78932 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 250 / Wednesday, December 31, 2014 / Notices 

17 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). 

18 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6). 

19 In addition, Rule 19b–4(f)(6)(iii) requires the 

Exchange to give the Commission written notice of 

the Exchange’s intent to file the proposed rule 

change, along with a brief description and text of 

the proposed rule change, at least five business days 

prior to the date of filing of the proposed rule 

change, or such shorter time as designated by the 

Commission. The Exchange has satisfied this 

requirement. 

20 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f)(6)(iii). 

21For purposes only of waiving the operative 

delay for this proposal, the Commission has 

considered the proposed rule’s impact on 

efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 

15 U.S.C. 78c(f). 

22 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(C). 

23 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

1 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1). 

2 17 CFR 240.19b–4. 

Exchange believes that extending the 

operation of the NMM Pilot will 

enhance competition among liquidity 

providers and thereby improve 

execution quality on the Exchange. The 

Exchange will continue to monitor the 

efficacy of the program during the 

proposed extended pilot period. 

Finally, the Exchange notes that it 

operates in a highly competitive market 

in which market participants can 

readily favor competing venues. In such 

an environment, the Exchange must 

continually review, and consider 

adjusting the services it offers and the 

requirements it imposes to remain 

competitive with other U.S. equity 

exchanges. For the reasons described 

above, the Exchange believes that the 

proposed rule change reflects this 

competitive environment. 

C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement on Comments on the 

Proposed Rule Change Received From 

Members, Participants, or Others 

No written comments were solicited 

or received with respect to the proposed 

rule change. 

III. Date of Effectiveness of the 

Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 

Commission Action 

The foregoing rule change has become 

effective pursuant to section 19(b)(3)(A) 

of the Act 17 and Rule 19b–4(f)(6) 18

thereunder because the proposal does 

not: (i) Significantly affect the 

protection of investors or the public 

interest; (ii) impose any significant 

burden on competition; and (iii) by its 

terms, become operative for 30 days 

from the date on which it was filed, or 

such shorter time as the Commission 

may designate if consistent with the 

protection of investors and the public 

interest.19

A proposed rule change filed under 

Rule 19b–4(f)(6) normally may not 

become operative prior to 30 days after 

the date of filing. However, Rule 19b– 

4(f)(6)(iii) 20 permits the Commission to 

designate a shorter time if such action 

is consistent with the protection of 

investors and the public interest. The 

Exchange has requested that the 

Commission waive the 30-day operative 

delay period so that the proposal may 

become operative before the pilot’s 

expiration. The Exchange stated that an 

immediate operative date is necessary in 

order to immediately implement the 

proposed rule change so that member 

organizations could continue to benefit 

from the pilot program without 

interruption after December 31, 2014. 

The Commission believes that waiver 

of the 30-day operative delay period is 

consistent with the protection of 

investors and the public interest. 

Specifically, the Commission believes 

that the proposal would allow the pilot 

to continue uninterrupted, thereby 

avoiding any potential investor 

confusion that could result from the 

temporary interruption in the pilot 

program. For these reasons, the 

Commission believes that waiving the 

30-day operative delay is consistent 

with the protection of investors and the 

public interest, and designates the 

proposed rule change to be operative on 

December 31, 2014.21

At any time within 60 days of the 

filing of the proposed rule change, the 

Commission summarily may 

temporarily suspend such rule change if 

it appears to the Commission that such 

action is necessary or appropriate in the 

public interest, for the protection of 

investors, or otherwise in furtherance of 

the purposes of the Act.22

IV. Solicitation of Comments 

Interested persons are invited to 

submit written data, views, and 

arguments concerning the foregoing, 

including whether the proposed rule 

change is consistent with the Act. 

Comments may be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

Electronic Comments 

• Use the Commission’s Internet 

comment form (http://www.sec.gov/

rules/sro.shtml); or 

• Send an email to rule-comments@

sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– 

NYSE–2014–71 on the subject line. 

Paper Comments 

• Send paper comments in triplicate 

to Secretary, Securities and Exchange 

Commission, 100 F Street NE., 

Washington, DC 20549–1090. 

All submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–NYSE–2014–71. This file 

number should be included on the 

subject line if email is used. To help the 

Commission process and review your 

comments more efficiently, please use 

only one method. The Commission will 

post all comments on the Commission’s 

Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/

rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the 

submission, all subsequent 

amendments, all written statements 

with respect to the proposed rule 

change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be 

available for Web site viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room, 100 F Street NE., 

Washington, DC 20549, on official 

business days between the hours of 

10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of such 

filing also will be available for 

inspection and copying at the principal 

office of the Exchange. All comments 

received will be posted without change; 

the Commission does not edit personal 

identifying information from 

submissions. You should submit only 

information that you wish to make 

available publicly. All submissions 

should refer to File Number SR–NYSE– 

2014–71 and should be submitted on or 

before January 21, 2015. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.23

Kevin M. O’Neill, 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2014–30587 Filed 12–30–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE 

COMMISSION 

[Release No. 34–73930; File No. SR–BATS– 

2014–072] 

Self-Regulatory Organizations; BATS 

Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing and 

Immediate Effectiveness of a Proposed 

Rule Change Related to Fees of BATS 

Exchange, Inc. 

December 23, 2014. 

Pursuant to section 19(b)(1) of the 

Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the 

‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2

notice is hereby given that on December 

17, 2014, BATS Exchange, Inc. (the 

‘‘Exchange’’ or ‘‘BATS’’) filed with the 

Securities and Exchange Commission 

(‘‘Commission’’) the proposed rule 

change as described in Items I, II, and 

III below, which Items have been 

prepared by the Exchange. The 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 250 / Wednesday, December 31, 2014 / Notices 78933 

3CLP Fee is defined in Interpretation and Policy 

.03(a) to BATS Rule 11.8. 

4CLP Security is defined in Interpretation and 

Policy .03(b)(3) to BATS Rule 11.8. 

5CLP Rebate is defined in Interpretation and 

Policy .03(a) to BATS Rule 11.8. 

6ETP CLP is defined in Interpretation and Policy 

.03(b)(1) to BATS Rule 11.8. 

7See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 65225 

(August 30, 2011), 76 FR 55148 (September 6, 2011) 

(SR–BATS–2011–018). 

8As defined in BATS Rules, the term ‘‘Market 

Maker’’ means a Member that acts a as a market 

maker pursuant to Chapter XI of BATS Rules. 

9ETP is defined in Interpretation and Policy 

.03(b)(4) to Rule 11.8. 

10See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 72692 

(July 28, 2014), 79 FR 44908 (August 1, 2014) (SR– 

BATS–2014–022). 

11Sponsor is defined in Interpretation and Policy 

.03(b)(5) to Rule 11.8. 

12CLP Company is defined in Interpretation and 

Policy .03(b)(2) to Rule 11.8. 

13The standards for a quality market include, for 

example, posting at least five round lots in a CLP 

Security at the NBB or NBO at the time of a SET 

in order to have a Winning Bid SET or Winning 

Offer SET, respectively, as well as requiring that a 

CLP is quoting at least a round lot at a price at or 

within 1.2% of the CLP’s bid (offer) at the time of 

the SET in order to have a Winning Bid (Offer) Set. 

The two CLPs that have the most Winning Bid SETs 

and the two Eligible CLPs with the most Winning 

Offer SETs in a given CLP Security will split the 

CLP Credit on a pro-rata basis. See Interpretation 

and Policy .03(i) to Rule 11.8. 

14Eligible ETP CLP is defined in Interpretation 

and Policy .03(i)(1)(A) to Rule 11.8. 

15Bid SET Credits is defined in Interpretation and 

Policy .03(i)(1) to Rule 11.8. 

16Offer SET Credits is defined in Interpretation 

and Policy .03(i)(1) to Rule 11.8. 

17See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 61330 

(January 12 2010), 75 FR 2896 (January 19, 2010) 

(SR–NYSEArca–2009–106). Listing fees for ETPs 

eligible to participate in the lead market maker 

program start at $5,000 annually. 

Commission is publishing this notice to 

solicit comments on the proposed rule 

change from interested persons. 

I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Terms of the Substance 

of the Proposed Rule Change 

The Exchange filed a proposal to 

amend Interpretation and Policy .03 to 

Rule 11.8 entitled ‘‘Competitive 

Liquidity Provider Program for 

Exchange Traded Products,’’ in order to 

reduce the annual basic CLP Fee 3 for 

CLP Securities 4 and to allow for the 

allocation of the daily CLP Rebate 5 to a 

third ETP CLP 6 in certain CLP 

Securities. 

The text of the proposed rule change 

is available at the Exchange’s Web site 

at http://www.batstrading.com/, at the 

principal office of the Exchange, and at 

the Commission’s Public Reference 

Room. 

II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Purpose of, and 

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule 

Change 

In its filing with the Commission, the 

Exchange included statements 

concerning the purpose of and basis for 

the proposed rule change and discussed 

any comments it received on the 

proposed rule change. The text of these 

statements may be examined at the 

places specified in Item IV below. The 

Exchange has prepared summaries, set 

forth in sections A, B, and C below, of 

the most significant parts of such 

statements. 

A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement of the Purpose of, and 

Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule 

Change 

1. Purpose 

On August 30, 2011, the Exchange 

received approval of rules applicable to 

the qualification, listing and delisting of 

securities of issuers on the Exchange.7

More recently, the Exchange received 

approval to operate a pilot program that 

is designed to incentivize certain Market 

Makers 8 registered with the Exchange 

as CLPs to enhance liquidity on the 

Exchange in certain ETPs 9 listed on the 

Exchange and thereby qualify to receive 

part of a daily rebate (the ‘‘CLP 

Program’’) under Interpretation and 

Policy .03 to Rule 11.8.10

Currently, under the CLP Program, a 

Sponsor 11 may pay an annual basic fee 

of $10,000 (a ‘‘Basic CLP Fee’’) and a 

supplemental fee, which, combined 

with the Basic Fee shall not exceed 

$100,000 (a ‘‘Supplemental CLP Fee,’’ 

or, when combined with the Basic CLP 

Fee, the ‘‘CLP Fees’’), in order for the 

CLP Company,12 on behalf of a CLP 

Security, to participate in the CLP 

Program. Such CLP Fees are credited to 

the BATS General Fund. The Exchange 

then pays the CLP Rebate out of the 

BATS General Fund in order to 

incentivize CLPs in the CLP Security to 

quote aggressively in the CLP Security 

by providing a CLP Rebate to one or 

more CLPs that make a quality market 

in the CLP Security pursuant to the 

Program.13

The Exchange currently allocates the 

daily CLP Rebates to Eligible ETP 

CLPs 14 as follows: (i) The ETP CLPs 

with the highest and second highest 

number of Bid SET Credits 15 will 

receive 60% and 40%, respectively, of 

half of the daily CLP Rebate for the CLP 

Security; and (ii) the ETP CLPs with the 

highest and second highest number of 

Offer SET Credits 16 will receive 60% 

and 40%, respectively, of half of the 

daily CLP Rebate for the CLP Security. 

Where there is only one Eligible ETP 

CLP for the bid or offer portion of the 

CLP Rebate, 100% of that half of the 

rebate will be provided to such ETP 

CLP. 

The Exchange is proposing to make 

two changes to the CLP Program in this 

filing. First, the Exchange is proposing 

to amend Interpretation and Policy 

.03(d)(2)(A) in order to reduce the Basic 

CLP Fee from $10,000 to $5,000. The 

Exchange is proposing to lower the 

Basic CLP Fee to $5,000 in order to 

allow ETP issuers to participate in the 

CLP Program for the same price that 

they are able to participate in the lead 

market maker program on NYSE Arca, 

Inc. (‘‘Arca’’).17

Second, the Exchange is proposing to 

amend Interpretation and Policy 

.03(m)(1) in order to adjust the 

allocation of the daily CLP Rebate where 

the CLP Fees are equal to or greater than 

$40,000. Specifically, the Exchange is 

proposing to allocate the daily CLP 

Rebates to Eligible ETP CLPs as follows: 

For CLP Securities in which the CLP 

Fees are equal to or greater than 

$40,000, the ETP CLPs with the highest, 

second highest, and third highest 

number of Bid (Offer) SET Credits will 

receive 50%, 30%, and 20%, 

respectively, of half of the daily CLP 

Rebate for the CLP Security; where there 

are only two Eligible ETP CLPs, the ETP 

CLPs with the highest and second 

highest number of Bid (Offer) SET 

Credits will receive 60% and 40%, 

respectively, of half of the daily CLP 

Rebate for the CLP Security. The 

Exchange is not proposing to change the 

current allocation for CLP Securities 

where the CLP Fees are less than 

$40,000. The Exchange is also not 

proposing to amend the existing 

allocation where a single ETP CLP will 

receive 100% of the bid or offer portion 

of the CLP Rebate where that ETP CLP 

is the only Eligible ETP CLP. The 

Exchange notes that no ETPs listed on 

the Exchange have CLP Fees equal to or 

greater than $40,000. 

