SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Overview of Changes

This rule amends the delegations of authority in 7 CFR part 2 to reflect changes to the organizational structure of the Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement (OPPE). This includes removing the delegations of authority by the Director, OPPE to the Director, Office of Advocacy and Outreach (OAO) at section 2.700, as OAO is no longer a separate entity within OPPE. In addition, this rule reflects the transfer of oversight of the 1994 Tribal Scholars Program from the Director of OPPE (section 2.38) to the Director of the Office of Tribal Relations (section 2.39) and the transfer of oversight of the Centers for Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships from the Director of OPPE to the Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations (section 2.23).

This rule also amends the delegations of authority to reflect the transfer of responsibility for USDA's Controlled Unclassified Information Program from the Assistant Secretary for Administration (section 2.24) and the Executive Director of the Office of Homeland Security (section 2.95) to the Chief Information Officer (section 2.32). See Secretary's Memorandum 1077-006 (Nov. 2, 2022), available at https://www.usda.gov/​directives/​sm-1077-006.

Finally, this rule amends the delegations to the Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment (section 2.16) and the Chief of the Forest Service (section 2.60) to authorize the Forest Service's Law Enforcement and Investigations staff to enforce and investigate violations of the Lacey Act, 16 U.S.C. 3371-3378, involving timber and timber products. These delegations do not affect the existing delegations of authority under the Lacey Act to the Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs and the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

Classification

This rule relates to internal agency management. Accordingly, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, notice of proposed rulemaking and opportunity for comment are not required, and this rule may be made effective less than 30 days after publication in the Federal Register . This rule also is exempt from the provisions of Executive Orders 12866 and 13771. This action is not a rule as defined by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq., or the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., and thus is exempt from the provisions of those acts. This rule contains no information collection or recordkeeping requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Accordingly, as discussed in the preamble, 7 CFR part 2 is amended as follows:

1. The authority citation for part 2 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 6912(a)(1); 5 U.S.C. 301; Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1953, 3 CFR 1949-1953 Comp., p. 1024.

2. Amend § 2.20 by adding paragraph (a)(2)(xliii) to read as follows:

3. Amend § 2.23 by adding paragraph (a)(2)(v) to read as follows:

4. Amend § 2.24 by removing and reserving paragraph (a)(8)(xi).

5. Amend § 2.32 by adding paragraph (a)(14) to read as follows:

6. Amend § 2.38 by removing and reserving paragraphs (a)(1)(xii) and (a)(4).

7. Amend § 2.39 by adding paragraph (a)(9) to read as follows:

8. Amend § 2.60 by adding paragraph (a)(45) to read as follows:

9. Amend § 2.95 by removing and reserving paragraph (b)(11).

10. Remove and reserve § 2.700.

The Secretary of Agriculture, Thomas J. Vilsack, having reviewed and approved this document, is delegating the authority to electronically sign this document to Mary Beth Schultz, Acting General Counsel, for purposes of publication in the Federal Register .

88 FR 70579