[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 108 (Wednesday, June 4, 2008)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 31769]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 08-1317]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 070717341-8549-02]
RIN 0648-AV41


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Recreational 
Management Measures for the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea bass 
Fisheries; Fishing Year 2008

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

ACTION: Final rule; correction.

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SUMMARY: On May 23, 2008, NMFS published a final rule implementing the 
recreational management measures for the 2008 summer flounder, scup, 
and black sea bass fisheries. The final rule contains several errors 
throughout the preamble. This document corrects those errors.

DATES: Effective June 23, 2008.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Ruccio, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, (978) 281-9104.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The final rule for the 2008 recreational 
management measures for summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass was 
published in the Federal Register on May 23, 2008 (73 FR 29990). There 
were several errors throughout the preamble text.

Corrections

    In final rule FR Doc. E8-11601, on page 29991 of the May 23, 2008, 
issue of the Federal Register, make the following corrections:
    1. On page 29991, in column 3, under the Black Sea Bass Management 
Measures caption, the first sentence is corrected to read as follows:
    ``Table 3 contains the coastwide Federal measures for black sea 
bass in effect for 2007 and codified.''
    2. On page 29992, in column 1, under the Comments and Responses 
caption, the second sentence is corrected to read as follows:
    ``One individual submitted comments regarding several species such 
as mackerel, red hake, and marlin which are outside the scope of this 
rulemaking.''
    3. On page 29992, in column 1, under the Comment 1 caption, the 
first sentence is corrected to read as follows:
    ``Some of the comments received allege that state-by-state 
conservation equivalency violates National Standard 2 of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act, which requires conservation and management actions to be 
based upon the best available scientific information.''
    4. On page 29992, in column 2, in the 27th line, the sentence is 
corrected to read as follows:
    ``In addition, NMFS encouraged states to take a more conservative 
approach to both improve conservation equivalency's performance and to 
offset uncertainty in the assessment of potential measures 
effectiveness.''
    5. On page 29992, in column 3, the first full paragraph should 
read:
    ``The use of MRFSS data was challenged, along with other aspects of 
the agency's actions, in 2006 in the case United Boatmen, et al., v. 
Gutierrez\3\, the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary). The plaintiffs 
alleged that MRFSS was a gravely flawed tool and unsuitable for use in 
setting the summer flounder TAL. NMFS responded that MRFSS, while 
admittedly having limitations, has been upheld under National Standard 
2 as the best available scientific information. The defendants' brief 
cited three separate cases wherein MRFSS had been upheld as the best 
available scientific information relative to National Standard 2. In 
this case, the judge found in favor of the Secretary on all points, 
adding further support to the adequacy of MRFSS data for use in 
fisheries management as the best available science.''
    6. On page 29993, in column 3, the last full paragraph is corrected 
to read as follows:
    ``For these reasons, NMFS believes that implementing conservation 
equivalency, as recommended by the Council and Commission for 2008, 
does not violate National Standard 4 or National Standard 2 of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act.''
    7. On page 29994, in column 1, in the first full paragraph, the 
forth sentence is corrected to read as follows:
    ``National Standard 6 directs FMPs to have a suitable buffer, in 
favor of conservation, to deal with uncertainty, which may also be 
stated as a conservative approach.''
    8. On page 29995, in column 2, in the 13th line the sentence is 
corrected to read as follows:
    ``As such, it is a more conservative approach than applied in 
previous years, and presents a higher likelihood that the 2008 
recreational harvest limit will not be exceeded on either a state-by-
state basis or coastwide, and that the subsequent mortality objectives 
will be met for the 2008 fishing year.''
    9. On page 29996, in column 1, in the first full paragraph, the 
first sentence is corrected to read as follows:
    ``NMFS acknowledges that state-by-state conservation equivalency 
has not performed ideally, since the summer flounder recreational 
harvest limit has been exceeded in 5 of the 7 years where it has been 
utilized.''
    10. On page 29997, in column 1, the first full paragraph is 
corrected to read as follows:
    ``A summary of the comments received and NMFS' responses thereto is 
contained in the preamble of this rule. None of those comments 
addressed specific information contained in the IRFA economic analysis. 
One comment received stated that NMFS had not conducted an economic 
analysis for the 2008 recreational management measures and some 
commenters generally indicated that the management measures implemented 
by this rule may have an economic impact. See response to Comment 7 in 
the Comment and Responses section for more information. No changes have 
been made from the proposed rule as a result of the comments received 
by NMFS.''
    11. On page 29998, in column 2,in the 13th line from the bottom, 
the sentence is corrected to read as follows:
    ``Conservation equivalency is generally expected to mitigate the 
economic impact in states with lower required percent reductions for 
2008 compared to the coastwide reduction of 33.2 percent.''

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: May 29, 2008.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 08-1317 Filed 5-30-08; 2:51 pm]
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