Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 219 / Wednesday, November 13, 2024 / Notices 89585 

soybean enriches for small indels and 

creates frameshift mutations. G3 

(Bethesda) 12. 

Yadav S, Sandhu N, Dixit S, Singh VK, 

Catolos M, Mazumder RR, Rahman MA, 

and Kumar A. 2021. Genomics-assisted 

breeding for successful development of 

multiple-stress-tolerant, climate-smart 

rice for southern and southeastern Asia. 

Plant Genome 14. Retrieved from <GO to 

ISI>://WOS:000607118000001. 

Ye G, bullet, and Smith K. 2008. Markerassisted gene pyramiding for inbred line 

development: Basic principles and 

practical guidelines. Int. J. Plant. 

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McCallum B, Xue A, Cao W, Depauw R, 

and Fedak G. 2019. Pyramiding stem rust 

resistance genes to race TTKSK (Ug99) in 

wheat. Canadian Journal of Plant 

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from https://doi.org/10.1080/ 

07060661.2019.1596983. 

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Li D, Zhu G, Xiong X, Shang Y, Li C, and 

Huang S. 2021. Genome design of hybrid 

potato. Cell 184, pp. 3873–3883.e3812. 

Zhao H, Li J, Yang L, Qin G, Xia C, Xu X, 

Su Y, Liu Y, Ming L, Chen L-L, Xiong L, 

and Xie W. 2021. An inferred functional 

impact map of genetic variants in rice. 

Molecular Plant 14, pp. 1584–1599. 

Retrieved from https://

www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/ 

pii/S1674205221002604. 

Zheng W, Li S, Liu Z, Zhou Q, Feng Y, and 

Chai S. 2020. Molecular marker assisted 

gene stacking for disease resistance and 

quality genes in the dwarf mutant of an 

elite common wheat cultivar Xiaoyan22. 

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00854-2. 

Accordingly, pursuant to the process 

established under § 340.1(b)(4), we are 

adopting the two additional 

modifications articulated in this notice 

for the reasons set forth in our initial 

notice and in this final notice. 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701–7772 and 

7781–7786; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 

2.80, and 371.3. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of 

November 2024. 

Michael Watson, 

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–26232 Filed 11–12–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Natural Resources Conservation 

Service 

Environmental Impact Statement; 

Coon Creek Watershed 

AGENCY: Natural Resources 

Conservation Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of availability; record of 

decision. 

SUMMARY: This notice of availability 

presents the Record of Decision (ROD) 

on a Watershed Project Plan— 

Programmatic Environmental Impact 

Statement (Plan-PEIS) for the Coon 

Creek Watershed prepared in 

partnership with La Crosse, Monroe, 

and Vernon Counties, Wisconsin 

(Sponsors). This notice announces the 

plan to proceed with the 

implementation of Alternative 2— 

Proposed Action—Decommission Dams, 

identified in the Plan-PEIS. Alternative 

2 proposes to decommission all 14 dams 

by excavating a notch to pass the 100- 

year flood without impounding water. 

This action will avoid environmental 

impacts to the extent possible and 

mitigate impacts that are unavoidable. 

ADDRESSES: You may request a copy of 

the ROD from: Steve Becker, NRCS State 

Conservation Engineer, 8030 Excelsior 

Drive, Suite 200, Madison, WI 53717. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Steve Becker; telephone: (608) 400– 

6176; or email: steve.becker@usda.gov. 

Individuals who require alternative 

means for communication should 

contact the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture (USDA) Target Center at 

(202) 720–2600 (voice and text 

telephone (TTY)) or dial 711 for 

Telecommunications Relay service (both 

voice and text telephone users can 

initiate this call from any telephone). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Decision 

Natural Resources Conservation 

Service (NRCS) has prepared a ROD 

following completion of the Plan-PEIS. 

The Plan-PEIS provides a retrospective 

analysis of the existing flood control 

project and then evaluates alternatives 

for the final disposition of 14 flood 

control dams. The purpose of the PlanPEIS is to ensure agencies consider the 

environmental impacts of their action in 

decision making. NRCS involvement is 

through Public Law 83–566, Watershed 

Protection and Flood Prevention Act, as 

amended. The ROD is available for 

viewing at the following link: https://

www.wfkandccwatersheds.com/2023. 

NRCS has decided to assist the 

Sponsors with implementing 

Alternative 2 which proposes to 

decommission all 14 dams in the 

watershed. 

Background 

The Coon Creek Watershed has an 

area of 90,601 acres (141.6 square miles) 

to the confluence with the Mississippi 

River. The focused planning area for the 

Plan-PEIS is 68,762 acres (107.4 square 

miles). The Plan-PEIS is follows an 

original Watershed Work Plan 

developed in 1958 to reduce flood 

damages in the Coon Creek valley under 

the Watershed Protection and Flood 

Prevention Act of 1954, as amended. 

The major problems in the watershed 

in 1958 were floodwater damages to: 

crops and pasture, fences, farmsteads, 

machinery, buildings, livestock, county 

and township roads and bridges, and 

urban areas of Coon Valley and 

Chaseburg. Project measures 

implemented under the original 

Watershed Work Plan included 14 flood 

control dams installed between 1961 

and 1964 with a total capacity of 1,160 

acre-feet to regulate flood flows from 21 

square miles, or 27 percent of the 

watershed above the village of Coon 

Valley. Project measures also included a 

multitude of land treatment practices to 

reduce erosion and sedimentation 

behind the dams. The dams have now 

completed their Federal interest or 

original economic evaluation period of 

50 years. 

On the night of August 27, 2018, 

seven watershed dams over-topped and 

three dams failed including the 

Luckasson Dam (CC 21); Blihovde Dam 

(CC23); Korn Dam (CC 29). Rainfall 

amounts up to 11 inches were reported 

on the night of August 27 and early 

morning of August 28. Additional 

rainfall amounts up to 7 inches were 

reported in the afternoon of August 28 

after the dam failures. 

The dams failed (breached) along the 

interface between the earthfill and 

highly jointed sandstone abutments. 

Each breach extended full depth to the 

valley floor. No one was injured or 

killed. Large debris fields were observed 

downstream of the dams for about 2 

miles. Barns and outbuildings were 

destroyed. An unoccupied house was 

moved off its foundation. Agricultural 

lands and road crossings were damaged. 

Engineering investigations concluded 

that flow through the jointed sandstone 

during high pool stage caused internal 

erosion and piping of the earthfill dam 

and contributed to the failures. The 

Sponsors and NRCS are concerned that 

a similar vulnerability exists in the 

remaining 11 dams. 

Environmental Review 

The ROD summarizes the findings of 

the Plan-PEIS and provides the basis for 

a decision to decommission 14 flood 

control dams in the Coon Creek 

watershed. The watershed project plan 

and the environmental document were 

combined in the single Plan-PEIS 

document. NRCS is the lead Federal 

agency responsible for the content and 

quality of the Plan-EIS for the purposes 


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89586 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 219 / Wednesday, November 13, 2024 / Notices 

1See https://sam.gov/content/assistance-listings. 

of the National Environmental Policy 

Act (NEPA), Principles, Requirements, 

and Guidelines (PR&G) for Federal 

Investments in Water Resources and 

National Historic Preservation Act 

(NHPA) compliance. 

The ROD is issued for the NEPA 

process (42 U.S.C. 4321–4347) which 

follows the NRCS NEPA regulations in 

7 CFR part 650, subpart A, and 7 CFR 

part 622. The NRCS NEPA regulations 

adopt the Council of Environmental 

Quality (CEQ) NEPA regulations (40 

CFR parts 1500–1508) in total. 

Alternatives 

Considered alternatives included: no 

action, repair, rehabilitation, relocation, 

replacement, removal, and construction 

of additional dams. Considered 

alternatives also included the 

substitution of large watershed dams 

with a multitude of smaller farm ponds. 

