[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 167 (Wednesday, August 28, 2002)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 55170]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-21808]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 000331092-0315-02; I.D. 030100F]
RIN 0648-AQ36


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone off Alaska; License 
Limitation Program for the Scallop Fishery; Correction

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule; correcting amendment.

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SUMMARY: This action corrects part of the definition of ``eligible 
applicant'' in a final rule published December 14, 2000, to implement 
the License Limitation Program (LLP) for the Scallop Fishery. This 
action is necessary to correct paragraph (3) of the definition 
``eligible applicant'' because it is inconsistent with regulations 
governing the LLP application requirements and the original intent of 
the LLP.

DATES: Effective August 27, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patsy A. Bearden, 907-586-7008, or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This action corrects paragraph (3) of the 
definition of ``eligible applicant'' for a crab species license. This 
paragraph is designed to implement part of the LLP for the crab 
fisheries in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. A final rule to 
implement the initial crab LLP was published on October 1, 1998 (63 FR 
52642). As published in this rule, paragraph (3) incorrectly included 
the word ``and'' between ``1993'' and ``1994'' in the ``eligible 
applicant'' definition. This error incorrectly made the conditions for 
a certain crab species license more restrictive than intended by the 
North Pacific Fishery Management Council and NMFS and inconsistent with 
crab species license criteria specified at Sec. 679.4(k)(5)(ii)(G). 
NMFS corrected this error on September 12, 2000 (65 FR 54971) (LLP 
Correction).
    Subsequently, NMFS issued a final rule on December 14, 2000 (65 FR 
78110) (Scallop Final Rule) to implement Amendment 4 to the Fishery 
Management Plan for the Scallop Fishery off Alaska, which created an 
LLP for the scallop fishery. The scallop final rule added clarifying 
subheadings to the numbered paragraphs within the definition of 
``eligible applicant'' and in the process, repeated the regulatory text 
of each paragraph. The regulatory text repeated for paragraph (3), 
however, was the original incorrect text published on October 1, 1998, 
for the crab LLP. This mistake likely occurred because, with respect to 
paragraph (3), the scallop final rule relied on the text of the 
proposed rule for the scallop LLP which was published on April 21, 2000 
(65 FR 21385), before the text was corrected nearly five months later 
on September 12, 2000. Therefore, this action re-corrects paragraph (3) 
to read as originally intended and corrected to read on September 12, 
2000.

Classification

    The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA, finds good cause 
to waive the requirement to provide prior notice and opportunity for 
public comment under authority set forth in 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). The 
rationale for this finding is that prior notice and comment are 
unnecessary under the Administrative Procedure Act because the 
correction of this paragraph will have no substantive effect on the 
regulated public. Prior notice and comment would be contrary to the 
public interest because it would prolong the inaccurate paragraph that 
currently exists in the regulations and that had been previously 
corrected in the September 12, 2000, notice.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 679

    Alaska, Fisheries, Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

    Dated: August 19, 2002.
William T. Hogarth,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
    For reasons explained in the preamble, 50 CFR part 679 is corrected 
by making the following correcting amendment:

PART 679--FISHERIES OF THE EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF ALASKA

    1. The authority citation for part 679 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: .S.C. 773 et seq., 1801 et seq.; 3631 et seq.; Title 
II of Division C, Pub. L. 105-277; Sec 3027, Pub. L. 106-31; 113 
Stat. 57; 16 U.S.C. 1540(f); and Sec. 209, Pub. L. 106-554.

    2. In Sec. 679.2, paragraph (3) under the definition for ``eligible 
applicant'' is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 679.2  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Eligible applicant* * *
* * * * *
    (3) For a crab species license, who was an individual who held a 
State of Alaska permit for the Norton Sound king crab summer fishery at 
the time he or she made at least one harvest of red or blue king crab 
in the relevant area during the period specified in 
Sec. 679.4(k)(5)(ii)(G), or a corporation that owned or leased a vessel 
on June 17, 1995, that made at least one harvest of red or blue king 
crab in the relevant area during the period in Sec. 679.4(k)(5)(ii)(G), 
and that was operated by an individual who was an employee or a 
temporary contractor; or
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 02-21808 Filed 8-27-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S