The Exchange is also proposing to 

make a corresponding non-substantive 

change to Interpretation and Policy 

.03(m)(1) to Rule 11.8 in order to move 

the current ‘‘**’’ which refers readers to 

the definition of Size Event Tests to the 

first reference to Size Event Tests, 

which is included in the new language 

regarding the allocation of CLP Rebates 

in CLP Securities in which the CLP Fees 

are equal to or greater than $40,000. 

2. Statutory Basis 

The Exchange believes that its 

proposal is consistent with the 

requirements of the Act and the rules 

and regulations thereunder that are 

applicable to a national securities 

exchange, and, in particular, with the 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

78934 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 250 / Wednesday, December 31, 2014 / Notices 

18 15 U.S.C. 78f(b). 

19 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5). 

20 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A). 

21 17 CFR 240.19b–4(f). 

requirements of section 6(b) of the 

Act.18 In particular, the proposal is 

consistent with section 6(b)(4) and 

6(b)(5) of the Act,19 because it would 

provide for the equitable allocation of 

reasonable dues, fees, and other charges 

among Members and issuers and other 

persons using any facility or system 

which the Exchange operates or 

controls, and it is designed to promote 

just and equitable principles of trade, 

remove impediments to, and perfect the 

mechanism of, a free and open market 

and a national market system, and in 

general, to protect investors and the 

public interest. 

The goal of the CLP Program is to 

incentivize Members to make highquality, liquid markets, which supports 

the primary goal of the Act to promote 

the development of a resilient and 

efficient national market system. Along 

with furthering these goals, reducing the 

Basic CLP Fee to $5,000 is reasonable, 

equitable, and not unfairly 

discriminatory because it will be 

applied equally to all issuers of ETPs 

and will lower the financial burden for 

such ETPs to participate in and reap the 

benefits of the CLP Program. As noted 

above, $5,000 is also the minimum 

listing fee for ETPs listed on Arca to 

participate in the Arca lead market 

maker program. By aligning the pricing 

for the CLP Program with that of Arca, 

the Exchange believes that it will 

provide a better trading environment for 

investors and ETPs, and generally 

encourage greater competition between 

listing venues by allowing the Exchange 

to provide a program designed to 

enhance liquidity and market quality for 

the same price as a comparable program 

on Arca. 

The Exchange also believes that 

allocating CLP Rebates among three ETP 

CLPs instead of two where the CLP Fees 

are equal to or greater than $40,000 will 

enhance quote competition, improve 

liquidity on the Exchange, support the 

quality of price discovery, promote 

market transparency, and increase 

competition for listings and trade 

executions, while reducing spreads and 

transaction costs in such securities. 

Maintaining and increasing liquidity in 

Exchange-listed securities will help 

raise investors’ confidence in the 

fairness of the market and their 

transactions. Applying such allocation 

only to CLP Securities with CLP Fees 

greater than $40,000 is reasonable, 

equitable, and not unfairly 

discriminatory because the Exchange 

has determined, in consultation with 

issuers and Market Makers, that $40,000 

is an appropriate level at which adding 

a third ETP CLP and reducing the 

percentage of the daily CLP Rebates 

allocated to the first and second ETP 

CLPs by 10% each would not be 

excessively dilutive while still 

providing a meaningful incentive for the 

third ETP CLP. As noted above, there 

are currently no ETPs with CLP Fees 

greater than $40,000, meaning that the 

proposed change would not represent a 

change to any ETPs currently listed on 

the Exchange. 

Finally, the Exchange believes that 

the corresponding non-substantive 

change is reasonable as it will help to 

avoid confusion for those that review 

the Exchange’s rules. The Exchange 

notes that this proposed change is not 

designed to amend any fees or rebates, 

nor alter the manner in which it 

assesses fees or calculates rebates. The 

Exchange believes that the proposed 

amendment is intended to make the 

Exchange’s rules more clear and less 

confusing for potential investors and 

eliminate potential investor confusion, 

thereby removing impediments to and 

perfecting the mechanism of a free and 

open market and a national market 

system, and, in general, protecting 

investors and the public interest. 

B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement on Burden on Competition 

The Exchange does not believe that 

the proposed rule change will result in 

any burden on competition that is not 

necessary or appropriate in furtherance 

of the purposes of the Act, as amended. 

To the contrary, the Exchange believes 

that the proposal will increase 

competition in both the listings market 

and in competition for market makers. 

The proposed reduction of the Basic 

CLP Fee will promote competition in 

the listings market by lowering the cost 

of participation in the CLP Program. 

Further, $5,000 is the same annual base 

fee that Arca charges listed ETPs that 

are participating in the Arca lead market 

maker program. As such, lowering the 

Basic CLP Fee to $5,000 will better 

enable the Exchange to compete as a 

listing venue. 

The Exchange also believes that the 

proposed changes will enhance 

competition among participants by 

creating incentives for more market 

makers to compete to make better 

quality markets. By allowing an 

additional ETP CLP to receive a portion 

of the daily CLP Rebates where CLP 

Fees equal or exceed $40,000, the 

Exchange believes that competition for 

the CLP Rebates will be enhanced, 

Market Makers will be further 

incentivized to become an ETP CLP, and 

the quality of quotes on the Exchange 

will improve. This, in turn, will attract 

more liquidity to the Exchange and 

further improve the quality of trading in 

CLP Securities, which will also act to 

bolster the Exchange’s listing business. 

Additionally, the Exchange believes 

that the proposed non-substantive 

change would not affect intermarket nor 

intramarket competition because the 

changes do not alter any fees or rebates 

on the Exchange or the criteria 

associated therewith. 

C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s 

Statement on Comments on the 

Proposed Rule Change Received From 

Members, Participants, or Others 

The Exchange has neither solicited 

nor received written comments on the 

proposed rule change. 

III. Date of Effectiveness of the 

Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 

Commission Action 

The foregoing rule change has become 

effective pursuant to section 19(b)(3)(A) 

of the Act 20 and paragraph (f) of Rule 

19b–4 thereunder.21 At any time within 

60 days of the filing of the proposed rule 

change, the Commission summarily may 

temporarily suspend such rule change if 

it appears to the Commission that such 

action is necessary or appropriate in the 

public interest, for the protection of 

investors, or otherwise in furtherance of 

the purposes of the Act. 

IV. Solicitation of Comments 

Interested persons are invited to 

submit written data, views, and 

arguments concerning the foregoing, 

including whether the proposed rule 

change is consistent with the Act. 

Comments may be submitted by any of 

the following methods: 

Electronic Comments 

• Use the Commission’s Internet 

comment form (http://www.sec.gov/

rules/sro.shtml); or 

• Send an email to rule-comments@

sec.gov. Please include File Number SR– 

BATS–2014–072 on the subject line. 

Paper Comments 

• Send paper comments in triplicate 

to Secretary, Securities and Exchange 

Commission, 100 F Street NE., 

Washington, DC 20549–1090. 

All submissions should refer to File 

Number SR–BATS–2014–072. This file 

number should be included on the 

subject line if email is used. To help the 

Commission process and review your 

comments more efficiently, please use 

only one method. The Commission will 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 250 / Wednesday, December 31, 2014 / Notices 78935 

22 17 CFR 200.30–3(a)(12). 

post all comments on the Commission’s 

Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/

rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the 

submission, all subsequent 

amendments, all written statements 

with respect to the proposed rule 

change that are filed with the 

Commission, and all written 

communications relating to the 

proposed rule change between the 

Commission and any person, other than 

those that may be withheld from the 

public in accordance with the 

provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be 

available for Web site viewing and 

printing in the Commission’s Public 

Reference Room at 100 F Street NE., 

Washington, DC 20549–1090 on official 

business days between the hours of 

10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of such 

filing also will be available for 

inspection and copying at the principal 

office of the Exchange. All comments 

received will be posted without change; 

the Commission does not edit personal 

identifying information from 

submissions. You should submit only 

information that you wish to make 

available publicly. All submissions 

should refer to File Number SR–BATS– 

2014–072, and should be submitted on 

or before January 21, 2015. 

For the Commission, by the Division of 

Trading and Markets, pursuant to delegated 

authority.22

Brent J. Fields, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2014–30592 Filed 12–30–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8011–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

[Public Notice: 8989] 

Notice of Meeting of the International 

Telecommunication Advisory 

Committee and Preparations for 

Upcoming International 

Telecommunications Meetings 

This notice announces a meeting of 

the Department of State’s International 

Telecommunication advisory 

Committee (ITAC) to review the 

activities of the Department of State in 

international meetings on international 

communications and information policy 

over the last quarter and prepare for 

similar activities in the next quarter. 

The ITAC will meet on January 22, 2015 

at 2:00 p.m. EST at: 1300 I Street NW., 

(suite 400), Washington, DC, 20005 to 

provide an update on committee 

membership (see FR 2014–28411); 

review the preparations for and 

outcomes of international 

telecommunications meetings of the 

International Telecommunication Union 

(ITU), the Inter-American 

Telecommunications Commission, 

Organization for Economic Cooperation 

and Development, and Asia Pacific, and 

announce preparations for similar 

activities. In particular, preparations for 

the ITU Conference Preparatory Meeting 

(CPM) for the 2015 World 

Radiocommunication Conference will 

be highlighted. 

Attendance at this meeting is open to 

the public as seating capacity allows. 

The public will have an opportunity to 

provide comments at this meeting at the 

invitation of the chair. Further details 

on this ITAC meeting will be announced 

on the Department of State’s email list, 

ITAC@lmlist.state.gov. Use of the ITAC 

list is limited to meeting 

announcements and confirmations, 

distribution of agendas and other 

relevant meeting documents. The 

Department welcomes any U.S. citizen 

or legal permanent resident to remain 

on or join the ITAC listserv by providing 

his or her name, email address, and the 

company, organization, or community 

that he or she is representing, if any. 

Persons wishing to request reasonable 

accommodation during the meeting 

should contact jacksonln@state.gov or 

gadsdensf@state.gov not later than 

January 15, 2015. Requests made after 

that time will be considered, but might 

not be able to be fulfilled. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Please contact Franz Zichy at 202–647– 

5778, zichyfj@state.gov. 

Dated: December 23, 2014. 

Julie N. Zoller, 

Senior Deputy Coordinator, International 

Communications and Information Policy, 

U.S. State Department. 

[FR Doc. 2014–30713 Filed 12–30–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4710–07–P 

DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

[Public Notice 8988] 

Shipping Coordinating Committee; 

Notice of Committee Meeting 

The Shipping Coordinating 

Committee (SHC) will conduct an open 

meeting at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday January 

20, 2015, in Room 8 of the DOT 

Conference Center which is in the West 

building, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE., 

Washington, DC 20590. The primary 

purpose of the meeting is to prepare for 

the second Session of the International 

Maritime Organization’s (IMO) SubCommittee on Human Element, Training 

and Watchkeeping (HTW) to be held at 

the IMO Headquarters, United Kingdom, 

February 2–06, 2015. 

The agenda items to be considered 

include: 

—Decisions of other IMO bodies 

—Validated model training courses 

—Reports on unlawful practices 

associated with certificates of 

competency 

— Revised guidelines for model course 

development, updating and validation 

processes 

—Guidance for the implementation of 

the 2010 Manila Amendments 

—Follow–up action to the STCW–F 

Conference resolutions 6 and 7 

—Role of the human element 

—Development of guidance for 

personnel involved with tug-barge 

operations 

—Revision of guidance for model course 

development, updating and validation 

processes 

—Mandatory Code for ships operating 

in polar waters 

—Review of STCW passenger ship 

specific safety training 

—Training in hot work procedures on 

crude oil tankers 

—First outline of the detailed review of 

the Global Maritime Distress and 

Safety System (GMDSS) 

—E–navigation strategy implementation 

plan 

—Guidelines for shipowners and 

seafarers for implementation of 

relevant IMO instruments in relation 

to the carriage of dangerous goods in 

packaged form by sea 

—Non-mandatory instrument on 

regulations for non-convention ships 

Members of the public may attend 

this meeting up to the seating capacity 

of the room. To facilitate the building 

security process, and to request 

reasonable accommodation, those who 

plan to attend should contact the 

meeting coordinator, Mr. Davis J. 

Breyer, by email at davis.j.breyer@

uscg.mil, by phone at (202) 372–1445, 

by fax at (202) 372–8283, or in writing 

at Commandant (CG–OES–1), U.S. Coast 

Guard Stop 7509, 2703 Martin Luther 

King Jr. Ave. SE., Washington, DC 

20593–7509 not later than January 9, 

2015, 11 days prior to the meeting. 

Requests made after January 9, 2015 

might not be able to be accommodated. 

Please note that due to security 

considerations, two valid, government 

issued photo identifications must be 

presented to gain entrance to the DOT 

Conference Center. The DOT Conference 

Center is accessible by taxi and 

privately owned conveyance (public 

transportation is not generally 

available). However, parking in the 

vicinity of the building is extremely 

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