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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new books are listed in the first FEDERAL

REGISTER issue of each week.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

26579 

Vol. 76, No. 89 

Monday, May 9, 2011 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

10 CFR Parts 600, 603, 609, and 611 

RIN 1990–AA36 

Procedures for Submitting to the 

Department of Energy Trade Secrets 

and Commercial or Financial 

Information That Is Privileged or 

Confidential 

AGENCY: Office of the General Counsel, 

Department of Energy (DOE). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: DOE issues procedures to 

standardize across its various programs 

procedures for the submission and 

protection of trade secrets and 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential, where 

such information is submitted by 

applicants for various forms of DOE 

assistance (including financial 

assistance such as grants, cooperative 

agreements, and technology investment 

agreements, as well as loans and loan 

guarantees). The procedures, established 

across DOE programs, are modeled after 

existing procedures DOE uses to process 

loan applications submitted to DOE’s 

Advanced Technology Vehicles 

Manufacturing Incentive Program. 

DATES: This rule is effective on June 8, 

2011. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Daniel Cohen, Assistant General 

Counsel for Legislation, Regulation and 

Energy Efficiency, U.S. Department of 

Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20585–0121. 

Telephone: (202) 586–9523. E-mail: 

1990-AA36@hq.doe.gov. Include RIN 

1990–AA36 in the subject line of the 

message. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DOE 

provides assistance to eligible 

applicants through a number of different 

programs. This assistance can take the 

form of financial assistance (i.e., grants, 

cooperative agreements, and technology 

investment agreements), loan 

guarantees, and direct loans, among 

others. DOE has consistently sought to 

protect trade secrets and commercial or 

financial information that is privileged 

or confidential submitted by applicants 

for these forms of assistance, but the 

procedures required of applicants when 

submitting such information can vary. 

In today’s final rule, DOE establishes 

procedures for the submission to DOE of 

trade secrets and commercial or 

financial information that is privileged 

or confidential meant to standardize 

DOE’s procedures for processing and 

handling applicant submissions 

containing such information. The 

procedures are modeled after existing 

procedures DOE uses to process loan 

applications submitted to DOE’s 

Advanced Technology Vehicles 

Manufacturing Incentive Program. 

DOE makes minor changes to the 

Notice of Restriction on Disclosure and 

Use of Data in 10 CFR 600.15(b)(1), as 

well as corresponding changes to 10 

CFR 600.15(a) and 600.15(b)(2) and (3). 

These changes are intended to allow for 

cross reference from other portions of 

Subpart H (specifically, Parts 609—Loan 

Guarantees for Projects that Employ 

Innovative Technologies and 611— 

Advanced Technology Vehicles 

Manufacturer Assistance Program) 

while recognizing that Part 600 does not 

otherwise apply to loans and loan 

guarantees. 

DOE amends 10 CFR 600.15(b)(1) to 

require a party submitting information 

to DOE, at the time of submission, to 

identify and assert a claim of exemption 

regarding information it considers to be 

trade secrets or commercial or financial 

information that is privileged or 

confidential such that the information 

would be exempt from disclosure under 

the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA, 

5 U.S.C. 552). This claim of exemption 

must be made by placing the following 

notice on the first page of the 

application or other document and 

specifying the page or pages to be 

restricted: ‘‘Pages [ll] of this 

document may contain trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential and 

exempt from public disclosure. Such 

information shall be used or disclosed 

only for evaluation purposes or in 

accordance with a financial assistance 

or loan agreement between the 

submitter and the Government. The 

Government may use or disclose any 

information that is not appropriately 

marked or otherwise restricted, 

regardless of source.’’ 

To further protect trade secrets and 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential, DOE 

also adds a requirement in section 

600.15(b)(1) that each page containing 

such data must be specifically identified 

and marked with text that is similar to 

the following: ‘‘May contain trade 

secrets or commercial or financial 

information that is privileged or 

confidential and exempt from public 

disclosure.’’ In addition, each line or 

paragraph containing trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential on the 

page or pages on which this statement 

appears must be marked with brackets 

or other clear identification, such as 

highlighting. 

DOE acknowledges that the marking 

procedures set forth above may not be 

feasible on unalterable forms submitted 

through Grants.gov. In such cases only, 

submitters must include in a cover letter 

or the project narrative a notice 

containing language substantially 

similar to the following: ‘‘Forms [ll] 

may contain trade secrets or commercial 

or financial information that is 

privileged or confidential and exempt 

from public disclosure. Such 

information shall be used or disclosed 

only for evaluation purposes or in 

accordance with a financial assistance 

or loan agreement between the 

submitter and the Government. The 

Government may use or disclose any 

information that is not appropriately 

marked or otherwise restricted, 

regardless of source.’’ The cover letter or 

project narrative must also specify the 

particular information on such forms 

that the submitter believes to be trade 

secrets or commercial or financial 

information that is privileged or 

confidential. 

DOE also amends 10 CFR 603.850 to 

require that the markings affixed to data 

for technology investment agreements 

that may contain trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential 

conform to the marking requirements of 

10 CFR 600.15. 

In addition, DOE regulations 

implementing its loan guarantee 

program for projects that employ 

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26580 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 89 / Monday, May 9, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

innovative technologies under Title 

XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 

(42 U.S.C. 16511–16514) now crossreference 10 CFR 600.15. These 

regulations are set forth at 10 CFR Part 

609. In today’s final rule, DOE thus 

establishes the same marking 

requirements as described above for any 

information submitted through the Title 

XVII loan application process, including 

pre-applications, applications, and any 

additional information provided by loan 

applicants. Similarly, DOE regulations 

implementing its Advanced Technology 

Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) 

Incentive Program at 10 CFR Part 611 

will also cross-reference 10 CFR 600.15. 

DOE already applies to the ATVM 

program procedures virtually identical 

to those established in this notice. In 

this final rule, DOE establishes the 

marking requirements described above 

in the program’s implementing 

regulations. 

DOE received no comments on its 

proposed rule and made no changes to 

the proposal in today’s final rule. 

Procedural Issues and Regulatory 

Review 

A. Review Under Executive Order 12866 

This rule has been determined to be 

not significant for purposes of Executive 

Order 12866. 

B. Review Under the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601 et seq.) requires preparation 

of a regulatory flexibility analysis for 

any rule that by law must be proposed 

for public comment, unless the agency 

certifies that the rule, if promulgated, 

will not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. As required by Executive Order 

13272, ‘‘Proper Consideration of Small 

Entities in Agency Rulemaking’’ 67 FR 

53461 (Aug. 16, 2002), DOE published 

procedures and policies on February 19, 

2003, to ensure that the potential 

impacts of its rules on small entities are 

properly considered during the 

rulemaking process. 68 FR 7990. DOE 

has made its procedures and policies 

available on the Office of the General 

Counsel’s Web site (http:// 

www.gc.doe.gov). 

DOE has reviewed today’s rule under 

the Regulatory Flexibility Act and 

certifies that the rule will not have a 

significant impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. While DOE 

recognizes that some applicants for 

assistance may be small businesses 

according to SBA size standards, DOE 

believes that the impact on such 

applicants of the rule will not be 

significant. The rule does not change the 

information applicants are required to 

submit to apply for the various forms of 

DOE assistance. It merely instructs 

applicants how to mark information that 

they believe to be trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential. 

C. Review Under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act 

The information collection 

requirements for the various forms of 

assistance to which the marking 

requirements in this rule will apply 

have been approved under OMB Control 

Numbers 1910–0400 (Financial 

Assistance Regulations) and 1910–5134 

(Title XVII loan guarantee program). 

Notwithstanding any other provision 

of the law, no person is required to 

respond to, nor shall any person be 

subject to a penalty for failure to comply 

with, a collection of information subject 

to the requirements of the PRA, unless 

that collection of information displays a 

currently valid OMB Control Number. 

D. Review Under the National 

Environmental Policy Act 

In this rule, DOE establishes 

procedures for the submission of 

information relating to various forms of 

assistance, including grants, cooperative 

agreements, technology investment 

agreements, loans, and loan guarantees. 

DOE has determined that this rule falls 

into a class of actions that are 

categorically excluded from review 

under the National Environmental 

Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

seq.) and DOE’s implementing 

regulations at 10 CFR part 1021. 

Specifically, this rule is a procedural 

rule covered by Categorical Exclusion 

A6 under 10 CFR Part 1021, subpart D, 

which applies to any rulemaking that is 

strictly procedural in nature. 

Accordingly, neither an environmental 

assessment nor an environmental 

impact statement is required. 

E. Review Under Executive Order 13132 

Executive Order 13132, ‘‘Federalism,’’ 

64 FR 43255 (August 4, 1999), imposes 

certain requirements on agencies 

formulating and implementing policies 

or regulations that preempt State law or 

that have other federalism implications. 

The Executive Order requires agencies 

to examine the constitutional and 

statutory authority supporting any 

action that would limit the 

policymaking discretion of the States 

and to carefully assess the necessity for 

such actions. The Executive Order also 

requires agencies to have an accountable 

process to ensure meaningful and timely 

input by State and local officials in the 

development of regulatory policies that 

have federalism implications. On March 

14, 2000, DOE published a statement of 

policy describing the intergovernmental 

consultation process it will follow in the 

development of such regulations. 65 FR 

13735. DOE has considered today’s final 

rule in accordance with Executive Order 

13132 and its policy and determined 

that this rule setting forth requirements 

for the marking of trade secrets and 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential will 

not preempt State law or have any 

federalism impacts. No further action is 

required by Executive Order 13132. 

F. Review Under Executive Order 12988 

With respect to the review of existing 

regulations and the promulgation of 

new regulations, section 3(a) of 

Executive Order 12988, ‘‘Civil Justice 

Reform,’’ imposes on Federal agencies 

the general duty to adhere to the 

following requirements: (1) Eliminate 

drafting errors and ambiguity; (2) write 

regulations to minimize litigation; and 

(3) provide a clear legal standard for 

affected conduct rather than a general 

standard and promote simplification 

and burden reduction. 61 FR 4729 

(February 7, 1996). Section 3(b) of 

Executive Order 12988 specifically 

requires that Executive agencies make 

every reasonable effort to ensure that the 

regulation: (1) Clearly specifies the 

preemptive effect, if any; (2) clearly 

specifies any effect on existing Federal 

law or regulation; (3) provides a clear 

legal standard for affected conduct 

while promoting simplification and 

burden reduction; (4) specifies the 

retroactive effect, if any; (5) adequately 

defines key terms; and (6) addresses 

other important issues affecting clarity 

and general draftsmanship under any 

guidelines issued by the Attorney 

General. Section 3(c) of Executive Order 

12988 requires Executive agencies to 

review regulations in light of applicable 

standards in section 3(a) and section 

3(b) to determine whether they are met 

or it is unreasonable to meet one or 

more of them. DOE has completed the 

required review and determined that 

this rule meets the relevant standards of 

Executive Order 12988. 

G. Review Under the Unfunded 

Mandates Reform Act of 1995 

Title II of the Unfunded Mandates 

Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) (Pub. L. 

104–4) requires each Federal agency to 

assess the effects of Federal regulatory 

actions on State, local, and Tribal 

governments and the private sector. For 

proposed regulatory actions likely to 

result in a rule that may cause 

expenditures by State, local, and Tribal 

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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 89 / Monday, May 9, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 26581 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector of $100 million or more 

in any one year (adjusted annually for 

inflation), section 202 of UMRA requires 

a Federal agency to publish estimates of 

the resulting costs, benefits, and other 

effects on the national economy. (2 

U.S.C. 1532(a), (b).) UMRA also requires 

Federal agencies to develop an effective 

process to permit timely input by 

elected officers of State, local, and 

Tribal governments on a proposed 

‘‘significant intergovernmental 

mandate.’’ In addition, UMRA requires 

an agency plan for giving notice and 

opportunity for timely input to small 

governments that may be affected before 

establishing a requirement that might 

significantly or uniquely affect them. On 

March 18, 1997, DOE published a 

statement of policy on its process for 

intergovernmental consultation under 

UMRA. (62 FR 12820.) (This policy is 

also available at http://www.gc.doe.gov). 

Today’s rule contains neither an 

intergovernmental mandate, nor a 

mandate that may result in the 

expenditure of $100 million or more in 

any year, so these requirements do not 

apply. 

H. Review Under the Treasury and 

General Government Appropriations 

Act, 1999 

Section 654 of the Treasury and 

General Government Appropriations 

Act, 1999 (Pub. L. 105–277) requires 

Federal agencies to issue a Family 

Policymaking Assessment for any rule 

that may affect family well-being. This 

rule will not have any impact on the 

autonomy or integrity of the family as 

an institution. Accordingly, DOE has 

concluded that it is not necessary to 

prepare a Family Policymaking 

Assessment. 

I. Review Under Executive Order 12630 

DOE has determined, under Executive 

Order 12630, ‘‘Governmental Actions 

and Interference with Constitutionally 

Protected Property Rights,’’ 53 FR 8859 

(March 18, 1988), that this regulation 

will not result in any takings which 

might require compensation under the 

Fifth Amendment to the U.S. 

Constitution. 

J. Review Under the Treasury and 

General Government Appropriations 

Act, 2001 

Section 515 of the Treasury and 

General Government Appropriations 

Act, 2001 (44 U.S.C. 3516, note) 

provides for agencies to review most 

disseminations of information to the 

public under guidelines established by 

each agency pursuant to general 

guidelines issued by OMB. OMB’s 

guidelines were published at 67 FR 

8452 (Feb. 22, 2002), and DOE’s 

guidelines were published at 67 FR 

62446 (Oct. 7, 2002). DOE has reviewed 

today’s rule under the OMB and DOE 

guidelines and has concluded that it is 

consistent with applicable policies in 

those guidelines. 

K. Review Under Executive Order 13211 

Executive Order 13211, ‘‘Actions 

Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use,’’ 66 FR 28355 (May 

22, 2001), requires Federal agencies to 

prepare and submit to OIRA at OMB a 

Statement of Energy Effects for any 

proposed significant energy action. A 

‘‘significant energy action’’ is defined as 

any action by an agency that 

promulgates or is expected to lead to 

promulgation of a final rule, and that (1) 

is a significant regulatory action under 

Executive Order 12866 or any successor 

order; and (2) is likely to have a 

significant adverse effect on the supply, 

distribution, or use of energy; or (3) is 

designated by the Administrator of 

OIRA as a significant energy action. For 

any proposed significant energy action, 

the agency must give a detailed 

statement of any adverse effects on 

energy supply, distribution, or use 

should the proposal be implemented, 

and of reasonable alternatives to the 

action and their expected benefits on 

energy supply, distribution, and use. 

DOE has concluded that today’s 

regulatory action, which establishes 

marking requirements for information 

submitted to DOE that the submitter 

believes to be trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential, is not 

a significant energy action because the 

rule is not likely to have a significant 

adverse effect on the supply, 

distribution, or use of energy, nor has it 

been designated as such by the 

Administrator at OIRA. Accordingly, 

DOE has not prepared a Statement of 

Energy Effects for the rule. 

L. Review Under the Information 

Quality Bulletin for Peer Review 

On December 16, 2004, OMB, in 

consultation with the Office of Science 

and Technology Policy, issued its Final 

Information Quality Bulletin for Peer 

Review (the Bulletin). 70 FR 2664 (Jan. 

14, 2005). The Bulletin establishes that 

certain scientific information shall be 

peer reviewed by qualified specialists 

before it is disseminated by the Federal 

Government, including influential 

scientific information related to agency 

regulatory actions. The purpose of the 

bulletin is to enhance the quality and 

credibility of the Government’s 

scientific information. DOE has 

determined that today’s rule does not 

contain any influential or highly 

influential scientific information that 

would be subject to the peer review 

requirements of the Bulletin. 

M. Congressional Notification 

As required by 5 U.S.C. 801, DOE will 

report to Congress on the promulgation 

of this rule prior to its effective date. 

The report will state that it has been 

determined that the rule is not a ‘‘major 

rule’’ as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

Approval of the Office of the Secretary 

The Secretary of Energy has approved 

publication of this rule. 

List of Subjects in 10 CFR Parts 600, 

603, 609, and 611 

Accounting, Administrative practice 

and procedure, Colleges and 

universities, Confidential business 

information, Energy, Government 

contracts, Grant programs, Hospitals, 

Indians, Intergovernmental relations, 

Loan programs, Lobbying, Nonprofit 

organizations, Penalties, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

Issued in Washington, DC on May 2, 2011. 

Daniel B. Poneman, 

Deputy Secretary of Energy. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, DOE amends Subchapter H of 

Chapter II of Title 10, Code of Federal 

Regulations, to read as set forth below: 

PART 600—FINANICIAL ASSISTANCE 

RULES 

■ 1. The authority citation for Part 600 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.; 31 U.S.C. 

6301–6308; 50 U.S.C. 2401 et seq., unless 

otherwise noted. 

■ 2. Section 600.15 is revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 600.15 Authorized uses of information. 

(a) General. Information contained in 

applications shall be used only for 

evaluation purposes unless such 

information is generally available to the 

public or is already the property of the 

Government. The Trade Secrets Act, 18 

U.S.C. 1905, prohibits the unauthorized 

disclosure by Federal employees of 

trade secret and confidential business 

information. 

(b) Treatment of application 

information. (1) An application or other 

document, including any unsolicited 

information, may include technical data 

and other data, including trade secrets 

and commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential, which 

the applicant does not want disclosed to 

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26582 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 89 / Monday, May 9, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

the public or used by the Government 

for any purpose other than application 

evaluation. 

(i) To protect such data, the submitter 

must mark the cover sheet of the 

application or other document with the 

following Notice: 

Notice of Restriction on Disclosure and Use 

of Data 

Pages [ll] of this document may contain 

trade secrets or commercial or financial 

information that is privileged or confidential 

and is exempt from public disclosure. Such 

information shall be used or disclosed only 

for evaluation purposes or in accordance 

with a financial assistance or loan agreement 

between the submitter and the Government. 

The Government may use or disclose any 

information that is not appropriately marked 

or otherwise restricted, regardless of source. 

(ii)(A) To further protect such data, 

except as otherwise provided in 

paragraph (b)(1)(iii) of this section, each 

page containing trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential must 

be specifically identified and marked 

with text similar to the following: 

May contain trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential and 

exempt from public disclosure. 

(B) In addition, each line or paragraph 

containing trade secrets or commercial 

or financial information that is 

privileged or confidential must be 

marked with brackets or other clear 

identification, such as highlighting. 

(iii) (A) In the case where a form for 

data submission is unalterable, such as 

certain forms submitted through 

Grants.gov, submitters must include in 

a cover letter or the project narrative a 

notice like the following: 

Forms [ll] may contain trade secrets or 

commercial or financial information that is 

privileged or confidential and exempt from 

public disclosure. Such information shall be 

used or disclosed only for evaluation 

purposes or in accordance with a financial 

assistance or loan agreement between the 

submitter and the Government. The 

Government may use or disclose any 

information that is not appropriately marked 

or otherwise restricted, regardless of source. 

(B) The cover letter or project 

narrative must also specify the 

particular information on such forms 

that the submitter believes contains 

trade secrets or commercial or financial 

information that is privileged or 

confidential. 

(2) Unless DOE specifies otherwise, 

DOE shall not refuse to consider an 

application or other document solely on 

the basis that the application or other 

document is restrictively marked in 

accordance with paragraph (b)(1) of this 

section. 

(3) Data (or abstracts of data) 

specifically marked in accordance with 

paragraph (b)(1) of this section shall be 

used by DOE or its designated 

representatives solely for the purpose of 

evaluating the proposal. The data so 

marked shall not be disclosed or used 

for any other purpose except to the 

extent provided in any resulting 

assistance agreement, or to the extent 

required by law, including the Freedom 

of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) (10 

CFR Part 1004). The Government shall 

not be liable for disclosure or use of 

unmarked data and may use or disclose 

such data for any purpose. 

(4) This process enables DOE to 

follow the provisions of 10 CFR 

1004.11(d) in the event a Freedom of 

Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) request is 

received for the data submitted, such 

that information not identified as 

subject to a claim of exemption may be 

released without obtaining the 

submitter’s views under the process set 

forth in 10 CFR 1004.11(c) 

PART 603—TECHNOLOGY 

INVESTMENT AGREEMENTS 

■ 3. The authority citation for Part 603 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.; 31 U.S.C. 

6301–6308; 50 U.S.C. 2401 et seq., unless 

otherwise noted. 

■ 4. Section 603.850 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 603.850 Marking of data. 

To protect the recipient’s interests in 

data, the TIA should require the 

recipient to mark any particular data 

that it wishes to protect from disclosure 

as specified in 10 CFR 600.15(b). 

PART 609—LOAN GUARANTEES FOR 

PROJECTS THAT EMPLOY 

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES 

■ 5. The authority citation for Part 609 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7254, 16511–16514. 

■ 6. Section 609.4 is amended by 

revising the introductory text to read as 

follows: 

§ 609.4 Submission of Pre-Applications. 

In response to a solicitation 

requesting the submission of PreApplications, either Project Sponsors or 

Applicants may submit PreApplications to DOE. The information 

submitted in or in connection with PreApplications will be treated as provided 

in 10 CFR 600.15 and must be marked 

as provided in 10 CFR 600.15(b). PreApplications must meet all 

requirements specified in the 

solicitation and this part. At a 

minimum, each Pre-Application must 

contain all of the following: 

* * * * * 

■ 7. Section 609.5 is amended by 

revising paragraph (d) to read as 

follows: 

§ 609.5 Evaluation of Pre-Applications. 

* * * * * 

(d) After the evaluation described in 

paragraph (c) of this section, DOE will 

determine if there is sufficient 

information in the Pre-Application to 

assess the technical and commercial 

viability of the proposed project and/or 

the financial capability of the Project 

Sponsor and to assess other aspects of 

the Pre-Application. DOE may ask for 

additional information from the Project 

Sponsor during the review process and 

may request one or more meetings with 

the Project Sponsor. Any additional 

information submitted will be treated as 

provided in 10 CFR 600.15 and must be 

marked as provided in 10 CFR 

600.15(b). 

* * * * * 

■ 8. Section 609.6 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 609.6 Submission of Applications. 

(a) In response to a solicitation or 

written invitation to submit an 

Application, an Applicant submitting an 

Application must meet all requirements 

and provide all information specified in 

the solicitation and/or invitation and 

this part. The information submitted in 

or in connection with Applications will 

be treated as provided in 10 CFR 600.15 

and must be marked as provided in 10 

CFR 600.15(b). 

* * * * * 

■ 9. Section 609.7 is amended by 

revising paragraph (c) to read as follows: 

§ 609.7 Programmatic, technical and 

financial evaluation of Applications. 

* * * * * 

(c) During the Application review 

process DOE may raise issues or 

concerns that were not raised during the 

Pre-Application review process where a 

Pre-Application was requested in the 

applicable solicitation. Any additional 

information submitted to DOE will be 

treated as provided in 10 CFR 600.15 

and must be marked as provided in 10 

CFR 600.15(b). 

* * * * * 

PART 611—ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY 

VEHICLES MANUFACTURER 

ASSISTANCE PROGRAM 

■ 10. The authority citation for Part 611 

continues to read as follows: 

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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 89 / Monday, May 9, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 26583 

Authority: Pub. L. 110–140 (42 U.S.C. 

17013), Pub. L. 110–329. 

■ 11. Section 611.101 is amended by 

revising the introductory text to read as 

follows: 

§ 611.101 Application. 

The information and materials 

submitted in or in connection with 

applications will be treated as provided 

in 10 CFR 600.15 and must be marked 

as provided in 10 CFR 600.15(b). An 

application must include, at a 

minimum, the following information 

and materials: 

* * * * * 

■ 12. Section 611.103 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 611.103 Application evaluation. 

(a) Eligibility screening. Applications 

will be reviewed to determine whether 

the applicant is eligible, the information 

required under § 611.101 is complete, 

and the proposed loan complies with 

applicable statutes and regulations. DOE 

can at any time reject an application, in 

whole or in part, that does not meet 

these requirements. Any additional 

information submitted to DOE will be 

treated as provided in 10 CFR 600.15 

and must be marked as provided in 10 

CFR 600.15(b). 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2011–11239 Filed 5–6–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Bureau of Industry and Security 

15 CFR Part 774 

[Docket No. 110106012–1013–01] 

RIN 0694–AF04 

Implementation of the Understandings 

Reached at the 2010 Australia Group 

(AG) Plenary Meeting and Other AGRelated Clarifications and Corrections 

to the EAR 

Correction 

In rule document 2011–9613 

appearing on pages 22017–22019 in the 

issue of April 20, 2011, make the 

following correction: 

PART 774—[CORRECTED] 

Supplement No. 1 to Part 774— 

[Corrected] 

On page 22019, in the first column, 

instruction 4.c. is corrected to read as 

follows: 

c. By removing the phrase ‘‘Glass or 

glasslined (including vitrified or 

enameled coatings),’’ where it appears in 

paragraph g.4, and adding in its place 

the phrase ‘‘Glass (including vitrified or 

enameled coating or glass lining);’’ and 

[FR Doc. C1–2011–9613 Filed 5–6–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9613–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Internal Revenue Service 

26 CFR Part 31 

[TD 9524] 

RIN 1545–BG45 

Extension of Withholding to Certain 

Payments Made by Government 

Entities 

AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), 

Treasury. 

ACTION: Final regulations. 

SUMMARY: This document contains final 

regulations relating to withholding by 

government entities. These regulations 

reflect changes in the law made by the 

Tax Increase Prevention and 

Reconciliation Act of 2005 that require 

Federal, State, and local government 

entities to withhold income tax when 

making payments to persons providing 

property or services. These regulations 

affect Federal, State, and local 

government entities that will be 

required to withhold and report tax 

from payments to persons providing 

property or services and also affect the 

persons receiving payments for property 

or services from the government 

entities. 

DATES: Effective Date: These regulations 

are effective on May 9, 2011. 

Applicability Date: For dates of 

applicability, see §§ 31.3402(t)–1(d), 

31.3402(t)–2(i), 31.3402(t)–3(g), 

31.3402(t)–4(u), 31.3402(t)–5(e), 

31.3402(t)–6(d), 31.3402(t)–7(b), 

31.3406(g)–2(i), 31.6011(a)–4(d), 

31.6051–5(g), 31.6071(a)–1(g), 31.6302– 

1(n), and 31.6302–4(e). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A.G. 

Kelley, (202) 622–6040 (not a toll-free 

number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

This document contains amendments 

to 26 CFR part 31 under section 3402(t) 

of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). 

This document also contains 

amendments to 26 CFR part 31 under 

sections 3406, 6011, 6051, 6071, and 

6302 of the Code. 

Section 3402(t) of the Code was added 

by section 511 of the Tax Increase 

Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 

2005, Public Law 109–222 (TIPRA), 120 

Stat. 345, which was enacted into law 

on May 17, 2006. Section 3402(t)(1) 

provides that the Government of the 

United States, every State, every 

political subdivision thereof, and every 

instrumentality of the foregoing 

(including multi-State agencies) making 

any payment to any person providing 

any property or services (including any 

payment made in connection with a 

government voucher or certificate 

program which functions as a payment 

for property or services) shall deduct 

and withhold from such payment a tax 

in an amount equal to 3 percent of such 

payment. Section 3402(t)(2) provides 

exceptions to withholding under section 

3402(t). 

Proposed regulations under sections 

3402(t), 3406, 6011, 6051, 6071, and 

6302 of the Code were published in the 

Federal Register on December 5, 2008 

(REG–158747–06, 73 FR 74082, 2009–4 

IRB 362). 

After the issuance of the proposed 

regulations, section 1511 of the 

American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009, Public Law 111–5 (ARRA), 

123 Stat. 115, 355, extended the 

effective date of section 3402(t) 

withholding to payments made after 

December 31, 2011. 

Notice 2010–91, 2010–52 IRB 915, 

provided interim guidance on the 

application of section 3402(t) to 

payments by debit cards, credit cards, 

stored value cards, and other payment 

cards. 

Written comments were received in 

response to the proposed regulations, 

and a public hearing was held on April 

16, 2009. All comments are available at 

http://www.regulations.gov or upon 

request. After consideration of all the 

comments, the proposed regulations are 

adopted as amended by this Treasury 

decision. 

Summary of Comments and 

Explanation of Provisions 

The Treasury Department and the IRS 

received numerous comments in 

response to the proposed regulations, all 

of which were considered in 

formulating the final regulations. 

Commenters generally expressed 

concerns about the administrative 

burdens of compliance and the revenue 

effect on persons subject to section 

3402(t) withholding. The final 

regulations are intended to balance the 

legislative intent to construct a 

withholding and reporting regime for 

payments by government entities for 

property and services (other than those 

specifically excepted under section 

3402(t)(2)) with the goal of alleviating 

administrative burdens on both 

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