This agency information collection previously published at 84 FR 9476.

Agency: USAID.

Title: Certification of Identity.

OMB Number: OMB 0412-0589.

Form Number: AID Form 507-1.

Affected Public: Individuals.

Number of Respondents: 600.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 50.

Note: The 60 Day Notice references incorrect information in III. Data for the Title, OMB Number, Expiration Date, and Type of Request section.

Title: Specialty Crops Market News Division.

OMB Number: 0581-0006.

Expiration Date of Approval: November 30, 2019.

Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved information collection.

Abstract: Collection and dissemination of information for specialty crops production and to facilitate trading by providing a price base used by producers, wholesalers, and retailers to market product.

The Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1621-1627), section 203(g) directs and authorizes the collection and dissemination of marketing information including adequate outlook information, on a market area basis, for the purpose of anticipating and meeting consumer requirements, aiding in the maintenance of farm income and to bring about a balance between production and utilization.

The specialty crops industry provides information on a voluntary basis that is gathered through confidential telephone and face-to-face interviews by market reporters. Reporters request supply, demand, and price information of over 330 fresh fruit, vegetable, nut, ornamental, and other specialty crops, such as honey. The information is collected, compiled, and disseminated by Specialty Crops Market News Division in its critical role as an impartial third party. It is collected and reported in a manner which protects the confidentiality of the respondent and their operations.

The Specialty Crops Market News Division reports are used by academia and various government agencies for regulatory and other purposes, but are primarily used by the specialty crops trade, which includes packers, processors, brokers, retailers, producers, and associated industries. Members of the specialty crops industry regularly make it clear that they need and expect the Department of Agriculture to issue price and supply market reports for commodities of regional, national and international significance in order to assist in making immediate production and marketing decisions and as a guide to the amount of product in the supply channel. In addition, the Agricultural Marketing Service buys hundreds of millions of dollars of specialty crops products each year for domestic feeding programs, and Specialty Crops Market News Division data is a critical component of the decision making process.

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average .101 hours per response.

Respondents: Specialty crops industry, or other for-profit businesses, individuals or households, farms.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 2,776.

Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 202.

Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 56,636 hours.

Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the request for OMB approval. All comments will also become a matter of public record.

Title: Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements Under Regulations (Other than Rules of Practice) Under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act, 1930.

OMB Number: 0581-0031.

Expiration Date of Approval: November 30, 2019.

Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved information collection.

Abstract: The PACA was enacted by Congress in 1930 to establish a code of fair trading practices covering the marketing of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables in interstate or foreign commerce. It protects growers, shippers, and distributors dealing in those commodities by prohibiting unfair and fraudulent trade practices.

The law provides a forum for resolving contract disputes, and a mechanism for the collection of damages from anyone who fails to meet contractual obligations. In addition, the PACA provides for prompt payment to fruit and vegetable sellers and for revocation of licenses and sanctions against firms or principals found to have violated the law's standards for fair business practices. The PACA also imposes a statutory trust that attaches to perishable agricultural commodities received by regulated entities, products derived from the commodities, and any receivables or proceeds from the sale of the commodities. The trust exists for the benefit of produce suppliers, sellers, or agents that have not been paid, and continues until they have been paid in full.

The PACA is enforced through a licensing system. All commission merchants, dealers, and brokers engaged in business subject to the PACA must be licensed. Retailers and grocery wholesalers must renew their licenses every three years. All other licensees renew yearly. Those who engage in practices prohibited by the PACA may have their licenses suspended or revoked.

The information collected pursuant to OMB Number 0581-0031 is used to administer licensing provisions under the PACA, to adjudicate contract disputes, and to enforce the PACA and the regulations. The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments from the public concerning our information collection.

We estimate the paperwork and time burden of the above referenced information collection to be as follows:

Form FTPP-211, Application for License: average of .25 hours per application per response.

Form FTPP-231-1 (or 231-1A, or 231-2, or 231-2A), Application for Renewal or Reinstatement of License: Average of .05 hours per application per response.

Regulations Section 46.13—Letters to Notify USDA of Changes in Business Operations: Average of .05 hours per notice per response.

Regulations Section 46.4—Limited Liability Company Articles of Organization and Operating Agreement: Average of .083 hours with approximately 2,968 annual responses.

Regulations Section 46.18—Record of Produce Received: Average of 5 hours with approximately 6,725 recordkeepers.

Regulations Section 46.20—Records Reflecting Lot Numbers: Average of 8.25 hours with approximately 683 recordkeepers.

Regulations Section 46.46(c)(2)—Waiver of Rights to Trust Protection: Average of .25 hours per notice with approximately 100 principals.

Regulations Sections 46.2(aa)(11) and 46.46(e)(1)—Copy of Written Agreement Reflecting Times for Payment: Average of 20 hours with approximately 2,343 recordkeepers.

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 3 hours per response annually.

Respondents: Commission merchants, dealers, and brokers engaged in the business of buying, selling, or negotiating the purchase or sale of commercial quantities of fresh and/or frozen fruits and vegetables in interstate or foreign commerce are required to be licensed under the PACA (7 U.S.C. 499(c)(a)).

Estimated Number of Respondents: 13,600.

Estimated Total Annual Responses: 28,547.

Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 2.10 (rounded).

Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 87,409 hours.

Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the request for OMB approval. All comments will become a matter of public record.

The purpose of these meetings are to:

1. Approve minutes from April 25, 2017 meeting;

2. Review projects previously authorized under Title II of the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) Act; and

3. Review, discuss, and recommend proposed Title II projects under the current SRS Act reauthorization.

The meetings are open to the public. The agendas will include time for people to make oral statements of three minutes or less. Individuals wishing to make an oral statement should request in writing by June 7, 2019, to be scheduled on the agendas for the June 11, 2019, June 12, 2019, and June 13, 2019 meetings. Anyone who would like to bring related matters to the attention of the committee may file written statements with the committee staff before or after the meetings. Written comments and requests for time to make oral comments must be sent to Virginia Gibbons, RAC Coordinator, 3040 Biddle Road, Medford, Oregon 97504; by email to vgibbons@fs.fed.us, or by facsimile at 541-618-2144.

Meeting Accommodations: If you are a person requiring reasonable accommodation, please make requests in advance for sign language interpreting, assistive listening devices or other reasonable accommodation. For access to the facility or proceedings, please contact the person listed in the section titled For Further Information Contact. All reasonable accommodation requests are managed on a case by case basis.

The purpose of this meeting is to:

1. Review project propsals;

2. Recommend projects to the Designated Federal Officer (DFO); and

3. Conduct any necessary administrative business.

The meeting is open to the public. The agenda will include time for people to make oral statements of three minutes or less. Individuals wishing to make an oral statement should request in writing by June 14, 2019. Anyone who would like to bring related matters to the attention of the committee may file written statements with the committee staff before or after the meeting. Written comments and requests for time to make oral comments must be sent to Phillip Blundell, RAC Coordinator, Post Office Box 159, Smelterville, Idaho; by email to phillipblundell@usda.gov, or by facsimile at 208-783-2154.

Meeting Accommodations: If you are a person requiring reasonable accommodation, please make requests in advance for sign language interpreting, assistive listening devices or other reasonable accommodation. For access to the facility or proceedings, please contact the person listed in the section titled For Further Information Contact. All reasonable accommodation requests are managed on a case by case basis.

The purpose of the meeting is to provide:

(1) Orientation Topic: Timber Sale Program;

(2) District Updates;

(3) Mineral Withdrawal Botanical Area and Research Natural Area Working Group update;

(4) Motorized Trail Strategy Working Group update;

(5) Recreation Site Analysis (RSA) Working Group update; and

(6) August Field Trip.

The meeting is open to the public. If time allows, the public may make oral statements of three minutes or less. Individuals wishing to make an oral statement should submit a request in writing by June 10, 2019, to be scheduled on the agenda. Anyone who would like to bring related matters to the attention of the Board may file written statements with the Board's staff before or after the meeting. Written comments and time requests for oral comments must be sent to Scott Jacobson, Black Hills National Forest Supervisor's Office, 1019 North Fifth Street, Custer, South Dakota 57730; by email to sjjacobson@fs.fed.us, or via facsimile to 605-673-9208.

Meeting Accommodations: If you are a person requiring reasonable accommodation, please make requests in advance for sign language interpreting, assistive listening devices, or other reasonable accommodation for access to the facility or proceedings by contacting the person listed in the section titled For Further Information Contact. All reasonable accommodation requests are managed on a case by case basis.

Title: Fruits, Nuts, and Specialty Crops Surveys.

OMB Control Number: 0535-0039.

Expiration Date of Approval: October 31, 2019.

Type of Request: To revise and extend a currently approved information collection for a period of three years.

Abstract: The primary objective of the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is to collect, prepare and issue State and national estimates of crop and livestock production, prices, and disposition; as well as economic statistics, environmental statistics related to agriculture and also to conduct the Census of Agriculture.

The Fruits, Nuts, and Specialty Crops survey program collects information on acreage, yield, production, price, and value of citrus and non-citrus fruits and nuts and other specialty crops in States with significant commercial production. The program provides data needed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other government agencies to administer programs and to set trade quotas and tariffs. Producers, processors, other industry representatives, State Departments of Agriculture, and universities also use forecasts and estimates provided by these surveys. All questionnaires included in this information collection will be voluntary.

The changes that were made to the fruit and nut commodity surveys at NASS can be found on the NASS website https://www.nass.usda.gov/Surveys/Program_Review/2019/Noncitrus-Fruit-and-Tree-Nut-Program.pdf.

The changes that were made to other programs can be found at https://www.nass.usda.gov/Surveys/Program_Review/index.php.

Authority: These data will be collected under authority of 7 U.S.C. 2204(a). Individually identifiable data collected under this authority are governed by Section 1770 of the Food Security Act of 1985 as amended, 7 U.S.C. 2276, which requires USDA to afford strict confidentiality to non-aggregated data provided by respondents. This Notice is submitted in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-113) and Office of Management and Budget regulations at 5 CFR part 1320.

NASS also complies with OMB Implementation Guidance, “Implementation Guidance for Title V of the E-Government Act, Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 2002 (CIPSEA),” Federal Register , Vol. 72, No. 115, June 15, 2007, p. 33362.

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this information collection is based on approximately 55 individual surveys with expected response times of 5-60 minutes. The frequency of data collection for the different surveys will include annual, seasonal, quarterly, monthly, and one weekly survey. Estimated number of responses per respondent is 1.1. Publicity materials and instruction sheets will account for approximately 5 minutes of additional burden per respondent. Respondents who refuse to complete a survey will be allotted 2 minutes of burden per attempt to collect the data. Several new surveys have been added to this information collection to account for some specialty commodities conducted under cooperative agreements with several States.

Respondents: Producers, processors, and handlers.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 75,000.

Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 26,000 hours.

Comments: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, technological or other forms of information technology collection methods.

All responses to this notice will become a matter of public record and be summarized in the request for OMB approval.

This meeting is available to the public through the following toll-free call-in number: 877-260-1479, conference ID number: 6760059. Any interested member of the public may call this number and listen to the meeting. Callers can expect to incur charges for calls they initiate over wireless lines, and the Commission will not refund any incurred charges. Callers will incur no charge for calls they initiate over land-line connections to the toll-free telephone number. Persons with hearing impairments may also follow the proceedings by first calling the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339 and providing the Service with the conference call number and conference ID number.

Members of the public are entitled to make comments during the open period at the end of the meeting. Members of the public may also submit written comments; the comments must be received in the Regional Programs Unit within 30 days following the meeting. Written comments may be mailed to the Western Regional Office, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, 300 North Los Angeles Street, Suite 2010, Los Angeles, CA 90012. They may be faxed to the Commission at (213) 894-0508, or emailed Ana Victoria Fortes at afortes@usccr.gov. Persons who desire additional information may contact the Regional Programs Unit at (213) 894-3437.

Records and documents discussed during the meeting will be available for public viewing prior to and after the meeting at https://www.facadatabase.gov/FACA/FACAPublicViewCommitteeDetails?id=a10t0000001gzlJAAQ.

Records generated from this meeting may also be inspected and reproduced at the Regional Programs Unit, as they become available, both before and after the meeting. Persons interested in the work of this Committee are directed to the Commission's website, http://www.usccr.gov, or may contact the Regional Programs Unit at the above email or street address.

Exceptional Circumstance: Pursuant to 41 CFR 102-3.150, the notice for this meeting is given less than 15 calendar days prior to the meeting because of the exceptional circumstances of the federal government shutdown.

Background

On May 1, 2019, Commerce published its notification to parties of the opportunity to request an administrative review of countervailing duty orders and inadvertently omitted Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Turkey (C-489-832), POR 9/5/2017-12/31/2018. See Antidumping or Countervailing Duty Order, Finding, or Suspended Investigation; Opportunity To Request Administrative Review, 84 FR 18479 (May 1, 2019).

This notice serves as a correction to include the countervailing duty order Carbon and Alloy Steel Wire Rod from Turkey (C-489-832) administrative review in the referenced notice.

Background

The petitioner in this investigation is Cambria Company, LLC. In addition to the Government of China (GOC), the mandatory respondents in this investigation are Fasa Industrial Corporation Limited (Fasa Industrial), Foshan Hero Stone Co., Ltd. (Hero Stone), and Foshan Yixin Stone Co., Ltd. (Foshan Yixin).

The events that occurred since Commerce published the Preliminary Determination   1 on September 21, 2018; the post-preliminary analysis  2 on November 6, 2018; and the Preliminary Critical Circumstances Determination   3 on November 15, 2018, are discussed in the Issues and Decision Memorandum, which is hereby adopted by this notice. 4 The Issues and Decision Memorandum also details the changes we made since the Preliminary Determination to the subsidy rates calculated for the mandatory respondents and all other producers/exporters. The Issues and Decision Memorandum is a public document and is on file electronically via Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to registered users at http://access.trade.gov, and is available to all parties in the Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the main Department of Commerce building. In addition, a complete version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/index.html. The signed Issues and Decision Memorandum and the electronic version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum are identical in content.

Commerce exercised its discretion to toll all deadlines affected by the partial Federal government closure from December 22, 2018, through the resumption of operations on January 29, 2019. 5 The revised deadline for the final determination of this investigation is now May 14, 2019.

The period of investigation is January 1, 2017, through December 31, 2017.

The products covered by this investigation are quartz surface products from China. For a complete description of the scope of the investigation, see Appendix I.

During the course of this investigation and the concurrent less-than-fair-value (LTFV) investigation of quartz surface products from China, Commerce received scope comments from interested parties. Commerce issued a Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum to address these comments and set aside a period of time for parties to address scope issues in scope case and rebuttal briefs. 6 We received comments from interested parties on the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum, which we addressed in the Final Scope Decision Memorandum. 7 In addition, on February 14, 2019, the petitioner submitted a proposed clarification to the scope of this and the concurrent LTFV investigation. 8 In response to the petitioner's proposed scope clarification, Commerce established a separate scope briefing schedule and received case and rebuttal briefs regarding the proposed clarification, which we addressed in the Proposed Scope Clarification Decision Memorandum. 9 As a result, for this final determination, we made certain changes to the scope of these investigations from that published in the Preliminary Determination. 10 See Appendix I.

In the Preliminary Critical Circumstances Determination, Commerce preliminarily determined, pursuant to section 703(e)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), that critical circumstances exist for Fasa Industrial and Hero Stone, but not for Foshan Yixin or the companies covered by the all-others rate. For this final determination, we continue to find that critical circumstances exist for Fasa Industrial and Hero Stone pursuant to section 705(a)(2) of the Act. Moreover, we now find that Foshan Yixin and its unaffiliated suppliers, Foshan Nanhai Julang Quartz Co. (Foshan Nanhai) and Qinguan Yuefeng Decoration Material Co. (Qinguan Yuefeng), as well as the companies covered by the all-others rate received export-contingent countervailable subsidies during the POI through the Export Buyer's Credit program that are inconsistent with the Subsidies and Countervailing Measures Agreement and had massive imports of the subject merchandise over a relatively short period. Therefore, in accordance with section 705(a)(2) of the Act, we also find that critical circumstances exist with respect to Foshan Yixin, Foshan Nanhai, Qinguan Yuefeng, and the companies covered by the all-others rate. For the analysis of critical circumstances for this final determination, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 10.

In the Issues and Decision Memorandum, we address the subsidy programs under investigation and all issues raised in parties' case and rebuttal briefs, other than those issues related to scope. A list of the issues that parties raised, and to which we responded in the Issues and Decision Memorandum, is attached to this notice as Appendix II.

Commerce conducted this investigation in accordance with section 701 of the Act. For each of the subsidy programs found countervailable, Commerce determines that there is a subsidy, i.e., a financial contribution by an “authority” that gives rise to a benefit to the recipient, and that the subsidy is specific. 11 For a full description of the methodology underlying our final determination, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.

As provided in section 782(i) of the Act, Commerce verified the subsidy information reported by Foshan Yixin. We used standard verification procedures, including an examination of relevant accounting records and original source documents provided by the respondent. 12

In addition to now finding critical circumstances for Foshan Yixin and companies covered by the all-others rate, based on our review and analysis of the comments received from parties and corrections presented at verification, we made certain changes to the subsidy rate calculations for Foshan Yixin. We also assigned individual estimated subsidy rates based on adverse facts available to Foshan Yixin's unaffiliated suppliers that failed to cooperate in this investigation: Foshan Nanhai and Qinguan Yuefeng. As a result of the changes to Foshan Yixin's calculated rate, Commerce has also revised the all-others rate. For a discussion of these changes, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum. 13

In accordance with section 705(c)(1)(B)(i)(I) of the Act, we calculated an individual estimated subsidy rate for Foshan Yixin (for entries produced and exported by Foshan Yixin), and established individual estimated subsidy rates for Fasa Industrial, Foshan Nanhai, Hero Stone, and Qinguan Yuefeng. Section 705(c)(5)(A)(i) of the Act states that, for companies not individually investigated, we will determine an “all others” rate equal to the weighted-average countervailable subsidy rates established for exporters and producers individually investigated, excluding any zero and de minimis countervailable subsidy rates, and any rates determined entirely under section 776 of the Act. In the final determination of this investigation, Commerce calculated rates for Fasa Industrial and Hero Stone in accordance with section 776 of the Act. 14 Therefore, the only rate that is not zero, de minimis, or based entirely on facts otherwise available is the rate calculated for Foshan Yixin. Consequently, the rate calculated for Foshan Yixin is also assigned as the rate for “all other” producers and exporters.

Commerce determines the total estimated net countervailable subsidy rates to be the following:

We intend to disclose the calculations performed to parties in this proceeding within five days of the date of publication of this notice, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

As a result of our Preliminary Determination of Critical Circumstances and pursuant to sections 703(d)(1)(B) and (d)(2) of the Act, Commerce instructed U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to suspend liquidation of entries of subject merchandise for Fasa Industrial and Hero Stone, as described in the scope of the investigation section, entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after June 23, 2018, which is 90 days prior to the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination in the Federal Register . Additionally, as a result of our Preliminary Determination, for Foshan Yixin and the companies covered by the all-others rate, Commerce instructed CBP to suspend liquidation of entries of subject merchandise, as described in the scope of the investigation section, entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination in the Federal Register . In accordance with section 703(d) of the Act, we issued instructions to CBP to discontinue the suspension of liquidation for countervailing duty (CVD) purposes for subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, on or after January 19, 2019, but to continue the suspension of liquidation of all entries from September 21, 2018 (or, in the case of Fasa Industrial and Hero Stone, June 23, 2018), through January 18, 2019.

If the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) issues a final affirmative injury determination, we will issue a CVD order, reinstate the suspension of liquidation under section 706(a) of the Act, and require a cash deposit of estimated countervailing duties for such entries of subject merchandise in the amounts indicated above. If the ITC also issues a final affirmative determination of critical circumstances, on the basis of our final affirmative critical circumstances determination, we will additionally instruct CBP to suspend liquidation and require a cash deposit on all entries of quartz surface products from China effective June 23, 2018. If the ITC issues a final affirmative injury determination but a final negative determination of critical circumstances, we will instruct CBP to liquidate entries prior to the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination without regard to duties, and all estimated duties deposited or securities posted as a result of the suspension of liquidation will be refunded or canceled. If the ITC determines that material injury, or threat of material injury, does not exist, this proceeding will be terminated and all estimated duties deposited or securities posted as a result of the suspension of liquidation will be refunded or canceled.

In accordance with section 705(d) of the Act, we will notify the ITC of our determination. Because Commerce's final determination is affirmative, in accordance with section 705(b) of the Act, the ITC will determine, within 45 days, whether the domestic industry in the United States is materially injured, or threatened with material injury, by reason of imports of quartz surface products from China, or sales (or the likelihood of sales) for importation, of quartz surface products from China. If the ITC determines that material injury or threat of material injury does not exist, the proceeding will be terminated and all cash deposits will be refunded. If the ITC determines that such injury does exist, Commerce will issue a CVD order directing CBP to assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, countervailing duties on all imports of the subject merchandise that are entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the effective date of the suspension of liquidation, as discussed above in the “Continuation of Suspension of Liquidation” section.

In the event that the ITC issues a final negative injury determination, this notice will serve as the only reminder to parties subject to the administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility concerning the destruction of proprietary information disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely written notification of the return/destruction of APO materials or conversion to judicial protective order is hereby requested. Failure to comply with the regulations and terms of an APO is a sanctionable violation.

This determination is issued and published pursuant to sections 705(d) and 777(i) of the Act.

On June 14, 2016, Commerce published the Final Results, in which we valued cores produced by Weihai Xiangguang Mechanical Industrial Co., Ltd. (Weihai) using a build-up methodology, and calculated surrogate truck freight distance using the average of the distances between industrial estates in Bangkok and the Port of Bangkok. 1 On March 22, 2018, the CIT remanded the Final Results to Commerce to re-examine: (1) The withdrawals of review requests with respect to Weihai in light of Glycine & More, Inc. v. United States, 880 F.3d 1335 (Fed. Cir. 2018) ( Glycine & More ); and (2) the surrogate truck freight distance used in the valuation of the truck freight expense. In addition, the CIT granted Commerce's request for a voluntary remand to address the issues concerning the valuation of Weihai's purchased cores and the rate for non-selected separate rate respondents. 2

In the first final remand redetermination, we stated our intent to accept all withdrawals of review requests with respect to Weihai, rescind the administrative review with respect to Weihai, and revise the surrogate truck freight distance. Because we intended to rescind the administrative review in part with respect to Weihai, we treated the issue of the valuation of Weihai's cores as moot. We assigned the revised rate for the Jiangsu Fengtai Single Entity  3 as the separate rate to eligible non-selected respondents. 4

On February 1, 2019, the CIT remanded the Final Results to Commerce to reconsider Commerce's methodology in determining the separate rate for the non-selected respondents in this litigation. In addition, the CIT ordered that, if Commerce decides on remand to reinstate Weihai in the administrative review, Commerce must make appropriate adjustments in line with the CIT's previous remand order regarding the cores valuation and the revision to the surrogate truck freight distance with respect to Weihai. 5

In the second final remand redetermination, we continued to accept all withdrawals of review requests with respect to Weihai and stated our intent to rescind the administrative review, in part, with respect to Weihai. In response to the CIT's remand order, we relied on data for Weihai and the Jiangsu Fengtai Single Entity to recalculate the separate rate for the eligible non-selected respondents, with the adjustments to the cores valuation and the surrogate truck freight distance for Weihai. 6 On May 7, 2019, the CIT sustained our second final remand redetermination in its entirety. 7

In its decision in Timken Co. v. United States, 893 F.2d 337, 341 (Fed. Cir. 1990) ( Timken ), as clarified by Diamond Sawblades Mfrs. Coalition v. United States, 626 F.3d 1374 (Fed. Cir. 2010), the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that, pursuant to section 516A(e) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), Commerce must publish a notice of a court decision that is not “in harmony” with a Commerce determination and must suspend liquidation of entries pending a “conclusive” court decision. The CIT's May 7, 2019, final judgment sustaining the second final remand redetermination constitutes the CIT's final decision which is not “in harmony” with the Final Results. This notice is published in fulfillment of the publication requirements of Timken. Accordingly, Commerce will continue the suspension of liquidation of the subject merchandise pending expiration of the period to appeal or, if appealed, pending a final and conclusive court decision.

In accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d), Commerce will rescind an administrative review in part “if a party that requested a review withdraws the request within 90 days of the date of the publication of notice of initiation of the requested review. The Secretary may extend this time limit if the Secretary decides that it is reasonable to do so.”  8 Subsequent to the initiation of the review, the petitioner and Weihai timely withdrew their requests for review of Weihai. 9 Robert Bosch Tools Corporation (Bosch) withdrew its request for review of Weihai after the regulatory 90-day period  10 but we extended this time limit and accepted Bosch's withdrawal of its review request because we find it reasonable to do so under 19 CFR 351.213(d). 11 Because no other party requested a review of Weihai, we are rescinding the review in part with respect to Weihai in accordance with 19 CFR 351.213(d)(1).

Because there is now a final court decision, Commerce is amending the Final Results with respect to the separate rate respondents as follows:

In the event the CIT's ruling is not appealed or, if appealed, upheld by a final and conclusive court decision, Commerce will instruct the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to assess antidumping duties on unliquidated entries of subject merchandise based on the revised rates Commerce determined and listed above and, for Weihai, at the rate equal to the cash deposit of the estimated antidumping duty required at the time of entry, or withdrawal from warehouse, for consumption, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.212(c)(2).

As the cash deposit rate for Jiangsu Huachang Tools Manufacturing Co., Ltd., has not been subject to subsequent administrative reviews, Commerce will issue revised cash deposit instructions to CBP adjusting the rate from 29.76 percent to 39.66 percent, effective May 17, 2019. For all other respondents listed above, because the cash deposit rates have been updated in subsequent administrative reviews, 15 we will not update their cash deposit rates as a result of these amended final results.

This notice is issued and published in accordance with sections 516A(e)(1), 751(a)(1), and 777(i)(1) of the Act.

Pursuant to section 805 of Title VIII of the Tariff Act of 1930 (the Softwood Lumber Act of 2008), the Secretary of Commerce is mandated to submit to the appropriate Congressional committees a report every 180 days on any subsidy provided by countries exporting softwood lumber or softwood lumber products to the United States, including stumpage subsidies. Commerce submitted its last subsidy report on December 20, 2018. As part of its newest report, Commerce intends to include a list of subsidy programs identified with sufficient clarity by the public in response to this notice.

Given the large number of countries that export softwood lumber and softwood lumber products to the United States, we are soliciting public comment only on subsidies provided by countries which had exports accounting for at least one percent of total U.S. imports of softwood lumber by quantity, as classified under Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) codes 4407.1001, 4407.1100, 4407.1200, 4407.1905, 4407.1906, 4407.1910, 1 during the period July 1, 2018, through December 31, 2018. Official U.S. import data published by the United States International Trade Commission's DataWeb indicate that four countries (Brazil, Canada, Germany, and Sweden) exported softwood lumber to the United States during that time period in amounts sufficient to account for at least one percent of U.S. imports of softwood lumber products. We intend to rely on similar previous six-month periods to identify the countries subject to future reports on softwood lumber subsidies. For example, we will rely on U.S. imports of softwood lumber and softwood lumber products during the period January 1, 2019, through June 30, 2019, to select the countries subject to the next report.

Under U.S. trade law, a subsidy exists where an authority: (i) Provides a financial contribution; (ii) provides any form of income or price support within the meaning of Article XVI of the GATT 1994; or (iii) makes a payment to a funding mechanism to provide a financial contribution to a person, or entrusts or directs a private entity to make a financial contribution, if providing the contribution would normally be vested in the government and the practice does not differ in substance from practices normally followed by governments, and a benefit is thereby conferred. 2

Parties should include in their comments: (1) The country which provided the subsidy; (2) the name of the subsidy program; (3) a brief description (no more than 3-4 sentences) of the subsidy program; and (4) the government body or authority that provided the subsidy.

As specified above, to be assured of consideration, comments must be received no later than 5:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on Monday, June 10, 2019. All comments must be submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov, Docket No. ITA-2019-0001, unless the commenter does not have access to the internet. The materials in the docket will not be edited to remove identifying or contact information, and Commerce cautions against including any information in an electronic submission that the submitter does not want publicly disclosed. Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF formats only.

Commenters who do not have access to the internet may submit the original and one electronic copy of each set of comments by mail or hand delivery/courier.

All comments should be addressed to James Maeder, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Antidumping and Countervailing Duties, at U.S. Department of Commerce, Room 18022, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230.

The petitioner in this investigation is Cambria Company, LLC. The mandatory respondents in this investigation are CQ International, 1 Guangzhou Hercules Quartz Stone Co., Ltd. (Hercules Quartz), Foshan Hero Stone Co., Ltd. (Hero Stone), and Foshan Yixin Stone Co., Ltd. (Yixin Stone).

On November 20, 2018, Commerce published the Preliminary Determination of sales at LTFV of quartz surface products from China. 2 A summary of the events that occurred since Commerce published the Preliminary Determination, as well as a full discussion of the issues raised by the parties for this final determination, may be found in the Issues and Decision Memorandum, which is hereby adopted by this notice. 3 The Issues and Decision Memorandum is a public document and is on file electronically via Enforcement and Compliance's Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS). ACCESS is available to registered users at http://access.trade.gov, and ACCESS is available to all parties in the Central Records Unit, Room B8024 of the main Commerce building. In addition, a complete version of the Issues and Decision Memorandum can be accessed directly at http://enforcement.trade.gov/frn/index.html. The signed and electronic versions of the Issues and Decision Memorandum are identical in content.

Commerce exercised its discretion to toll all deadlines affected by the partial Federal government closure from December 22, 2018, through the resumption of operations on January 29, 2019. 4 The revised deadline for the final determination of this investigation is now May 14, 2019.

The period of investigation is October 1, 2017, through March 31, 2018.

The products covered by this investigation are quartz surface products from China. For a complete description of the scope of this investigation, see Appendix I.

During the course of this investigation, and the concurrent countervailing duty (CVD) investigation of quartz surface products from China, Commerce received scope comments from interested parties. Commerce issued a Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum to address these comments and set aside a period of time for parties to address scope issues in scope case and rebuttal briefs. 5 We received comments from interested parties on the Preliminary Scope Decision Memorandum, which we addressed in the Final Scope Decision Memorandum. 6 In addition, on February 14, 2019, the petitioner submitted a proposed clarification to the scope of this and the concurrent CVD investigation. 7 In response to the petitioner's proposed scope clarification, Commerce established a separate scope briefing schedule and received case and rebuttal briefs regarding the proposed clarification, which we addressed in the Proposed Scope Clarification Decision Memorandum. 8 As a result, for this final determination, we made certain changes to the scope of these investigations from that published in the Preliminary Determination. 9 See Appendix I.

In accordance with 735(a)(3) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act) and 19 CFR 351.206, Commerce determines that critical circumstances exist with respect to imports of quartz surface products from CQ International, 10 Foshan Yixin Stone Co., Ltd. (Yixin Stone), all non-individually examined companies receiving a separate rate, and the China-wide entity. For a full description of the methodology and results of Commerce's final affirmative critical circumstances analysis, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum at Comment 2.

In the Issues and Decision Memorandum, we address all issues raised in parties' case and rebuttal briefs, other than those issues related to scope. A list of the issues that parties raised, and to which we responded in the Issues and Decision Memorandum, is attached to this notice as Appendix II.

Commerce conducted this investigation in accordance with section 731 of the Act. Export price was calculated in accordance with section 772(a) of the Act. Constructed export price was calculated in accordance with section 772(b) of the Act. Because China is a non-market economy within the meaning of section 771(18) of the Act, normal value (NV) was calculated in accordance with section 773(c) of the Act. For a full description of the methodology underlying Commerce's determination, see the Preliminary Decision Memorandum; see also the Issues and Decision Memorandum.

As provided in section 782(i) of the Act, Commerce verified the sales and factors of production data reported by CQ International and Yixin Stone. We used standard verification procedures, including an examination of relevant accounting and production records, and original source documents provided by the respondents.

Based on our review and analysis of the comments received from interested parties, and our findings at verification, we made certain changes to the calculation of the antidumping duty margins applicable to CQ International, Yixin Stone, those companies entitled to a separate rate, and the China-wide entity. Further, we now find Hercules Quartz to be part of the China-wide entity. For a discussion of these changes, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum.

For the reasons explained in the Preliminary Determination, we continue to find that the use of adverse facts available (AFA), pursuant to sections 776(a) and (b) of the Act, is warranted in determining the rate for the China-wide entity. 11 In selecting the AFA rate for the China-wide entity, Commerce's practice is to select a rate that is sufficiently adverse to ensure that the uncooperative party does not obtain a more favorable result by failing to cooperate than if it had fully cooperated. 12 Specifically, it is Commerce's practice to select, as an AFA rate, the higher of: (a) The highest dumping margin alleged in the petition; or, (b) the highest calculated dumping margin of any respondent in the investigation. 13 For the final determination, we are assigning the China-wide entity, as AFA, the highest petition margin of 336.69 percent. We are able to corroborate the highest petition dumping margin, to the extent practicable within the meaning of section 776(c) of the Act, using transaction-specific dumping margins calculated for CQ International and Yixin Stone and, thus, we assigned this dumping margin to the China-wide entity as AFA. For further discussion, see the Issues and Decision Memorandum at “Use of Adverse Facts Available.”

For the final determination, we continue to find that CQ International and Yixin Stone are eligible for separate rates. Section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act provides that the estimated “all others” rate shall be an amount equal to the weighted average of the estimated weighted-average dumping margins established for exporters and producers individually investigated, excluding zero or de minimis margins, and any margins determined entirely under section 776 of Act. 14 In this proceeding, Commerce calculated an above de minimis rate that is not based entirely on facts available for two mandatory respondents under individual examination, i.e., CQ International and Yixin Stone. Thus, looking to section 735(c)(5)(A) of the Act for guidance, and consistent with our practice, we are assigning the weighted-average, based on publicly ranged sales data, of these mandatory respondents' rates as the rate for non-individually examined companies that have qualified for a separate rate. 15

In the Initiation Notice, 16 Commerce stated that it would calculate producer/exporter combination rates for the respondents that are eligible for a separate rate in this investigation. For a list of the respondents that established eligibility for their own separate rates and the exporter/producer combination rates applicable to these respondents, see Appendix III.

Commerce determines that quartz surface products from China are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at LTFV, and that the following dumping margins exist:

We intend to disclose the calculations performed to parties in this proceeding within five days of the date of publication of this notice, in accordance with 19 CFR 351.224(b).

In accordance with section 735(c)(1)(B) of the Act, Commerce will instruct U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to continue to suspend liquidation of all appropriate entries of quartz surface products from CQ International, Yixin Stone, the separate rates companies, and the China-wide entity, and, in accordance with section 735(c)(4)(B) of the Act, because we continue to find that critical circumstances exist, we will instruct CBP to continue to suspend liquidation of all appropriate entries of quartz surface products which were entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after August 22, 2018, which is 90 days prior to the date of publication of the Preliminary Determination of this investigation in the Federal Register .

To determine the cash deposit rate, Commerce normally adjusts the estimated weighted-average dumping margin by the amount of domestic subsidy pass-through and export subsidies determined in a companion CVD proceeding when CVD provisional measures are in effect. Accordingly, where Commerce makes an affirmative determination for domestic subsidy pass-through or export subsidies, Commerce offsets the calculated estimated weighted-average dumping margin by the appropriate rate(s). In this case, we have made an affirmative determination for domestic subsidy pass-through and export subsidies for certain respondents. However, suspension of liquidation for provisional measures in the companion CVD case has been discontinued; therefore, we are not instructing CBP to collect cash deposits based upon the adjusted estimated weighted-average dumping margin for those subsidies at this time.

In addition, pursuant to section 735(c)(1)(B)(ii) of the Act, Commerce will instruct CBP to require a cash deposit equal to the weighted-average amount by which NV exceeds U.S. price as follows: (1) The cash deposit rate for the exporter/producer combination listed in the table above or in Appendix III will be the rate identified for that combination in that table or Appendix III; (2) for all combinations of exporters/producers of merchandise under consideration that have not received their own separate rate above or in Appendix III, the cash deposit rate will be the cash deposit rate established for the China-wide entity; and (3) for all non-Chinese exporters of the merchandise under consideration which have not received their own separate rate above, the cash deposit rate will be the cash deposit rate applicable to the Chinese exporter/producer combination that supplied that non-Chinese exporter. These suspension of liquidation instructions will remain in effect until further notice.

In accordance with section 735(d) of the Act, we will notify the International Trade Commission (ITC) of the final affirmative determination of sales at LTFV. Because Commerce's final determination is affirmative, in accordance with section 735(b)(2) of the Act, the ITC will determine, within 45 days, whether the domestic industry in the United States is materially injured, or threatened with material injury, by reason of imports of quartz surface products from China, or sales (or the likelihood of sales) for importation, of quartz surface products from China. If the ITC determines that material injury or threat of material injury does not exist, the proceeding will be terminated, and all cash deposits will be refunded. If the ITC determines that such injury does exist, Commerce will issue an antidumping duty order directing CBP to assess, upon further instruction by Commerce, antidumping duties on all imports of the subject merchandise entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption on or after the effective date of the suspension of liquidation.

In the event that the ITC issues a final negative injury determination, this notice will serve as the only reminder to parties subject to an administrative protective order (APO) of their responsibility concerning the disposition of proprietary information disclosed under APO in accordance with 19 CFR 351.305(a)(3). Timely written notification of the return or destruction of APO materials, or conversion to judicial protective order, is hereby requested. Failure to comply with the regulations and terms of an APO is a sanctionable violation.

This determination is issued and published in accordance with sections 735(d) and 777(i)(1) of the Act, and 19 CFR 351.210(c).

This meeting is being held under the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) of 1972 (5 U.S.C., Appendix, as amended), the Government in the Sunshine Act of 1976 (5 U.S.C. 552b, as amended), and 41 CFR 102-3.140 and 102-3.150.

The Panel will review and comment on recommendations made to the Director of the Defense Health Agency, by the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee, regarding the Uniform Formulary.

Purpose of the Meeting: The Department of Defense (DoD) is publishing this notice to announce that the following Federal Advisory Committee meeting of the Uniform Formulary Beneficiary Advisory Panel will take place.

Meeting Accessibility: Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b, as amended, and 41 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 102-3.140 through 102-3.165, and the availability of space, this meeting is open to the public. Seating is limited and will be provided only to the first 220 people signing-in. All persons must sign-in legibly.

Written Statements: Pursuant to 41 CFR 102-3.140, the public or interested organizations may submit written statements to the membership of the Panel about its mission and/or the agenda to be addressed in this public meeting. Written statements should be submitted to the Panel's Designated Federal Officer (DFO). The DFO's contact information can be obtained previously in this announcement. Written comments or statements must be received by the committee DFO at least five (5) business days prior to the meeting so that they may be made available to the Panel for its consideration prior to the meeting. The DFO will review all submitted written statements and provide copies to all the committee members.

Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Security Assistance Network (SAN); OMB Control Number 0704-0555.

Type of Request: Extension.

Number of Respondents: 1,784.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 1,784.

Average Burden per Response: 15 minutes.

Annual Burden Hours: 446.

Needs and Uses: The Security Assistance Network (SAN) is a web based database used to exchange Security Cooperation training information between overseas Security Cooperation Offices, Geographical Combatant Commands, Military Departments, Defense Security Cooperation Agency, DoD Schoolhouses, Regional Centers, and International Host Nation Organizations. The Security Cooperation Training Management System (SC-TMS) is a tool used by the Security Cooperation community to manage International Military Student training data.

Affected Public: Individuals or households.

Frequency: As required.

Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

OMB Desk Officer: Ms. Jasmeet Seehra.

You may also submit comments and recommendations, identified by Docket ID number and title, by the following method:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name, Docket ID number, and title for this Federal Register document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

DOD Clearance Officer: Ms. Angela James.

Requests for copies of the information collection proposal should be sent to Ms. James at whs.mc-alex.esd.mbx.dd-dod-information-collections@mail.mil.

Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Trustee Report; DD 2826; OMB Control Number 0730-0012.

Type of Request: Extension.

Number of Respondents: 200.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 200.

Average Burden per Response: 1 hour.

Annual Burden Hours: 200.

Needs and Uses: This form is used to report on the administration of the funds received on behalf of a mentally incompetent member of the uniformed services pursuant to 37 U.S.C. 602-604.

Affected Public: Individuals or households.

Frequency: On occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

OMB Desk Officer: Ms. Jasmeet Seehra.

You may also submit comments and recommendations, identified by Docket ID number and title, by the following method:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name, Docket ID number, and title for this Federal Register document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

DOD Clearance Officer: Ms. Angela James.

Requests for copies of the information collection proposal should be sent to Ms. James at whs.mc-alex.esd.mbx.dd-dod-information-collections@mail.mil.

Purpose: The Board will discuss several current critical intelligence issues and advise the Director, DIA, as to the successful accomplishment of the mission assigned to the National Intelligence University.

Agenda: The following topics are listed on the National Intelligence University Board of Visitors meeting agenda: Welcome and Overview by Chair and NIU President; IC 2025/NIU22/Strategic Plan Crosswalk; Governance Transfer from SECDEF to DNI; Regional Accreditation Update; Working Lunch with Board members and University leadership; Introduction of New Provost; Review and Way Forward for Leadership and Management in the IC Certificate Program; NIU Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships; Faculty Roles and Responsibilities; Board Business; Executive Session; NIU Academic Program Updates; NIU Research Program Highlights; Board Business in Executive Session; Meeting Read-out by Board Chair to IC Senior Leaders.

The entire meeting is devoted to the discussion of classified information as defined in 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(1) and therefore will be closed. Pursuant to 41 CFR 102-3.105(j) and 102-3.140, and section 10(a)(3) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972, the public or interested organizations may submit written statements to the National Intelligence University Board of Visitors about its mission and functions.

Written statements may be submitted at any time or in response to the stated agenda of a planned meeting of the National Intelligence University Board of Visitors. All written statements shall be submitted to the Designated Federal Officer for the National Intelligence University Board of Visitors, and this individual will ensure that the written statements are provided to the membership for their consideration. Contact information for the Designated Federal Officer can be obtained from the GSA's FACA Database— http://www.facadatabase.gov/ .

The Board's charter is being renewed pursuant to 10 U.S.C. 8592(d) and in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) of 1972 (5 U.S.C., Appendix) and 41 CFR 102-3.50(a). The charter and contact information for the Board's Designated Federal Officer (DFO) are found at https://www.facadatabase.gov/FACA/apex/FACAPublicAgencyNavigation.

The Board provides the Secretary of Defense with independent advice and recommendations on matters pertaining to the Marine Corps University (the University). The Board shall provide advice and recommendations on academic and administrative matters critical to the full accreditation and successful operation of the University.

The Board shall be composed of at least seven and not more than 11 members who are eminent authorities in the fields of education, defense, management, economics, leadership, academia, national military strategy, or international affairs. The President of the University shall be a non-voting ex-officio member. Individual members will be appointed according to DoD policy and procedures, and members will serve a term of service of one-to-four years with annual renewals.

One member, according to DoD policy and procedures, will be appointed as Chair of the Board. No member, unless approved according to DoD policy and procedures, may serve more than two consecutive terms of service on the Board, to include its subcommittees, or serve on more than two DoD federal advisory committees at one time.

Members of the Board who are not full-time or permanent part-time Federal officers or employees will be appointed as experts or consultants, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 3109, to serve as special government employee members. Board members who are full-time or permanent part-time Federal officers or employees will be appointed, pursuant to 41 CFR 102-3.130(a), to serve as regular government employee members.

All members of the Board are appointed to provide advice on the basis of their best judgment without representing any particular point of view and in a manner that is free from conflict of interest.

Except for reimbursement of official Board-related travel and per diem, members serve without compensation.

The public or interested organizations may submit written statements to the Board membership about the Board's mission and functions. Written statements may be submitted at any time or in response to the stated agenda of planned meeting of the Board. All written statements shall be submitted to the DFO for the Board, and this individual will ensure that the written statements are provided to the membership for their consideration.

Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) Research Approval Process; DoDEA Form 1304.01-F1; OMB Control Number 0704-0457.

Type of Request: Revision.

Number of Respondents: 50.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 50.

Average Burden per Response: 1 hour.

Annual Burden Hours: 50.

Needs and Uses: The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) receives requests from researchers to conduct non-DoDEA sponsored research studies in DoDEA schools, districts, and/or areas. To review the proposed research requests, DoDEA is seeking renewal for the DoDEA “Research Study Request” Form 1. The DoDEA “Research Study Request” collects information about the researcher, the research project, audience, timeline, and the statistical analyses that will be conducted during the proposed research study. This information is needed to ensure that the proposed non-DoDEA sponsored research does not unduly interfere with the classroom instructional process or the regular operations of the school, district, and/or areas.

Affected Public: Individuals or Households.

Frequency: On occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to Obtain or Retain Benefits.

OMB Desk Officer: Ms. Jasmeet Seehra.

You may also submit comments and recommendations, identified by Docket ID number and title, by the following method:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name, Docket ID number, and title for this Federal Register document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

DOD Clearance Officer: Ms. Angela James.

Requests for copies of the information collection proposal should be sent to Ms. James at whs.mc-alex.esd.mbx.dd-dod-information-collections@mail.mil.

Instructions for Submitting Letters of Interest: Letters of interest must be submitted as an attachment in a Portable Document Format (PDF) to an email message sent to the email address provided in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. The subject line of the email should read “ESI 2019—Federal Work-Study Experiment.” The text of the email should include the name and address of the institution. The letter of interest must be on institutional letterhead and be signed by the institution's president or chancellor. The letter must include the institution's official name, its Office of Postsecondary Education Identification (OPEID) number, and the name of a contact person at the institution, along with a mailing address, email address, and telephone number of a contact person at the institution. The letter should also include the information described in the “Application and Selection” section in this notice. The letter must explain which offices or departments from the institution will participate in this experiment, and what role each will play. Upon receipt of a letter of interest, the Department will notify the institution by email that its letter of interest was received. This notification should be kept in the institution's records.

Background: Under the ESI, the Secretary has authority to grant waivers of certain title IV, HEA statutory or regulatory requirements to allow a limited number of institutions to participate in experiments to test alternative methods of administering the title IV, HEA programs. The alternative methods of title IV, HEA administration that the Secretary is permitting under this ESI experiment are designed to test how the following changes will increase partnerships between institutions and industry, improve student retention and completion, reduce student debt levels, and yield strong post-graduation employment outcomes: (1) Removing limits on the portion of an institution's FWS funds that may support students employed by private-sector companies; (2) increasing the number of hours per week an FWS student who is enrolled in a work-based learning program may work; (3) reducing the share of wages that must be covered by private-sector employers; and (4) allowing institutions to pay low-income students for work experiences required by their program, such as student teaching and clinical rotations. The Department is also interested in determining whether using FWS funds to supplement wages for private-sector employment will stimulate the creation or strengthening of employer-institution partnerships that engage employers in curriculum development and program evaluation, expand the number and kinds of off-campus job opportunities made available to students, and increase the number of formal work-based learning opportunities (such as apprenticeships) available to students. The Department also seeks to understand how FWS opportunities created under the experiment align with the academic programs or career goals of the student participants, including among students in liberal arts or humanities programs that may use an FWS to explore potential career options.

Apprenticeships, internships, and other work-and-learn opportunities can be beneficial to students, employers, and institutions. We wish to understand if, and to what extent, students who participate in program-related, paid, work experience enjoy improved graduation outcomes, accumulate less debt, and enjoy better post-graduation employment opportunities. In addition, students who earn wages while enrolled in a work-based learning program may be more likely to retain Pell eligibility if a portion of their wages are FWS wages since those earnings are not considered in the determination of a student's financial need.

Work-based learning programs benefit employers by helping them develop a pipeline of qualified workers and by engaging them in curriculum development or review to ensure that students graduate with strong workplace competencies. Employers also benefit when FWS wages offset a portion of the cost of work-based learning opportunities, thus reducing barriers to entry for employers that wish to start apprenticeship programs.

Institutions benefit from improved partnerships with business leaders, who can help inform academic programs and curricula to ensure that students are graduating with workplace competencies in addition to the subject matter expertise gained through their studies. These partnerships may also reduce the need for institutions to purchase expensive equipment or build specialized facilities, since private-sector companies may already have the equipment and facilities needed to instruct students.

The Department expects employers and institutions participating in this experiment to work together to coordinate schedules and minimize conflict between academic and employment activities. In addition, to the maximum extent possible, FWS-supported private-sector employment should be academically relevant, as required by section 443(c)(4) of the HEA and support the students' career goals. Employers must avoid the displacement of employed workers or the impairment of existing contracts for services and may not use funds made available under this experiment to pay any employee who would otherwise be employed by the organization. However, this does not prevent an employer who is engaged in apprenticeship from paying the student for hours worked in addition to the FWS-supported work if the apprenticeship requires more on-the-job training than FWS wages can support or the employer wishes to pay wages to apprentices for the time they spend engaged in classroom learning. The Department also encourages sponsors of work-based learning programs to rely on, and provide financial support for, credit-bearing classroom instruction provided by colleges and universities for the classroom portion of those programs.

FWS is one of the oldest Federal Student Aid programs. Currently, it provides students with part-time employment to help pay higher education expenses, but institutions must navigate complicated requirements that limit the percentage of funds that can be used to support private sector employment. Current regulations also require private-sector employers to pay a higher proportion of wages as compared to on-campus employment or off-campus employment at non-profit organizations. Meanwhile, it is possible that smaller employers and start-up companies have fewer resources than well-established and well-supported non-profit organizations to provide paid learning opportunities for students.

While FWS could be an important means by which colleges and universities provide students with relevant program-related work experiences that could improve their subject matter expertise, enhance their classroom learning, and improve their job prospects after graduating, there is little indication the program is being used sufficiently in such a manner. Studies have shown that FWS jobs are often unrelated to a student's career goals or majors. 1 In addition, although campuses are permitted to use up to 10 percent of their FWS funds or $75,000 to support job development opportunities, few institutions use the available resources to pursue such opportunities for students.

As shown in Table 1, colleges and universities rarely provide students with employment opportunities that are located off-campus, despite the fact that few college graduates are destined to seek employment at an institution of higher education; instead most will work for private, for-profit firms. 2 During award year 2016-2017, over 3,000 colleges and universities provided over 600,000 students with FWS opportunities. In that year, 92 percent of FWS dollars supported students in on-campus employment, while less than one-tenth of one percent supported off-campus employment with private-sector employers.

Nearly all students believe that by earning a college credential, they will improve their employment opportunities and earnings. 3 While surveys show that students and faculty believe that college graduates are well prepared to enter the workforce, employers see things differently. 4 Many employers do not believe that college is preparing graduates to succeed in the workforce, and some are looking more carefully at an individual's work experience when making hiring decisions since degrees alone may no longer adequately signal an individual's intellectual capacity, resilience, and grit. 5 Therefore, it is important to expand the number and kinds of opportunities available to students so that they can gain experience in private-sector employment prior to graduation.

Internships, apprenticeships, and other work-and-learn opportunities provide high-quality educational opportunities that can serve as a primary or ancillary learning opportunity where theory and application are coordinated to lead to higher level competencies. However, there are insufficient numbers of apprenticeship opportunities available to students, especially in fields where apprenticeship has not historically been a common career pathway. Internship opportunities may be more plentiful, but many are low-paying or unpaid, meaning that these valuable opportunities are foreclosed to lower-income students who may need to earn wages to help pay for their education and other living expenses. Similarly, lower-income students may face tremendous challenges paying tuition and supporting themselves while engaged in required clinical rotations, externships, or student teaching, since outside work may be prohibited or discouraged during those times, or the student may simply not have enough time for both. As a result, these experiences, which should improve learning and lead to better career outcomes, can be detrimental to lower-income students by negatively affecting their educational outcomes, lengthening their time to completion, or increasing their reliance on loans.

Apprenticeships are especially effective in combining classroom and workplace learning in an interrelated and coordinated fashion. We are encouraged by the growing number of apprenticeship programs that rely on colleges and universities to provide classroom instruction that supports learning in the workplace. However, much more needs to be done to expand the number and kinds of apprenticeship programs available. Institutions that participated in the Department of Labor's American Apprenticeship Initiative grant program frequently reported at project meetings and accelerator sessions that despite strong letters of support from employers when developing their proposals, it was challenging to get employers to commit when it came time to develop structured workplace curricula or implement a full apprenticeship program. At those same meetings, employers often complained about the high cost of paying tuition and fees for apprentices to complete their classroom learning on a college campus. On the other hand, employers who participated on the President's Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion explained that they find it difficult to identify institutions that are willing to provide classes at times and on a schedule that does not interfere with workplace learning, or at a cost that is reasonable for an employer to cover. 6

We wish to test in this experiment whether the opportunity to access FWS funds to pay or subsidize wages, and to allow students to be employed for more than 10 hours per week, provides the needed incentive to attract more businesses to participate in apprenticeships, and to do so in partnership with colleges and universities.

The President's Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion pointed out during their deliberations and in their final report that employers may be reticent to engage in apprenticeship due to the cost of wages and classroom instruction, coupled with loss of productivity among the most qualified workers who divert time and energy from their primary job function in order to serve as mentors and instructors, and the possibility that another employer will “poach” well-prepared workers after the apprenticeship is over. 7 The Task Force called upon the Federal government to examine current workforce development programs to identify funding opportunities that would better support apprenticeship expansion. In its efforts to be responsive to the recommendations of the Task Force, the Department has identified FWS as an ideal candidate to provide such support.

There are additional ancillary benefits to consider. For example, since FWS funds are not included in the Federal need analysis calculation, a student engaged in paid work-based learning will be less likely to lose Pell eligibility if the wages are paid through the FWS program. In addition, since FWS funds are available only to students in credit-bearing programs, we believe that employers will be incentivized to require institutions to offer courses that yield college credit rather than relying on non-credit offerings at the institution to support employer-supported higher education. The Department also hopes that by off-setting a portion of wages, employers will be more likely to pay some or all of the costs of associated classroom learning, including if it takes place at an institution.

By leveraging FWS funds to support the creation or expansion of education-related jobs, paid internships, apprenticeships, student teaching, externships, and work-and-learn opportunities the Department seeks to ascertain whether this initiative should be considered for broader application. Broader application of the initiative could be justified if one or more of the following can be demonstrated: (1) The number and kinds of private-sector job and work-based learning opportunities, including apprenticeships, made available to FWS students increase; (2) student completion rates increase or time to degree completion decreases among FWS students who work in private-sector jobs or among students who receive FWS wages while completing required externships, clinical rotations, or student teaching; or (3) fewer Pell eligible students whose wages for work-based learning programs are paid for, or subsidized, with FWS funds lose their Pell eligibility.

Institutions are permitted to utilize FWS funds to pay wages to students employed in on-campus, off-campus, and private sector jobs; however, over 90 percent of FWS wages are paid to students employed in on-campus jobs. This may be because of the added cost and complexity to institutions of cultivating private-sector FWS employment opportunities or complying with program regulations when private sector employment is involved, challenges in coordinating work and school schedules when off-campus employers are involved, the limitations on the number of hours an FWS student is permitted to work, and the higher percentage of wages that private-sector employers must pay as compared to non-profit or campus employers.

In addition, while students engaged in required externships, clinical rotations, or student teaching are clearly engaged in work-based learning, historically, institutions have not been permitted to pay FWS wages to students involved in these activities. This can be detrimental to low-income students who may have to resort to student loans in order to pay tuition and support themselves during periods of full-time non-paid work.

This experiment aims to determine whether, by reducing the difficulty to institutions of paying FWS wages to students employed by private-sector companies, increasing the number of hours an FWS student is permitted to work, and removing restrictions on allocations to on-campus, off-campus, and community service jobs, institutions can cultivate additional private-sector opportunities for employment of FWS students. In addition, the experiment aims to determine whether off-campus, private-sector FWS jobs improve student completion rates, reduce student borrowing, reduce time to degree completion, or lead to improved employment outcomes.

The experiment is also designed to assess whether paying FWS wages to students engaged in required externships, clinical rotations, student teaching, or similar work-based learning opportunities increases completion rates, reduces borrowing, and improves employment outcomes among FWS-eligible students.

The experiment also seeks to explore whether increased levels of Job Location and Development (JLD) funds enable institutions to develop more partnerships with employers that result in private-sector FWS opportunities, including apprenticeships. An institution is allowed to use part of the Federal funds it receives under the FWS Program to establish, administer, or expand a JLD Program. The JLD Program locates and develops off-campus job opportunities for students who are currently enrolled and who want jobs regardless of financial need. This means that jobs may be located and developed under the JLD Program for FWS and non-FWS eligible students. JLD jobs may be part-time or full-time, for either a for-profit or nonprofit employer.

In addition, an institution is permitted to use JLD funds to identify apprenticeship opportunities and help employers develop them, including the classroom and work-based learning components. An institution may use up to 10 percent of its annual FWS allocation, but no more than $75,000, to support its JLD Program. FWS funds can be used to pay up to 80 percent of the allowable costs to operate a JLD Program, such as staff salaries, supplies, and travel. The remaining costs (20 percent) are paid by an institution either in cash or in services. Institutions may enter into written agreements with other institutions or apprenticeship intermediaries to establish, fund, and operate a JLD Program for students enrolled at those institutions. Under such agreements, institutions may combine available JLD funds and resources.

Despite the availability of the JLD Program to assist institutions in developing off-campus employment opportunities for students, relatively few institutions take advantage of it. During Award Year 2016-2017, 338 institutions reported using about $11 million, or less than 1 percent, of their FWS allocations for JLD programs.

Institutions participating in this experiment will be encouraged to collaborate with local governments, companies, trade and industry groups, non-profit organizations, unions, joint labor-management organizations, apprenticeship intermediaries, and others to develop relevant career-focused experiences for students. A particular emphasis will be placed on developing apprenticeships.

Participating institutions may be required to submit information to the Department or its contractor for an evaluation of the experiment (see Reporting and Evaluation section below).

Institutions selected for this experiment will be granted flexibility in implementing the FWS and JLD programs. The following statutory and regulatory provisions would be waived:

• 34 CFR 675, to the extent it restricts students in FWS programs to part-time employment. We propose waiving these restrictions to enable full-time employment opportunities related to the student's academic program ( e.g., relevant apprenticeships, clinical rotations, or student teaching).

• 34 CFR 675.23, which limits the amount of an institution's FWS allocation and re-allocation for an award year to pay the compensation of FWS students employed by a private for-profit organization to 25 percent. We propose waiving this restriction entirely for institutions selected to participate in the experiment.

• 34 CFR 675.26(a)(3), which limits the Federal share of the compensation to a student employed by a private for-profit organization to 50 percent. We propose increasing the Federal share amount to 75 percent for a small business, as defined in 13 CFR 121, which is the amount permitted for most non-profit or community service employment.

• HEA section 442(a)(4)(A) and (B), which permits the Secretary to allocate to eligible institutions up to 10 percent of the amount appropriated for FWS in excess of $700 million in any fiscal year. To encourage institutions to participate in the experiment in sufficient numbers to derive meaningful conclusions, we propose to use this authority to provide additional FWS funding to institutions participating in the experiment. This includes waiving the condition that they meet the statutory requirements for graduation or transfer of Pell Grant recipients since we believe that work-and-learn programs and apprenticeship programs can significantly improve graduation rates among low-income students.

• 34 CFR 675.32, which caps the amount of an institution's FWS allocation to support a JLD Program at the lesser of $75,000 or 10 percent. We propose allowing an increase in the amount, in order to enable institutions to hire a coordinator or for other functions to further encourage institutions and employers to establish and expand paid internships, apprenticeships, and other work-and-learn opportunities. The institution's specific request for additional flexibility under this section must be detailed in its application and approved by the Department.

• 34 CFR 675.18(g), which requires an institution to use at least seven percent of the sum of its initial and supplemental FWS allocations for an award year to compensate students employed in community service activities, including at least one reading tutoring project that employs one or more FWS students as reading tutors for children who are preschool age or are in elementary school or a family literacy project that employs one or more FWS students in family literacy activities. We propose waiving this requirement to provide maximum flexibility to institutions.

All other provisions and regulations of the title IV, HEA student assistance programs will remain in effect.

The Department is interested in rigorously assessing the effectiveness of using FWS funds to expand private-sector job opportunities, including apprenticeships, and to support students engaged in program-required externships or student teaching. To meet this objective, the Department may randomly select from among all interested institutions a group of institutions that will be allowed to participate in the experiment. This random selection would take into account institutional characteristics such as total enrollment or the number of students participating in FWS, as well as the institutional priorities stated elsewhere. The institutions not selected may be invited to join the experiment in a subsequent academic year. This approach would allow the Department to assess the effects of the experiment by comparing the experiences and outcomes of students in participating versus non-participating institutions or in early- versus later-participating institutions.

Alternatively, the Department may require participating institutions to randomly assign certain parts of the waivers to eligible students; for example, to allow FWS to fund half (instead of all) of the eligible students engaged in program-required externships or student teaching or to give the higher Federal wage share for private-sector jobs to half (instead of all) of the eligible students who might seek one. This approach would enable the Department to rigorously assess the effects of those particular waivers on students' experiences and outcomes, even while the potential benefits of the experiment's other waivers would be available institution-wide.

Participating institutions will be required to collect, maintain, and report information about students involved in the experiment and to participate in the Department's evaluation. Information needed for the evaluation may include: (1) The identity of students eligible for FWS and those who choose to take advantage of the opportunities provided through the experiment, and (2) the characteristics associated with each student's FWS job or program-required work-based learning, including the number of hours worked (including hours not supported by FWS wages), the wages paid (including for non-FWS paid work with the same employer), and the identity of the employer. This information would likely come from databases institutions maintain to administer FWS and complete the Fiscal Operations Report and Application to Participate (FISAP) form annually. The Department may also require participating institutions to use a common form, provided by the Department at a later time, to collect qualitative information from students annually about their FWS-supported work opportunities.

Participating institutions will be required to respond to annual surveys or interviews that collect information about job development activities relevant to FWS students, including institutions with JLD funds, and any unforeseen challenges or opportunities identified in conjunction with administering the experiment. The Department's evaluation will also include information reported by institutions through the Department's regular data collection systems regarding the enrollment, completion, and withdrawal of students who receive title IV funds while enrolled at the institution during the student's participation in the experiment. In addition, the Department may obtain data on students' employment and earnings from other Federal agencies, such as the Internal Revenue Service, to better understand the effects of the experiment on students both before and after graduation.

The Department will finalize the specific evaluation and reporting requirements prior to the start of the experiment in consultation with the Department's Institute of Education Sciences.

Institutions are invited to apply to participate in the experiment described in this notice. From the institutions that submit letters of interest, the Secretary will select a limited number of institutions to participate in this experiment. When selecting institutions for participation in this experiment, the Secretary will consider—

1. Evidence that demonstrates a strong record in the administration of the title IV, HEA programs;

2. Evidence that demonstrates strong standards of financial responsibility, including that the institution's independent auditor does not express doubt as to the institution's ability to operate as a going concern or indicate an adverse opinion or a finding of material weakness related to financial stability;

3. The percentage of students enrolled at the institution who are Pell eligible or FWS eligible, such that institutions serving the largest percentage of these students will be given priority to participate in this experiment; and

4. The types of private-sector job opportunities, work-and-learn programs, or required externships or student teaching experiences that will be targeted by the institution as a result of the experiment and how the paid training experiences being targeted will be incorporated into the academic programs of study and the extent to which the experience is well structured and academically relevant to the student's program of study. The institution's commitment to target opportunities for students in high-need employment areas (based on State or local determinations or indications by the Department of Labor that an occupation is a “bright outlook” occupation  8 ).

In the event that the Department must limit the number of institutions invited to participate, priority will be based on whether the institution proposes to identify or expand work-and-learn opportunities in communities certified by the Internal Revenue Service as Opportunity Zones authorized under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and the proportion of enrolled students that are Pell Grant recipients, the level of demonstrated employer interest, and whether the institution proposes work-and-learn opportunities in academic programs that have higher than average non-completion rates.

The Secretary's selection of institutions will be guided by the purpose of the experiment, which is to evaluate whether FWS funds can be used effectively to: Provide more private-sector FWS opportunities to students; develop work-and-learn programs such as apprenticeships, to improve completion rates and reduce borrowing among students enrolled in required externships or student teaching activities; and improve completion rates and post-graduation employment outcomes for students involved in the experiment. If a selected institution consists of more than one location ( e.g., the institution has additional locations or branch campuses), the institution or the Secretary may limit the experiment to a single location.

The Department will finalize the application and selection requirements prior to the start of the experiment. The Secretary will consult with those institutions that have been invited to participate in the experiment on the final design of the experiment through webinars or other outreach activities.

Institutions selected for participation in an experiment will have their Program Participation Agreement (PPA) with the Secretary amended to reflect the specific statutory or regulatory provisions that the Secretary has waived for participants in the experiment. The institution must acknowledge its commitment to adequately establish the procedures necessary to successfully administer the experiment. The amended PPA will also document the agreement between the Secretary and the institution about how the experiment will be conducted and will specify the evaluation and reporting requirements for the experiment.

Administration of the experiment is the responsibility of an institution's senior leaders since it is likely that multiple departments within an institution will need to collaborate to develop high-quality opportunities for students. The institution's president or chancellor will be required to acknowledge the institution's commitment to properly administer the experiment and to involve all departments, faculty, and staff required to support successful implementation.

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Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register . You may access the official edition of the Federal Register at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this document, as well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal Register , in text or PDF. To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the site.

You may also access documents of the Department published in the Federal Register by using the article search feature at www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published by the Department.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1094a(b).

Supporting documents, which explain in detail the information that the EPA will be collecting, are available in the public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at www.regulations.gov, or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The telephone number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional information about EPA's public docket, visit: http://www.epa.gov/dockets.

Abstract: The National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for Area Sources: Asphalt Processing and Asphalt Roofing Manufacturing (40 CFR part 63, subpart AAAAAAA) were proposed on July 9, 2009, promulgated on December 2, 2009, and amended on March 18, 2010. These regulations apply to existing facilities and new facilities that are Area Sources and that either process asphalt or manufacture asphalt roofing products. New facilities include those that commenced construction, modification or reconstruction after the date of proposal. This information is being collected to assure compliance with 40 CFR part 63, subpart AAAAAAA.

In general, all NESHAP standards require initial notifications, performance tests, and periodic reports by the owners/operators of the affected facilities. They are also required to maintain records of the occurrence and duration of any startup, shutdown, or malfunction in the operation of an affected facility, or any period during which the monitoring system is inoperative. These notifications, reports, and records are essential in determining compliance, and are required of all affected facilities subject to NESHAP.

Form Numbers: None.

Respondents/affected entities: Existing and new facilities that are area sources and that process asphalt or manufacture asphalt roofing products. New facilities include those that commenced construction, modification or reconstruction after the date of proposal.

Respondent's obligation to respond: Mandatory (40 CFR part 63, subpart AAAAAAA).

Estimated number of respondents: 35 (total).

Frequency of response: Semiannually.

Total estimated burden: 1,410 hours (per year). Burden is defined at 5 CFR 1320.3(b).

Total estimated cost: $161,000 (per year), which includes $525 in annualized capital/startup and/or operation & maintenance costs.

Changes in the estimates: There is a decrease in hours in the total estimated respondent burden compared with the ICR currently-approved by OMB. This is due to a decrease in EPA's estimate of the number of industry sources subject to this regulation, which is based on information collected during a recent analysis of asphalt processing and asphalt roofing major sources for a risk and technology review. The growth rate for the industry continues to be very low, negative or non-existent.

Background: The SAB is a chartered Federal Advisory Committee, established in 1978 under the authority of the Environmental Research, Development and Demonstration Authorization Act (ERDDAA), codified at 42 U.S.C. 4365, to provide independent scientific and technical peer review, consultation, advice and recommendations to the EPA Administrator on the scientific bases for EPA's actions and programs. Members of the SAB constitute distinguished bodies of non-EPA scientists, engineers, economists, and behavioral scientists who are nationally and internationally recognized experts in their respective fields. Members are appointed by the EPA Administrator for a three-year term and serve as Special Government Employees who provide independent expert advice to the agency. Additional information about the SAB is available at http://www.epa.gov/sab.

Expertise Sought for the SAB: The chartered SAB provides strategic advice to the EPA Administrator on a variety of EPA science and research programs. All the work of SAB committees and panels is conducted under the auspices of the chartered SAB. The chartered SAB reviews all SAB committee and panel draft reports and determines whether they are appropriate to send to the EPA Administrator. The SAB Staff Office invites the nomination of experts to serve on the chartered SAB in the following scientific disciplines as they relate to human health and the environment: Analytical chemistry; benefit-cost analysis; causal inference; complex systems; ecological sciences and ecological assessment; economics; engineering; forestry geochemistry; health sciences; hydrology; hydrogeology; medicine; microbiology; modeling; pediatrics; public health; risk assessment; social, behavioral and decision sciences; statistics; toxicology; epidemiology; and uncertainty analysis.

The SAB Staff Office is especially interested in scientists in the disciplines described above who have knowledge and experience in air quality; agricultural sciences; atmospheric sciences; benefit-cost analysis; complex systems; drinking water; energy and the environment; epidemiological risk analyses; dose-response, exposure, and physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling; water quality; water quantity and reuse; ecosystem services; community environmental health; sustainability; chemical safety; green chemistry; and waste management. For further information about the chartered SAB membership appointment process and schedule, please contact Dr. Thomas Armitage, DFO, by telephone at (202) 564-2155 or by email at armitage.thomas@epa.gov.

The SAB Staff Office is also seeking nominations of experts for possible vacancies on four SAB standing committees: The Agricultural Science Committee, the Chemical Assessment Advisory Committee; the Drinking Water Committee; and the Radiation Advisory Committee.

(1) The SAB Agricultural Science Committee (ASC) provides advice to the chartered SAB on matters that have been determined to have a significant direct impact on farming and agriculture-related industries. The SAB Staff Office invites the nomination of scientists with expertise in one or more of the following disciplines: Agricultural science, including agricultural economics and valuation of ecosystem goods and services; agricultural chemistry; agricultural engineering; agronomy and soil science; animal science; aquaculture science; biofuel engineering; biotechnology; crop science and phytopathology; environmental chemistry; forestry; and hydrology. For further information about the ASC membership appointment process and schedule, please contact Dr. Bryan Bloomer, DFO, by telephone at (202) 564-4222 or by email at bloomer.bryan@epa.gov .

(2) The SAB Chemical Assessment Advisory Committee (CAAC) provides advice through the chartered SAB regarding selected toxicological reviews of environmental chemicals. The SAB Staff Office invites the nomination of scientists with experience in chemical assessments and expertise in one or more of the following disciplines: Toxicology, including, developmental/reproductive toxicology, and inhalation toxicology; carcinogenesis; biostatistics; uncertainty analysis; epidemiology and risk assessment. For further information about the CAAC membership appointment process and schedule, please contact Dr. Suhair Shallal, DFO, by telephone at (202) 564-2057 or by email at shallal.suhair@epa.gov.

(3) The SAB Drinking Water Committee (DWC) provides advice on the scientific and technical aspects of EPA's national drinking water program. The SAB Staff Office is seeking nominations of experts with experience on drinking water issues. Members should have expertise in one or more of the following disciplines: Environmental engineering; epidemiology; microbiology; public health; toxicology; uncertainty analysis; and risk assessment. For further information about the DWC membership appointment process and schedule, please contact Dr. Bryan Bloomer, DFO, by telephone at (202) 564-4222 or by email at bloomer.bryan@epa.gov.

(4) The Radiation Advisory Committee (RAC) provides advice on radiation protection, radiation science, and radiation risk assessment. The SAB Staff Office invites the nomination of experts to serve on the RAC with demonstrated expertise in the following disciplines: Radiation carcinogenesis; radiochemistry; radiation dosimetry; radiation epidemiology; radiation exposure; radiation health and safety; radiological risk assessment; uncertainty analysis; and radionuclide fate and transport. For further information about the RAC membership appointment process and schedule, please contact Dr. Diana Wong, DFO, by telephone at (202) 564-2049 or by email at wong.diana-m@epa.gov.

As the SAB and its standing committees undertake specific advisory activities, the SAB Staff Office will consider two additional criteria for each new activity: Absence of financial conflicts of interest and absence of an appearance of a loss of impartiality.

How to Submit Nominations: Any interested person or organization may nominate qualified persons to be considered for appointment to these advisory committees. Individuals may self-nominate. Nominations should be submitted in electronic format (preferred) 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 be considered, all nominations should include the information requested below. EPA values and welcomes diversity. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply regardless of gender, race, disability or ethnicity.

Nominators are asked to identify the specific committee for which nominees are to be considered. The following information should be provided on the nomination form: Contact information for the person making the nomination; contact information for the nominee; the disciplinary and specific areas of expertise of the nominee; the nominee's curriculum vitae; and a biographical sketch of the nominee indicating current position, educational background; research activities; sources of research funding for the last two years; and recent service on other national advisory committees or national professional organizations. To help the agency evaluate the effectiveness of its outreach efforts, please indicate how you learned of this nomination opportunity. Persons having questions about the nomination process or the public comment process described below, or who are unable to submit nominations through the SAB website, should contact the DFO for the committee, as identified above. The DFO will acknowledge receipt of nominations and in that acknowledgement, will invite the nominee to provide any additional information that the nominee feels would be useful in considering the nomination, such as availability to participate as a member of the committee; how the nominee's background, skills and experience would contribute to the diversity of the committee; and any questions the nominee has regarding membership. The names and biosketches of qualified nominees identified by respondents to this Federal Register notice, and any additional experts identified by the SAB Staff Office, will be posted in a List of Candidates on the SAB website at http://www.epa.gov/sab. Public comments on each List of Candidates will be accepted for 21 days from the date the list is posted. The public will be requested to provide relevant information or other documentation on nominees that the SAB Staff Office should consider in evaluating candidates.

Candidates invited to serve will be asked to submit 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 EPA to determine whether there is a statutory conflict between that person's public responsibilities as a Special Government Employee 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 through the “Ethics Requirements for Advisors” link on the SAB home page at http://www.epa.gov/sab. This form should not be submitted as part of a nomination.