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

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Rules and Regulations Federal Register

62689

Vol. 62, No. 227

Tuesday, November 25, 1997

MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION

BOARD

5 CFR Part 1201

Practices and Procedures

AGENCY: Merit Systems Protection

Board.

ACTION: Interim rule; request for

comments.

SUMMARY: The Merit Systems Protection

Board is amending its rules of practice

and procedure to provide notice that a

judge may exclude a party or

representative from all or any portion of

a Board proceeding before him or her

because of misconduct. The intent of

this amendment is to inform parties and

their representatives that MSPB judges

have this authority and will exercise it

when necessary to ensure that

adjudication of cases proceeds

expeditiously and without undue

disruption.

DATES: Effective date November 25,

1997. Submit written comments on or

before January 26, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Robert E.

Taylor, Clerk of the Board, Merit

Systems Protection Board, 1120

Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC

20419. Comments may be sent via email to mspb@mspb.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Robert E. Taylor, Clerk of the Board,

(202) 653–7200.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Board’s current rule at 5 CFR 1201.41(b)

provides notice that a judge ‘‘will take

all necessary action to avoid delay in all

proceedings’’ and ‘‘will have all powers

necessary to that end unless those

powers are otherwise limited by law.’’ It

further provides explicit notice of a

judge’s authority to ‘‘maintain decorum,

and exclude any disruptive persons

from the hearing,’’ [§ 1201.41(b)(6)],

‘‘[e]xclude any person from the hearing

for good reason’’ [§ 1201.41(b)(7)], and

‘‘[i]mpose sanctions as provided under

§ 1201.43 of this part’’

[§ 1201.41(b)(11)]. Section 1201.43

permits a judge to ‘‘impose sanctions

upon the parties as necessary to serve

the ends of justice.’’

These provisions in the Board’s

current rules are sufficient to permit a

judge to exclude a party or

representative from a proceeding when

the person engages in misconduct. The

Board is amending its regulations to

provide explicit notice that a judge may

exercise such authority at a hearing or

at any other point in a proceeding, such

as a settlement conference or prehearing

conference.

The Board is amending its rule at 5

CFR 1201.31 (‘‘Representatives’’) by

adding a new paragraph (d) to make

clear that misconduct by

representatives, as well as parties or

other persons, may result in exclusion

by a judge from the Board proceeding

before him or her. The new paragraph

(d) also requires that the reasons for an

exclusion be documented in the record

and that, where a representative is

excluded, the party be given a

reasonable time to obtain new

representation. The new provision also

states that the Board, when considering

a petition for review, is not bound by a

judge’s decision to exclude a person

from the proceeding below.

The Board also is amending its rule at

5 CFR 1201.41 (‘‘Judges’’) by revising

subparagraph (b)(7) to provide for

exclusion from ‘‘all or any part of the

Board proceeding before him or her’’

rather than from ‘‘the hearing.’’

The Board is publishing this rule as

an interim rule pursuant to 5 U.S.C.

1204(h).

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 1201

Administrative practice and

procedure, Civil rights, Government

employees.

Accordingly, the Board amends 5 CFR

part 1201 as follows:

PART 1201—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for part 1201

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 1204 and 7701, and 38

U.S.C. 4331, unless otherwise noted.

2. Section 1201.31 is amended by

adding a new paragraph (d) at the end,

as follows:

§ 1201.31 Representatives.

* * * * *

(d)(1) A judge may exclude a party, a

representative, or other person from all

or any portion of the proceeding before

him or her for contumacious

misconduct or misbehavior that

obstructs the hearing.

(2) When a judge excludes a person

from participation in a proceeding, the

judge shall document the reasons for the

exclusion in the record.

(3) A proceeding will not be delayed

because the judge excludes a person

from the proceeding, except that where

the judge excludes a party’s

representative, the judge will give the

party a reasonable time to obtain

another representative.

(4) The Board, when considering a

petition for review of a judge’s initial

decision under subpart C of this part,

will not be bound by any decision of the

judge to exclude a person from the

proceeding below.

3. Section 1201.41 is amended by

revising paragraph (b)(7) to read as

follows:

§ 1201.41 Judges.

* * * * *

(b) * * *

(7) Exclude any person from all or any

part of the proceeding before him or her

for good reason;

* * * * *

Dated: November 19, 1997.

Robert E. Taylor,

Clerk of the Board.

[FR Doc. 97–30831 Filed 11–24–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7400–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Farm Service Agency

7 CFR Part 729

Commodity Credit Corporation

7 CFR Parts 1421 and 1446

RIN 0560–AFO1

1997-Crop Peanuts; National

Poundage Quota; National Average

Support Level for Quota and Additional

Peanuts; and Minimum Commodity

Credit Corporation Export Edible Sales

Price for Additional Peanuts

AGENCIES: Farm Service Agency and

Commodity Credit Corporation, USDA.