38896 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 157 / Wednesday, August 16, 2017 / Notices 

information to assess recreational uses 

of GRNMS and surrounding areas off the 

coast of Georgia, demographic profiles, 

and attitudes on GRNMS current 

regulations, especially the research only 

area, which displaced recreational 

fishing. In addition, user perceptions of 

the conditions of GRNMS natural 

resources/environment will be obtained. 

Affected Public: Individuals or 

households; business or other for-profit 

organizations. 

Frequency: One time. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary. 

This information collection request 

may be viewed at reginfo.gov. Follow 

the instructions to view Department of 

Commerce collections currently under 

review by OMB. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

within 30 days of publication of this 

notice to OIRA_Submission@

omb.eop.gov or fax to (202) 395–5806. 

Dated: August 11, 2017. 

Sarah Brabson, 

NOAA PRA Clearance Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2017–17295 Filed 8–15–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–NK–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

United States Patent and Trademark 

Office 

[Docket No. PTO–C–2017–0031] 

Performance Review Board (PRB) 

AGENCY: United States Patent and 

Trademark Office, Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In conformance with the Civil 

Service Reform Act of 1978, the United 

States Patent and Trademark Office 

announces the appointment of persons 

to serve as members of its Performance 

Review Board. 

ADDRESSES: Director, Human Capital 

Management, Office of Human 

Resources, United States Patent and 

Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, 

Alexandria, VA 22313–1450. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Anne Mendez at 

(571) 272–6173. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

membership of the United States Patent 

and Trademark Office Performance 

Review Board is as follows: 

Anthony P. Scardino, Chair, Acting 

Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce 

for Intellectual Property and Deputy 

Director of the United States Patent 

and Trademark Office 

Frederick W. Steckler, Vice Chair, Chief 

Administrative Officer, United States 

Patent and Trademark Office 

Andrew H. Hirshfeld, Commissioner for 

Patents, United States Patent and 

Trademark Office 

Mary Boney Denison, Commissioner for 

Trademarks, United States Patent and 

Trademark Office 

Anthony P. Scardino, Chief Financial 

Officer, United States Patent and 

Trademark Office 

John B. Owens II, Chief Information 

Officer, United States Patent and 

Trademark Office 

Sarah T. Harris, General Counsel, 

United States Patent and Trademark 

Office 

Shira Perlmutter, Chief Policy Officer 

and Director for International Affairs, 

United States Patent and Trademark 

Office 

Alternates 

Sharon R. Marsh, Deputy Commissioner 

for Trademark Examination Policy, 

United States Patent and Trademark 

Office 

Andrew I. Faile, Deputy Commissioner 

for Patent Operations, United States 

Patent and Trademark Office 

Dated: August 10, 2017. 

Joseph D. Matal, 

Performing the Functions and Duties of the 

Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual 

Property and Director of the United States 

Patent and Trademark Office. 

[FR Doc. 2017–17321 Filed 8–15–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–16–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Office of the Secretary 

Science and Technology Reinvention 

Laboratory (STRL) Personnel 

Management Demonstration Project, 

Department of the Air Force, Air Force 

Research Laboratory (AFRL) 

AGENCY: Assistant Secretary of Defense 

for Research and Engineering, DoD. 

ACTION: Notice of amendment to AFRL’s 

demonstration project plan. 

SUMMARY: AFRL will implement a 

flexible term appointment and a flexible 

extended temporary promotion 

authority for its Scientific and 

Professional Positions (ST) and Senior 

Scientific Technical Manager (SSTM) 

incumbents. The need for ST and SSTM 

positions in particular technology areas 

diminishes as the emerging technology 

becomes more established over time and 

a set of trained scientists and engineers 

are groomed to support the new core 

technical competency. AFRL needs this 

flexibility to better manage its ST and 

SSTM cadre in order to ensure critical 

technologies are led by high-caliber ST 

and SSTM incumbents. 

The extended probationary period 

currently authorized for AFRL Science 

and Engineering (S&E) provides a longer 

period to evaluate an individual’s 

ability to adequately contribute to the 

AFRL mission and coincides with the 

extensive Research and Development 

(R&D) process. That same evaluation 

period is needed for the SSTM cadre. 

DATES: This notice may be implemented 

beginning on August 16, 2017. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

• AFRL: Ms. Rosalyn Jones-Byrd, 

Personnel Demonstration Project 

Manager, AFRL, 1864 4th Street, 

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH 

45433–5209; rosalyn.jones-byrd@

us.af.mil. 

• DoD: Dr. Jagadeesh Pamulapati, 

Direct, Defense Laboratories, 4800 Mark 

Center Dr., Alexandria, 22350–1100; 

jagadeesh.pamulapati.civ@mail.mil. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Background 

This notice amends the AFRL’s 

demonstration project plan published in 

the Federal Register on August 30, 2010 

(75 FR 53076). 

Section 342(b) of the National Defense 

Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal 

Year (FY) 1995, Public Law (Pub. L.) 

103–337, as amended by Section 1109 of 

the NDAA for FY 2000, Public Law 106– 

65, and Section 1114 of the NDAA for 

FY 2001, Public Law 106–398, 

authorizes the Secretary of Defense 

(SECDEF) to conduct personnel 

demonstration projects at DoD 

laboratories designated as STRLs. All 

STRLs authorized by Section 1105 of 

the NDAA for FY 2010, Public Law 111– 

84, as well as any newly-designated 

STRLs authorized by SECDEF or future 

legislation, may use the provisions 

described in this Federal Register 

Notice (FRN). STRLs implementing this 

flexibility must have an approved 

personnel management demonstration 

project plan published in a FRN and 

shall fulfill any collective bargaining 

obligations. 

AFRL currently has fewer ST 

allocations than it did in 2014, and has 

identified and prioritized new or 

emergent technical focus areas which 

will replace several of the current 

allocations as vacancies occur. ST 

positions within the laboratory are 

established for individuals to lead 

research in emerging technology areas 

and mentor young scientists and 

engineers to attain competence in the 

new technology areas. Currently AFRL 


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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 157 / Wednesday, August 16, 2017 / Notices 38897 

fills ST positions permanently as career 

appointments with a one-year 

probationary period. These ST positions 

are typically filled from among current 

government employees or candidates 

new to government service. 

The SSTM authority was authorized 

in section 1107 of the NDAA for FY 

2014, Pub. L. 113–66 and is newlyavailable to AFRL. These positions are 

senior professional scientific and 

technical positions classified above the 

General Schedule (GS) GS–15 level of 

the Schedule. Incumbents primarily 

engage in research and development in 

the physical, biological, medical, or 

engineering sciences or another field 

closely related to the mission of AFRL, 

and provide technical supervision over 

such programs. It is anticipated that 

these SSTM positions will be filled from 

among current government employees 

or candidates new to government 

service. 

2. Overview 

I. Introduction 

A. Purpose 

This notice provides a new approach 

to filling ST and SSTM positions within 

AFRL by allowing a time-limited, 

renewable appointment or temporary 

promotion, depending upon candidate 

source, in order to provide needed 

flexibility in managing the ST and 

SSTM cadre. It also provides authority 

to apply the extended probationary 

period to SSTM incumbents. 

B. Required Waivers to Law and 

Regulation 

Waivers and adaptations of certain 

title 5, U.S Code (U.S.C.) and title 5, 

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 

provisions are required only to the 

extent that these statutory and 

regulatory provisions limit or are 

inconsistent with the actions authorized 

under this demonstration project. 

Appendix A lists waivers needed to 

enact authorities described in this FRN 

and are in addition to those listed in 75 

FR 53076. Nothing in this plan is 

intended to preclude the demonstration 

project from adopting or incorporating 

any law or regulation enacted, adopted, 

or amended after the effective date of 

this FRN. 

C. Problems With the Present System 

and Expected Benefit 

Given the limited number of ST 

allocations within the laboratory, it is 

critical to have the ability to establish 

new ST positions as needed, and 

transition technology areas from 

emerging to established. AFRL currently 

has ST incumbents who have been in 

their position(s) for as long as 18 years, 

where the need for an ST leader in that 

technical specialty may no longer exist. 

With the limited number of ST 

positions, AFRL does not want to limit 

movement opportunities for the 

incumbents or limit the technology area 

for a given ST position. Current 

regulations provide no flexibility to 

remove incumbents other than through 

adverse action procedures, which 

prevents the lab from effectively using 

ST and SSTM employees. Flexible term 

appointments and extended temporary 

promotions will provide a mechanism 

to bring ST and SSTM candidates into 

AFRL for a limited period and allow for 

time extensions to accommodate 

ongoing needs. 

II. Personnel System Changes 

A. Hiring and Appointment Authorities 

1. Description of Hiring Process 

(The following replaces the 1st 

paragraph in Section III. A. 1. of 75 FR 

53076) 

At this time, AFRL is implementing a 

streamlined examination process, as 

demonstrated in other Defense 

Personnel Management Demonstration 

Project laboratories. This applies to all 

positions in AFRL, with the exception 

of Senior Executive Service (SES), 

Scientific or Professional (ST), and 

broadband V positions and any 

examination process covered by court 

order. ST positions will be filled in 

accordance with 5 U.S.C. 3325 and any 

applicable Air Force guidance using 

internal and/or external recruitment 

procedures and may use the flexible 

term appointment and temporary 

promotion authorities described in 

Section III.A.4. SSTM positions will be 

filled in accordance with provisions in 

79 FR 43727 and any AFRL internal 

operating procedures, and may use the 

flexible term appointment and 

temporary promotion authorities 

described in Section III.A.4. AFRL has 

authority for the coordination of 

recruitment and public notices, the 

administration of the examining 

process, the certification of candidates, 

and selection and appointment 

consistent with merit system principles, 

to include existing authorities under 

title 5, U.S.C. and title 5, CFR. The ‘‘rule 

of three’’ is eliminated, similar to the 

authorities granted to: (1) Naval 

Research Laboratory (NRL), 64 FR 

33970, June 24, 1999; (2) Naval Sea 

(NAVSEA) Systems Command Warfare 

Centers, 62 FR 64050, December 3, 

1997; and (3) United States Army 

Communications-Electronics Command 

(CECOM), Research, Development and 

Engineering (RDE) Community, 66 FR 

54871, October 30, 2001. When there are 

no more than 15 qualified applicants 

and no preference-eligibles, all eligible 

applicants are immediately referred to 

the selecting official without rating and 

ranking. Rating and ranking are required 

only when the number of qualified 

candidates exceeds 15, or there is a mix 

of preference and non-preference 

applicants. Statutes and regulations 

covering veterans’ preference are 

observed in the selection process and 

when rating and ranking are required. 

A. Hiring and Appointment Authorities 

4. Modified Term Appointments and 

Flexible Term Appointments 

(Change entire section to read:) 

AFRL conducts many R&D projects 

that range from three to six years. The 

current four-year limitation on term 

appointments imposes a burden on the 

Laboratory by forcing the termination of 

some term employees prior to 

completion of projects they were hired 

to support. This disrupts the R&D 

process and reduces AFRL’s ability to 

serve its customers. AFRL has the 

authority to hire S&Es and support 

personnel on modified term 

appointments that may be used to fill 

positions for a period of more than one 

year but not more than five years when 

the need for an employee’s services is 

not permanent. The modified term 

appointment differs from term 

employment as described in part 316 of 

title 5, CFR in that it may be made for 

a period not to exceed five years, rather 

than four years. Additionally, the AFRL 

Commander may extend a modified 

term appointment one additional year. 

a. Modified Term Appointments 

An employee hired under the 

modified term appointment authority 

may be eligible for conversion to career 

appointment. To be converted, the 

employee must: (1) Have been selected 

for the initial term position under 

competitive procedures, with the 

announcement specifically stating that 

the individual(s) selected for a term 

position(s) may be eligible for 

conversion to career appointment at a 

later date; (2) served a minimum of one 

year of continuous service; and (3) have 

a current delta Contribution-based 

Compensation System (CCS) rating 

greater than ¥0.3. 

b. Flexible Term Appointments 

AFRL has the authority to hire 

individuals onto ST and SSTM 

positions on flexible term appointments. 

These appointments are used to fill ST 

and SSTM positions for a period of 

more than one year but not more than 


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38898 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 157 / Wednesday, August 16, 2017 / Notices 

five years. The flexible term 

appointment differs from the modified 

term in that it may be made for a period 

up to five years and the AFRL 

Commander/Executive Director may 

extend the appointment in up to fiveyear increments. Prior to extending a 

term appointment, management will 

make a determination if the work/ 

services continue to be temporary in 

nature or should be made permanent. 

Candidates selected from outside the 

government may be hired using the 

flexible term appointment authority and 

may be eligible for conversion to career 

appointment if services are deemed 

permanent. To be converted, the 

employee must: (1) Have been notified 

in writing at the time of the initial 

appointment of the possibility for 

conversion to a permanent ST or SSTM 

position at a later date; (2) served a 

minimum of one year of continuous 

service; and (3) have at least a fully 

successful or equivalent ST or SSTM 

performance rating. Additionally, to be 

eligible for conversion, when positions 

being filled using the flexible term 

appointment authority are announced, 

whether via competitive or merit 

promotion procedures, the vacancy 

announcement must contain a statement 

notifying applicants that the position 

may be eligible for conversion to a 

permanent appointment. ST and SSTM 

employees serving under existing term 

appointments at the time of publication 

of this notice will convert to the new 

flexible term appointment provided 

they were notified in writing at the time 

of the initial appointment of the 

possibility they may be converted at a 

later date. 

c. Extended Probationary or Trial Period 

(Change Section III.A.5., to read:) 

New employees conducting scientific, 

engineering or technological activities 

need time and opportunities to 

demonstrate adequate contribution for a 

manager to render a thorough 

evaluation. The purpose of the extended 

probationary period or trial period is to 

allow supervisors an adequate period of 

time to fully evaluate an SSTM or S&E 

employee’s contribution and conduct. 

An extended probationary or trial 

period of three years applies to all 

newly-hired SSTM and S&E employees 

as well as interns, other than those 

interns hired under the Pathways 

Programs, who are appointed based on 

their participation in an academic 

program leading toward a scientific or 

engineering degree, and individuals 

entering the Demonstration Project after 

a break in service of 30 calendar days 

or more. Current permanent Federal 

employees hired into the Demonstration 

Project are not required to serve a new 

probationary or trial period but are 

required to complete a probationary 

period required from the initial 

appointment. Probationary periods for 

employees in other career paths and pay 

plans, and supervisory probationary 

periods remain unchanged. 

Employees who enter the 

Demonstration Project with a break in 

service of less than 30 calendar days are 

not required to complete an extended 

probationary or trial period upon 

reappointment if their previous service 

was in the same line of work as 

determined by the employee’s 

demonstration project duties and 

responsibilities. Upon reappointment, 

the period of previous employment is 

counted toward the completion of the 

probationary period required of the 

initial appointment. 

S&E and SSTM employees serving on 

modified or flexible term appointments 

serve a three-year trial period. Upon 

conversion to career appointment, the 

period of employment served on a 

modified or flexible term appointment 

is counted toward the completion of the 

extended probationary period. 

Aside from extending the time period, 

all other features of the current 

probationary or trial period are retained 

to include the requirements for 

determining creditable service as 

described in 5 CFR 315.802(c), and the 

potential to remove an employee 

without providing the full substantive 

and procedural rights afforded a nonprobationary employee when the 

employee fails to demonstrate proper 

conduct, competency, and/or adequate 

contribution during the extended 

probationary period. When terminating 

probationary or trial employees, AFRL 

provides employees with written 

notification of the reasons for their 

separation and provides the effective 

date of the action. 

(Change the heading of Section III.A.6 

to:) 

d. Extended Temporary Promotions and 

Details and Flexible Temporary 

Promotions 

1. Extended Temporary Promotions and 

Details 

Under GS rules, details and temporary 

promotions to higher graded positions 

cannot exceed 120 days without being 

made competitively. AFRL may effect 

details to higher broadband level 

positions and temporary promotions to 

positions (other than SES and ST) of not 

more than one year with or without 

competition, with the ability to extend 

one additional year within a 24-month 

period. This is similar to the authority 

granted to the NRL in 64 FR 33970, June 

24, 1999. 

2. Flexible Temporary Promotions 

AFRL may effect flexible temporary 

promotions to ST and SSTM positions 

for not more than five years, with the 

ability to extend in five-year increments 

for candidates who are current federal 

employees. Prior to extending a 

temporary promotion, management will 

make a determination if the work/ 

services continue to be temporary in 

nature or should be made permanent. If 

not extended or made permanent, the 

employee will return to a position in 

AFRL comparable to the position held 

before the assignment. Upon 

termination of temporary promotion, 

pay will be set in accordance with 

Section III.B. of 75 FR 53076 and any 

AFRL internal operating procedures. 

Candidates may be eligible for 

conversion to a permanent ST or SSTM 

position if services are deemed 

permanent by the AFRL Commander. To 

be converted, the employee must: (1) 

Have been notified in writing at the time 

of the initial action of the possibility for 

conversion to permanent ST or SSTM 

position at a later date; (2) served a 

minimum of one year of continuous 

service in the temporary position; and 

(3) have at least a fully successful or 

equivalent ST or SSTM performance 

rating. 

Appendix A 

UNITED STATES CODE AND CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS WAIVED

Title 5, United States Code Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations 

Part 315, sections 315.801(a), (b)(1),(c) and (e); and sections 

315.802(a) and (b)(1): Related to probationary period. (These sections are waived to allow for extended probationary or trial period of 

three years for all newly hired S&E and SSTM employees.) 


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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 157 / Wednesday, August 16, 2017 / Notices 38899 

UNITED STATES CODE AND CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS WAIVED—Continued 

Title 5, United States Code Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations 

Part 316, sections 316.301, 316.303, and 316.304: Term Employment. 

(These sections are waived to allow flexible term appointments as 

described in this Federal Register Notice.) 

Part 335, section 335.102(f); Agency authority to promote, demote, or 

reassign. (This section is waived to the extent necessary to allow 

temporary promotions as described in this Federal Register Notice.) 

Part 330, section 330.707(h): Exceptions to Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) selection priority. (This section is 

waived to the extent necessary to allow conversion to permanent positions without clearing ICTAP.) 

Dated: August 11, 2017. 

Aaron Siegel, 

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison 

Officer, Department of Defense. 

[FR Doc. 2017–17310 Filed 8–15–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 5001–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Office of the Secretary 

[Docket ID DOD–2016–OS–0033] 

Proposed Collection; Comment 

Request 

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary of 

Defense for Policy, DoD. 

ACTION: 60-Day information collection 

notice. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense 

for Policy announces a proposed public 

information collection and seeks public 

comment on the provisions thereof. 

Comments are invited on: Whether the 

proposed collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

the functions of the agency, including 

whether the information shall have 

practical utility; the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed information collection; ways 

to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and ways to minimize the 

burden of the information collection on 

respondents, including through the use 

of automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

DATES: Consideration will be given to all 

comments received by October 16, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by docket number and title, 

by any of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Mail: Department of Defense, Office 

of the Deputy Chief Management 

Officer, Directorate for Oversight and 

Compliance, Regulatory and Advisory 

Committee Division, 4800 Mark Center 

Drive, Mailbox #24, Suite 08D09B, 

Alexandria, VA 22350–1700. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the agency name, docket 

number and title for this Federal 

Register document. The general policy 

for comments and other submissions 

from members of the public is to make 

these submissions available for public 

viewing on the Internet at http://

www.regulations.gov as they are 

received without change, including any 

personal identifiers or contact 

information. 

Any associated form(s) for this 

collection may be located within this 

same electronic docket and downloaded 

for review/testing. Follow the 

instructions at http://

www.regulations.gov for submitting 

comments. Please submit comments on 

any given form identified by docket 

number, form number, and title. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To 

request more information on this 

proposed information collection or to 

obtain a copy of the proposal and 

associated collection instruments, 

please write to the Leadership and 

Organizational Development Office, 

2400 Defense Pentagon, Room 5B683, 

ATTN: Dr. James Cully, Washington, DC 

20301–2400, or call, at 703–695–7386. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title; Associated Form; and OMB 

Number: OUSD—Policy Pulse Survey; 

OMB Control Number 0704–XXXX. 

Needs and Uses: The information 

collection requirement is necessary to 

obtain and record responses from 

contractor personnel employed within 

the Office of the Under Secretary of 

Defense for Policy and its components. 

The survey results are analyzed by the 

Leadership and Organizational 

Development Office to assess the 

progress of the current human capital 

strategy and to address emerging human 

capital and training issues. 

Affected Public: Individual or 

households. 

Annual Burden Hours: 76.5. 

Number of Respondents: 153. 

Responses per Respondent: 2. 

Annual Responses: 306. 

Average Burden per Response: 15 

minutes. 

Frequency: On occasion. 

Respondents are defense contractors 

employed by Office of the Under 

Secretary of Defense for Policy who 

provide analytic, administrative, and 

operations services. The survey is 

administered to all employees of the 

Office of Secretary of Defense for Policy 

as required by the Under Secretary of 

Defense for Policy to assess the 

effectiveness and progress of the current 

human capital strategy. If contractors 

are not permitted to take the survey then 

the assessment effectively excludes 

∼20% of the employee population, 

diminishing the accuracy of the survey 

and resulting conclusions. 

Dated: August 11, 2017. 

Aaron Siegel, 

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison 

Officer, Department of Defense. 

[FR Doc. 2017–17332 Filed 8–15–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 5001–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Energy Information Administration 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities: Information Collection 

Extension 

AGENCY: U.S. Energy Information 

Administration (EIA), Department of 

Energy (DOE). 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: EIA, pursuant to the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

intends to extend (with changes) for 

three years with the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) Form 

OE–417 Electric Emergency Incident 

and Disturbance Report, OMB Control 

Number 1901–0288. Form OE–417 

enables the U.S. Department of Energy 


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