[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 198 (Thursday, October 15, 2009)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 52941-52942]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-24745]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 151

46 CFR Part 162

[USCG-2001-10486]
RIN 1625-AA32


Standards for Living Organisms in Ships' Ballast Water Discharged 
in U.S. Waters

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice; extension of comment periods.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard is extending the periods for public comment on 
the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) and the Draft Programmatic 
Environmental Impact Statement (DPEIS) for the rulemaking entitled 
``Standards for Living Organisms in Ships' Ballast Water'' (Docket No. 
USCG-2001-10486).

DATES: Comments and related material for the NPRM and the DPEIS must 
either be submitted to our online docket via http://www.regulations.gov 
on or before the new date for the close of the comment period, December 
4, 2009, or reach the Docket Management Facility by that date.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Coast Guard docket 
number USCG-2001-10486 to the Docket Management Facility at the U.S. 
Department of Transportation. To avoid duplication, please use only one 
of the following methods:
    (1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
    (2) Mail: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    (3) Hand delivery: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. 
Department of Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone 
number is 202-366-9329.
    (4) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods. 
See the ``Public Participation and Request for Comments'' portion of 
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section below for instructions on 
submitting comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this proposed 
rulemaking, call or e-mail Mr. John Morris, Project Manager, 
Environmental Standards Division, U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, 
telephone 202-372-1433, e-mail [email protected]. If you have 
questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, call Ms. 
Renee Wright, Chief, Dockets, Department of Transportation, telephone 
202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Public Participation and Request for Comments

    We encourage you to participate in this aspect of the rulemaking by 
submitting comments and related materials. All comments received will 
be posted, without change, to http://www.regulations.gov and will 
include any personal information you have provided.

Submitting Comments

    If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this 
rulemaking (USCG-2001-10486), indicate the specific section of the 
document to which each comment applies, and provide a reason for each 
suggestion or recommendation. You may comment on either the NPRM or the 
DPEIS or both. You may submit your comments and material online or by 
fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only one of these means. We 
recommend that you include your name and a mailing address, an e-mail 
address, or a phone number in the body of your document so that we can 
contact you if we have questions regarding your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to http://www.regulations.gov and 
click on the ``submit a comment'' box, which will then become 
highlighted in blue. Insert ``USCG-2001-10486'' in the Keyword box, 
click ``Search'', and then click on the balloon shape in the Actions 
column. If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit 
them in an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable 
for copying and electronic filing. If you submit comments by mail and 
would like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a 
stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope.
    We will consider all comments and material received during the 
comment period and may change this proposed rule or the DPEIS based on 
your comments.

Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as documents mentioned in this preamble 
as being available in the docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov at 
any time. Enter the docket number for this rulemaking (USCG-2001-10486) 
in the Keyword box, and click ``Search''. You may also visit the Docket 
Management Facility in Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the DOT West 
Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. We 
have an agreement with the Department of Transportation to use the 
Docket Management Facility.

Privacy Act

    Anyone can search the electronic form of all comments received into 
any of our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment 
(or

[[Page 52942]]

signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association, 
business, labor union, etc.). You may review a Privacy Act notice 
regarding our public dockets in the January 17, 2008, issue of the 
Federal Register (73 FR 3316).

Background and Purpose

    On August 28, 2009, the Coast Guard published an NPRM entitled 
``Standards for Living Organisms in Ships' Ballast Water Discharged in 
U.S. Waters'' in the Federal Register (74 FR 44632). The comment period 
for the NPRM was to close on November 27, 2009. On the same day, the 
Coast Guard also published a Notice of Availability in the Federal 
Register informing the public that the DPEIS for the ``Standards for 
Living Organisms in Ships' Ballast Water Discharged in U.S. Waters'' 
rulemaking had been added to the docket and was available for public 
comment (74 FR 44673). The August 28, 2009 Notice of Availability for 
the DPEIS stated that the public comment period for the DPEIS would 
close on November 27, 2009.
    Council on Environmental Quality regulations at 40 CFR part 1506.10 
state that ``(a) The Environmental Protection Agency shall publish a 
notice in the Federal Register each week of the environmental impact 
statements filed during the preceding week. The minimum time periods 
set forth in this section shall be calculated from the date of 
publication of this notice. (b) No decision on the proposed action 
shall be made or recorded under Sec. 1505.2 by a Federal agency until 
the later of the following dates: (1) Ninety days after publication of 
the notice described above in paragraph (a) of this section for a draft 
environmental impact statement.'' The Environmental Protection Agency 
did not publish their notice of availability for the DPEIS until 
September 4, 2009. Accordingly, the Coast Guard has decided to extend 
the comment periods for both the NPRM and the DPEIS in order to ensure 
that the public has adequate time to submit comments regarding these 
important proposals. The comment period for the NPRM and the DPEIS will 
now close on December 4, 2009.
    Additionally, you are reminded that you may comment on any aspect 
of the rulemaking, including on any comments placed in the docket. We 
may change the proposed rule or the DPEIS in response to the comments 
received.

    Dated: October 8, 2009.
J.G. Lantz,
Director of Commercial Regulations and Standards, U.S. Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. E9-24745 Filed 10-14-09; 8:45 am]
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