Æ A VA dental examination is 

completed within six months after 

discharge or release, unless delayed 

through no fault of the veteran. 

Æ Note: Treatment under Class II is 

limited to a one-time correction of 

service-connected noncompensable 

dental conditions. 

• Who have a service-connected 

noncompensable dental condition or 

disability adjudicated as resulting from 

combat wounds or service trauma (Class 

II(a)). 

• Who are homeless or are otherwise 

enrolled veterans who are eligible for a 

one-time course of dental care under 38 

U.S.C. 2062 (Class II(b)). 

• Who are former prisoners of war, as 

determined by the concerned military 

service department (Class II(c)). 

• Who have a nonservice-connected 

dental disability professionally 

determined to be aggravating a serviceconnected medical condition (Class III). 

• Who are rated totally disabled due 

to service-connected disability (either a 

100 percent schedular evaluation or 

entitled to individual unemployability) 

(Class IV). 

• Who are approved for vocational 

rehabilitation training under 38 U.S.C. 

chapter 31 and who require dental 

treatment to participate in training 

(Class V). 

• Who are scheduled for admission or 

otherwise receiving care and services 

under 38 U.S.C. chapter 17 if dental care 

is reasonably necessary to the provision 

of such care and services, i.e., a dental 

condition is complicating a medical 

condition currently under treatment. 

(Examples: patients scheduled for 

cardiac surgery, knee, hip, joint 

replacement surgery, or organ transplant 

surgery may receive pre-bed care to 

eliminate dental infection prior to their 

surgery and help insure successful 

medical treatment) (Class VI). 

VHA will usually be able to determine 

eligibility for dental treatment without 

referral to VBA. However, VHA shall 

request information or a rating from 

VBA in the following circumstances: 

• To determine whether the veteran 

has a compensable service-connected 

disability (subject to service connection 

for compensation purposes). 

• To determine whether the veteran 

has a service-connected condition for 

which compensation is not payable. 

• To determine whether there is 

dental disability due to combat wounds 

or service trauma. 

• To determine prisoner of war status. 

• To determine whether the veteran is 

totally disabled due to serviceconnected disability. 

VHA may submit a request for a rating 

for eligibility for treatment for any 

dental condition. However, consistent 

with the qualifying conditions and the 

limitations of eligibility under 38 CFR 

3.381 and 38 CFR 17.161, VBA would 

deny any claim that does not qualify for 

VHA dental treatment, including any 

claim for treatment of periodontal 

disease or calculus, unless the condition 

meets regulatory eligibility criteria. 

If the veteran files a claim for 

disability compensation that includes as 

an issue a compensable dental condition 

under the rating schedule criteria, VBA 

would prepare a rating and notify VHA. 

If a veteran has not filed a claim for 

disability compensation, but goes to a 

VHA dental clinic requesting treatment, 

VHA will request a determination from 

VBA when needed to address the issues 

described above affecting eligibility 

under Class I, Class II, Class II(a), Class 

II(c), or Class IV. Furthermore, VHA is 

responsible for notifying the veteran of 

their eligibility determination. 

When a veteran submits a claim for 

dental treatment directly to a VBA 

regional office, VBA will not provide a 

rating, but instead VBA will refer the 

claim to the VHA outpatient clinic, 

which is responsible for such claims. 

Therefore, we propose to redesignate 

paragraphs (a) through (f) as paragraphs 

(b) through (g) and to add a new 

paragraph (a) that explains the 

situations when VHA will refer a claim 

to VBA. We also propose to amend 

redesignated paragraph (b) to clarify 

what conditions will be service 

connected for treatment purposes. 

