[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 60 (Thursday, March 27, 2008)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 16243-16244]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-6121]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration

20 CFR Part 655

Employment Standards Administration

Wage and Hour Division

29 CFR Parts 501, 780, and 788

RIN 1205-AB55


Temporary Agricultural Employment of H-2A Aliens in the United 
States; Modernizing the Labor Certification Process and Enforcement; 
Extension of Comment Period

AGENCIES: Employment and Training Administration, Wage and Hour 
Division, Employment Standards Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Employment and Training Administration and the Employment 
Standards Administration recently issued a proposed rule to modernize 
the application process for and enforcement of temporary alien 
agricultural (H-2A) labor certifications. 73 FR 8538 (Feb. 13, 2008). 
The proposed rule provided a comment period through March 31, 2008. The 
agencies have received several requests to extend the comment period 
and have decided to extend the comment period through April 14, 2008.

DATES: The comment period for the notice of proposed rulemaking 
published February 13, 2008 (73 FR 8538) is extended through April 14, 
2008. Interested persons are invited to submit written comments on the 
proposed rule on or before April 14, 2008.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Regulatory 
Information Number (RIN) 1205-AB55, by any one of the following 
methods:
     Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov: 
Follow the Web site instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Please submit all written comments (including disk 
and CD-ROM submissions) to Thomas Dowd, Administrator, Office of Policy 
Development and Research, Employment and Training Administration, U.S. 
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Room N-5641, 
Washington, DC 20210.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Please submit all comments to 
Thomas Dowd, Administrator, Office of Policy Development and Research, 
Employment and Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 
Constitution Avenue, NW., Room N-5641, Washington, DC 20210.
    Please submit your comments by only one method. The Department will 
post all comments received on http://www.regulations.gov without making 
any change to the comments, including any personal information 
provided. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site is the Federal e-
rulemaking portal and all comments posted there are available and 
accessible to the public. The Department cautions commenters not to 
include their personal information such as Social Security Numbers, 
personal addresses, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses in their 
comments, as such submitted information will become viewable by the 
public via the http://www.regulations.gov Web site. It is the 
responsibility of the commenter to safeguard his or her information. 
Comments submitted through http://www.regulations.gov will not include 
the commenter's e-mail address unless the commenter chooses to include 
that information as part of his or her comment.
    Postal delivery in Washington, DC, may be delayed due to security 
concerns. Therefore, the Department encourages the public to submit 
comments via the Web site indicated above.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to the Federal eRulemaking portal at: http://www.regulations.gov. The Department will also make all the comments it 
receives available for public inspection at the ETA Office of Policy 
Development and Research at the above address during normal business 
hours. If you need assistance to review the comments, the Department 
will provide you with appropriate aids such as readers or print 
magnifiers. The Department will make copies of the rule available, upon 
request, in large print and as electronic file on computer disk. The 
Department will consider providing the proposed rule in other formats 
upon request. To schedule an appointment to review the comments and/or 
obtain the rule in an alternate format, contact the Office of Policy 
Development and Research at (202) 693-3700 (VOICE) (this is not a

[[Page 16244]]

toll-free number) or 1-877-889-5627 (TTY/TDD).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding 20 
CFR part 655, contact Sherril Hurd, Acting Team Leader, Regulations 
Unit, Employment and Training, Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of 
Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Room N-5641, Washington, DC 20210; 
Telephone (202) 693-3700 (this is not a toll-free number). Individuals 
with hearing or speech impairments may access the telephone number 
above via TTY by calling the toll-free Federal Information Relay 
Service at 1-800-877-8339. For further information regarding 29 CFR 
parts 501, 780 and 788, contact James Kessler, Farm Labor Team Leader, 
Wage and Hour Division, Employment Standards Administration, U.S. 
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Room S-3510, 
Washington, DC 20210; Telephone (202) 693-0070 (this is not a toll-free 
number). Individuals with hearing or speech impairments may access the 
telephone number above via TTY by calling the toll-free Federal 
Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In February 2008, the Employment and 
Training Administration and the Employment Standards Administration of 
the Department of Labor issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking rule to 
modernize the application process for and enforcement of temporary 
alien agricultural (H-2A) labor certifications. 73 FR 8538 (Feb. 13, 
2008). The proposed rule provided a comment period through March 31, 
2008. The agencies have received several requests to extend the comment 
period and have decided to extend the comment period. Given the 
complexity of the proposed rule and the intense level of interest, the 
comment period is being extended through April 14, 2008.

    Signed in Washington, DC, this 20th day of March, 2008.
Douglas F. Small,
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Employment and Training Administration.
Alexander J. Passantino,
Acting Administrator, Wage and Hour Division, Employment Standards 
Administration.
[FR Doc. E8-6121 Filed 3-26-08; 8:45 am]
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