[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 217 (Wednesday, November 10, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 61218]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-29400]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Office of the Secretary
42 CFR Part 61
RIN 0991-AA96
Service Fellowships
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HHS.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is adopting
without change the interim final rule amending the regulations
governing service fellowships which was published in the Federal
Register on February 27, 1998 (63 FR 9949). These amendments revised
the authority citation, extended the time limitation on initial
appointments from 2 years to 5 years, permitted extensions of
appointments for up to 5 years rather than year-to-year, and deleted
obsolete references to the Surgeon General.
DATES: Effective Date: November 10, 1999. The effective date for this
final rule is not delayed because it adopts the interim final rule
without change.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jerry Moore, NIH Regulations Officer, National Institutes of Health,
6011 Executive Boulevard, Suite 601, MSC 7669, Rockville, MD 20852;
telephone 301-496-4607 (not a toll-free number); Fax 301-402-0169. For
information with regard to service fellowships contact Edie Bishop,
Office of Human Resource Management, National Institutes of Health, 31
Center Dr., MSC 0424, Bethesda, MD 20892-0424; telephone 301-402-9484
(not a toll-free number).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Health and Human Services
(HHS) published in the Federal Register on February 27, 1998 (63 FR
9949) an interim final rule amending the regulations, codified at 42
CFR part 61, subpart B, governing service fellowships. Although the
amendments were published as an interim final rule and were effective
immediately, the Secretary requested comments on the regulations. The
comment period expired on April 28, 1998. HHS received no comments on
the amendments. Consequently, HHS is adopting the interim final rule
without change as a final rule.
Section 207(g) of the Public Health Service Act, as amended,
authorizes the Secretary to designate individual scientists, other than
Commissioned Officers of the Public Health Service (PHS), to receive
fellowships; to be appointed for duty with the Service and compensated
without regard to the civil service classification laws; to hold their
fellowships under conditions prescribed therein; and to be assigned for
studies or investigations either in the United States or foreign
countries during the terms of their fellowships.
Consistent with the legislative intent of the PHS Act, Sec. 61.32
of the implementing regulations codified at 42 CFR Part 61, sates that
service fellowships ``may be provided to secure the services of
talented scientists for a period of limited duration for health-related
research, studies, and investigations where the nature of the work or
the character of the individual's services render customary employing
methods impracticable or less effective.''
The interim final rule amended Sec. 61.38 of the service fellowship
regulations to make time limitations on initial appointments more
flexible. Specifically, the interim final rule extended the current
time limitation on initial appointments from 2 to 5 years, and revised
the requirements with respect to extensions to permit extensions for up
to 5 years rather than year-to-year. These changes are intended to
provide HHS health agencies with greater flexibility to recruit and
retain their scientists. It is anticipated that the increased
flexibility will provide for simplified recruitment and classification.
Employment will continue to be linked to scientific excellence as
determined by agency peer review processes.
The interim final rule also amended the authority citation and the
references to the Surgeon General to reflect that the authority for the
service fellowships are vested in the Secretary. Section 61.30 was
amended to remove the paragraph designations and the definition for the
term ``Surgeon General'' and to add the definition for the term
``Secretary,'' and Sec. 61.34 was amended to remove clause (b) and
redesignate clause(c) and (b) to reflect current policy.
The following statements are provided for public information.
Executive Order No. 12866
Executive Order No. 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review, requires
that all regulatory actions reflect consideration of the costs and
benefits they generate, and that they meet certain standards, such as
avoiding the imposition of unnecessary burdens on the affected public.
If an action is deemed to fall within the scope of the definition of
the term ``significant regulatory action'' contained in Sec. 3(f) of
the Order, a pre-publication review by the Office of Management and
Budget's (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) is
necessary. This rule was reported to OIRA, and it was deemed not to be
a significant regulatory action.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. chapter 6) requires
that regulatory actions be analyzed to determine whether they will have
a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities. The Secretary certifies that this rule will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities
and, therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis, as defined under the
Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 is not required. This rule applies
to individuals who apply for and may receive service fellowships. The
rule does not apply or affect ``small entities'' as that term is
defined in 5 U.S.C. 601.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule does not contain any information collection requirements
that are subject to OMB approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35).
List of Subjects in 42 CFR Part 61
Fellowships.
Approved: September 10, 1999.
Harold Varmus,
Director, National Institutes of Health.
Dated: November 1, 1999.
Donna Shalala,
Secretary.
Subpart B--Service Fellowships
Accordingly, the interim rule amending 42 CFR part 61, subpart B,
which was published at 63 FR 9949 on February 27, 1998, is adopted as a
final rule without change.
[FR Doc. 99-29400 Filed 11-9-99; 8:45 am]
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