[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 223 (Thursday, November 19, 1998)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 64182-64187]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-30898]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
15 CFR Part 902
50 CFR Part 600
[Docket No. 970728182-8272-02; I.D. 071697A]
RIN 0648-AG16
Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Financial Disclosure
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: NMFS issues this final rule to revise the rules of conduct and
financial disclosure regulations applicable to Regional Fishery
Management Council (Council) nominees, appointees, and voting members.
The revisions would implement a provision of the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) that was
amended by the Sustainable Fisheries Act (SFA) in 1996. The new
provision prohibits Council members from voting on matters that would
have a significant and predictable effect on a financial interest
disclosed in accordance with existing regulations.
DATES: Effective February 17, 1999.
ADDRESSES: Comments regarding burden-hour estimates for the collection-
of-information requirements contained in this final rule should be sent
to George H. Darcy, F/SF3, National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315
East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910; and the Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget
(OMB), Washington, D.C. 20503 (Attention: NOAA Desk Officer).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Margaret Frailey Hayes, Assistant
General Counsel for Fisheries, NOAA Office of General Counsel, 301-713-
2231.
[[Page 64183]]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On October 11, 1996, the President signed into law the SFA, which
made numerous amendments to the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et
seq.). Among those amendments was a provision that prohibits Council
members from voting on matters that would have a significant and
predictable effect on a financial interest disclosed in accordance with
existing regulations. On August 7, 1997, NMFS published a proposed rule
at 62 FR 42474 to implement the financial disclosure provisions of the
SFA; comments were requested through September 8, 1997. Additional
background information was included in the preamble of that proposed
rule, and is not repeated here.
Comments on the August 7, 1997, Proposed Rule and Responses
1. Comment. The Office of Government Ethics (OGE) questioned NMFS'
legal authority for issuing the rule of conduct proposed for
Sec. 600.225(b)(8).
Response. NMFS has authority under the Magnuson-Stevens Act to
prescribe uniform standards for the Councils' practices and procedures
(section 302(f)(6)) and to promulgate rules to carry out the provisions
of the Act (section 305(d)). The rule of conduct is really a paraphrase
of 18 U.S.C. 208; Sec. 600.225(b)(8)(i) has been revised to match the
statutory language more closely. Section 600.225(b)(8)(ii) continues
the disqualification of all Council members from participating in
matters ``primarily of individual concern.''
2. Comment. OGE stated that conduct rules for Council members
should be issued as supplemental regulations to the standards of
conduct to which all Federal employees are subject.
Response. That suggestion is inconsistent with an opinion of the
Office of Legal Counsel, Department of Justice, dated December 9, 1993,
which held that Council members are not Federal employees subject to
the Executive Order on ethics or to the Government-wide standards of
conduct. (Note, however, that Council members are considered special
Government employees for purposes of the Federal conflict-of-interest
statute, 18 U.S.C. 208.)
3. Comment. OGE found the proposed rule unclear as to who must file
a financial disclosure report, i.e., whether all members and nominees
must file, or only those with interests in harvesting, processing, or
marketing activities. It also found the proposed rule overly broad in
requiring affected individuals to disclose interests in an industry
related to harvesting, processing, or marketing activities.
Response. NMFS has long interpreted section 302(j)(2) to require
affected individuals to disclose financial interests in activities
related to harvesting, processing, or marketing. If NMFS had read the
financial-disclosure provision as narrowly as OGE suggests, many
Council members such as fisheries association officers would have been
subject to criminal liability under 18 U.S.C. 208. They would have been
unable even to participate in Council deliberations on issues affecting
their employment or other fiduciary interests. NMFS believes that
Congress intended in the 1986 amendments to the Magnuson Act to allow
persons with financial interests in activities related to harvesting,
processing, or marketing to continue serving on Councils on the same
footing as persons with more direct interests. The ``price'' of this
participation was the disclosure of those interests, so that the public
could be informed of possible biases by members affiliated with certain
sectors of the fishing industry. In the 1996 amendments to the
Magnuson-Stevens Act, Congress indicated no dissatisfaction with the
agency's practice of requiring disclosure of financial interests in
related activities, and did not amend section 302(j)(2).
4. Comment. Another commenter pointed out a perceived inconsistency
in the proposed rule between the broad scope of the requirement for
disclosing financial interests, and the narrow scope of financial
interests that would disqualify a member from voting. The commenter
would prefer that the disqualifying financial interests be broadened to
match the disclosed interests, so that representatives of fishing
industry groups would be subject to the recusal provisions of the SFA.
Response. The legislative history of the 1996 amendments to the
Magnuson-Stevens Act indicates that Congress was concerned about
members whose votes on Council actions might result in direct gain or
loss to themselves or their companies. The SFA disqualifies members
from voting on decisions that would have a ``significant and
predictable effect'' on their financial interests. That phrase was
defined as ``a close causal link between the Council decision and an
expected and substantially disproportionate benefit to the financial
interest of the affected individual relative to the financial interests
of other participants in the same gear type or sector of the fishery.''
In developing the proposed rule, and again in considering the final
rule, NMFS focused on the comparative aspect of the defined term. The
disqualifying effect is not that the Council action will have a
significant impact on the member's financial interest; the action must
have a disproportionate impact as compared with that of other
participants in the fishery sector. Therefore, the criteria for recusal
are limited to persons whose financial interests are directly linked to
harvesting, processing, or marketing activities.
5. Comment. OGE suggested that NMFS require all affected
individuals to file a confidential disclosure of all their financial
interests, in addition to the financial disclosure report required by
the Magnuson-Stevens Act to be filed by affected individuals who have
financial interests in harvesting, processing, or marketing activities.
Response. As noted above, Council members are not Federal employees
for purposes of the OGE regulations. There is no explicit authority in
the Magnuson-Stevens Act for requiring confidential financial
disclosure, but NMFS expects that affected individuals with financial
interests that are not required to be disclosed would seek advice from
Departmental counsel regarding their participation in matters before
their Councils.
6. Comment. OGE stated that members' financial disclosure forms
should be available for inspection at Council meetings.
Response. NMFS agrees. This requirement appears in the current
rule, and in the final rule at Sec. 600.235(b)(3).
7. Comment. OGE found the criterion of a 10-percent share of an
industry to be huge, eviscerating any potential restriction on industry
participants. Besides lowering the percentage, OGE suggested a standard
that would incorporate a dollar amount for the gross value of the
individual's landings of fish.
On the other hand, the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council
said that 10 percent is too low for small fisheries. The Council
proposed a tiered approach for the Western Pacific, with a standard of
50 percent for fisheries smaller than 50 vessels; 25 percent for
fisheries between 51 and 100 vessels; 15 percent for fisheries between
101 and 200 vessels; and 10 percent for fisheries larger than 200.
Response. NMFS does not believe a monetary standard, whether value
of landings, value of fish processed, or value of fish marketed, is
workable. OGE objected to the NMFS proposal but provided no alternative
proportion, nor
[[Page 64184]]
did it provide any quantitative data or qualitative information to
support its position.
While NMFS has no quantitative data on which to base the selection
of 10 percent as the disqualifying industry share, qualitative
information available from existing disclosure forms and other sources
indicates that this value would accomplish the Congressional intent of
disqualifying from voting only those current Council members whose
financial interests would be disproportionately affected by Council
actions, in comparison with the financial interests of other
participants in the fishery sector.
NMFS does not agree with the suggested tiered approach for the
Western Pacific, because a Council member owning nearly half the
vessels in a small fishery would be able to vote on a matter that could
disproportionately benefit his or her financial interest. NMFS received
no other suggestions for a tiered approach, although the proposed rule
specifically invited comments on this issue.
8. Comment. OGE questioned the need for a provision for voluntary
recusal, at Sec. 600.235(d), and its limitation to only those financial
interests that have been disclosed.
Response. Any Council member may decline to vote on a matter before
the Council for any reason. NMFS included a provision to remind members
of this.
9. Comment. OGE was troubled by the statutory allowance of
participation in deliberations by members who are recused, because
active participation may have as much effect on the outcome as a vote.
OGE recommended that Sec. 600.235(e) be amended to clarify that only
those who are recused under section 302(j) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act
are allowed to participate, while members with other types of financial
interests may be precluded from participating under 18 U.S.C. 208.
Response. This provision has been revised in accordance with OGE's
recommendation with respect to particular matters of individual
concern.
10. Comment. Concerning Sec. 600.235(f)(4), OGE asked what would
happen to a Council decision if the designated official determined that
a Council member could vote, another Council member requested a review
of that determination, and the NOAA General Counsel found that the
member should not have voted.
Response. The provision has been clarified, at Sec. 600.235(f)(5),
to indicate, in accordance with section 302(j)(7)(E) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act, that the eventual ruling by the NOAA General Counsel will
not disturb the Council decision.
11. Comment. The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council asked
why a Council member should have the opportunity to request a review of
a determination, if there will be no effect on the Council decision.
Response. Section 302(j)(7) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act provides
for the request for a review, but states that the eventual ruling is
not cause for invalidation or reconsideration of the Council's decision
by the Secretary. The Council itself might decide to vote on the issue
again at a later meeting, if review of the determination reversed the
initial ruling. The General Counsel's ruling would also have
precedential value for subsequent determinations.
12. Comment. OGE asked whether one Council member can question
another member's action, if the designated official has not made a
determination.
Response. There is legislative history indicating that only the
member whose action is in question may request a determination by the
designated official. Another member, however, is free to bring the
issue to the attention of the designated official, who would then
consider making a determination on his/her own initiative under
Sec. 600.235(f)(2).
Changes From the August 7, 1997, Proposed Rule
Section 600.225(b)(8)(i) has been revised to track more closely the
provisions of 18 U.S.C. 208. Unless exempted, a Council member may not
participate personally and substantially in a particular matter in
which the individual, family members, or business associates have a
financial interest. This rule of conduct does not apply to financial
interests required to be disclosed under Sec. 600.235(b), nor to
members who are exempt under 18 U.S.C. 208(b) (1) or (2). Section
600.225(b)(8)(ii) continues the disqualification of all Council members
from participating in matters ``primarily of individual concern.''
A definition of ``Council decision'' has been added to clarify that
the recusal requirements do not apply to actions by Council committees.
A committee vote is not binding on the Council and thus cannot have a
``significant and predictable effect'' on a member's financial
interest. Under Sec. 600.235(e), however, an affected individual who
will be recused from voting on a Council decision must notify the
Council of the recusal before participating in committee deliberations.
A definition of ``financial interest in harvesting, processing, or
marketing'' has been added at Sec. 600.235(a), to apply only to the
disclosure and recusal provisions. The phrase ``ownership interests''
includes leases of fishing vessels and individual fishing quotas.
Section 600.235(b)(1) has been revised to use the term ``financial
interest in harvesting, processing, or marketing,'' which allows
removal of some text that is now covered in the definition.
A sentence in the current regulations, which was inadvertently
omitted from the proposed rule, has been added to Sec. 600.235(b)(3) to
require that financial interest forms be made available at Council
meetings and hearings.
Two sentences have been added at the end of Sec. 600.235(c)(2) to
specify that financial interests of affected individuals and other
participants will be judged based on the most recent fishing year for
which information is available. For IFQ fisheries, however, the
judgment will be based on the percentage of IFQs assigned to the
affected individual.
Section 600.235(e) has been revised to clarify that only those
recused under this section may participate in Council deliberations;
members with financial interests in a particular matter, other than
harvesting, marketing, or processing, may not participate if precluded
by 18 U.S.C. 208 and Sec. 600.225(b)(8)(i).
Section 600.235(f)(4) directs Council Chairs not to count the vote
of a member who attempts to vote despite a recusal determination.
Section 600.235(f)(5) clarifies that the NOAA General Counsel's
ruling on review of a recusal determination is not cause for
invalidation or reconsideration of the Council's decision by the
Secretary.
Section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) requires agencies
to inventory and display a current control number assigned by the
Director, OMB, for each agency information collection. Section 902.1(b)
of 15 CFR identifies the location of NOAA regulations for which OMB
control numbers have been issued. This final rule amends Sec. 902.1(b)
by adding the control number for this collection of information.
Classification
This rule has been determined to be not significant for purposes of
E.O. 12866.
The Assistant General Counsel for Legislation and Regulation of the
Department of Commerce certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of
the Small Business Administration that this rule would not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial
[[Page 64185]]
number of small entities. No comments were received regarding this
certification. As a result, a regulatory flexibility analysis was not
prepared.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is required
to respond to, nor shall a person be subject to a penalty for failure
to comply with, a collection of information subject to the requirements
of the PRA unless that collection of information displays a currently
valid OMB control number.
This rule contains a collection-of-information requirement subject
to the PRA. This collection-of-information requirement has been
approved by OMB under control number 0648-0192. Public reporting burden
is estimated to average 35 minutes per response to fill out and submit
the Financial Interest Form, including the time for reviewing
instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the
collection of information. Send comments regarding burden estimates, or
any other aspect of this data collection, including suggestions for
reducing the burden, to NMFS and OMB (see ADDRESSES).
List of Subjects
15 CFR Part 902
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
50 CFR Part 600
Administrative practice and procedure, Confidential business
information, Fisheries, Fishing, Fishing vessels, Foreign relations,
Intergovernmental relations, Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Statistics.
Dated: November 13, 1998.
Andrew A. Rosenberg,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 15 CFR chapter IX and 50
CFR chapter VI are amended as follows:
15 CFR Chapter IX
PART 902--NOAA INFORMATION COLLECTION REQUIREMENTS UNDER THE
PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT: OMB CONTROL NUMBERS
1. The authority citation for part 902 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.
2. In Sec. 902.1, paragraph (b), the table is amended by adding in
numerical order the following entry to read as follows:
Sec. 902.1 OMB control numbers assigned pursuant to the Paperwork
Reduction Act.
* * * * *
(b) * * *
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Current OMB control number
CFR part or section where the information (All numbers begin with 0648-
collection requirement is located )
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * *
50 CFR
* * * * *
600.235................................. -0192
* * * * *
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * *
50 CFR Chapter VI
PART 600--MAGNUSON-STEVENS ACT PROVISIONS
3. The authority citation for part 600 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 561 and 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
4. In Sec. 600.225, the last sentence in paragraph (b)(4) is
removed, and paragraph (b)(8) is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 600.225 Rules of conduct.
* * * * *
(b) * * *
(8)(i) Except as provided in Sec. 600.235(h) or in 18 U.S.C. 208,
no Council member may participate personally and substantially as a
member through decision, approval, disapproval, recommendation, the
rendering of advice, investigation, or otherwise, in a particular
matter in which the member, the member's spouse, minor child, general
partner, organization in which the member is serving as officer,
director, trustee, general partner, or employee, or any person or
organization with whom the member is negotiating or has any arrangement
concerning prospective employment, has a financial interest. (Note that
this financial interest is broader than the one defined in
Sec. 600.235(a).)
(ii) No Council member may participate personally and substantially
as a member through decision, approval, disapproval, recommendation,
the rendering of advice, investigation, or otherwise, in a particular
matter primarily of individual concern, such as a contract, in which he
or she has a financial interest, even if the interest has been
disclosed in accordance with Sec. 600.235.
5. Section 600.235 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 600.235 Financial disclosure.
(a) Definitions. For purposes of Sec. 600.235:
Affected individual means an individual who is--
(1) Nominated by the Governor of a state or appointed by the
Secretary of Commerce to serve as a voting member of a Council in
accordance with section 302(b)(2) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act; or
(2) A representative of an Indian tribe appointed to the Pacific
Council by the Secretary of Commerce under section 302(b)(5) of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act who is not subject to disclosure and recusal
requirements under the laws of an Indian tribal government.
Council decision means approval of a fishery management plan (FMP)
or FMP amendment (including any proposed regulations); request for
amendment to regulations implementing an FMP; finding that an emergency
exists involving any fishery (including recommendations for responding
to the emergency); and comments to the Secretary on FMPs or amendments
developed by the Secretary. It does not include a vote by a committee
of a Council.
Designated official means an attorney designated by the NOAA
General Counsel.
Financial interest in harvesting, processing, or marketing (1)
includes:
(i) Stock, equity, or other ownership interests in, or employment
with, any company, business, fishing vessel, or other entity engaging
in any harvesting, processing, or marketing activity in any fishery
under the jurisdiction of the Council concerned;
(ii) Stock, equity, or other ownership interests in, or employment
with, any company or other entity that provides equipment or other
services essential to harvesting, processing, or marketing activities
in any fishery under the jurisdiction of the Council concerned, such as
a chandler or a dock operation.
(iii) Employment with, or service as an officer, director, or
trustee of, an association whose members include companies, vessels, or
other entities engaged in harvesting, processing, or marketing
activities, or companies or other entities providing services essential
to harvesting, processing, or marketing activities in any fishery under
the jurisdiction of the Council concerned; and
(iv) Employment with an entity providing consulting, legal, or
representational services to any entity engaging in, or providing
equipment or services essential to, harvesting, processing, or
marketing activities in any fishery under the jurisdiction of the
[[Page 64186]]
Council concerned, or to any association whose members include entities
engaged in the activities described in paragraphs (1) (i) and (ii) of
this definition;
(2) Does not include stock, equity, or other ownership interests
in, or employment with, an entity engaging in advocacy on environmental
issues or in scientific fisheries research in any fishery under the
jurisdiction of the Council concerned, unless it is covered under
paragraph (1) of this definition. A financial interest in such entities
is covered by 18 U.S.C. 208, the Federal conflict-of-interest statute.
(b) Reporting. (1) The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires the disclosure
by each affected individual of any financial interest in harvesting,
processing, or marketing activity, and of any such financial interest
of the affected individual's spouse, minor child, partner, or any
organization (other than the Council) in which that individual is
serving as an officer, director, trustee, partner, or employee. The
information required to be reported must be disclosed on NOAA Form 88-
195, ``Statement of Financial Interests for Use by Voting Members and
Nominees of Regional Fishery Management Councils'' (Financial Interest
Form), or such other form as the Secretary may prescribe.
(2) The Financial Interest Form must be filed by each nominee for
Secretarial appointment with the Assistant Administrator by April 15
or, if nominated after March 15, 1 month after nomination by the
Governor. A seated voting member appointed by the Secretary must file a
Financial Interest Form with the Executive Director of the appropriate
Council within 45 days of taking office; must file an update of his or
her statement with the Executive Director of the appropriate Council
within 30 days of the time any such financial interest is acquired or
substantially changed by the affected individual or the affected
individual's spouse, minor child, partner, or any organization (other
than the Council) in which that individual is serving as an officer,
director, trustee, partner, or employee; and must update his or her
form annually and file that update with the Executive Director of the
appropriate Council by February 1 of each year.
(3) The Executive Director must, in a timely manner, provide copies
of the financial disclosure forms and all updates to the NMFS Regional
Administrator for the geographic area concerned, the Regional Attorney
who advises the Council, the Department of Commerce Assistant General
Counsel for Administration, and the NMFS Office of Sustainable
Fisheries. The completed financial interest forms will be kept on file
in the office of the NMFS Regional Administrator for the geographic
area concerned and at the Council offices, and will be made available
for public inspection at such offices during normal office hours. In
addition, the forms will be made available at each Council meeting or
hearing.
(4) Councils must retain the disclosure form for each affected
individual for at least 5 years after the expiration of that
individual's last term.
(c) Restrictions on voting. (1) No affected individual may vote on
any Council decision that would have a significant and predictable
effect on a financial interest disclosed in his/her report filed under
paragraph (b) of this section.
(2) As used in this section, a Council decision will be considered
to have a ``significant and predictable effect on a financial
interest'' if there is a close causal link between the decision and an
expected and substantially disproportionate benefit to the financial
interest in harvesting, processing, or marketing of any affected
individual or the affected individual's spouse, minor child, partner,
or any organization (other than the Council) in which that individual
is serving as an officer, director, trustee, partner, or employee,
relative to the financial interests of other participants in the same
gear type or sector of the fishery. The relative financial interests of
the affected individual and other participants will be determined with
reference to the most recent fishing year for which information is
available. However, for fisheries in which IFQs are assigned, the
percentage of IFQs assigned to the affected individual will be
dispositive.
(3) ``Expected and substantially disproportionate benefit'' means a
quantifiable positive or negative impact with regard to a matter likely
to affect a fishery or sector of the fishery in which the affected
individual has a significant interest, as indicated by:
(i) A greater than 10-percent interest in the total harvest of the
fishery or sector of the fishery in question;
(ii) A greater than 10-percent interest in the marketing or
processing of the total harvest of the fishery or sector of the fishery
in question; or
(iii) Full or partial ownership of more than 10 percent of the
vessels using the same gear type within the fishery or sector of the
fishery in question.
(d) Voluntary recusal. An affected individual who believes that a
Council decision would have a significant and predictable effect on
that individual's financial interest disclosed under paragraph (b) of
this section may, at any time before a vote is taken, announce to the
Council an intent not to vote on the decision.
(e) Participation in deliberations. Notwithstanding paragraph (c)
of this section, an affected individual who is recused from voting
under this section may participate in Council and committee
deliberations relating to the decision, after notifying the Council of
the voting recusal and identifying the financial interest that would be
affected.
(f) Requests for determination. (1) At the request of an affected
individual, the designated official shall determine for the record
whether a Council decision would have a significant and predictable
effect on that individual's financial interest. The determination will
be based upon a review of the information contained in the individual's
financial disclosure form and any other reliable and probative
information provided in writing. All information considered will be
made part of the public record for the decision. The affected
individual may request a determination by notifying the designated
official--
(i) Within a reasonable time before the Council meeting at which
the Council decision will be made; or
(ii) During a Council meeting before a Council vote on the
decision.
(2) The designated official may initiate a determination on the
basis of--
(i) His or her knowledge of the fishery and the financial interests
disclosed by an affected individual; or
(ii) Written and signed information received within a reasonable
time before a Council meeting or, if the issue could not have been
anticipated before the meeting, during a Council meeting before a
Council vote on the decision.
(3) At the beginning of each Council meeting, or during a Council
meeting at any time reliable and probative information is received, the
designated official shall announce the receipt of information relevant
to a determination concerning recusal, the nature of that information,
and the identity of the submitter of such information.
(4) If the designated official determines that the affected
individual may not vote, the individual may state for the record how he
or she would have voted. A Council Chair may not allow such an
individual to cast a vote.
(5) A reversal of a determination under paragraph (g) of this
section may not be treated as cause for invalidation or reconsideration
by the Secretary of a Council's decision.
[[Page 64187]]
(g) Review of determinations. (1) Any Council member may file a
written request to the NOAA General Counsel for review of the
designated official's determination. A request for review must be
received within 10 days of the determination.
(2) A request must include a full statement in support of the
review, including a concise statement as to why the Council's decision
did or did not have a significantly disproportionate benefit to the
financial interest of the affected individual relative to the financial
interests of other participants in the same gear type or sector of the
fishery, and why the designated official's determination should be
reversed.
(3) If the request for review is from a Council member other than
the affected individual whose vote is at issue, the requester must
provide a copy of the request to the affected individual at the same
time it is submitted to the NOAA General Counsel. The affected
individual may submit a response to the NOAA General Counsel within 10
days from the date of his/her receipt of the request for review.
(4) The NOAA General Counsel must complete the review and issue a
decision within 30 days from the date of receipt of the request for
review. The NOAA General Counsel will limit the review to the record
before the designated official at the time of the determination, the
request, and any response.
(h) Exemption from other statutes. The provisions of 18 U.S.C. 208
regarding conflicts of interest do not apply to an affected individual
who is in compliance with the requirements of this section for filing a
financial disclosure report.
(i) Violations and penalties. It is unlawful for an affected
individual to knowingly and willfully fail to disclose, or to falsely
disclose, any financial interest as required by this section, or to
knowingly vote on a Council decision in violation of this section. In
addition to the penalties applicable under Sec. 600.735, a violation of
this provision may result in removal of the affected individual from
Council membership.
[FR Doc. 98-30898 Filed 11-18-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P