[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 76 (Monday, April 21, 2014)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 22071-22072]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-08934]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 1

[Docket No. USCG-2008-1259]
RIN 1625-AB32


Assessment Framework and Organizational Restatement Regarding 
Preemption for Certain Regulations Issued by the Coast Guard

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of public meetings; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces two public meetings to receive 
comments on a notice of proposed rulemaking addressing the Coast 
Guard's assessment framework for, and restating its position regarding, 
the federalism implications of regulations issued under the authority 
of various statutes within Titles 33 and 46 of the United States Code. 
The meetings will be held in two locations in order to allow for 
greater public involvement.

DATES: The public meetings will be held on the following dates:
     Arlington, VA [Washington, DC-area], May 13, 2014, from 
12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.
     Seattle, WA, May 16, 2014, from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.
    The meetings may conclude before the allotted time if all matters 
for discussion have been addressed. Written comments and related 
material may also be submitted to Coast Guard personnel specified at 
that meeting.
    Those who plan to attend should notify the Coast Guard of their 
plans by May 6, 2014, using the contact information in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this notice.
    The comment period for the proposed rule closes May 26, 2014. All 
comments and related material submitted after the meeting must either 
be submitted to our online docket via http://www.regulations.gov on or 
before May 26, 2014, or reach the Docket Management Facility by that 
date.

ADDRESSES: The public meetings will be held at the following locations:

     Arlington, VA [Washington, DC-area]--U.S. Coast Guard 
Personnel Service Center (PSC), 4200 Wilson Boulevard, Alexander 
Hamilton Room, 9th floor, Arlington, VA 20598-7200
     Seattle, WA--Henry M. Jackson Federal Building, 915 Second 
Avenue, North Auditorium, Room 3448, Seattle, WA 98174-1067


[[Page 22072]]


    You may submit written comments identified by docket number USCG-
2005-21869 before or after the meeting using any one of the following 
methods:
    (1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
    (2) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    (3) 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.
    (4) Hand Delivery: Same as mail address above, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone 
number is 202-366-9329.
    To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods. 
Our online docket for this rulemaking is available on the Internet at 
http://www.regulations.gov under docket number USCG-2008-1259.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions concerning the 
meetings or the proposed rule, please call or email Lieutenant 
Commander Lineka Quijano, Office of Maritime and International Law, 
Coast Guard, telephone 202-372-3865, email [email protected]. 
If you have questions on viewing or submitting material to the docket, 
call Ms. Cheryl Collins, Program Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 
202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background and Purpose

    We published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal 
Register on December 27, 2013 (78 FR 79242), entitled ``Assessment 
Framework and Organizational Restatement Regarding Preemption for 
Certain Regulations Issued by the Coast Guard.'' In it we stated that 
we did not plan to hold a public meeting, but that we welcomed requests 
explaining why one would be beneficial. We received several requests 
and have concluded that public meetings would aid this rulemaking. 
Therefore, we are publishing this notice announcing two public 
meetings. We also have extended the comment period until May 26, 2014 
(79 FR 17482).
    In the NPRM, we proposed a rule containing our assessment framework 
for, and restating our position regarding, the federalism implications 
of regulations issued under the authority of various statutes within 
Titles 33 and 46 of the United States Code. We proposed adding a 
subpart 1.06 to Title 33 of the Code of Federal regulations to discuss 
existing law on preemption, identify the laws and regulations that have 
preemptive effect, and clarify (but not alter) the Coast Guard's 
application of statutes and case law regarding the preemptive effect of 
its regulations. The proposed rule does not offer new interpretations 
of the preemptive impact of Coast Guard regulations, and does not 
propose new regulations that would impact the states' ability to 
regulate and protect their waterways. Instead, our proposed rule simply 
restates the current preemptive impact of our regulations as they exist 
today. In other words, it provides a list of existing regulations that 
were previously determined to have preemptive impact under U.S. Supreme 
Court case law pronouncements on statutes implemented by the Coast 
Guard. Further, the proposed rule would not give preemptive impact to 
any specific future Coast Guard regulations. It merely provides the 
legal framework by which future regulations will be analyzed for 
preemptive impact.
    You may view the NPRM, and public comments submitted thus far, in 
our online docket by going to http://www.regulations.gov. Once there, 
search for the docket number USCG-2008-1259, and then click ``Open 
Docket Folder.'' If you do not have access to the internet, you may 
view the docket online by visiting 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.
    We encourage you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting 
comments either orally at the meeting or in writing. If you bring 
written comments to the meeting, you may submit them to Coast Guard 
personnel specified at the meeting to receive written comments. These 
comments will be posted to our online public docket. All comments 
received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov 
and will include any personal information you have provided.
    Anyone can search the electronic form of comments received into any 
of our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or 
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).

Information on Service for Individuals With Disabilities

    For information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities or to request special assistance at the public meeting, 
contact Lieutenant Commander Lineka Quijano at the telephone number or 
email address indicated under the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section of this notice.

Public Meeting

    The Coast Guard will hold two public meetings regarding this 
proposed rule at the following locations on the following dates:
     Arlington, VA [Washington, DC-area], May 13, 2014, from 
12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m., at the U.S. Coast Guard Personnel Service Center 
(PSC), 4200 Wilson Boulevard, Alexander Hamilton Room, 9th floor, 
Arlington, VA 20598-7200. Note: A valid government-issued photo 
identification (for example, a driver's license) will be required for 
entrance to the building or meeting space.
     Seattle, WA, May 16, 2014, from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m., at 
the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building, 915 Second Avenue, North 
Auditorium, Room 3448, Seattle, WA 98174-1067. Note: A valid 
government-issued photo identification (for example, a driver's 
license) will be required for entrance to the building.
    To facilitate the building security process, and to request 
reasonable accommodation, those who plan to attend should contact the 
meeting coordinator, LCDR Lineka Quijano, 7 days prior to the first 
meeting by using the contact information in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section of this notice. Requests made after May 6, 2014, might 
not be able to be accommodated. Please note that due to security 
considerations, a valid, government-issued photo identification must be 
presented to gain entrance to the building or meeting space.
    Members of the public may attend these meetings up to the seating 
capacity of the rooms. The meetings may conclude before the allotted 
time if all matters of concern have been addressed.
    We plan to record each meeting using an audio-digital recorder, and 
to make that audio recording available through a link in our online 
docket.

    Dated: April 10, 2014.
Steven D. Poulin,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Judge Advocate General.
[FR Doc. 2014-08934 Filed 4-18-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-04-P