[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 242 (Friday, December 16, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 78183-78185]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-31758]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Parole Commission

28 CFR Part 2

[Docket No. USPC-2011-01]


Preliminary Plan for Retrospective Review Under E.O. 13579

AGENCY: United States Parole Commission, Justice.

ACTION: Request for comments.

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Parole Commission is asking for comments on its 
preliminary plan for the retrospective review of its regulations to 
determine whether any of the regulations should be repealed, modified 
or expanded. The Commission is undertaking the review to comply with 
Executive Order 13579, ``Regulation and Independent Regulatory 
Agencies,'' issued by the President on July 11, 2011. The purpose of 
the review is to ensure that the Commission's regulations fulfill the 
Commission's mission and are effective, cost-efficient and 
understandable.
    Comment Date: Written comments must be postmarked and electronic 
comments must be submitted by February 17, 2012. Please note that the 
electronic Federal Docket Management System will not accept comments 
after 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the last day of the comment period.

ADDRESSES: You may mail comments to the United States Parole 
Commission, attn: USPC Rules Group, 90 K Street NE., 3d Flr., 
Washington, DC 20530. You may also submit comments electronically or 
view an electronic version of this notice and of the plan at http://www.regulations.gov, at Docket No. USPC-2011-01.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rockne Chickinell, General Counsel, 
U.S. Parole Commission, 90 K Street NE., 3d Flr., Washington, DC 20530; 
Telephone (202) 346-7030.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Posting of Public Comments. All comments 
received are part of the public record and available for public 
inspection online at http://www.regulations.gov. Comments may include 
personal identifying information voluntarily submitted by the 
commenter. When found, personal identifying information will not be 
posted online but will be maintained in the agency's public docket 
file.

Overview and Background

    On July 11, 2011 the President issued Executive Order 13579 
``Regulation and Independent Regulatory Agencies.'' The order states 
that each independent regulatory agency should prepare a plan for the 
periodic review of its existing significant regulations to determine 
those regulations that are outdated, unnecessary or ineffective. The 
review enables the agency to modify or repeal a rule to increase the 
effectiveness of the regulatory program or lessen unnecessary burdens 
caused by the rule. This order highlights the importance of maintaining 
a culture of retrospective review of an agency's regulations.
    Pursuant to Executive Order 13579, the Parole Commission has 
developed a preliminary plan for a review of its regulations. The 
Commission primarily performs law-enforcement functions in releasing an 
offender from a prison term imposed by a sentencing judge, setting 
conditions of release, revoking the release if the offender violates 
the release conditions or terminating the sentence early for good 
conduct on parole supervision. The Commission's rules define the 
procedures and standards used to carry out the functions described 
above. Many of the rules incorporate statutory requirements. Other 
rules, such as the paroling policy guidelines, reflect policy choices 
made by the Commission members within the broad grant of authority 
given by Congress on executing the Commission's functions. The 
application of the rules may affect the lives of individual persons and 
the general public welfare, but the Commission's rulemaking and actions 
do not have a significant impact on economic entities and businesses.
    Over the last ten years, the Commission has issued 13 publications 
of final rules and 5 publications of interim rules that have yet to be 
promulgated as final rules. The majority of this rulemaking pertained 
to: Implementing new legislation and court decisions; adopting 
procedural rules on internal voting requirements and using new 
technology in conducting hearings; streamlining the revocation process 
for

[[Page 78184]]

parole violators who have committed non-criminal violations of release; 
and eliminating or clarifying rules that are outdated or confusing.

Scope of the Plan and Previous Agency Efforts

    The Commission's preliminary plan for the regulatory review 
includes all rules promulgated by the Commission and all notes and 
procedures in its Rules and Procedures Manual (June 30, 2010 edition). 
The ambitious scope of this effort may have to be adjusted depending on 
the workload of those staff members who are charged with carrying out 
the review. The Commission's review will extend to proposed rules and 
interim rules that have not been made final rules.
    In 2004 a Commission working group, headed by the former chief of 
staff, undertook a project to rewrite the Commission's Rules and 
Procedures Manual. The purpose of the project was to simplify the rules 
and instructions in the manual, eliminate obsolete provisions and make 
the manual easier to use. Had this effort been pursued to its 
completion, the Commission would have engaged in significant 
rulemaking. But, as often happens, the press of agency business and the 
setting of other priorities overtook the effort. Nonetheless, this 
working group achieved significant progress in redrafting a large 
portion of the manual and its work will be the foundation for the 
preliminary plan of regulatory review that the Commission announces 
with this publication.

