Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 222 / Friday, November 17, 2006 / Notices 66987 

3. The nature and extent of the 

requester’s property, financial or other 

interest in the proceeding; 

4. The possible effect of any decision 

or order that may be issued in the 

proceeding on the requester’s interest; 

and 

5. The circumstances establishing that 

the request for a hearing is timely in 

accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(b). 

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.309 

(f)(1), a request for hearing or petitions 

for leave to intervene must set forth 

with particularity the contentions 

sought to be raised. For each contention, 

the request or petition must: 

1. Provide a specific statement of the 

issue of law or fact to be raised or 

controverted; 

2. Provide a brief explanation of the 

basis for the contention; 

3. Demonstrate that the issue raised in 

the contention is within the scope of the 

proceeding; 

4. Demonstrate that the issue raised in 

the contention is material to the 

findings that the NRC must make to 

support the action that is involved in 

the proceeding; 

5. Provide a concise statement of the 

alleged facts or expert opinions which 

support the requester’s/petitioner’s 

position on the issue and on which the 

requester/petitioner intends to rely to 

support its position on the issue; and 

6. Provide sufficient information to 

show that a genuine dispute exists with 

the applicant on a material issue of law 

or fact. This information must include 

references to specific portions of SMC’s 

revised DP (including the applicant’s 

environmental report) that the 

requester/petitioner disputes and the 

supporting reasons for each dispute, or, 

if the requester/petitioner believes the 

revised DP fails to contain information 

on a relevant matter as required by law, 

the identification of each failure and the 

supporting reasons for the requester’s/ 

petitioner’s belief. 

In addition, in accordance with 10 

CFR 2.309(f)(2), contentions must be 

based on documents or other 

information available at the time the 

petition is to be filed, such as the 

revised DP, supporting safety analysis 

report, environmental report or other 

supporting document filed by the 

licensee, or otherwise available to the 

petitioner. On issues arising under the 

National Environmental Policy Act, the 

requester/petitioner shall file 

contentions based on the licensee’s 

environmental report. The requester/ 

petitioner may amend those contentions 

or file new contentions if there are data 

or conclusions in the NRC draft, or final 

environmental impact statement, or any 

supplements relating thereto, that differ 

significantly from the data or 

conclusions in the licensee’s 

documents. Otherwise, contentions may 

be amended or new contentions filed 

after the initial filing only with leave of 

the presiding officer. 

Each contention shall be given a 

separate numeric or alpha designation 

within one of the following groups: 

1. Technical—primarily concerns 

issues relating to matters discussed or 

referenced in the Safety Evaluation 

Report for the proposed action. 

2. Environmental—primarily concerns 

issues relating to matters discussed or 

referenced in the Environmental Report 

for the proposed action. 

3. Miscellaneous—does not fall into 

one of the categories outlined above. 

If the requester/petitioner believes a 

contention raises issues that cannot be 

classified as primarily falling into one of 

these categories, the requester/petitioner 

must set forth the contention and 

supporting bases, in full, separately for 

each category into which the requester/ 

petitioner asserts the contention belongs 

with a separate designation for that 

category. 

Requesters/petitioners should, when 

possible, consult with each other in 

preparing contentions and combine 

similar subject matter concerns into a 

joint contention, for which one of the 

co-sponsoring requesters/petitioners is 

designated the lead representative. 

Further, in accordance with 10 CFR 

2.309(f)(3), any requester/petitioner that 

wishes to adopt a contention proposed 

by another requester/petitioner must do 

so in writing within ten days of the date 

the contention is filed, and designate a 

representative who shall have the 

authority to act for the requester/ 

petitioner. 

In accordance with 10 CFR 2.309(g), 

a request for hearing and/or petition for 

leave to intervene may also address the 

selection of the hearing procedures, 

taking into account the provisions of 10 

CFR 2.310. 

