16104 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 67 / Thursday, April 9, 2009 / Rules and Regulations 

§ 301.75–6 [Amended] 

■ 2. Section 301.75–6 is amended as 

follows: 

■ a. In paragraph (a), by removing the 

words ‘‘calamondin and’’. 

■ b. In the introductory text of 

paragraph (b), by removing the words 

‘‘Calamondin (Citrus mitus) and 

kumquat’’ and adding the word 

‘‘Kumquat’’ in their place. 

■ c. In paragraph (b)(3), by removing the 

words ‘‘calamondin and’’. 

■ d. In paragraph (b)(6), by removing the 

words ‘‘calamondin and’’. 

■ e. In paragraph (b)(8), by removing the 

words ‘‘calamondin or’’. 

§ 301.75–12 [Amended] 

■ 3. In § 301.75–12, the introductory 

text of paragraph (b)(1) is amended by 

removing the words ‘‘calamondin and’’. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of 

April 2009. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–8103 Filed 4–8–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Food Safety and Inspection Service 

9 CFR Part 392 

[Docket No. 00–019F; FDMS Docket No. 

FSIS–2005–0020] 

RIN 0583–AC81 

Petitions for Rulemaking 

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection 

Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Food Safety and 

Inspection Service (FSIS) is amending 

its administrative regulations to add a 

new part that establishes regulations 

governing the submission to FSIS of 

petitions for rulemaking. The new 

regulations supersede existing guidance 

on the submission of petitions to FSIS 

to issue, amend, or repeal its 

regulations. FSIS is taking this action to 

help ensure the filing of well-supported 

petitions that contain information that 

the Agency needs to proceed with 

consideration of the requested 

rulemaking in a timely manner. 

DATES: Effective Date: June 8, 2009. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Rachel Edelstein, Director, Policy 

Issuances Division, Office of Policy and 

Program Development, Food Safety and 

Inspection Service, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture; (202) 720–5627. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On January 12, 2006, FSIS published 

a proposal in the Federal Register to 

establish regulations governing the 

submission to FSIS of petitions to issue, 

amend, or repeal a regulation 

administered by the Agency (71 FR 

1988). As discussed in that proposed 

rulemaking, FSIS had previously 

published guidelines in 1993 on how to 

submit petitions for rulemaking to the 

Agency (58 FR 63570, December 2, 

1993). Despite the existence of this 

guidance, rulemaking petitions are 

submitted to FSIS in various forms, 

often without adequate data and 

supporting documentation for FSIS to 

properly evaluate the merits of the 

requested action. The measures 

proposed in the January 12, 2006, 

proposed rule are designed to encourage 

the filing of well-supported petitions 

that contain information that the 

Agency needs to evaluate a requested 

rulemaking in a timely manner. The 

comment period for the proposed rule 

closed on March 12, 2006. 

Comments and FSIS Response 

FSIS received only one comment in 

response to the January 12, 2006, 

proposal. The comment was generally 

supportive of the proposed regulations 

but also expressed the view that when 

preparing Notices and Directives, FSIS 

should provide an opportunity for 

public comment prior to the issuance of 

these documents. According to the 

comment, FSIS Notices and Directives 

may have the same effect on the 

industry as regulations. The comment 

recommended that FSIS adopt a rule 

that would specifically provide 

opportunity for stakeholders to 

participate in the development of these 

documents. 

The January 12, 2006, proposed rule 

proposed to establish regulations for the 

submission to FSIS of petitions for 

rulemaking. Establishing a new process 

for making draft FSIS Notices and 

Directives available for comment is 

outside the scope of this rulemaking. 

Under this final rule, however, persons 

may certainly petition the Agency to 

issue, amend or repeal such documents. 

The comment also stated that, when 

evaluating petitions for rulemaking, 

FSIS must take into account that small 

and very small establishments have 

limited resources and may not have 

access to all of the data that FSIS 

considers necessary to evaluate a 

petition for rulemaking. 

