Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 238 / Thursday, December 10, 2020 / Notices 79463 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Forest Service Manual 2740; Forest 

Service Handbook 2709.11, Chapter 50; 

Special Uses Management, Vegetation 

Management Pilot Projects; Special 

Uses Handbook—Standard Forms and 

Supplemental Clauses 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Issuance of Proposed Directives; 

notice of availability for public 

comment. 

SUMMARY: The United States Department 

of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, is 

seeking public comment on proposed 

directives implementing section 8630 of 

the Agriculture Improvement Act of 

2018 (2018 Farm Bill). Section 8630 of 

the 2018 Farm Bill gives the Forest 

Service discretion to issue permits for 

conducting vegetation management 

pilot projects under lower liability 

standards to holders of an authorization 

for a powerline facility or natural gas 

pipeline on National Forest System 

(NFS) lands. These pilot projects may be 

conducted only on NFS lands that are 

not covered by the special use 

authorization for the powerline facility 

or natural gas pipeline. 

DATES: Comments must be received in 

writing by January 11, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: The proposed directives are 

available at, and comments may be 

submitted electronically to, https://

cara.ecosystem-management.org/Public/ 

CommentInput?project=ORMS-2717. 

Comments may be mailed to Gregory C. 

Smith, Director, Lands and Realty 

Management, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250– 

1124. All timely comments, including 

names and addresses, will be placed in 

the record and will be available for 

public inspection and copying. The 

public may inspect comments received 

at https://cara.ecosystemmanagement.org/Public/ 

ReadingRoom?project=ORMS-2717. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Reggie Woodruff, Lands and Realty 

Management, at 202–205–1196 or 

reginal.woodruff@usda.gov. Individuals 

who use telecommunication devices for 

the deaf may call the Federal Relay 

Service at 800–877–8339 between 8:00 

a.m. and 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time, 

Monday through Friday. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

8630 of the 2018 Farm Bill gives the 

Forest Service discretion to issue 

permits for conducting vegetation 

management pilot projects under lower 

liability standards to holders of an 

authorization for a powerline facility or 

natural gas pipeline. These pilot 

projects may be conducted only on NFS 

lands that are not covered by the special 

use authorization for the powerline 

facility or natural gas pipeline. Pilot 

projects must be conducted outside the 

linear right-of-way for the associated 

powerline facility or natural gas 

pipeline; may not extend more than 150 

feet from either side of the powerline 

facility or natural gas pipeline; and may 

not have a total width of more than 200 

feet including both sides of the 

powerline facility or natural gas 

pipeline. In addition, pilot projects may 

not overlap with vegetation 

management conducted under the 

special use authorization for the 

powerline facility or natural gas 

pipeline, including removal and 

pruning of hazard trees outside the 

linear right-of-way for a powerline 

facility. The liability provisions in a 

special use permit for a pilot project 

have no effect on the liability provisions 

in the special use authorization for the 

powerline facility or natural gas 

pipeline, including the liability 

provisions that apply to removal and 

pruning of hazard trees inside and 

outside the linear right-of-way. 

The proposed directive at Forest 

Service Manual 2700, Special Uses 

Management, Chapter 40, Vegetation 

Management Pilot Projects, and 

proposed new clause B–39 in Forest 

Service Handbook 2709.11, Chapter 50, 

section 52.2, would provide for 

authorizing vegetation management 

pilot projects consistent with section 

8630 of the 2018 Farm Bill and Title V 

of the Federal Land Policy and 

Management Act, section 28 of the 

Mineral Leasing Act, and their 

implementing regulations. The Forest 

Service has determined that two 

provisions in the proposed directives 

would formulate standards, criteria, and 

guidelines applicable to a Forest Service 

program, specifically, providing for use 

of form FS–2700–4 for pilot project 

permits and the criteria for determining 

the maximum dollar amount of fire 

suppression costs a holder must 

reimburse the Forest Service for a 

wildfire caused by the holder’s 

operations under a pilot project permit. 

Therefore, the Forest Service is 

publishing those proposed provisions 

for public comment in accordance with 

36 CFR part 216. The remainder of the 

proposed directives is not subject to 

public notice and comment because it 

merely implements statutory provisions 

that the Forest Service lacks discretion 

to interpret and therefore does not 

formulate standards, criteria, and 

guidelines applicable to FS programs. 

After the public comment period 

closes, the Forest Service will consider 

timely and relevant comments in 

developing the final directives. A notice 

of the final directives, including a 

response to timely and relevant 

comments, will be posted on the Forest 

Service’s web page at https://

www.fs.fed.us/about-agency/ 

regulations-policies/comment-ondirectives. 

Christine Dawe, 

Acting Associate Deputy Chief, National 

Forest System. 

[FR Doc. 2020–27103 Filed 12–9–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3411–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

National Agricultural Statistics Service 

Notice of Reinstatement of the 

Agricultural Labor Survey Previously 

Scheduled for October 2020 

AGENCY: National Agricultural Statistics 

Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Reinstatement of the 

Agricultural Labor Survey Previously 

Scheduled for October 2020. 

SUMMARY: The National Agricultural 

Statistics Service (NASS) announces the 

reinstatement of the Agricultural Labor 

Survey previously scheduled for 

October 2020 and the associated 

publication previously scheduled for 

November 2020. NASS is reinstating the 

previously suspended information 

collection pursuant to a recent federal 

court order. See United Farm Workers v. 

Perdue, No. 20–cv–01452–DAD–JLT 

(E.D. Cal. Oct. 28, 2020) (order granting 

TRO and preliminary injunction). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Kevin L. Barnes, Associate 

Administrator, National Agricultural 

Statistics Service, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, (202)720–2707. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: 

Agricultural Labor Survey. 

OMB Control Number: 0535–0109. 

Expiration Date of Approval: February 

28, 2022. 

This notice announces NASS’s 

intention to end the suspension of the 

Agricultural Labor Survey previously 

scheduled for October 2020, and the 

associated publication previously 

scheduled for November 2020. The 

suspension notice (OMB No. 0535– 

0109) was published in the Federal 

Register on September 30, 2020. That 

suspension notice was challenged in 

federal court; the court recently issued 

a preliminary injunction ordering NASS 

to reinstate the data collection 

previously scheduled for October 2020. 


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