Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 135 /Wednesday, July 15, 1998 / Notices 38153

NAPPO Executive Committee

August 18, 1998, Grand Rapids,

Michigan, United States.

October 19, 1998, Halifax, Canada.

Up-to-date information on NAPPO

policies, standard setting activities, U.S.

participants, and meeting agendas and

dates is available on the NAPPO web

page at http://www.nappo.org.

Interested individuals may also contact

Mr. Alfred Elder, Acting Deputy

Administrator, PPQ, APHIS, room 302–

E, Whitten Building, 14th Street and

Independence Avenue SW.,

Washington, DC 20250.

Comments on standards being

considered or to be considered by any

of the OIE, IPPC, or NAPPO committees

or working groups listed above may be

sent to APHIS as directed under the

heading ADDRESSES.

Done in Washington, DC, this 9th day of

July, 1998.

Craig A. Reed,

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 98–18839 Filed 7–14–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Texas Blowdown Changed Condition

Analysis, National Forests and

Grasslands in Texas, Angelina,

Montgomery, Sabine, San Augustine,

San Jacinto, and Walker Counties,

Texas

AGENCY: Forest Service.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice is to announce

that the U.S. Forest Service will prepare

an analysis of storm-damaged areas on

the Angelina, Sabine, and Sam Houston

National Forests to determine changed

conditions due to a catastrophic

windstorm. The changed condition

analysis will be used to identify

proposed actions for site preparation

and reforestation on national forest

lands extensively damaged by the

February 1988 windstorm. Initial plans

are for the analysis to consider only

areas within Management Area 1—

Upland Forest Ecosystems and

Management Area 2—Red cockaded

Woodpecker (RCW) Emphasis on the

three affected National Forests. The

analysis will determine the existing

conditions of these management areas,

the desired future conditions for the

areas as directed in the 1996 Land and

Resource Management Plan (LRMP) for

the National Forests and Grassland in

Texas (NFGT), and potential

management actions to achieve the

desired future conditions.

In addition to the determination of

appropriate reforestation needs, the

information gathered in this process

would be used to analyze the need to

amend the forest plan’s allocation of

Management Area 2 on the Angelina

and Sabine National Forests due to

changed conditions on these forest

caused by the storm damage.

Public involvement will be requested

and accepted continually throughout

these efforts. Public involvement will

also be conducted as part of ‘‘scoping’’

following the issuance on the Notice of

Intent to prepare an Environmental

Impact Statement based on the results of

the Changed Condition Analysis.

DATES: The Texas Blowdown Changed

Condition Analysis is scheduled to be

completed by October 1998.

ADDRESSES: Requests for information,

and comments concerning the notice

can be sent to: Team Leader, Texas

Blowdown Changed Condition

Analsysis, National Forests and

Grasslands in Texas, 701 North First

Street, Lufkin, Texas 75961.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Keith Baker, Project Environmental

Coordinator. Phone: 409–344–6205

(New Waverly, TX).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. Background on the Changed

Conditions and Actions Taken to Date

On the afternoon of February 10,

1998, a storm with hurricane-force

winds stuck the forests of east Texas.

The storm left a path of destruction from

near Houston to Toledo Bend Reservoir,

a distance of approximately 150 miles.

Approximately 103,000 acres of national

forest land on the Sabine, Angelina and

Sam Houston National Forests were

damaged by the windstorm. The LRMP

had allocated the majority of the lands

affected by the storm to Management

Area 1 (upland forest ecosystems) and

Management Area 2 (red-cockaded

woodpecker emphasis). Other

Management Areas (MAs) were also

affected, including MA–4 (streamside

management zones), MA–8 (special area

management), MA–9 (recreation area

management), and MA–10

(administrative and special use sites).

The Forest Service categorized the

storm damage severity and extent on the

three affected national forests as

follows:

• extensive damage—loss of greater

than 60 percent of the existing trees

(11,600 acres),

• moderate damage—loss of 30 to 60

percent of the existing trees (65,400

acres), and

• light damage—loss of 10 to 30

percent of the existing trees (26,000

acres).

The NFGT determined that an

emergency response was needed to meet

three objectives: (A) reduce the potential

for high intensity wildfires spreading

into the intermingled private

ownerships that include individual

homes, subdivisions, and rural

communities; (B) minimize further

damage to RCW and bald eagle habitat;

and (C) reduce the risk of anticipated

bark beetle attack to living trees that

could kill additional federal and private

timber, RCW habitat, and bald eagle

habitat. The Forest Service requested

approval for alternative arrangements

for compliance with the National

Environmental Policy Act of 1969

(NEPA) from the Council on

Environmental Quality (CEQ) to

expedite the removal of the blown down

and damaged timber. On March 10,

1998, CEQ approved the Forest Service’s

request for alternative arrangements and

the NFGT undertook actions to remove

blown down and damaged trees to meet

the three objectives. As part of these

alternative arrangements, the Forest

Service and CEQ agreed that the actions

taken to reforest the damaged areas of

the three affected national forests would

be analyzed and the effects disclosed in

an Environmental Impact Statement.

2. Preparation of the Texas Blowdown

Changed Condition Analysis

The objectives of the Changed

Condition Analysis are twofold: (1) to

provide the basis for reforestation

proposals in the storm damaged areas of

the NFGT and (2) to analyze the need to

adjust land allocations to MA–2 on the

Angelina and Sabine National Forests to

meet LRMP objectives for red-cockaded

woodpecker habitat. The analysis will

synthesize a range of information about

the affected areas, including inventories

of existing vegetation and special

features such as heritage sites,

threatened, endangered, and sensitive

species; potential vegetation as guided

by the Ecological Classification System

(ECS) developed in conjunction with

the Kisatchie National Forest and the

Nature Conservancy; and management

direction from the 1996 LRMP.

The inventory information will be

used to define the existing conditions

within the blowdown-affected areas.

The ECS information and LRMP

direction will provide the basis for the

desired future conditions. Comparing

the existing conditions to the desired

future conditions will identify the

management opportunities to meet the

objectives of the LRMP.
38154 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 135 /Wednesday, July 15, 1998 / Notices

Once opportunities have been

determined, management practices,

such as those for site preparation and

reforestation or for changes in MA–2

allocations, will be identified and

developed into a Proposed Action. The

Changed Condition Analysis is

scheduled to be completed on or about

October 1998.

3. Public Involvement in the analysis

Process

The concerns and expectations of

National Forest constituents played a

significant role in the development of

the 1996 LRMP. The February

windstorm brought sudden and

unexpected changes to the biological

and social components of the NFGT,

particularly on the Angelina and Sabine

National Forests. It is important to

involve the public as the Forest Service

develops the analysis and determines

the opportunities for management

actions. Since the analysis will not be a

‘‘decision document’’ and will not

involve the NEPA process, formal

public involvement through scoping

will not be done. The NFGT has been

regularly informing the public about the

progress of the ongoing storm recovery

actions through regular information

updates. The NFGT will contact the

interested public with information

about the analysis and offer the

opportunity for participation in the

analysis process.

4. Issuing the Notice of Intent to

Prepare an Environmental Impact

Statement

The NFGT will issue a Notice of

Intent (NOI) to prepare an

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)

after developing proposed actions based

on the Changed Condition Analysis. The

NOI will include a description of

preliminary proposed actions, issues,

and alternatives. The public will be

asked to comment on these items as part

of the scoping process under NEPA.

Public comments will be used to further

refine the proposed action, issues, and

alternatives, and the range of

alternatives to be considered in the EIS.

Dated: July 9, 1998.

Ronnie Raum,

Forest Supervisor.

[FR Doc. 98–18823 Filed 7–14–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Submission For OMB Review;

Comment Request

DOC has submitted to the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) for

clearance the following proposal for

collection of information under the

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction

Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35).

Agency: Bureau of the Census.

Title: Survey of Income and Program

Participation 1996 Panel Wave 9.

Form Number(s): SIPP 16905(L)

Director’s Letter, CAPI Instrument.

Agency Approval Number: 0607–

0813.

Type of Request: Revision of a

currently approved collection.

Burden: 117,800 hours.

Number of Respondents: 77,700.

Avg Hours Per Response: Half an

hour.

Needs and Uses: The Bureau of the

Census conducts the Survey of Income

and Program Participation (SIPP) to

collect information from a sample of

households concerning the distribution

of income received directly as money or

indirectly as in-kind benefits. SIPP data

are used by economic policymakers, the

Congress, state and local governments,

and Federal agencies that administer

social welfare and transfer payment

programs such as the Department of

Health and Human Services, the

Department of Housing and Urban

Development, and the Department of

Agriculture.

The SIPP is a longitudinal survey, in

that households in the panel are

interviewed 12 times at 4 month

intervals or waves over the life of the

panel, making the duration of the panel

about 4 years. The next panel of

households will be introduced in the

year 2000.

The survey is molded around a

central core of labor force and income

questions, health insurance questions,

and questions concerning government

program participation that remain fixed

throughout the life of a panel. The core

questions are asked at Wave 1 and are

updated during subsequent interviews.

The core is supplemented with

additional questions or topical modules

designed to answer specific needs.

This request is for clearance of the

topical modules to be asked during

Wave 9 of the 1996 Panel. The core

questions have already been cleared.

Topical modules for waves 10 through

12 will be cleared later. The topical

modules for Wave 9 are: 1) Assets,

Liabilities, and Eligibility, 2) Medical

Expenses/Utilization of Health Care

Services, and 3) Work Related Expenses

and Child Support Paid. Wave 9

interviews will be conducted from

December 1998 through March 1999.

Affected Public: Individuals or

households.

Frequency: Every 4 months.

Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary.

Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C,

Section 182.

OMB Desk Officer: Nancy Kirkendall,

(202) 395–7313.

Copies of the above information

collection proposal can be obtained by

calling or writing Linda Engelmeier,

DOC Forms Clearance Officer, (202)

482–3272, Department of Commerce,

room 5312, 14th and Constitution

Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230.

Written comments and

recommendations for the proposed

information collection should be sent

within 30 days of publication of this

notice to Nancy Kirkendall, OMB Desk

Officer, room 10201, New Executive

Office Building, Washington, DC 20503.

Dated: July 9, 1998.

Linda Engelmeier,

Departmental Forms Clearance Officer, Office

of Management and Organization.

[FR Doc. 98–18854 Filed 7–14–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–07–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration

Showcase Exhibit of U.S. Exports

AGENCY: International Trade

Administration, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of Showcase Exhibit of

U.S. Exports.

SUMMARY: The International Trade

Administration (‘‘ITA’’) of the

Department of Commerce announces an

exhibition of exported U.S. products

and services. The exhibition will

showcase U.S. exports by displaying

successfully exported products and

services at ITA headquarters in

Washington, D.C., to highlight the

benefits of exporting and the impact of

exports on the U.S. economy.

Companies and trade associations are

encouraged to express interest in

providing exhibit material. The energy

sector will be the next industrial sector

to be represented.

DATES: July 15, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: On

the energy sector exhibit only, please

contact: Mr. John Rasmussen, Office of

Energy, Infrastructure, and Machinery;

U.S. Department of Commerce/ITA;

Room 4056; Washington, D.C. 20230;

Telephone (202) 482–1889; fax (202)

482–0170.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

ITA is showcasing U.S. exports by

exhibiting successfully exported

products and services at its

headquarters in Washington, D.C., to