This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

26328 

Vol. 72, No. 89 

Wednesday, May 9, 2007 

1The comment must be accompanied by an 

explicit request for confidential treatment, 

including the factual and legal basis for the request, 

and must identify the specific portions of the 

comment to be withheld from the public record. 

The request will be granted or denied by the 

Commission’s General Counsel, consistent with 

applicable law and the public interest. See 

Commission Rule 4.9(c), 16 CFR 4.9(c). 

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION 

16 CFR Part 259 

Guide Concerning Fuel Economy 

Advertising for New Automobiles 

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission. 

ACTION: Request for public comments. 

SUMMARY: As part of the Commission’s 

systematic review of all current FTC 

rules and guides, the Commission 

requests public comment on the overall 

costs, benefits, necessity, and regulatory 

and economic impact of the FTC’s 

Guide Concerning Fuel Economy 

Advertising for New Automobiles 

(‘‘Fuel Economy Guide’’ or ‘‘Guide’’). 

The Commission is also seeking 

comments on whether the Guide should 

be amended in light of recent 

amendments to the Environmental 

Protection Agency’s (‘‘EPA’’) fuel 

economy labeling rules for new 

automobiles. 

DATES: Written comments will be 

accepted until July 23, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are 

invited to submit written comments. 

Comments should refer to ‘‘Fuel 

Economy Guide Review, Matter No. 

R711008’’ to facilitate the organization 

of comments. A comment filed in paper 

form should include this reference both 

in the text and on the envelope, and 

should be mailed or delivered to the 

following address: Federal Trade 

Commission/Office of the Secretary, 

Room H–135 (Annex M), 600 

Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC 20580. Comments 

containing confidential material, 

however, must be filed in paper form, 

must be clearly labeled ‘‘Confidential,’’ 

and must comply with Commission 

Rule 4.9(c).1 The FTC is requesting that 

any comment filed in paper form be sent 

by courier or overnight service, if 

possible, because postal mail in the 

Washington area and at the Commission 

is subject to delay due to heightened 

security precautions. 

Comments filed in electronic form 

should be submitted by following the 

instructions on the web-based form at 

https://secure.commentworks.com/ftcfueleconomy. To ensure that the 

Commission considers an electronic 

comment, you must file it on that webbased form. You also may visit http:// 

www.regulations.gov to read this 

proposed Rule, and may file an 

electronic comment through that Web 

site. The Commission will consider all 

comments that regulations.gov forwards 

to it. 

The FTC Act and other laws the 

Commission administers permit the 

collection of public comments to 

consider and use in this proceeding as 

appropriate. The Commission will 

consider all timely and responsive 

public comments that it receives, 

whether filed in paper or electronic 

form. Comments received will be 

available to the public on the FTC Web 

site, to the extent practicable, at http:// 

www.ftc.gov. As a matter of discretion, 

the FTC makes every effort to remove 

home contact information for 

individuals from the public comments it 

receives before placing those comments 

on the FTC Web site. More information, 

including routine uses permitted by the 

Privacy Act, may be found in the FTC’s 

privacy policy at http://www.ftc.gov/ftc/ 

privacy.htm. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Hampton Newsome, (202) 326–2889, 

Attorney, Division of Enforcement, 

Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal 

Trade Commission, 601 New Jersey 

Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20001. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Commission adopted the Fuel 

Economy Guide in 1975 to prevent 

deceptive fuel economy advertising and 

to facilitate the use of fuel economy 

information in advertising. The Guide 

helps advertisers avoid making claims 

that are unfair and deceptive under 

Section 5 of the FTC Act (15 U.S.C. 45). 

In particular, the Guide contains 

specific information about the 

disclosure of mileage information 

generated by EPA’s well-established fuel 

economy program. Under EPA 

regulations (40 CFR Part 600), issued 

pursuant to the Automobile Information 

Disclosure Act (15 U.S.C. 2206), vehicle 

manufacturers must disclose fuel 

economy numbers on labels attached to 

new automobiles. In addition, EPA 

regulations contain specific testing 

protocols (see 40 CFR Part 86) that 

manufacturers must use to derive the 

fuel economy information used on 

labels. 