IV. Further Information 

Documents related to this action, 

including the revised DP and supporting 

documentation, are available 

electronically at the NRC’s Electronic 

Reading Room at http://www.nrc.gov/ 

reading-rm/adams.html. From this site, 

you can access the NRC’s Agencywide 

Document Access and Management 

System (ADAMS), which provides text 

and image files of NRC’s public 

documents. The ADAMS accession 

numbers for the documents related to 

this notice are: 

—Decommissioning Plan dated October 

21, 2005: Volume 1 (ML053190220), 

Volume 2 (ML053340210) and 

Volume 3 (ML053330384). 

—U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission’s letter rejecting the 

Decommissioning Plan dated January 

26, 2006 (ML060180551) 

—Summary of March 9, 2006 Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission Meeting with 

Shieldalloy Metallurgical Corporation 

(ML061070401) 

—Shieldalloy Metallurgical Corporation 

Supplement to Decommissioning Plan 

dated June 30, 2006 ( ML061980092) 

—U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission’s letter accepting the 

Decommissioning Plan for technical 

review dated October 18, 2006 

(ML062580126) 

If you do not have access to ADAMS 

or if there are problems in accessing the 

documents located in ADAMS, contact 

the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) 

Reference staff at 1–800–397–4209, 301–

415–4737, or by e-mail to pdr@nrc.gov. 

These documents may also be viewed 

electronically on the public computers 

located at the NRC’s PDR, O 1 F21, One 

White Flint North, 11555 Rockville 

Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. The PDR 

reproduction contractor will copy 

documents for a fee. 

Dated at Rockville, Maryland this 9th day 

of November 2006. 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Rebecca Tadesse, 

Branch Chief, Decommissioning Directorate, 

Division of Waste Management and 

Environmental Protection, Office of Federal 

and State Materials and Environmental 

Management Programs. 

[FR Doc. E6–19433 Filed 11–16–06; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND 

HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION 

No FEAR Act 

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health 

Review Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Occupational Safety and 

Health Review Commission (OSHRC) is 

publishing this notice under the 

‘‘Notification and Federal Employee 

Antidiscrimination and Retaliation Act 

of 2002,’’ which is known as the No 

FEAR Act, to inform current employees, 

former employees, and applicants for 

OSHRC employment of the rights and 

protections available to them under 

Federal antidiscrimination, 

whistleblower protection, and 

retaliation laws. 

DATES: November 17, 2006. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Angela Roach, EEO Officer, 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
66988 Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 222 / Friday, November 17, 2006 / Notices 

Occupational Safety and Health Review 

Commission, 1120—20th Street, NW., 

9th Floor, Washington, DC 20036–3457. 

Telephone: (202) 606–5390. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

‘‘Notification and Federal Employee 

Antidiscrimination and Retaliation Act 

of 2002,’’ commonly known as the No 

FEAR Act, was passed to require that 

Federal agencies be accountable for 

violations of discrimination and 

whistleblower protection laws. The Act 

recognized that agencies cannot be run 

effectively if those agencies practice or 

tolerate discrimination. The Act and 

regulations promulgated by Office of 

Personnel Management at 5 CFR 

724.102 require that Federal employees, 

former employees, and applicants be 

notified in paper and/or electronic form 

of the rights and protections available to 

them under Antidiscrimination and 

Whistleblower Protection laws. 

OSHRC’s notice will raise the awareness 

of its employees, former employees, and 

applicants for employment of the 

procedures to follow if they believe they 

have been subject to a violation of these 

laws. 

For these reasons, OSHRC is 

publishing this No FEAR Act Notice 

(also published on the agency’s Web site 

at http://www.oshrc.gov): 

No FEAR Act Notice 

On May 15, 2002, Congress enacted 

the ‘‘Notification and Federal Employee 

Antidiscrimination and Retaliation Act 

of 2002,’’ which is now known as the 

No FEAR Act. One purpose of the Act 

is to ‘‘require that Federal agencies be 

accountable for violations of 

antidiscrimination and whistleblower 

protection laws.’’ Public Law 107–174, 

Summary. In support of this purpose, 

Congress found that ‘‘agencies cannot be 

run effectively if those agencies practice 

or tolerate discrimination.’’ Public Law 

107–174, Title I, General Provisions, 

sec. 101(1). 

