Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 88 /Thursday, May 7, 1998 /Rules and Regulations 25157

2 If the NRC determines, based on its review of available data, that a National Agency Check and Credit investigation is necessary, a fee of $80.00 will be assessed prior

to the conduct of the investigation; however,

if a full field investigation is deemed necessary by the NRC, based on its review of

available data, a fee of $3,275 will be assessed prior to the conduct of the investigation.

* * * * *

PART 25—ACCESS AUTHORIZATION

FOR LICENSEE PERSONNEL

3. The authority citation for Part 25

continues to read as follows:

Authority: Secs. 145, 161, 68 Stat. 942,

948, as amended (42 U.S.C. 2165, 2201); sec.

201, 88 Stat. 1242, as amended (42 U.S.C.

5841); E.0. 10865, as amended, 3 CFR 1959–

1963 Comp., p. 398 (50 U.S.C. 401, note);

E.O. 12829, 3 CFR, 1993 Comp., p. 570; E.O.

12958, 3 CFR, 1995 Comp., p. 333; E.O.

12968, 3 CFR, 1995 Comp., p. 396.

Appendix A also issued under 96

Stat. 1051 (31 U.S.C. 9701).

4. Appendix A to Part 25 is revised to

read as follows:

APPENDIX A TO PART 25—FEES FOR

NRC ACCESS AUTHORIZATION

Category Fee

Initial ‘‘L’’ Access Authorization ...... 1 $80

Reinstatement of ‘‘L’’ Access Authorization .................................... 1 80

Extension or Transfer of ‘‘L’’ Access Authorization ....................... 1 80

Initial ‘‘Q’’ Access Authorization ..... 3,275

Initial ‘‘Q’’ Access Authorization

(expedited processing) ................ 3,800

Reinstatement of ‘‘Q’’ Access Authorization .................................... 2 3,275

Reinstatement of ‘‘Q’’ Access Authorization (expedited processing) .............................................. 2 3,800

Extension or Transfer of ‘‘Q’’ .......... 2 3,275

Extension or Transfer of ‘‘Q’’ (expedited processing) ......................... 2 3,800

1 If the NRC determines, based on its review

of available data, that a full field investigation

is necessary, a fee of $3,275 will be assessed

prior to the conduct of the investigation. 2Full fee will only be charged if investigation

is required.

Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 13th day

February, 1998.

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

L. Joseph Callan,

Executive Director for Operations.

[FR Doc. 98–12180 Filed 5–6–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE

CORPORATION

12 CFR Ch. III

Statement of Policy on the

Development and Review of

Regulations

AGENCY: Federal Deposit Insurance

Corporation (FDIC).

ACTION: Revision of statement of policy.

SUMMARY: The FDIC is revising its

Statement of Policy entitled

‘‘Development and Review of

Regulations’’ (Policy). The revisions

streamline the Policy and focus it more

sharply on the basic principles that

underlie the Board’s approach to

regulation. The provisions of the Policy

that established internal procedures or

merely restated the law have been

deleted. The revisions also expand the

scope of the Policy to include written

statements of policy adopted by the

FDIC Board of Directors and revise its

title accordingly.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 7, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Steven F. Hanft, Assistant Executive

Secretary (202/898–3907); or Nancy

Schucker Recchia, Counsel (202/898–

8885).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FDIC

is revising its Statement of Policy

entitled ‘‘Development and Review of

Regulations.’’ The existing Policy has

stated the Board’s commitment to basic

principles of sound regulation and

established internal administrative

procedures for FDIC staff to follow

when developing and reviewing

regulations. Pursuant to section 303(a)

of the Riegle Community Development

and Regulatory Improvement Act of

1994 (CDRI), the Policy was reviewed to

streamline it and to remove

inconsistencies and outmoded and

duplicative provisions. As a part of this

review, the FDIC has given careful

consideration to the continuing need for

this Policy and how its content might be

presented to best inform the public with

respect to the FDIC’s development and

review of regulations and written

statements of policy. The revised

Policy’s reflects the Board’s continuing

commitment to improving the quality of

its regulations and policies, to

minimizing regulatory burdens on the

public and the banking industry, and

generally to ensuring that its regulations

and policies achieve legislative goals

effectively and effectively.

