On October 21, 1998, the President
signed into law the American Fisheries Act (AFA) which imposes
major structural changes on the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands
Management Area (BSAI) pollock fishery. The purpose of the AFA was
to tighten U.S. ownership standards that had been exploited under
the Antireflagging Act, and to provide the BSAI pollock fleet the
opportunity to conduct their fishery in a more rational manner
while protecting non-AFA participants in the other fisheries. The
AFA also affected the management of other groundfish, crab, and
scallop fisheries off Alaska. Much of the monitoring and
enforcement burden is placed
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.