Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 231 / Tuesday, December 2, 2014 / Notices 71505 

Authority are not currently available in 

the United States. There is no assembly 

or testing facility for HSR trainsets 

operating at speeds greater than 160 

mph in the United States. Moreover, 

FRA estimates that it could take HSR 

trainset manufacturers a minimum of 

one-and-a-half to two years to establish 

the required facilities to support a 

domestic HSR trainset assembly 

capability. This includes any HSR 

trainset manufacturers that currently 

have passenger railcar manufacturing 

facilities in the United States. For 

example, in addition to acquiring 

specialized machinery and training and 

hiring the workforce, these 

manufacturers’ plants are currently 

customized for steel railcars, and HSR 

trainsets use aluminum, which requires 

different manufacturing techniques. 

In addition, Tier III HSR is a 

significant new technology for the U.S. 

market, and safety is a significant factor. 

Allowing final assembly of the 

prototype HSR trainsets at the 

manufacturer’s existing non-domestic 

facilities is necessary to ensure that 

expected safety benefits of ‘‘serviceproven’’ systems are secured, to enable 

training of domestic workers, and to 

assure successful technology transfer. 

For example, rather than attempting to 

establish new manufacturing and 

assembly processes at a domestic 

facility while simultaneously integrating 

and testing HSR trainset designs, the 

selected manufacturer(s) can focus on 

identifying and remedying any defects 

in the designs specific to Amtrak and 

the Authority and their operations in 

the United States. FRA concludes that 

integrating manufacturing, assembly, 

and labor resources into the prototype 

production, among other suggested 

actions by Amtrak and the Authority, 

will facilitate the development of 

domestic HSR production facilities. 

This same ‘‘human technology transfer’’ 

has been successful in other global HSR 

installations in South Korea, China, 

Taiwan, and Spain. 

On March 14, 2014, FRA published 

on its Web site public notice of 

Amtrak’s and the Authority’s waiver 

requests. FRA received 13 online 

comments and one mailed response to 

this notice. None of the commenters 

identified a domestic source for HSR 

trainsets. Of the 14 comments, 10 

commenters indicated they were against 

granting the waiver; four were for 

granting the waiver. Of the 10 comments 

‘‘against,’’ four were not responsive to 

the notice. Of the six remaining 

dissenters, they mainly disagreed with 

Amtrak’s and the Authority’s argument 

that HSR trainsets cannot be delivered 

in a reasonable time because Amtrak 

and the Authority could wait for 

domestic assembly. While this is 

theoretically possible, significant 

capacity and technology transfer 

problems are probable, and FRA 

believes that the one-and-a-half to twoyear minimum delay could negatively 

impact the schedules proposed by 

Amtrak and the Authority. In addition, 

as noted above, FRA believes that 

allowing the prototypes to be assembled 

at the manufacturers’ non-domestic 

factories will facilitate the successful 

technology transfer and training of U.S. 

workers. Finally, because FRA is 

limiting the waivers to final assembly of 

up to four prototypes with the 

expectation that the training of domestic 

resources will occur simultaneously, 

FRA is not delaying or preventing the 

establishment of the selected supplier’s 

domestic assembly facilities. FRA finds 

that this delay to provide ‘‘serviceproven’’ systems makes the prototypes 

not available within a ‘‘reasonable 

time.’’ Therefore, waivers are 

appropriate. 

FRA will publish the letters granting 

Amtrak’s and the Authority’s waiver 

requests on its Web site at: http://

www.fra.dot.gov/eLib/Details/L16035 

and http://www.fra.dot.gov/eLib/

Details/L16036, respectively. 

Issued in Washington, DC on November 26, 

2014. 

Melissa L. Porter, 

Chief Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2014–28365 Filed 12–1–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

November 26, 2014. 

The Department of the Treasury will 

submit the following information 

collection request to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review and clearance in accordance 

with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995, Public Law 104–13, on or after the 

date of publication of this notice. 

DATES: Comments should be received on 

or before January 2, 2015 to be assured 

of consideration. 

