1872 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 8 / Thursday, January 12, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 

environment. This rule is categorically 

excluded, under figure 2–1, paragraph 

(34)(g), of the Instruction. This rule 

involves establishing a temporary safety 

zone that will be enforced 12 hours per 

day during a 30 day period. An 

environmental analysis checklist and a 

categorical exclusion determination are 

available in the docket where indicated 

under ADDRESSES. 

List of Subjects in 33 CFR Part 165 

Harbors, Marine safety, Navigation 

(water), Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Security measures, 

Waterways. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Coast Guard amends 33 

CFR part 165 as follows: 

PART 165—REGULATED NAVIGATION 

AREAS AND LIMITED ACCESS AREAS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 165 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1231; 46 U.S.C. 

Chapter 701, 3306, 3703; 50 U.S.C. 191, 195; 

33 CFR 1.05–1, 6.04–1, 6.04–6, 160.5; Pub. L. 

107–295, 116 Stat. 2064; Department of 

Homeland Security Delegation No. 0170.1. 

■ 2. Add a temporary § 165.T07–1115 to 

read as follows: 

§ 165.T07–1115 Safety Zone; Matlacha 

Bridge Construction, Matlacha Pass, 

Matlacha, FL. 

(a) Regulated Area. The following 

regulated area is a safety zone. All 

waters of Matlacha Pass within a 100 

yard radius of position 26°37′57.6′′ N, 

82°04′04.8′′ W. All coordinates are 

North American Datum 1983. 

(b) Definition. The term ‘‘designated 

representative’’ means Coast Guard 

Patrol Commanders, including Coast 

Guard coxswains, petty officers, and 

other officers operating Coast Guard 

vessels, and Federal, state, and local 

officers designated by or assisting the 

Captain of the Port St. Petersburg in the 

enforcement of the regulated area. 

(c) Regulations. (1) All persons and 

vessels are prohibited from entering, 

transiting through, anchoring in, or 

remaining within the regulated area 

unless authorized by the Captain of the 

Port St. Petersburg or a designated 

representative. 

(2) Persons and vessels desiring to 

enter, transit through, anchor in, or 

remain within the regulated area may 

contact the Captain of the Port St. 

Petersburg by telephone at (727) 824– 

7524, or a designated representative via 

VHF radio on channel 16, to request 

authorization. If authorization to enter, 

transit through, anchor in, or remain 

within the regulated area is granted by 

the Captain of the Port St. Petersburg or 

a designated representative, all persons 

and vessels receiving such authorization 

must comply with the instructions of 

the Captain of the Port St. Petersburg or 

a designated representative. 

(3) The Coast Guard will provide 

notice of the regulated area by Local 

Notice to Mariners, Broadcast Notice to 

Mariners, and on-scene designated 

representatives. 

(d) Enforcement. This rule is enforced 

daily from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. from 

December 15, 2011, until January 15, 

2012. 

Dated: December 12, 2011. 

S.L. Dickinson, 

Captain, U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the 

Port. 

[FR Doc. 2012–403 Filed 1–11–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

38 CFR Part 21 

RIN 2900–AO10 

Vocational Rehabilitation and 

Employment Program—Changes to 

Subsistence Allowance 

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This document adopts as 

final, without change, the interim final 

rule amending regulations of the 

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to 

reflect changes made by the Post-9/11 

Veterans Educational Assistance 

Improvements Act of 2010, effective 

August 1, 2011, that affect payment of 

vocational rehabilitation benefits for 

certain service-disabled veterans. 

Pursuant to these changes, a veteran, 

who is eligible for a subsistence 

allowance under chapter 31 of title 38, 

United States Code, and educational 

assistance under chapter 33 of title 38, 

United States Code, may participate in 

a rehabilitation program under chapter 

31 and elect to receive a payment equal 

in amount to an applicable military 

housing allowance payable under title 

37, United States Code, instead of the 

regular subsistence allowance under 

chapter 31. In addition, payments of 

subsistence allowances during periods 

between school terms are discontinued, 

and payments during periods of 

temporary school closings are modified. 

DATES: Effective Date: This final rule is 

effective January 12, 2012. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Alvin Bauman, Senior Policy Analyst, 

Vocational Rehabilitation and 

Employment Service (28), Veterans 

Benefits Administration, Department of 

Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Ave. 

NW., Washington, DC 20420, (202) 461– 

9600 (not a toll-free number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In an 

interim final rule published in the 

Federal Register on August 1, 2011 (76 

FR 45697), VA amended §§ 21.260 and 

21.264 to allow a veteran who is eligible 

for a chapter 31 subsistence allowance 

and chapter 33 educational assistance to 

participate in a chapter 31 rehabilitation 

program and elect a subsistence 

allowance in an alternate amount, 

which we referred to as the Post-9/11 

subsistence allowance, in lieu of the 

amount of the regular chapter 31 

subsistence allowance provided for in 

§ 21.260(b). Among other things, we also 

amended § 21.270 to discontinue the 

payment of subsistence allowance for 

periods between school terms. 

We provided a 30-day comment 

period that ended August 31, 2011. No 

comments were received. Based on the 

rationale set forth in the interim final 

rule, we adopt the interim final rule as 

a final rule without change. 

Administrative Procedure Act 

This document affirms the 

amendments made by the interim final 

rule that is already in effect. The 

Secretary of Veterans Affairs concluded 

that, under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B) and 

(d)(3), there was good cause to dispense 

with advance public notice and 

opportunity to comment on this rule 

and good cause to publish the interim 

final rule with an immediate effective 

date. The Secretary found that it was 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest to delay this regulation for the 

purpose of soliciting prior public 

comment. Sections 205 and 206 of 

Public Law 111–377 required that 

certain changes to the rehabilitation 

program take effect on August 1, 2011. 

This interim final rule was necessary to 

implement by August 1, 2011, the 

statutory changes as they related to 

chapter 31 subsistence allowance. For 

instance, Public Law 111–377 did not 

address how the alternate rate of 

subsistence allowance would be 

calculated in different situations. 

Allowing veterans to elect an alternate 

rate of subsistence allowance ensured 

that such veterans would receive the 

supportive services under chapter 31 to 

assist them in the transition from 

military to civilian careers. Because 

eligible veterans could begin to make 

the election on August 1, 2011, it was 

important to have procedures in place 

by this date to allow veterans to receive 

the alternate rate of subsistence 

allowance authorized under the law as 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 8 / Thursday, January 12, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 1873 

soon as they were able. For these 

reasons, the Secretary of Veterans 

Affairs issued this rule as an interim 

final rule. 

Unfunded Mandates 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 requires, at 2 U.S.C. 1532, that 

agencies prepare an assessment of 

anticipated costs and benefits before 

issuing any rule that may result in the 

expenditure by State, local, and tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, of $100 million or more 

(adjusted annually for inflation) in any 

given year. This final rule will have no 

such effect on State, local, and tribal 

governments, or on the private sector. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This final rule does not contain any 

collections of information under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 

U.S.C. 3501–3521). 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Secretary hereby certifies that 

this regulatory action will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities as 

they are defined in the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601–612. This 

regulatory action will affect individuals 

and will not affect any small entities. 

Therefore, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605(b), 

this regulatory action is exempt from the 

initial and final regulatory flexibility 

analysis requirements of sections 603 

and 604. 

Executive Orders 13563 and 12866 

Executive Orders 13563 and 12866 

direct agencies to assess the costs and 

benefits of available regulatory 

alternatives and, when regulation is 

necessary, to select regulatory 

approaches that maximize net benefits 

(including potential economic, 

environmental, public health and safety 

effects, and other advantages; 

distributive impacts; and equity). 

