42554 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 173 / Friday, September 8, 2017 / Notices 

counteract the anticompetitive effects of 

the Acquisition. For de novo entrants, 

obtaining financing to build a new 

specialty or emergency veterinary 

facility and acquiring or leasing 

necessary equipment can be expensive 

and time consuming. The investment is 

risky for specialists that do not have 

established practices and bases of 

referrals in the area. Further, to become 

a licensed veterinary specialist requires 

extensive education and training, 

significantly beyond that for a general 

practitioner veterinarian. Consequently, 

specialists are in short supply, and 

recruiting them to move to a new area 

often takes more than two years, making 

timely expansion by existing specialty 

clinics unlikely. 

IV. Effects of the Acquisition 

The Acquisition, if consummated, 

may substantially lessen competition 

and tend to create a monopoly in the 

relevant markets by eliminating head-tohead competition between Mars and 

VCA in the provision of specialty and 

emergency veterinary services; 

increasing the likelihood that Mars 

would unilaterally exercise market 

power; and increasing the likelihood 

that customers would be forced to pay 

higher prices for and degraded quality 

of the relevant services. 

V. The Consent Agreement 

The proposed Consent Agreement 

effectively remedies the Acquisition’s 

anticompetitive effects in ten markets 

where both Mars and VCA operate 

specialty or emergency veterinary 

clinics by requiring the parties to divest 

12 facilities. Clinics in Kansas City, New 

York, and Phoenix are to be divested to 

NVA. Clinics in Portland, Rockville, and 

Vienna are to be divested to PetVet. 

Clinics in Chicago, Corpus Christi, San 

Antonio, and Seattle are to be divested 

to Pathway. The divestitures will 

preserve competition between the 

divested clinics and Mars’ BluePearl or 

VCA’s clinics that offer the same 

specialty or emergency services within 

each locality. NVA, PetVet, and 

Pathway are qualified acquirers of the 

divested assets. Each firm has 

significant experience acquiring, 

integrating, and operating specialty and 

emergency veterinary clinics. 

The divestiture includes all regulatory 

permits and approvals, confidential 

business information, including 

customer information, related to the 

divested clinics, and other assets 

associated with providing specialty and 

emergency veterinary care at the 

divested clinics. To ensure the 

divestiture is successful, the Order 

requires Mars and VCA to secure all 

third-party consents, assignments, 

releases, and waivers required to permit 

the buyers to conduct business at the 

divested clinics. 

As part of these divestitures, Mars and 

VCA are required to provide reasonable 

financial incentives to certain 

employees to continue in their 

positions. Such incentives may include, 

but are not limited to, guaranteeing a 

retention bonus for the specialty 

veterinarians at the divestiture clinics to 

assure their continued employment at 

such clinic, a continuation of all 

employee benefits, including the 

funding of regularly scheduled raises 

and bonuses, and the vesting of pension 

benefits (as permitted by law and for 

those Relevant Employees covered by a 

pension plan), offered by the parties. 

These provisions ensure that the buyers 

will have the assets necessary to operate 

the divested clinics in a competitive 

manner. 

The Consent Agreement contains 

several additional provisions designed 

to ensure that the divestitures are 

successful. First, the Consent Agreement 

prevents Mars for a period of one year 

from contracting with any specialty or 

emergency veterinarian affiliated with a 

divested clinic. This provides the 

buyers with sufficient time to build 

goodwill and working relationships 

with the veterinarians before Mars could 

capitalize on its prior relationships in 

soliciting their services. Second, to 

ensure continuity of patient care and 

records as the buyers implement their 

own quality care, billing, and supply 

systems, Mars will provide transitional 

services for a period of one year. 

Finally, the Consent Agreement requires 

Mars for a period of ten years from the 

date the Commission issues the Order to 

provide prior notice to the Commission 

of its planned acquisitions of specialty 

or emergency veterinary clinics in 

certain geographic areas. 

