[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 53 (Friday, March 18, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14849-14850]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-06203]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9943-95-OA]


Request for Nominations of Experts To Augment the Science 
Advisory Board Chemical Assessment Advisory Committee for the Review of 
the EPA's Draft Toxicological Review of Hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-
triazine (RDX)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Science Advisory 
Board (SAB) Staff Office requests public nominations of scientific 
experts to augment the SAB Chemical Assessment Advisory Committee 
(CAAC) for the review of the EPA's draft Toxicological Review of 
Hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) in Support of Summary 
Information on the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS).

DATES: Nominations should be submitted by April 8, 2016 per the 
instructions below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing 
further information regarding this Notice and Request for Nominations 
may contact the Designated Federal Officer for the review, as 
identified below. Nominators unable to submit nominations 
electronically as described below may contact the Designated Federal 
Officer for assistance. General information concerning the EPA SAB can 
be found at the EPA SAB Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Background: The SAB (42 U.S.C. 4365) is a chartered Federal 
Advisory Committee that provides independent scientific and technical 
peer review, advice and recommendations to the EPA Administrator on the 
technical basis for EPA actions. As a Federal Advisory Committee, the 
SAB conducts business in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee 
Act (FACA) (5 U.S.C. App. 2) and related regulations. The SAB Chemical 
Assessment Advisory Committee (CAAC) is a subcommittee of the SAB that 
provides advice through the chartered SAB regarding assessments of 
environmental chemicals available on EPA's Integrated Risk Information 
System (IRIS). The SAB and the CAAC, augmented with additional experts, 
will comply with the provisions of FACA and all appropriate SAB Staff 
Office procedural policies.
    The National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA) in the 
EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) develops toxicological 
reviews/assessments for various chemicals for IRIS. NCEA is developing 
a draft IRIS assessment for Hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine 
(RDX) and has asked the SAB to peer review the draft document. The SAB 
Staff Office is seeking experts to augment the SAB CAAC for this peer 
review.
    This draft will be a reassessment of RDX. NCEA's draft 
Toxicological Review of Hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) 
currently posted to the IRIS database includes an oral reference dose 
(RfD) (posted in 1988), and a cancer descriptor and oral cancer slope 
factor (posted in 1990). Epidemiological data, experimental animal 
data, and other relevant data from studies of the noncancer and cancer 
effects of RDX are being evaluated in this reassessment. The 
reassessment is expected to include an updated RfD and oral cancer 
assessment.
    Technical Contact for EPA's draft assessment: For information 
concerning the EPA draft assessment, please contact Dr. Samantha Jones, 
National Center for Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and 
Development, U.S. EPA, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Mail Code 8601P, 
Washington, DC 20460, phone (703) 347-8580 or via email at 
[email protected].
    Request for Nominations: The SAB Staff Office is seeking 
nominations of nationally and internationally recognized scientists 
with demonstrated expertise and research to augment the CAAC for the 
peer review of the RDX toxicological review. The SAB Staff Office seeks 
experts in one or more of the following areas, with a particular focus 
on RDX: Neurotoxicity; kidney/urogenital expertise [preferably with 
some experience with the prostate]; reproductive/developmental 
toxicity; general toxicology; carcinogenicity; physiologically-based 
pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling including toxicokinetic considerations; 
and quantitative risk assessment expertise specifically related to 
dose-response modeling of animal data. Questions regarding this review 
should be directed to Dr. Suhair Shallal, Designated Federal Officer 
(DFO), SAB Staff Office, by telephone/voice mail at (202) 564-2057, or 
via email at [email protected].
    Process and Deadline for Submitting Nominations: Any interested 
person or organization may nominate qualified individuals in the areas 
of expertise described above for possible service on the augmented CAAC 
panel identified in this notice.
    Nominations should be submitted in electronic format (preferred 
over hard copy) using the online nomination form under the ``Nomination 
of Experts'' category at the bottom of the SAB home page at http://www.epa.gov/sab. To receive full consideration, nominations should 
include all of the information requested below.
    EPA's SAB Staff Office requests contact information about the 
person making the nomination; contact information about the nominee; 
the disciplinary and specific areas of expertise of the nominee; the 
nominee's resume or curriculum vitae; sources of recent grant and/or 
contract support; and a biographical sketch of the nominee indicating 
current position, educational background, research activities, and 
recent service on other national advisory committees or national 
professional organizations.
    Persons having questions about the nomination procedures, or who 
are unable to submit nominations through the SAB Web site, should 
contact Dr. Shallal as noted above. Nominations should be submitted in 
time to arrive no later than April 8, 2016. EPA values and welcomes 
diversity. In an effort to obtain nominations of diverse candidates, 
EPA encourages nominations of women and men of all racial and ethnic 
groups.
    The EPA SAB Staff Office will acknowledge receipt of nominations. 
The names and biosketches of qualified nominees identified by 
respondents to this Federal Register notice, and additional experts 
identified by the SAB Staff, will be posted in a List of Candidates for 
the CAAC RDX panel on the SAB Web site at http://

[[Page 14850]]

www.epa.gov/sab (see links under ``Public Input on Membership'' at the 
bottom of the SAB home page). Public comments on the List of Candidates 
will be accepted for 21 days. The public will be requested to provide 
relevant information or other documentation on nominees that the SAB 
Staff Office should consider in evaluating candidates.
    For the EPA SAB Staff Office a balanced review panel includes 
candidates who possess the necessary domains of knowledge, the relevant 
scientific perspectives (which, among other factors, can be influenced 
by work history and affiliation), and the collective breadth of 
experience to adequately address the charge. In forming this expert 
panel, the SAB Staff Office will consider public comments on the List 
of Candidates, information provided by the candidates themselves, and 
background information independently gathered by the SAB Staff Office. 
Selection criteria to be used for panel membership include: (a) 
Scientific and/or technical expertise, knowledge, and experience 
(primary factors); (b) availability and willingness to serve; (c) 
absence of financial conflicts of interest; (d) absence of an 
appearance of a loss of impartiality; (e) skills working in committees, 
subcommittees and advisory panels; and, (f) for the panel as a whole, 
diversity of expertise and scientific points of view.
    The SAB Staff Office's evaluation of an absence of financial 
conflicts of interest will include a review of the ``Confidential 
Financial Disclosure Form for Special Government Employees Serving on 
Federal Advisory Committees at the U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency'' (EPA Form 3110-48). This confidential form allows government 
officials to determine whether there is a statutory conflict between a 
person's public responsibilities (which include membership on an EPA 
federal advisory committee) and private interests and activities, or 
the appearance of a loss of impartiality, as defined by federal 
regulation. The form may be viewed and downloaded from the following 
URL address: http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabproduct.nsf/Web/ethics?OpenDocument.
    The approved policy under which the EPA SAB Office selects members 
for subcommittees and review panels is described in the following 
document: Overview of the Panel Formation Process at the Environmental 
Protection Agency Science Advisory Board (EPA-SAB-EC-02-010), which is 
posted on the SAB Web site at http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/
sabproduct.nsf/WebFiles/OverviewPanelForm/$File/ec02010.pdf.

    Dated: March 14, 2016.
Thomas H. Brennan,
Deputy Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. 2016-06203 Filed 3-17-16; 8:45 am]
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