Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 222 / Thursday, November 16, 2000 / Proposed Rules 69279

significantly or uniquely impacted by

the rule.

EPA believes, as discussed above, that

the proposed finding of failure to attain

is a factual determination based upon

air quality considerations and that the

resulting reclassification of the area

must occur by operation of law. Thus,

the finding does not constitute a Federal

mandate, as defined in section 101 of

the UMRA, because it does not impose

an enforceable duty on any entity.

F. Executive Order 13132

Executive Order 13132, entitled

Federalism (64 FR 43255, August 10,

1999) revokes and replaces Executive

Orders 12612, Federalism, and 12875,

Enhancing the Intergovernmental

Partnership. Executive Order 13132

requires EPA to develop an accountable

process to ensure ‘‘meaningful and

timely input by State and local officials

in the development of regulatory

policies that have federalism

implications.’’ ‘‘Policies that have

federalism implications’’ is defined in

the Executive Order to include

regulations that have ‘‘substantial direct

effects on the States, on the relationship

between the national government and

the States, or on the distribution of

power and responsibilities among the

various levels of government.’’ Under

Executive Order 13132, EPA may not

issue a regulation that has federalism

implications, that imposes substantial

direct compliance costs, and that is not

required by statute, unless the Federal

government provides the funds

necessary to pay the direct compliance

costs incurred by State and local

governments, or EPA consults with

State and local officials early in the

process of developing the proposed

regulation. EPA also may not issue a

regulation that has federalism

implications and that preempts State

law unless the Agency consults with

State and local officials early in the

process of developing the proposed

regulation.

This finding of failure to attain and

reclassification of nonattainment area

will not have substantial direct effects

on the States, on the relationship

between the national government and

the States, or on the distribution of

power and responsibilities among the

various levels of government, as

specified in Executive Order 13132 (64

FR 43255, August 10, 1999), because

these actions do not, in-and-ofthemselves, impose any new

requirements on any sectors of the

economy, and does not alter the

relationship or the distribution of power

and responsibilities established in the

Clean Air Act. Thus, the requirements of

section 6 of the Executive Order do not

apply to these actions.

G. National Technology Transfer and

Advancement Act

Section 12 of the National Technology

Transfer and Advancement Act

(NTTAA) of 1995 requires Federal

agencies to evaluate existing technical

standards when developing a new

regulation. To comply with NTTAA,

EPA must consider and use ‘‘voluntary

consensus standards’’ (VCS) if available

and applicable when developing

programs and policies unless doing so

would be inconsistent with applicable

law or otherwise impractical.

The EPA believes that VCS are not

relevant to this action because today’s

action does not involve the application

of new technical standards.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 81

Environmental protection, Air

pollution control, Intergovernmental

relations, Particulate matter.

Dated: November 6, 2000.

Charles E. Findley,

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 10.

[FR Doc. 00–29360 Filed 11–15–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–u

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Maritime Administration

46 CFR Part 205

[Docket No. MARAD–2000–8284]

RIN 2133–AB42

Audit Appeals; Policy and Procedure

AGENCY: Maritime Administration,

Transportation.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking

(NPRM).

SUMMARY: The Maritime Administration

(MARAD, we, our, or us) is proposing to

update Part 205—Audit Appeals; Policy

and Procedure. Part 205 establishes

appeal procedures for parties who

contract with the Maritime Subsidy

Board or MARAD. We propose to:

Update these audit procedures to reflect

current MARAD practices; and rewrite

the regulations in plain language. The

intended effect of this rulemaking is to

improve our audit appeals process by

updating and clarifying part 205.

DATES: You should submit your

comments early enough to ensure that

Docket Management receives them not

later than January 16, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Your comments should

refer to docket number [MARAD 2000–

8284]. You may submit your comments

in writing to: Docket Clerk, U.S. DOT

Dockets, Room PL–401, 400 7th St., SW,

Washington, DC 20590. You may also

submit them electronically via the

internet at http://dmses.dot.gov/submit/

. You may call Docket Management at

(202) 366–9324 and visit the Docket

Room from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., EST.,

Monday through Friday, except Federal

Holidays. An electronic version of this

document is available on the World

Wide Web at http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

Fred A. Slaugh, Office of Financial

Approvals and Rates, (202) 366–5866.

You may send mail to Mr. Slaugh at

Maritime Administration, Office of

Financial and Rate Approvals, Room

8117, 400 Seventh Street, SW,

Washington, DC 20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments

How Do I Prepare and Submit

Comments?

Your comments must be written and

in English. To ensure that your

comments are correctly filed in the

Docket, please include the docket

number of this document in your

comments. We encourage you to write

your primary comments in a concise

fashion. However, you may attach

necessary additional documents to your

comments. There is no limit on the

length of the attachments. Please submit

two copies of your comments, including

the attachments, to Docket Management

at the address given above under

ADDRESSES.

How Can I be Sure That my Comments

Were Received?

If you wish Docket Management to

notify you upon its receipt of your

comments, enclose a self-addressed,

stamped postcard in the envelope

containing your comments. Docket

Management will return the postcard by

mail.

How do I Submit Confidential Business

Information?

If you wish to submit any information

under a claim of confidentiality, you

should submit three copies of your

complete submission, including the

information you claim to be confidential

business information, to the Chief

Counsel, Maritime Administration, at

the address given above under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. You

should mark ‘‘CONFIDENTIAL’’ on each

page of the original document that you

would like to keep confidential. In

addition, you should submit two copies,

from which you have deleted the

69280 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 222 / Thursday, November 16, 2000 / Proposed Rules

claimed confidential business

information, to Docket Management at

the address given above under

ADDRESSES. When you send comments

containing information claimed to be

confidential business information, you

should include a cover letter setting

forth with specificity the basis for any

such claim.

Will the Agency Consider Late

Comments?

We will consider all comments that

Docket Management receives before the

close of business on the comment

closing date indicated above under

DATES. To the extent possible, we will

also consider comments that Docket

Management receives after that date.

How Can I Read the Comments

Submitted by Other People?

You may read the comments received

by Docket Management at the address

given above under ADDRESSES. The

hours of the Docket Room are indicated

above in the same location. You may

also see the comments on the Internet.

To read the comments on the Internet,

take the following steps: Go to the

Docket Management System (DMS) Web

page of the Department of

Transportation (http://dms.dot.gov/). On

that page, click on ‘‘search.’’ On the next

page (http://dms.dot.gov/search/), type

in the four-digit docket number shown

at the beginning of this document. The

docket number for this document is

[xxxx]. After typing the docket number,

click on ‘‘search.’’ On the next page,

which contains docket summary

information for the docket you selected,

click on the desired comments. You

may download the comments. Please

note that even after the comment closing

date, we will continue to file relevant

information in the Docket as it becomes

available. Further, some people may

submit late comments. Accordingly, we

recommend that you periodically check

the Docket for new material.

Background

Part 205—Audit Appeals; Policy and

Procedure establishes the policy and

procedure for parties to use when

seeking redress and appeals of decisions

involving contracts with the Maritime

Subsidy Board or MARAD. Part 205

applies to all MARAD contracts

including the Operating-Differential

Subsidy, Construction-Differential

Subsidy, Capital Construction Fund,

Construction Reserve Fund, and

Maritime Security Program.

According to the policy in part 205,

any contractor who disagrees with audit

findings or decisions of MARAD and

who does not reach a negotiation with

the appropriate Coast Director’s office

may appeal. Any contractor who

appeals must do so in writing to the

Maritime Administrator within six (6)

months following the date of the

document notifying the contractor of the

audit findings. MARAD will then notify

the appellant in writing if a hearing or

additional facts are necessary. After the

Maritime Administrator renders a

decision, MARAD will notify the

appellant in writing. When a contract

contains a disputes article, the disputes

article will govern the bases for dispute

and any appeals.

We are proposing revisions to part

205 that reflect our current practices of

making audit appeals decisions.

Appellants no longer appeal to the

appropriate Coast Director’s office. In

the past, auditors were assigned to

regional offices. However, we no longer

have these auditors. MARAD

headquarters is responsible for

overseeing audits as deemed

appropriate. Such audits may be

performed by the Office of Inspector

General.

Plain Language

Executive Order 12866 and the

President’s memorandum on plain

language in government writing of June

1, 1998, require each agency to write all

rules in plain language. The Department

of Transportation and MARAD are

committed to plain language in

government writing; therefore, we

propose to revise part 205 using plain

language to provide easier

understanding. Our goal is to improve

the clarity of the regulation. We invite

your comments on how to make this

proposed rule easier to understand.

Rulemaking Analyses and Notices

Executive Order 12866 and DOT

Regulatory Policies and Procedures

We have reviewed this notice of

proposed rulemaking (NPRM) under

Executive Order 12866 and have

determined that this is not a significant

regulatory action. Additionally, this

NPRM is not likely to result in an

annual effect on the economy of $100

million or more. The purpose of this

NPRM is to propose updates to

MARAD’s audit procedures to reflect

current MARAD practices and to rewrite

the regulations in plain language.

This NPRM is also not significant

under the Regulatory Policies and

Procedures of the Department of

Transportation (44 FR 11034; February

26, 1979). The costs and benefits

associated with this rulemaking are

considered to be so minimal that no

further analysis is necessary. Because

the economic impact, if any, should be

minimal, further regulatory evaluation

is not necessary.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

This NPRM will not have a significant

economic impact on a substantial

number of small entities. This NPRM

only updates procedures for appealing

audit findings and decisions to the

Maritime Administrator. Although the

number of small entities who appeal

audit findings may be substantial, the

cost of filing an audit appeal with

MARAD is minimal, if any. Therefore, I

certify that this NPRM will not have a

significant economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

Federalism

We have analyzed this final rule in

accordance with the principles and

criteria contained in E.O. 13132

(‘‘Federalism’’) and have determined

that it does not have sufficient

federalism implications to warrant the

preparation of a federalism summary

impact statement. These regulations

have no substantial effects on the States,

or on the current Federal-State

relationship, or on the current

distribution of power and

responsibilities among the various local

officials. Therefore, consultation with

State and local officials was not

necessary.

