Notice2024-00095
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Alaska Pacific Halibut: Subsistence
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
January 8, 2024
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 5 (Monday, January 8, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 5 (Monday, January 8, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 907-908]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-00095]
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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; Alaska Pacific Halibut: Subsistence
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 August 11, 2023, during a 60-day comment period (88
FR 54574). This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public
comments.
Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
Title: Alaska Pacific Halibut: Subsistence.
OMB Control Number: 0648-0512.
Form Number(s): None.
Type of Request: Regular submission. Extension of a current
information collection.
Number of Respondents: 4,783.
Average Hours per Response: Application for SHARC Rural Resident:
10 minutes; Application for SHARC Alaska Native Tribal Member: 10
minutes; Application for SHARC Alaska Native Tribe: 30 minutes;
Subsistence Halibut Special Permits Application: 30 minutes; Harvest
logs: 30 minutes; Appeal for permit denial: 4 hours; Gear marking: 30
minutes.
Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,673 hours.
Needs and Uses: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS),
Alaska Regional Office, is requesting extension of a currently approved
information collection for the Alaska Subsistence Halibut Program.
The International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC) promulgates
regulations governing the North Pacific halibut fishery under the
Convention between the United States and Canada for the Preservation of
the Halibut Fishery of the Northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea
(Convention). The IPHC's regulations are subject to approval by the
Secretary of State with the concurrence of the Secretary of Commerce.
The Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut Act; 16 U.S.C.
773c(a)-(b)), provides the Secretary of Commerce with general
responsibility for carrying out the Convention and the Halibut Act,
including the authority to adopt regulations necessary to carry out the
purposes and objectives of the Convention. The Halibut Act, 16 U.S.C.
773c(c), also provides the North Pacific Fishery Management Council
(Council) with authority to develop regulations, including limited
access regulations, that are in addition to, and not in conflict with,
IPHC regulations.
Regulations the Council recommends may be implemented by NMFS only
after approval by the Secretary of Commerce. The Council has exercised
this authority in the development of subsistence halibut fishery
management measures. NMFS has responsibility for managing the
subsistence halibut fishery according to regulations approved by the
Secretary. Regulations governing the subsistence halibut fishery are at
50 CFR 300.2, 300.4, and subpart E, and in the annual management
measures published in the Federal Register pursuant to 50 CFR 300.62.
This information collection is necessary for NMFS to manage the
Alaska Subsistence Halibut Program. Subsistence halibut means halibut
caught by a rural resident or a member of an Alaska Native tribe for
direct personal or family consumption as food, sharing for personal or
family consumption as food, or customary trade. The Alaska Subsistence
Halibut Program is intended to allow eligible persons to practice the
long-term customary and traditional harvest of Pacific halibut for food
in a non-commercial manner. This program provides NMFS the opportunity
to enhance estimates of subsistence removals for stock assessment
purposes.
Before fishing under subsistence halibut regulations, a Subsistence
Halibut Registration Certificate (SHARC) must be obtained. This
information collection contains the forms used by participants in the
subsistence halibut fishery to apply for SHARCs, apply for special use
permits, and submit harvest information for special use permits. This
information collection contains two collections for which no forms are
used: the appeals process for denied permits and marking subsistence
setline fishing gear.
Information collected by the permit applications includes applicant
information and depending on the
[[Page 908]]
permit type may include information on the educational program or a
description of the cultural or ceremonial occasion the permit will be
used for. NMFS uses this information to determine the eligibility of
applicants to receive or renew permits.
The permit coordinators submit the harvest logs for Community
Harvest Permits, Ceremonial Permits, and Educational Permits. Harvest
logs collect identification information and harvest information for the
subsistence fishermen fishing under that permit.
An appeals process is provided for an applicant who receives an
adverse initial administrative determination related to their permit
application.
Subsistence setline gear buoys must be marked with identification
information that consists of the participant's name and address and an
``S'' to indicate subsistence halibut gear. This information is used by
NMFS to link fishing gear to the vessel owner or operator and
facilitate enforcement of regulations.
The time and cost burden to mark buoys has been increased based on
recent comment received for other fisheries off Alaska (OMB Control
Number 0648-0353, Alaska Region Gear Identification Requirements). The
time estimate to mark a buoy has been increased from 15 minutes to 30
minutes and the cost has been increased from $15 to $100 per
respondent.
Minor editorial changes to the forms were made to increase clarity
and consistency with other NMFS Alaska Regional Office forms.
Affected Public: Not-for-profit institutions; Business or other
for-profit organizations.
Frequency: On occasion.
Respondent's Obligation: 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 0648-0512.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Under Secretary for
Economic Affairs, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2024-00095 Filed 1-5-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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