Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 177 / Thursday, September 12, 2024 / Notices 74273 

the Commission) invites the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

take this opportunity to comment on the 

following information collection. 

Comments are requested concerning: 

whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

Commission, including whether the 

information shall have practical utility; 

the accuracy of the Commission’s 

burden estimate; ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected; ways to minimize 

the burden of the collection of 

information on the respondents, 

including the use of automated 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology; and ways to 

further reduce the information 

collection burden on small business 

concerns with fewer than 25 employees. 

The FCC may not conduct or sponsor a 

collection of information unless it 

displays a currently valid control 

number. No person shall be subject to 

any penalty for failing to comply with 

a collection of information subject to the 

PRA that does not display a valid Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB) 

control number. 

DATES: Written PRA comments should 

be submitted on or before November 12, 

2024. If you anticipate that you will be 

submitting comments, but find it 

difficult to do so within the period of 

time allowed by this notice, you should 

advise the contact listed below as soon 

as possible. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all PRA comments to 

Nicole Ongele, FCC, via email PRA@

fcc.gov and to nicole.ongele@fcc.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

additional information about the 

information collection, contact Nicole 

Ongele, (202) 418–2991. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

OMB Control Number: 3060–1261. 

Title: Creation of Interstitial 12.5 

Kilohertz Channels in the 800 MHz 

Band Between 809–817/854–862 MHz. 

Form Number: N/A. 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection. 

Respondents: Business or other forprofit; Not-for-profit institutions; State, 

Local or Tribal Government. 

Number of Respondents and 

Responses: 456 respondents; 228 

responses. 

Estimated Time per Response: 1 hour. 

Frequency of Response: One-time 

reporting requirement. 

Obligation to Respond: Required to 

obtain or retain benefits. Statutory 

authority for this collection is contained 

in 47 U.S.C. 151, 154, 301, 303, and 332 

of the Communications Act of 1934. 

Total Annual Burden: 456 hours. 

Total Annual Cost: No Cost. 

Needs and Uses: This collection will 

be submitted as an extension of a 

currently approved collection after this 

60-day comment period to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) in order 

to obtain the full three-year clearance. 

The purpose of requiring applicants to 

obtain letters of concurrence if their 

application causes contour overlap 

under a forward analysis or receives 

contour overlap under a reciprocal 

analysis is to ensure incumbents in the 

800 MHz Mid-Band are aware of the 

contour overlap before an application is 

granted. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene Dortch, 

Secretary, Office of the Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2024–20692 Filed 9–11–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION 

[Docket No. FMC–2024–0008] 

Extension of Time for Decision in 

Investigation Into Conditions Affecting 

United States Carriers in Connection 

With Canadian Ballast Water 

Regulation in the United States/Canada 

Great Lakes Trade 

AGENCY: Federal Maritime Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of extension of time and 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Maritime 

Commission (Commission) has 

extended by 90 days the time for 

decision in its investigation into 

conditions created by the Government 

of Canada (Canada) in connection with 

regulation of ballast water management 

systems that may adversely affect the 

operation of United States carriers in the 

United States/Canada Great Lakes trade. 

DATES: Submit comments on or before 

October 15, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by Docket No. FMC–2024– 

0008, by the following method: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: Your 

comments must be written and in 

English. You may submit your 

comments electronically through the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal at 

www.regulations.gov. To submit 

comments on that site, search for Docket 

No. FMC–2024–0008 and follow the 

instructions provided. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions regarding submitting 

comments or the treatment of any 

confidential information, contact David 

Eng, Secretary; Phone: (202) 523–5725; 

Email: Secretary@fmc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction 

On May 22, 2024, the Federal 

Maritime Commission (Commission) 

initiated an investigation, pursuant to 

46 U.S.C. 42302, of whether conditions 

created by the Government of Canada 

(Canada) in connection with regulation 

of ballast water management systems 

adversely affect the operation of United 

States carriers in the United States/ 

Canada Great Lakes trade, in particular 

the carriers operating vessels that may 

become subject to regulation in 

September 2024, within the meaning of 

46 U.S. Code, chapter 423 (Foreign 

Shipping Practices) (46 U.S.C. 42301– 

307). Having determined that the 

investigation would be enhanced by 

gathering and reviewing additional 

information, the Commission now 

extends by 90 days, from September 19, 

2024, to December 18, 2024, the time for 

decision under 46 U.S.C. 42302(c). 