The Act also requires this agency to 

provide this notice to Federal 

employees, former Federal employees, 

and applicants for Federal employment 

to inform you of the rights and 

protections available to you under 

Federal antidiscrimination and 

whistleblower protection laws. 

Antidiscrimination Laws 

A Federal agency cannot discriminate 

against an employee or applicant with 

respect to the terms, conditions or 

privileges of employment on the basis of 

race, color, religion, sex, national origin, 

age, disability, marital status or political 

affiliation. Discrimination on these 

bases is prohibited by one or more of the 

following statutes: 5 U.S.C. 2302(b)(1), 

29 U.S.C. 206(d), 29 U.S.C. 631, 29 

U.S.C. 633a, 29 U.S.C. 791 and 42 U.S.C. 

2000e–16. 

If you believe that you have been the 

victim of unlawful discrimination on 

the basis of race, color, religion, sex, 

national origin or disability, you must 

contact an Equal Employment 

Opportunity (EEO) counselor within 45 

calendar days of the alleged 

discriminatory action, or, in the case of 

a personnel action, within 45 calendar 

days of the effective date of the action, 

before you can file a formal complaint 

of discrimination with your agency. See, 

e.g., 29 CFR 1614. If you believe that 

you have been the victim of unlawful 

discrimination on the basis of age, you 

must either contact an EEO counselor as 

noted above or give notice of intent to 

sue to the Equal Employment 

Opportunity Commission (EEOC) within 

180 calendar days of the alleged 

discriminatory action. If you are alleging 

discrimination based on marital status 

or political affiliation, you may file a 

written complaint with the U.S. Office 

of Special Counsel (OSC) (see contact 

information below). In the alternative 

(or in some cases, in addition), you may 

pursue a discrimination complaint by 

filing a grievance through your agency’s 

administrative or negotiated grievance 

procedures, if such procedures apply 

and are available. 

Whistleblower Protection Laws 

A Federal employee with authority to 

take, direct others to take, recommend 

or approve any personnel action must 

not use that authority to take or fail to 

take, or threaten to take or fail to take, 

a personnel action against an employee 

or applicant because of disclosure of 

information by that individual that is 

reasonably believed to evidence 

violations of law, rule or regulation; 

gross mismanagement; gross waste of 

funds; an abuse of authority; or a 

substantial and specific danger to public 

health or safety, unless disclosure of 

such information is specifically 

prohibited by law and such information 

is specifically required by Executive 

Order to be kept secret in the interest of 

national defense or the conduct of 

foreign affairs. 

Retaliation against an employee or 

applicant for making a protected 

disclosure is prohibited by 5 U.S.C. 

2302(b)(8). If you believe that you have 

been the victim of whistleblower 

retaliation, you may file a written 

complaint (Form OSC–11) with the U.S. 

Office of Special Counsel at 1730 M 

Street, NW., Suite 218, Washington, DC 

20036–4505 or online through the OSC 

Web site—http://www.osc.gov. 

Retaliation for Engaging in Protected 

Activity 

A Federal agency cannot retaliate 

against an employee or applicant 

because that individual exercises his or 

her rights under any of the Federal 

antidiscrimination or whistleblower 

protection laws listed above. If you 

believe that you are the victim of 

retaliation for engaging in protected 

activity, you must follow, as 

appropriate, the procedures described in 

the Antidiscrimination Laws and 

Whistleblower Protection Laws sections 

above or, if applicable, the 

administrative or negotiated grievance 

procedures in order to pursue any legal 

remedy. 

Disciplinary Actions 

Under the existing laws, each agency 

retains the right, where appropriate, to 

discipline a Federal employee for 

conduct that is inconsistent with 

Federal Antidiscrimination and 

Whistleblower Protection Laws up to 

and including removal. If OSC has 

initiated an investigation under 5 U.S.C. 

1214, however, according to 5 U.S.C. 

1214(f), agencies must seek approval 

from the Special Counsel to discipline 

employees for, among other activities, 

engaging in prohibited retaliation. 

Nothing in the No FEAR Act alters 

existing laws or permits an agency to 

take unfounded disciplinary action 

against a Federal employee or to violate 

the procedural rights of a Federal 

employee who has been accused of 

discrimination. 

Additional Information 

For further information regarding the 

No FEAR Act regulations, refer to 5 CFR 

part 724, as well as the appropriate 

offices within your agency (e.g., EEO/ 

civil rights office, human resources 

office or legal office). Additional 

information regarding Federal 

antidiscrimination, whistleblower 

protection and retaliation laws can be 

found at the EEOC Web site—http:// 

www.eeoc.gov and the OSC Web site—

http://www.osc.gov. 

Existing Rights Unchanged 

Pursuant to section 205 of the No 

FEAR Act, neither the Act nor this 

notice creates, expands or reduces any 

rights otherwise available to any 

employee, former employee or applicant 

under the laws of the United States, 

including the provisions of law 

specified in 5 U.S.C. 2302(d). 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 222 / Friday, November 17, 2006 / Notices 66989 

Dated: November 15, 2006. 

W. Scott Railton, 

Chairman. 

[FR Doc. 06–9273 Filed 11–15–06; 12:14 pm] 

BILLING CODE 7600–01–P 

OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES 

TRADE REPRESENTATIVE 

North American Free Trade 

Agreement; Invitation for Applications 

for Inclusion on the Chapter 19 Roster 

AGENCY: Office of the United States 

Trade Representative. 

ACTION: Invitation for applications. 

SUMMARY: Chapter 19 of the North 

American Free Trade Agreement 

(‘‘NAFTA’’) provides for the 

establishment of a roster of individuals 

to serve on binational panels convened 

to review final determinations in 

antidumping or countervailing duty 

(‘‘AD/CVD’’) proceedings and 

amendments to AD/CVD statutes of a 

NAFTA Party. The United States 

annually renews its selections for the 

Chapter 19 roster. Applications are 

invited from eligible individuals 

wishing to be included on the roster for 

the period April 1, 2007 through March 

31, 2008. 

DATES: Applications should be received 

no later than December 6, 2006. 

ADDRESSES: Applications should be 

submitted (i) electronically, to 

FR0501@ustr.eop.gov, Attn: ‘‘Chapter 19 

Roster Applications’’ in the subject line, 

or (ii) by fax to Sandy McKinzy at 202–

395–3640. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jeffrey G. Weiss, Assistant General 

Counsel, Office of the United States 

Trade Representative, (202) 395–4498. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Binational Panel Reviews Under 

NAFTA Chapter 19 

Article 1904 of the NAFTA provides 

that a party involved in an AD/CVD 

proceeding may obtain review by a 

binational panel of a final AD/CVD 

determination of one NAFTA Party with 

respect to the products of another 

NAFTA Party. Binational panels decide 

whether such AD/CVD determinations 

are in accordance with the domestic 

laws of the importing NAFTA Party, and 

must use the standard of review that 

would have been applied by a domestic 

court of the importing NAFTA Party. A 

panel may uphold the AD/CVD 

determination, or may remand it to the 

national administering authority for 

action not inconsistent with the panel’s 

decision. Panel decisions may be 

reviewed in specific circumstances by a 

three-member extraordinary challenge 

committee, selected from a separate 

roster composed of fifteen current or 

former judges. 

Article 1903 of the NAFTA provides 

that a NAFTA Party may refer an 

amendment to the AD/CVD statutes of 

another NAFTA Party to a binational 

panel for a declaratory opinion as to 

whether the amendment is inconsistent 

with the General Agreement on Tariffs 

and Trade (‘‘GATT’’), the GATT 

Antidumping or Subsidies Codes, 

successor agreements, or the object and 

purpose of the NAFTA with regard to 

the establishment of fair and predictable 

conditions for the liberalization of trade. 

If the panel finds that the amendment is 

inconsistent, the two NAFTA Parties 

shall consult and seek to achieve a 

mutually satisfactory solution. 

