52752 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 166 / Friday, August 27, 2010 / Notices 

suggestions from the public on the 

activities of the Trans-Atlantic 

Taskforce on Antimicrobial Resistance 

(TATFAR). 

DATES: A public meeting will be held in 

Bethesda, MD, on Friday, October 1, 

2010 from 1:30 to approximately 4:30 

p.m. Persons wishing to participate, 

including those who wish to make an 

oral presentation, must register in 

advance and provide a copy of their 

presentation by noon Friday, September 

24, 2010. 

Deadline for Registration for all 

Attendees: All Other Attendees must 

register by noon, Friday, September 24, 

2010. 

Deadline for Requests for Special 

Accommodation: Requests for special 

accommodation should be submitted by 

noon, Friday, September 17, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Meeting Location: The 

public meeting will be held on the 

Campus of the National Institutes of 

Health, 9000 Rockville Pike, Building 

31, Wing C, Room 6, Bethesda, MD 

20892. 

Submission of Written Comments: 

Written comments can be e-mailed to 

OGHA.OS@HHS.gov or sent via regular 

mail to Elana Clarke, Office of Global 

Health Affairs, Switzer Building Room 

2319, 330 C Street, SW., Washington, 

DC 20201. 

Registration and Special 

Accommodations: Individuals wishing 

to participate or who need special 

accommodations or both must register 

by contacting Elana Clarke at 

Elana.Clarke@hhs.gov. See Registration 

To Attend and/or Participate in the 

Public Hearing for instructions on how 

to submit electronic notices of 

participation. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Elana Clarke at Elana.Clarke@hhs.gov or 

202 260–0443. 

Registration To Attend and/or 

Participate in the Public Meeting: To 

ensure there is sufficient room we ask 

that you pre-register. If you wish to 

make an oral presentation during the 

open public comment period of the 

hearing, state your intention to present 

on your registration submission. To 

register, please send an electronic mail 

message to Elana.Clarke@hhs.gov by the 

deadline listed under DATES. Your email should include your name and email address. 

Please submit a written statement at 

the time of registration, identifying each 

focus area you wish to address and the 

approximate time requested to make 

your presentation. Organizations should 

provide this information as well as the 

names and e-mail addresses of all 

participants. Registered individuals will 

be notified of the approximate time 

scheduled for their presentation prior to 

the meeting. Depending on the number 

of presentations, HHS may need to limit 

the time allotted for presentations. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Background 

On November 3, 2009, the United 

States and the European Union (EU) 

agreed to establish a task force to focus 

‘‘on urgent antimicrobial resistance 

issues focused on appropriate 

therapeutic use of antimicrobial drugs 

in the medical and veterinary 

communities, prevention of both 

healthcare- and community-associated 

drug-resistant infections, and strategies 

for improving the pipeline of new 

antimicrobial drugs, which could be 

better addressed by intensified 

cooperation.’’ (2009 EU–U.S. Summit 

Declaration). 

The TATFAR is made up of 

government representatives from the 

U.S. Department of Health and Human 

Services for the United States and from 

the European Commission, European 

Union agencies, and representatives of 

three EU member states for the EU. 

Information about the TATFAR is 

available at: http://ecdc.europa.eu/en/ 

activities/diseaseprogrammes/TATFAR/ 

Pages/index.aspx. 

2. Public Comment and Meeting 

The public meeting process provides 

an opportunity for the public to become 

aware of the activities of the TATFAR 

to date. In addition, OGHA invites 

written comments and/or oral 

presentations of interested persons on 

the three focus areas of the TATFAR as 

defined in the 2009 EU/US Summit 

Declaration: 

• Appropriate therapeutic use of 

antimicrobial drugs in the medical and 

veterinary communities, 

• Prevention of both healthcare- and 

community-associated drug-resistant 

infections, and 

• Strategies for improving the 

pipeline of new antimicrobial drugs. 

Comments should identify specific 

antimicrobial resistance-related 

activities in these three areas where 

intensified cooperation between the 

United States and the European Union 

could have the most impact, keeping in 

mind that the work of the TATFAR will 

be carried out using currently available 

resources. In particular, input is sought 

on activities that can be undertaken in 

the near-term, with a reasonable 

possibility of completion over the next 

12–15 months. 

Written comments submitted by email should use the following subject 

line ‘‘TATFAR Comments.’’ Comments 

and any documentation may be 

submitted as Adobe PDF, MSWord or 

Text (.txt) files. Written comments 

submitted by regular mail should clearly 

identify ‘‘TATFAR Comments’’ as the 

subject. 

3. Building and Security Guidelines 

The meeting is being held in a Federal 

government building; therefore, Federal 

security measures are applicable. In 

planning your arrival time, please take 

account of the need to clear security. All 

visitors must enter through the NIH 

Gateway Center and must present 

government-issued photo identification. 

All persons entering the building must 

pass through a metal detector. All items 

brought to HHS are subject to 

inspection. For more information on 

NIH security requirements for visitors, 

please go to: http://www.nih.gov/about/ 

visitorsecurity.htm. 

Signed: August 23, 2010. 

Nils Daulaire, 

Director, Office of Global Health Affairs. 

[FR Doc. 2010–21351 Filed 8–26–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4150–38–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Request for Comments on Synthetic 

Biology 

AGENCY: Department of Health and 

Human Services, Office of Public Health 

and Science, The Presidential 

Commission for the Study of Bioethical 

Issues. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Presidential Commission 

for the Study of Bioethical Issues is 

requesting public comment on the 

emerging science of synthetic biology, 

including its potential applications and 

risks, as well as appropriate ethical 

boundaries to assure that America reaps 

the benefits of this new technology. 

DATES: To assure consideration, 

comments must be received by October 

1, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Individuals, groups, and 

organizations interested in commenting 

on this topic may submit comments by 

e-mail to info@bioethics.gov or by mail 

to the following address: Public 

Commentary, The Presidential 

Commission for the Study of Bioethical 

Issues, 1425 New York Ave., NW., Suite 

C–100, Washington, DC 20005. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Diane M. Gianelli, Director of 

Communications, The Presidential 

Commission for the Study of Bioethical 

Issues, 1425 New York Avenue, NW., 

WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 166 / Friday, August 27, 2010 / Notices 52753 

Suite C–100, Washington, DC 20005. 

Telephone: 202/233–3960. E-mail: info@

bioethics.gov. Additional information 

may be obtained by viewing the Web 

site: http://www.bioethics.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

November 24, 2009, the President 

established the Presidential Commission 

for the Study of Bioethical Issues to 

advise him on bioethical issues 

generated by novel and emerging 

research in biomedicine and related 

areas of science and technology. The 

Commission is charged to identify and 

promote policies and practices that 

assure ethically responsible conduct of 

scientific research, healthcare delivery, 

and technological innovation. In 

undertaking these duties, the 

Commission will identify and examine 

specific bioethical, legal, and social 

issues related to potential scientific and 

technological advances; examine 

diverse perspectives and possibilities 

for dynamic international collaboration 

on these issues, and recommend legal, 

regulatory, or policy actions as 

appropriate. 

As its first order of business, the 

Commission has begun an inquiry into 

the emerging science of synthetic 

biology. The President asked the 

Commission to address this topic on 

May 20, 2010, following the 

announcement that the J. Craig Venter 

Institute had successfully engineered a 

synthetic cell—the insertion into a 

bacterium of a complete, functional 

genome synthesized entirely from a 

digitized sequence that replaced the 

native genome of the host over a series 

of replications. Daniel G. Gibson et al., 

Creation of a Bacterial Cell Controlled 

by a Chemically Synthesized Genome, 

Science Express (May 20, 2010). The 

President charged the Commission to 

consider any potential medical, 

environmental, security, and other 

benefits, as well as any related risks. 

Additionally, the President asked the 

Commission to develop 

‘‘recommendations about any actions the 

Federal government should take to 

ensure that America reaps the benefits 

of this developing field of science while 

identifying appropriate ethical 

boundaries and minimizing identified 

risks.’’ The Commission will report back 

its finding and recommendations later 

this year. 

To begin its work, the Commission 

convened a public meeting in 

Washington, DC on July 8–9, 2010. At 

that meeting, representatives with 

expertise in science, ethics, and public 

policy, as well as advocates with diverse 

perspectives on this new field provided 

information and insight to help guide 

the Commission in its thinking. Leading 

scientists in the field created context for 

the discussion by explaining the state of 

the science and discussing possible 

applications. Among the anticipated 

benefits discussed were employing 

bacterial cells as microscopic factories 

in the production of pharmaceuticals 

and biofuels. 

Additionally, with regard to potential 

risks, the Commission heard discussion 

about possible biosafety, biosecurity and 

environmental concerns, including risks 

that may arise as synthetic biology relies 

on organisms that can evolve and selfreplicate, and existing practices to 

protect against these risks. The 

Commission also heard discussion 

about ethical boundaries and the views 

of faith communities. 

As the approaches to, and 

applications of, synthetic biology 

proliferate, the Commission wishes to 

develop a multifaceted understanding of 

its scientific and technological 

implications, and learn more about the 

views of the public on the existing or 

potential ethical and social 

ramifications. To this end, the 

Commission is inviting interested 

parties to provide input and advice 

through written comments. Among 

other issues, the Commission is 

interested in receiving comments on the 

potential benefits that the emerging field 

of synthetic biology is likely to yield, 

now or in the future, the risks that may 

arise, the ethical boundaries that should 

be considered, and policies and 

strategies to assure that the public will 

benefit from these new tools and 

products. 

Please address comments by e-mail to 

info@bioethics.gov, or by mail to the 

following address: Public Commentary, 

The Presidential Commission for the 

Study of Bioethical Issues, 1425 New 

York Ave., NW., Suite C–100, 

Washington, DC 20005. Comments will 

be publicly available, including any 

personally identifiable or confidential 

business information that they contain. 

Trade secrets should not be submitted. 

Dated: August 17, 2010. 

Valerie H. Bonham, 

Executive Director, The Presidential 

Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues. 

[FR Doc. 2010–21359 Filed 8–26–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4154–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Administration for Children and 

Families 

Agency Recordkeeping/Reporting 

Requirements Under Emergency 

Review by the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) 

Title: TANF Emergency Fund 

Subsidized Employment Report, Form 

OFA–200. 

OMB No.: New Collection. 

Description: On February 17, 2009, 

the President signed the American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 

(Recovery Act) which establishes the 

Emergency Contingency Fund for State 

TANF Programs (Emergency Fund) as 

section 403(c) of the Social Security Act 

(the Act). This legislation provides up to 

$5 billion to help States, territories, and 

tribes in fiscal year (FY) 2009 and FY 

2010 that have an increase in assistance 

caseloads or in certain types of 

expenditures. The Recovery Act also 

made other changes to TANF— 

extending supplemental grants through 

FY 2010, expanding flexibility in the 

use of TANF funds carried over from 

one fiscal year to the next, and adding 

a hold-harmless provision to the 

caseload reduction credit for States and 

territories serving more TANF families. 

The Emergency Fund is intended to 

build upon and renew the principles of 

work and responsibility that underlie 

successful welfare reform initiatives. 

The Emergency Fund provides 

resources to States, territories, and tribes 

(referred to collectively here as 

‘‘jurisdictions’’) to support work and 

families during this difficult economic 

period. 

Many jurisdictions are implementing 

subsidized employment programs as a 

result of the availability of this new 

funding, and there is substantial interest 

in understanding how this funding has 

been used. There is also significant 

public interest in the number of 

individuals that are being placed in 

subsidized employment as a result of 

the Recovery Act. As a result, we are 

proposing a voluntary data collection 

for jurisdictions regarding information 

on the number of individuals in 

subsidized employment funded in 

whole or in part by the TANF 

Emergency Fund or that were included 

in the calculation of a TANF Emergency 

Fund award. We initially requested 

emergency clearance to collect this data 

and posted a Federal Register notice on 

June 8 stating our intent to collect this 

information and invited comments. As a 

result of our June 8 notice we received 

WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES