E8-25109. Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health (ABRWH or Advisory Board), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

In accordance with section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announces the following meeting of the aforementioned committee:

Time and Date: 11 a.m.-5 p.m., November 6, 2008.

Place: Audio Conference Call via FTS Conferencing. The USA toll free dial in number is 1-866-659-0537 with a pass code of 9933701.

Status: Open to the public, but without a public comment period.

Background: The Advisory Board was established under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 to advise the President on a variety of policy and technical functions required to implement and effectively manage the new compensation program. Key functions of the Advisory Board include providing advice on the development of probability of causation guidelines which have been promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as a final rule, advice on methods of dose reconstruction which have also been promulgated by HHS as a final rule, advice on the scientific validity and quality of dose estimation and reconstruction efforts being performed for purposes of the compensation program, and advice on petitions to add classes of workers to the Special Exposure Cohort (SEC).

In December 2000, the President delegated responsibility for funding, staffing, and operating the Advisory Board to HHS, which subsequently delegated this authority to the CDC. NIOSH implements this responsibility for CDC. The charter was issued on August 3, 2001, renewed at appropriate intervals, most recently, August 3, 2007, and will expire on August 3, 2009.

Purpose: This Advisory Board is charged with (a) providing advice to the Secretary, HHS, on the development of guidelines under Executive Order 13179; (b) providing advice to the Secretary, HHS, on the scientific validity and quality of dose reconstruction efforts performed for this program; and (c) upon request by the Secretary, HHS, advising the Secretary on whether there is a class of employees at any Department of Energy facility who were exposed to radiation but for whom it is not feasible to estimate their radiation dose, and on whether there is reasonable likelihood that such radiation doses may have endangered the health of members of this class.

Matters To Be Discussed: The agenda for the conference call includes: SEC Petition Status Updates; Status of Board Recommendation on Connecticut Aircraft Nuclear Engine Laboratory (CANEL) SEC Petition; Blockson Chemical SEC Petition (Work Group Update); Updates from the Subcommittee on Dose Reconstruction and Work Groups; Board Response to Congressional Letter from Senator Charles Schumer, Senator Hillary Clinton, and Representative Louise Slaughter; New GAO Evaluation; Update on Board Technical Support Contractor Activities; Update on Selection of the Board's Contractor; Future Plans.

The agenda is subject to change as priorities dictate. Because there is not a public comment period, written comments may be submitted. Any written comments received will be included in the official record of the meeting and should be submitted to the contact person below well in advance of the meeting.

Contact Person for More Information: Theodore M. Katz, M.P.A., Executive Secretary, NIOSH, CDC, 1600 Clifton Rd., NE., Mailstop: E-20, Atlanta, GA 30333, Telephone [phone], Toll Free 1-800-CDC-INFO, E-mail [e-mail].

The Director, Management Analysis and Services Office, has been delegated the authority to sign Federal Register notices pertaining to announcements of meetings and other committee management activities, for both CDC and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

Dated: October 15, 2008.

Elaine L. Baker,

Director, Management Analysis and Services Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.