61962 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 224 / Thursday, November 20, 1997 / Notices

plants or reproductive parts thereof,

viruses, or any organisms similar to or

allied with any of the foregoing, or any

infectious substances, which can

directly or indirectly injure or cause

disease or damage in any plants or parts

thereof, or any processed, manufactured

or other products of plants.’’ APHIS

views this definition very broadly. The

definition covers direct or indirect

injury, disease, or damage not just to

agricultural crops, but also to plants in

general, for example, native species, as

well as to organisms that may be

beneficial to plants, for example,

honeybees, rhizobia, etc.

The U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) is responsible for the

regulation of pesticides under the

Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and

Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended (7

U.S.C. 136 et seq.). FIFRA requires that

all pesticides, including insecticides, be

registered prior to distribution or sale,

unless exempt by EPA regulation. In

this regard, EPA has issued a

registration to Monsanto for full

commercialization of the plant pesticide

Btt Cry III(A) delta endotoxin and the

genetic material necessary for its

production in potato. Residue tolerances

for pesticides are established by EPA

under the Federal Food, Drug and

Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), as amended (21

U.S.C. 301 et seq.), and the Food and

Drug Administration (FDA) enforces

tolerances set by EPA under the FFDCA.

In addition to the registration, EPA has

issued exemptions from the requirement

of a tolerance for residues of the subject

plant pesticide CryIII(A) in potatoes, for

the NPTII and CP4 EPSPS proteins as

plant pesticide inert ingredients in all

plants, and for the PLRV replicase

protein in or on all raw agricultural

commodities.

FDA published a statement of policy

on foods derived from new plant

varieties in the Federal Register on May

29, 1992 (57 FR 22984–23005). The FDA

statement of policy includes a

discussion of FDA’s authority for

ensuring food safety under the FFDCA,

and provides guidance to industry on

the scientific considerations associated

with the development of foods derived

from new plant varieties, including

those plants developed through the

techniques of genetic engineering.

Monsanto has entered into consultation

with FDA on the subject potato lines.

In accordance with § 340.6(d) of the

regulations, we are publishing this

notice to inform the public that APHIS

will accept written comments regarding

the Petition for Determination of

Nonregulated Status from any interested

person for a period of 60 days from the

date of this notice. The petition and any

comments received are available for

public review, and copies of the petition

may be ordered (see the ADDRESSES

section of this notice).

After the comment period closes,

APHIS will review the data submitted

by the petitioner, all written comments

received during the comment period,

and any other relevant information.

Based on the available information,

APHIS will furnish a response to the

petitioner, either approving the petition

in whole or in part, or denying the

petition. APHIS will then publish a

notice in the Federal Register

announcing the regulatory status of

Monsanto’s NewLeaf Plus Russet

Burbank potato lines RBMT21–129,

RBMT21–152, RBMT21–350, RBMT22–

82, RBMT22–186, RBMT22–238,

RBMT22–262 and the availability of

APHIS’ written decision.

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 150aa–150jj, 151–167,

and 1622n; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80,

and 371.2(c).

Done in Washington, DC, this 14th day of

November 1997.

Craig A. Reed,

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 97–30508 Filed 11–19–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Economics and Statistics

Administration

Secretary’s 2000 Census Advisory

Committee Meeting

AGENCY: Economics and Statistics

Administration, Department of

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Federal

Advisory Committee Act (Public Law

92–463, as amended by P.L. 94–409,

P.L. 96–523, and P.L. 97–375), we are

giving notice of a meeting of the

Commerce Secretary’s 2000 Advisory

Committee. The meeting will convene

on December 4–5, 1997, at the Embassy

Suites Hotel, 1250 22nd Street, NW.,

Washington, DC 20037. The Committee

will discuss work plans for the Census

2000 Dress Rehearsal, including the

tabulation of data collected using the

new questions that follow the revised

standards for the classification of

Federal data on race and ethnicity

recently issued by the Office of

Management and Budget.

The Committee is composed of a

Chair, Vice-Chair, and up to thirty-five

member organizations, all appointed by

the Secretary of Commerce. The

Committee will consider the goals of

Census 2000 and user needs for

information provided by that census.

The Committee will provide a

perspective from the standpoint of the

outside user community about how

operational planning and

implementation methods proposed for

Census 2000 will realize those goals and

satisfy those needs. The Committee

shall consider all aspects of the conduct

of the 2000 census of population and

housing and shall make

recommendations for improving that

census.

DATES: On Thursday, December 4, 1997,

the meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. and

adjourn for the day at 4:30 p.m. On

Friday, December 5, 1997, the meeting

will begin at 8:30 a.m. and adjourn at

4:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will take place

at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 1250 22nd

Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20037.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Anyone wishing additional information

about this meeting, or who wishes to

submit written statements or questions,

may contact Maxine Anderson-Brown,

Committee Liaison Officer, Department

of Commerce, Bureau of the Census,

Room 3039, Federal Building 3,

Washington, DC 20233, telephone: 301–

457–2308, TDD 301–457–2540.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A brief

period will be set aside on Friday

afternoon for public comment and

questions. However, individuals with

extensive questions or statements for the

record must submit them in writing to

the Commerce Department official

named above at least three working days

prior to the meeting.

The meeting is physically accessible

to people with disabilities. Requests for

sign language interpretation or other

auxiliary aids should be directed to

Kathy Maney; her telephone number is

301–457–2308, TDD 301–457–2540.

Dated: November 17, 1997.

Lee Price,

Acting Under Secretary for Economic Affairs,

Economics and Statistics Administration.

[FR Doc. 97–30661 Filed 11–18–97; 2:52 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–EA–M