Preliminary Plan for Regulatory Review

    The Commission Chairman has appointed an agency working group that 
will execute the review of the Commission's rules. Every Commission 
section is represented on the working group, which is monitored by 
Commissioner J. Patricia Smoot, and chaired by the Commission's General 
Counsel, Rockne Chickinell. The group's task is to determine whether a 
rule is outmoded, ineffective or imposes costs that are 
disproportionate to the benefits of the rule, and make recommendations 
to the Commission on the modification, addition or removal of rules. 
The group will also review the rules for clarity and readability.
    The review will begin with those rules and procedures that pertain 
to imposing conditions of release for an offender. Congress instructed 
the Commission that the release conditions ``be sufficiently specific 
to serve as a guide to supervision and conduct.'' 18 U.S.C. 4209(b). So 
it is particularly important that the release conditions are clear and 
understandable to the offender under supervision. Also, unduly 
burdensome release conditions may be counterproductive to the 
offender's success on supervision. The Commission substantially revised 
its standard release conditions through an interim rule in 2003. 68 FR 
41696-41714 (July 15, 2003). The retrospective review will include an 
analysis of whether the revisions of 2003 need to be updated and 
whether the manual should provide guidance as to the parsimonious 
application of release conditions that are not required by law.
    The review will proceed to the rules and procedures that govern the 
parole and supervised release revocation process. Most of the 
Commission's workload consists of responding to reports of violations, 
issuing violator warrants and conducting revocation proceedings. 
Carrying out the revocation function involves a significant number of 
participants outside the Commission, including supervision officers, 
deputy U.S. Marshals, police officers, private attorneys and public 
defenders, witnesses from the general public and the offenders. The 
retrospective review of revocation rules and procedures should benefit 
a broad range of the persons who participate in the Commission's 
activities. The Commission also recognizes that the parolee who is 
facing possible revocation has a substantial interest in a process that 
reduces the incidence of error that may be caused by confusing or 
ambiguous rules and instructions.
    The review will end with an analysis of the rules and procedures 
covering parole release determinations and internal procedures such as 
voting requirements by hearing examiners and Commission members.
    In its examination the working group will pay particular attention 
to those rules and procedures that: Place high costs or burdens on the 
public, require outdated reporting practices, affect a large group of 
persons or entities, overlap with or duplicate other rules, are 
obsolete given changes in laws or other circumstances or have been the 
subject of requests for rulemaking.

Public Participation in the Review and Rulemaking

    In addition to this request for comment, the Commission will send 
out notices to interested organizations seeking the views and comments 
on the continued relevance and effectiveness of the Commission's rules. 
Interested organizations included in this outreach effort are 
correctional and parole supervision entities such as the Federal Bureau 
of Prisons, the District of Columbia Court Services and Offender 
Supervision Agency, the U.S. Probation Service and organizations 
frequently representing the interests of federal and District of 
Columbia offenders such as Federal Defender's offices in Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the DC Public Defender 
Service, and CURE, Inc.. At any time during the review period, the 
public may provide their views and recommendations to the working group 
by writing the Commission at U.S. Parole Commission, attn: USPC Rules 
Group, 90 K Street, 3rd Flr., Washington, DC 20530 or sending an email 
to [email protected]. If the Commission decides to proceed with 
rulemaking at any stage of the retrospective review, the Commission 
will follow the normal rulemaking process, usually with a 60-day notice 
and public comment period for proposed rules. The working group will 
analyze the public comment for the Commission's review and recommend 
responses to the comments submitted. The working group will then 
forward their recommendation on final rulemaking to the Commission for 
a vote at the open session of a Commission business meeting. Any 
interested person or organization may observe the Commission's 
discussion of a rule change at the open business meeting.
    As the working group conducts its review, the Commission will 
report its progress on the agency's Web site, including any rulemaking 
initiatives taken by the Commission in response to the working group's 
review. The Commission's goal is to complete its retrospective review 
by September 30, 2013.

Maintaining the Review Process

    The Commission's effort to sustain a culture of review and analysis 
of its rules and procedures will not end with the completion of the 
retrospective review required by the executive order. During the 
retrospective review, the Commission will rely on the working group to 
review any new regulatory initiative for issues such as the need for 
the rule, the burden placed on the public and criminal justice agencies 
by the rule, any alternatives to the rule and the clarity of the 
proposed wording of the rule. Even after the retrospective review ends, 
the Commission intends to maintain the working group for the periodic 
review of its rules and manual provisions and to analyze new proposed 
rules and procedures.


[[Page 78185]]


    Dated: December 5, 2011.
Isaac Fulwood,
Chairman, U.S. Parole Commission.
[FR Doc. 2011-31758 Filed 12-15-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-31-P