Rule2026-00689
Removing Outdated and Overly-Prescriptive Regulations Governing the Use of Penalty Mail in the Location and Recovery of Missing Children
Primary source
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Published
January 15, 2026
Effective
January 15, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce Department
Abstract
By this rule, the Department of Commerce ("Department") is amending its regulations governing the use of penalty mail to assist in the location and recovery of missing children to remove several sections that are outdated, contain expired reporting requirements, or detail overly prescriptive internal administrative procedures. This action is necessary to streamline the Department's regulations, remove obsolete provisions, and allow for more efficient internal management of this program. The intended effect of this rule is to enhance the clarity of these regulations and provide the Department with greater administrative flexibility, thereby strengthening the Department's ability to implement this important national program.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 10 (Thursday, January 15, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 10 (Thursday, January 15, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 1683-1684]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-00689]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
15 CFR Part 23
[Docket No. 260107-0009]
RIN 0605-AA81
Removing Outdated and Overly-Prescriptive Regulations Governing
the Use of Penalty Mail in the Location and Recovery of Missing
Children
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: By this rule, the Department of Commerce (``Department'') is
amending its regulations governing the use of penalty mail to assist in
the location and recovery of missing children to remove several
sections that are outdated, contain expired reporting requirements, or
detail overly prescriptive internal administrative procedures. This
action is necessary to streamline the Department's regulations, remove
obsolete provisions, and allow for more efficient internal management
of this program. The intended effect of this rule is to enhance the
clarity of these regulations and provide the Department with greater
administrative flexibility, thereby strengthening the Department's
ability to implement this important national program.
DATES: The rule is effective January 15, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel Sweeney, Senior Counsel, Office
of the General Counsel, at (202) 482-1395.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Department is amending the regulations at 15 CFR part 23, ``Use
of Penalty Mail in the Location and Recovery of Missing Children.''
This part governs the Department's participation in a national program
to assist in the location and recovery of missing children through the
use of official government mail, known as penalty mail.
A. Regulatory History
In response to growing public concern over the interstate problem
of missing and exploited children, Congress enacted the Missing
Children's Assistance Act of 1984. This Act, along with 39 U.S.C. 3220,
established a federal role in coordinating assistance for this issue.
Subsequently, the Department published a final rule in the Federal
Register of December 24, 1986 (51 FR 46614), establishing 15 CFR part
23. The purpose of this rule was to create internal management
procedures for the Department to supplement the national effort by
disseminating information about missing children on its penalty mail.
The regulations were designed to be a cost-effective implementation
plan that aligned with guidelines issued by the Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). The rule established a
detailed operational framework, designated the National Center for
Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) as the sole source for
photographic and biographical materials, and set priorities for
distributing these materials on mail sent to the public and federal
employees.
B. Description of Regulations
As relevant, Sec. 23.2, ``Contact person,'' designated a specific
individual within the Department at the time to serve as the central
point of contact for the program. This was connected to the detailed
procedures outlined in Sec. 23.7, ``Notice to Department of Commerce
organizational units of implementation and procedures,'' which
established the specific roles and responsibilities for this Department
Contact Person, as well as for the heads of the Department's various
Operating Units and Administrative Support Centers. This section tasked
the Contact Person with serving as the sole representative for
ordering, supplying, and controlling all missing children materials
from NCMEC. To support these procedural sections, Sec. 23.6,
``Definitions,'' provided definitions for terms such as Operating units
and Organizational units.
Additionally, the rule included provisions related to the initial
implementation of the program that are now obsolete. Section 23.4,
``Cost and percentage estimates,'' provided the Department's initial
first-year cost estimate of $39,530 and a projection that 9% of its
penalty mail would be used for the program once fully implemented.
Finally, Sec. 23.5, ``Report to the Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention,'' required the Department to submit a one-time
consolidated report to OJJDP by June 30, 1987. This report was to
detail the Department's experiences during the initial implementation
period, including costs, problems encountered, and recommendations for
making the program more effective.
Following a review of these regulations, the Department has
determined that certain sections are appropriate for removal for the
reasons discussed below.
II. Discussion
The Department is amending its regulations governing the use of
penalty mail to assist in the location and recovery of missing children
by removing provisions that are obsolete, have fulfilled their purpose
decades ago, or contain overly prescriptive internal administrative
procedures that are not appropriate for codification in the Code of
Federal Regulations. This action is part of the Department's ongoing
effort to review and streamline its regulations to ensure they are
current, effective, and not unduly burdensome. The removal of these
sections will not weaken the Department's underlying authority or
[[Page 1684]]
commitment to participating in this important national program.
Removal of Obsolete Administrative and Procedural Provisions
The Department is removing Sec. Sec. 23.2, 23.6, and 23.7, as
these sections collectively establish a detailed and rigid internal
management framework for the penalty mail program that is now outdated
and administratively inefficient. Specifically, Sec. 23.2 identifies a
specific contact person for the program who is now deceased, while
Sec. 23.7 outlines a highly detailed set of roles and responsibilities
for this contact person, as well as for the heads of various
departmental operating units and administrative support centers.
Section 23.6 provides definitions for internal organizational terms
that are relevant only in the context of the procedures described in
Sec. 23.7.
The Department has determined that codifying such specific internal
administrative assignments and procedures in the Code of Federal
Regulations is impractical and overly prescriptive. This level of
detail hinders the Department's ability to adapt its internal
operations and staffing to meet current needs without undertaking the
formal rulemaking process. Matters of internal agency management, such
as designating points of contact and assigning specific duties to
personnel, are more appropriately handled through internal directives
and standard operating procedures, which can be updated as necessary to
maintain efficiency. Furthermore, the statute authorizing this program,
39 U.S.C. 3220, requires the Department to prescribe regulations for
the use of penalty mail but does not mandate the codification of these
specific internal administrative structures. Removing these sections
streamlines the regulation by focusing on the program's substantive
requirements while allowing the Department the flexibility to manage
its internal implementation effectively.
Removal of Outdated Implementation and Reporting Requirements
The Department is also removing Sec. Sec. 23.4 and 23.5, as these
provisions are purely historical and have no future applicability.
Section 23.4 contains cost and usage percentage estimates that were
projected for the program's first year of implementation in 1986. This
information is now obsolete and serves no practical purpose. Similarly,
Sec. 23.5 required the Department to submit a one-time report to the
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention by June 30, 1987,
detailing its initial experiences with the program. The requirement in
Sec. 23.5 was fulfilled decades ago, and the provision is now legally
moot. Retaining these sections in the Code of Federal Regulations
clutters the regulatory text with irrelevant, historical data and
expired requirements, which can cause confusion for the public. The
authorizing statutes for this part do not require the ongoing
codification of such historical estimates or one-time reporting
mandates. The removal of these sections is a common-sense action to
clean up the regulations and ensure the Code of Federal Regulations
contains only current and relevant rules.
III. Classifications
A. Administrative Procedure Act
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the Department finds good cause to
waive the prior notice and opportunity for public participation
requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act for this final rule.
The Department considers this rule to be uncontroversial, and has
determined that prior notice and opportunity for public participation
is unnecessary, because this rule only removes outdated and/or overly-
prescriptive regulations that are not required by statute; public
participation could not justify the continued inclusion of the such
regulations under the Department's broader deregulatory policies. For
the same reasons, the Department has determined that delaying the
effectiveness of these amendments would be contrary to the public
interest. The outdated regulations being removed by this rule currently
pose a genuine risk of confusion and distraction, and the overly-
prescriptive regulations being removed by this rule currently impose
burdens that restrict the effective use of penalty mail in the location
and recovery of missing children; the removal of these regulations will
immediately improve a critical program and benefit the public at little
to no cost. The Department therefore finds good cause to waive the
public notice and comment period under 553(b)(B) and to waive the 30-
day delay in effectiveness under 553(d).
B. Executive Orders 12866, 14192, 13132
The Office of Management and Budget has determined this rule is not
significant pursuant to Executive Order (``E.O.'') 12866. This rule is
an E.O. 14192 deregulatory action. This rule does not contain policies
having federalism implications as the term is defined in E.O. 13132.
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act
Because a notice of proposed rulemaking and an opportunity for
public participation are not required to be given for this rule by 5
U.S.C. 553(b)(B), the analytical requirements of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) are not applicable. Accordingly,
no regulatory flexibility analysis is required, and none has been
prepared.
D. Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule will not impose additional reporting or recordkeeping
requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.
List of Subjects for 15 CFR Part 23
Administrative practice and procedure, Archives and records,
Infants and children, Organization and functions (Government agencies),
Postal Service, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: January 13, 2026.
Paul Dabbar,
Deputy Secretary of Commerce.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Department amends 15
CFR part 23 as follows:
PART 23--USE OF PENALTY MAIL IN THE LOCATION AND RECOVERY OF
MISSING CHILDREN
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1. The authority citation for part 23 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 39 U.S.C. 3220(a)(2); 5 U.S.C. 301.
Sec. 23.2 [Removed and reserved]
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2. Remove and reserve Sec. 23.2.
Sec. Sec. 23.4 through 23.7 [Removed and reserved]
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3. Remove and reserve Sec. Sec. 23.4 through 23.7.
[FR Doc. 2026-00689 Filed 1-14-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-17-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on January 15, 2026.
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