SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background: The Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Assistant Secretary for Health, and by delegation the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are authorized under Sections 301 and 308 of the Public Health Service Act to conduct directly, or by grants or contracts, research, experiments, and demonstrations relating to occupational safety and health and to mine health.

Purpose: The Board of Scientific Counselors, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BSC, NIOSH) provides advice to the Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, on NIOSH research and prevention programs. The Board also provides guidance on the Institute's research activities related to developing and evaluating hypotheses, systematically documenting findings, and disseminating results. In addition, the Board evaluates the degree to which the activities of NIOSH: (1) conform to those standards of scientific excellence appropriate for Federal scientific institutions in accomplishing objectives in occupational safety and health; (2) address currently relevant needs in the fields of occupational safety and health either alone or in conjunction with other known activities inside and outside of NIOSH; and (3) produce their intended results in addressing important research questions in occupational safety and health, both in terms of applicability of the research findings and dissemination of the findings.

Matters To Be Considered: The agenda for the meeting addresses the NIOSH Evaluation Capacity Building Plan (ECB Plan) and Scoring Progress on the ECB Plan; Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at NIOSH; and a National Firefighter Registry Subcommittee Update. Agenda items are subject to change as priorities dictate.

The agenda is also posted on the NIOSH website at https://www.cdc.gov/​niosh/​bsc/​.

Public Participation

Written Public Comment: Written comments will be accepted per the instructions provided in the addresses section above. Comments received in advance of the meeting are part of the public record and are subject to public disclosure. Written comments will be included in the official record of the meeting. Do not include any information in your comment or supporting materials that you consider confidential or inappropriate for public disclosure. If you include your name, contact information, or other information that identifies you in the body of your comments, that information will be on public display. CDC will review all submissions and may choose to redact, or withhold, submissions containing private or proprietary information such as Social Security numbers, medical information, inappropriate language, or duplicate/near-duplicate examples of a mass-mail campaign. CDC will carefully consider all comments submitted into the docket.

Written comments received by March 6, 2024, will be provided to the Board prior to the meeting.

Oral Public Comment: The public is welcome to participate during the public comment period, from 1 p.m. to 1:15 p.m., EDT, March 13, 2024. Each commenter will be provided up to five minutes for comment. A limited number of time slots are available and will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. Members of the public who wish to address the BSC, NIOSH are requested to contact the Designated Federal Officer for scheduling purposes (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT above).

The Director, Office of Strategic Business Initiatives, Office of the Chief Operating Officer, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has been delegated the authority to sign Federal Register notices pertaining to announcements of meetings and other committee management activities, for both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

89 FR 7714