[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 207 (Friday, October 25, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57384-57385]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-23343]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2019-0053]


Concurrence With OIE Risk Designations for Bovine Spongiform 
Encephalopathy

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: We are advising the public of our preliminary concurrence with 
the World Organization for Animal Health's (OIE) bovine spongiform 
encephalopathy (BSE) risk designations for Ecuador and Serbia. The OIE 
recognizes Ecuador as being of controlled risk for BSE and Serbia as 
being of negligible risk for BSE. We are taking this action based on 
our review of information supporting the OIE's risk designations for 
these regions.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
December 24, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2019-0053.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2019-0053, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, 
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
    Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may 
be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2019-
0053 or in our reading room, which is located in Room 1141 of the USDA 
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC. 
Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, 
please call (202) 799-7039 before coming.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Tracy McCracken, Staff Officer, 
Strategy & Policy, Regionalization Evaluation Services, 4700 River 
Road, Riverdale, MD 20737; phone (301) 851-3461; 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The regulations in 9 CFR part 92 subpart B, 
``Importation of Animals and Animal Products; Procedures for Requesting 
BSE Risk Status Classification With Regard To Bovines'' (referred to 
below as the regulations), set forth the process by which the Animal 
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) classifies regions for 
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) risk. Section 92.5 of the 
regulations provides that all countries of the world are considered by 
APHIS to be in one of three BSE risk categories: Negligible risk, 
controlled risk, or undetermined risk. These risk categories are 
defined in Sec.  92.1. Any region that is not classified by APHIS as 
presenting either negligible risk or controlled risk for BSE is 
considered to present an undetermined risk. The list of those regions 
classified by APHIS as having either negligible risk or controlled risk 
can be accessed on the APHIS website at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/animalhealth/animal-and-animal-product-import-information/animal-health-status-of-regions. The list can also be 
obtained by writing to APHIS at Regionalization Evaluation Services, 
4700 River Road, Unit 38, Riverdale, MD 20737.
    Under the regulations, APHIS may classify a region for BSE in one 
of two ways. One way is for regions that have not received a risk 
classification from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) to 
request classification by APHIS. The other way is for APHIS to concur 
with the classification given to a country or region by the OIE.
    If the OIE has classified a region as either BSE negligible risk or 
BSE

[[Page 57385]]

controlled risk, APHIS will seek information to support concurrence 
with the OIE classification. This information may be publicly available 
information, or APHIS may request that regions supply the same 
information given to the OIE. APHIS will announce in the Federal 
Register, subject to public comment, its intent to concur with an OIE 
classification.
    In accordance with this process, we are giving notice in this 
document that APHIS intends to concur with the OIE risk classifications 
of the following regions:
     Regions of negligible risk for BSE: Serbia.
     Regions of controlled risk for BSE: Ecuador.
    The OIE recommendations regarding each of the above countries can 
be viewed at http://www.oie.int/animal-health-in-the-world/official-disease-status/bse/list-of-bse-risk-status/. The conclusions of the OIE 
scientific commission for these regions can be viewed at https://www.oie.int/fileadmin/Home/eng/Internationa_Standard_Setting/docs/pdf/SCAD/A_SCAD_Feb2019.pdf (page 71 for Ecuador and page 68 for Serbia).
    After reviewing any comments we receive, we will announce our final 
determination regarding the BSE classification of these regions in the 
Federal Register, along with a discussion of and response to pertinent 
issues raised by commenters. If APHIS recognizes the OIE negligible BSE 
risk designation of Serbia and/or the controlled risk BSE designation 
of Ecuador, the Agency will include those regions of negligible risk or 
controlled risk for BSE, as applicable, that is available to the public 
on the Agency's website at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/animalhealth/animal-and-animal-product-import-information/animal-health-status-of-regions.

    Authority:  7 U.S.C. 1622 and 8301-8317; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 
31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 21st day of October 2019.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-23343 Filed 10-24-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-34-P