Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 179 / Thursday, September 17, 2009 / Notices 47779 

* Mail: Susan K. Fawcett, Records 

Officer, Office of the Chief Information 

Officer, Administrative Management 

Group, U.S. Patent and Trademark 

Office, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, VA 

22313–1450. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent on 

or before October 19, 2009 to Nicholas 

A. Fraser, OMB Desk Officer, via e-mail 

at Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov or 

by fax to 202–395–5167, marked to the 

attention of Nicholas A. Fraser. 

Dated: September 10, 2009. 

Susan K. Fawcett, 

Records Officer, USPTO, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer, Administrative 

Management Group. 

[FR Doc. E9–22376 Filed 9–16–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–16–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XL85 

Record of Decision (ROD) for the Final 

Environmental Impact Statement/ 

Environmental Impact Report for 

Replacement of the National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration’s 

Southwest Fisheries Science Center 

Located in La Jolla, California 

AGENCY: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: National Environmental Policy 

Act (NEPA) Record of Decision. 

SUMMARY: NOAA issues this notice to 

inform the public that an ROD has been 

approved for replacement of the 

Southwest Fisheries Science Center 

(SWFSC) at the Scripps Institution of 

Oceanography (SIO) within the 

University of California at San Diego 

(UCSD) campus in La Jolla, California. 

NOAA signed the ROD on August 20, 

2009. 

ADDRESSES: Request for copies of the 

ROD may be directed to Mr. Mark 

Eberling, NOAA Project Planning and 

Management Decision, Western Region, 

7600 Sand Point Way, N.E., WC41, Bin 

15700, Seattle, WA 98115–0070. Copies 

of the Final EIS/EIR are available for 

review at the UCSD library, at the 

existing SWFSC, and at La Jolla Public 

Library. Additionally, an electronic 

copy is available at http:// 

www.seco.noaa.gov/ENV/NEPA/Sites/ 

LaJollalNEPA.html. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Mark Eberling, NOAA Project Planning 

and Management Decision, Western 

Region, 7600 Sand Point Way, N.E., 

WC41, Bin 15700, Seattle, WA 98115– 

0070. Tel. (206)526–6477, email: 

mark.a.eberling@noaa.gov 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

National Marine Fisheries Services 

(NMFS) is responsible for the 

management, conservation, and 

protection of living marine resources 

within the U.S. Exclusive Economic 

Zone. The SWFSC in La Jolla, CA 

manages and conducts research 

involving Pacific fisheries and marine 

mammal research for the protection and 

management of these resources 

throughout Western Pacific and 

Antarctica. The existing SWFSC facility, 

built in 1964, is currently adjacent to a 

coastal bluff that is undergoing severe 

erosion and retreat. 

NOAA will implement the proposed 

action analyzed in the Final 

Environmental Impact Statement/ 

Environmental Impact Report. NOAA 

will construct and operate a new 

SWFSC building at a 3.3 acre 

undeveloped property located across La 

Jolla Shores Drive from the existing 

facility. A minimum of two existing atrisk SWFSC structures will be removed 

and the property currently used by 

NOAA will be returned to UCSD. The 

new building will be constructed in 

conformance with Leadership in Energy 

and Environmental Design principles to 

minimize impacts to the environment. 

The ROD contains a number of 

measures to mitigate environmental 

effect of the planned action. 

Dated: September 11, 2009. 

William F. Broglie, 

Chief Administrative Officer, National 

Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

Department of Commerce. 

[FR Doc. E9–22416 Filed 9–16–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–AV15 

Public Meetings on Protective 

Regulations for Killer Whales in the 

Northwest Region Under the 

Endangered Species Act and Marine 

Mammal Protection Act 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; notification of 

additional public meeting. 

SUMMARY: We, the National Marine 

Fisheries Service (NMFS) are issuing 

this notice to advise the public that 

NMFS is adding an additional public 

meeting regarding proposed regulations 

under the Endangered Species Act and 

Marine Mammal Protection Act to 

prohibit vessels from approaching killer 

whales within 200 yards and from 

parking in the path of whales for vessels 

in inland waters of Washington State. 

The proposed regulations would also 

prohibit vessels from entering a 

conservation area during a defined 

season. The proposed rule was 

published July 29, 2009, and includes 

information on two public meetings. We 

are issuing this notice to announce a 

third public meeting in Anacortes, WA 

that has been added in response to 

requests for additional public meetings 

to allow for greater public participation. 

DATES: Three public meetings will be 

held as follows: 

(1) September 24, 2009, 7–9 p.m., Pier 

One Main Warehouse, 100 Commercial 

Avenue, Anacortes, WA; 

(2) September 30, 2009, 7–9 p.m., 

Seattle Aquarium, Pier 59, Seattle, WA; 

and 

(3) October 5, 2009, 7–9 p.m., The 

Grange Hall, First Street, Friday Harbor, 

WA. 

Written or electronic comments on 

the proposed rule and draft 

Environmental Assessment (EA) from 

all interested parties are encouraged and 

must be received no later than October 

27, 2009. All comments and material 

received, including names and 

addresses, will become part of the 

administrative record and may be 

released to the public. 

ADDRESSES: Comments on the proposed 

rule, draft EA and any of the supporting 

documents can be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

• Email: orca.plan@noaa.gov. 

• Federal e-rulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

• Mail: Assistant Regional 

Administrator, Protected Resources 

Division, Northwest Regional Office, 

National Marine Fisheries Service, 7600 

Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115. 

The draft EA and other supporting 

documents are available on 

Regulations.gov and the NMFS 

Northwest Region Web site at http:// 

www.nwr.noaa.gov/. 

You may submit information and 

comments concerning this Proposed 

Rule, the draft EA, or any of the 

supporting documents by any one of 

several methods identified above. We 

will consider all comments and 

information received during the 

comment period in preparing a final 


cprice-sewell on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES
47780 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 179 / Thursday, September 17, 2009 / Notices 

rule. Before including your address, 

phone number, e-mail address, or other 

personal identifying information in your 

comment, you should be aware that 

your entire comment- including your 

personal identifying information- may 

be made publicly available at any time. 

While you can ask us in your comment 

to withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Lynne Barre, Northwest Regional Office, 

206–526–4745; or Trevor Spradlin, 

Office of Protected Resources, 301–713– 

2322. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On July 29, 2009, NMFS proposed 

regulations under the Endangered 

Species Act and Marine Mammal 

Protection Act to prohibit vessels from 

approaching killer whales within 200 

yards and from parking in the path of 

whales for vessels in inland waters of 

Washington State (74 FR 37674). The 

proposed regulations would also 

prohibit vessels from entering a 

conservation area during a defined 

season. Certain vessels would be exempt 

from the prohibitions. The purpose of 

the action is to protect killer whales 

from interference and noise associated 

with vessels. In the final rule 

announcing the endangered listing of 

Southern Resident killer whales NMFS 

identified disturbance and sound 

associated with vessels as a potential 

contributing factor in the recent decline 

of this population. The Recovery Plan 

for Southern Resident killer whales calls 

for evaluating current guidelines and 

assessing the need for regulations and/ 

or protected areas. We developed the 

proposed rule after considering 

comments submitted in response to an 

Advance Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (72 FR 13464; March 22, 

2007) and preparing a draft 

environmental assessment (EA). 

Reasonable Accommodation 

Persons needing reasonable 

accommodations to attend and 

participate in the public meetings 

should contact Lynne Barre (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). To 

allow sufficient time to process 

requests, please call at least 5 business 

days prior to the relevant meeting(s). 

Dated: September 11, 2009. 

James H. Lecky, 

Director, Office of Protected Resources, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–22414 Filed 9–16–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Patent and Trademark Office 

[Docket No. PTO–P–2009–0037] 

Request for Comments on Interim 

Examination Instructions for 

Evaluating Patent Subject Matter 

Eligibility 

AGENCY: United States Patent and 

Trademark Office, Commerce. 

ACTION: Request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The United States Patent and 

Trademark Office (USPTO) has prepared 

interim examination instructions for 

evaluating patent subject matter 

eligibility under 35 U.S.C. 101 (Interim 

Patent Subject Matter Eligibility 

Examination Instructions) pending a 

decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in 

Bilski v. Kappos. The Interim Patent 

Subject Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions will be for use by USPTO 

personnel in their review of patent 

applications to determine whether the 

claims in a patent application are 

directed to patent eligible subject matter 

under 35 U.S.C. 101. The USPTO is 

requesting comments from the public 

regarding the Interim Patent Subject 

Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions. 

DATES: Comment Deadline Date: To be 

ensured of consideration, written 

comments must be received on or before 

September 28, 2009. No public hearing 

will be held. 

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent 

by electronic mail message over the 

Internet addressed to 

AB98.Comments@uspto.gov. Comments 

may also be submitted by facsimile to 

(571) 273–0125, marked to the attention 

of Caroline D. Dennison. Although 

comments may be submitted by mail or 

facsimile, the USPTO prefers to receive 

comments via the Internet. 

The comments will be available for 

public inspection at the Office of the 

Commissioner for Patents, located in 

Madison East, Tenth Floor, 600 Dulany 

Street, Alexandria, Virginia, and will be 

available via the Office Internet Web site 

(address: http://www.uspto.gov). 

Because comments will be made 

available for public inspection, 

information that is not desired to be 

made public, such as an address or 

phone number, should not be included 

in the comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Caroline D. Dennison, Office of the 

Deputy Commissioner for Patent 

Examination Policy, by telephone at 

571–272–7729, or by facsimile 

transmission to 571–273–0125, marked 

to the attention of Caroline D. Dennison. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

USPTO has prepared Interim Patent 

Subject Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions for evaluating patent 

subject matter eligibility under 35 

U.S.C. 101. The Interim Patent Subject 

Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions are based on the USPTO’s 

current understanding of the law and 

are believed to be fully consistent with 

binding precedent of the U.S. Supreme 

Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 

Federal Circuit (Federal Circuit) and the 

Federal Circuit’s predecessor courts. 

The USPTO posted the Interim Patent 

Subject Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions on its Internet Web site 

(http://www.uspto.gov) on August 27, 

2009, with a notice requesting public 

comment on the Interim Patent Subject 

Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions and indicating that written 

comments must be received on or before 

September 28, 2009, to be ensured of 

consideration. 

The Interim Patent Subject Matter 

Eligibility Examination Instructions do 

not constitute substantive rule making 

and hence do not have the force and 

effect of law. Rejections are and will 

continue to be based upon the 

substantive law, and it is these 

rejections that are appealable. 

Consequently, any perceived failure by 

USPTO personnel to follow the Interim 

Patent Subject Matter Eligibility 

Examination Instructions is neither 

appealable nor petitionable. 

The U.S. Supreme Court granted 

certiorari in Bilski, S.Ct. No. 08–964. 

See 556 U.S.___ (June 1, 2009). The 

USPTO expects that a decision in Bilski 

will be rendered sometime before the 

end of June 2010. The Interim Patent 

Subject Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions are to provide instructions 

to examiners pending a final decision 

from the Supreme Court in Bilski. 

Following the Supreme Court’s decision 

in Bilski, the USPTO will revise its 

examination instructions for evaluating 

patent subject matter eligibility under 

35 U.S.C. 101 for consistency with the 

Supreme Court’s decision. 

The Interim Patent Subject Matter 

Eligibility Examination Instructions 

merely revise USPTO examination 

practice for consistency with the 

USPTO’s current understanding of the 

case law regarding patent subject matter 

eligibility under 35 U.S.C. 101. 

Therefore, the Interim Patent Subject 

Matter Eligibility Examination 

Instructions relate only to interpretative 

rules, general statements of policy, or 

rules of agency organization, procedure, 


cprice-sewell on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with NOTICES