Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 34 / Tuesday, February 21, 1995 / Notices 9697

1See Exempt. of Rail Abandonment—Offers of

Finan. Assist., 4 I.C.C.2d 164 (1987).

1The Commission will grant a stay if an informed

decision on environmental issues (whether raised

by a party or by the Commission in its independent

investigation) cannot be made before the

exemption’s effective date. See Exemption of Outof-Service Rail Lines, 5 I.C.C.2d 377 (1989). Any

request for a stay should be filed as soon as possible

so that the Commission may take appropriate action

before the exemption’s effective date.

2See Exempt. of Rail Abandonment—Offers of

Finan. Assist., 4 I.C.C.2d 164 (1987).

3 The Commission will accept late-filed trail use

requests so long as the abandonment has not been

consummated and the abandoning railroad is

willing to negotiate an agreement.

By the Commission, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 95–4173 Filed 2–17–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7035–01–P

[Docket No. AB–55 (Sub-No. 484X)]

CSX Transportation, Inc.)—

Abandonment Exemption—In the City

of Suffolk, VA

AGENCY: Interstate Commerce

Commission.

ACTION: Notice of exemption.

SUMMARY: CSX Transportation, Inc.

(CSXT) has petitioned for an exemption

from the prior approval requirements of

49 U.S.C. 10903–10904 for the

abandonment of its 3.81-mile segment of

branch line track from milepost AB–

214.0 to the end of the track at milepost

AB–210.19 in the City of Suffolk, VA.

We will grant the exemption, subject to

standard labor protective conditions and

a condition that CSXT consult with the

City of Suffolk prior to completion of

salvage operations.

DATES: This exemption will be effective

on March 23, 1995, unless it is stayed

or a formal expression of intent to file

an offer of financial assistance is filed.

Petitions to stay must be filed by March

8, 1995. Petitions for reconsideration or

reopening must be filed by March 18,

1995. Formal expressions of intent to

file an offer of financial assistance under

49 CFR 1152.27(c)(2)1 must be filed by

March 3, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Send pleadings, referring to

Docket No. AB–55 (Sub-No. 484X), to:

(1) Office of the Secretary, Case Control

Branch, Interstate Commerce

Commission, 1201 Constitution Avenue

NW., Washington, DC. 20423; and (2)

petitioner’s representative: Charles M.

Rosenburger, 500 Water Street—J150,

Jacksonville, FL 32202.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Joseph Dettmar, (202) 927–5660. [TDD

for the hearing impaired: (202) 927–

5721].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Additional information is contained in

the Commission’s full decision. To

purchase a copy of the full decision,

write to, call, or pick up in person from:

Dynamic Concepts, Inc., Room 2229,

Interstate Commerce Commission

Building, 1201 Constitution Avenue

NW., Washington, DC. 20423.

Telephone: (202) 289–4357/4359.

[Assistance for the hearing impaired is

available through TDD service (202)

927–5721.].

Decided: February 7, 1995.

By the Commission, Chairman McDonald,

Vice Chairman Morgan, Commissioners

Simmons and Owen.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 95–4172 Filed 2–17–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7035–01P–M

[Docket No. AB–55 (Sub-No. 503X)]

CSX Transportation, Inc.—

Abandonment Exemption—McMinn

County, TN

CSX Transportation, Inc. (CSXT) has

filed a verified notice under 49 CFR Part

1152 Subpart F—Exempt

Abandonments to abandon a 1.41-mile

rail line between milepost 333.2 and

334.61 in Athens, McMinn County, TN.

CSXT has certified that: (1) no local

traffic has moved over the line for at

least 2 years; (2) any overhead traffic on

the line can be rerouted over other lines;

(3) no formal complaint filed by a user

of rail service on the line (or by a State

or local government entity acting on

behalf of such user) regarding cessation

of service over the line either is pending

with the Commission or with any U.S.

District Court or has been decided in

complainant’s favor within the last 2

years; and (4) the requirements at 49

CFR 1105.7 (environmental report), 49

CFR 1105.8 (historic report), 49 CFR

1105.11 and 1152.50(d)(1) (notice to

government agencies), and 49 CFR

1105.12 (newspaper publication) have

been met.

As a condition to this exemption, any

employee adversely affected by the

abandonment shall be protected under

Oregon Short Line R. Co.—

Abandonment—Goshen, 360 I.C.C. 91

(1979). To address whether employees

are adequately protected, a petition for

partial revocation under 49 U.S.C.

10505(d) must be filed.

This exemption will be effective

March 23, 1995, unless stayed or a

statement of intent to file an offer of

financial assistance (OFA) is filed.

Petitions to stay that do not involve

environmental issues,1 statements of

intent to file an OFA under 49 CFR

1152.27(c)(2),2 and trail use/rail banking

requests under 49 CFR 1152.29 3 must

be filed by March 3, 1995. Petitions to

reopen or requests for public use

conditions under 49 CFR 1152.28 must

be filed by March 13, 1995. An original

and 10 copies of any such filing must be

sent to the Office of the Secretary, Case

Control Branch, Interstate Commerce

Commission, Washington, DC 20423. In

addition, one copy must be served on

Charles M. Rosenberger, CSX

Transportation, Inc., 500 Water Street

J150, Jacksonville, FL 32202.

If the verified notice contains false or

misleading information, the exemption

is void ab initio.

CSXT has filed an environmental

report which addresses the

abandonment’s effects, if any, on the

environment and historic resources. The

Commission’s Section of Environmental

Analysis (SEA) will issue an

environmental assessment (EA) by

February 24, 1995. A copy of the EA

may be obtained by writing to SEA

(Room 3219, Interstate Commerce

Commission, Washington, DC 20423) or

by calling Elaine Kaiser at (202) 927–

6248. Comments on environmental and

historic preservation matters must be

filed within 15 days after the EA

becomes available to the public.

Environmental, historic preservation,

public use, or trail use/rail banking

conditions will be imposed, where

appropriate, in a subsequent decision.

Decided: February 14, 1995.

By the Commission, David M. Konschnik,

Director, Office of Proceedings.

Vernon A. Williams,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 95–4174 Filed 2–17–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7035–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Immigration and Naturalization Service

[INS No. 1678–94]

Draft Statement of Standards and

Guidelines for Developing an

Immigration and Naturalization

Services Passenger Accelerated

Service System (INSPASS)

AGENCY: Immigration and Naturalization

Service, Justice.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

SUMMARY: This notice advises interested

parties that the Immigration and
9698 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 34 / Tuesday, February 21, 1995 / Notices

Naturalization Service (Service) has

prepared a draft statement of standards

and guidelines for developing, building,

installing, and operating an automated

Immigration and Naturalization Service

Passenger Accelerated Service System

(INSPASS). These standards and

guidelines are available for review and

comment by interested parties who may

wish to develop an automated system

for use by the Service at selected Portsof-Entry in the United States. The

automated passenger accelerated service

system is designed to decrease

inspection processing time by

automating the inspection of low risk

frequent travelers to the United States.

DATES: Requests for the draft statement

and guidelines should be received on or

before March 23, 1995. Written

comments on the draft statement and

guidelines must be received on or before

April 24, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Written requests for copies

of the draft statement and guidelines

should be submitted to the Immigration

and Naturalization Service, 425 I Street,

NW, Room 7228, Washington, DC

20536. ATTN: Inspections Division

(INSPASS).

Please submit written comments on

the draft statement and guidelines, in

triplicate, to the Immigration and

Naturalization Service, 425 I Street,

NW., Room 7228, Washington, DC

20536. Attention: Assistant Chief

Inspector Ronald J. Hays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Assistant Chief Inspector Ronald J.

Hays, Inspections Division, Immigration

and Naturalization Service, 425 I Street,

NW, Room 7228, Washington, DC

20536, telephone (202) 514–0912 or fax

(202) 514–8345.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Service developed INSPASS as a

pilot program to be used by low risk

frequent travelers to facilitate their entry

into the United States at designated

Ports-of-Entry. Under INSPASS, the

applicant fills out an enrollment form,

and his or her personal data is fed

through a computer that checks with the

databases of U.S. Customs, the U.S.

State Department, the National Crime

Information Center, and the Immigration

and Naturalization Service. If the

applicant is approved, biometric

information is collected through the use

of hand geometry. The applicant places

his or her hand in an open, box-like

structure, onto a small metal plate, and

squeezes a few small pegs. The length,

thickness and translucency of the hand

is noted, and coded. Within seconds, a

small credit-card sized INSPASS card is

produced.

At the time of arrival at one of the

designated Ports-of-Entry, the INSPASS

holder proceeds to an automated

inspectional booth for accelerated

inspectional processing. The captured

biometrics (encoded on the INSPASS

card) are used to establish his or her

identity.

INSPASS, is a subset of the

Interagency Border Inspection System

(IBIS), and is being pilot tested at the

Newark International Airport, as of May

24, 1993; at John F. Kennedy

International Airport, as of July 27,

1993; and at Pearson International

Airport (Toronto, Canada), as of

December 1, 1993. A land border

version of INSPASS is under

development for testing at Hidalgo,

Texas.

INSPASS Hardware and Software

Configuration

As currently deployed, INSPASS

consists of two primary components: an

enrollment center and an inspection

kiosk. They include the following

equipment:

Enrollment Center

Two 486 personal computers

Hand geometry scanner

Fingerprint scanner

OCR–B card reader

OCR–B card printer

Laser printer

Inspection Kiosk

ATM-like stand

486 personal computer

10 inch monitor

16-key keypad

Hand geometry scanner

OCR–B card reader

Receipt printer

Fingerprint scanner

Electrically locked gate

Results of the INSPASS Pilot Test

The results of the INSPASS pilot test

have been very encouraging and have

demonstrated the potential to reduce

processing times for travelers

significantly. However, the Service has

identified the following areas in which

improvements in the existing hardware

configuration are required to reduce the

inspection processing time further:

Monitor—to be replaced by a

touchscreen.

Card readers—to be replaced by

readers which are capable of reading

OCR–B and integrated circuit cards.

These readers must be styled as ATM

card readers.

Printers—to be replaced by a faster,

more robust printer. This printer must

be capable of detecting the removal of

the receipt as this action triggers the

opening of the gate.

Fingerprint scanner—to be replaced

by a more dependable scanner which

complies with the Service’s fingerprint

capture and storage standards.

Kiosk—must be redesigned to

improve ergonomics. Such a redesign

must comply with the Americans With

Disabilities Act, Occupational Safety

and Hazards Act and other applicable

laws and regulations.

INSPASS card—to be replaced with a

smart card-based medium which

contains data elements to be specified

by the Service.

Gate—to be replaced by a gate which

operates within a time cycle acceptable

to the Service and which complies with

applicable laws and regulations.

Draft Statement of Standards and

Guidelines for Developing an

Immigration and Naturalization

Service Passenger Accelerated Service

System (INSPASS)

During the INSPASS development

cycle, numerous individuals and

organizations, both public and private,

have offered suggestions for

improvements. The draft statement of

standards and guidelines calls for a new

relationship with the travel and tourism

industry, based upon some of these

suggestions, in which the industry and

the Service will cooperate to install

INSPASS at specific Ports-of-Entry. The

Service will set the system

specifications, determine which

travelers will be allowed to be enrolled,

and bear some of the cost of operations.

This new relationship will allow the

Government and the travel industry to

avoid some costs they might otherwise

have had to bear. This is exactly the

type of cost saving synergy envisioned

by the Vice President’s National

Performance Review. If the objective of

this program is met, the Service will

achieve a state-of-the-art automated

inspections environment with reliable

management information to deliver its

services to the public. These standards

and guidelines will be provided upon

written request for review and

comment. Based on any comments/

concerns received, the Service may

finalize these standards and guidelines,

and request formal proposals in

accordance with a notice to be

published in the Commerce Business

Daily and/or the Federal Register.
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 34 / Tuesday, February 21, 1995 / Notices 9699

Dated: January 30, 1995.

Doris Meissner,

Commissioner, Immigration and

Naturalization Service.

[FR Doc. 95–4089 Filed 2–17–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4410–10–M

[INS No. 1674–94]

RIN 1115–AB93

Extension of the Visa Waiver Pilot

Program

AGENCY: Immigration and Naturalization

Service, Justice.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

extension of the Visa Waiver Pilot

Program (VWPP) until September 30,

1996. Nationals of those countries

eligible for participation under the

VWPP, may continue to apply for

admission to the United States for

ninety (90) days or less, as

nonimmigrant visitors for business or

pleasure, without first obtaining a

nonimmigrant visa. This notice also

notifies those carriers who have entered

into agreements with the Immigration

and Naturalization Service (Service)

under the provisions of the Visa Waiver

Pilot Program, that the agreements will

continue in effect until September 30,

1996. These actions will facilitate travel

for both the public and United States

businesses.

EFFECTIVE DATES: This extension of the

Visa Waiver Pilot Program is effective

on October 25, 1994, and will remain in

effect until September 30, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Ronald J. Hays, Assistant Chief

Inspector, Immigration and

naturalization Service, Room 7228, 425

I Street, NW., Washington, DC 20536,

telephone (202) 514–0912.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 313 of the Immigration

Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA),

Public Law 99–603, dated November 6,

1986, added section 217 to the

Immigration and Nationality Act (ACT

which established the nonimmigrant

Visa Waiver Pilot Program. Section 313

of IRCA initially provided for the

designation of eight (8) countries to

participate in the Visa Waiver Pilot

Program. Accordingly, the Service

designated by regulations published in

the Federal Register, the following eight

(8) countries to participate in the VWPP:

Country Effective date Federal Register Citation

1. United Kingdom ...................................................................................................... July 1, 1988 .................. 53 FR 24901, June 30, 1988.

2. Japan ...................................................................................................................... Dec. 15, 1988 ............... 53 FR 50161, Dec. 13, 1988.

3. France .................................................................................................................... July 1, 1989 .................. 54 FR 27120, June 27, 1988.

4. Switzerland ............................................................................................................. July 1, 1989 .................. 54 FR 27120, June 27, 1989.

5. Germany ................................................................................................................. July 15, 1989 ................ 54 FR 27120, June 27, 1989.

6. Sweden .................................................................................................................. July 15, 1989 ................ 54 FR 27120, June 27, 1989.

7. Italy ......................................................................................................................... July 29, 1989 ................ 54 FR 27120, June 27, 1989.

8. Netherlands ............................................................................................................ July 29, 1989 ................ 54 FR 27120, June 27, 1989.

Section 201 of the Immigration Act of

1990, (IMMACT 90), Public Law 101–

649, dated November 29, 1990, further

amended the Visa Waiver Pilot Program

by removing the eight country cap and

extending the provisions to all countries

that met the qualifying provisions

contained in section 217 of the Act. In

addition, section 201 of IMMACT 90

also extended the period for the VWPP

until September 30, 1994. Subsequently,

the Service designated the following

fourteen (14) additional countries by

regulations published in the Federal

Register, to participate in the VWPP:

Country Effective date Federal Register Ciation

1. Andorra ................................................................................................................. Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

2. Austria .................................................................................................................. Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

3. Belgium ................................................................................................................ Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

4. Denmark ............................................................................................................... Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

5. Finland .................................................................................................................. Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

6. Iceland .................................................................................................................. Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

7. Liechtenstein ........................................................................................................ Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

8. Luxembourg ......................................................................................................... Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

9. Monaco ................................................................................................................. Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

10. New Zealand ........................................................................................................ Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

11. Norway ................................................................................................................. Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

12. San Marino ........................................................................................................... Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

13. Spain .................................................................................................................... Oct. 1, 1991 ................. 56 FR 46716, Sept. 13, 1991.

14. Brunei ................................................................................................................... July 29, 1993 ................ 58 FR 40581, July 29, 1993.

Extension of the Visa Waiver Pilot

Program

On September 27, 1994, the Assistant

Commissioner, Office of Inspections,

issued a memorandum to those carriers

who signed a VWPP agreement with the

Service, that during the month of

October 1994, the Service would not

fine carriers under section 273 of the

Act for transporting to the Untied States,

visitors without nonimmigrant visitor

visas, who would otherwise be eligible

for admission to the United States under

the Visa Waiver Pilot Program. This

action was necessary to accommodate

the travelling public who made plans to

visit the United States and who were

not aware that the Visa Waiver Pilot

Program would expire on September 30,

1994 unless the program was extended

by Congress.

Subsequently, the Immigration and

Nationality Technical Corrections Act of

1994, October 25, 1994 extended the

expiration date of the Visa Waiver Pilot

Program until September 30, 1996.

Therefore, unless designation is

otherwise withdrawn sooner, nationals

of those countries eligible for

participation under the VWPP may

continue to apply for admission to the

United States for ninety (90) days or