In the preamble to the proposed rule, 

FSIS acknowledged that some small 

entities may not have access to certain 

data that is readily available to large 

companies or industry trade 

associations. As stated in the preamble, 

the Agency will take these limitations 

into consideration when it evaluates 

petitions submitted by small entities. 

The Final Rule 

In this final rule FSIS is establishing 

regulations governing the submission to 

FSIS of petitions for rulemaking. As 

noted above, the one comment 

submitted in response to the January 12, 

2006, proposed rule raised no objections 

that were within the scope of the 

proposed rulemaking. Therefore, FSIS is 

finalizing the proposed rule without 

changes. 

As was proposed, FSIS is adding a 

new part 392—Petitions for rulemaking 

to title 9, subchapter D of the CFR. As 

stated in § 392.1, part 392 contains 

provisions governing the submission to 

FSIS of petitions for rulemaking and 

applies to all requests to initiate 

rulemaking, except to the extent that 

other provisions in the FSIS regulations 

prescribe procedures for submitting 

requests to amend a regulation. As 

discussed in the preamble to the 

proposed rule, § 392.1 includes this 

exception because FSIS’ regulations 

already contain procedures on how to 

submit requests to amend certain 

sections of the regulations. For example, 

as noted in the proposal, a request to 

amend the regulations to authorize a 

new Reference Amount or Product 

Category identified in 9 CFR 317.312(b) 

and 381.412(b) must be submitted as a 

labeling application in accordance with 

the provisions of 9 CFR 317.312(g) and 

381.412(g). 

Section 392.2 defines a ‘‘petition’’ as 

a written request to issue, amend, or 

repeal a regulation administered by the 

Agency. Section 392.2 also provides that 

a request to issue, amend, or repeal a 

document that interprets a regulation 

administered by the Agency, such as an 

FSIS Directive, Notice, or compliance 

guide, may be made by petition. 

Section 392.3 describes the 

information that a petition is required to 

contain to be considered by FSIS. 

Section 392.3(a) requires that a petition 

include the name, address and 

telephone number, and e-mail address 

(if available) of the person submitting 

the petition. Section 392.3(b) requires 

that a petition contain a full statement 

of the action requested by the petitioner, 

including the citation and exact 

wording of any existing regulation 

affected by the requested action. Section 

392.3(c) requires that a petition include 

a statement of the factual and legal basis 

for the requested action, including all 

relevant information known to the 

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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 67 / Thursday, April 9, 2009 / Rules and Regulations 16105 

petitioner, both favorable and 

unfavorable to the petitioner’s position. 

Section 392.3(c) also states that the 

statement of the factual and legal basis 

should identify the problem that the 

requested action is intended to address 

and explain why the requested action is 

needed to address the problem. 

Section 392.4 describes the 

information that should be submitted in 

support of a rulemaking petition. As 

was discussed in the preamble to the 

proposal, the documentation described 

in proposed § 392.4 is not required for 

a petition to be considered by FSIS. 

Rather, § 392.4 is intended to provide 

petitioners with a clear idea of the type 

of supporting documentation that FSIS 

considers necessary to evaluate a 

petition in an efficient and effective 

manner. 

Section 392.4(a) provides that 

information referred to or relied on in 

support of a petition should be included 

in full, and that a copy of any source 

cited in a petition should be submitted 

with the petition. Section 392.4(b) lists 

sources of information that FSIS 

considers appropriate to use in support 

of a petition. These sources include, but 

are not limited to, professional journal 

articles, official government statistics, 

official government reports, scientific 

textbooks, research reports, and 

industry data. 

Section 392.4(c) provides that if 

original research reports are used to 

support a petition, the information 

should be presented in a form that 

would be acceptable for publication in 

a peer reviewed scientific or technical 

journal. Section 392.4(d) states that if 

quantitative data are used to support a 

petition, the presentation of these data 

should include a complete statistical 

analysis using conventional statistical 

methods. 

Section 392.5 sets out the procedures 

for filing a rulemaking petition with 

FSIS. Under § 392.5(a), any interested 

person may file a petition with FSIS. 

Section 392.5(a) provides that, for 

purposes of part 392, an ‘‘interested 

person’’ means any individual, 

partnership, corporation, association, or 

public or private organization. Section 

392.5(b) explains that to file a petition 

with FSIS, a person should submit the 

petition to the FSIS Docket Clerk at the 

address provided in that paragraph. 

Section 392.5(c) states that when FSIS 

receives a petition, the Agency will 

stamp it with the date of filing and 

assign the petition a number. Section 

392.5(c) provides that FSIS will inform 

the petitioner in writing when a petition 

has been filed with the Agency. Section 

392.5(c) also states that FSIS will 

provide the petitioner with the number 

assigned to the petition along with an 

Agency contact for the petition. 

Section 392.5(d) contains procedures 

for withdrawing a petition. Under 

§ 392.5(d) a petition may be withdrawn 

at any time. Section 392.5(d) provides 

that if a petitioner elects to withdraw a 

petition, the petitioner should inform 

FSIS in writing. Once a petition is 

withdrawn, § 392.5(d) permits the 

petitioner to resubmit the petition at any 

time. 

Section 392.6 provides for public 

display of rulemaking petitions and any 

supporting documentation. Section 

392.6(a) provides that unless material is 

exempt from public disclosure under 

the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

(5 U.S.C 552 et seq.), or under any other 

applicable laws or regulations, all 

rulemaking petitions, along with any 

supporting documentation filed with a 

petition, will be available for public 

inspection in the FSIS docket room and 

posted on the FSIS Web site. Section 

392.6(b) provides that if FSIS can not 

readily determine whether information 

submitted by a petitioner is privileged 

or confidential business information, 

FSIS will request that the petitioner 

submit a written statement that certifies 

that the petition does not contain 

confidential information that should not 

be put on public display. As explained 

in the proposed rule, when it issues the 

request, FSIS will also specify a date by 

which the petitioner must respond. If 

the petitioner fails to provide the 

certification by the specified date, FSIS 

will assume that the information is 

confidential. 

Section 392.6(c) provides that if FSIS 

determines that information submitted 

in support of a petition is exempt from 

public disclosure under the FOIA, or 

any other applicable laws or regulations, 

and that the information would provide 

the basis for granting the petition, FSIS 

will inform the petitioner in writing. 

Under § 392.6(c), the petitioner will 

then have an opportunity to withdraw 

the petition or the supporting 

documentation, or modify the 

supporting documentation to permit 

public disclosure. 

Section 392.7 sets out the procedures 

for submitting comments on a petition 

that has been filed with FSIS. Section 

392.7(a) provides that any interested 

person may submit written comments 

on a petition. Section 392.7(b) provides 

that comments on a petition should be 

submitted within 60 days of the posting 

date of the petition, and that the 

comments should identify the number 

assigned to the petition to which the 

comments refer. 

Section 392.7(c) provides that FSIS 

will consider all comments that are 

timely submitted as part of its review of 

a rulemaking petition. Under § 392.7(d), 

these comments will become part of the 

petition file and, like the petition, will 

be on public display in the FSIS docket 

room and posted on the FSIS Web site. 

Section 392.7(e) provides that a 

comment on a petition that is actually 

a request for an alternative regulatory 

action should be submitted as a separate 

petition rather than as a comment. 

Under § 392.7(f), if FSIS determines that 

a comment received on a petition is in 

fact a request for an alternative action, 

the Agency will inform the commenter 

in writing. Section 392.7(f) also 

provides that FSIS will take no further 

action on the suggested alternative 

action unless the commenter submits a 

petition for rulemaking. 

