This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains documents other than rules or

proposed rules that are applicable to the

public. Notices of hearings and investigations,

committee meetings, agency decisions and

rulings, delegations of authority, filing of

petitions and applications and agency

statements of organization and functions are

examples of documents appearing in this

section.

Notices Federal Register

38493

Vol. 65, No. 120

Wednesday, June 21, 2000

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Research Service

Government Owned Inventions

Available for Licensing

AGENCY: Agricultural Research Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Government Owned

Inventions Available for Licensing.

SUMMARY: The inventions listed below

are owned by the U.S. Government as

represented by the Department of

Agriculture, and are available for

licensing in accordance with 35 U.S.C.

207 and 37 CFR part 404 to achieve

expeditious commercialization of

results of federally funded research and

development.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Technical and licensing information on

these inventions may be obtained by

writing to: Janet I. Stockhausen of the

USDA Forest Service, One Gifford

Pinchot Drive, Madison, Wisconsin

53705–2398; telephone 608–231–9502;

fax: 608–231–9508; or email at

jistockh@facstaff.wisc.edu. Issued

patents may be obtained from the

Commissioner of Patents, U.S. Patent

and Trademark Office, Washington, DC

20231.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

inventions available for licensing are:

09/540,841 ‘‘Fungal Degradation and

Bioremediation System for CCATreated Wood’’

09/541,893 ‘‘Fungal Degradation and

Bioremediation System for CreosoteTreated Wood’’

09/541,944 ‘‘Fungal Degradation and

Bioremediation System for

Pentachlorophenol-Treated Wood’’

09/541,945 ‘‘Fungal Degradation and

Bioremediation System for ACQTreated Wood’’

June Blalock,

Technology Licensing Coordinator.

[FR Doc. 00–15625 Filed 6–20–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–03–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Research Service

Notice of Intent To Grant Exclusive

License

AGENCY: Agricultural Research Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

the U.S. Department of Agriculture,

Agricultural Research Service, intends

to grant to OPIsystems Inc. of Calgary,

Alberta, Canada, an exclusive license to

U.S. Patent Number 5,646,404, issued

July 8, 1997, entitled ‘‘Electronic Grain

Probe Insect Counter (EGPIC)’’. Notice

of Availability to Serial Number 08/

390,834 was published in the Federal

Register on April 19, 1995.

DATES: Comments must be received on

or before August 20, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to: USDA,

ARS, Office of Technology Transfer,

5601 Sunnyside Avenue, 4–1158,

Beltsville, Maryland 20705–5131.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: June

Blalock of the Office of Technology

Transfer at the Beltsville address given

above; telephone: 301–504–5989.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Federal Government’s patent rights to

this invention are assigned to the United

States of America, as represented by the

Secretary of Agriculture. It is in the

public interest to so license this

invention as OPIsystems Inc. submitted

a complete and sufficient application for

a license. The prospective exclusive

license will be royalty-bearing and will

comply with the terms and conditions

of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7. The

prospective exclusive license may be

granted unless, within sixty (60) days

from the date of this published Notice,

the Agricultural Research Service

receives written evidence and argument

which establishes that the grant of the

license would not be consistent with the

requirements of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37

CFR 404.7.

Richard M. Parry, Jr.,

Assistant Administrator.

[FR Doc. 00–15627 Filed 6–20–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–03–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service

[Docket No. 00–057–1]

Notice of Request for Extension of

Approval of an Information Collection

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Extension of approval of an

information collection; comment

request.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this

notice announces the Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service’s intention to

request an extension of approval of an

information collection in support of

regulations intended to prevent the

introduction of foreign plant pests into

the United States.

DATES: We invite you to comment on

this docket. We will consider all

comments that we receive by August 21,

2000.

ADDRESSES: Please send your comment

and three copies to: Docket No. 00–057–

1, Regulatory Analysis and

Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 3C03,

4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale,

MD 20737–1238. Please state that your

comment refers to Docket No. 00–057–

1.

You may read any comments that we

receive on this docket in our reading

room. The reading room is located in

room 1141 of the USDA South Building,

14th Street and Independence Avenue,

SW., Washington, DC. Normal reading

room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.,

Monday through Friday, except

holidays. To be sure someone is there to

help you, please call (202) 690–2817

before coming.

APHIS documents published in the

Federal Register, and related

information, including the names of

organizations and individuals who have

commented on APHIS dockets, are

available on the Internet at http://

38494 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 21, 2000 / Notices

www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/

webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For

information regarding the Cooperative

Agricultural Pest Survey, contact Ms.

Coanne O’Hern, Operations Officer,

Program Support Staff, PPQ, APHIS,

4700 River Road Unit 134, Riverdale,

MD 20737–1236; (301) 734–8717. For

copies of more detailed information on

the information collection, contact Ms.

Cheryl Groves, APHIS’ Information

Collection Coordinator, at (301) 734–

5086.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: Cooperative Agricultural Pest

Survey.

OMB Number: 0579–0010.

Expiration Date of Approval: August

31, 2000.

Type of Request: Extension of

approval of an information collection.

Abstract: The United States

Department of Agriculture (USDA) is

responsible for preventing foreign plant

pests from entering the United States,

preventing the spread of pests not

widely distributed within the United

States, and eradicating those pests when

eradication is feasible. The Plant

Quarantine Act and the Federal Plant

Pest Act authorize the Department to

carry out this mission.

The Plant Protection and Quarantine

(PPQ) division of USDA’s Animal and

Plant Health Inspection Service is

responsible for implementing the

regulations that carry out the intent of

these Acts.

To this end, PPQ has joined forces

with the States to create a program

called the Cooperative Agricultural Pest

Survey.

This program allows the States and

PPQ to conduct surveys to detect and

measure the presence of foreign plant

pests of concern and to enter survey

data into a national computer-based

system called the National Agricultural

Plant Information System. This, in turn,

allows us to obtain a more

comprehensive picture of plant pest

conditions in the United States.

The information generated by this

program is used by the States to predict

potential plant pest situations. It is used

by Federal interests to promptly detect

and respond to the occurrence of new

pests and to record the location of those

pest incursions that could directly

hinder the export of U.S. farm

commodities.

Plant pests such as insects or certain

bacteria have the potential to cause

billions of dollars in damage to U.S.

agriculture if they become established

within the United States.

Our Cooperative Agricultural Pest

Survey entails the use of several

information collection activities,

including a Cooperative Agreement,

Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey

procedures, and a Specimens for

Determination Form (PPQ Form 391).

We are asking the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) to

approve, for an additional 3 years, our

use of this information collection

activity in connection with our survey

work.

The purpose of this notice is to solicit

comments from the public (as well as

affected agencies) concerning this

information collection activity. These

comments will help us:

(1) Evaluate whether the information

collection is necessary for the proper

performance of our Agency’s functions,

including whether the information will

have practical utility;

(2) Evaluate the accuracy of our

estimate of the burden of the

information collection, including the

validity of the methodology and

assumptions used;

(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and

clarity of the information to be

collected; and

(4) Minimize the burden of the

collection of information on those who

are to respond, through use, as

appropriate, of automated, electronic,

mechanical, and other collection

technologies, e.g., permitting electronic

submission of responses.

Estimate of burden: The public

reporting burden for this collection of

information is estimated to average

.04122 hours per response.

Respondents: State cooperators

participating in our Cooperative

Agricultural Pest Survey.

Estimated annual number of

respondents: 50.

Estimated annual number of

responses per respondent: 701.

Estimated annual number of

responses: 35,050.

Estimated total annual burden on

respondents: 1,445 hours. (Due to

rounding, the total annual burden hours

may not equal the product of the annual

number of responses multiplied by the

average reporting burden per response.)

All responses to this notice will be

summarized and included in the request

for OMB approval. All comments will

also become a matter of public record.

Done in Washington, DC, this 15th day of

June 2000.

Craig A. Reed,

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 00–15623 Filed 6–20–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–U

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service

[Docket No. 00–026–1]

Monsanto Co.; Availability of

Environmental Assessment for

Extension of Determination of

Nonregulated Status for Corn

Genetically Engineered for Glyphosate

Herbicide Tolerance

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: We are advising the public

that an environmental assessment has

been prepared for a proposed decision

to extend to one additional corn line our

determination that a corn line

developed by Monsanto Company,

which has been genetically engineered

for tolerance to the herbicide

glyphosate, is no longer considered a

regulated article under our regulations

governing the introduction of certain

genetically engineered organisms. We

are making this environmental

assessment available to the public for

review and comment.

DATES: We will consider all comments

that we receive by July 21, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Please send your comment

and three copies to: Docket No. 00–026–

1, Regulatory Analysis and

Development,

PPD, APHIS, Suite 3C03, 4700 River

Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737–

1238. Please state that your comment

refers to Docket No. 00–026–1.

You may read the extension request

and the environmental assessment at

USDA, room 1141, South Building, 14th

Street and Independence Avenue SW.,

Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and

4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,

except holidays. To be sure someone is

there to help you, please call (202) 690–

2817 before coming.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.

John Turner, Biotechnology

Assessments Section, Permits and Risk

Assessments, PPQ, APHIS, Suite 5B05,

4700 River Road Unit 147, Riverdale,

MD 20737–1236; (301) 734–8365. To

obtain a copy of the extension request

or the environmental assessment,

contact Ms. Kay Peterson at (301) 734–

4885; e-mail: kay.peterson@usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

regulations in 7 CFR part 340,

‘‘Introduction of Organisms and

Products Altered or Produced Through

Genetic Engineering Which Are Plant

Pests or Which There is Reason to

Believe Are Plant Pests,’’ regulate,