9930 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 43 / Wednesday, March 5, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

(i) For liquid Type B feeds stored in

recirculating tank systems: Recirculate

immediately prior to use for no less than

10 minutes, moving not less than 1

percent of the tank contents per minute

from the bottom of the tank to the top.

Recirculate daily as described even

when not used.

(ii) For liquid Type B feeds stored in

mechanical, air, or other agitation type

tank systems: Agitate immediately prior

to use for not less than 10 minutes,

creating a turbulence at the bottom of

the tank that is visible at the top. Agitate

daily as described even when not used.

(2) The expiration date for the liquid

Type B feed is 21 days after date of

manufacture. The expiration date for the

dry Type C feed made from the liquid

Type B feed is 7 days after date of

manufacture.

(c) [Reserved]

(d) * * *

(3) Additional limitations. * * *

Dated: February 6, 1997.

Robert C. Livingston,

Director, Office of New Animal Drug

Evaluation, Center for Veterinary Medicine.

[FR Doc. 97–5312 Filed 3–4–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4160–01–F

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND

URBAN DEVELOPMENT

24 CFR Part 203

[Docket No. FR–4032–I–02]

RIN 2502–AG72

Single Family Mortgage Insurance—

Loss Mitigation Procedures

Suspension of Certain Provisions of

Interim Rule

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant

Secretary for Housing—Federal Housing

Commissioner, HUD.

ACTION: Suspension of certain

provisions of interim rule.

SUMMARY: This document suspends,

until the date of publication of a final

rule, the last sentence in introductory

paragraph (a) of 24 CFR 203.355 and the

second sentence in paragraph (f) of 24

CFR 203.402, which otherwise would

have become applicable on March 1,

1997. This suspension is being issued to

permit HUD to consider fully the public

comments on these provisions before

making them applicable. The suspended

provisions relate to loss mitigation

procedures for single family mortgage

insurance.

DATES: Effective February 28, 1997, the

last sentence of the introductory test of

24 CFR 203.355(a) and the second

sentence of 24 CFR 203.402(f) are

suspended.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Joseph McCloskey, Director, Single

Family Servicing Division, Room 9178,

Department of Housing and Urban

Development, 451 7th Street, SW.,

Washington, DC 20410, (202) 708–1672,

or, TTY for hearing and speech

impaired, (202) 708–4594. (These are

not toll-free numbers).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In an

interim rule published on July 3, 1996

(61 FR 35014) to implement loss

mitigation procedures under section 407

of The Balanced Budget Downpayment

Act, I (Pub. L. 104–99, approved January

26, 1996) (Downpayment Act), delayed

implementation dates were included for

provisions in two sections so that HUD

would be able to consider and address

any public comments on these

provisions before the prescribed

implementation date. The reduction

from nine to six months for taking

action upon default of a mortgage in

§ 203.355(a), and the amendment to

§ 203.402(f) to permit varying the

percentage of foreclosure costs or the

costs of acquiring a property that are

reimbursed, were made to apply only

after March 1, 1997.

HUD has determined that it is

appropriate to delay the implementation

of these provisions until the publication

of a final rule. Section 203.355(a)

provides, in part, that ‘‘where the date

of default is on or after March 1, 1997,

the mortgagee shall take one of the

following actions within six months of

the date of default or within such

additional time approved by HUD[.]’’

Section 203.402(f) provides, in part,

that: ‘‘For mortgages insured on or after

March 1, 1997, the Secretary will

reimburse a percentage of foreclosure

costs or costs of acquiring the property,

which percentage shall be determined

in accordance with such conditions as

the Secretary shall prescribe.’’

Accordingly, HUD is providing notice

that is suspending the provision

contained in the last sentence of the

introductory text of paragraph (a) of

§ 203.355 that reduces the foreclosure

initiation time frame from nine months

to six months for mortgages where the

default date is on or after March 1, 1997.

This will leave in place the nine-month

time frame in effect prior to the July 3,

1996 interim rule until HUD issues a

final rule.

In addition, HUD is providing notice

that it is suspending the provision

contained in the second sentence of

§ 203.402(f) that permits HUD to vary

the percentage of foreclose costs or costs

of acquiring the property otherwise

reimbursed for mortgages insured on or

after March 1, 1997. Under this

suspension, HUD will continue to

reimburse foreclosure costs or costs of

acquiring the property otherwise

(including costs of acquiring the

property by the mortgagee and of

conveying and evidencing title to the

property to HUD, but not including any

costs borne by the mortgagee to correct

title defects) actually paid by the

mortgagee and approved by HUD, in an

amount not in excess of two-thirds of

such costs or $75, whichever is the

greater. This will leave in place the

reimbursement rate in effect prior to the

July 3, 1996 interim rule until HUD

issues a final rule.

Dated: February 28, 1997.

Nicolas P. Retsinas,

Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal

Housing Commissioner.

[FR Doc. 97–5457 Filed 2–28–97; 3:55 pm]

BILLING CODE 4210–27–M

NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS

BOARD

29 CFR Part 102

Issuance and Service of Subpoenas

AGENCY: National Labor Relations

Board.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Board is amending its

rules to provide that the Executive

Secretary may sign and issue subpoenas

on behalf of the Board or any Member

thereof and that the date of service of

the subpoena for purposes of computing

the 5-day period for filing a petition to

revoke shall be construed as the date the

subpoena is received.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 5, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John

J. Toner, Executive Secretary, National

Labor Relations Board, 1099 14th Street,

NW, Room 11600, Washington, DC

20570. Telephone: (202) 273–1940.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For

approximately the last three years, the

NLRB has been conducting an intensive

internal review of its procedures at all

levels of the Agency. The purpose of

this internal review has been to find

ways to maintain and improve the

Agency’s case-processing efficiency in

light of the Agency’s diminishing

resources. Many initiatives have already

been implemented by the Board as part

of this ongoing review, such as the

initiative authorizing the use of

settlement judges and providing judges

with the discretion to dispense with

briefs and to issue bench decisions,
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 43 / Wednesday, March 5, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 9931

1The per-unit cost of the subpoenas to the

Agency is about 4 or 5 cents, depending on the

particular subpoena form used, or about $1800 to

$2500 per 50,000. Although this is obviously a

relatively small cost in the Agency’s overall budget,

the Board recognizes its responsibility in these

times of budgetary cutbacks to implement

reasonable cost-saving measures wherever it may

responsibly do so, regardless of their potential size

or impact.

2Such a delegation is clearly lawful since, as

indicated above, the issuance of subpoenas is

mandatory under the NLRA, does not involve the

exercise of any discretion, and is therefore a purely

ministerial act. See Lewis v. NLRB, 357 U.S.C. 10,

14–15 (1958).

3For example, former Executive Secretary John C.

Truesdale served in that position for a total of

approximately 18 of the last 25 years (June 6, 1972–

Oct. 25, 1997; Jan. 26, 1981–Jan. 23, 1994; and

March 4, 1994–Dec. 22, 1994). Moreover, during

four separate periods in the other 7 years, he served

as a Board Member (Oct. 25, 1977–Aug. 27, 1980;

Oct. 23, 1980–Jan. 25, 1981; Jan. 24, 1994–March 3,

1994; and Dec. 23, 1994–Jan. 3, 1996). Thus, if the

instant new rule had been in effect during the past

25 years, his signature would have been valid not

only during the 18 years that he served as the

Executive Secretary, but also during those periods

in the other 7 years when he was serving as a Board

Member. Thus, no change in the subpoena form

would have been necessary for virtually the entire

25-year period.

4The agency, of course, will also continue to

study other possible ways to reduce the costs

associated with issuing subpoenas, such as

eliminating the carbon copy and computerizing the

printing process so that the subpoenas may be

printed on an as-needed basis.

5But see the administrative law judge’s decision

in Champ Corp., 291 NLRB 803, 817 (1988), citing

NLRB v. C.E. Strickland, 220 F. Supp. 661 (D.C.

Tenn. 1962), affd. 321 F.2d 811 (6th Cir. 1963).

Compare Section 102.112 of the Board’s rules,

which generally provides that the date of service

under the Board’s rules shall be the day when the

matter served is deposited in the mail or with a

private delivery service, is personally delivered, or,

if by fascimile transmission, when the transmission

is received.

which was published as a final rule on

February 23, 1996, following a one-year

experimental period (61 FR 6940). See

also the Board’s recent, December 11,

1996, notice implementing certain

proposed changes in the Board’s

advisory opinion rules and procedures

(61 FR 65180).

Another, more technical, change that

the Board has considered at the

suggestion of Agency personnel

involves the current process for issuing

subpoenas. Under the current

procedure, the Board supplies

preprinted blank subpoenas bearing a

seal and the facsimile signature of one

of the current Board Members to the

regional offices which, as required by

Section 11 of the Act, automatically

issue the subpoenas to the person

requesting the subpoena. Although this

procedure is perfectly proper (see Lewis

v. NLRB, 357 U.S. 10, 14–15 (1958)),

experience has shown that it may not be

the most efficient procedure available to

the Agency. The problem is that,

because the Board Members serve out

limited, 5-year terms, the preprinted

subpoena forms containing a particular

Board Member’s facsimile signature will

only be useable for the length of that

Member’s time in office, and will have

to be destroyed and replaced after the

Board Member’s term expires or the

Member otherwise vacates the position.

The Agency has attempted to

minimize the number of unused

subpoena forms which must be

destroyed after a Board Member leaves

by ordering a limited number of

preprinted forms containing the

facsimile signature of a particular Board

Member, and by using those forms

exclusively, before printing or using the

forms containing the facsimile signature

of the next most senior Board Member

(i.e., the Board Member whose term is

next scheduled to expire). However,

notwithstanding these efforts, literally

thousands of subpoena forms containing

a former Board Member’s facsimile

signature often remain unused following

the Member’s departure. For example, at

the conclusion of Member Cohen’s term

in August 1996, there were over 6,000

unused preprinted subpoena forms

containing his facsimile signature stored

at the Washington Headquarters alone,

not counting those stored at the

Agency’s 50 regional and subregional

offices.

In an effort to eliminate or at least

reduce such an obvious waste of its

increasingly scarce resources,1 the

Board has decided to amend Sections

102.31(a) and 102.66(c) of the rules to

provide that the Board’s Executive

Secretary may sign and issue the

subpoenas on behalf of the Board or any

Member thereof.2 As a career official,

the Executive Secretary can reasonably

be expected to serve for a longer period

of time than any one Board Member.3

Thus, it is expected that, by providing

for issuance of subpoenas by the

Executive Secretary, the frequency in

number of times that the preprinted

subpoena forms will need to be updated

with a new facsimile signature will be

significantly reduced.4

Finally, the Board has also decided to

clarify §§ 102.31(b) and 102.66(c) of the

rules by adding a provision in each

section stating that the ‘‘date of service’’

of a subpoena for purposes of

computing the 5-day period for filing a

petition to revoke shall be construed as

the date the subpoena was received.

Although this has long been the Board’s

policy, it has never been clearly

articulated by the Board in a published

decision.5 Further, it is an issue that has

arisen with some frequency in recent

years. Accordingly, the Board has

decided to revise the foregoing sections

to clearly set forth the Board’s policy in

this regard.

Regulatory Requirements

This rule relates solely to agency

organization, procedure and practice,

and will not have a significant economic

impact on a substantial number of small

businesses or impose any information

collection requirements.

Accordingly, the Agency finds that

prior notice and comment is not

required for these rules and that good

cause exists for waiving the general

requirement of delaying the effective

date under the Administrative

Procedure Act (5U.S.C. 553), and that

the rules are not subject to the

Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C.

601), Small Business Regulatory

Enforcement Act (5 U.S.C. 801),

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C.

3501), or Executive Order 12866.

List of Subjects in 29 CFR Part 102

Administrative practice and

procedure, Labor management relations.

29 CFR part 102 is amended as

follows:

PART 102—RULES AND

REGULATIONS

1. The authority citation for 29 CFR

part 102 continues to read as follows:

Authority: Section 6, National Labor

Relations Act, as amended 929 U.S.C. 151,

156). Section 102.117(c) also issued under

Section 552(a)(4)(A) of the Freedom of

Information Act, as amended (5 U.S.C.

552(a)(4)(A). Sections 102.143 through

102.155 also issued under Section 504(c)(1)

of the Equal Access to Justice Act, as

amended (5 U.S.C. 504(c)(1).

2. Section 102.31 is amended as

follows:

(a) Paragraph (a) is revised;

(b) Paragraph (b) is amended by

removing the first sentence of that

paragraph and adding two sentences in

its place as set forth below.

§ 102.31 Issuance of subpenas; petitions

to revoke subpenas; rulings on claim of

privilege against self-incrimination; supena

enforcement proceedings; right to inspect

and copy data.

(a) The Board, or any Member thereof,

shall, on the written application of any

party, forthwith issue subpoenas

requiring the attendance and testimony

of witnesses and the production of any

evidence, including books, records,

correspondence, or documents, in their

possession or under their control. The

Executive Secretary shall have the

authority to sign and issue any such

subpoenas on behalf of the Board or any

Member thereof. Applications for
9932 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 43 / Wednesday, March 5, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

subpoenas, if filed prior to the hearing,

shall be filed with the Regional Director.

Applications for subpoenas filed during

the hearing shall be filed with the

administrative law judge. Either the

Regional Director or the administrative

law judge, as the case may be, shall

grant the application on behalf of the

Board or any Member thereof.

Applications for subpoenas may be

made ex parte. The subpoena shall show

on its face the name and address of the

party at whose request the subpoena

was issued.

(b) Any person served with a

subpoena, whether ad testificandum or

duces tecum, if he or she does not

intend to comply with the subpoena,

shall, within 5 days after the date of

service of the subpoena, petition in

writing to revoke the subpoena. The

date of service for purposes of

computing the time for filing a petition

to revoke shall be the date the subpoena

is received. * * *

* * * * *

3. Paragraph (c) of § 102.66 is

amended by removing the first four

sentences of that paragraph and adding

the following seven sentences in their

place as set forth below:

§ 102.66 Introduction of evidence; rights of

parties at hearing; subpoenas.

* * * * *

(c) The Board, or any Member thereof,

shall, on the written application of any

party, forthwith issue subpoenas

requiring the attendance and testimony

of witnesses and the production of any

evidence, including books, records,

correspondence, or documents, in their

possession or under their control. The

Executive Secretary shall have the

authority to sign and issue any such

subpoenas on behalf of the Board or any

Member thereof. Any party may file

applications for subpoenas in writing

with the Regional Director if made prior

to hearing, or with the hearing officer if

made at the hearing. Applications for

subpoenas may be made ex parte. The

Regional Director or the hearing officer,

as the case may be, shall forthwith grant

the subpoenas requested. Any person

served with a subpoena, whether ad

testificandum or duces tecum, if he or

she does not intend to comply with the

subopoena, shall, within 5 days after the

date of service of the subpoena, petition

in writing to revoke the subpoena. The

date of service for purposes of

computing the time for filing a petition

to revoke shall be the date the subpoena

is received. * * *

* * * * *

Dated, Washington, D.C., February 27,

1997.

By direction of the Board.

John J. Toner,

Executive Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–5284 Filed 3–4–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7545–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation

and Enforcement

30 CFR Parts 901, 902, 904, 906, 913,

914, 915, 916, 917, 918, 920, 925, 926,

931, 934, 935, 936, 938, 943, 944, 946,

948 and 950

RIN 1029–AB86 and 1029–AB87

State Program Amendments

AGENCY: Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement, Interior.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) is

amending its regulations by revising the

information currently reported in the

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)

regarding the OSM Director’s approval

of amendments to State regulatory

programs and abandoned mine land

reclamation plans (hereafter State

program amendments). This information

is being condensed to a three-column

tabular presentation providing the dates

when State program amendments were

originally submitted to OSM, the dates

the OSM Director’s decision approving

all or portions of these amendments

were published in the Federal Register,

and the State citations affected by the

amendments. This rulemaking will

reduce the number of unnecessary pages

in the CFR and make it a more useful

document. As always, people interested

in getting copies of the full text of the

amended State regulatory program or

abandoned mine land reclamation plan

can contact the State regulatory

authority office or the OSM field office

with oversight authority for that State.

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 4, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John

A. Trelease, Division of Regulatory

Support, Office of Surface Mining

Reclamation and Enforcement, 1951

Constitution Avenue, NW, Room 210

SIB, Washington, DC 20240; Telephone

(202) 208–2783.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

II. Discussion of Final Rule and Responses to

Comments

III. Procedural Matters

I. Background

The OSM Director’s approval or

approval in part of State program

amendments is published in the Federal

Register and codified in the CFR. The

regulatory text documenting such

decisions usually contained topical

headings describing the amendments in

a variety of forms, the associated

program citations, the dates the

amendments were submitted to OSM,

and the dates the amendments became

effective. The proposed rules published

on May 8 and May 28, 1996, (61 FR

20768 and 61 FR 26477, respectively),

would have limited the regulatory text

to a two-column tabular presentation of

the dates that the State program

amendments were submitted to OSM

and the dates the amendments were

published in the Federal Register after

approval, or partial approval, by the

OSM Director for 30 CFR parts 901, 902,

904, 906, 913, 914, 915, 916, 917, 918,

920, 925, 926, 931, 934, 935, 936, 938,

943, 944, 946, 948 and 950.

This final rulemaking adds a third

column to each table providing the State

program citations affected by each

program amendment. Where no citation

is available or appropriate, a brief

description is provided.

II. Discussion of Final Rule and

Responses to Comments

Three commenters responded to the

proposed rules, a citizens group and two

trade associations. While neither

association opposed the proposed goal

of making the CFR a more readable

document, they however argued that the

rule should not be construed as being

responsive to the regulatory reform

required by the President’s Regulatory

Reform Initiative. While the formatting

and informational changes promulgated

by this rule may not meet all of the

objectives of the Initiative, OSM

believes that these changes are well

within the discretion exercised by the

Secretary for the last 20 years as to the

nature of information published in the

Federal Register and codified in the

CFR documenting approval or approval

in part of State program amendments.

One of the associations referenced its

comments submitted in opposition to

another earlier OSM rulemaking which

had proposed deleting the whole text of

State-Federal Cooperative Agreements

from the CFR. (April 4, 1996, 61 FR

15005). OSM considers such comments

to be inapplicable to the instant rule

which provides as high or higher a level

of meaningful State program

amendment information as that

provided under the prior rules.