Notice2022-04354
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; North Pacific Observer Program
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
March 2, 2022
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 41 (Wednesday, March 2, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 41 (Wednesday, March 2, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11690-11691]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-04354]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment
Request; North Pacific Observer Program
The Department of Commerce will submit the following information
collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for
review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995, on or after the date of publication of this notice. We invite the
general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and
continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of
our information collection requirements and minimize the public's
reporting burden. Public comments were previously requested via the
Federal Register on October 12, 2021 during a 60-day comment period.
This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.
Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
Title: North Pacific Observer Program.
OMB Control Number: 0648-0318.
Form Number(s): None.
Type of Request: Regular submission (extension of a current
information collection).
Number of Respondents: 875.
Average Hours per Response: Observer Notification: 2 minutes;
Industry Request for Assistance in Improving Observer Data Quality
Issues: 30 minutes; Pre-cruise meeting notification: 5 minutes;
Catcher/processor request to be placed in Partial Observer Coverage: 30
minutes; Request to be placed in the Full Observer Coverage Category: 5
minutes; Request to be placed in or removed from the EM selection pool:
5 minutes; Observer Declare and Deploy System (ODDS) Log a fishing
trip: 15 minutes; Deck Safety Plan--Initial Year: 12 hours; Deck Safety
Plan--Annual Renewal: 1 hour; Deck Sorting Safety Meeting: 15 minutes;
Vessel Monitoring Plan: 48
[[Page 11691]]
hours; Closing EM trips in ODDS: 5 minutes; Submit EM Data to NMFS: 1
hour; Observer Provider Permit Application: 60 hours; Candidate College
Transcripts: 8 hours; Observer Training Registration: 1 hour; Observer
Briefing Registration: 7 minutes; Projected Observer Assignments: 7
minutes; Physical Examination Verification: 5 minutes; Observer
Deployment/Logistics Report: 7 minutes; Observer Debriefing
Registration: 30 minutes; Certificates of Insurance: 12 minutes;
Observer Provider Contracts: 30 minutes; Other Reports: 2 hours; Update
to Provider Information: 5 minutes; Observer Provider Invoices: 30
minutes.
Total Annual Burden Hours: 16,030 hours.
Needs and Uses: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS),
Alaska Regional Office, is requesting renewal of a currently approved
information collection that contains requirements for the North Pacific
Observer Program (Observer Program). A slight revision is requested to
change the title of the collection from ``Alaska Observer Program'' to
``North Pacific Observer Program.''
Section 313 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1862) authorizes
the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council), in consultation
with NMFS, to prepare a fishery research plan for the purpose of
stationing observers and electronic monitoring (EM) systems to collect
data necessary for the conservation, management, and scientific
understanding of the commercial groundfish and Pacific halibut
fisheries of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) and Gulf of
Alaska (GOA) management areas. The Observer Program is implemented by
regulations at subpart E of 50 CFR part 679, which authorize the
deployment of observers and EM to collect information necessary for the
conservation and management of the BSAI and GOA groundfish and halibut
fisheries. Under the Observer Program, observers and EM systems collect
fishery-dependent information used to estimate total catch and
interactions with protected species. Managers use this data to manage
groundfish and prohibited species catch within established limits and
to document and reduce fishery interactions with protected species.
Scientists use this data to assess fish stocks, provide data for
fisheries and ecosystem research and fishing fleet behavior, assess
marine mammal interactions with fishing gear, and characterize fishing
impacts on habitat.
All vessels and processors that participate in federally managed or
parallel groundfish and halibut fisheries off Alaska (except catcher
vessels delivering unsorted codends to a mothership) are subject to
Observer Program requirements and assigned to one of two categories:
(1) The full observer coverage category, where vessels and processors
obtain observer coverage by contracting directly with observer
providers; or (2) the partial coverage category, where NMFS, in
consultation with the Council determines when and where observer
coverage is needed. Some vessels and processors may be in full coverage
for part of the year and partial coverage at other times of the year
depending on the observer coverage requirements for specific fisheries.
Funds for deploying observers on vessels in the partial coverage
category are provided through a system of fees based on the gross ex-
vessel value of retained groundfish and halibut. This observer fee is
assessed on all landings by vessels that are not otherwise in full
coverage. The observer fee is approved under OMB Control Number 0648-
0711.
Information in this collection is submitted by observer provider
companies and owners and operators of vessels and processors subject to
Observer Program requirements. Information submitted by owners and
operators includes information on owner identification, vessels,
observer coverage category, deck safety, the EM system, fishing trips,
and fishing operations. Information submitted by observer provider
companies includes information on ownership and operations; observers
and observer candidates; observer deployment; insurance coverage;
contracts with observers, vessels, and processors; costs for observer
services; and other information including possible observer harassment,
prohibited actions, safety concerns, observer illness or injury
preventing the observer from completing duties, and any information,
allegation, or reports regarding observer conflict of interest or
breach of the standards of behavior. Observers, observer provider
companies, and industry may submit information on improving observer
data quality and resolving observer sampling issues.
More information on the Observer Program is provided on the NMFS
Alaska Region website at <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/fisheries-observers/north-pacific-observer-program">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/fisheries-observers/north-pacific-observer-program</a>.
Affected Public: Individuals or households; Business or other for-
profit organizations.
Frequency: On Occasion; Weekly; Annually.
Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary; Required to Obtain or Retain
Benefits; Mandatory.
Legal Authority: Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act.
This information collection request may be viewed at
<a href="http://www.reginfo.gov">www.reginfo.gov</a>. Follow the instructions to view the Department of
Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.
Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information
collection should be submitted within 30 days of the publication of
this notice on the following website <a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain">www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain</a>.
Find this particular information collection by selecting ``Currently
under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search
function and entering either the title of the collection or the OMB
Control Number 0648-0318.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2022-04354 Filed 3-1-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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