Chapter 19 Roster and Composition of 

Binational Panels 

Annex 1901.2 of the NAFTA provides 

for the maintenance of a roster of at least 

75 individuals for service on Chapter 19 

binational panels, with each NAFTA 

Party selecting at least 25 individuals. A 

separate five-person panel is formed for 

each review of a final AD/CVD 

determination or statutory amendment. 

To form a panel, the two NAFTA Parties 

involved each appoint two panelists, 

normally by drawing upon individuals 

from the roster. If the Parties cannot 

agree upon the fifth panelist, one of the 

Parties, decided by lot, selects the fifth 

panelist from the roster. The majority of 

individuals on each panel must consist 

of lawyers in good standing, and the 

chair of the panel must be a lawyer. 

Upon each request for establishment 

of a panel, roster members from the two 

involved NAFTA Parties will be 

requested to complete a disclosure form, 

which will be used to identify possible 

conflicts of interest or appearances 

thereof. The disclosure form requests 

information regarding financial interests 

and affiliations, including information 

regarding the identity of clients of the 

roster member and, if applicable, clients 

of the roster member’s firm. 

Criteria for Eligibility for Inclusion on 

Chapter 19 Roster 

Section 402 of the NAFTA 

Implementation Act (Pub. L. 103–182, 

as amended (19 U.S.C. 3432)) (‘‘Section 

402’’) provides that selections by the 

United States of individuals for 

inclusion on the Chapter 19 roster are to 

be based on the eligibility criteria set 

out in Annex 1901.2 of the NAFTA, and 

without regard to political affiliation. 

Annex 1901.2 provides that Chapter 19 

roster members must be citizens of a 

NAFTA Party, must be of good character 

and of high standing and repute, and are 

to be chosen strictly on the basis of their 

objectivity, reliability, sound judgment, 

and general familiarity with 

international trade law. Aside from 

judges, roster members may not be 

affiliated with any of the three NAFTA 

Parties. Section 402 also provides that, 

to the fullest extent practicable, judges 

and former judges who meet the 

eligibility requirements should be 

selected. 

Adherence to the NAFTA Code of 

Conduct for Binational Panelists 

The ‘‘Code of Conduct for Dispute 

Settlement Procedures Under Chapters 

19 and 20’’ (see http://www.nafta-secalena.org/DefaultSite/ 

index_e.aspx?CategoryId=75), which 

was established pursuant to Article 

1909 of the NAFTA, provides that 

current and former Chapter 19 roster 

members ‘‘shall avoid impropriety and 

the appearance of impropriety and shall 

observe high standards of conduct so 

that the integrity and impartiality of the 

dispute settlement process is 

preserved.’’ The Code also provides that 

candidates to serve on chapter 19 

panels, as well as those who are 

ultimately selected to serve as panelists, 

have an obligation to ‘‘disclose any 

interest, relationship or matter that is 

likely to affect [their] impartiality or 

independence, or that might reasonably 

create an appearance of impropriety or 

an apprehension of bias.’’ Annex 1901.2 

of the NAFTA provides that roster 

members may engage in other business 

while serving as panelists, subject to the 

Code of Conduct and provided that such 

business does not interfere with the 

performance of the panelist’s duties. In 

particular, Annex 1901.2 states that 

‘‘[w]hile acting as a panelist, a panelist 

may not appear as counsel before 

another panel.’’

Procedures for Selection of Chapter 19 

Roster Members 

Section 402 establishes procedures for 

the selection by the Office of the United 

States Trade Representative (‘‘USTR’’) of 

the individuals chosen by the United 

States for inclusion on the Chapter 19 

roster. The roster is renewed annually, 

and applies during the one-year period 

beginning April 1 of each calendar year. 

Under Section 402, an interagency 

committee chaired by USTR prepares a 

preliminary list of candidates eligible 

for inclusion on the Chapter 19 Roster. 

After consultation with the Senate 

Committee on Finance and the House 

Committee on Ways and Means, USTR 

selects the final list of individuals 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES