[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 219 (Monday, November 15, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65627-65628]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-25267]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


Information Collection Renewal to be Submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for Approval Under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act; OMB Control Number 1018-0103, Conservation Order for Control of 
Mid-Continent Light Geese, 50 CFR 21.60

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

[[Page 65628]]


ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service (We) will submit the collection 
of information described below to OMB for approval under the provisions 
of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: You must submit comments on or before January 14, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments on this information collection 
requirement to Hope Grey, Service Information Collection Clearance 
Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service, MS 222-ARLSQ, 4401 North Fairfax 
Drive, Arlington, VA 22203 (mail); [email protected] (e-mail); or 
(703) 358-2269 (fax).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request a copy of the information 
collection requirements or explanatory material, contact Hope Grey at 
the addresses above or by telephone at (703) 358-2482.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office of Management and Budget 
regulations at 5 CFR 1320, which implement provisions of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-13), 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 plan to submit a request to OMB to renew approval of 
the collection of information for the Conservation Order for Control of 
Mid-Continent Light Geese. The current OMB Control Number for this 
information collection is 1018-0103, which expires March 31, 2005. We 
are requesting a 3-year term of approval for this information 
collection activity. Federal agencies may not conduct or sponsor and a 
person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless 
it displays a currently valid OMB control number.
    The number of light geese (lesser snow and Ross' geese) in the mid-
continent region has nearly quadrupled during the past several decades 
due to a decline in adult mortality and an increase in winter survival. 
Lesser snow and Ross' geese are referred to as light geese because of 
their light coloration as opposed to dark geese such as white-fronted 
or Canada Geese. Because of their feeding activity, light geese have 
become seriously injurious to their habitat as well as to habitat 
important to other migratory birds. This poses a serious threat to the 
short- and long-term health and status of some migratory bird 
populations. We believe that the number of light geese in the mid-
continent region has exceeded long-term sustainable levels for their 
arctic and subarctic breeding habitats and that the populations must be 
reduced. 50 CFR 21 provides authority for the management of 
overabundant mid-continent light geese.
    Light geese in the mid-continent region are separated into two 
different populations for management purposes. Lesser snow and Ross' 
geese that primarily migrate through North Dakota, South Dakota, 
Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, and Missouri, and winter in Arkansas, 
Louisiana, Mississippi, and eastern, central, and southern Texas and 
other Gulf States are referred to as the mid-continent population of 
light geese. Lesser snow and Ross' geese that primarily migrate through 
Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado and winter in New Mexico, northwestern 
Texas, and Chihuahua, Mexico, are referred to as Western Central Flyway 
population of light geese.
    States that participate in the light geese conservation order must 
inform and brief all participants on the requirements in 50 CFR 21.60 
and conservation order conditions that apply to the implementation of 
light geese control measures. Participating States must collect 
information on the number of birds taken during control efforts, the 
methods by which they were taken, and the date on which they were 
taken. We use this information to administer the conservation order 
and, particularly, to monitor the effectiveness of control strategies 
and to protect migratory birds. Each participating State must submit an 
annual report by August 30 of each year summarizing the activities it 
conducted. We contacted some participating States to estimate the 
burden hours for this information collection.
    Title of Collection: Conservation Order for Control of Mid-
Continent Light Geese, 50 CFR 21.60.
    OMB Control Number: 1018-0103.
    Form Number: None.
    Frequency of Collection: Annually.
    Description of Respondents: States participating in the 
conservation order.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,776.
    Total Annual Responses: 24.
    We invite comments concerning this submission on (1) whether or not 
the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance 
of our migratory bird management functions, including whether or not 
the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of our 
estimate of the burden of the collection of information; (3) ways to 
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents. The information collections in this program 
are part of a system of record 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 administrative 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: November 1, 2004.
Hope Grey,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 04-25267 Filed 11-12-04; 8:45 am]
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