Executive Order 13563 (Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review) 

emphasizes the importance of 

quantifying both costs and benefits, 

reducing costs, harmonizing rules, and 

promoting flexibility. Executive Order 

12866 (Regulatory Planning and 

Review) defines a ‘‘significant 

regulatory action,’’ which requires 

review by the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB), as ‘‘any regulatory action 

that is likely to result in a rule that may: 

(1) Have an annual effect on the 

economy of $100 million or more or 

adversely affect in a material way the 

economy, a sector of the economy, 

productivity, competition, jobs, the 

environment, public health or safety, or 

State, local, or tribal governments or 

communities; (2) Create a serious 

inconsistency or otherwise interfere 

with an action taken or planned by 

another agency; (3) Materially alter the 

budgetary impact of entitlements, 

grants, user fees, or loan programs or the 

rights and obligations of recipients 

thereof; or (4) Raise novel legal or policy 

issues arising out of legal mandates, the 

President’s priorities, or the principles 

set forth in the Executive Order.’’ 

The economic, interagency, 

budgetary, legal, and policy 

implications of this regulatory action 

have been examined and it has been 

determined to be a significant regulatory 

action under Executive Order 12866. 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

The Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance number and title for the 

program that would be affected by this 

final rule is 64.116, Vocational 

Rehabilitation for Disabled Veterans. 

Signing Authority 

The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or 

designee, approved this document and 

authorized the undersigned to sign and 

submit the document to the Office of the 

Federal Register for publication 

electronically as an official document of 

the Department of Veterans Affairs. John 

R. Gingrich, Chief of Staff, Department 

of Veterans Affairs, approved this 

document on November 1, 2011 for 

publication. 

List of Subjects in 38 CFR Part 21 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Armed forces, Civil rights, 

Claims, Colleges and universities, 

Conflict of interests, Education, 

Employment, Grant programs— 

education, Grant programs—veterans, 

Health care, Loan programs—education, 

Loan programs—veterans, Manpower 

training programs, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Schools, 

Travel and transportation expenses, 

Veterans, Vocational education, 

Vocational rehabilitation. 

Dated: January 9, 2012. 

Robert C. McFetridge, 

Director, Regulation Policy and Management, 

Office of the General Counsel, Department 

of Veterans Affairs. 

PART 21—VOCATIONAL 

REHABILITATION AND EDUCATION 

■ Accordingly, the interim final rule 

amending 38 CFR part 21, which was 

published at 76 FR 45697 on August 1, 

2011, is adopted as a final rule without 

change. 

[FR Doc. 2012–452 Filed 1–11–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8320–01–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R06–OAR–2008–0638; FRL–9613–7] 

Approval and Disapproval and 

Promulgation of Implementation Plans; 

Texas; Infrastructure and Interstate 

Transport Requirements for the 1997 

Ozone and the 1997 and 2006 PM2.5

NAAQS 

Correction 

In rule document 2011–33253 

appearing on pages 81371–81393 in the 

issue of Wednesday, December 28, 2011, 

make the following corrections: 

§ 52.270 [Corrected] 

1. On page 81392, in § 52.270(c), in 

the table appearing at the bottom of the 

page, in the entry under the column 

titled ‘‘EPA approval date’’, ‘‘12/28/ 

2012’’ should read ‘‘12/28/2011’’. 

2. On page 81393, in §§ 52.270(c) and 

(e), in both tables appearing on this 

page, in the two entries under the 

columns titled ‘‘EPA approval date’’, 

‘‘12/28/2012’’ should read ‘‘12/28/ 

2011’’. 

[FR Doc. C1–2011–33253 Filed 1–11–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 1505–01–D 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R04–OAR–2011–0849–201153(a); 

FRL–9617–2] 

Approval and Promulgation of 

Implementation Plans; Georgia; Rome; 

Fine Particulate Matter 2002 Base Year 

Emissions Inventory 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Direct final rule. 

SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final 

action to approve the fine particulate 

matter (PM2.5) 2002 base year emissions 

inventory portion of the State 

Implementation Plan (SIP) revision 

submitted by the State of Georgia on 

October 27, 2009. The emissions 

inventory is part of the Rome, Georgia 

(hereafter referred to as ‘‘the Rome 

Area’’ or ‘‘Area’’), PM2.5 attainment 

demonstration that was submitted for 

the 1997 annual PM2.5 National Ambient 

Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). This 

action is being taken pursuant to section 

110 of the Clean Air Act (CAA). 

DATES: This direct final rule is effective 

March 12, 2012 without further notice, 

unless EPA receives adverse comment 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with RULES