To avoid deceptive and unfair claims 

in advertisements that contain fuel 

economy representations, the FTC’s 

Guide advises marketers to disclose the 

established fuel economy of the vehicle 

as determined by the EPA tests. If 

advertisers make fuel economy claims 

based on non-EPA tests, the Guide 

directs them to disclose EPA-derived 

fuel economy information and provide 

details about the non-EPA tests such as 

the source of the test, driving 

conditions, and vehicle configurations. 

The Guidance also provides information 

on how advertisers should make such 

disclosures (e.g., the prominence of the 

disclosures in relation to other claims in 

the ad). In 1978 and in 1995, the 

Commission amended the Guide to 

make it consistent with changes to 

EPA’s regulations. (43 FR 55757 (Nov. 

29, 1978); and 60 FR 56230 (Nov. 8, 

1995)). On December 27, 2006 (71 FR 

77872), the EPA published new 

requirements for fuel economy labeling. 

The revised EPA rules include 

modifications to the mandatory fuel 

economy test that, among other things, 

incorporate different driving conditions 

(e.g., cold temperatures) into the 

determination of fuel mileage estimates. 

The recent EPA amendments also 

modify the design of the fuel economy 

label and require disclosure of 

combined (city/highway) fuel economy 

figures. 

II. Regulatory Review Program 

The Commission reviews all current 

Commission rules and guides 

periodically. These reviews seek 

information about the cost and benefits 

of the Commission’s rules and guides 

and their regulatory and economic 

impact. The information obtained 

assists the Commission in identifying 

rules and guides that warrant 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 89 / Wednesday, May 9, 2007 / Proposed Rules 26329 

modification or rescission. Therefore, 

the Commission solicits comments on, 

among other things, the economic 

impact of and the continuing need for 

the Fuel Economy Guide; possible 

conflict between the Guide and state, 

local or other federal laws; and the 

effect on the Guide of any technological, 

economic, or other industry changes. 

III. Request for Comment 

The Commission solicits comments 

on the following specific questions 

related to the Guide: 

(1) Is there a continuing need for the 

Fuel Economy Guide? Is the Guide 

necessary to prevent unfair and/or 

deceptive practices in advertising for 

new automobiles? Are there any specific 

provisions of the Guide that are no 

longer needed to prevent unfair and/or 

deceptive advertising practices? 

(2) What changes, if any, should be 

made to the Guide to reflect recent 

amendments to EPA’s fuel economy 

testing and labeling requirements? 

(3) What benefits has the Guide 

provided to purchasers of new 

automobiles? Has the Guide imposed 

costs on purchasers? 

(4) What changes, if any, should be 

made to the Guide to increase its 

benefits to purchasers? How would 

these changes affect the costs that the 

Guide imposes on firms who conform to 

its advice? How would these changes 

affect the benefits to purchasers? 

(5) What significant burdens or costs, 

including costs of compliance, has the 

Guide imposed on firms that conform to 

its advice? Are any provisions in the 

Guide duplicative or otherwise 

unnecessary? Are any of the Guide’s 

provisions unnecessarily prescriptive? 

(6) Has the Guide provided benefits to 

firms that conform to its advice? If so, 

what benefits? 

(7) What changes, if any, should be 

made to the Guide to reduce the 

burdens or costs imposed on firms who 

conform to its advice? How would these 

changes affect the benefits provided by 

the Guide? 

(8) Does the Guide overlap or conflict 

with other federal, state, or local laws or 

regulations? 

(9) Since the Guide was issued, what 

effects have changes in relevant 

technology or economic conditions had 

on the Guide? 

(10) Are there any unfair and 

deceptive practices occurring in the 

promotion or advertising of fuel 

economy that are not covered by the 

Guide? If so, what mechanisms should 

be explored to address such practices 

(e.g., consumer education, industry self 

regulation, or revisions to the Guide)? 