Under § 392.8(a), petitions that 

request actions that are intended to 

enhance the public health by removing 

or reducing foodborne pathogens or 

other potential food safety hazards that 

might be present in or on meat, poultry, 

or egg products qualify for expedited 

review. Section 392.8(b) provides that 

for a petition to be considered for 

expedited review, the petitioner must 

submit scientific information that 

demonstrates that the requested action 

will reduce or remove foodborne 

pathogens or other potential food safety 

hazards, and how it will do so. Section 

392.8(c) explains that if FSIS determines 

that a petition should receive expedited 

review, the Agency will review the 

petition ahead of other pending 

petitions. As noted in the proposal, if a 

petition receives expedited review, the 

petition will still be subject to all other 

provisions that apply to rulemaking 

petitions. 

Section 392.9 provides that 

information related to the submission 

and processing of petitions for 

rulemaking may be found on the FSIS 

Web site. In conjunction with the 

issuance of this final rule, FSIS has 

developed a page on its Web site that 

explains the petition filing process. Also 

posted on this Web page is a description 

of the type of information that is 

required for FSIS to consider a petition 

for rulemaking and the type of 

information that FSIS recommends be 

submitted with a petition for 

rulemaking. In addition, after this rule 

becomes effective, all petitions for 

rulemaking that are submitted to the 

Agency, and any comments received on 

the petitions, will be posted on the FSIS 

Web site. 

Information Needed To Conduct 

Regulatory Analyses 

In the January 12, 2006, proposed 

rule, FSIS explained that as part of the 

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16106 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 67 / Thursday, April 9, 2009 / Rules and Regulations 

regulatory development process, Federal 

agencies are required by law, Executive 

Order, and regulation to conduct certain 

analyses on the impact of proposed and 

final agency regulations. FSIS briefly 

described the statutes and Executive 

orders that most often affect 

rulemakings conducted by FSIS (see 71 

FR 1988, 1991). 

As discussed in the preamble to the 

proposed rule, once a petition is 

granted, the subsequent rulemaking 

often requires that FSIS expend 

substantial resources to conduct the 

prescribed regulatory impact analyses. 

Therefore, one of the factors that the 

Agency considers when evaluating a 

petition for rulemaking is whether it 

should commit resources to the 

development of a particular rule and the 

analyses that would be required if the 

Agency were to grant the petition. 

In the January 12, 2006, proposal, 

FSIS did not propose to require that 

petitions include data on the potential 

impacts of a requested regulatory action. 

However, FSIS did explain that it may 

be able to more efficiently and 

effectively evaluate and act on a petition 

if the petitioner includes supporting 

data that FSIS can use in connection 

with the required impact analyses. 

Consistent with the proposal, this 

final rule does not require that 

petitioners submit data on the impacts 

of a requested regulatory action. 

However, FSIS strongly encourages the 

submission of these data to help make 

the Agency’s review of rulemaking 

petitions more effective and efficient 

and to facilitate regulatory development 

in the event a petition is granted. 

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

This final rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12866. It has 

been determined to be non-significant 

for purposes of E.O. 12866 and, 

therefore, has not been reviewed by the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB). 

This final rule establishes regulations 

governing the submission of rulemaking 

petitions to FSIS. It specifies the type of 

information that must be included in a 

rulemaking petition if the petition is to 

be granted and describes the type and 

quality of data that should be submitted 

in support of a petition. 

This final rule will benefit persons 

interested in filing a rulemaking petition 

with FSIS by providing clear guidance 

on how to prepare and submit a petition 

to best ensure prompt and appropriate 

consideration by the Agency. This final 

rule will also benefit petitioners by 

promoting a more timely resolution of 

their requested regulatory actions. 

Persons interested in petitioning FSIS 

to issue, amend, or repeal a regulation 

will bear the costs associated with 

preparing a rulemaking petition. These 

costs will vary depending on the 

complexity of the requested action and 

the type of documentation needed to 

support the petition. However, because 

the decision to submit a petition for 

rulemaking is voluntary, persons 

interested in the issuance, amendment, 

or repeal of a regulation administered by 

FSIS will most likely submit a 

rulemaking petition if the benefits of the 

requested action outweigh the costs of 

preparing the petition. By encouraging 

consistency in the content of 

rulemaking petitions and the 

submission of adequate supporting 

documentation, this final rule will 

reduce the administrative costs 

associated with the FSIS’ review and 

evaluation of rulemaking petitions, as 

well as expedite the time it takes for the 

Agency to review petitions. 

In addition to this final rule, FSIS 

considered the option of no rulemaking. 

Under this option, prospective 

petitioners would continue to rely on 

the guidelines for the submission, 

consideration, and disposition of 

petitions that FSIS published in the 

1993 Federal Register notice. FSIS 

rejected this option because the Agency 

determined that its procedures for 

submitting petitions need certain 

clarification, and that the importance of 

these procedures should be underscored 

by adopting this final rule and codified 

to make them readily available to 

prospective petitioners. 

Effect on Small Entities 

The Administrator, FSIS, has 

determined that this final rule will not 

have a significant impact on a 

substantial number of small entities, as 

defined by the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act (5 U.S.C. 601). The decision to 

submit a petition for rulemaking is 

voluntary, and therefore, small entities 

are not required to comply with these 

final regulations unless they choose to 

submit a rulemaking petition. 

Furthermore, although FSIS continues 

to encourage petitioners to submit 

relevant data needed to prepare the 

regulatory analyses that would be 

required should the petition be granted, 

the submission of this information is not 

required under this final rule. FSIS is 

aware that some small entities may not 

have access to certain data that are 

readily available to large companies or 

industry trade associations. FSIS will 

take this into consideration when 

evaluating petitions submitted by small 

entities. 

Executive Order 12988 

This final rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts 

State and local laws and regulations that 

are inconsistent with this rule; (2) has 

no retroactive effect; and (3) does not 

require administrative proceedings 

before parties may file suit in court 

challenging this rule. 

Additional Public Notification 

Public awareness of all segments of 

rulemaking and policy development is 

important. Consequently, in an effort to 

ensure that minorities, women, and 

persons with disabilities are aware of 

this notice, FSIS will announce it online 

through the FSIS Web page located at 

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/ 

regulations_&_policies/ 

2009_Interim_&_Final_Rules_Index/ 

index.asp. 

FSIS will also make copies of this 

Federal Register publication available 

through the FSIS Constituent Update, 

which is used to provide information 

regarding FSIS policies, procedures, 

regulations, Federal Register notices, 

FSIS public meetings, and other types of 

information that could affect or would 

be of interest to constituents and 

stakeholders. The Update is 

communicated via Listserv, a free 

electronic mail subscription service for 

industry, trade groups, consumer 

interest groups, health professionals, 

and other individuals who have asked 

to be included. The Update is also 

available on the FSIS Web page. 

Through the Listserv and Web page, 

FSIS is able to provide information to a 

much broader and more diverse 

audience. In addition, FSIS offers an email subscription service which 

provides automatic and customized 

access to selected food safety news and 

information. This service is available at 

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/ 

news_and_events/email_subscription/. 

Options range from recalls to export 

information to regulations, directives 

and notices. Customers can add or 

delete subscriptions themselves, and 

have the option to password protect 

their accounts. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

In accordance with section 3507(d) of 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the information 

collection or record keeping 

requirements included in this final rule 

have been submitted for approval to the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB). This information collection 

request is at OMB awaiting approval. 

FSIS will collect no information 

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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 67 / Thursday, April 9, 2009 / Rules and Regulations 16107 

associated with this rule until the 

information collection is approved by 

OMB. 

Copies of this information collection 

assessment can be obtained from John 

O’Connell, Paperwork Reduction Act 

Coordinator, Food Safety and Inspection 

Service, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Ave., SW., Room 3532 South Building, 

Washington, DC 20250–3700; (202) 720– 

0345. 

E-Government Act 

FSIS and USDA are committed to 

achieving the purposes of the EGovernment Act (44 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.) 

by, among other things, promoting the 

use of the Internet and other 

information technologies and providing 

increased opportunities for citizen 

access to Government information and 

services, and for other purposes. 

List of Subjects 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Freedom of information. 

■ For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, FSIS is amending 9 CFR 

Chapter III as follows: 

SUBCHAPTER D—FOOD SAFETY AND 

INSPECTION SERVICE ADMINISTRATIVE 

PROVISIONS 

■ Subchapter D is amended by adding a 

new part 392 to read as follows: 

PART 392—PETITIONS FOR 

RULEMAKING 

Sec. 

392.1 Scope and purpose. 

392.2 Definition of petition. 

392.3 Required information. 

392.4 Supporting documentation. 

392.5 Filing procedures. 

392.6 Public display. 

392.7 Comments. 

392.8 Expedited review. 

392.9 Availability of additional guidance. 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 553(e), 7 CFR 1.28. 

§ 392.1 Scope and purpose. 

This part contains provisions 

governing the submission of petitions 

for rulemaking to the Food Safety and 

Inspection Service (FSIS). The 

provisions in this part apply to all 

rulemaking petitions submitted to FSIS, 

except to the extent that other parts or 

sections of this chapter prescribe 

procedures for submitting a request to 

amend a particular regulation. 

§ 392.2 Definition of petition. 

For purposes of this part, a ‘‘petition’’ 

is a written request to issue, amend, or 

repeal a regulation administered by 

FSIS. A request to issue, amend, or 

repeal a document that interprets a 

regulation administered by FSIS may 

also be submitted by petition. 

§ 392.3 Required information. 

To be considered by FSIS, a petition 

must contain the following information: 

(a) The name, address, telephone 

number, and e-mail address (if 

available) of the person who is 

submitting the petition; 

(b) A full statement of the action 

requested by the petitioner, including 

the exact wording and citation of the 

existing regulation, if any, and the 

proposed regulation or amendment 

requested; 

(c) A full statement of the factual and 

legal basis on which the petitioner relies 

for the action requested in the petition, 

including all relevant information and 

views on which the petitioner relies, as 

well as information known to the 

petitioner that is unfavorable to the 

petitioner’s position. The statement 

should identify the problem that the 

requested action is intended to address 

and explain why the requested action is 

necessary to address the problem. 

§ 392.4 Supporting documentation. 

(a) Information referred to or relied on 

in support of a petition should be 

included in full and should not be 

incorporated by reference. A copy of 

any article or other source cited in a 

petition should be submitted with the 

petition. 

(b) Sources of information that are 

appropriate to use in support of a 

petition include, but are not limited to: 

(1) professional journal articles, 

(2) research reports, 

(3) official government statistics, 

(4) official government reports, 

(5) industry data, and 

(6) scientific textbooks. 

(c) If an original research report is 

used to support a petition, the 

information should be presented in a 

form that would be acceptable for 

publication in a peer reviewed scientific 

or technical journal. 

(d) If quantitative data are used to 

support a petition, the presentation of 

the data should include a complete 

statistical analysis using conventional 

statistical methods. 

§ 392.5 Filing procedures. 

(a) Any interested person may file a 

petition with FSIS. For purposes of this 

part, an ‘‘interested person’’ is any 

individual, partnership, corporation, 

association, or public or private 

organization. 

(b) To file a petition with FSIS, a 

person should submit the petition to the 

FSIS Docket Clerk, Department of 

Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection 

Service, Room 2534 South Building, 

1400 Independence Ave., SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–3700. 

(c) Once a petition is submitted in 

accordance with this part, it will be 

filed by the FSIS Docket Clerk, stamped 

with the date of filing, and assigned a 

petition number. Once a petition has 

been filed, FSIS will notify the 

petitioner in writing and provide the 

petitioner with the number assigned to 

the petition and the Agency contact for 

the petition. The petition number 

should be referenced by the petitioner 

in all contacts with the Agency 

regarding the petition. 

(d) If a petitioner elects to withdraw 

a petition submitted in accordance with 

this part, the petitioner should inform 

FSIS in writing. Once a petition has 

been withdrawn, the petitioner may resubmit the petition at any time. 

§ 392.6 Public display. 

(a) All rulemaking petitions filed with 

FSIS, along with any documentation 

submitted in support of a petition, will 

be available for public inspection in the 

FSIS docket room and will be posted on 

the FSIS Web site at http:// 

www.fsis.usda.gov/. 

(b) If FSIS cannot readily determine 

whether information submitted in 

support of a petition is privileged or 

confidential business information, FSIS 

will request that the petitioner submit a 

written statement that certifies that the 

petition does not contain confidential 

information that should not be put on 

public display. If the petitioner fails to 

submit the certification within a time 

specified by FSIS, the Agency will 

consider the information to be 

confidential. 

(c) If FSIS determines that a petition, 

or any documentation submitted in 

support of a petition, contains 

information that is exempt from public 

disclosure under the Freedom of 

Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552 et seq.) or 

any other applicable laws or regulations, 

and that the information would provide 

the basis for granting the petition, FSIS 

will inform the petitioner in writing. 

FSIS will provide the petitioner an 

opportunity to withdraw the petition or 

supporting documentation, or modify 

the supporting documentation to permit 

public disclosure. 

§ 392.7 Comments. 

(a) Any interested person may submit 

written comments on a petition filed 

with FSIS. 

(b) Comments on a petition should be 

submitted within 60 days of the posting 

date of the petition and should identify 

the number assigned to the petition to 

which the comments refer. 

(c) FSIS will consider all timely 

comments on a petition that are 

submitted in accordance with this 

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16108 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 67 / Thursday, April 9, 2009 / Rules and Regulations 

section as part of its review of the 

petition. 

(d) All comments on a petition will 

become part of the petition file and will 

be available for public inspection in the 

FSIS docket room and posted on the 

FSIS Web site at http:// 

www.fsis.usda.gov/. 

(e) Any interested person who wishes 

to suggest an alternative action to the 

action requested by the petition should 

submit a separate petition that complies 

with these regulations and not submit 

the alternative as a comment on the 

petition. 

(f) If FSIS determines that a comment 

received on a petition is in fact a request 

for an alternative action, the Agency 

will inform the commenter in writing. 

The Agency will take no further action 

on the requested alternative action 

unless the commenter submits an 

appropriate petition for rulemaking. 

§ 392.8 Expedited review. 

(a) A petition will receive expedited 

review by FSIS if the requested action 

is intended to enhance the public health 

by removing or reducing foodborne 

pathogens or other potential food safety 

hazards that might be present in or on 

meat, poultry, or egg products. 

(b) For a petition to be considered for 

expedited review, the petitioner must 

submit scientific information that 

demonstrates that the requested action 

will reduce or remove foodborne 

pathogens or other potential food safety 

hazards that are likely to be present in 

or on meat, poultry, or egg products, 

and how it will do so. 

(c) If FSIS determines that a petition 

warrants expedited review, FSIS will 

review the petition ahead of other 

pending petitions. 

§ 392.9 Availability of additional guidance. 

Information related to the submission 

and processing of petitions for 

rulemaking may be found on the FSIS 

Web site at http://www/fsis.usda.gov/. 

Done at Washington, DC, on: April 6, 2009. 

Alfred V. Almanza, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. E9–8106 Filed 4–8–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–DM–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2008–0412; Directorate 

Identifier 2007–NM–346–AD; Amendment 

39–15870; AD 2009–07–11] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Boeing 

Model 737–300, –400, and –500 Series 

Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The FAA is superseding an 

existing airworthiness directive (AD), 

which applies to all Boeing Model 737– 

300, –400, and –500 series airplanes. 

That AD currently requires repetitive 

inspections for discrepancies of the 

fuselage skin under the dorsal fin 

assembly, and repairing if necessary. 

This new AD requires an inspection for 

any chafing or crack in the fuselage skin 

and abrasion resistant coating at the 

dorsal fin landing, an inspection for 

damage to the dorsal fin seals, attach 

clip, and seal retainer, and other 

specified and corrective actions as 

necessary. The new requirements will 

end the need for the existing repetitive 

inspections. This AD results from a 

report of an 18-inch crack found in the 

fuselage skin area under the blade seals 

of the nose cap of the dorsal fin due to 

previous wear damage, and additional 

reports of fuselage skin wear. We are 

issuing this AD to prevent discrepancies 

of the fuselage skin, which could result 

in fatigue cracking due to cabin 

pressurization and consequent rapid inflight decompression of the airplane 

fuselage. 

DATES: This AD becomes effective May 

14, 2009. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of a certain publication listed in the AD 

as of May 14, 2009. 

On November 12, 2004 (69 FR 62567, 

October 27, 2004), the Director of the 

Federal Register approved the 

incorporation by reference of Boeing 

Message Number 1–QXO35, dated 

October 13, 2004. 

ADDRESSES: For service information 

identified in this AD, contact Boeing 

Commercial Airplanes, P.O. Box 3707, 

Seattle, Washington 98124–2207; 

telephone 206–544–9990; fax 206–766– 

5682; e-mail DDCS@boeing.com; 

Internet https:// 

www.myboeingfleet.com. 

Examining the AD Docket 

You may examine the AD docket on 

the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov; or in person at the 

Docket Management Facility between 9 

a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. The AD 

docket contains this AD, the regulatory 

evaluation, any comments received, and 

other information. The address for the 

Docket Office (telephone 800–647–5527) 

is the Document Management Facility, 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 

Docket Operations, M–30, West 

Building Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 

Washington, DC 20590. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Wayne Lockett, Aerospace Engineer, 

Airframe Branch, ANM–120S, FAA, 

Seattle Aircraft Certification Office, 

1601 Lind Avenue, SW., Renton, 

Washington 98057–3356; telephone 

(425) 917–6447; fax (425) 917–6590. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Discussion 

The FAA issued a notice of proposed 

rulemaking (NPRM) to amend 14 CFR 

part 39 to include an AD that 

supersedes AD 2004–22–05, amendment 

39–13833 (69 FR 62567, October 27, 

2004). The existing AD applies to all 

Boeing Model 737–300, –400, and –500 

series airplanes. That NPRM was 

published in the Federal Register on 

April 24, 2008 (73 FR 22088). That 

NPRM proposed to continue to require 

repetitive inspections for discrepancies 

of the fuselage skin under the dorsal fin 

assembly, and repairing if necessary. 

That NPRM also proposed to add an 

inspection for any chafing or crack in 

the fuselage skin and abrasion resistant 

coating at the dorsal fin landing, an 

inspection for damage to the dorsal fin 

seals, attach clip, and seal retainer, and 

other specified and corrective actions as 

necessary. 

Comments 

We provided the public the 

opportunity to participate in the 

development of this AD. We have 

considered the comments that have 

been received on the NPRM. 

Request To Clarify Certain Language in 

Paragraph (i) of the NPRM 

Boeing asks that we change certain 

language in paragraph (i) of the NPRM 

to add the word ‘‘abrasion’’ as follows: 

‘‘Do a detailed inspection for any signs 

of abrasion, chafing, or crack . * * *’’ 

Boeing also asks that we change that 

same paragraph to make the word 

‘‘retainer’’ plural as follows: ‘‘do a 

detailed inspection for damage to the 

mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with RULES