Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 177 / Thursday, September 12, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 56129 

1To view the proposed rule, supporting 

documents, and the comments we received, go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2012-0008. 

Dated: September 9, 2013. 

Shaun Donovan, 

Secretary. 

Walter M. Shaub, Jr., 

Director, Office of Government Ethics. 

[FR Doc. 2013–22214 Filed 9–11–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4210–67–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

7 CFR Part 318 

[Docket No. APHIS–2012–0008] 

RIN 0579–AD70 

Interstate Movement of Sharwil 

Avocados From Hawaii 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: We are amending the Hawaii 

quarantine regulations to allow the 

interstate movement of untreated 

Sharwil avocados from Hawaii into the 

continental United States. As a 

condition of movement, Sharwil 

avocados from Hawaii will have to be 

produced in accordance with a systems 

approach that includes requirements for 

registration and monitoring of places of 

production and packinghouses, an 

orchard trapping program, grove 

sanitation, limits on harvest periods and 

distribution areas, and harvesting and 

packing requirements to ensure that 

only intact fruit that have been 

protected against infestation are 

shipped. This action will allow for the 

interstate movement of Sharwil 

avocados from Hawaii into other States 

while continuing to provide protection 

against the introduction of quarantine 

pests. 

DATES: Effective Date: October 15, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

David Lamb, Regulatory Policy 

Specialist, Regulatory Coordination and 

Compliance, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River 

Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737– 

1231; (301) 851–2103. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Under the regulations in 7 CFR part 

318, ‘‘State of Hawaii and Territories 

Quarantine Notices’’ (referred to below 

as the regulations), the Animal and 

Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

of the U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA or the Department) prohibits or 

restricts the interstate movement of 

fruits, vegetables, and other products 

from Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the U.S. 

Virgin Islands, and Guam to the 

continental United States to prevent the 

spread of plant pests that occur in 

Hawaii and the territories. 

Among other things, the regulations 

allow interstate movement of Sharwil 

avocados from Hawaii to the continental 

United States only if the avocados 

undergo fumigation, or combined 

fumigation and cold treatment for fruit 

flies. The treatments currently required 

for the movement of Sharwil avocados 

can have unacceptable adverse effects 

on the quality of the fruit. 

On February 7, 2013, we published in 

the Federal Register (78 FR 8987–8992, 

Docket No. APHIS–2012–0008) a 

proposal 1 to amend the regulations to 

allow the interstate movement of 

untreated Sharwil avocados from 

Hawaii into the continental United 

States under a systems approach. The 

proposed conditions included that 

Sharwil avocados from Hawaii would 

have to be produced in accordance with 

a systems approach that includes 

requirements for registration and 

monitoring of places of production and 

packinghouses, an orchard trapping 

program, grove sanitation, limits on 

harvest periods and distribution areas, 

and harvesting and packing 

requirements to ensure that only intact 

fruit that have been protected against 

infestation are shipped. 

We solicited comments concerning 

the proposed rule for 60 days ending 

April 8, 2013, and received 30 

comments by that date. They were from 

avocado growers and grower 

associations, researchers, members of 

Congress, a State plant regulatory 

agency, and an organization 

representing State plant regulatory 

agencies. These comments are discussed 

below by topic. 

Support for the Proposed Rule 

Many commenters stated that they 

were confident that Sharwil avocados 

could safely move to the mainland in 

accordance with the requirements of the 

proposed rule and that the strengthened 

mitigation measures would prevent 

shipment of any fruit with viable fruit 

fly larvae. Many commenters also stated 

that the proposed rule would benefit 

Hawaii avocado growers, the economy 

of Hawaii, and consumers on the 

mainland. 

Trapping in Production Areas 

Two commenters addressed actions to 

be taken if traps find Bactrocera 

dorsalis, the Oriental fruit fly, in the 

production area. The proposed rule 

states ‘‘Consistent with the 

recommendations of the RMD [risk 

management document], the compliance 

agreement would initially require bait 

sprays approved by APHIS to be used to 

control fruit flies in the orchard if B. 

dorsalis is detected by the trapping at a 

rate above 0.4 flies per trap per day.’’ 

