Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 213 / Thursday, November 4, 2010 / Notices 67965 

II. Background 

A. What action is the agency taking? 

EPA is announcing the availability of 

a draft guidance document titled, 

‘‘Weight-of-Evidence Guidance 

Document: Evaluating Results of EDSP 

Tier 1 Screening to Identify Candidate 

Chemicals for Tier 2 Testing.’’ This 

document invites the public to review 

and comment on the guidance 

document, which is available 

electronically at regulations.gov (http:// 

www.regulations.gov) using docket ID 

number EPA–HQ–OPPT–2010–0877 

and the EDSP Web site http:// 

www.epa.gov/endo. 

This document was prepared to 

provide a transparent, scientific 

approach to set forth some general 

principles, criteria, and considerations 

EPA generally believes to be relevant 

using a WoE approach to evaluate data 

submitted as part of EPA’s EDSP 

involving a battery of validated Tier 1 

screening assays as described in a notice 

published in the Federal Register issue 

of October 21, 2009 (74 FR 54415) (FRL– 

8432–6). The criteria discussed in this 

document are based, in part, on EPA’s 

experience in developing and applying 

risk assessment guidelines involving 

cancer, reproductive and developmental 

toxicity, and ecological toxicity. 

Important considerations include the 

use of expert judgment formed through 

the scientific process, current 

understanding of endocrine 

mechanisms of toxicity, and knowledge 

of other fields of toxicology (e.g., 

developmental, reproductive, 

neurological and immunological 

toxicology, and toxicokinetics). 

Principles articulated in this document 

are equally applicable to a WoE 

evaluation of data from individual 

assays with multiple endpoints, as well 

as across the whole suite of assays in the 

EDSP Tier 1 screening battery. In 

addition, these principles would be 

generally applicable to the review of 

other scientifically relevant information 

(OSRI) submitted in response to test 

orders that request OSRI to be 

considered in lieu of designated 

screening assays in the Tier 1 battery. 

In general, the EDSP is a two-tiered 

paradigm for screening and testing 

chemicals with the potential to interact 

with the endocrine system. Tier 1 

screening consists of a battery of 

complementary in vitro and short term 

in vivo assays designed to maximize 

sensitivity for detecting interactions 

with the E, A, and/or T hormonal 

systems; whereas, Tier 2 testing consists 

of a group of individual in vivo tests 

designed to include males and females 

with an intact hypothalamic-pituitarygonadal axis, multiple pathways of 

exposure and life-stages, and various 

taxa to further identify and characterize 

chemical-induced interactions with E, 

A, and/or T for risk assessment. The 

diversity in endocrine endpoints within 

and among the Tier 1 screening assays 

is expected to provide corroborating 

information and support a WoE 

evaluation to yield a decision as to 

whether or not the chemical indentified 

in Tier 1 requires additional testing in 

Tier 2. 

B. What is the agency’s authority for 

taking this action? 

Section 408(p) of FFDCA requires 

EPA to ‘‘develop a screening program, 

using appropriate validated test systems 

and other scientifically relevant 

information, to determine whether 

certain substances may have an effect in 

humans that is similar to an effect 

produced by a naturally occurring 

estrogen, or such other endocrine effect 

as [EPA] may designate.’’ (21 U.S.C. 

346a(p)). The statute generally requires 

EPA to ‘‘provide for the testing of all 

pesticide chemicals.’’ (21 U.S.C. 

346a(p)(3)). ‘‘Pesticide chemical’’ is 

defined as ‘‘any substance that is a 

pesticide within the meaning of the 

Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 

Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), including all 

active and inert ingredients of such 

pesticide.’’ (21 U.S.C. 321(q)(1)). 

List of Subjects 

Environmental protection, Endocrine 

disruptors, Screening assays, Weight-ofevidence. 

Dated: October 27, 2010. 

Stephen A. Owens, 

Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical 

Safety and Pollution Prevention. 

[FR Doc. 2010–27897 Filed 11–3–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[FRL–9220–9] 

Announcement of Local Government 

Advisory Committee Members 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency announces that 

Administrator Lisa P. Jackson has 

appointed 29 local, State, and Tribal 

elected and appointed officials from 

across the country to serve on the EPA’s 

Local Government Advisory Committee 

(LGAC). The Committee’s purpose will 

be to give advice and recommendations 

on a broad range of environmental 

issues affecting local governments. 

These new appointments include: 

Mayors (Large Cities) 

Phil Gordon, Mayor, Phoenix, 

Arizona. 

John W. Hickenlooper, Mayor, 

Denver, Colorado. 

Mayors (Moderate Sized Cities) 

Jennifer Hosterman, Mayor, 

Pleasanton, California. 

Terry Bellamy, Mayor, Asheville, 

North Carolina. 

Elizabeth Kautz, Mayor, Burnsville, 

Minnesota. 

Teresa Coons, Mayor, Grand Junction, 

Colorado. 

Dana L. Redd, Mayor, Camden, New 

Jersey. 

Mayors (Small Cities and Towns) 

Bob Dixson, Mayor, Greensburg, 

Kansas. 

Marilyn Murrell, Mayor, Arcadia, 

Oklahoma. 

Ronald K. Davis, Mayor, Prichard, 

Alabama. 

Adam Ortiz, Mayor, Edmonston, 

Maryland. 

Heather McTeer Hudson, Mayor, 

Greenville, Mississippi. 

Carolyn Peterson, Mayor, Ithaca, New 

York. 

Lisa A.Wong, Mayor, Fitchburg, 

Massachusetts. 

David W. Smith, Mayor, Newark, 

California. 

Tribal (Elected and Appointed) 

Steve Ortiz, Chairman Prairie Band 

Potawatomi Nation, Kansas. 

Aaron Miles, Manager at Nez Perce 

Tribe, Idaho. 

Commonwealth 

Evelyn Delereme Camacho, Mayor, 

Municipality of Vieques, Puerto Rico. 

County Executive 

Tom Hickner, County Executive, Bay 

County, Michigan. 

County Commissioners 

*Dave Somers, Councilor, Snohomish 

County, Washington. 

Robert Cope, Commissioner, Lemhi 

County, Idaho. 

Salud Carbajal, Supervisor, Santa 

Barbara County, California. 

Conservation Districts 

Jeffrey Tiberi, Director of Montana 

Association of Conservation Districts, 

Helena, Montana. 

City Councilmember 

Jill Duson, Councilor, Portland, 

Maine. 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
67966 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 213 / Thursday, November 4, 2010 / Notices 

State Elected Officials 

Mary Margaret Whipple, State 

Senator, Commonwealth of Virginia. 

Chris Ross, State Representative 158th 

District, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. 

County Judge 

Edward M. Emmett, Harris County 

Judge, Houston, Texas. 

Appointed Officials 

Dr. Hector Gonzalez, Director, Laredo, 

Texas Health Dept. 

Susan Hann, Deputy City Manager, 

Palm Bay, Florida 

(*Formerly served one term on 

LGAC). 

If you desire further information go to: 

at http://www.epa.gov/ocir/scas or 

contact the Designated Federal Officer 

(DFO), Eargle.Frances@epa.gov. 

Dated: October 29, 2010. 

Frances Eargle, 

Designated Federal Officer, Local Government 

Advisory Committee. 

[FR Doc. 2010–27877 Filed 11–3–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[FRL–9220–4] 

Notice of a Project Waiver of Section 

1605 (Buy American Requirement) of 

the American Recovery and 

Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) to 

the Town of Taos, NM 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Regional Administrator 

of EPA Region 6 is hereby granting a 

project waiver of the Buy American 

requirements of ARRA Section 1605 

under the authority of Section 

1605(b)(2) [manufactured goods are not 

produced in the United States in 

sufficient and reasonably available 

quantities and of a satisfactory quality] 

to the Town of Taos (‘‘Taos’’) for the 

purchase of 40 lb/yd American Society 

of Civil Engineers (ASCE) crane railing, 

which is part of the overhead bridge 

crane, proposed for the expansion of its 

existing Wastewater Treatment Plant 

(WWTP). The 40 lb/yd ASCE crane 

railing is manufactured by companies 

located in foreign countries and no 

United States manufacturer produces an 

alternative that meets Taos’ technical 

specifications. This is a project specific 

waiver and only applies to the use of the 

specified product for the ARRA funded 

project being proposed. Any other 

ARRA project that may wish to use the 

same product must apply for a separate 

waiver based on the specific project 

circumstances. The Regional 

Administrator is making this 

determination based on the review and 

recommendations of the EPA Region 6, 

Water Quality Protection Division. Taos 

has provided sufficient documentation 

to support its request. 

The Assistant Administrator of the 

EPA’s Office of Administration and 

Resources Management has concurred 

on this decision to make an exception 

to Section 1605 of ARRA. This action 

permits the purchase of 40 lb/yd ASCE 

crane railing not manufactured in 

America, for the proposed project being 

implemented by Taos. 

DATES: Effective Date: October 18, 2010. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Nasim Jahan, Buy American 

Coordinator, (214) 665–7522, SRF & 

Projects Section, Water Quality 

Protection Division, U.S. EPA Region 6, 

1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, Texas 75202– 

2733. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 

accordance with ARRA Section 1605(c), 

EPA hereby provides notice that it is 

granting a project waiver of the 

requirements of Section 1605(a) of 

Public Law 111–5, Buy American 

requirements, to Taos for the acquisition 

of 40 lb/yd ASCE crane railing that will 

be part of the overhead bridge crane for 

the WWTP. 

Section 1605 of the ARRA requires 

that none of the appropriated funds may 

be used for the construction, alteration, 

maintenance, or repair of a public 

building or public work unless all of the 

iron, steel, and manufactured goods 

used in the project are produced in the 

United States unless a waiver is 

provided to the recipient by EPA. A 

waiver may be provided if EPA 

determines that (1) applying these 

requirements would be inconsistent 

with public interest; (2) iron, steel, and 

the relevant manufactured goods are not 

produced in the United States in 

sufficient and reasonably available 

quantities and of a satisfactory quality; 

or (3) inclusion of iron, steel, and the 

relevant manufactured goods produced 

in the United States will increase the 

cost of the overall project by more than 

25 percent. 

Taos’ waiver request is to allow the 

purchase of a 40lb/yd ASCE crane 

railing that will be part of the overhead 

bridge crane for the WWTP in Taos, 

New Mexico. Taos has provided 

information to the EPA demonstrating 

that there is no 40 lb/yd ASCE crane 

railing manufactured in the United 

States in sufficient and reasonable 

quantity and of a satisfactory quality to 

meet the required technical 

specification. The United States stopped 

producing 40lb/yd rail at the turn of 

20th Century due to increases in weight 

demand on railroads. The ASCE 

designed a load limit for railroad tracks 

that severely limited the quantity of rail 

less than 80 lb/yd being produced. Taos 

has also indicated that Steel of West 

Virginia is a steel mill that produces 

rails for the mining industry and this 

manufacturer’s product does not meet 

ASCE standards and therefore cannot be 

used in this project. 

Based on additional research 

conducted by EPA Region 6, there does 

not appear to be any domestic crane rail 

manufacturer that would meet Taos’ 

technical specifications. EPA’s national 

contractor prepared a technical 

assessment report based on the waiver 

request submittal. The report confirmed 

the waiver applicant’s claim that there 

is no American-made 40 lb/yd crane 

railing available for the overhead bridge 

crane for use in the proposed WWTP. 

EPA has determined that the City’s 

waiver request may be treated as timely 

even though the request was made after 

the construction contract was signed. 

Consistent with the direction of the 

OMB Guidance at 2 CFR 176.120, EPA 

has evaluated the City’s request to 

determine if the request constitutes a 

late request. EPA will generally regard 

waiver requests with respect to 

components that were specified in the 

bid solicitation or in a general/primary 

construction contract as ‘‘late’’ if 

submitted after the contract date. 

However, in this case EPA has 

determined that the City’s request, 

though made after the contract date, 

may be treated as timely. This request 

is submitted after the contract date 

because the crane rail, according to the 

project specifications, must be designed 

by a qualified supplier. The supplier 

provided this information through 

contractor submittals. The need for a 

waiver was not determined until after 

the supplier of the overhead bridge 

crane confirmed that there was no 

domestically made 40 lb/yd crane 

railing available to meet the project 

specifications. Accordingly, EPA will 

evaluate the request as a timely request. 

The April 28, 2009 EPA HQ 

Memorandum, Implementation of Buy 

American provisions of Public Law 

111–5, the ‘‘American Recovery and 

Reinvestment Act of 2009’’, defines 

reasonably available quantity as ‘‘the 

quantity of iron, steel, or relevant 

manufactured good is available or will 

be available at the time needed and 

place needed, and in the proper form or 

specification as specified in the project 

plans and design.’’ Taos has 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES