[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 121 (Friday, June 24, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37812-37813]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13529]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2021-0007]


Concurrence With WOAH Risk Designations for Bovine Spongiform 
Encephalopathy

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We are advising the public of our decision to concur with the 
World Organization for Animal Health's (WOAH) bovine spongiform 
encephalopathy (BSE) risk designations for Bolivia and the United 
Kingdom's zone of Jersey. WOAH recognizes the country of Bolivia and 
the United Kingdom's zone of Jersey as being of negligible risk for 
BSE. We are taking this action based on our review of information 
supporting the WOAH's risk designations for these regions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Javier Vargas, Senior Staff 
Officer, Regionalization Evaluation Services, Strategy and Policy, 
Veterinary Services, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 38, Riverdale, MD 
20737; (301) 851-3316; email: [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

[[Page 37813]]

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 (WOAH) \1\ 
to request classification by APHIS. The other way is for APHIS to 
concur with the classification given to a country or region by WOAH.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The World Organization for Animal Health internationally 
follows a British English spelling of ``organisation'' in its name; 
it was formerly the Office International des Epizooties, or OIE, but 
on May 28, 2022, the Organization announced that the acronym was 
changed from OIE to WOAH.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    If WOAH has classified a region as either BSE negligible risk or 
BSE controlled risk, APHIS will seek information to support concurrence 
with the WOAH classification. This information may be publicly 
available information, or APHIS may request that regions supply the 
same information given to WOAH. APHIS will announce in the Federal 
Register, subject to public comment, its intent to concur with a WOAH 
classification.
    In accordance with this process, we published a notice \2\ in the 
Federal Register on June 25, 2021 (86 FR 33635, Docket No. APHIS 2021-
0007), in which we announced our intent to concur with the WOAH risk 
classifications of the following regions:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ To view the notice, go to www.regulations.gov and enter 
APHIS-2021-0007 in the Search field.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Country of negligible risk for BSE: Bolivia.
     Zone of negligible risk for BSE: United Kingdom's zone of 
Jersey.
    We solicited comments on the notice for 60 days ending on August 
24, 2021. We did not receive any comments by this date.
    Therefore, in accordance with the regulations in Sec.  92.5, we are 
announcing our decision to concur with the WOAH risk classifications 
for Bolivia and the United Kingdom's zone of Jersey.
    Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), 
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs designated this action 
as not a major rule, as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
    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 13th day of June 2022.
Anthony Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-13529 Filed 6-23-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P