60-day FRN

89446

Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 238 / Monday, December 12, 2016 / Notices

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration

National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:

The Department of
Commerce, as part of its continuing

SUMMARY:

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18:59 Dec 09, 2016

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Written comments must be
submitted on or before February 10,
2017.

DATES:

Proposed Information Collection;
Comment Request; West Coast Region
Vessel Monitoring System and Pre-Trip
Reporting Requirements

Direct all written comments
to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental
Paperwork Clearance Officer,
Department of Commerce, Room 6616,
14th and Constitution Avenue NW.,
Washington, DC 20230 (or via the
Internet at JJessup@doc.gov).

ADDRESSES:

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information or

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copies of the information collection
instrument and instructions should be
directed to Shannon Penna, National
Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), West
Coast Region (WCR) Long Beach Office,
501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long
Beach, CA 90802, (562) 980–4238 or
Shannon.Penna@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
This request is for revision and
extension of a current information
collection. The title will change from
West Coast Region Longline Monitoring
System and Pre-Trip Reporting
Requirements to West Coast Region
Vessel Monitoring System and Pre-trip
Reporting Requirements. In addition,
this collection will merge OMB Control

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EN12DE16.028

effort to reduce paperwork and
respondent burden, invites the general
public and other Federal agencies to
comment on proposed and/or
continuing information collections, as
required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995.

[FR Doc. 2016–29748 Filed 12–9–16; 8:45 am]

Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 238 / Monday, December 12, 2016 / Notices
Number 0648–0690 (Vessel Monitoring
System Requirements in the Eastern
Pacific Highly Migratory Species
Fisheries) into this information
collection.
This collection applies to owners and
operators of U.S. commercial fishing
vessels that fish in the West Coast
exclusive economic zone and the
eastern Pacific Ocean waters of the
Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission (IATTC) Convention Area
for highly migratory species (HMS) as
defined by the Fishery Management
Plan (FMP) for United States (U.S.) West
Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory
Species, as well as a broader group of
tuna and tuna-like species covered by
the IATTC. These vessel owners and
operators are required to submit
information about their intended and
actual fishing activities. These
submissions would allow the National
Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and
the Pacific Fisheries Management
Council to monitor the fisheries.
Submissions include pre-trip reporting
requirements and vessel monitoring
systems (VMS). Pre-trip reporting
requirements are essential for effectively
and efficiently assigning available
observer coverage to selected HMS
vessels. Data collected by observers are
critical to evaluate that the objectives of
the HMS FMP are being achieved and
for evaluating the impacts of potential
changes in fishery management. VMS
units facilitate enforcement of
management measures associated with
HMS fisheries, provide timely
information on associated fleet activities
and enable confirmation of reported
vessel fishing activity locations, which
help validate logbook record accuracy.
II. Method of Collection
VMS installation/activation and on/
off reports are submitted electronically,
VMS position reports are submitted via
automated electronic transmission and
pre-trip notifications are made by
telephone.

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III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0648–0498.
Form Number(s): None.
Type of Review: Regular submission
(revision and extension of a current
information collection).
Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
34.
Estimated Time per Response: Vessel
monitoring system (VMS) activation
reports, 15 minutes; pre-trip reports, 5
minutes; maintenance and repair, 60
minutes.

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Estimated Total Annual Burden
Hours: 45.
Estimated Total Annual Cost to
Public: $22,187 (reporting costs for
vessels 24 meters or more is covered by
vessel owner/operators).
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are requested on: (a)
Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
agency, including whether the
information shall have practical utility;
(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate
of the burden (including hours and cost)
of the proposed collection of
information; (c) ways to enhance the
quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (d)
ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on
respondents, including through the use
of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
Comments submitted in response to
this notice will be summarized and/or
included in the request for OMB
approval of this information collection;
they also will become a matter of public
record.
Dated: December 7, 2016.
Sarah Brabson,
NOAA PRA Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2016–29688 Filed 12–9–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P

COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING
COMMISSION
Order Excluding Farm Credit System
Institutions From the Commodity
Exchange Act’s Definition of
‘‘Commodity Trading Advisor’’
Commodity Futures Trading
Commission.
ACTION: Notice and order.
AGENCY:

Pursuant to the authority
under section 1a(12)(B)(vii) of the
Commodity Exchange Act (‘‘CEA’’ or
‘‘Act’’), the Commodity Futures Trading
Commission (‘‘Commission’’) is issuing
an order (‘‘Order’’) excluding
institutions in the Farm Credit System
(‘‘FCS’’) from the definition of
‘‘commodity trading advisor’’ (‘‘CTA’’).
The Commission finds that FCS
institutions are primarily engaged in
lending to U.S. farmers, ranchers, and
agricultural cooperatives, and that any
commodity trading advice provided by
FCS institutions to their clientele is
solely incidental to that lending
conduct, as required by CEA section
1a(12)(C). Therefore, the Commission
concludes that FCS institutions are not

89447

entities within the intent of the statutory
CTA definition, and that the issuance of
this Order excluding them from the
definition is appropriate.
DATES: Effective date: December 12,
2016.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Amanda Olear, Associate Director,
Division of Swap Dealer and
Intermediary Oversight, (202) 418–5283,
aolear@cftc.gov, or Elizabeth Groover,
Special Counsel, Division of Swap
Dealer and Intermediary Oversight,
(202) 418–5985, egroover@cftc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On October 28, 2016, the Farm Credit
Council (‘‘Farm Credit’’ or ‘‘Council’’)
petitioned the Commission for an order
excluding FCS institutions from the
CTA definition in the CEA. The Council
is the national trade association for the
FCS, a federally-chartered network of
borrower-owned lending institutions
comprised of cooperatives and related
service organizations.1 Farm Credit’s
petition states that the FCS institutions
should be excluded from the CTA
definition because (1) the FCS
institutions are not within the intent of
the CTA definition because they are in
the business of banking and lending,
and (2) certain services provided by
them, which could constitute
commodity trading advice, are solely
incidental to their primary lending
business.2
FCS institutions are important lenders
to U.S. farmers, ranchers and
agricultural cooperatives. The FCS
institutions include the FCS Banks
(CoBank, AgriBank, AgFirst Farm Credit
Bank, and Farm Credit Bank of Texas),
as well as Agricultural Credit
Associations, Federal Land Credit
Associations, and Production Credit
Associations (together, the
‘‘Associations’’).3 The FCS Banks make

SUMMARY:

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1 Petition for Order to Exclude Farm Credit
System Institutions from the Commodity Trading
Advisor Definition in Accordance with Section
1a(12)(B)(vii) of the Commodity Exchange Act,
Farm Credit Council (Oct. 28, 2016) (‘‘Petition’’), at
1.
2 Id. at 3.
3 An Agricultural Credit Association (ACA) can
make short-, intermediate-, and long-term loans, as
each ACA contains two subsidiaries: A Federal
Land Credit Association (FLCA) that can only make
long-term real estate loans, and a Production Credit
Association (PCA) that makes short- and
intermediate-term loans. Although legally
separated, the ACA and its FLCA and PCA
subsidiaries operate an integrated lending business
with loans made through the subsidiary possessing
the appropriate authority. The ACA, PCA, and
FLCA are jointly and severally liable on the full
amount of the indebtedness to the relevant FCS
Bank under the FCS Bank’s General Financing

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