The Order requires Mars and VCA to 

divest the clinics no later than ten 

business days after the consummation of 

the Acquisition. 

The Commission has appointed 

Thomas A. Carpenter, D.V.M. as Interim 

Monitor to ensure that Mars and VCA 

comply with all of their obligations 

pursuant to the Consent Agreement and 

to keep the Commission informed about 

the status of the transfer of the rights 

and assets to NVA, Pathway, and 

PetVet. Dr. Carpenter assists client 

companies undergoing regulatormandated ownership transitions and 

has experience with the purchase and 

sale of veterinary clinics. 

If the Commission determines that 

NVA, Pathway, and PetVet are not 

acceptable acquirers of the divested 

assets, or that the manner of the 

divestitures is not acceptable, the 

parties must unwind the sale of rights 

and assets to NVA, Pathway, and PetVet 

and divest them to a Commissionapproved acquirer within six months of 

the date the Order becomes final. In that 

circumstance, the Commission may 

appoint a trustee to divest the rights and 

assets if the parties fail to divest them 

as required. 

The purpose of this analysis is to 

facilitate public comment on the 

proposed Consent Agreement, and it is 

not intended to constitute an official 

interpretation of the proposed Decision 

and Order or to modify its terms in any 

way. 

By direction of the Commission. 

Donald S. Clark, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2017–19044 Filed 9–7–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6750–01–P 

GENERAL SERVICES 

ADMINISTRATION 

[Notice–MK–2017–03; Docket No.2017– 

0002; Sequence 16] 

The Presidential Commission on 

Election Integrity (PCEI); Upcoming 

Public Advisory Meeting; Extension of 

Comment Period 

AGENCY: Office of Government-wide 

Policy (OGP), General Services 

Administration (GSA). 

ACTION: Meeting notice with request for 

comments; extension of comment 

period. 

SUMMARY: GSA and OGP issued a notice 

on August 25, 2017, seeking input on an 

upcoming public advisory meeting, held 

by the PCEI. The comment period is 

extended to provide additional time for 

interested parties to review and submit 

comments on the notice. 

DATES: The comment period for the 

notice published in the Federal Register 

at 82 FR 40581 on August 25, 2017, is 

extended until September 12, 2017. 

Comments pertaining to the meeting 

should be submitted no later than 5:00 

p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on 

Tuesday, September 12, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: Individuals who wish to 

submit written comments for the 

Commission’s consideration may do so 

by either of the following methods: 

• Regulations.gov: http://

www.regulations.gov. Submit public 

comments or written statements via the 

Federal eRulemaking portal by 

searching for ‘‘Notice–MK–2017–03.’’ 

Select the link ‘‘Comment Now’’ that 

corresponds with ‘‘Notice–MK–2017– 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 173 / Friday, September 8, 2017 / Notices 42555 

03.’’ Follow the instructions provided 

on the screen. Please include your 

name, organization (if any), and 

‘‘Notice–MK–2017–03’’ on your 

attached document. Please note that any 

information, including personal or 

contact information, that you provide on 

the www.regulations.gov comment form 

or in an attachment will be publicly 

disclosed as it is entered, searchable on 

the Internet, and included in any paper 

docket. 

• Mail: Public comments may also be 

submitted via mail. Please address 

public comments to: Mr. Ron Williams, 

Policy Advisor, Presidential Advisory 

Commission on Election Integrity, 1650 

Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Eisenhower 

Executive Office Building (EEOB), Rm. 

268, Washington, DC 20504. Please note 

that any written comments received via 

mail will be uploaded to the docket on 

www.regulations.gov, where they will be 

viewable in full by the public, including 

any personal or contact information. 

