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[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 220 (Tuesday, November 16, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 69870-69871]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-28725]

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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

28 CFR Part 0

[Docket No. OAG 136; A.G. Order No. 3227-2010]

Delegation of Authority Under 18 U.S.C. 249

AGENCY: Department of Justice.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This rule amends 28 CFR part 0 to delegate the Attorney 
General's certification authority under 18 U.S.C. 249, relating to hate 
crimes, to the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights 
Division, and, in limited circumstances, to the Assistant Attorney 
General for the Criminal Division.

DATES: Effective Date: November 16, 2010.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Moossy, Acting Section Chief, 
Civil Rights Division, Criminal Section, Patrick Henry Building, 950 
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20530, (202) 305-2445.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 28, 2009, President Obama signed 
into law the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes 
Prevention Act of 2009 (Shepard-Byrd Act). Among other things, the 
Shepard-Byrd Act created a new federal hate crime statute to be 
codified at 18 U.S.C. 249. The Shepard-Byrd Act expressly provides that 
no prosecution under section 249 may be undertaken without a written 
certification by the Attorney General (or a designee) that the State 
does not have jurisdiction; the State has requested that the federal 
government assume jurisdiction; the verdict or sentence obtained 
through State charges left demonstrably unvindicated the federal 
interest in eradicating bias-motivated violence; or a prosecution by 
the federal government is in the public interest and necessary to 
secure substantial justice. The statute expressly allows the Attorney 
General to delegate this certification authority to a designee, and 
this rule accordingly amends 28 CFR part 0 to delegate the Attorney 
General's certification authority under 18 U.S.C. 249 to the Assistant 
Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, and, in limited 
circumstances, to the Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal 
Division.

Regulatory Certifications

    This rule is a rule of agency organization, procedure, and practice 
and is limited to matters of agency management and personnel. 
Accordingly: (1) This rule is exempt

[[Page 69871]]

from the requirements of notice and comment and a delayed effective 
date, 5 U.S.C. 553(b), (d), and is made effective upon issuance; (2) 
the Department certifies under 5 U.S.C. 605(b) that this rule will not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities and further that no Regulatory Flexibility Analysis was 
required to be prepared for this final rule since the Department was 
not required to publish a general notice of proposed rulemaking; and 
(3) this action is not a ``regulation'' or ``rule'' as defined by 
Executive Order 12866, ``Regulatory Planning and Review,'' Sec.  3(d) 
and, therefore, this action has not been reviewed by the Office of 
Management and Budget.
    This rule will not have substantial direct effects on the States, 
on the relationship between the national government and the States, or 
on distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels 
of government. Therefore, in accordance with Executive Order 13132, 
``Federalism,'' it is determined that this rule does not have 
sufficient federalism implications to warrant the preparation of a 
Federalism Assessment. This regulation meets the applicable standards 
set forth in Executive Order 12988, ``Civil Justice Reform.'' This rule 
will not result in the expenditure by State, local and tribal 
governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of 
$100,000,000 or more in any one year, and it will not significantly or 
uniquely affect small governments. Therefore, no actions were deemed 
necessary under the provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 
1995.
    This action pertains to agency management, personnel and 
organization and does not substantially affect the rights or 
obligations of non-agency parties and, accordingly, is not a ``rule'' 
as that term is used by the Congressional Review Act (Subtitle E of the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA)). 
Therefore, the reporting requirement of 5 U.S.C. 801 does not apply.

List of Subjects in 28 CFR Part 0

    Authority delegations (Government agencies), Government employees, 
Organization and functions (Government agencies), Privacy, Reporting 
and recordkeeping requirements, Whistleblowing.

0
Accordingly, by virtue of the authority vested in me as Attorney 
General, including 5 U.S.C. 301 and 28 U.S.C. 509, 510, part 0 of title 
28 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:

PART 0--ORGANIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

0
1. The authority for citation for part 0 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 28 U.S.C. 509, 510, 515-519.

Subpart J--Civil Rights Division

0
2. Section 0.50 is amended by adding a new paragraph (n) to read as 
follows:

Sec.  0.50  General functions.

* * * * *
    (n) Upon request, certification under 18 U.S.C. 249, relating to 
hate crimes.

Subpart K--Criminal Division

0
3. Section 0.55 is amended by adding a new paragraph (v) to read as 
follows:

Sec.  0.55  General functions.

* * * * *
    (v) Upon request, certification under 18 U.S.C. 249, relating to 
hate crimes, in cases involving extraterritorial crimes that also 
involve charges filed pursuant to the Military Extraterritorial 
Jurisdiction Act (18 U.S.C. 3261 et seq.), or pursuant to chapters of 
the Criminal Code prohibiting genocide (18 U.S.C. 1091), torture (18 
U.S.C. 2340A), war crimes (18 U.S.C. 2441), or recruitment or use of 
child soldiers (18 U.S.C. 2442).

    Dated: November 8, 2010.
Eric H. Holder, Jr.,
Attorney General.
[FR Doc. 2010-28725 Filed 11-15-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-13-P
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