American Lumber Standard Committee; Additional Memberships Approved

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology

[Docket No. 98040112-8112-01]

American Lumber Standard Committee; Additional Memberships

Approved

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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

SUMMARY: The National Institute of Standards and Technology announces

that the Secretary of Commerce approved the request of the American

Lumber Standard Commtitee (``the Committee'') to allow membership for

the National Lumber Grades Authority (NLGA) of Canada under Section

9.3.1 (rules-writing agencies) and for wood treaters under Section

9.3.3 (other interested and affected groups) of DOC Voluntary Product

Standard PS 20-94 ``American Softwood Lumber Standard.''

ADDRESSES: Barbara M. Meigs, Office of Standards Services, National

Institute of Standards and Technology, Room 164, Building 820,

Gaithersburg, MD 20899.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Barbara M. Meigs, telephone: 301-975-4025, fax: 301-926-1559, e-mail:

[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9.3.7 of DOC Voluntary Product

Standard PS 20-94 ``American Softwood Lumber Standard,'' developed

under procedures published by the Department of Commerce (15 CFR Part

10), provides that the Secretary of Commerce, upon request, may

consider making additional appointments to the Committee to ensure that

it has a comprehensive balance of interests.

On February 13, 1997, NIST published a notice in the Federal

Register (62 FR 6761) announcing that it was considering a request

received from the Committee. The Committee, after its annual meeting in

December 1996, had sent a letter to NIST requesting that one voting

membership for the NLGA of Canada and one for wood treaters be

approved. NIST announced a 90-day comment period to allow for public

comment on the recommendation.

During the comment period, which ended on May 14, 1997, one current

and

[[Page 27564]]

one former member of the Committee submitted objections to the NLGA and

wood-treaters memberships. On October 29, 1997, after considering the

Committee's recommendation and the comments of those who responded to

the Federal Register notice, the Secretary of Commerce approved the

recommendation of the Committee to allow one principal member and one

alternate to represent the NLGA under Section 9.3.1 of PS 20-94 and one

principal member and one alternate to represent wood treaters under

Section 9.3.3.

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 272.

Dated: May 8, 1998.

Robert E. Hebner,

Acting Deputy Director.

[FR Doc. 98-13196 Filed 5-18-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-13-M