Further effort was made to evaluate the 

effects of various land management 

strategies to reduce watershed runoff 

and flood damages were compared for 

present land use against a full 

watershed conversion from cropland to 

grassland. 

Two of nine alternatives were 

provided for detailed study and 

comparative analysis: No action and 

Decommission dams. The No Action 

alternative does not address dam safety. 

Two failed dams, plus three failures in 

the adjacent Coon Creek Watershed, 

present a high probability for future 

failures. The State Dam Safety Program 

has issued an administrative order to 

Monroe County, as the owner, to repair 

or remove the two failed dams; 

similarly, they would likely order the 

repair or removal of the seven remaining 

dams if they fail in the future. The 

Decommission Dams alternative 

proposes to decommission all nine 

dams to prevent future dam failures and 

potential loss of life and property 

damage. 

Factors Considered in Making the 

Decision 

Geologic and geotechnical 

engineering investigations were 

conducted following the failures of CC 

21, CC 23, and CC 29. The investigation 

report concluded that flow through the 

fractured sandstone abutments during 

high pool stages contributed to the 

failures. A similar vulnerability is 

believed to exist in the remaining 

structures. 

Failure of the remaining dams could 

result in loss of life and would likely 

cause downstream flood, erosion, and 

sedimentation damages to cropland, 

farm structures, road crossings, and 

utilities. Dam failures would also result 

in erosion and sedimentation of streams 

resulting in adverse impacts to fish and 

wildlife habitat. 

All programmatic alternatives have 

submarginal economic performance. 

They have negative discounted net 

economic efficiency and very low 

benefit to cost ratios. However, the 

preferred alternative of dam 

decommissioning decreases People at 

Risk (PAR) from a dam failure and 

increases length of natural stream 

connectivity for habitat and recreation. 

The preferred alternative is justified by 

the social (PAR and recreation) and 

environmental (stream restoration) 

accounting of the PR&G for Federal 

Investments in Water Resources. 

Public Notice 

As specified in 7 CFR 650.12(c) and 

40 CFR 1505.2, the Draft PEIS public 

notice was initiated by publication of 

the Draft PEIS on December 22, 2023, 

and published in the Federal Register 

(88 FR 88610), as identified by EIS 

number 20230180 in the Environmental 

Protection Agency’s (EPA) Central Data 

Exchange (CDX) system. Concluding the 

initial public notice, essential comments 

were addressed and incorporated in the 

Final PEIS. The Final PEIS was made 

available for review through EPA’s CDX 

system on May 17, 2024, and published 

in the Federal Register (89 FR 43401). 

Conclusion 

The Plan-PEIS for the Coon Creek 

Watershed uses all practical means, 

consistent with considerations of 

national policy, to meet the goals 

established in NEPA. The Plan-PEIS 

will serve the overall public interest and 

meet the needs of the project sponsors. 

The Plan-PEIS has been prepared, 

reviewed, and accepted in accordance 

with the provisions of NEPA as 

implemented by Departmental 

regulations for the preparation of a PEIS. 

After considering a broad range of 

alternatives, the PEIS has found 

Alternative 2—Proposed Action— 

Decommission Dams, to be the 

environmentally preferable alternative 

to serve the Sponsor’s purpose and 

need. 

NRCS has decided to assist Sponsors 

with the implementation of Alternative 

2 to decommission all 14 dams by 

excavating a notch to pass the 100-year 

flood without impounding water while 

avoiding environmental impacts to the 

extent possible and mitigating for 

impacts that are unavoidable. 

NRCS has prepared a concise ROD for 

this action. The ROD was prepared and 

will be signed by the State 

Conservationist (STC) following the 30- 

day administrative action period 

initiated by the EPA’s publication of the 

notice of availability of the Final PEIS 

in the Federal Register. The ROD will 

be distributed to all who provided 

essential comments on the Draft PEIS 

and will be available for review upon 

request. 

Federal Assistance Programs 

The title and number of the Federal 

Assistance Program as found in the 

Assistance Listing 1 to which this 

document applies is 10.904, Watershed 

Protection and Flood Prevention. 

Executive Order 12372 

Executive Order 12372, 

‘‘Intergovernmental Review of Federal 

Programs,’’ requires consultation with 

State and local officials that would be 

directly affected by proposed Federal 

financial assistance. The objectives of 

the Executive order are to foster an 

intergovernmental partnership and a 

strengthened federalism, by relying on 

State and local processes for State and 

local government coordination and 

review of proposed Federal financial 

assistance and direct Federal 

development. This project is subject to 

the provisions of Executive Order 

12372, which requires 

intergovernmental consultation with 

State and local officials. 

USDA Non-Discrimination Policy 

In accordance with Federal civil 

rights law and USDA civil rights 

regulations and policies, USDA, its 

agencies, offices, and employees, and 

institutions participating in or 

administering USDA programs are 

prohibited from discriminating based on 

race, color, national origin, religion, sex, 

gender identity (including gender 

expression), sexual orientation, 

disability, age, marital status, family or 

parental status, income derived from a 

public assistance program, political 

beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior 

civil rights activity, in any program or 

activity conducted or funded by USDA 

(not all bases apply to all programs). 

Remedies and complaint filing 

deadlines vary by program or incident. 

Individuals who require alternative 

means of communication for program 

information (for example, braille, large 

print, audiotape, American Sign 

Language, etc.) should contact the 

responsible Agency or USDA TARGET 

Center at (202) 720–2600 (voice and 

telephone) or dial 711 for 

Telecommunications Relay Service 

(both voice and text telephone users can 

initiate this call from any phone). 

Additionally, program information may 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 219 / Wednesday, November 13, 2024 / Notices 89587 

be made available in languages other 

than English. 

To file a program discrimination 

complaint, complete the USDA Program 

Discrimination Complaint Form, AD– 

3027, found online at: https://

www.usda.gov/oascr/how-to-file-aprogram-discrimination-complaint and 

at any USDA office or write a letter 

addressed to USDA and provide in the 

letter all the information requested in 

the form. To request a copy of the 

complaint form, call (866) 632–9992. 

Submit your completed form or letter to 

USDA by: (1) mail to: U.S. Department 

of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant 

Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 

Independence Avenue SW, Washington, 

DC 20250–9410; (2) Fax: (202 690–7442; 

or (3) email: program.intake@usda.gov. 

USDA is an equal opportunity 

provider, employer, and lender. 

Joseph Schmelz, 

Acting Wisconsin State Conservationist, 

Natural Resources Conservation Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–26266 Filed 11–12–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–16–P 

COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS 

Sunshine Act Meeting Notice 

AGENCY: United States Commission on 

Civil Rights (USCCR). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Commission announces a 

public briefing, Federal Response to 

Teacher Shortage Impacts on Students 

with Disabilities. 

DATES: Friday, November 15, 2024, 10 

a.m. ET. 

ADDRESSES: The briefing is open to the 

public and can be attended via live 

stream on the Commission’s YouTube 

page at: https://www.youtube.com/ 

usccr. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joe 

Kim (202) 499–0263; publicaffairs@

usccr.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 

accordance with Public Law 116–156, 

1134 Stat. 700 (2020), the U.S. 

Commission on Civil Rights will hold a 

briefing on, Friday, November 15, 2024, 

on the Federal Response to Teacher 

Shortage Impacts on Students with 

Disabilities. This investigation will 

analyze how national teacher shortages, 

exacerbated by the 2020 pandemic, have 

impacted students with disabilities. The 

investigation will focus on challenges 

schools face in hiring and retaining 

special education professionals, and the 

federal government’s response to 

address these challenges. 

This briefing is open to the public and 

is accessible via live stream at https:// 

www.youtube.com/usccr. (* Streaming 

information subject to change.) 

Computer assisted real-time 

transcription (CART) will be provided. 

The web link to access CART (in 

English) on Friday, November 15, 2024, 

is https://www.streamtext.net/ 

player?event=USCCR. Please note that 

CART is text-only translation that 

occurs in real time during the meeting 

and is not an exact transcript. 

To request additional 

accommodations, persons with 

disabilities should email access@

usccr.gov by Tuesday, November 12, 

2024, indicating ‘‘accommodations’’ in 

the subject line. 

Briefing Agenda for Federal Response 

to Teacher Shortage Impacts on 

Students With Disabilities 

10 a.m.–4:50 p.m. 

All times Eastern Standard Time 

I. Introductory Remarks: 10:00–10:10 

a.m. 

II. Panel 1: Public Education in the PostPandemic Era: 10:10–11:20 a.m. 

III. Break: 11:20–11:30 a.m. 

IV. Panel 2: Education Advocacy 

Discussion of the Teacher Shortage: 

11:30 a.m.–12:40 pm 

V. Lunch: 12:40–2:10 p.m. 

VI. Panel 3: From the Field: Educators 

on the Teacher Shortage: 2:10 p.m.– 

3:20 p.m. 

VII. Break: 3:20–3:30 p.m. 

VIII. Panel 4: From the Field: Hearing 

from Impacted Persons: 3:30–4:40 

p.m. 

IX. Closing Remarks: 4:40–4:50 p.m. 

X. Adjourn Meeting. 

** Public Comments will be accepted 

through written testimony. 

* Schedule is subject to change. 

Call for Public Comments 

In addition to the testimony collected 

on Friday, November 15, 2024, via 

public briefing, the Commission 

welcomes the submission of material for 

consideration as we prepare our report. 

Please submit such information to 

teachershortage@usccr.gov no later than 

December 16, 2024, or by mail to OCRE/ 

Public Comments, ATTN: Teacher 

Shortage, U.S. Commission on Civil 

Rights, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 

Suite 1150, Washington, DC 20425. 

Dated: November 8, 2024. 

TinaLouise Martin, 

USCCR Director of Management. 

[FR Doc. 2024–26494 Filed 11–8–24; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 6335–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Census Bureau 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

Review and Approval; Comment 

Request; Annual Integrated Economic 

Survey (AIES) 

The Department of Commerce will 

submit the following information 

collection request to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review and clearance in accordance 

with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995, on or after the date of publication 

of this notice. We invite the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

comment on proposed, and continuing 

information collections, which helps us 

assess the impact of our information 

collection requirements and minimize 

the public’s reporting burden. Public 

comments were previously requested 

via the Federal Register on August 26, 

2024, during a 60-day comment period. 

This notice allows for an additional 30 

days for public comments. 

Agency: U.S. Census Bureau, 

Department of Commerce. 

Title: Annual Integrated Economic 

Survey (AIES). 

OMB Control Number: 0607–1024. 

Form Number(s): This electronic 

collection has no form number. 

Type of Request: Regular submission, 

Request for a Revision of a Currently 

Approved Collection. 

Number of Respondents: 305,340. 

Average Hours per Response: 2 hours, 

34 minutes. 

Burden Hours: 784,950. 

Needs and Uses: The U.S. Census 

Bureau requests Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) approval to revise 

the Annual Integrated Economic Survey 

(AIES). The AIES is a survey which has 

integrated and replaced seven existing 

annual business surveys into one 

survey. The AIES provides the only 

comprehensive national and 

subnational data on business revenues, 

expenses, and assets on an annual basis. 

The AIES is designed to combine 

several Census Bureau collections to 

reduce respondent burden, increase data 

quality, and allow the Census Bureau to 

operate more efficiently. 

The AIES collects the following 

information from employer businesses 

in sample: 

• Business characteristics, including 

employment, operating status, 

organizational change, ownership 

information, and co-op status 

• Business classification, including 

business activity, type of operation, 

and tax status 


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