[Federal Register: January 14, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 9)]
[Notices]
[Page 2122-2123]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr14ja04-44]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army
Inland Waterways Users Board; Request for Nominations
AGENCY: Department of the Army, DOD.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: Section 302 of Public Law 99-662 established the Inland
Waterways Users Board. The Board is an independent Federal advisory
committee. The Secretary of the Army appoints its 11 members. This
notice is to solicit nominations for five (5) appointments or
reappointments to two-year terms that will begin after April 5, 2004.
ADDRESSES: Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works),
Department of the Army, Washington, DC 20310-0103. Attention: Inland
Waterways Users Board Nominations Committee.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of the Assistant Secretary of
the Army (Civil Works) (703) 697-8986.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The selection, service, and appointment of
Board members are covered by provisions of section 302 of Public Law
99-662. The substance of those provisions is as follows:
a. Selection. Members are to be selected from the spectrum of
commercial carriers and shippers using the inland and intracoastal
waterways, to represent geographical regions, and to be representative
of waterborne commerce as determined by commodity ton-miles statistics.
b. Service. The Board is required to meet at least semi-annually to
develop and make recommendations to the Secretary of the Army on
waterways construction and rehabilitation priorities and spending
levels for commercial navigation improvements, and report its
recommendations annually to the Secretary and Congress.
c. Appointment. The operation of the Board and appointment of its
members are subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-
463, as amended) and departmental implementing regulations. Members
serve without compensation but their expenses due to Board activities
are reimbursable. The considerations specified in section 302 for the
selection of the Board members, and certain terms used therein, have
been interpreted, supplemented, or otherwise clarified as follows:
(1) Carriers and Shippers. The law uses the terms ``primary users
and shippers.'' Primary users have been interpreted to mean the
providers of transportation services on inland waterways such as barge
or towboat operators. Shippers have been interpreted to mean the
purchasers of such services for the movement of commodities they own or
control. Individuals are appointed to the Board, but they must be
either a carrier or shipper, or represent a firm that is a carrier or
shipper. For that purpose a trade or regional association is neither a
shipper or primary user.
(2) Geographical Representation. The law specifies ``various''
regions. For the purpose of selecting Board members, the waterways
subjected to fuel taxes and described in Public Law 95-502, as amended,
have been aggregated into six regions. They are (1) the Upper
Mississippi River and its tributaries above the mouth of the Ohio; (2)
the Lower Mississippi River and its tributaries below the mouth of the
Ohio and above Baton Rouge; (3) the Ohio River and its tributaries; (4)
the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway in Louisiana and Texas; (5) the Gulf
Intracoastal Waterway east of New Orleans and associated fuel-taxed
waterways including the Tennessee-Tombigbee, plus the Atlantic
Intracoastal Waterway below Norfolk; and (6) the Columbia-Snake Rivers
System and Upper Willamette. The intent is that each region shall be
represented by at least one Board member, with that representation
determined by the regional concentration of the individual's traffic on
the waterways.
(3) Commodity Representation. Waterway commerce has been aggregated
into six commodity categories based on ``inland'' ton-miles shown in
Waterborne Commerce of the United States. These categories are (1) Farm
and Food Products; (2) Coal and Coke; (3) Petroleum, Crude and
Products; (4) Minerals, Ores, and Primary Metals and Mineral Products;
(5) Chemicals and Allied Products; and (6) All other. A consideration
in the selection of Board members will be that the commodities carried
or shipped by those individuals or their firms will be reasonably
representative of the above commodity categories.
d. Nomination. Reflecting preceding selection criteria, the current
representation by the five (5) Board members whose terms expire April
5, 2004, is two members representing region 1, one member representing
region 2, one member representing region 3, and one member representing
region 6. Also, these Board members represent two carriers, one
shipper, and two shipper/carriers. Three of the five members whose
terms expire April 5, 2004, are eligible for reappointment. Nominations
to replace Board members whose terms expire April 5, 2004, may be made
by individuals, firms or associations. Nominations will:
(1) State the region to be represented.
(2) State whether the nominee is representing carriers, shippers or
both.
(3) Provide information on the nominee's personal qualifications.
(4) Include the commercial operations of the carrier and/or shipper
with whom the nominee is affiliated. This commercial operations
information will show the actual or estimated ton-miles of each
commodity carried or shipped on the inland waterways system in a recent
year (or years) using the waterway regions and commodity categories
previously listed.
Nominations received in response to Federal Register notice (67 FR
47525) published on July 19, 2002, have been retained for
consideration.
[[Page 2123]]
Renomination is not required but may be desirable.
e. Deadline for Nominations. All nominations must be received at
the address shown above no later than March 5, 2004.
Luz D. Ortiz,
Army Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 04-826 Filed 1-13-04; 8:45 am]
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