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Chapter 154 of title 28, United States Code, provides special procedures for Federal habeas corpus review of cases brought by prisoners in State custody who are under a sentence of death.  The special procedures are available to States that the Attorney General has certified as having established mechanisms for the appointment, compensation, and payment of reasonable litigation expenses of competent counsel in State postconviction proceedings brought by indigent prisoners in such cases, and as providing standards of competency for the appointment of counsel in these proceedings.  This rule would remove impediments to certification that chapter 154 does not authorize, and enable more prompt decision of States’ requests for certification.  The affected matters include competency and compensation of counsel, timeliness of appointment, the process for reviewing and deciding States’ requests for certification, and the finality of certification decisions.