[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 136 (Friday, July 15, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 45963]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-16599]



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  Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 136 / Friday, July 15, 2016 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 45963]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Office of the Secretary

7 CFR Part 2

RIN 0503-AA59


Designation of First Assistants

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This document amends the existing delegations of authority to 
provide for the designation of First Assistants to positions to which 
appointment is required to be made by the President with the advice and 
consent of the Senate.

DATES: Effective July 15, 2016.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melissa McClellan, Office of the 
General Counsel, USDA, 3311-South Bldg., 1400 Independence Avenue SW., 
Washington, DC 20250, (202) 720-9425, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3345 of title 5, United States Code, 
provides that when an officer of an Executive agency whose appointment 
is required to be made by the President with the advice and consent of 
the Senate dies, resigns, or is otherwise unable to perform the 
functions and duties of the office, the first assistant to the office 
of such officer (``First Assistant'') may perform temporarily the 
functions and duties of the office in an acting capacity. This rule 
authorizes the Secretary to establish a First Assistant to each office 
within the Department of Agriculture to which appointment is required 
to be made by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate 
(``PAS office'').
    If there is a principal deputy position to the PAS office, the 
principal deputy position is the First Assistant. If there is no 
position with the title ``principal deputy,'' but there is one, and 
only one, deputy position to the PAS office, that deputy position is 
the First Assistant. If there is more than one deputy position to the 
PAS office, and the delegations of authority by the Secretary published 
in part 2 of title 7 of the CFR establish which deputy has the 
authority to perform all the duties and exercise all the powers of the 
PAS office, then that deputy delegated such authority is the First 
Assistant.
    If there is no position or deputy that qualifies as a First 
Assistant under these tests, then the Secretary may designate in 
writing a First Assistant position to the PAS office, with the 
exception of the Inspector General.

Classification

    This rule relates to internal agency management. Accordingly, 
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, notice of proposed rulemaking and opportunity 
for comment are not required, and this rule may be made effective less 
than 30 days after publication in the Federal Register. This rule also 
is exempt from the provisions of Executive Order 12866. This action is 
not a rule as defined by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, as amended by 
the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 5 
U.S.C. 601 et seq., or the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et 
seq., and thus is exempt from the provisions of those acts. This rule 
contains no information collection or recordkeeping requirements under 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 2

    Authority delegations (Government agencies).

    Accordingly, 7 CFR part 2 is amended as follows:

PART 2--DELEGATIONS OF AUTHORITY BY THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE 
AND GENERAL OFFICERS OF THE DEPARTMENT

0
1. The authority citation for part 2 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  7 U.S.C. 6912(a)(1); 5 U.S.C. 301; Reorganization 
Plan No. 2 of 1953, 3 CFR 1949-1953 Comp., p. 1024.


0
2. Add Sec.  2.6 to subpart B to read as follows:


Sec.  2.6  Designation of first assistants.

    (a) Every office within the Department to which appointment is 
required to be made by the President with the advice and consent of the 
Senate (``PAS Office'') may have a First Assistant within the meaning 
of 5 U.S.C. 3345-3349d.
    (1) Where there is a position of principal deputy to the PAS 
Office, the principal deputy shall be the First Assistant.
    (2) Where there is only one deputy position to the PAS Office, the 
official in that position shall be the First Assistant.
    (3) Where there is more than one deputy position to the PAS Office, 
and this part establishes which deputy is delegated the authority to 
perform all the duties and exercise all the powers of the PAS Office 
during the absence or unavailability of the PAS official, the deputy 
delegated such authority shall be the First Assistant.
    (4) Where neither paragraph (a)(1), (2), nor (3) of this section is 
applicable to the PAS Office, except as provided in paragraph (b) of 
this section, the Secretary may designate in writing the First 
Assistant position.
    (b) The Inspector General of the Department shall determine any 
arrangements for the temporary performance of the functions and duties 
of the Inspector General when that office is vacant.

Thomas J. Vilsack,
Secretary of Agriculture.
[FR Doc. 2016-16599 Filed 7-14-16; 8:45 am]
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