This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

26099

Vol. 63, No. 91

Tuesday, May 12, 1998

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service

9 CFR Part 93

[Docket No. 97–131–1]

Horses From Qatar; Change in Disease

Status

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend

the regulations concerning the

importation of horses to remove Qatar

from the list of regions the Animal and

Plant Health Inspection Service

considers affected with African horse

sickness. This proposed action is based

on information received from Qatar and

is in accordance with standards set by

the Office International des Epizooties

for recognizing a country as free of

African horse sickness. This proposed

action would relieve restrictions on the

importation of horses into the United

States from Qatar.

DATES: Consideration will be given only

to comments received on or before July

13, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Please send an original and

three copies of your comments to

Docket No. 97–131–1, Regulatory

Analysis and Development, PPD,

APHIS, suite 3C03, 4700 River Road,

Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737–1238.

Please state that your comments refer to

Docket No. 97–131–1. Comments

received may be inspected at USDA,

room 1141, South Building, 14th Street

and Independence Avenue SW.,

Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and

4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,

except holidays. Persons wishing to

inspect comments are requested to call

ahead on (202) 690–2817 to facilitate

entry into the comment reading room.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.

John Cougill, Senior Staff Veterinarian,

Products Program, National Center for

Import and Export, VS, APHIS, 4700

River Road, Unit 40, Riverdale, MD

20737–1231, (301) 734–3399; or e-mail:

jcougill@aphis.usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The regulations in 9 CFR part 93

(referred to below as the regulations)

prescribe the conditions for the

importation into the United States of

specified animals to prevent the

introduction of various animal diseases,

including African horse sickness (AHS).

AHS is a fatal equine viral disease that

is not known to exist in the United

States.

Section 93.308(a)(2) of the regulations

lists regions that the Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service (APHIS)

considers affected with AHS and sets

forth specific quarantine requirements

for horses that are imported from those

regions. APHIS requires horses intended

for importation from any of the regions

listed, including horses that have

stopped in or transited those regions, to

enter the United States only at the port

of New York and be quarantined at the

New York Animal Import Center in

Newburgh, NY, for at least 60 days. This

precaution is necessary to help ensure

that the horses are not affected with

AHS.

We are proposing to recognize Qatar

as free of AHS. We are proposing this

action based on information given to

APHIS by Qatar and standards set by the

Office International des Epizooties

(OIE).

In order for a country to be recognized

as free of AHS, the OIE requires the

disease to be mandatorily reportable. In

addition, the country must not have

vaccinated domestic horses or other

equines against the disease during the

past 12 months. The OIE also requires

that the country have no clinical,

serological (in non-vaccinated animals),

or epidemiological evidence of AHS for

the past 2 years. Qatar has not had a

recorded case of AHS in over 30 years,

and vaccination against AHS has not

been permitted during this period.

With its request to be considered free

of AHS, Qatar provided APHIS with

information about its veterinary

infrastructure, animal health monitoring

system, trading practices with other

regions, and other pertinent information

that we require in order to determine

whether Qatar should be recognized as

free of AHS.

APHIS has reviewed the information

provided by Qatar in support of

declaring it free of AHS. Based on that

information, and in accordance with

OIE standards for recognizing a country

to be free of AHS, we are proposing to

consider Qatar as free of AHS.

Therefore, we are proposing to amend

§ 93.308(a)(2) by removing Qatar from

the list of regions declared affected with

AHS. This proposed action would allow

horses from Qatar to be shipped to and

quarantined at ports designated in

§ 93.303, and would reduce the

quarantine period to an average of 3

days to meet the quarantine and testing

requirements specified in § 93.308.

On October 28, 1997, we published a

final rule and policy statement in the

Federal Register that established

procedures for recognizing regions,

rather than only countries, for the

purpose of importing animals and

animal products into the United States,

and that established procedures by

which regions may request permission

to export animals and animal products

to the United States under specified

conditions, based on the regions’

disease status (see 62 FR 56000–56033,

Dockets 94–106–8 and 94–106–9). The

final rule was effective on November 28,

1997. The request from Qatar addressed

by this proposed rule is not a request to

be recognized as a region, rather than a

country, nor a request to establish new

import conditions based on the disease

status of regions. Therefore, we have

handled and evaluated this request in

the traditional framework of recognizing

a country as affected or not affected

with a specified disease. If this

proposed rule is adopted, the current

regulations regarding importation of

horses from regions free of AHS will

apply.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory

Flexibility Act

This proposed rule has been reviewed

under Executive Order 12866. The rule

has been determined to be not

significant for the purposes of Executive

Order 12866 and, therefore, has not

been reviewed by the Office of

Management and Budget.

This proposed rule would recognize

Qatar as free of AHS. This action would

allow horses from Qatar to be shipped

to and quarantined at ports designated

in § 93.303 and would reduce the

quarantine and testing period to an
26100 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 91 /Tuesday, May 12, 1998 / Proposed Rules

average of 3 days to meet quarantine

requirements specified in § 93.308.

U.S. importers of competition and

breeding horses from Qatar would be

affected by this rule if it is adopted.

These importers would no longer be

required to quarantine horses from

Qatar for 60 days at the New York

Animal Import Center in Newburgh,

NY, at a cost of approximately $5,296

per horse.

In 1996, the U.S. imported 31,633

horses. However, there have been no

horses imported into the United States

from Qatar since 1992. Removing the

requirement for a 60-day quarantine for

horses from Qatar would make the

importation of these horses less

expensive and logistically easier. As a

result, we anticipate that U.S. importers

might begin importing horses from

Qatar. However, since the current horse

population in Qatar is approximately

1500 head, we do not expect that the

number of horses exported to the United

States would be significant. In fact, in

1995, Qatar only exported 10 horses.

Furthermore, most horses imported

from Qatar would probably be in the

United States on a temporary basis for

particular events, such as for races or

breeding, and then transported back to

Qatar. For these reasons, we anticipate

the overall economic impact on U.S.

entities would be minimal.

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 rule has been reviewed under

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice

Reform. If this proposed rule is adopted:

(1) All State and local laws and

regulations that are inconsistent with

this rule will be preempted; (2) no

retroactive effect will be given to this

rule; and (3) administrative proceedings

will not be required before parties may

file suit in court challenging this rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

This proposed rule contains no

information collection or recordkeeping

requirements under the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501

et seq.).

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 93

Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock,

Poultry and poultry products,

Quarantine, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

Accordingly, 9 CFR part 93 would be

amended as follows:

PART 93—IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN

ANIMALS, BIRDS, AND POULTRY,

AND CERTAIN ANIMAL, BIRD, AND

POULTRY PRODUCTS;

REQUIREMENTS FOR MEANS OF

CONVEYANCE AND SHIPPING

CONTAINERS

1. The authority citation for part 93

would continue to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1622; 19 U.S.C. 1306;

21 U.S.C. 102–105, 111, 114a, 134a, 134b,

134c, 134d, 134f, 135, 136, and 136a; 31

U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.2(d).

§ 93.308 [Amended]

2. In § 93.308, paragraph (a)(2) would

be amended by removing ‘‘Qatar,’’.

Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of

May 1998.

Charles P. Schwalbe,

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 98–12571 Filed 5–11–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 39

[Docket No. 96–NM–171–AD]

RIN 2120–AA64

Airworthiness Directives; Boeing

Model 747–400, –400D, and –400F

Series Airplanes

AGENCY: Federal Aviation

Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Supplemental notice of

proposed rulemaking; reopening of

comment period.

SUMMARY: This document revises an

earlier proposed airworthiness directive

(AD), applicable to certain Boeing

Model 747–400, –400D, and –400F

series airplanes, that would have

required modification of the P212 and

P213 panels of the cabin pressure

control system. That proposal was

prompted by a report of in-flight loss of

cabin pressurization control due to a

single failure of the auxiliary power unit

(APU) battery. This action revises the

proposed rule by adding new

requirements, for certain airplanes, to

modify the P5, P6, and P7 panels, and

the W4701, W4703, and W4908 wire

bundles, as applicable. The actions

specified by this proposed AD are

intended to prevent loss of control of

the cabin pressurization system, which

could result in rapid depressurization of

the airplane. Such rapid

depressurization could result in

deleterious physiological effects on the

passengers and crew; and airplane

diversions, which represent an

increased risk to the airplane,

passengers, and crew.

DATES: Comments must be received by

June 8, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments in

triplicate to the Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA), Transport

Airplane Directorate, ANM–114,

Attention: Rules Docket No. 96–NM–

171–AD, 1601 Lind Avenue, SW.,

Renton, Washington 98055–4056.

Comments may be inspected at this

location between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00

p.m., Monday through Friday, except

Federal holidays.

The service information referenced in

the proposed rule may be obtained from

Boeing Commercial Airplane Group,

P.O. Box 3707, Seattle, Washington

98124–2207. This information may be

examined at the FAA, Transport

Airplane Directorate, 1601 Lind

Avenue, SW., Renton, Washington.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Clayton R. Morris, Jr., Aerospace

Engineer, Systems and Equipment

Branch, ANM–130S, FAA, Seattle

Aircraft Certification Office, 1601 Lind

Avenue, SW., Renton, Washington;

telephone (425) 227–2794; fax (425)

227–1181.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

Interested persons are invited to

participate in the making of the

proposed rule by submitting such

written data, views, or arguments as

they may desire. Communications shall

identify the Rules Docket number and

be submitted in triplicate to the address

specified above. All communications

received on or before the closing date

for comments, specified above, will be

considered before taking action on the

proposed rule. The proposals contained

in this notice may be changed in light

of the comments received.

Comments are specifically invited on

the overall regulatory, economic,

environmental, and energy aspects of

the proposed rule. All comments

submitted will be available, both before

and after the closing date for comments,

in the Rules Docket for examination by

interested persons. A report

summarizing each FAA-public contact

concerned with the substance of this

proposal will be filed in the Rules

Docket.

Commenters wishing the FAA to

acknowledge receipt of their comments

submitted in response to this notice

must submit a self-addressed, stamped

postcard on which the following