One commenter stated that a detection 

rate of 0.1 flies/trap/day should be used 

as the trigger for bait spray in place of 

the proposed 0.4 flies/trap/day. 

We are not making any change in 

response to this comment. B. dorsalis is 

known to exist in Hawaii’s agricultural 

areas, and the purpose of the trapping 

requirement is only to demonstrate a 

low level of prevalence in the 

immediate vicinity of the Sharwil 

orchards. The suggested trapping rate of 

0.1 flies/trap/day (based on the 

minimum of 2 traps we proposed to 

require for small orchards) would trigger 

action if 2 or more flies are caught in a 

week. This trigger level is more suitable 

to pest free areas than to low prevalence 

areas. We believe the proposed trigger of 

0.4 flies/trap/day, which equates to 6 

flies/week for small orchards, is a more 

realistic and practical trigger. The 

Sharwil avocado is considered an 

extremely poor host to B. dorsalis, and 

demonstrating that places of production 

have a low prevalence of B. dorsalis is 

an effective mitigation. 

This commenter also suggested that 

Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly) 

population size should also be 

monitored through trapping, with the 

same bait spray triggers in place as for 

B. dorsalis. We are not making any 

change based on this comment. As 

noted in the proposed rule and the pest 

risk assessment, Sharwil avocado is not 

a host for Medfly and movement of 

Sharwil avocados is not a pathway for 

introduction of Medfly. Therefore, we 

have determined that restrictions 

associated with Medfly in this case are 

not necessary. 

Another commenter stated that, in 

addition to trapping and bait spray 

requirements for orchards, these 

requirements should also apply to 

surrounding buffer areas outside the 

orchard. The commenter also stated 

that, if trapping triggers a bait spray 

response, shipping from the orchard 

should be discontinued for 30 days and 

resume only after bait spray completion 

and subsequent negative trapping 

results. 

We are not making changes in 

response to these comments for the 

following reasons. Buffer zones are 

necessary in cases where articles are 

grown in a pest-free area, or when 


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56130 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 177 / Thursday, September 12, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 

articles are a good host to a pest 

prevalent in the area (such as lateseason citrus grown in areas infested 

with Caribbean fruit fly). Neither of 

these conditions applies in the case of 

Hawaii Sharwil avocados. Establishing 

buffer zones would also be impractical 

because many Sharwil orchards are 

small properties where the growers do 

not own the immediately surrounding 

land. With regard to actions to be taken 

when trapping results exceed the 

threshold, the proposal deliberately 

provided APHIS with discretion in this 

matter in § 318.13–20(c)(2), which states 

‘‘If B. dorsalis is detected by the 

trapping at an actionable rate as 

specified in the compliance agreement, 

control actions required by the 

compliance agreement or ordered by an 

inspector must be taken.’’ This would 

allow for a variety of responses 

depending on the situation at the 

particular orchard, including such 

actions as increased trapping or 

increasing the size of the biometric 

sample of cut and inspected fruit. If 

infested fruit are ever found, shipping 

from that orchard would be suspended 

not just for 30 days, but until APHIS 

conducts an investigation and 

appropriate remedial actions have been 

implemented. 

Movement of Avocados From Place of 

Production to Packinghouse 

One commenter expressed concern 

that the proposed requirement that 

avocados ‘‘must be safeguarded by an 

insect-proof screen or plastic tarpaulin 

while in transit to the packinghouse and 

while awaiting packing’’ would not 

prevent infestation during that 

movement. Another commenter stated 

that the proposed requirement that 

avocados must be moved to a 

packinghouse within 12 hours of 

harvest allowed the avocados to sit in 

the harvest area for too long. 

A search of relevant data and journal 

articles revealed no instance where fruit 

awaiting packing was attacked and 

infested by fruit flies; however, APHIS 

is aware that this is a remote possibility, 

as evidenced by the proposed 

requirements. In response to these 

comments, we reviewed the practices in 

other relevant programs and are 

changing the allowed postharvest time 

period to 3 hours to be consistent with 

them. We are not changing the proposed 

requirement that avocados ‘‘must be 

safeguarded by an insect-proof screen or 

plastic tarpaulin while in transit to the 

packinghouse and while awaiting 

packing,’’ which is also the standard in 

the other programs and appears to be a 

clear and effective standard. 

Fruit Box Labeling 

One commenter addressed the 

proposed labeling requirement, that 

fruit boxes must be marked 

‘‘Distribution limited to the following 

States: CO, CT, DE, DC, ID, IL, IN, IA, 

KS, KY, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, 

MT, NE, NH, NJ, NY, ND, OH, PA, RI, 

SD, UT, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, and 

WY.’’ He suggested that the marking 

should also state ‘‘NOT FOR 

DISTRIBUTION TO [list of States that 

prohibit entry]’’ to insure that the 

product is not moved into fruit fly 

habitat States such as Florida. 

APHIS believes that it would be 

redundant and possibly confusing to 

mark every box with a list of States 

where distribution is allowed and 

another list consisting of all remaining 

States. However, we agree that further 

emphasizing the importance of limited 

distribution may help with program 

implementation. Therefore, we have 

amended the relevant requirement in 

§ 318.13–20(e) to read: ‘‘Fruit boxes 

must be clearly marked ‘Distribution 

limited to the following States: CO, CT, 

DE, DC, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, ME, MD, 

MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NH, NJ, NY, 

ND, OH, PA, RI, SD, UT, VT, VA, WA, 

WV, WI, and WY; DISTRIBUTION TO 

OTHER STATES PROHIBITED’ and 

each consignment must be identified in 

accordance with the requirements of 

§ 318.13–3(g).’’ 

Transit Shipments and Layovers 

Two commenters asked what the 

proposed rule would allow in terms of 

transit movement or layovers for 

shipments of Sharwil avocado to the 

mainland. For example, a plane carrying 

Sharwil avocados could stop in 

California first before making its way to 

Connecticut. 

APHIS agrees that such situations are 

not clearly addressed in the proposed 

rule. Therefore, we have amended the 

relevant requirement in § 318.13–20(g) 

to read as follows: ‘‘No Sharwil 

avocados moved under this program 

may be shipped to or distributed in 

locations in the continental United 

States other than Colorado, Connecticut, 

Delaware, District of Columbia, Idaho, 

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, 

Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, 

Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, 

Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New 

Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, 

North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, 

Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, 

Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West 

Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. If 

the means of conveyance carrying a 

shipment stops en route in any other 

State, the Sharwil avocados may not be 

unloaded in that State.’’ 

Technical Corrections to Pest Risk 

Analysis 

We are making minor corrections to 

the pest risk assessment and risk 

management document that were 

suggested by commenters. In one case 

we are rewording a sentence that 

referred to water stress and nutritional 

deficiencies as factors in host status to 

clarify that the magnitude of these 

factors was not actually measured. We 

are also correcting an error in the 

citation to an article on systems 

approaches that supports the basis of 

the rule. These changes do not affect the 

proposed systems approach. 

Comments Outside the Scope of the 

Proposal 

One commenter noted that the current 

regulations allow Sharwil avocados to 

be moved to the continental United 

States if they are subject to fumigation, 

or to combined fumigation and cold 

treatment. This commenter suggested 

that a cold treatment alone may be 

sufficient to eliminate pests of concern, 

suggested time-temperature 

combinations for such a treatment, and 

also suggested that heat shock 

pretreatment may improve fruit quality 

when such a treatment is used. APHIS 

did not make any changes in response 

to this comment because neither the 

proposed rule nor the requests that 

initiated it suggested allowing Sharwil 

avocados to be moved under such 

conditions, and we are not aware of 

industry interest in such movement. 

Two commenters suggested that the 

scope of the proposed rule be extended 

to apply to other thick-skinned varieties 

of avocado in addition to the Sharwil 

variety. We are taking no action on this 

comment because the request from the 

Hawaii Department of Agriculture that 

initiated this rule was specifically 

limited to Sharwil variety avocados. 

Therefore, for the reasons given in the 

proposed rule and in this document, we 

are adopting the proposed rule as a final 

rule, with the changes discussed in this 

document. 

Miscellaneous Changes 

We are also correcting two minor 

errors in § 318.13–26, in which the word 

‘‘melon’’ was omitted from the section 

heading and the Office of Management 

and Budget control number was omitted 

from the section. 

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

This final rule has been determined to 

be not significant for the purposes of 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 177 / Thursday, September 12, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 56131 

Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, 

has not been reviewed by the Office of 

Management and Budget. 

In accordance with the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, we have analyzed the 

potential economic effects of this action 

on small entities. 

This rule will allow the interstate 

movement of untreated Sharwil 

avocados from Hawaii into the 

continental United States if the 

avocados are produced in accordance 

with a systems approach to prevent the 

spread of B. dorsalis and other pests. 

The 2007 Census of Agriculture 

reported that there were a total of 8,245 

avocado farms in the United States, with 

about 76 percent in California, 13 

percent in Hawaii, and 11 percent in 

Florida. Average gross receipts for 

California avocado producers for the 

2007–08 season was about $52,700, 

compared to average receipts of about 

$12,700 for Florida’s growers and about 

$750 for Hawaii’s growers. The Small 

Business Administration’s small-entity 

standard for avocado farms is annual 

receipts of not more than $750,000. 

While nearly all U.S. avocado 

operations are small entities, it is 

evident that there is significant variation 

among the three States in average farm 

size. 

We anticipate that Sharwil avocado 

consignments from Hawaii to the 

mainland will total about 180 metric 

tons per year, equivalent to about onehalf of 1 percent of the U.S. supply of 

non-Hass avocados and to less than onetwentieth of 1 percent of the U.S. supply 

of all avocado varieties. They will be 

shipped between November and March, 

supplementing winter supplies. 

Hawaii avocado production is 

estimated at 1.0 million pounds for the 

2008–09 season, and 660,000 pounds for 

the 2009–10 season. The decline 

appears to be associated with adverse 

weather conditions. 

Avocado production in the United 

States largely takes place in California, 

where nearly all of the fruit grown is of 

the small, dark-colored, rough-skinned 

Hass variety. In Florida and Hawaii, 

varieties like the Sharwil, which is 

much larger and bright green in color, 

are predominant. Most avocado imports 

and exports by the United States are 

Hass. Given our limited understanding 

of the strength of consumers’ 

preferences for the various avocado 

varieties (that is, their degree of 

substitutability), we consider potential 

effects of the rule for producers of nonHass varieties as well as for all U.S. 

avocado farmers. 

While the rule should benefit 

Hawaii’s avocado producers by allowing 

them to use a systems approach to 

mitigate pest risk, making the sale of 

Sharwil avocados to the continental 

United States more economically 

feasible, the quantity that is expected to 

be shipped would not significantly 

affect the mainland avocado market 

overall or the more limited market for 

non-Hass varieties. With imports 

providing one-third of the U.S. supply 

of non-Hass avocados and two-thirds of 

the U.S. supply of all avocados, any 

effects of the rule for U.S. mainland 

producers would be further muted. 

Moreover, the Sharwil avocados from 

Hawaii would be shipped between 

November and March, when there is 

increased reliance on foreign suppliers. 

Any market effects of the rule could be 

expected to be borne proportionately by 

avocados supplied from abroad during 

the winter months. 

Under these circumstances, the 

Administrator of the Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service has 

determined that this action would not 

have a significant economic impact on 

a substantial number of small entities. 

Executive Order 12988 

This final rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts 

all State and local laws and regulations 

that are inconsistent with this rule; (2) 

has no retroactive effect; and (3) does 

not require administrative proceedings 

before parties may file suit in court 

challenging this rule. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

In accordance with section 3507(d) of 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the information 

collection or recordkeeping 

requirements included in this final rule, 

which were filed under 0579–0403, 

have been submitted for approval to the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB). When OMB notifies us of its 

decision, if approval is denied, we will 

publish a document in the Federal 

Register providing notice of what action 

we plan to take. 

E-Government Act Compliance 

The Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service is committed to 

compliance with the E-Government Act 

to promote the use of the Internet and 

other information technologies, to 

provide increased opportunities for 

citizen access to Government 

information and services, and for other 

purposes. For information pertinent to 

E-Government Act compliance related 

to this rule, please contact Mrs. Celeste 

Sickles, APHIS’ Information Collection 

Coordinator, at (301) 851–2908. 

Lists of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 318 

Cotton, Cottonseeds, Fruits, Guam, 

Hawaii, Plant diseases and pests, Puerto 

Rico, Quarantine, Transportation, 

Vegetables, Virgin Islands. 

Accordingly, we are amending 7 CFR 

part 318 as follows: 

PART 318—STATE OF HAWAII AND 

TERRITORIES QUARANTINE NOTICES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 318 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701–7772 and 7781– 

7786; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3. 

■ 2. A new § 318.13–20 is added to read 

as follows: 

§ 318.13–20 Sharwil avocados from Hawaii 

to the continental United States. 

Commercial shipments of Sharwil 

avocados may be moved interstate from 

Hawaii to the continental United States 

without treatment under the following 

conditions: 

(a) Registration. Persons wishing to 

move Sharwil avocados in accordance 

with this section must register the 

avocados’ place of production and the 

packinghouse that packs the avocados. 

A registration form may be obtained 

from local APHIS offices in Hawaii. 

Persons registering places of production 

or packinghouses must agree to allow 

inspectors access to the places of 

production and packinghouses as 

necessary to monitor compliance with 

this section. 

(b) Grove sanitation. Avocado fruit 

that has fallen from the trees must be 

removed from each place of production 

at least once every 7 days and in 

compliance with any schedule specified 

in the compliance agreement required in 

paragraph (h) of this section. Fallen 

avocado fruit may not be included in 

field containers of fruit brought to the 

packinghouse to be packed for interstate 

movement. 

(c) Trapping and orchard control. (1) 

Beginning at least 1 month before 

harvest, the place of production of the 

avocados must have a trapping system 

in place for B. dorsalis that complies 

with all conditions specified in the 

compliance agreement required in 

paragraph (h) of this section. APHISapproved traps and APHIS-approved 

lures must be used, and the place of 

production or the packinghouse must 

retain, for at least 1 year, data regarding 

the number and location of the traps, as 

well as any fruit flies that have been 

caught, and make this information 

available to APHIS upon request. 

(2) If B. dorsalis is detected by the 

trapping at an actionable rate as 

specified in the compliance agreement, 


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56132 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 177 / Thursday, September 12, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 

control actions required by the 

compliance agreement or ordered by an 

inspector must be taken. 

(d) Harvesting requirements. 

Avocados may only be harvested 

between November 1 and March 31. 

Avocados must be hard ripe fruit at the 

mature green stage with stems attached. 

Fruit must not indent with moderate 

finger pressure and no part of the fruit 

shall be soft. The fruit must be moved 

to a registered packinghouse within 3 

hours of harvest or must be protected 

from fruit fly infestation until moved. 

The fruit must be safeguarded by an 

insect-proof screen or plastic tarpaulin 

while in transit to the packinghouse and 

while awaiting packing. 

(e) Packinghouse requirements. 

During the time registered 

packinghouses are in use for packing 

avocados for movement to the 

continental United States, the 

packinghouses may only accept 

avocados that are from registered places 

of production and that are produced in 

accordance with the requirements of 

this section and of the compliance 

agreement required in paragraph (h) of 

this section. 

(1) Avocados must be packed within 

24 hours of harvest in an insectexclusionary packinghouse. All 

openings to the outside of the 

packinghouse must be covered by 

screening with openings of not more 

than 1.6 mm or by some other barrier 

that prevents pests from entering. 

(2) Fruit must be packed in insectproof packaging, or covered with insectproof mesh or a plastic tarpaulin, for 

transport to the continental United 

States. These safeguards must remain 

intact until arrival in the continental 

United States. 

(3) Fruit boxes must be clearly marked 

‘‘Distribution limited to the following 

States: CO, CT, DE, DC, ID, IL, IN, IA, 

KS, KY, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, 

MT, NE, NH, NJ, NY, ND, OH, PA, RI, 

SD, UT, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, and WY; 

DISTRIBUTION TO OTHER STATES 

PROHIBITED’’ and each consignment 

must be identified in accordance with 

the requirements of § 318.13–3(g). 

