Notice2024-30484
National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods; Membership Nominations
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Published
December 20, 2024
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentFood Safety and Inspection Service
Abstract
Pursuant to the provisions of the rules and regulations of the USDA and the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), the USDA is soliciting nominations for membership on the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF)and announcing potential charges for the 2025-2027 term. USDA seeks to appoint 30 members. Advisory Committee members serve a two-year term beginning September 2025 through September 2027. Members may be reappointed for one additional consecutive term at the discretion of the Secretary of Agriculture.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 245 (Friday, December 20, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 245 (Friday, December 20, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 104077-104079]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30484]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. FSIS-2024-0024]
National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for
Foods; Membership Nominations
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA).
ACTION: Notice; soliciting nominations.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the provisions of the rules and regulations of the
USDA and the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), the USDA is
soliciting nominations for membership on the National Advisory
Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF)and announcing
potential charges for the 2025-2027 term. USDA seeks to appoint 30
members. Advisory Committee members serve a two-year term beginning
September 2025 through September 2027. Members may be reappointed for
one additional consecutive term at the discretion of the Secretary of
Agriculture.
DATES: All nomination packages must be received by February 18, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Nomination packages should be sent by email to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4e000f0d030d080e3b3d2a2f60292138"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="014f40424c424741747265602f666e77">[email protected]</span></a>, or mailed to: The Honorable Thomas Vilsack, Secretary,
U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Room 1128
South Building, Attn: Kristal Southern, Designated Federal Officer,
FSIS\OPHS\National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for
Foods, Washington, DC 20250.
Docket: For access to documents, call (202) 205-5046 to schedule a
time to visit the FSIS Docket Room at 1400 Independence Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20250-3700.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kristal Southern, Designated Federal
Officer, by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#367877757b7570764345525718515940"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f1bfb0b2bcb2b7b184829590df969e87">[email protected]</span></a> or by telephone at 202-937-4162.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: USDA is soliciting nominations for
membership to the NACMCF. USDA seeks to appoint 30 members.
To obtain a scientific perspective that considers all stakeholders,
USDA is seeking NACMCF nominees with scientific expertise in
microbiology, risk assessment, public health, food science, and other
relevant disciplines. USDA is seeking nominations for NACMCF from
persons in academia, industry, and State governments, as well as all
other interested persons with the required expertise.
All nominees will undergo a USDA background check. Advisory
committee
[[Page 104078]]
members who are not Federal government employees will be appointed to
serve as non-compensated special government employees (SGE). SGEs will
be subject to appropriate conflict of interest statutes and standards
of ethical conduct. Members can serve on only one USDA Advisory
Committee at a time. Applicants that are federally registered lobbyists
will not be considered for USDA's NACMCF.
Committee members serve 2-year terms that can be reappointed for
one additional term. Former members are eligible for repeat service
after one term of non-service.
Nominations for membership on the NACMCF must be addressed to the
Secretary of Agriculture and a complete nomination package must
include: a cover letter addressing the nomination, a resume or
curriculum vitae, and a completed USDA Advisory Committee Membership
Background Information form AD-755 (available online at: <a href="https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-755.pdf">https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-755.pdf</a>).
The resume or curriculum vitae must be limited to five one-sided
pages and should include educational background, expertise, and a list
of select publications, if available. Any submissions with more than
the prescribed five one-sided pages in length will have only the first
five pages reviewed. A person may self-nominate, or a nomination can be
made on behalf of someone else.
Background
The NACMCF provides impartial scientific advice and recommendations
to the USDA and other government agencies on microbiological and public
health issues relative to the safety of the U.S. food supply.
The NACMCF is a discretionary advisory committee that was
established in 1988, by the Secretary of Agriculture, and after
consulting with the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, in response to the recommendations of two external
organizations. The National Academy of Sciences recommended an
interagency approach to microbiological criteria, since various
federal, State, and local agencies are responsible for food safety.
Also, the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations
made a similar recommendation in the Rural Development, Agriculture,
and Related Agencies Appropriation Bill for fiscal year 1988. The
charter for the NACMCF is available for viewing at <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/advisory-committees/national-advisory-committee-microbiological-criteria-foods-nacmcf">https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/advisory-committees/national-advisory-committee-microbiological-criteria-foods-nacmcf</a>. The food safety
programs of the USDA FSIS and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
are strengthened through NACMCF recommendations. The programs of other
Federal agencies concerned with food safety, including the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Commerce, National
Marine Fisheries Service, and the Department of Defense, Veterinary
Services also benefit from NACMCF work. FSIS anticipates that the 2025-
2027 term Committee will work on charges related to one or more of the
following topics: Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat meat and
poultry products from FSIS, and food safety strategies for aged raw
milk cheeses, from FDA.
The Committee reports to the Secretary of Agriculture through the
Under Secretary for Food Safety, the Committee's Chair, and to the
Secretary of Health and Human Services through the Assistant Secretary
for Health or their representative, the Committee's Vice-Chair.
Currently, Dr. Jos[eacute] Emilio Esteban, Under Secretary for Food
Safety, USDA, is the Committee Chair; Dr. Donald Prater, Principal
Associate Commissioner for Human Foods, FDA, is the Vice-Chair; and Dr.
Kristal Southern, FSIS, is the Director of the NACMCF Secretariat and
Designated Federal Officer.
Appointments to the Committee will be made by the Secretary of
Agriculture and take into account the needs of the diverse groups
served by the USDA.
The full Committee expects to meet at least once a year, virtually
or in person, and the meetings will be announced in advance in the
Federal Register. NACMCF holds subcommittee meetings in order to
accomplish the work of the Committee; all subcommittee work is reviewed
and approved during a public meeting of the full Committee, as
announced in the Federal Register. Subcommittees may invite technical
experts to present information for consideration by the subcommittee.
All data and records available to the full Committee are expected to be
available to the public after the full Committee has reviewed and
approved the work of the subcommittee.
Advisory committee members are expected to attend all scheduled
meetings during their 2-year term to ensure the smooth functioning of
the advisory committee. Members must be prepared to work outside of
scheduled Committee and subcommittee meetings and may be required to
assist in document preparation. Committee members serve on a voluntary
basis; however, travel expenses and per diem reimbursements are
available when in person meetings occur.
Regarding Nominees Who Are Selected
All SGE and Federal government employee nominees who are selected
must complete the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) 450 Confidential
Financial Disclosure Report before rendering any advice or before their
first meeting. All Committee members will be reviewed pursuant to 18
U.S.C. 208 for conflicts of interest relating to specific NACMCF work
charges, and financial disclosure updates will be required annually.
Members subject to financial disclosure must report any changes in
financial holdings requiring additional disclosure. OGE 450 forms are
available online at: <a href="https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/ethicsofficials_financial-disc">https://www.oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/ethicsofficials_financial-disc</a>.
Documents and Comments
NACMCF documents and comments posted on the FSIS website are
electronic conversions from a variety of source formats. In some cases,
document conversion may result in character translation or formatting
errors. The original document is the official, legal copy. To meet the
electronic and information technology accessibility standards in
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, NACMCF may add alternate text
descriptors for non-text elements (graphs, charts, tables, multimedia,
etc.). These modifications only affect the internet copies of the
documents. Copyrighted documents will not be posted on FSIS' website
but will be available for inspection in the FSIS Docket Room.
Additional Public Notification
Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy
development is important.Consequently, FSIS will announce this Federal
Register publication on-line through the FSIS web page located at:
<a href="http://www.fsis.usda.gov/federal-register">http://www.fsis.usda.gov/federal-register</a>.
FSIS will also announce and provide a link to it through the FSIS
Constituent Update, which is used to provide information regarding FSIS
policies, procedures, regulations, Federal Register notices, FSIS
public meetings, and other types of information that could affect or
would be of interest to our constituents and stakeholders. The
Constituent Update is available on the FSIS web page. Through the web
page, FSIS is able to provide information to a much broader, more
diverse audience. In addition, FSIS offers an email subscription
service which provides automatic and customized access to selected food
safety news and information. This service is available at:
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<a href="http://www.fsis.usda.gov/subscribe">http://www.fsis.usda.gov/subscribe</a>. Options range from recalls to
export information, regulations, directives, and notices. Customers can
add or delete subscriptions themselves and have the option to password
protect their accounts.
USDA Non-Discrimination Statement
In accordance with Federal civil rights law and USDA civil rights
regulations and policies, USDA, its Mission Areas, agencies, staff
offices, employees, and institutions participating in or administering
USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color,
national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender
expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status,
family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance
program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil
rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA
(not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing
deadlines vary by program or incident. Program information may be made
available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities
who require alternative means of communication to obtain program
information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign
Language) should contact the responsible Mission Area, agency, or staff
office; the USDA TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY); or
the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a complainant should
complete Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form,
which can be obtained online at <a href="https://www.usda.gov/forms/electronic-forms">https://www.usda.gov/forms/electronic-forms</a>, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a
letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant's
name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the
alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the
Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date
of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or
letter must be submitted to USDA by:
(1) Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC
20250-9410; or
(2) Fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
(3) Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c9b9bba6aebba8a4e7a0a7bda8a2ac89bcbaada8e7aea6bf"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="5f2f2d30382d3e327136312b3e343a1f2a2c3b3e71383029">[email protected]</span></a>.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. Equal
opportunity practices in accordance with USDA's policies will be
followed in all member appointments to the committee. To ensure that
the recommendations of the committee consider the needs of the diverse
groups served by USDA, membership shall include, to the extent
practicable, individuals with demonstrated ability to represent the
many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds,
abilities, cultures, and beliefs of the American people, including
underserved communities.
Dated: December 13, 2024.
Cikena Reid,
USDA Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. 2024-30484 Filed 12-19-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P
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