[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 11 (Friday, January 16, 2004)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 2559-2560]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-1032]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

43 CFR Part 4100

[WO-220-1020-24 1A]
RIN 1004-AD42


Grazing Administration B Exclusive of Alaska

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; correction; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is extending the public 
comment period on a proposed rule published in the Federal Register on 
December 8, 2003 (68 FR 68452). This will allow additional time for 
public comment following publication on January 6, 2004, of the Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement associated with this proposed rule. BLM 
is also announcing public meetings on the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement, and correcting the proposed rule to conform it to a final 
rule published recently by the Office of Hearings and Appeals, 
Department of the Interior.

DATES: You must submit your comments by March 2, 2004. BLM may not 
necessarily consider or include in the Administrative Record for the 
proposed rule comments that BLM receives after the close of the comment 
period or comments delivered to an address other than those listed 
below (see ADDRESSES). See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for 
the dates and locations of the public meetings.

ADDRESSES: Mail: Director (630), Bureau of Land Management, Eastern 
States Office, 7450 Boston Boulevard, Springfield, Virginia 22153, 
Attention: RIN 1004-AD42. Personal or messenger delivery: 1620 L 
Street, NW., Room 401, Washington, DC 20036. Direct Internet response: 
www.blm.gov/nhp/news/regulatory/index.html, or at http://www.blm.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth Visser at (775) 861-6464, for 
information relating to the grazing program or the substance of the 
proposed regulation, or Ted Hudson at (202) 452-5042 or Cynthia Ellis 
at (202) 452-5012 for information relating to the rulemaking process. 
Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call 
the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8330, 24 
hours a day, seven days a week, to contact the above individuals.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    BLM published the proposed rule on December 8, 2003 (68 FR 68452), 
and provided a 60-day comment period that will end on February 6, 2004. 
We are extending the comment period on this proposed rule until March 
2, 2004, to allow the public additional time to provide us with their 
comments. On January 6, 2004, BLM published in the Federal Register (69 
FR 569) a Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement (Draft EIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act on 
the changes we are considering making to the regulations governing 
BLM's Grazing Administration Program. BLM is planning 6 public meetings 
to provide the public with the opportunity to comment on the scope, 
proposed action, and possible alternatives BLM considered when 
developing the Draft EIS. The dates, times and locations of these 
meetings are shown in the table below:

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            Location                    Date and Time          Address of Meeting           Contact Person
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Salt Lake City, UT..............  Tuesday, January 27,      Marriott Hotel, 75 South  Laura Williams (801) 539-
                                   2004, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m..  West Temple, Salt Lake    4027.
                                                             City, UT 84101.
Phoenix, AZ.....................  Wednesday, January 28,    Wyndham Phoenix Hotel,    Deborah Stevens, (602) 417-
                                   2004, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m..  50 East Adams Street,     9215.
                                                             Phoenix, AZ 85004.
Boise, ID.......................  Saturday, January 31,     Doubletree Riverside      Cheryle Zwang, (208) 373-
                                   2004, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m..   Hotel, Tamarack Room,     4016.
                                                             2900 Chinden Boulevard,
                                                             Boise, ID 83714.
Billings, MT....................  Monday, February 2,       Holiday Inn Grand         Mary Apple, (406) 896-
                                   2004, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m..  Montana, 5500 Midland     5258.
                                                             Road, Billings, MT
                                                             59101.
Cheyenne, WY....................  Tuesday, February 3,      Little America, West      Cindy Wertz, (307) 775-
                                   2004, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m..  America Ballroom, 2800    6014.
                                                             West Lincoln Way,
                                                             Cheyenne, WY 82009.
Washington, DC..................  Thursday, February 5,     Courtyard by Marriott-    Tom Gorey, (202) 452-5137.
                                   2004, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m..   Embassy Row, 1600 Rhode
                                                             Island Avenue,
                                                             Washington, DC 20036.
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[[Page 2560]]

    We are also correcting the proposed rule to conform to a provision 
in a new final rule published by the Office of Hearings and Appeals 
(OHA) on December 10, 2003 (68 FR 68765). Section 4160.3(c) in the 
proposed rule referred to the authority of an administrative law judge 
to provide that a grazing decision becomes effective immediately as 
provided in 43 CFR 4.21(a)(1). That provision does not contain such 
authority for administrative law judges. However, the December 10, 
2003, OHA final rule does contain such authority in 43 CFR 4.479(c). 
Therefore, this notice corrects the cross-reference. We are also 
correcting editorial and typographical errors.
    In proposed rule FR Doc. 03-30264, published on December 8, 2003 
(68 FR 68452), make the following corrections.
    1. On page 68460, in the second column, in line 10 of the column, 
correct the reference to ``section 4130.3-1'' to read ``section 4130.3-
3.''
    2. On page 68464, in the second column, in line 1 of the column, 
correct the reference to ``section 4140.0'' to read ``section 4140.1.''
    3. On page 68473, in the second column, in paragraph (c) of Sec.  
4160.3, correct the final sentence to read as follows:


Sec.  4160.3  Final decisions.

* * * * *
    (c) * * * Nothing in this section affects the authority of the 
Director of the Office of Hearings and Appeals or the Interior Board of 
Land Appeals as provided in Sec.  4.21(a)(1) of this title, or the 
authority of an administrative law judge as provided in Sec.  4.479(c) 
of this title, to provide that the decision becomes effective 
immediately.

    Dated: January 9, 2004.
Rebecca W. Watson,
Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals Management.
[FR Doc. 04-1032 Filed 1-15-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-84-P