(f) Inspection. A biometric sample of 

a size determined by APHIS will be 

visually inspected for quarantine pests 

by an inspector, and a portion of the 

fruit will be cut open to detect internal 

pests, including B. dorsalis. If any 

quarantine pests are found, the entire 

consignment of avocados will be 

prohibited from interstate movement 

unless it is treated with an approved 

quarantine treatment monitored by 

APHIS. If any B. dorsalis are found, the 

entire consignment of avocados will be 

prohibited from interstate movement, 

and the place of production producing 

that fruit will be suspended from the 

interstate shipment program until 

APHIS conducts an investigation and 

appropriate remedial actions have been 

implemented. 

(g) Limited distribution. No Sharwil 

avocados moved under this program 

may be shipped to or distributed in 

locations in the continental United 

States other than Colorado, Connecticut, 

Delaware, District of Columbia, Idaho, 

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, 

Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, 

Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, 

Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New 

Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, 

North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, 

Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, 

Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West 

Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. If 

the means of conveyance carrying a 

shipment stops en route in any other 

State, the Sharwil avocados may not be 

unloaded in that State. 

(h) Compliance agreement. Persons 

wishing to move avocados in 

accordance with this section must sign 

a compliance agreement in accordance 

with § 318.13–3(d) in which he or she 

agrees to comply with such conditions 

as may be required by the inspector in 

each specific case to prevent infestation. 

(Approved by the Office of Management 

and Budget under control number 0579– 

0403) 

■ 3. In § 318.13–26, the section heading 

is revised and the OMB citation is 

added to the end of the section to read 

as follows: 

§ 318.13–26 Breadfruit, jackfruit, fresh 

pods of cowpea, dragon fruit, mangosteen, 

melon, and moringa pods from Hawaii. 

* * * * * 

(Approved by the Office of Management and 

Budget under control number 0579–0331) 

Done in Washington, DC, this 5th day of 

September 2013. 

Michael C. Gregoire, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–22205 Filed 9–11–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

10 CFR Part 712 

RIN 1992–AA44 

Human Reliability Program: Technical 

Amendments 

AGENCY: Department of Energy. 

ACTION: Final rule; technical 

amendment. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Energy 

(DOE) is amending its Human 

Reliability Program (HRP) regulations to 

eliminate references to obsolete 

provisions and to update part 712 to 

reflect organizational changes within 

the DOE. Today’s regulatory 

amendments do not alter substantive 

rights or obligations under current law. 

DATES: Effective Date: This rule is 

effective on September 12, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Regina G. Cano, Office of Security, 

Office of Health, Safety and Security, 

U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 

Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20585; Regina.Cano@

hq.doe.gov; 301–903–3473. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Introduction 

DOE’s HRP, is designed to ensure that 

individuals who occupy positions 

affording unescorted access to certain 

nuclear materials, nuclear explosive 

devices, programs, and facilities where 

(among other activities) nuclear 

explosives are tested produced, 

disassembled and transported, meet the 

highest standards of reliability, as well 

as physical and mental suitability, 

through a system of continuous 

evaluation of those individuals. The 

purpose of this continuous evaluation is 

to identify, in a timely manner, 

individuals whose judgment may be 

impaired by physical or mental/ 

personality disorders; the use of illegal 

drugs or the abuse of legal drugs or 

other substances; the abuse of alcohol; 

or any other condition or circumstance 

that may represent a reliability, safety, 

or security concern. 

A. Accelerated Access Authorization 

Program 

The HRP requires that all individuals 

who work in positions affording 

unescorted access to certain materials, 

facilities, and program be certified as 

meeting the highest standards of 

reliability and physical and mental/

personality suitability before such 

access may be granted. As promulgated 

in 2004 (69 FR 3213; January 23, 2004), 

the part 712 rule requires in 

§ 712.11(a)(1) that each individual 

applying for or in an HRP position must 

have a DOE ‘‘Q’’ access authorization 

based on a background investigation, 

‘‘except for security police officers who 

have been granted an interim ‘‘Q’’ 

through the Accelerated Access 

Authorization Program (AAAP).’’ The 

AAAP is defined in the current rule as 

‘‘the DOE program for granting interim 

access to classified matter and special 

nuclear material based on a drug test, 


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