[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 13 (Friday, January 20, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3254-3255]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-650]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 051202322-5322-01; I.D. 010506C]
RIN 0648-AU11


Fisheries Off West Coast States and in the Western Pacific; 
Western Pacific Pelagic Fisheries; Guam Longline Fishing Prohibited 
Area

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This proposed rule would amend the geographic coordinates that 
define the longline fishing prohibited area in waters of the U.S. 
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) around Guam. This action is necessary to 
correct an error in one of the published coordinates. The intended 
effect of this action is to accurately implement the Guam longline 
closed area.

DATES: Comments on the proposed rule must be received by February 21, 
2006.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this proposed rule, identified by 
I.D. 010506C by any of the following methods:
     E-mail: [email protected]. Include in the subject line 
of the e-mail comment the following document identifier: ``Guam 
longline correction.'' Comments sent via e-mail, including all 
attachments, must not exceed a 10 megabyte file size.
     Federal e-Rulemaking portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 808-973-2941.
     Mail: William L. Robinson, Administrator,NMFS, Pacific 
Islands Region (PIR), 1601 Kapiolani Boulevard, Suite 1110, Honolulu, 
HI 96814.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Harman, Pacific Islands Region, 
NMFS, 808 944-2271.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Portions of the EEZ around Guam are closed 
to pelagic longline fishing to prevent conflicts with users of other 
types of fishing gear. In 1992, NMFS published in the Federal Register 
a final rule that created a 50-nm longline closed area around Guam (57 
FR 45989, October 6, 1992); the regulations that were implemented by 
that final rule contained an error in the geographic coordinates for 
one of the points that define the closed area. NMFS published a 
technical amendment (59 FR 46933, September 13, 1994) that corrected 
those coordinates. NMFS subsequently published a rule that consolidated 
several sections of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) under 50 CFR 
660 (61 FR 34570, July 2, 1996). In that rule, the geographic 
coordinates for the same point (Point ``C'') were inadvertently 
published with an error in 50 CFR 660.26(d). This proposed rule 
corrects the coordinates.

Classification

    NMFS prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and a 
supplemental EIS in 2001 and 2005, respectively. The EIS and supplement 
discuss the potential impacts on the environment as a result of pelagic 
longline fishing, and incorporate sea turtle conservation measures, 
protected species workshops, seabird deterrent measures in the Hawaii-
based longline fishery, nearshore longline area closures around the 
islands of American Samoa, and more comprehensive pelagic fisheries 
monitoring through permit and logbook requirements for troll and 
handline fisheries in the U.S. EEZ around Pacific remote island areas.
    This proposed rule does not contain any new, nor does it revise any 
existing, reporting, recordkeeping, or other compliance requirements. 
This proposed rule does not duplicate or overlap or conflict with other 
Federal rules.
    The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce 
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration that this proposed rule, if adopted, would not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
as follows.

    The objective of the proposed action is an administrative 
correction of an error in the published geographic coordinates for 
one of the points that defines the longline closed area around Guam. 
The legal authority for this action is the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), which 
established authority for regulation of U.S. fisheries in the EEZ to 
prevent overfishing and achieve optimum yield from those fisheries. 
There are currently no vessels participating in the pelagic longline 
fishery around Guam, so there are no vessels that would be directly 
affected by this proposed rule. No small entities are placed in 
competitive disadvantage to larger entities. Because there are no 
current participants in the fishery, there will be no significant 
reductions in profitability for a substantial number of small 
entities in any user groups, and there will be no disproportionate 
impacts between gear types, vessels, or port of landing.
    As a result, an initial regulatory flexibility analysis is not 
required and none has been prepared.
    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 660

    Administrative practice and procedure, American Samoa, Fisheries, 
Fishing, Guam, Hawaiian Natives, Indians, Northern Mariana Islands, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: January 13, 2006.
James W. Balsiger,
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 660 is 
proposed to be correctly amended as follows:

[[Page 3255]]

PART 660--FISHERIES OFF WEST COAST STATES AND IN THE WESTERN 
PACIFIC

    1. The authority citation for part 660 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
    2. In Sec.  660.26, revise the entry for Point C in the table in 
paragraph (d) to read as follows:


Sec.  660.26  Longline fishing prohibited area management.

* * * * *
    (d) * * *

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                     Point                       N. lat.     E. long.
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                                * * * * *
C.............................................  13[deg]4  143[deg]33'33'
                                                      1'               '
 
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[FR Doc. E6-650 Filed 1-19-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S