Environmental Impact Statement

We have analyzed this NPRM for

purposes of compliance with the

National Environmental Policy Act of

1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and have

concluded that under the categorical

exclusions provision in section 4.05 of

Maritime Administrative Order

(‘‘MAO’’) 600–1, ‘‘Procedures for

Considering Environmental Impacts,’’

50 FR 11606 (March 22, 1985), the

preparation of an Environmental

Assessment, and an Environmental

Impact Statement, or a Finding of No

Significant Impact for this NPRM is not

required. This NPRM involves

administrative and procedural

regulations that have no environmental

impact.

Executive Order 13084

MARAD does not believe that this

NPRM will significantly or uniquely

affect the communities of Indian tribal

governments when analyzed under the

principles and criteria contained in

Executive Order 13084 (‘‘Consultation

and Coordination with Indian Tribal

Governments’’). Therefore, the funding

and consultation requirements of this

Executive Order would not apply.

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 222 / Thursday, November 16, 2000 / Proposed Rules 69281

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995

This NPRM does not impose an

unfunded mandate under the Unfunded

Mandates Reform Act of 1995. It does

not result in costs of $100 million or

more, in the aggregate, to any of the

following: State, local, or Native

American tribal governments, or the

private sector. This NPRM is the least

burdensome alternative that achieves

the objective of the rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

This NPRM does not contain

information collection requirements

covered by 5 CFR Part 1320 (specifically

5 CFR 1320.3(c)) in that appellants

choose the information to be provided

in their appeal and may choose to

interpret the collection of information

differently.

Regulation Identifier Number (RIN)

The Department of Transportation

assigns a regulation identifier number

(RIN) to each regulatory action listed in

the Unified Agenda of Federal

Regulations. The Regulatory Information

Service Center publishes the Unified

Agenda in April and October of each

year. The RIN number is contained in

the heading of this document to crossreference this action with the Unified

Agenda.

List of Subjects in 46 CFR Part 205

Administrative practice and

procedure, Government contracts.

Accordingly, 46 CFR part 205 is

proposed to be revised to read as

follows:

PART 205—AUDIT APPEALS; POLICY

AND PROCEDURE

Sec.

205.1 Purpose.

205.2 Policy.

205.3 Procedure.

205.4 Finality of decisions.

205.5 Contracts containing disputes article.

Authority: Sec. 204, 49 Stat. 1987, 1998,

2004, 2011; 46 U.S.C. 1114, 1155, 1176, 1212.

§ 205.1 Purpose.

This part establishes the policy and

procedure for parties to use when

seeking redress and appeals of decisions

involving contracts with the Maritime

Subsidy Board or The Maritime

Administration (MARAD, we, our, or

us). A party to a contract (you or your)

may appeal MARAD’s findings,

interpretations, or decisions of annual

or special audits.

§ 205.2 Policy.

If you disagree with audit findings

and fail to settle any differences with

the appropriate Office Director, you may

ask the appropriate office Associate

Administrator to review the audit

findings. If you disagree with the

Associate Administrator, you may

appeal to the Maritime Administrator

(Administrator).

§ 205.3 Procedure.

(a) You must submit your appeal in

writing to the Administrator within 6

months following the date of the

document notifying you of the audit

findings, interpretations, or decisions.

However, the Administrator may, at his

discretion, extend this time limitation in

the case of extenuating circumstances.

(b) We will notify you, in writing, if

you must submit additional facts for our

consideration of the appeal. We will

notify you, in writing, once the

Maritime Administrator has made a

decision regarding your appeal.

§ 205.4 Finality of decisions.

The Administrator’s decision will be

final on all questions of fact involved in

the appeal, unless:

(a) Otherwise determined by the

Secretary of Transportation pursuant to

49 CFR 1.43(a); or

(b) A court of competent jurisdiction

determines the findings to have been

fraudulent, capricious, arbitrary, so

grossly erroneous as necessarily to

imply bad faith, or not supported by

substantial evidence.

§ 205.5 Contracts containing disputes

article.

When a contract contains a disputes

article, the disputes article will govern

the bases for negotiating disputes

regarding audit findings, interpretations,

or decisions made by MARAD and any

appeals.

By Order of the Maritime Administrator.

Dated: November 13, 2000.

Joel C. Richard,

Secretary, Maritime Administration.

[FR Doc. 00–29386 Filed 11–15–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–81–P