The Federal Trade Commission is amending its textile labeling rules to remove a requirement that an owner of a registered word trademark, used as a house mark, provide the FTC a copy of the mark's registration with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office before using the mark on labels. The provision is now outdated because “registered house marks now can be found by searching online or at the USPTO's website,” the FTC said. The final rule takes effect Feb. 22.
The Fish and Wildlife Service is removing the eastern puma (Puma concolor couguar) from the Endangered Species List, it said in a final rule. The subspecies has not been seen in the wild since 1938, and is likely extinct, FWS said. The delisting takes effect Feb. 22.
The Federal Trade Commission is proposing changes to its regulations on the labeling and marketing of home insulation. Under the proposed rule, the “R-value” regulations would be amended to clarify that they only apply to products marketed for residential applications, even if originally developed for the commercial market. The proposed rule would also require marketers to use the rule’s testing requirements to substantiate any R-value claims for non-insulation products, add information about air sealing and installation to fact sheets, and eliminate references to an outdated aging specification, among other things, the FTC said. Comments are due March 23.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will permit some motor vehicles that don't comply with all U.S. safety standards to be imported as long as they meet Canadian safety standards, the agency said in a final decision. Such vehicles must be "substantially similar to vehicles that were certified by their manufacturers as complying with the U.S. safety standards and are capable of being readily altered to conform to those standards" or have "safety features that comply with, or are capable of being altered to comply with, all U.S. safety standards," NHTSA said. "To import a vehicle made admissible under any final decision, the importer must indicate" to CBP that "the vehicle has been determined eligible for importation" through a Department of Transportation declaration form HS-7, NHTSA said.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is temporarily adding the synthetic opioid cyclopropyl fentanyl to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, it said. The listing takes effect Jan. 4, and will be in effect for up to three years.
The Fish and Wildlife Service issued a final rule listing the Black Warrior waterdog (Necturus alabamensis), an amphibian native to Alabama, as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. New import and export restrictions set by the agency’s final rule take effect Feb. 2.
The Drug Enforcement Administration intends to temporarily add all "fentanyl-related substances" to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, it said. The agency's proposed temporary scheduling order would cover "any substance not otherwise controlled in any schedule," including substances not yet developed as of publication of DEA's notice, "that is structurally related to fentanyl" in certain ways listed in the notice. DEA would publish notices detailing the actual substances covered by the order as they are developed, though "even in the absence of a future publication by DEA specifically identifying such a substance, the substance will be controlled by virtue of the temporary scheduling order." If finalized, the temporary scheduling order would remain in effect for up to three years.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on Dec. 28 published its 2017 Annual List of Explosive Materials. The list takes immediate effect. The new list reflects no changes to the agency's list from 2016 (see 1611150070).
The Energy Department is setting new energy efficiency requirements for vibration service lamps and rough service lamps. Effective Jan. 25, 2018, vibration service lamps and rough service lamps are required to meet a maximum 40-watt energy use standard and must also meet certain packing requirements, DOE said. The final rule was mandated by a 2007 law that requires DOE to issue the new “backstop” standard if sales of these lamps surpass a certain threshold and the agency has not yet issued energy efficiency standards on its own initiative.
The Drug Enforcement Administration said it intends to temporarily add the synthetic opioids valeryl fentanyl, para-fluorobutyryl fentanyl, para-methoxybutyryl fentanyl, para-chloroisobutyryl fentanyl, isobutyryl fentanyl, cyclopentyl fentanyl and ocfentanil to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. DEA can issue a final order temporarily adding the substance after a period of 30 days passes. If issued, the final order will take effect immediately and will stay in effect for a maximum of three years, pending completion of a permanent scheduling order.