[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 139 (Wednesday, July 21, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43619-43621]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-16606]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Information Collection Renewal Submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for Approval Under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act; OMB Control Number 1018-0092, Applications for Permits/Licenses

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (We) has submitted the 
collection of information described below to OMB for approval under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. A description of the 
information collection requirement is included in this notice. If you 
wish to obtain copies of the information collection requirements, 
related forms, or explanatory material, contact the Service Information 
Collection Clearance Officer at the address or telephone number listed 
below.

DATES: OMB has up to 60 days to approve or disapprove information 
collections but may respond after 30 days. Therefore, to ensure maximum 
consideration, you must submit comments on or before August 20, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments on this information collection renewal 
to the Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior at OMB-OIRA via 
facsimile or e-mail using the following fax number or e-mail address: 
(202) 395-6566 (fax); [email protected] (e-mail). Please provide 
a copy of your comments to the Fish and Wildlife Service's Information 
Collection Clearance Officer, 4401 N. Fairfax Dr., MS 222 ARLSQ, 
Arlington, VA 22207; (703) 358-2269 (fax); or [email protected] 
(e-mail).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request a copy of the information 
collection request, related forms, or explanatory material, contact 
Anissa Craghead at telephone number (703)

[[Page 43620]]

358-2445, or electronically at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: OMB regulations at 5 CFR 1320, which 
implement provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3501 et seq.), require that interested members of the public and 
affected agencies have an opportunity to comment on information 
collection and recordkeeping activities (see 5 CFR 1320.8(d)).
    We have submitted a request to OMB to renew its approval of the 
collection of information included in Form 3-200-1, the general permit 
application form; Form 3-200-2, Designated Port Exception permit 
application form; and Form 3-200-3, Import/Export license application 
form.
    All three of these forms are approved under OMB control number 
1018-0092, which expires on July 31, 2004. We are requesting a three 
year term of approval for this information collection activity. We may 
not conduct or sponsor, and you are not required to respond to, a 
collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB 
control number.
    The Endangered Species Act (ESA)(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) makes it 
unlawful to import or export fish, wildlife, or plants without 
obtaining prior permission as deemed necessary for enforcing the ESA or 
upholding the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species 
(CITES) (see 16 U.S.C. 1538(e)).
    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Form 3-200-1, Permit 
Application Form, is the general application form for all permitted 
activities authorized by the Service. In the interest of making the 
application process simpler for the public, we have previously modified 
the format of the first page of Form 3-200, creating a sequence of 
forms such as Form 3-200-1, 3-200-2, 3-200-3, etc. This enables the 
public to use a specific application form when requesting permission to 
conduct a certain otherwise unauthorized activity. Each specific 
application form contains questions that are specific to the requested 
activity. This makes the application process easier for the public by 
eliminating the need to use one application form, with standard 
questions, to apply for any number of otherwise unauthorized 
activities, many of which are distinctly different from one another and 
could not be adequately or fairly evaluated using standard questions. 
In the above mentioned sequence of forms, the general Permit 
Application Form is designated as Form 3-200-1. Since this form has 
been modified for applications for specific activities as described 
above, it is rarely, if ever used by itself. Therefore, the annual 
responses and the annual burden hours resulting from the use of this 
form are essentially zero. Though this form is rarely, if ever, used by 
itself, we intend to maintain this form in the event that a general 
permit application form is needed at some point in the future for an 
unanticipated activity, one that was not provided for in the 
development of the sequence of forms described above.
    The Service's Form 3-200-2, Designated Port Exception permit 
application form is the application form to request an import or export 
of wildlife or wildlife products at a port other than a port designated 
in 50 CFR 14.12. Title 50, of the Code of Federal Regulations, Sec.  
14.11 (50 CFR 14.11) makes it unlawful to import or export wildlife or 
wildlife products at a port other than a designated port listed in 50 
CFR 14.12, unless you qualify for one of the exceptions that allow you 
to import or export your wildlife or wildlife products at a different 
port. These exceptions allow you to import or export wildlife or 
wildlife products at a nondesignated port for the following reasons: 
(1) For use as scientific specimens; (2) to minimize deterioration or 
loss; and (3) to relieve economic hardship. We recognize the 
limitations that the requirement to use a designated port may place on 
certain individuals, businesses or scientific organizations. The 
issuance of a Designated Port Exception permit can relieve these 
limitations for certain qualified individuals, businesses or scientific 
organizations. Our estimates of the total annual responses and the 
total annual burden hours for Form 3-200-2 contained in our notice 
published in the Federal Register on March 16, 2004 (69 FR 12343), were 
in error. The estimates contained in that notice were based only upon 
our data for new applicants using Form 3-200-2. The estimates contained 
in this notice are based upon our data for new applicants and renewal 
applicants using Form 3-200-2. It will take an average of one hour for 
each respondent to complete the application for a designated port 
exception permit, whether it is a new application or an application to 
renew an existing designated port exception permit.
    The Service's Form 3-200-3, Import/Export license application form, 
is the application form to request an import/export license. Title 50, 
of the Code of Federal Regulations, Sec.  14.11 (50 CFR 14.91) makes it 
unlawful to import or export wildlife or wildlife products for 
commercial purposes without first having obtained an import/export 
license. This authority allows us to ensure that protected species are 
not being used in commercial trade. We use the information obtained 
from Form 3-200-3 as an enforcement tool and management aid in 
monitoring the international wildlife market and detecting trends and 
changes in the commercial trade of wildlife and wildlife products. Our 
estimates of the total annual responses and the total annual burden 
hours for Form 3-200-3 contained in our notice published in the Federal 
Register on March 16, 2004 (69 FR 12343), were in error. The estimates 
contained in that notice were based only upon our data for new 
applicants using Form 3-200-3. The estimates contained in this notice 
are based upon our data for new applicants and renewal applicants using 
Form 3-200-3. It will take an average of one hour for each respondent 
to complete the application for an import/export license, whether it is 
a new application or an application to renew an existing import/export 
license. Import/export licensees are required to maintain records that 
accurately describe each importation or exportation of wildlife or 
wildlife products made under the license, and any additional sale or 
transfer of the wildlife or wildlife products. In addition, licensees 
are required to make these records and the corresponding inventory of 
wildlife or wildlife products available for our inspection at 
reasonable times, subject to applicable limitations of law. However, 
these recordkeeping requirements will not result in additional burden 
to import/export licensees because these records already exist. Form 3-
177, Declaration for Importation or Exportation of Fish or Wildlife, 
which is required for all imports or exports of wildlife or wildlife 
products, provides an accurate description of these imports and 
exports. Form 3-177 is approved under OMB control number 1018-0012, 
which expires December 31, 2006. Normal business practices should 
produce records, such as invoices or bills of sale, that describe 
additional sales or transfers of the wildlife or wildlife products.
    Title: Permit application form.
    Approval Number: 1018-0092.
    Service Form Number: 3-200-1.
    Frequency of Collection: Rarely, if ever used, for reasons 
described above.
    Description of Respondents: Scientific institutions, businesses or 
individuals that request permission to conduct any number of otherwise 
unauthorized activities.
    Total Annual Responses: 0.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: 0.

[[Page 43621]]

    Title: Designated Port Exception permit application form.
    Approval Number: 1018-0092.
    Service Form Number: 3-200-2.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion, whenever permission is 
requested to import wildlife or wildlife products at a nondesignated 
port for use as scientific specimens, to minimize deterioration or 
loss, or to relieve economic hardship.
    Description of Respondents: Scientific institutions, businesses or 
individuals that import or export scientific specimens, wildlife, or 
wildlife products.
    Total Annual Responses: Approximately 1,164.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: The total annual burden is approximately 
1,164 hours. We estimate the reporting burden to average one hour per 
response.
    Title: Import/Export license application form.
    Approval Number: 1018-0092.
    Service Form Number: 3-200-3.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion, whenever permission is 
requested to import or export wildlife or wildlife products for 
commercial purposes.
    Description of Respondents: Businesses or individuals that import 
or export wildlife or wildlife products for commercial purposes.
    Total Annual Responses: Approximately 6,886.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: The total annual burden is approximately 
6,886 hours. We estimate the reporting burden to average one hour per 
response.
    We again invite comments concerning this renewal on: (1) Whether 
the collection of information is useful and necessary for us to do our 
job, (2) the accuracy of our estimate of the burden on the public to 
complete the form; (3) ways to enhance the quality and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection on respondents, including use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology. This information collection is 
part of a system of records covered by the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 
552(a)).
    Our practice is to make comments, including names and home 
addresses of respondents, available for public review during regular 
business hours. Individual respondents may request that we withhold 
their home addresses from the record, which we will honor to the extent 
allowable by law. There may also be limited circumstances in which we 
would withhold a respondent's identity from the rulemaking record, as 
allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name and/or address, 
you must state this clearly at the beginning of your comment. We will 
not consider anonymous comments. We generally make all submissions from 
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, available for public inspection in their entirety.

    Dated: July 15, 2004.
Anissa Craghead,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 04-16606 Filed 7-20-04; 8:45 am]
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