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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 184 / Monday, September 25, 2017 / Notices
taken relative to the population size of
the affected species or stocks.
Unmitigable Adverse Impact Analysis
and Determination
There are no relevant subsistence uses
of the affected marine mammal stocks or
species implicated by this action.
Therefore, NMFS has determined that
the total taking of affected species or
stocks would not have an unmitigable
adverse impact on the availability of
such species or stocks for taking for
subsistence purposes.
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
Section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered
Species Act of 1973 (ESA: 16 U.S.C.
1531 et seq.) requires that each Federal
agency insure that any action it
authorizes, funds, or carries out is not
likely to jeopardize the continued
existence of any endangered or
threatened species or result in the
destruction or adverse modification of
designated critical habitat. To ensure
ESA compliance for the issuance of
IHAs, NMFS consults internally, in this
case with the ESA Interagency
Cooperation Division, whenever we
propose to authorize take for
endangered or threatened species.
We (the NMFS OPR Permits and
Conservation Division) are authorizing
the incidental take of four species of
marine mammals which are listed under
the ESA: The sei, fin, blue and sperm
whale. Under Section 7 of the ESA, we
initiated consultation with the NMFS
OPR Interagency Cooperation Division
for the issuance of this IHA. In
September, 2017, the NMFS OPR
Interagency Cooperation Division issued
a Biological Opinion with an incidental
take statement, which concluded that
the issuance of the IHA was not likely
to jeopardize the continued existence of
sei, fin, blue and sperm whales. The
Biological Opinion also concluded that
the issuance of the IHA would not
destroy or adversely modify designated
critical habitat for these species.

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Authorization
NMFS has issued an IHA to the
University of Hawaii for the potential
harassment of small numbers of 24
marine mammal species incidental to a
marine geophysical survey in the central
Pacific Ocean, provided the previously
mentioned mitigation, monitoring and
reporting requirements are incorporated.
Dated: September 19, 2017.
Donna S. Wieting,
Director, Office of Protected Resources,
National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017–20362 Filed 9–22–17; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
Proposed Information Collection;
Comment Request; Alaska Pacific
Halibut Fisheries: Charter Permits
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:

The Department of
Commerce, as part of its continuing
effort to reduce paperwork and
respondent burden, invites the general
public and other Federal agencies to
take this opportunity to comment on
proposed and/or continuing information
collections, as required by the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.
DATES: Written comments must be
submitted on or before November 24,
2017.
ADDRESSES: 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 pracomments@doc.gov).
An electronic copy of the most recent
supporting statement for this
information collection is available from
http://www.cio.noaa.gov/itmanagement/
pdfs/0592ext14.pdf.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
copies of the information collection
instrument and instructions should be
directed to Kurt Iverson (907) 586–7228
or kurt.iverson@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY:

I. Abstract
This request is for an extension of a
currently approved information
collection.
The Alaska Pacific Halibut Charter
Program established Federal Charter
Halibut Permits (CHPs) for operators in
the charter halibut fishery in IPHC
regulatory Areas 2C (Southeast Alaska)
and 3A (Central Gulf of Alaska). Since
February 1, 2011, all vessel operators in
Areas 2C and 3A with charter anglers
onboard catching and retaining Pacific
halibut must have a valid CHP onboard
during every charter vessel fishing trip.
CHPs must be endorsed with the
appropriate regulatory area and number
of anglers.
The National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) implemented this program
based on recommendations by the North
Pacific Fishery Management Council to
meet allocation objectives in the charter

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halibut fishery. This program provides
stability in the fishery by limiting the
number of charter vessels that may
participate in Areas 2C and 3A and
decreasing the overall number of
available CHPs over time. The program
goals are to increase the value of the
resource, limit boats to qualified active
participants in the guided sport halibut
sector, and enhance economic stability
in rural coastal communities.
II. Method of Collection
Methods of submittal include mail
and facsimile transmission of paper
forms. Fillable pdfs are available on the
NMFS Alaska Region Web page and
may be downloaded, completed, and
printed out prior to submission.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0648–0592.
Form Number: None.
Type of Review: Regular submission
(extension of a currently approved
collection).
Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
68.
Estimated Time per Response: 2 hours
for Application for Transfer of Charter
Halibut Permit; 0.5 hours for
Application for Military Charter Permit;
2 hours for Application for Transfer
between IFQ and Guided Angler Fish
(GAF); and 4 hours for Appeals if an
Application for Transfer between IFQ
and GAF is denied by NMFS.
Estimated Total Annual Burden
Hours and Equivalent Labor Costs to the
Public: 98 hours and $3,626 per year
($37 per hour for preparing and
submitting applications and $125/hr for
preparing an appeal).
Estimated Total Annual Cost to
Public: $196 in recordkeeping/reporting
costs for photocopying, obtaining a
notarized signature, faxing, or mailing
applications.
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are invited 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.

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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 184 / Monday, September 25, 2017 / Notices

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: September 20, 2017.
Sarah Brabson,
NOAA PRA Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2017–20398 Filed 9–22–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
RIN 0648–XF539

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of
Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish
Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico;
Amendment 44
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request
for comments.
AGENCY:

The Gulf of Mexico (Gulf)
Fishery Management Council (Council)
has submitted Amendment 44 to the
Fishery Management Plan for the Reef
Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico
(FMP) for review, approval, and
implementation by NMFS. Amendment
44 would revise minimum stock size
thresholds (MSST) for seven stocks in
the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) reef fish
fishery management unit. The MSST
would be revised for the gag, red
grouper, red snapper, vermilion
snapper, gray triggerfish, greater
amberjack, and hogfish stocks. The need
for Amendment 44 is to provide a
sufficient buffer between spawning
stock biomass at maximum sustainable
yield (BMSY) and MSST to reduce the
likelihood that stock status changes
frequently between overfished and not
overfished as a result of scientific
uncertainty or naturalfluctuations in
biomass levels.
DATES: Written comments on
Amendment 44 must be received by
November 24, 2017.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
on Amendment 44 identified by
‘‘NOAA–NMFS–2017–0101’’ by either
of the following methods:
• Electronic Submission: Submit all
electronic public comments via the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to
www.regulations.gov/
#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-20170101, click the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ icon,

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SUMMARY:

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complete the required fields, and enter
or attach your comments.
• Mail: Submit written comments to
Peter Hood, NMFS Southeast Regional
Office, 263 13th Avenue South, St.
Petersburg, FL 33701.
Instructions: Comments sent by any
other method, to any other address or
individual, or received after the end of
the comment period, may not be
considered by NMFS. All comments
received are a part of the public record
and will generally be posted for public
viewing on www.regulations.gov
without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.),
confidential business information, or
otherwise sensitive information
submitted voluntarily by the sender will
be publicly accessible. NMFS will
accept anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/
A’’ in the required fields if you wish to
remain anonymous).
Electronic copies of Amendment 44
may be obtained from
www.regulations.gov or the Southeast
Regional Office Web site at http://
sero.nmfs.noaa.gov. Amendment 44
includes an environmental assessment
and a fishery impact statement.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Peter Hood, NMFS Southeast Regional
Office, telephone: 727–824–5305, or
email: peter.hood@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act
(Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires each
regional fishery management council to
submit any FMP or amendment to
NMFS for review and approval, partial
approval, or disapproval. The
Magnuson-Stevens Act also requires
that NMFS, upon receiving a plan or
amendment, publish an announcement
in the Federal Register notifying the
public that the FMP or amendment is
available for review and comment.
Amendment 44 to the FMP was
prepared by the Council and, if
approved, would be incorporated into
the management of Gulf reef fish
through the FMP.
Background
In 1999, the Council submitted the
Generic Sustainable Fisheries Act
Amendment to comply with status
determination criteria (SDC)
requirements of the Sustainable
Fisheries Act of 1996. NMFS approved
most of the fishing mortality threshold
(MFMT) criteria, but disapproved all of
the definitions for maximum sustainable
yield (MSY), optimum yield (OY), and
MSST. The Council subsequently began
establishing these reference points and
SDC on a species-specific basis as stock

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assessments were later conducted, and
is currently preparing a plan
amendment to address all of the
unassessed reef fish stocks. Amendment
44 focuses on those assessed stocks with
MSSTs, which are gag, red grouper, red
snapper, vermilion snapper, gray
triggerfish, greater amberjack, and
hogfish. Red snapper, gray triggerfish,
and greater amberjack are currently
considered overfished and are under
rebuilding plans. The other 4 stocks are
not considered overfished (gag, red
grouper, vermilion snapper, and
hogfish).
For most of the assessed federally
managed reef fish stocks in the Gulf
with defined MSSTs, the overfished
status, when applied, has been
evaluated using the formula:
(1¥M) * BMSY (M is the natural
mortality rate and B is a measure of
stock biomass). For some stocks that
have a very low natural mortality rate,
the formula (1¥M) * BMSY results in an
MSST that is very close to the BMSY. For
example, red snapper is a moderately
long-lived fish that has a natural
mortality rate of about 0.1. The above
formula results in an MSST of 90
percent of BMSY. In such situations it
can be difficult to determine if a stock
is actually less than MSST due to the
imprecision and accuracy of the data
used in stock assessments. In addition,
natural fluctuations in stock biomass
levels around the BMSY level may
temporarily reduce the stock biomass to
be less than MSST. Setting a greater
buffer between BMSY and MSST can
reduce the risk of mistakenly declaring
a stock overfished.
In Amendment 44, the Council
evaluated MSSTs ranging from
0.85*BMSY (or proxy) to 0.50*BMSY (or
proxy), and selected 0.50*BMSY (or
proxy) as its preferred alternative. This
is consistent with the National Standard
1 guidelines and reduces the likelihood
of a stock being declared overfished as
a result of scientific uncertainty or
natural fluctuations in biomass levels.
Setting the MSST at this level could
result in a very restrictive rebuilding
plan if the biomass level of a stock
drops below the MSST and NMFS
declares that the stock is overfished.
However, the Council determined that
the requirements for overfishing limits,
annual catch limits, and accountability
measures, reduce the probability that
sustained overfishing would occur and
cause a stock to fall below the MSST.
The MSST proposed in Amendment
44 is used for at least some stocks
managed by three of the other regional
fishery management councils (New
England, Mid-Atlantic, and North
Pacific). If this MSST definition is

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