[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 20 (Monday, February 1, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4844-4845]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-2354]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology
[Docket No. 981228327-8327-01]


Proposed Voluntary Product Standard DOC PS 20-99 ``American 
Softwood Lumber Standard''

agency: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), 
Commerce.

action: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

summary: This is to advise the public that the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology (NIST) is distributing a proposed revision of 
Voluntary Product Standard DOC PS 20-94 ``American Softwood Lumber 
Standard,'' for review and comment, DOC PS 20-94 serves the procurement 
and regulatory needs of numerous federal, state, and local government 
agencies by providing for uniform, industry-wide grade-marking and 
inspection requirements for softwood lumber. The proposed revision, DOC 
PS 20-99 ``American Softwood Lumber Standard,'' has been developed and 
is being processed in accordance with the provisions of the 
``Procedures for the Development of Voluntary Product Standards'' of 
the Department of Commerce (15 CFR Part 10; as amended; published June 
20, 1986).

dates: Written comments regarding the proposed revision, DOC PS 20-99, 
should be submitted to the Technical Standards Activities Program, 
NIST, by no later than April 19, 1999.

addresses: Requests for copies of the proposed revision, DOC PS 20-99, 
and written comments on the proposed revision should be submitted to 
the Technical Standards Activities Program, NIST, 100 Bureau Drive Stop 
2150, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-2150. The text of the proposed revision, 
DOC PS 20-99 (including a copy of DOC PS 20-94 that has been marked up 
to show proposed changes to the standard), may be viewed on the World 
Wide Web (as an Adobe Acrobat File) by clicking onto the ``DOC 
Voluntary Product Standards Program'' at the web site: http://
ts.nist.gov/tsap.

for further information contact: Barbara M. Meigs, Technical Standards 
Activities Program, National Institute of Standards and Technology, 
telephone: 301-975-4025; fax: 301-926-1559, e-mail: 
[email protected].

supplementary information: The proposed revision, DOC PS 20-99 
``American Softwood Lumber Standard,'' was developed by the American 
Lumber Standard Committee, the Standing Committee for DOC PS 20-

[[Page 4845]]

94. The Committee has responsibility for maintaining and interpreting 
the standard and is composed of representatives of producers, 
distributors, consumers, and others with an interest in the standard.
    DOC PS 20-94 established standard sizes and requirements for 
developing and coordinating the lumber grades of the various species of 
softwood lumber, the assignment of design values, and the preparation 
of grading rules applicable to each species. Its provisions include 
implementation of the Standard through an accreditation and 
certification program; establishment of principal trade classifications 
and lumber sizes for yard, structural, factory/shop use; 
classification, measurement, grading and grade-marking of lumber; 
definitions of terms and procedures to provide a basis for the use of 
uniform methods in the grading inspection, measurement and description 
of softwood lumber; commercial names of the principal softwood species; 
definitions of terms used in describing standard grades of lumber; and 
commonly used industry abbreviations. The Standard also includes the 
organization and functions of the American Lumber Standard Committee, 
the Board of Review, and the National Grading Rule Committee.
    The Standing Committee met on November 6, 1998, to discuss and vote 
upon the draft revision of DOC PS 20-94. The draft had been developed 
by an ALSC Task Group after considering comments received from 
Committee members and other interested parties who responded to NIST's 
announcement of March 30, 1998, in the NIST Update. In that 
announcement, NIST indicated that as part of the Department's 5-year 
review, mandated by the DOC procedures, it was seeking comments 
regarding DOC PS 20-94 to determine its technical adequacy, the level 
of acceptability the standard has among the various segments of the 
softwood lumber industry, the standard's compatibility with existing 
law and established public policy, and the benefits that would be 
derived from PS 20-94 versus any alternatives. Following a period of 
discussion of the draft and the comments that had been received from 
the public and members of the Committee, all members present at the 
meeting unanimously approved the draft, with minor changes, and 
recommended that the proposed revision, DOC PS 20-99, be submitted to 
NIST to be processed to supersede DOC PS 20-94.
    Among the changes to DOC PS 20-94 and incorporated in the proposed 
revision are the following: metric units are shown first followed by 
conventional units, language regarding remanufactured lumber is added 
to the text, standards referenced in DOC PS 20-94 are replaced by 
current editions of those standards, commercial names of additional 
principal softwood species are listed in Appendix A, and some 
definitions of terms used in describing standard grades of lumber are 
clarified in Appendix B. The basic sizes, technical requirements for 
softwood lumber, and administrative structure for implementing and 
enforcing the Standard have been retained.

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 272.

    Dated: January 26, 1999.
Robert E. Hebner,
Acting Deputy Director.
[FR Doc. 99-2354 Filed 1-29-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-M