[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 94 (Thursday, May 15, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26291-26292]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-12159]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[I.D. 041703A]


Notice of Regional Fisheries Management Meetings

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

ACTION: Notice of public meetings

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: NMFS is scheduling a series of eight regional constituent 
meetings beginning in June and running through September to gather 
public input on ways to improve the effectiveness of NMFS and its 
management of living marine resources. The regional meetings will be a 
collaborative effort involving all major marine fisheries interests. 
The primary objective is to assemble and provide a comprehensive 
analysis of the diverse opinions, attitudes, and perspectives of marine 
resource stakeholders as they relate to broad themes in fisheries 
management. The secondary objective is to identify performance 
measures.

DATES: The meetings will be held in eight regional locations. See 
Meeting

[[Page 26292]]

Times, Dates, and Agenda for specific dates and times. To submit 
comments, see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

ADDRESSES: For locations of the meetings see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 
Information on the meetings will be updated periodically on NMFS' web 
page: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/constit_sessions_2003.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia Lawson, NMFS, telephone: 301-
713-2239; fax: 301-713-1940; email: [email protected]. To submit 
e-Comments (see E-Comments Pilot Program).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Meeting Times, Dates, and Agenda

    1. Western Pacific Meeting: June 10, 2003, 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. and June 
11, 2003, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. The meeting location is the Ala Moana Hotel, 
410 Atkinson Drive Honolulu, HI 96814, telephone: 808-955-4911.
    2. North Pacific Meeting: June 13, 2003, 2 p.m. - 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. 
- 8 p.m. The meeting location is the Kodiak Inn-Best Western, 236 
Rezanof Drive West, Kodiak, AK 99615, telephone: 907-486-5712.
    3. Caribbean Meeting: June 20, 2003, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. - 
8 p.m. The meeting location is the Wyndham Sugar Bay Resort and Spa, 
6500 Estate Smith Bay, St. Thomas, USVI, telephone: 340-777-7100.
    4. Gulf of Mexico Meeting: July 15, 2003, 2 p.m. - 5 p.m. and 6 
p.m. - 8 p.m. The meeting location is The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf 
Club, 851 Gulf Shore Blvd. North, Naples, FL 34102, telephone: 800-237-
7600.
    5. Mid-Atlantic Meeting: August 5, 2003, 1 p.m.- 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. 
-8 p.m. The meeting location is the Wyndham Baltimore - Inner Harbor, 
101 West Fayette Street, Baltimore, MD 21201, telephone: 410-752-1100.
    6. Pacific Meeting: September 8, 2003, 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. and 
September 9, 2003, 8 a.m. - 11 p.m. The meeting location is the Double 
Tree Guest Suites Seattle Southcenter, 16500 Southcenter Parkway, 
Seattle, WA 98188, telephone: 206-575-8220.
    7. New England Meeting: September 16, 2003, 2 p.m. - 5 p.m. and 6 
p.m. - 8 p.m. The meeting location is the Holiday Inn Express, 110 
Middle Street, Fairhaven, MA 02719, telephone: 508-997-1281.
    8. South Atlantic Meeting: September 18, 2003, 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 
p.m. and 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. The meeting location is the Pawley's 
Plantation, 70 Tanglewood Drive, Pawley's Island, SC 29585, telephone: 
800-367-9959.

E-Comments Pilot Program

    NMFS encourages the public to participate in submitting comments by 
the e-comment program. To this end, NMFS is accepting comments by 
submitted mail, fax, and the Internet as part of its e-Comments pilot 
project. The e-Comments pilot project is designed to introduce 
electronic commenting to its constituents. You can respond to the 
questions on the e-comment page through NMFS' web page http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/constit_sessions_2003.html. The public is 
encouraged to use the new web site to compose and submit comments on 
the regional constituent meetings. In submitting comments, please 
include your name, address and reason for each comment. NMFS also 
invites public comments on the e-Comments program that allows you to 
submit your comments on line. Please submit your comments by only one 
means. Comments received from the public will become part of the public 
record and will be posted on the e-Comments web site http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/emeetings.
    Areas NMFS is soliciting public comments on:
    (1) Issue(s) - What are the key issue(s) facing fisheries 
management, nationally or regionally?
    (2) Responsibility - Who should have management or conservation 
responsibility? (If commenting, indicate issue comment relates to.)
    (3) Process - How could the Federal process of managing fisheries 
be improved?
    (4) Performance Measure - How could one measure whether the 
solution is being properly implemented and working? (If 
commenting,indicate issue performance measure relates to.)
    (5) Contact - Briefly describe the best way for NMFS to keep the 
public informed about changes within the agency and fisheries 
management.

Special Accommodations

    These meetings are physically accessible to people with 
disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other 
auxiliary aids should be directed to Patricia Lawson (see FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT) 2 weeks before each meeting.

    Dated: May 12, 2003.
William T. Hogarth,
Assistant Administrator, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 03-12159 Filed 5-14-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S