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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 109 / Wednesday, June 9, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
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pandemic for former members, especially those with disabilities incurred while in service, since many of these former members would otherwise not qualify for a private commercial plan of insurance due to such disabilities.
Administrative Procedure Act The Secretary of Veterans Affairs finds that there is good cause to dispense with the opportunity for prior comment with respect to this rule and to make the rule effective upon publication. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C.
553bB, the opportunity for advance public comment is not required with respect to a rulemaking when an agency for good cause finds and incorporates the finding and a brief statement of reasons therefor in the rules issued that notice and public procedure thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.
VA previously published an interim final rule on June 11, 2020 which expires on June 11, 2021. In this interim final rulemaking, we are extending the prior rulemaking by an additional six months. If the interim final rulemaking is not published prior to the expiration date, then there will be a gap in the application deadline extensions for those individuals applying for VGLI.
The need for this interim final rule was unanticipated because the data pertaining to COVID19 was continuously evolving and VA had to evaluate data from an actuarial perspective to ensure that another extension of the application deadlines would not put upward pressure on VGLI
premiums or otherwise negatively impact the financial stability of the program. The Secretary finds that it is impracticable to delay this regulation for the purpose of soliciting public comment because former members cannot receive VGLI coverage if they do not satisfy the application requirements within the deadlines established by 38
CFR 9.2c. The VGLI statute does not authorize retroactive adjudication of applications for VGLI coverage, and former members who wish to apply for VGLI would be significantly harmed if these extensions lapse, since many former members choose to purchase VGLI because these former members are unable to qualify for private commercial plans of insurance coverage due to disabilities incurred while in service.
Section 553d also requires a 30-day delayed effective date following publication of a rule, except for 1 a substantive rule which grants or recognizes an exemption or relieves a restriction; 2 interpretative rules and
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statements of policy; or 3 as otherwise provided by the agency for good cause found and published with the rule.
Pursuant to section 553d1, the Secretary finds that this interim final rule should be effective immediately upon publication because this is a substantive rule which relieves restrictions, i.e., extends deadlines for VGLI applications. Also, pursuant to section 553d3, the Secretary finds that there is good cause to make the rule effective upon publication because of the impracticability of delaying implementation of the regulatory amendment, as discussed above.
For the foregoing reasons, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs is issuing this rule as an interim final rule with an immediate effective date. The Secretary of Veterans Affairs will consider and address comments that are received within 30 days of the date this interim final rule is published in the Federal Register.

regulatory flexibility analysis requirements of 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604 do not apply.

Executive Orders 12866 and 13563
Executive Orders 12866 and 13563
direct agencies to assess the costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, when regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits including potential economic, environmental, public health and safety effects, and other advantages;
distributive impacts; and equity.
Executive Order 13563 Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and benefits, reducing costs, harmonizing rules, and promoting flexibility. The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has determined that this rule is not a significant regulatory action under Executive Order 12866. The Regulatory Impact Analysis associated with this rulemaking can be found as a supporting document at www.regulations.gov.

Paperwork Reduction Act This interim final rule contains no provisions constituting a collection of information under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 44 U.S.C. 3501
3521.

Regulatory Flexibility Act The Secretary hereby certifies that this interim final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities as they are defined in the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601612. The provisions contained in this interim final rulemaking are applicable to individual Veterans, and applications for VGLI, as submitted by such individuals, are specifically managed and processed within VA and through Prudential Insurance Company of America, which is not considered to be a small entity. Therefore, pursuant to 5
U.S.C. 605b, the initial and final
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Unfunded Mandates The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 requires, at 2 U.S.C. 1532, that agencies prepare an assessment of anticipated costs and benefits before issuing any rule that may result in the expenditure by State, local, and tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 million or more adjusted annually for inflation in any one year. This interim final rule will have no such effect on State, local, and tribal governments, or on the private sector.
Congressional Review Act Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs designated this rule as not a major rule, as defined by 5 U.S.C. 8042.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number and title for the program affected by this document is 64.103, Life Insurance for Veterans.
List of Subjects in 38 CFR Part 9
Life insurance, Military personnel, Veterans.
Signing Authority Denis McDonough, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, approved this document on May 24, 2021, and authorized the undersigned to sign and submit the document to the Office of the Federal Register for publication electronically as an official document of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Jeffrey M. Martin, Assistant Director, Office of Regulation Policy & Management, Office of the Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs.

For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Department of Veterans Affairs amends 38 CFR part 9 as set forth below:
PART 9SERVICEMEMBERS GROUP
LIFE INSURANCE AND VETERANS
GROUP LIFE INSURANCE
1. The authority citation for part 9
continues to read as follows:

Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501, 19651980A, unless otherwise noted.

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