Regulatory Updates from our Friends at FedWatch

• United States Department of Health and Human Services seeks comments on its cooperative agreements with the American Heart Association (AHA) to improve COVID-19-related health outcomes by addressing hypertension (high blood pressure) among racial and ethnic minority populations. AHA aims to conduct an evaluation to assess the feasibility of the implementation of each of the three National Hypertension Control Initiative (NHCI) strategies for reaching minority communities. (comments due 6/1)
• Department of Education is soliciting comments on The National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES) data collection for 2022. NHES collects data directly from households on early childhood care and education, children’s readiness for school, parents’ perceptions of school safety and discipline, before- and after-school activities of school-age children, participation in adult and career education, parents’ involvement in their children’s education, school choice, homeschooling, and civic involvement. (comments due 6/1)
• United States Department of Health and Human Services invites public comment on its Request for Information (RFI) about a potential Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) survey to assess patient care experiences in inpatient mental healthcare settings. (comments due 7/1)
• Food and Drug Administration Seeks comments on its proposed tobacco product standard that would prohibit characterizing flavors (other than tobacco) in all cigars and their components and parts. (comments due 7/5)
• Food and Drug Administration seeks comments on its proposed tobacco product standard that would prohibit menthol as a characterizing flavor in cigarettes. (comments due 7/5)

• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services seeks comments on a proposed rule that would implement certain provisions of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA). This proposed rule would update the various federal regulations that affect a state’s payment of Medicare Part A and B premiums for beneficiaries enrolled in the Medicare Savings Programs and other Medicaid eligibility groups. (comments due 6/27)
• Department of Education is proposing an extension without change of a currently approved information collection regarding the Strengthening Historically Black Graduate Institutions Program, which provides grants to assist institutions so that they may continue to participate in fulfilling the goal of equality of educational opportunity in graduate education. (comments due 5/19)
• United States Office of Management and Budget  seeks input from the public regarding the requirement of the Build America, Buy America Act (enacted as part of the Infrastructure and Jobs Act) that any infrastructure projects funded with Federal financial assistance use only construction materials “produced in the United States.” (comments due 5/23)
• United States Department of Defense seeks comments and recommendations on a barrier analysis to review demographic diversity patterns across the military life cycle and United States Department of Defense efforts to address barriers confronted by minority members in the workplace. (comments due 5/25)
• United States Department of Labor seeks comments on the Federal independent dispute resolution (Federal IDR) process as required by the No Surprises Act. The No Surprises Act provides Federal protections against surprise billing and limits out-of-network cost-sharing under many of the circumstances in which surprise bills arise most frequently. (comments due 5/25)
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services seeks comments on its request for an extension to the Long-Term Care Hospital Continuity Assessment Record and Evaluation Data Set (LTCH CARE Data Set or LCDS) Version 5.0 that will be effective on October 1, 2022. (comments due 5/26)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is soliciting public comment on the scope of an upcoming notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for FY2023. The scope of the NOFO is the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program‘s research interests in lifestyle medicine used to optimize management and improve outcomes of WTC-related health conditions. (comments due 5/26)
• Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is requesting approval from the United States Office of Management and Budget for a new primary data collection about connected child welfare data. The State Child Welfare Data Linkages Descriptive Study will gather systematic information on the extent to which states connect their child maltreatment data to other data sets; how any linked data sets are created, managed, and used; and the challenges states face in linking data. (comments due 5/28)
• Administration for Children and Families is requesting additional comments on the renewal of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Carryover and Reallotment Report with changes. (comments due 5/28)
• Small Business Administration is revising the Community Advantage Pilot Program requirements to encourage increased lending in historically underserved markets. (comments due 5/31)
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is seeking comments on its Methods for Assuring Access to Covered Medicaid Service. (comments due 5/31)
• United States Department of Justice submitted an information request related to the National Inmate Survey, which produces estimates for the incidence and prevalence of sexual victimization within correctional facilities as required under the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003. The main change is the addition of new questions for respondents who indicate they were sexually victimized at some point in the last year while housed in their current facility. (comments due 6/17)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a notice inviting comment on a proposed information collection project titled State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System (SUDORS), which supports drug overdose prevention efforts, detects new trends in fatal unintentional drug overdoses, and assesses the progress of United States Department of Health and Human Services’ initiative to reduce opioid abuse. (comments due 6/17)
• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau seeks comments on regulations implementing amendments to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) that assist consumers who are victims of trafficking. (comments due 6/17)
• United States Department of Defense’s Naval Health Research Center seeks public comment a study to assist in the adaptation of an existing web-based sexual assault prevention program for college men and women, for use among the Navy population. (comments due 6/21)
• United States Department of Homeland Security seeks comments regarding REAL ID applicant information and documentation. (comments due 6/21)
• U.S. Customs and Border Protection seeks comment on how it can ensure its processes, programs, regulations, collections of information, and policies effectively achieve CBP’s mission in a manner that furthers the goals of advancing equity for all, including those in underserved communities and those disproportionately impacted by environmental injustice. (comments due 6/21)
• United States Department of Justice‘s Office on Violence Against Women seeks comments on changes made to the statutorily mandated certifications for grantees under the Services, Training, Officers, and Prosecutors (STOP) Violence Against Women Formula Grants. (comments due 6/21)
• Food and Drug Administration seeks comments on changes to rules governing tobacco products in chapter IX of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). (comments due 6/27)

• The Census Bureau issued a notice of intent to request clearance from United States Office of Management and Budget  to make some revisions to the Household Pulse Survey questionnaire to ensure the data continue to meet information needs as they evolve over the course of the pandemic. As a reminder, the HPS includes questions on sexual orientation and gender identity.     
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration issued a notice that it is requesting approval for its “Talk. They Hear You.” media campaign’s “Screen 4 Success” Consent Form and Screener. The campaign aims to reduce underage drinking and substance use among youths under the age of 21 by providing parents and caregivers with information and resources they need to address alcohol and other drug use with their children early. 
• Department of Education issued a notice inviting applications for new awards for fiscal year 2022 for the Veterans Upward Bound Program.

Committee Meetings are an excellent opportunity for citizens like you and me to be a part of the process of governing our country. Check the dates and if you will be in any of the locations below, consider making time to attend one or more meetings!

• United States Commission on Civil Rights announced state advisory committee meetings in:
  • Texas on 5/2, 5/19, 6/16, and 7/21 to plan a project on investigating mental health care in juvenile justice facilities
  • Tennessee on 5/11 and 5/25 to discuss voting rights in Tennessee
  • Minnesota on 5/17 to discuss the Committee’s project on policing practices in the state.
  • North Carolina on 5/17 to discuss their report on Legal Financial Obligations in the state
  • D.C. on 5/17, 6/21, 7/19, 8/16, 9/20 to plan and discuss the Committee’s civil rights project.
  • Puerto Rico on 5/18 to discuss project planning.
  • Washington on 5/19 and 6/28 to select their next topic of study.
  • Connecticut on 5/23 to discuss planning on the Zoning project
  • New York on 5/20, 6/17, and 7/15 to discuss civil rights topics for their next project.
  • Guam on 5/24 to discuss civil rights concerns
  • New Mexico on 5/25,6/15, 7/6, 7/27, and 8/17 to discuss their project on education disparities for Native American students.
  • Indiana on 67/, 7/5, 8/2, and 9/6 to plan and discuss the Committee’s civil rights project
  • Kentucky on 6/21 to discuss civil asset forfeiture in the state.

• On 5/9-5/11 the Advisory Committee on Women Veterans will conduct a virtual meeting to advise the Secretary of Veterans Affairs regarding the needs of women Veterans with respect to health care, rehabilitation, compensation, outreach, and other programs and activities administered by VA designed to meet such needs.
• On 5/10-5/11 the USDA Equity Commission and Subcommittee for Agriculture will convene to continue its work reviewing USDA programs, services, and policies for the purpose of making recommendations for how the Department can improve access and advance equity.
• On 5/17 and 5/18 United States Department of Justice is hosting hearings of the Review Panel on Prison Rape to assist the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) in identifying common characteristics of victims and perpetrators of sexual victimization in U.S. juvenile facilities, and the common characteristics of juvenile facilities with the highest and lowest incidence of rape.
• On 5/24 there will be a public meeting of the National Advisory Council on Minority Health and Health Disparities to discuss administrative matters, the director’s report and other business.
• On 6/13 and 6/15 the Food and Drug Administration will host listening sessions on 6/13/22 and 6/15/22 to discuss Proposed Regulations to Establish Tobacco Product Standards for Menthol in Cigarettes and Characterizing Flavors in Cigars.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is seeking nominations for membership on the Advisory Committee to the Director (ACD) Data and Surveillance Workgroup (DSW). The DSW will consist of approximately 15 members who are experts in fields associated with public health science and practice; policy development, analysis, and implementation; and surveillance and informatics. (Nominations due 5/16)
• The Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy (OIDP) solicits nominations of qualified candidates to be considered for appointment to the National Vaccine Advisory Committee (NVAC). The committee studies and recommends ways to encourage the availability of an adequate supply of safe and effective vaccination products in the United States, as well as research priorities and other measures to enhance the safety and efficacy of vaccines. (Nominations due 6/24)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is soliciting nominations for appointment of individuals qualified to serve as new members of the Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF). New CPSTF members will serve a five-year term starting in either 2023 or 2024. (Nominations due 6/24)

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