II. Summary of Status of Investigation 

On May 22, 2024, the Commission on 

its own motion initiated a Chapter 423 

investigation into Canadian ballast 

water management regulation in the 

Great Lakes. See Investigation into 

Conditions Affecting United States 

Carriers in Connection with Canadian 

Ballast Water Regulation in the United 

States/Canada Great Lakes Trade, FMC– 

2024–0008, 89 FR 44979 (May 22, 2024) 

(May 2024 Notice of Investigation). In 

2020, the Commission had opened an 

investigation under 46 U.S. Code, 

chapter 421 following a petition by the 

Lake Carriers Association (LCA). See 

FMC Docket No. 20–10. The petition 

alleged that Canadian regulation set to 

take effect in September 2024 would 

create conditions unfavorable to 

shipping by requiring U.S. vessels to 

install new ballast water management 

systems. Meanwhile, it became apparent 

that the U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA), in its rulemaking to 

implement the Vessel Incidental 

Discharge Act (VIDA), is likely to issue 

rules that are less restrictive than those 

of Canada. May 2024 Notice of 

Investigation, 89 FR 44979. In a 

February 2024 letter, the LCA had noted 

that only a small group of U.S. Lakers 

built after 2008 (five vessels) would be 

affected by the Canadian regulation in 

2024, with about 50 older Lakers not 

subject to it until 2030. Id. The 

Commission’s Notice of Investigation 

was issued on May 22, 2024 which, 

under the 120-day time limit set by 46 

U.S.C. 42302(c), means the current 

deadline to complete the investigation is 

September 19, 2024. 


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74274 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 177 / Thursday, September 12, 2024 / Notices 

After the May 2024 Notice of 

Investigation, the investigation 

proceeded, and the FMC received 14 

comments in June 2024. The Canadian 

government and those representing the 

interests of Canadian carriers, as well as 

those representing environmental 

interests, opposed the potential 

imposition of sanctions. On the other 

hand, those representing the interests of 

U.S. carriers and workers were 

supportive of such measures. At the 

same time Transport Canada, the 

responsible Canadian agency, 

established a procedure for seeking 

exemptions that became available to 

affected U.S. carriers in late July 2024, 

although the Commission understands 

that a comparable process had been 

available to Canadian carriers much 

earlier. See Procedure to request an 

exemption to install Ballast Water 

Management Systems under Ballast 

Water Regulations for foreign-flagged 

vessels in Canadian waters, Transport 

Canada (July 25, 2024) (Exemption 

Procedure), available at https://

tc.canada.ca/en/marine-transportation/ 

marine-safety-management-system-tp13585-e-tier-ii-procedures/tier-iiprocedure-request-exemption-installballast-water-management-systemsunder-ballast-water-regulations-foreignflagged-vessels-canadian-waters. The 

Commission also understands that the 

relevant Canadian rule is due to take 

effect as to U.S. carriers shortly, 

specifically on September 8, 2024. 

In light of the above, the Commission 

now extends the time for decision in its 

Chapter 423 investigation by 90 days, 

from the current deadline of September 

19, 2024, to December 18, 2024, and it 

establishes a new comment period to 

gather more information on the apparent 

disparity between the exemption 

processes available to U.S. and 

Canadian carriers, including the 

difference in when the exemption 

procedures became available. In 

particular, the Commission seeks to 

gather and review more information 

about whether the exemption processes 

may have themselves led to adverse 

conditions in violation of 46 U.S.C. 

42302(a), including information about 

developments occurring after the end of 

the initial comment period in June 2024. 

That will help the Commission continue 

to investigate whether the laws, rules, 

policies, or practices of Canada result in 

conditions that ‘‘adversely affect the 

operations of United States carriers in 

United States oceanborne trade’’ and 

that ‘‘do not exist for foreign carriers of 

[Canada] in the United States under the 

laws of the United States.’’ 46 U.S.C. 

42302(a). 

If the agency concludes that the 

standard of section 42302(a) is met, it is 

authorized to take certain actions to 

encourage remediation of those 

conditions. See May 2024 Notice of 

Investigation, 89 FR 44979–80. 

Specifically, the Commission may take 

actions ‘‘against any foreign carrier that 

is a contributing cause, or whose 

government is a contributing cause, to 

those conditions.’’ 46 U.S.C. 42304(a). 

Potential actions include imposing 

limits and/or fees on Canadian-flagged 

vessels that visit U.S. ports and 

requesting that the U.S. Department of 

Homeland Security and the U.S. Coast 

Guard refuse clearance and deny entry 

of such vessels into the U.S., or detain 

such vessels. See 46 U.S.C. 42304, 

42305. Any such fees could be 

substantial, as they are authorized by 

law at a level up to $2,559,636 per 

voyage. See 46 CFR 506.4. Before any 

action is taken under 46 U.S.C. 42304 or 

42305, the relevant determination is 

submitted for Presidential review, 

within 10 days of receipt, under 46 

U.S.C. 42306. 

III. New Request for Comments 

As explained above, the Commission 

determined that the above situation 

meets the threshold requirements for 

consideration under the relevant 

statutory and regulatory authority, and 

in May 2024, it initiated a Chapter 423 

investigation into whether the situation 

has created conditions that adversely 

affect the operations of United States 

carriers. See 46 U.S.C. 42302; 46 CFR 

555.3, 555.5, 555.6. 

The Commission now finds that it 

would enhance its investigation to ask 

interested persons to submit written 

comments containing arguments, 

experiences, and/or data relevant to the 

options that have been available for 

carriers to seek an exemption from the 

Canadian ballast water management 

regulations going into effect in 

September 2024. In particular, the 

Commission seeks information about 

the extent to which such processes have 

differed based on whether the carrier is 

a U.S. carrier or a Canadian carrier, 

including but not limited to when the 

exemption processes became available 

for affected carriers in those categories; 

information that was unavailable when 

the last comment period closed in June 

2024; and information about when 

specific carriers were granted or denied 

exemptions from the requirements at 

issue, as well as the basis for such 

decisions. 

The Commission’s jurisdiction under 

46 U.S.C. 42302 is broad, and the 

agency welcomes comments not only 

from the Government of Canada, but 

also from container shipping interests, 

bulk cargo interests, vessel owners, 

individuals and groups with relevant 

information on commercial and 

environmental considerations, and 

anyone else with relevant information 

or perspectives on this matter. 

As the Commission proceeds with 

this investigation, it may determine to 

request additional comment or gather 

information through other means as 

authorized under 46 U.S.C. 42303 and 

46 CFR 555.5, 555.6. 

By the Commission. 

David Eng, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2024–20615 Filed 9–11–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6730–02–P 

FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH 

REVIEW COMMISSION 

Sunshine Act Meetings 

TIME AND DATE: 2 p.m., Thursday, 

September 19, 2024. 

PLACE: The United States Department of 

Labor Auditorium, Frances Perkins 

Building, 200 Constitution Avenue NW, 

Washington, DC 20210. 

STATUS: Open. 

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED: The 

Commission will hear oral argument in 

the matter of Geneva Rock Products, 

Inc., Docket No. WEST 2022–0097. 

(Issues include whether the Judge 

abused his discretion when he ordered 

a stay of the case for an indefinite 

duration because of a pending criminal 

matter.) 

Any person attending this oral 

argument who requires special 

accessibility features and/or auxiliary 

aids, such as sign language interpreters, 

must inform the Commission in advance 

of those needs. Subject to 29 CFR 

2706.150(a)(3) and 2706.160(d). 

CONTACT PERSON FOR MORE INFORMATION: 

Emogene Johnson (202) 434–9935/(202) 

708–9300 for TDD Relay/1–800–877– 

8339 for toll free. 

Phone Number for Listening to 

Meeting: 1 (866) 236–7472, Passcode: 

678–100. 

(Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552b) 

Dated: September 9, 2024. 

Sarah L. Stewart, 

Deputy General Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2024–20792 Filed 9–10–24; 11:15 am] 

BILLING CODE 6735–01–P 


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