5498 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 22 / Wednesday, February 3, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

Michael T. Lesar, 

Chief, Rulemaking and Directives Branch, 

Division of Administrative Services, Office 

of Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2010–2283 Filed 2–2–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

15 CFR Part 902 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 0907281181–0040–03] 

RIN 0648–AX93 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Reporting Requirement for 

Midwater Trawl Vessels Fishing in 

Closed Area I 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Final rule; effectiveness of a 

collection-of-information requirement. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces approval by 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) of a collection-of-information 

requirement contained in Northeast 

(NE) Multispecies regulations for 

midwater trawl herring vessels that fish 

in groundfish Closed Area I (CA I). The 

intent of this final rule is to implement 

these additional reporting requirements. 

DATES: This rule is effective March 5, 

2010. The amendments to 50 CFR 

648.14(r)(2)(vii) and 648.80(d)(7)(iii)(B), 

published in the Federal Register on 

November 2, 2009 (74 FR 56562), will 

become effective on March 5, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments 

regarding the burden-hour estimates or 

other aspects of the collection-ofinformation requirements contained in 

this final rule may be submitted to the 

Regional Administrator, NMFS 

Northeast Region, 55 Great Republic 

Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930 and by email to DavidlRostker@omb.eop.gov, 

or fax to (202) 395–7285. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Douglas Potts, Fishery Policy Analyst, 

(978) 281–9341, fax (978) 281–9135. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A final 

rule implementing modifications to the 

Gulf of Maine/Georges Bank (GOM/GB) 

Herring Midwater Trawl Gear Letter of 

Authorization (LOA) published in the 

Federal Register on November 2, 2009 

(74 FR 56562). The measures contained 

in the rule were effective upon 

publication, with the exception of new 

requirements for vessel operators to 

complete and submit a CA I Midwater 

Trawl Released Codend Affidavit. 

Because OMB approval of the CA I 

Midwater Trawl Released Codend 

Affidavit had not been received by the 

date the final rule was published, NMFS 

delayed the effective date of the 

associated reporting requirements. 

These reporting requirements were 

detailed in the proposed rule 

(September 4, 2009; 74 FR 45798), with 

public comment accepted through 

September 27, 2009. All comments 

received on the proposed measures were 

addressed in the November 2, 2009, 

final rule and are not repeated here. 

On January 4, 2010, OMB approved, 

without change, the collection-ofinformation contained in the CA I 

Midwater Trawl Released Codend 

Affidavit. Accordingly, effective March 

5, 2010, if a vessel issued an All Areas 

and/or an Areas 2 and 3 Limited Access 

Herring Permit releases a net in CA I 

before the fish can be sampled by the 

observer, the vessel operator must 

complete and sign a CA I Midwater 

Trawl Released Codend Affidavit, as 

specified in §§ 648.14(r)(2)(vii) and 

648.80(d)(7)(iii)(B). The CA I Midwater 

Trawl Released Codend Affidavit form 

includes details of where, when, and 

why the net was released as well as a 

good-faith estimate of both the total 

weight of fish caught on that tow and 

the weight of fish released (if the tow 

had been partially pumped). The 

completed affidavit form must be 

submitted to NMFS within 48 hr of the 

completion of the trip. 

Under NOAA Administrative Order 

205–11, 7.01, dated December 17, 1990, 

the Under Secretary of Oceans and 

Atmosphere has delegated to the 

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 

NOAA, the authority to sign material for 

publication in the Federal Register. 

Classification 

There is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 

§ 553(b)(B) to waive prior notice and an 

opportunity for public comment on this 

action, as notice and comment would be 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest. This reporting requirement was 

detailed in the September 4, 2009, 

proposed rule, with public comments 

accepted through September 27, 2009. 

This reporting requirement was also 

detailed in the November 2, 2009, final 

rule, which also explained that 

implementation of the requirement was 

delayed pending OMB approval of the 

form. Therefore, the public has 

previously been provided with notice of 

this measure and opportunity to 

comment. Providing additional notice 

and comment would further delay the 

collection of bycatch discard 

information. The time required for 

additional notice and public comment 

would likely delay the implementation 

of this reporting requirement past the 

period in early spring when midwater 

trawl vessels have historically fished in 

Closed Area I. If this reporting 

requirement were not in place by that 

time, valuable information on bycatch 

discard would not be collected. The 

New England Fishery Management 

Council has expressed an interest in 

using data collected under this program 

in the current development of 

Amendment 5 to the FMP. 

This final rule has been determined to 

be not significant for purposes of 

Executive Order 12866. 

This final rule contains a new 

collection-of-information requirement 

subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act 

(PRA). The new collection-ofinformation requirement pertaining to 

the CA I Midwater Trawl Released 

Codend Affidavit has been approved by 

OMB under OMB control number 0648– 

0602. Public reporting burden for these 

requirements is estimated to average 5 

min per response, including the time for 

reviewing instructions, searching 

existing data sources, gathering and 

maintaining the data needed, and 

completing and reviewing the collection 

of information. 

Send comments regarding these 

burden estimates or any other aspect of 

this data collection, including 

suggestions for reducing the burden, to 

NMFS at the ADDRESSES above, and email to DavidlRostker@omb.eop.gov, 

or fax to (202) 395–7285. 

Notwithstanding any other provision 

of the law, no person is required to 

respond to, and no person shall be 

subject to penalty for failure to comply 

with, a collection of information subject 

to the requirements of the PRA, unless 

that collection of information displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. 

List of Subjects in 15 CFR Part 902 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

Dated: January 28, 2010. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

■ For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, 15 CFR part 902 is amended 

as follows: 

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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 22 / Wednesday, February 3, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 5499 

PART 902–NOAA INFORMATION 

COLLECTION REQUIREMENTS UNDER 

THE PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT: 

OMB CONTROL NUMBERS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 902 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. 

■ 2. In § 902.1, the table in paragraph (b) 

under 50 CFR is amended by revising 

the existing entries for §§ 648.14 and 

648.80 to read as follows: 

§ 902.1 OMB control number assigned 

pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

CFR part or section 

where the information 

collection requirement 

is located 

Current OMB control 

number (All numbers 

begin with 0648–) 

* * * * * 

50 CFR 

* * * * * 

648.14 –0202, –0212,– 

0469,–0489, –0501, 

–0502, and –0602 

* * * * * 

648.80 –0202, –0422, –0489, 

–0521, and –0602 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2010–2291 Filed 2–2–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Office of Workers’ Compensation 

Programs 

20 CFR Part 10 

RIN 1215–AB66 

Claims for Compensation; Death 

Gratuity Under the Federal Employees’ 

Compensation Act 

AGENCY: Office of Workers’ 

Compensation Programs, Labor. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: On August 18, 2009, the 

Department of Labor (DOL) published 

an interim final rule in order to 

administer the death gratuity created by 

section 1105 of the National Defense 

Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, 

Public Law 110–181. Section 1105 

provides a death gratuity payment to 

eligible survivors of federal employees 

and non-appropriated fund 

instrumentality employees (NAFI 

employees) who die of injuries incurred 

in connection with service with an 

Armed Force in a contingency 

operation. 

Section 1105 amended the Federal 

Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA) 

to add a new section, designated as 

section 8102a. The Secretary of Labor 

has the authority to administer and to 

decide all questions arising under 

FECA. 5 U.S.C. 8145. FECA authorizes 

the Secretary to prescribe rules and 

regulations necessary for the 

administration and enforcement of the 

Act. 5 U.S.C. 8149. The Secretary has 

delegated the authority provided by 5 

U.S.C. 8145 and 8149 to the Director of 

the Office of Workers’ Compensation 

Programs (OWCP), who is responsible 

for the administration and 

implementation of FECA. 20 CFR 1.1. 

Thus OWCP will administer the 

adjudication of claims and the payment 

of the death gratuity under new section 

8102a. 

At the same time the DOL published 

the interim final rule, it also invited 

written comments and advice from 

interested parties regarding possible 

changes to those regulations. This 

document amends the interim final rule 

based on the single comment received 

by the DOL. 

DATES: Effective Date: This final rule is 

effective on April 5, 2010. Applicability 

dates: This final rule will apply to all 

claims filed on or after April 5, 2010. 

This rule will also apply to any claims 

that are pending on April 5, 2010. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Shelby Hallmark, Director, Office of 

Workers’ Compensation Programs, U.S. 

Department of Labor, Room S–3524, 200 

Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, 

DC 20210, Telephone: 202–693–0031 

(this is not a toll-free number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Department of Labor’s (DOL) interim 

final rule governing the administration 

of the death gratuity created by section 

1105 of the National Defense 

Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, 

Public Law 110–181, by the DOL was 

published in the Federal Register on 

August 18, 2009 (74 FR 41617). The rule 

took effect immediately and included a 

60-day period for comment. During the 

comment period, DOL received one 

timely comment from an individual. 

This comment addressed the issue of 

timeliness for retroactive claims under 

§ 10.912, as well as some comments 

regarding what forms should be used 

under §§ 10.903 and 10.911. The DOL’s 

section-by-section analysis of the timely 

comment it received is set forth below. 

I. Comments on the Interim Final Rule 

The section numbers used in the 

headings of the following analysis are 

those that were used in the interim final 

rule. 

Sections 10.903 and 10.911 

The commenter suggested that the 

interim final rule and forms be amended 

to indicate that, for retroactive claims 

under 5 U.S.C. 8102a, claimants would 

not need to submit the new forms CA– 

41 and CA–42 as other forms applied 

during the period prior to enactment of 

the death gratuity benefit on January 28, 

2008 and that those forms be amended 

accordingly. The commenter also 

suggested that, in the alternative, the 

regulations could be amended at 

§§ 10.903 and 10.911 to reference that 

forms CA–5 and CA–6, which are used 

for death benefit claims under the 

FECA, could be used to file for the new 

death gratuity benefit. This comment, 

however, misconstrues the relationship 

between death benefits under the FECA 

and the new death gratuity benefit. 

Specifically, the death gratuity is a new 

benefit that did not exist prior to 

January 28, 2008, which involves 

different burdens of proof, different 

information, and potentially different 

beneficiaries than a claim for death 

benefits under the FECA. The new 

information sought in the new forms is 

required so that the DOL may make a 

proper determination as to eligibility 

under the new death gratuity benefit. 

Therefore, the suggested changes to 

§§ 10.903 and 10.911 have not been 

made. 

Section 10.912 

The commenter also suggested that 

§ 10.912 be modified to indicate that a 

retroactive claim for the new death 

gratuity benefit is timely if a death 

benefit claim is filed for the same death 

within the three-year time limit for 

filing a FECA claim. The DOL notes that 

the regulation specifically covers such a 

situation, in that it states that a claim for 

the new death gratuity benefit is timely 

if it is filed within the time limits 

specified by the FECA pursuant to 5 

U.S.C. 8122. That section of the FECA 

states that a claim for benefits is timely 

if it is filed within three years of the 

date of injury or death. That section 

further states that a claim for disability 

that is timely filed will be a timely filing 

for a death benefit based on the same 

injury. It is the position of the DOL that 

this section covers the circumstances 

noted by the commenter, and that the 

timely filing of a claim for death 

benefits under the FECA is a timely 

filing for a retroactive death gratuity 

benefit. Furthermore, the DOL notes that 

section 8122 of the FECA also states that 

a claim is also timely if an immediate 

supervisor had knowledge of an injury 

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