This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains regulatory documents having general

applicability and legal effect, most of which

are keyed to and codified in the Code of

Federal Regulations, which is published under

50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.

The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by

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Rules and Regulations Federal Register

60997

Vol. 62, No. 220

Friday, November 14, 1997

FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS

AUTHORITY

5 CFR Part 2411

Revision of Freedom of Information

Act Regulations

AGENCY: Federal Labor Relations

Authority.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Federal Labor Relations

Authority, the General Counsel of the

Federal Labor Relations Authority, and

the Federal Service Impasses Panel

(FLRA) are amending their regulations

governing the release of information as

these regulations pertain to the timing of

FLRA responses to requests for

information. This action is taken to

conform the FLRA’s regulations to the

requirements of the Freedom of

Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552, et seq.

(FOIA), as amended by the Electronic

Freedom of Information Act

Amendments of 1996 (EFOIA).

DATES: Effective November 14, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Peter Constantine, Office of Case

Control, Federal Labor Relations

Authority, 607 14th Street, N.W., Room

415, Washington, D.C. 20424–0001, or

by telephone at (202) 482–6540.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Through

the EFOIA, Pub. L. 104–231, 110 Stat.

3048 (1996) Congress amended the

FOIA, 5 U.S.C. 552 et seq., to, among

other things, increase the time limit for

agency responses to requests for

information from ten (10) to twenty (20)

working days. Accordingly, the FLRA is

amending its regulations at 5 CFR Part

2411 to reflect this change. The

revisions to the FLRA’s FOIA

regulations set forth below are neither

interpretive nor controversial. For these

reasons, the FLRA finds good cause to

determine that public notice of, and

comments on, this amendment are

impracticable, unnecessary, and

contrary to the public interest.

Therefore, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b),

this regulatory action is exempt from

notice and comment requirements.

Executive Order 12886

This final regulation has been

reviewed in accordance with Executive

Order 12886. It is not classified as

significant because it does not meet the

criteria for significant regulatory action

established by the E.O.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

Pursuant to section 605(b) of the

Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C.

605(b), the FLRA has determined that

this proposed regulation will not have a

significant economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

The amendments are procedural in

nature and are required to implement

EFOIA.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

The proposed regulations contain no

additional information collection or

record keeping requirement under the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44

U.S.C. 3501, et seq..

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 2411

Administrative practice and

procedure, Freedom of information,

Government employees.

For the reasons stated in the

preamble, the FLRA amends part 2411

of chapter XIV, title 5 of the Code of

Federal Regulations as follows:

PART 2411—AVAILABILITY OF

OFFICIAL INFORMATION

1. The authority citation for part 2411

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552.

2. In § 2411.6, paragraph (b) is revised

to read as follows:

§ 2411.6 Time limits for processing

requests.

* * * * *

(b) Except as provided in § 2411.8, the

appropriate Regional Director, the

Freedom of Information Officer of the

Office of the General Counsel, the

Solicitor of the Authority, or the

Executive Director of the Panel, as

appropriate, shall, within twenty (20)

working days following receipt of the

request, respond in writing to the

requester, determining whether, or the

extent to which, the request shall be

complied with.

* * * * *

3. In § 2411.10, paragraph (g)(2) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 2411.10 Fees.

* * * * *

(g) * * *

(2) A requester has previously failed

to pay a fee charged in a timely fashion

(i.e., within 30 days of the date of the

billing), in which case the Authority,

the General Counsel or the Panel

requires the requester to pay the full

amount owed plus any applicable

interest as provided above or

demonstrate that the requester has, in

fact, paid the fee, and to make an

advance payment of the full amount of

the estimated fee before the agency

begins to process a new request or a

pending request from that requester.

When the Authority, the General

Counsel or the Panel acts under

paragraph (g)(1) or (2) of this section,

the administrative time limits

prescribed in subsection (a)(6) of the

FOIA (i.e., 20 working days from receipt

of initial requests and 20 working days

from receipt of appeals from initial

denial, plus permissible extension of

these time limits) will begin only after

the Authority, the General Counsel or

the Panel has received fee payments

described above.

* * * * *

Dated: November 7, 1997.

Solly Thomas,

Executive Director.

[FR Doc. 97–29915 Filed 11–13–97; 8:45 am]

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