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 259 

Advertising, Fuel economy, Trade 

practices. 

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 41–58. 

By direction of the Commission. 

Donald S. Clark, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. E7–8886 Filed 5–8–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6750–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation 

and Enforcement 

30 CFR Part 946 

[VA–125–FOR] 

Virginia Regulatory Program 

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining 

Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), 

Interior. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; public comment 

period and opportunity for public 

hearing on proposed amendment. 

SUMMARY: We are announcing receipt of 

a proposed amendment to the Virginia 

regulatory program under the Surface 

Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 

1977 (SMCRA or the Act). The program 

amendment revises the Virginia Coal 

Surface Mining Reclamation 

Regulations concerning review of a 

decision not to inspect or enforce. The 

amendment is intended to specify the 

time limit for filing a request for review 

of a decision, and to identify to whom 

a request for review should be filed. 

DATES: We will accept written 

comments on this amendment until 4 

p.m. (local time), on June 8, 2007. If 

requested, we will hold a public hearing 

on the amendment on June 4, 2007. We 

will accept requests to speak at the 

hearing until 4 p.m. (local time), on May 

24, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by VA–125–FOR, by any of 

the following methods: 

• E-mail: tdieringer@osmre.gov. 

Include VA–125–FOR in the subject line 

of the message. 

• Mail/Hand Delivery: Mr. Tim 

Dieringer, Director, Knoxville Field 

Office, Office of Surface Mining 

Reclamation and Enforcement, 1941 

Neeley Road, Suite 201, Compartment 

116, Big Stone Gap, Virginia 24219. 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the agency docket number 

for this rulemaking. For detailed 

instructions on submitting comments 

and additional information on the 

rulemaking process, see the ‘‘Public 

Comment Procedures’’ heading in the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 

this document. You may also request to 

speak at a public hearing by any of the 

methods listed above or by contacting 

the individual listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. 

Docket: You may review copies of the 

Virginia program, this amendment, a 

listing of any scheduled public hearings, 

and all written comments received in 

response to this document at the 

addresses listed below during normal 

business hours, Monday through Friday, 

excluding holidays. You may receive 

one free copy of the amendment by 

contacting OSM’s Big Stone Gap Area 

Office. 

Mr. Tim Dieringer, Director, Knoxville 

Field Office, Office of Surface Mining 

Reclamation and Enforcement, 1941 

Neeley Road, Suite 201, Compartment 

116, Big Stone Gap, Virginia 24219, 

Telephone: (276) 523–4303. E-mail: 

tdieringer@osmre.gov. 

Mr. Leslie S. Vincent, Virginia 

Division of Mined Land Reclamation, 

P.O. Drawer 900, Big Stone Gap, 

Virginia 24219, Telephone: (276) 523–

8100. E-mail: lsv@mme.state.va.us. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Tim Dieringer, Director, Knoxville Field 

Office; Telephone: (276) 523–4303. Email: tdieringer@osmre.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background on the Virginia Program 

II. Description of the Proposed Amendment 

III. Public Comment Procedures 

IV. Procedural Determinations 

I. Background on the Virginia Program 

Section 503(a) of the Act permits a 

State to assume primacy for the 

regulation of surface coal mining and 

reclamation operations on non-Federal 

and non-Indian lands within its borders 

by demonstrating that its program 

includes, among other things, ‘‘* * * a 

State law which provides for the 

regulation of surface coal mining and 

reclamation operations in accordance 

with the requirements of the Act* * *; 

and rules and regulations consistent 

with regulations issued by the Secretary 

pursuant to the Act.’’ See 30 U.S.C. 

1253(a)(1) and (7). On the basis of these 

criteria, the Secretary of the Interior 

conditionally approved the Virginia 

program on December 15, 1981. You can 

find background information on the 

Virginia program, including the 

Secretary’s findings, the disposition of 

comments, and conditions of approval 

of the Virginia program in the December 

15, 1981 Federal Register (46 FR 

61088). You can also find later actions 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with PROPOSALS