[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 155 (Monday, August 14, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37885-37887]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-17036]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Scientific Advisory Committee on Alternative Toxicological 
Methods; Announcement of Meeting; Request for Comments

SUMMARY: This notice announces a meeting of the Scientific Advisory 
Committee on Alternative Toxicological Methods (SACATM). SACATM advises 
the Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Validation of Alternative 
Methods (ICCVAM), the National Toxicology Program (NTP) Interagency 
Center for the Evaluation of Alternative Toxicological Methods 
(NICEATM), and the Director of the National Institute of Environmental 
Health Sciences (NIEHS) and NTP regarding statutorily mandated duties 
of ICCVAM and activities of NICEATM. The meeting is open to the public, 
and registration is requested for both public attendance and oral 
comment and required to access the webcast. Information about the 
meeting and registration is available at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/32822.

DATES: 
    Meeting: September 18-19, 2017; it begins 9:00 a.m. Eastern 
Daylight Time (EDT) each day and continues until adjournment.
    Written Public Comment Submissions: Deadline is September 11, 2017.
    Registration for Oral Comments: Deadline is September 11, 2017.
    Registration for the meeting and to View Webcast: Deadline is 
September 19, 2017.

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    Registration to view the meeting via the webcast is required.

ADDRESSES: 
    Meeting Location: Natcher Conference Center, Building 45, Room E1 & 
E2, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20984.
    Meeting Web page: The preliminary agenda, registration information, 
and background materials should be posted at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/32822 by August 15, 2017.
    Webcast: The meeting will be webcast; the URL will be provided to 
those who register for viewing.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Mary Wolfe, Designated Federal 
Official for SACATM, Office of Liaison, Policy, and Review, Division of 
NTP, NIEHS, P.O. Box 12233, K2-03, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709. 
Phone: 919-541-7539, fax: 301-451-6890, email: [email protected]. 
Hand Deliver/Courier address: 530 Davis Drive, Room K2130, Morrisville, 
NC 27560.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Preliminary Agenda and Other Meeting Information: A preliminary 
agenda, roster of SACATM members, and background materials should be 
available by August 15, 2017, on the SACATM meeting Web site (http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/32822) and available upon request from the 
Designated Federal Official. Public comments and any additional 
information will be posted when available. The meeting's agenda will 
focus on the US strategic roadmap for implementation of new approaches 
to safety evaluation, which is under development, and ICCVAM agencies' 
activities related to the development and implementation of alternative 
methods. Following the meeting, summary minutes will be prepared and 
available on the SACATM Web site or upon request from the Designated 
Federal Official.
    Meeting and Registration: This meeting is open to the public with 
time scheduled for oral public comments. The public may attend the 
meeting at Natcher Conference Center, where attendance is limited only 
by the space available, or view the webcast. Registration is required 
to view the webcast; the URL for the webcast will be provided in the 
email confirming registration. Individuals who plan to attend and/or 
provide oral comments are encouraged to register at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/32822 by September 11, 2017, to facilitate 
planning for the meeting. Individuals are encouraged to access the Web 
site to stay abreast of the most current information regarding the 
meeting. Visitor information for those attending in person is available 
at https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/visitor-information. Campus access and 
security information is located at https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/visitor-information/campus-access-security. Individuals with 
disabilities who need accommodation to participate in this event should 
contact Ms. Robbin Guy at phone: 919-541-4363 or email: 
[email protected]. TTY users should contact the Federal TTY Relay 
Service at 800-877-8339. Requests should be made at least five business 
days in advance of the event.
    Request for Comments: Both written and oral public input on the 
agenda topics is invited. Written comments submitted in response to 
this notice should be received by September 11, 2017. Comments will be 
posted on the SACATM meeting Web site and persons submitting them will 
be identified by their name and affiliation and/or sponsoring 
organization, if applicable. Persons submitting written comments should 
include their name, affiliation (if applicable), and sponsoring 
organization (if any) with the document. Guidelines for public comments 
are at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/ntp/about_ntp/guidelines_public_comments_508.pdf.
    Time is allotted during the meeting for the public to present oral 
comments on the agenda topics. Public comments can be presented in-
person at the meeting or by teleconference line. There are 50 lines for 
this call; availability is on a first-come, first-served basis. The 
lines will be open from 9:00 a.m. until adjournment on September 18 and 
19; although SACATM will receive public comments only during the formal 
public comment periods, as indicated on the preliminary agenda. Each 
organization is allowed one time slot per agenda topic. Each speaker is 
allotted at least 7 minutes, which if time permits, may be extended to 
10 minutes at the discretion of the SACATM chair.
    Persons wishing to present oral comments are encouraged to register 
using the SACATM meeting registration form (http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/32822) by September 11, 2017. Registrants should indicate the 
topic(s) on which they plan to comment and whether they will present 
comments in-person or via the teleconference. The access number for the 
teleconference line for public comments will be provided to registrants 
by email prior to the meeting. Registrants are requested to, if 
possible, send a copy of their statement to [email protected] by 
September 11, 2017, to enable review by SACATM, NICEATM, ICCVAM, and 
NIEHS/NTP staff prior to the meeting. Written statements can supplement 
and may expand the oral presentation. Registration for on-site oral 
comments will also be available on the meeting day, although time 
allowed for comments by these registrants may be limited and will be 
determined by the number of persons who register at the meeting. If 
registering on-site and reading from written text, please bring 30 
copies of the statement for distribution and to supplement the record.
    Background Information on ICCVAM, NICEATM, and SACATM: ICCVAM is an 
interagency committee composed of representatives from 16 federal 
regulatory and research agencies that require, use, generate, or 
disseminate toxicological and safety testing information. ICCVAM 
conducts technical evaluations of new, revised, and alternative safety 
testing methods with regulatory applicability and promotes the 
scientific validation and regulatory acceptance of toxicological and 
safety-testing methods that more accurately assess the safety and 
hazards of chemicals and products and that reduce, refine (decrease or 
eliminate pain and distress), or replace animal use. The ICCVAM 
Authorization Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 285l-3) established ICCVAM as a 
permanent interagency committee of the NIEHS under NICEATM.
    NICEATM administers ICCVAM, provides scientific and operational 
support for ICCVAM-related activities, and conducts independent 
validation studies to assess the usefulness and limitations of new, 
revised, and alternative test methods and strategies. NICEATM and 
ICCVAM work collaboratively to evaluate new and improved test methods 
and strategies applicable to the needs of U.S. Federal agencies. 
NICEATM and ICCVAM welcome the public nomination of new, revised, and 
alternative test methods and strategies for validation studies and 
technical evaluations. Additional information about ICCVAM and NICEATM 
can be found at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/iccvam and http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/niceatm.
    SACATM was established in response to the ICCVAM Authorization Act 
[Section 285l-3(d)] and is composed of scientists from the public and 
private sectors. SACATM advises ICCVAM, NICEATM, and the Director of 
the NIEHS and NTP regarding statutorily mandated duties of ICCVAM and 
activities of NICEATM. SACATM provides advice on priorities and 
activities related to the development, validation, scientific review, 
regulatory acceptance, implementation, and national and international

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harmonization of new, revised, and alternative toxicological test 
methods. Additional information about SACATM, including the charter, 
roster, and records of past meetings, can be found at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/167.

    Dated: August 1, 2017.
John R. Bucher,
Associate Director, National Toxicology Program.
[FR Doc. 2017-17036 Filed 8-11-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4140-01-P