Written comments not received by 

5:00 p.m., EST, on Tuesday, September 

12, 2017 may be submitted but will not 

be considered for the meeting held on 

Tuesday, September 12, 2017. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions, please contact Mr. Ron 

Williams, Policy Advisor, Presidential 

Advisory Commission on Election 

Integrity, via email at 

ElectionIntegrityStaff@ovp.eop.gov or 

telephone at 202–395–1587. For 

additional information, please check the 

Commission’s Web page at https://

www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2017/07/13/ 

presidential-advisory-commissionelection-integrity. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: GSA and 

OGP issued a notice on August 25, 2017, 

seeking input on an upcoming public 

advisory meeting, held by the PCEI. The 

comment period is extended to provide 

additional time for interested parties to 

review and submit comments on the 

notice. 

Dated: September 1, 2017. 

Allison Fahrenkopf Brigati, 

Associate Administrator, Office of 

Government-wide Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2017–19025 Filed 9–7–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6820–14–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Centers for Disease Control and 

Prevention 

Statement of Organization, Functions, 

and Delegations of Authority 

Part C (Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention) of the Statement of 

Organization, Functions, and 

Delegations of Authority of the 

Department of Health and Human 

Services (45 FR 67772–76, dated 

October 14, 1980, and corrected at 45 FR 

69296, October 20, 1980, as amended 

most recently at 75 FR 6677, dated 

February 10, 2010) is amended to reflect 

the Order of Succession for the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Section C–C, Order of Succession, is 

hereby amended as follows: 

Delete in its entirety Section C–C, 

Order of Succession, and insert the 

following: 

During the absence or disability of the 

Director, Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention (CDC), or in the event of 

a vacancy in that office, the first official 

listed below who is available shall act 

as Director, except that during a 

planned period of absence, the Director 

may specify a different order of 

succession: 

1. Principal Deputy Director 

2. Director, Office of Public Health 

Preparedness and Response 

3. Associate Director for Science 

4. Director, National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health 

Sherri Berger, 

Chief Operating Officer, Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention. 

[FR Doc. 2017–19023 Filed 9–7–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–18–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Agency for Toxic Substances and 

Disease Registry 

Statement of Organization, Functions, 

and Delegations of Authority 

Part J (Agency for Toxic Substances 

and Disease Registry) of the Statement 

of Organization, Functions, and 

Delegations of Authority of the 

Department of Health and Human 

Services (50 FR 25129–25130, dated 

June 17, 1985, as amended most 

recently at 80 FR 61424, dated October 

13, 2015) is amended to reflect the 

Order of Succession for the Agency for 

Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. 

Section J–C, Order of Succession: 

Delete in its entirety the Section C–C, 

Order of Succession, and insert the 

following: 

During the absence or disability of the 

Administrator, Agency for Toxic 

Substances and Disease Registry 

(ATSDR), or in the event of a vacancy 

in that office, the first official listed 

below who is available shall act as 

Administrator, except during a planned 

period of absence, the Administrator 

may specify a different order of 

succession: 

1. Principal Deputy Administrator, 

ATSDR 

2. Assistant Administrator, ATSDR 

3. Deputy Director for 

Noncommunicable Diseases, Injury 

and Environmental Health 

4. Director, Office of Public Health 

Preparedness and Response 

5. Director, National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health 

Sherri A. Berger, 

Chief Operating Officer, Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention. 

[FR Doc. 2017–19024 Filed 9–7–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–18–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 

Services 

[Document Identifiers 10401] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities: Proposed Collection; 

Comment Request 

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services, Department of 

Health and Human Services. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services (CMS) is announcing 

an opportunity for the public to 

comment on CMS’ intention to collect 

information from the public. Under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (the 

PRA), federal agencies are required to 

publish notice in the Federal Register 

concerning each proposed collection of 

information (including each proposed 

extension or reinstatement of an existing 

collection of information) and to allow 

60 days for public comment on the 

proposed action. Interested persons are 

invited to send comments regarding our 

burden estimates or any other aspect of 

this collection of information, including 

the necessity and utility of the proposed 

information collection for the proper 

performance of the agency’s functions, 

the accuracy of the estimated burden, 

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES