[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 74 (Thursday, April 17, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Page 18950]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-9488]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 041403B]


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Commerce has submitted to 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following 
proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).
    Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
    Title: Limits on Application of Take Prohibitions.
    Form Number(s): None.
    OMB Approval Number: 0648-0399.
    Type of Request: Regular submission.
    Burden Hours: 4,235.
    Number of Respondents: 318.
    Average Hours Per Response: 20 hours for a road maintenance 
agreement; 5 hours for a diversion screening limit project; 30 hours 
for an urban development package; 15 hours for a tribal plan or joint 
state/tribal plan; 10 hours for a fishery harvest or hatchery plan; 5 
hours for a report of aided, salvaged, or disposed of salmonids; 2 
hours for a research permit; 5 hours for an artificial propagation 
plan; and 5 hours for an annual report.
    Needs and Uses: Section 4(d) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 
(ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et. seq.) requires the National Marine Fisheries 
Service (NMFS) to adopt such regulations as it ``deems necessary and 
advisable to provide for the conservation of'' threatened species. 
Those regulations may include any or all of the prohibitions provided 
in section 9(a)(1) of the ESA, which specifically prohibits ``take'' of 
any endangered species (``take'' includes actions that harass, harm, 
pursue, kill, or capture). The first salmonid species listed by NMFS as 
threatened were protected by virtually blanket application of the 
section 9 take prohibitions. There are now 20 separate Evolutionarily 
Significant Units (ESUs) of west coast salmonids listed as threatened, 
covering a large percentage of the land base in California, Oregon, 
Washington and Idaho. NMFS is obligated to enact necessary and 
advisable protective regulations.
    NMFS makes section 9 prohibitions generally applicable to many of 
those threatened ESUs, but also seeks to respond to requests from 
states and others to both provide more guidance on how to protect 
threatened salmonids and avoid take, and to limit the application of 
take prohibitions wherever warranted. The regulations describe programs 
or circumstances that contribute to the conservation of, or are being 
conducted in a way that adequately limits impacts on, listed salmonids. 
The regulations do not apply the take prohibitions to those programs 
and circumstances. Certain of these limits on the take prohibitions 
entail submission of a plan to NMFS and/or annual or occasional reports 
by entities wishing to take advantage of these limits, or continue 
within them.
    Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal Government; business or 
other for-profit organizations, and farms.
    Frequency: On occasion, annually.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    OMB Desk Officer: David Rostker, (202) 395-3897.
    Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained 
by calling or writing Diana Hynek, Departmental Paperwork Clearance 
Officer, (202) 482-0266, Department of Commerce, Room 6625, 14th and 
Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at 
[email protected]).
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice 
to David Rostker, OMB Desk Officer, Room 10202, New Executive Office 
Building, Washington, DC 20503.

    Dated: April 10, 2003.
Gwellnar Banks,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 03-9488 Filed 4-16-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S