Additionally, we propose to remove the 

following sentence from redesignated 

paragraph (c): ‘‘When applicable, the 

rating activity will determine whether 

the condition is due to combat or other 

in-service trauma, or whether the 

veteran was interned as a prisoner of 

war.’’ This sentence is being removed 

because it is repetitive of portions of 

proposed paragraph (a). 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This document contains no provisions 

constituting a collection of information 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act 

(44 U.S.C. 3501–3521). 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Secretary hereby certifies that 

this proposed rule will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities as 

they are defined in the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601–612. This 

proposed rule would not affect any 

small entities. Only certain VA 

beneficiaries could be directly affected. 

Therefore, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605(b), 

this proposed rule is exempt from the 

initial and final regulatory flexibility 

analysis requirements of sections 603 

and 604. 

Executive Order 12866 

Executive Order 12866 directs 

agencies to assess all costs and benefits 

of available regulatory alternatives and, 

when regulation is necessary, to select 

regulatory approaches that maximize 

net benefits (including potential 

economic, environmental, public health 

and safety, and other advantages; 

distributive impacts; and equity). The 

Executive Order classifies a ‘‘significant 

regulatory action,’’ requiring review by 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB), unless OMB waives such 

review, as any regulatory action that is 

likely to result in a rule that may: (1) 

Have an annual effect on the economy 

of $100 million or more or adversely 

affect in a material way the economy, a 

sector of the economy, productivity, 

competition, jobs, the environment, 

public health or safety, or State, local, 

or tribal governments or communities; 

(2) create a serious inconsistency or 

otherwise interfere with an action taken 

or planned by another agency; (3) 

materially alter the budgetary impact of 

entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan 

programs or the rights and obligations of 

recipients thereof; or (4) raise novel 

legal or policy issues arising out of legal 

mandates, the President’s priorities, or 

the principles set forth in the Executive 

Order. 

VA has examined the economic, 

interagency, budgetary, legal, and policy 

implications of this regulatory action 

and has concluded that it is not a 

significant regulatory action under 

Executive Order 12866. 

Unfunded Mandates 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 requires, at 2 U.S.C. 1532, that 

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14602 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 52 / Thursday, March 17, 2011 / Proposed Rules 

agencies prepare an assessment of 

anticipated costs and benefits before 

issuing any rule that may result in the 

expenditure by State, local, and tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, of $100 million or more 

(adjusted annually for inflation) in any 

given year. This proposed rule would 

have no such effect on State, local, and 

tribal governments, or on the private 

sector. 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Numbers and Titles 

The Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance program numbers and titles 

for this rule are 64.011, Veterans Dental 

Care; and 64.109, Veterans 

Compensation for Service-Connected 

Disability. 

Signing Authority 

The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or 

designee, approved this document and 

authorized the undersigned to sign and 

submit the document to the Office of the 

Federal Register for publication 

electronically as an official document of 

the Department of Veterans Affairs. John 

R. Gingrich, Chief of Staff, Department 

of Veterans Affairs, approved this 

document on March 9, 2011, for 

publication. 

List of Subjects in 38 CFR Part 3 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Claims, Disability benefits, 

Health care, Pensions, Radioactive 

materials, Veterans, Vietnam. 

Dated: March 11, 2011. 

William F. Russo, 

Director of Regulations Management, Office 

of the General Counsel, Department of 

Veterans Affairs. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, VA proposes to amend 38 

CFR part 3 as follows: 

PART 3—ADJUDICATION 

1. The authority citation for part 3, 

subpart A continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(a), unless 

otherwise noted. 

2. Amend § 3.381 by: 

a. Redesignating paragraphs (a) 

through (f) as paragraphs (b) through (g). 

b. Adding new paragraph (a). 

c. Revising redesignated paragraph 

(b). 

d. Removing from redesignated 

paragraph (c) the following sentence: 

‘‘When applicable, the rating activity 

will determine whether the condition is 

due to combat or other in-service 

trauma, or whether the veteran was 

interned as a prisoner of war.’’ 

The addition and revision read as 

follows: 

§ 3.381 Service connection of dental 

conditions for treatment purposes. 

(a) The Veterans Benefits 

Administration (VBA) will adjudicate a 

claim for service connection of a dental 

condition for treatment purposes after 

the Veterans Health Administration 

determines a veteran meets the basic 

eligibility requirements of § 17.161 of 

this chapter and requests VBA make a 

determination on questions that 

include, but are not limited to, any of 

the following: 

(1) Former Prisoner of War status; 

(2) Whether the veteran has a 

compensable or noncompensable 

service-connected dental condition or 

disability; 

(3) Whether the dental condition or 

disability is a result of combat wounds; 

(4) Whether the dental condition or 

disability is a result of service trauma; 

or 

(5) Whether the veteran is totally 

disabled due to a service-connected 

disability. 

(b) Treatable carious teeth, 

replaceable missing teeth, dental or 

alveolar abscesses, and periodontal 

disease are not compensable disabilities, 

but may nevertheless be service 

connected solely for the purpose of 

establishing eligibility for outpatient 

dental treatment as provided for in 

§ 17.161 of this chapter. These 

conditions and other dental conditions 

or disabilities that are noncompensably 

rated under § 4.150 of this chapter may 

be service connected for purposes of 

Class II or Class II(a) dental treatment 

under § 17.161 of this chapter. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2011–6148 Filed 3–16–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8320–01–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R06–OAR–2010–0775; FRL–9281–2] 

Approval and Promulgation of Air 

Quality Implementation Plans; 

Louisiana; Revisions To Control 

Volatile Organic Compound Emissions 

for Surface Coatings and Graphic Arts 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve 

State Implementation Plan (SIP) 

revisions for control of volatile organic 

compounds (VOCs) adopted by 

Louisiana on June 20, 2009 and August 

20, 2010, and submitted to EPA on 

August 31, 2010. EPA is also proposing 

to approve a SIP revision for control of 

emission of organic compounds which 

was proposed by Louisiana on January 

20, 1011. EPA issued Control 

Techniques Guidelines (CTGs) in 2006, 

2007 and 2008; Louisiana’s rule 

revisions being proposed for approval in 

this action were developed in response 

to these CTGs. Because Louisiana has 

not yet finalized the January 20th 

revision to the VOC rules, we are 

proposing to approve this SIP revision 

in parallel with Louisiana’s rulemaking 

activities. If the final version of the VOC 

rule adopted by Louisiana is changed 

from the proposed version which is 

being ‘‘parallel processed’’ today, EPA 

will withdraw this rulemaking and 

propose a new rulemaking with the final 

VOC rule adopted by Louisiana. If there 

are no changes to the ‘‘parallelprocessed’’ version, EPA will proceed 

with final rulemaking on the version 

finally adopted by Louisiana and 

submitted to EPA. EPA is proposing to 

approve these revisions because they 

enhance the Louisiana SIP by improving 

VOC emission controls in Louisiana. 

EPA is also proposing to find that these 

revisions meet Reasonably Available 

Control Technology (RACT) 

requirements. These revisions meet 

statutory and regulatory requirements, 

and are consistent with EPA’s guidance. 

This action is being taken under section 

110 and part D of the Clean Air Act 

(CAA). 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before April 18, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R06– 

OAR–2010–0775, by one of the 

following methods: 

• Federal Rulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• E-mail: Mr. Guy Donaldson at 

donaldson.guy@epa.gov. Please also 

send a copy by e-mail to the person 

listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section below. 

• Fax: Mr. Guy Donaldson, Chief, Air 

Planning Section (6PD–L), at fax 

number 214–665–7263. 

• Mail: Mr. Guy Donaldson, Chief, 

Air Planning Section (6PD–L), 

Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 

Ross Avenue, Suite 1200, Dallas, Texas 

75202–2733. 

• Hand or Courier Delivery: Mr. Guy 

Donaldson, Chief, Air Planning Section 

(6PD–L), Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200, 

Dallas, Texas 75202–2733. Such 

deliveries are accepted only between the 

hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. weekdays 

except for legal holidays. Special 

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