[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 161 (Thursday, August 20, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44633-44634]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-22384]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Information Collection To Be Submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for Approval Under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Information collection; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The collection of information described below has been 
submitted to OMB for approval under the provisions of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995. Copies of specific information collection 
requirements, related forms, and explanatory material may be obtained 
by contacting the Fish and Wildlife Service's (Service) Information 
Collection Clearance Officer at the address or phone number listed 
below.

DATES: Consideration will be given to all comments received on or 
before September 21, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Comments and suggestions on specific requirements should be 
sent to the: Desk Officer for the Interior Department, Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
Washington, DC 20503. Please also send a copy of your comments to: 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service, MS 222 ARLSQ, 1849 C Street, NW, Washington D.C. 20240, 
Telephone 703/358-2287.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey L. Horwath, Division of Fish 
and Wildlife Management Assistance, Arlington, Virginia, 703/358-1718; 
or Wells Stephensen, Office of Marine Mammals Management, Anchorage, 
Alaska, 907/786-3815.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Service has submitted the following 
information collection clearance requirements to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for approval under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, Pub. L. 104-13. The Service may not conduct or sponsor, 
and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information 
unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. A 60-day 
notice inviting public comment on this information collection 
requirement previously was published in the Federal Register on April 
1, 1998 (63 FR 15855). No comments on the previous notice were 
received. Pursuant to this request for approval, comments are invited 
on: (1) whether the collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the function of the agency, including whether the 
information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the 
agency's estimate of burden, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize 
the burden of the collection of information on those who are to 
respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, The OMB has up to 60 days to 
approve or disapprove the information collection but may respond after 
30 days; therefore, public comments should be submitted to the OMB 
within 30 days in order to assure their maximum consideration.
    As authorized by Section 109(i) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act 
of 1972, as amended (Act) (16 U.S.C. 1361-1407), the Service in October 
1988 implemented formal Marking, Tagging, and Reporting Regulations in 
50 CFR 18.23 for Alaskan Natives harvesting polar bear, sea otter, and 
Pacific walrus. Under Section 101(b) of the Act, Alaskan Natives 
residing in Alaska and dwelling on the coast of the North Pacific or 
Arctic Oceans may harvest these species for subsistence or handicraft 
purposes. Section 109(i) of the Act authorizes the Service, acting on 
behalf of the Secretary of the Interior, to prescribe marking, tagging, 
and reporting regulations applicable to this Native subsistence and 
handicraft take.
    On June 28, 1988, the Service published, under authority of Section 
109(i) of the Act, a final rule in the Federal Register that added 
paragraph (f) to regulations at 50 CFR 18.23 that enabled the Service 
to gather data on the Native subsistence and handicraft harvest, and 
biology of polar bear, sea otter, and Pacific walrus in order to 
determine what effect such take is having on these populations. It also 
provided the Service with a means of monitoring the disposition of the 
harvest to ensure that any commercial use of products created from 
these species meets the criteria set forth in Section 101(b) of the 
Act.
    The information proposed to be collected by the Service from 
Alaskan Natives will be used to improve the Service's decision-making 
ability by substantially expanding the quality and quantity of harvest 
and biological data upon which future management decisions can be 
based. It will provide the Service with the ability to make inferences 
about the condition and general health of these populations, and to 
consider the importance and impacts to these population from such 
processes as development activities and habitat degradation. Without 
authority to collect this harvest information, the Service's ability to 
measure the take of polar bear, sea otter and walrus is inadequate. 
Mandatory marking, tagging, and reporting is considered essential to 
improve the quality and quantity of harvest and biological data upon 
which future management decisions will be based. It allows the Service 
to make rational, knowledgeable decisions regarding the Native harvest, 
habitat degradation, and the effects of oil and gas exploration, 
development and production planned or underway for areas within the 
range of these species.
    The Service estimates that the annual burden associated with this 
request will be 482 hours for each year of the 3-year period of OMB 
authorization. This estimated burden was calculated based on previous 
experience suggesting that Alaskan Natives annually will take about 
1,930 polar bears, sea otter, and Pacific walrus for subsistence and 
handicraft purposes, and that 15 minutes will be needed to provide the 
required information for each animal taken.

[[Page 44634]]

    Title: Marine Mammal Marking, Tagging, and Reporting Program.
    Bureau form numbers: R7-50, R7-51, and R7-52.
    Frequency of collection: Occasional.
    Description of respondents: Individual and households.
    Number of respondents: Approximately 1,930 per year.
    Estimated completion time: 15 minutes per response.
    Annual burden hours: 482 hours.
    Current OMB Clearance Number: 0118-0066.
    Approval Expires: August 31, 1998.

    Dated: August 3, 1998.
Hannibal Bolton,
Acting Assistant Director-Fisheries.
[FR Doc. 98-22384 Filed 8-19-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-M