The revised Policy recognizes that the

Board carries out its regulatory function

through two separate processes of

public notice: the promulgation of

regulations pursuant to the

requirements of the Administrative

Procedure Act, and the issuance of less

formal written statements of policy. Like

regulations, written statements of policy

may affect the banking industry and the

public. Because the Board believes it is

important to inform all interested

parties of its approach to the

development of written statements of

policy, the scope of the revised Policy

has been augmented to include an

explanation of the principles by which

the FDIC develops and reviews written

statements of policy, and the title of the

Policy has been revised to reflect the

expanded scope.

The revisions streamline the Policy

and focus it more sharply on the

following basic principles that underlie

the Board’s approach to regulation:

• Burdens imposed on the banking

industry should be minimized.

• Regulations should be clearly and

understandably written.

• The public should have a

meaningful opportunity to participate in

the rulemaking process.

• Common statutory and supervisory

mandates should be implemented by

Federal financial institutions regulator

in a uniform way.

• Regulations and statements of

policy should be reviewed periodically.

The revised Policy has been

streamlined to remove those provisions

that established internal procedures or

merely restated the applicable

provisions of law. As part of the CDRI

review, the FDIC gave careful

consideration to the most useful and

efficient format for presenting all of the

information relevant to regulation and

written policy statement development

and review. It was determined to

separate these fundamental guiding

principles from the more technical or

procedural requirements. The guiding

principles which the Board believes are

relevant to public understanding of its

process are contained in the revised

Policy. The technical and procedural

requirements are contained in a newly

developed handbook on Development

and Review of FDIC Regulations and

Policy Statements. The handbook

provides comprehensive guidance to

FDIC managers and staff involved in

developing and reviewing FDIC

regulations and statements of policy and

can be revised easily to reflect changes

in statutory requirements and in the

FDIC’s organizational arrangements.

Text

The text of the revised statement of

policy follows:
25158 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 88 /Thursday, May 7, 1998 /Rules and Regulations

Development and Review of FDIC

Regulations and Policies

Statement of Policy

Purpose and Scope. The Federal

Deposit Insurance Corporation is

committed to continually improving the

quality of its regulations and policies, to

minimizing regulatory burdens on the

public and the banking industry, and

generally to ensuring that its regulations

and policies achieve legislative goals

effectively and efficiently. The purpose

of this statement of policy (Policy) is to

establish basic principles which guide

the FDIC’s promulgation and review of

regulations and written statements of

policy. The scope of this Policy is

limited to regulations and written

statements of policy issued by the Board

of Directors of the FDIC.

Principles For the Development and

Review of Regulations and Statements

of Policy. The following principles

guide the FDIC in its development of

regulations and written policies:

• Burdens imposed on the banking

industry and the public should be

minimized. Before issuing a regulation

or written statement of policy the FDIC

gives careful consideration to the need

for such an issuance. Frequently a

regulation is required by statute.

Alternatively, the FDIC may identify a

need for a supervisory tool to

implement its statutory obligations, or

to clarify its policy for the benefit of the

banking industry or the public. Once the

need for a regulation or statement of

policy is determined, the FDIC seeks to

minimize to the extent practicable the

burdens which such issuance imposes

on the banking industry and the public.

New reporting and recordkeeping

requirements imposed by a regulation

are carefully analyzed. The effect of the

regulation or statement of policy on

competition within the industry is

considered. Particular attention is

focused on the impact that a regulation

will have on small institutions and

whether there are alternatives to

accomplish the FDIC’s goal which

would minimize any burden on small

institutions. Prior to issuance, the

potential benefits associated with the

regulation or statement of policy are

weighed against the potential costs.

• Regulations and policies should be

clearly and understandably written. The

Board seeks to make its regulations and

statements of policy as clear and as

understandable as possible to those

persons who are affected by them. In

developing or reviewing existing

regulations and statements of policy, the

Board considers the document’s

organizational structure as well as the

specific language used; both are

important components to achieving a

clear and useful statement.

• The public should have a

meaningful opportunity to participate in

the rulemaking process. The Board

seeks to improve its regulations and

statement of policy during the

development phase. Whether a new

regulation is being promulgated or an

existing one revised, the Board gives

careful consideration to the implications

of its actions as public policy. Public

participation in the rulemaking process

is an opportunity for the Board to hear

directly from affected members of the

public with important experience and

thoughtful insights related to the

pertinent issues. A person or

organization may petition the Board for

the issuance, amendment, or repeal of

any regulation or policy by submitting

a written petition to the Executive

Secretary of the FDIC. The petition

should include a complete and concise

statement of the petitioner’s interest in

the subject matter and the reasons why

the petition should be granted.

All rulemaking is carried out in

accordance with the APA, by which the

Board provides the public with notices

of proposed rulemaking and

opportunities to submit comments on

the proposals. The Board will often seek

public comment on proposed statements

of policy as well. All comments and

proposed alternatives received during

the comment period are considered

prior to the issuance of a final rule or

statement of policy. The Board takes

final action on proposed regulations and

policies as promptly as circumstances

allow. If a significant period of time

elapses following the publication of a

proposed rule or policy without final

action, the Board will consider

withdrawing the proposal or republishing it for comment. If the Board

decides to reconsider a proposed

regulation or statement of policy that

has been withdrawn, it will begin the

rulemaking or policy development

process anew.

• Common statutory and supervisory

requirements should be implemented by

the Federal financial institutions

regulators in a uniform way. The FDIC

has many statutory and supervisory

requirements that are common to the

Board of Governors of the Federal

Reserve System, the Office of the

Comptroller of the Currency, the Office

of Thrift Supervision, and/or the

National Credit Union Administration.

The more uniform the Federal financial

institutions regulators can be in their

regulations, policies and approaches to

supervision, the easier it will be for the

industry and the public to comply with

the regulators’ requirements. The FDIC

is a member of the Federal Financial

Institutions Examination Council

(FFIEC) and works with the other

federal financial institutions regulators

through the FFIEC to make uniform

those regulations and policies that

implement common statutory or

supervisory policies.

• Regulations and statements of

policy should be reviewed periodically.

To ensure that the FDIC’s regulations

and written statements of policy are

current, effective, efficient and continue

to meet the principles set forth in this

Policy, the FDIC will periodically

undertake a review of each regulation

and statement of policy. The Executive

Secretary of the FDIC will, consistent

with applicable laws and in

coordination with other financial

institutions regulators, establish a

schedule and procedures for the

reviews. Factors to be considered in

determining whether a regulation or

written policy should be revised or

eliminated include: the continued need

for the regulation or policy;

opportunities to simplify or clarify the

regulation or policy; the need to

eliminate duplicative and inconsistent

regulations and policies; and the extent

to which technology, economic

conditions, and other factors have

changed in the area affected by the

regulation or policy. The result of this

review will be a specific decision for

each regulation and statement of policy

to either revise, rescind or retain the

issuance in its then-current form. The

principles of regulation and statement of

policy development, as articulated at

the beginning of this Policy, will apply

to the periodic reviews as well.

By order of the Board of Directors.

Dated at Washington, D.C. this 28th day of

April, 1998.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Robert E. Feldman,

Executive Secretary.

[FR Doc. 98–12059 Filed 5–6–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6714–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. 97–SW–49–AD; Amendment

39–10515; AD 98–10–04]

RIN 2120–AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Eurocopter

France Model SA–365N1, AS–365N2,

and SA–366G1 Helicopters

AGENCY: Federal Aviation

Administration, DOT.