ADDRESSES: Send comments regarding 

the burden estimate, or any other aspect 

of the information collection, including 

suggestion for reducing the burden, to 

(1) Office of Information and Regulatory 

Affairs, Office of Management and 

Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for 

Treasury, New Executive Office 

Building, Room 10235, Washington, DC 

20503, or email at OIRA_Submission@

OMB.EOP.GOV and (2) Treasury PRA 

Clearance Officer, 1750 Pennsylvania 

Ave. NW., Suite 8140, Washington, DC 

20220, or email at PRA@treasury.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Copies of the submission(s) may be 

obtained by calling (202) 927–5331, 

email at PRA@treasury.gov, or the entire 

information collection request maybe 

found at www.reginfo.gov. 

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) 

OMB Number: 1545–0003. 

Type of Review: Revision of a 

currently approved collection. 

Title: Forms SS–4—Application for 

Employer Identification Number; SS– 

4PR, Solicitud de Numero de 

Identificacion Patronal (EIN) 

Form: SS–4, SS4–PR 

Abstract: Taxpayers required to have 

an identification number for use on any 

return, statement, or other document 

must prepare and file Form SS–4 or 

Form SS–4–PR (Puerto Rico only) to 

obtain a number. The information is 

used by the IRS and the SSA in tax 

administration and by the Bureau of the 

Census for business statistics. The 

estimated burden has been reduced by 

15,038,797 hours in order to correct an 

error in the previous calculation. 

Affected Public: Private sector: 

Businesses or other For-Profit 

Institutions. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 

903,116. 

OMB Number: 1545–1244. 

Type of Review: Revision of a 

currently approved collection. 

Title: T.D. 9013 Limitation on Passive 

Activity Losses and Credits- Treatment 

on Self-Charged Items of Income and 

Expense. 

Abstract: These regulations provide 

guidance on the treatment of selfcharged items of income and expense 

under section 469. The regulations recharacterize a percentage of certain 

portfolio income and expense as passive 

income and expense (self-charged items) 

when a taxpayer engages in a lending 

transaction with a partnership or an S 

corporation (passthrough entity) in 

which the taxpayer owns a direct or 

indirect interest and the loan proceeds 

are used in a passive activity. Similar 

rules apply to lending transactions 

between two identically owned 

passthrough entities. These final 

regulations affect taxpayers subject to 

the limitations on passive activity losses 

and credits. There is a reduction in 50 

hours to the annual estimate to correct 

an error in the previous calculation. 

Affected Public: Private sector: 

Business or other for-profits. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 100. 


rljohnson on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
71506 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 231 / Tuesday, December 2, 2014 / Notices 

OMB Number: 1545–1424. 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection. 

Title: Form 1099–C—Cancellation of 

Debt 

Form: 1099–C 

Abstract: Form 1099–C is used for 

reporting canceled debt, as required by 

section 6050P of the Internal Revenue 

Code. It is used to verify that debtors are 

correctly reporting their income. 

Affected Public: Private Sector: 

Businesses or other For-Profit 

Institutions. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 

854,892. 

OMB Number: 1545–1491. 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection. 

Title: T.D. 8746—Amortizable Bond 

Premium. 

Abstract: This regulation addresses 

the tax treatment of bond premium. The 

regulation provides that a holder may 

make an election to amortize bond 

premium by offsetting interest income 

with bond premium, and the holder 

must attach a statement to their tax 

return providing certain information. 

The regulation also provides that a 

taxpayer may receive automatic consent 

to change its method of accounting for 

premium provided the taxpayer attaches 

a statement to its tax return. The 

information requested is necessary for 

the IRS to determine whether an issuer 

or a holder has changed its method of 

accounting for premium. 

Affected Public: Private sector: 

Business or other for-profits. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 7,500. 

Robert Dahl, 

Treasury PRA Clearance Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2014–28359 Filed 12–1–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4830–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

[OMB Control No. 2900–0085] 

Proposed Information Collection 

(Appeal to Board of Veterans’ Appeals) 

Activity Comment Request 

AGENCY: Board of Veterans’ Appeals, 

Department of Veterans Affairs. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Board of Veterans’ 

Appeals (BVA), Department of Veterans 

Affairs (VA), is announcing an 

opportunity for public comment on the 

proposed collection of certain 

information by the agency. Under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 

1995, Federal agencies are required to 

publish notice in the Federal Register 

concerning each proposed collection of 

information, including each proposed 

revision of a currently approved 

collection, and allow 60 days for public 

comment in response to the notice. This 

notice solicits comments on the 

information needed to process appeals 

for denial of VA benefits. 

DATES: Written comments and 

recommendations on the proposed 

collection of information should be 

received on or before February 2, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments 

on the collection of information through 

the Federal Docket Management System 

(FDMS) at www.Regulations.gov or to 

Sue Hamlin, Board of Veterans’ Appeals 

(01C2), Department of Veterans Affairs, 

810 Vermont Avenue NW., Washington, 

DC 20420 or email sue.hamlin@va.gov. 

Please refer to ‘‘OMB Control No. 2900– 

0085’’ in any correspondence. During 

the comment period, comments may be 

viewed online through FDMS. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sue 

Hamlin at (202) 632–5100. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the 

PRA of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–13; 44 U.S.C. 

3501–3521), Federal agencies must 

obtain approval from the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for each 

collection of information they conduct 

or sponsor. This request for comment is 

being made pursuant to Section 

3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA. 

With respect to the following 

collection of information, BVA invites 

comments on: (1) Whether the proposed 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of BVA’s 

functions, including whether the 

information will have practical utility; 

(2) the accuracy of BVA’s estimate of the 

burden of the proposed collection of 

information; (3) ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information to be collected; and (4) 

ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on 

respondents, including through the use 

of automated collection techniques or 

the use of other forms of information 

technology. 

Titles: 

a. Appeal to Board of Veterans’ 

Appeals, VA Form 9. 

b. Withdrawal of Services by a 

Representative. 

c. Request for Changes in Hearing 

Date. 

d. Motions for Reconsideration. 

OMB Control Number: 2900–0085. 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection. 

Abstract: 

a. Appeal to Board of Veterans’ 

Appeals, VA Form 9, may be used by 

appellants to complete their appeal to 

the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA) 

from a denial of VA benefits. The 

information is used by BVA to identify 

the issues in dispute and prepare a 

decision responsive to the appellant’s 

contentions and the legal and factual 

issues raised. 

b. Withdrawal of Services by a 

Representative: When the appellant’s 

representative withdraws from a case, 

both the appellant and the BVA must be 

informed so that the appellant’s rights 

may be adequately protected and so that 

the BVA may meet its statutory 

obligations to provide notice to the 

current representative. 

c. Request for Changes in Hearing 

Date: VA provides hearings to 

appellants and their representatives, as 

required by basic Constitutional dueprocess and by Title 38 U.S.C. 7107(b). 

From time to time, hearing dates and/or 

times are changed, hearing requests 

withdrawn and new hearings requested 

after failure to appear at a scheduled 

hearing. The information is used to 

comply with the appellants’ or their 

representatives’ requests. 

d. Motions for Reconsideration: 

Decisions by BVA are final unless the 

Chairman orders reconsideration of the 

decision either on the Chairman’s 

initiative, or upon motion of a claimant. 

The Board Chairman, or his designee, 

uses the information provided in 

deciding whether reconsideration of a 

Board decision should be granted. 

Affected Public: Individuals or 

households, Business or other for profit, 

and Not for profit institutions. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 

a. Appeal to Board of Veterans’ 

Appeals, VA Form 9—50,941 hours. 

b. Withdrawal of Services by a 

Representative—183 hours. 

c. Request for Changes in Hearing 

Date—1,343 hours. 

d. Motions for Reconsideration—642 

hours. 

Estimated Average Burden Per 

Respondent: 

a. Appeal to Board of Veterans’ 

Appeals, VA Form 9—1 hour. 

b. Withdrawal of Services by a 

Representative—20 minutes. 

c. Request for Changes in Hearing 

Date—15 minutes (hearing date change), 

15 minutes (request to withdraw a 

hearing),—1 hour (requests change a 

motion). 

d. Motions for Reconsideration—1 

hour. 

Frequency of Response: On occasion. 

Estimated Total Number of 

Respondents: 

a. Appeal to Board of Veterans’ 

Appeals, VA Form 9—50,941 

b. Withdrawal of Services by a 

Representative—550. 


rljohnson on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES