[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 47 (Friday, March 12, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14145-14146]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-05232]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Federal Emergency Management Agency

[Docket ID FEMA-2020-0016]


Meeting To Implement Pandemic Response Voluntary Agreement Under 
Section 708 of the Defense Production Act

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland 
Security.

ACTION: Announcement of meetings.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is holding a 
series of meetings to implement the Voluntary Agreement for the 
Manufacture and Distribution of Critical Healthcare Resources Necessary 
to Respond to a Pandemic.

DATES: The first meeting took place on Thursday, March 4, 2021, from 3 
to 5 p.m. Eastern Time (ET). The second meeting took place on 
Wednesday, March 10, 2021, from 3 to 5 p.m. ET. The third meeting took 
place on Thursday, March 11, 2021, from 3 to 5 p.m. ET. A fourth 
meeting will take place on Thursday, March 18, 2021, from 3 to 5 p.m. 
ET.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Glenn, Office of Business, 
Industry, Infrastructure Integration, via email at [email protected] or 
via phone at (202) 212-1666.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice of this meeting is provided as 
required by section 708(h)(8) of the Defense Production Act (DPA), 50 
U.S.C. 4558(h)(8), and consistent with 44 CFR part 332.
    The DPA authorizes the making of ``voluntary agreements and plans 
of action'' with, among others, representatives of industry and 
business to help provide for the national defense.\1\ The President's 
authority to facilitate voluntary agreements was delegated to the 
Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to responding to the spread 
of COVID-19 within the United States in Executive Order 13911.\2\ The 
Secretary of Homeland Security has further delegated this authority to 
the FEMA Administrator.\3\
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    \1\ 50 U.S.C. 4558(c)(1).
    \2\ 85 FR 18403 (Apr. 1, 2020).
    \3\ DHS Delegation 09052, Rev. 00.1 (Apr. 1, 2020); DHS 
Delegation Number 09052 Rev. 00 (Jan. 3, 2017).
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    On August 17, 2020, after the appropriate consultations with the 
Attorney General and the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, FEMA 
completed and published in the Federal Register a ``Voluntary Agreement 
for the Manufacture and Distribution of Critical Healthcare Resources 
Necessary to Respond to a Pandemic'' (Voluntary Agreement).\4\ Unless 
terminated prior to that date, the Voluntary Agreement is effective 
until August 17, 2025, and may be extended subject to additional 
approval by the Attorney General after consultation with the Chairman 
of the Federal Trade Commission. The Agreement may be used to prepare 
for or respond to any pandemic, including COVID-19, during that time.
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    \4\ 85 FR 50035 (Aug. 17, 2020). The Attorney General, in 
consultation with the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, made 
the required finding that the purpose of the voluntary agreement may 
not reasonably be achieved through an agreement having less 
anticompetitive effects or without any voluntary agreement and 
published the finding in the Federal Register on the same day. 85 FR 
50049 (Aug. 17, 2020).
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    On December 7, 2020, the first plan of action under the Voluntary 
Agreement--the Plan of Action to Establish a National Strategy for the 
Manufacture, Allocation, and Distribution of Personal Protective 
Equipment (PPE) to Respond to COVID-19 (Plan of Action)--was 
finalized.\5\ The Plan of Action established several sub-committees 
under the Voluntary Agreement, focusing on different aspects of the 
Plan of Action.
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    \5\ See 85 FR 78869 (Dec. 7, 2020). See also 85 FR 79020 (Dec. 
8, 2020).
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    These meetings were or will be chaired by the FEMA Administrator or 
his delegate, and attended by the Attorney General or his delegate and 
the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission or his delegate. In 
implementing the Voluntary Agreement, FEMA adheres to all procedural 
requirements of 50 U.S.C. 4558 and 44 CFR part 332.
    Meeting Objectives: The objectives of all of the meetings are as 
follows:
    1. Gather committee Participants and Attendees to ask targeted 
questions for situational awareness.
    2. Establish priorities for COVID-19 PPE under the Voluntary 
Agreement.
    3. Identify tasks that should be completed under the appropriate 
Sub-Committee.
    4. Identify information gaps and areas that merit sharing (both 
from FEMA to the private sector and vice versa).
    Meetings Closed to the Public: By default, the DPA requires 
meetings held to implement a voluntary agreement or plan of action be 
open to the public.\6\ However, attendance may be limited if the 
Sponsor \7\ of the voluntary agreement finds that the matter to be 
discussed at a meeting falls within the purview of matters described in 
5 U.S.C. 552b(c). The Sponsor of the Voluntary Agreement, the FEMA 
Administrator, found that these meetings to implement the Voluntary 
Agreement involve matters which fall within the purview of matters 
described in 5 U.S.C. 552b(c) and the meetings will therefore be closed 
to the public.
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    \6\ See 50 U.S.C. 4558(h)(7).
    \7\ ``[T]he individual designated by the President in subsection 
(c)(2) [of section 708 of the DPA] to administer the voluntary 
agreement, or plan of action.'' 50 U.S.C. 4558(h)(7).
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    Specifically, these meetings to implement the Voluntary Agreement 
may require participants to disclose trade secrets or commercial or 
financial information that is privileged or confidential. Disclosure of 
such information allows for meetings to be closed pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 
552b(c)(4). In addition, the success of the Voluntary Agreement depends 
wholly on the willing and enthusiastic participation of private sector 
participants. Failure to close these meetings could have a strong 
chilling effect on participation by the private sector and cause a 
substantial risk that sensitive information will be prematurely 
released to the public,

[[Page 14146]]

resulting in participants withdrawing their support from the Voluntary 
Agreement and thus significantly frustrating the implementation of the 
Voluntary Agreement. Frustration of an agency's objective due to 
premature disclosure of information allows for the closure of a meeting 
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pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(9)(B).

MaryAnn Tierney,
Acting Deputy Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency.
[FR Doc. 2021-05232 Filed 3-11-21; 8:45 am]
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