[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 245 (Wednesday, December 23, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68276-68278]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-30552]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R9-LE-2009-N280; 99011-1224-0000-9B]


Information Collection Sent to the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for Approval; OMB Control Number 1018-0012; Declaration 
for Importation or Exportation of Fish or Wildlife

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY:  We (Fish and Wildlife Service) have sent an Information 
Collection Request (ICR) to OMB for review and approval. We summarize 
the ICR below and describe the nature of the collection and the 
estimated burden and cost. This ICR is scheduled to expire on January 
31, 2010. We 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. However, under OMB regulations, we may 
continue to conduct or sponsor this information collection while it is 
pending at OMB.

DATES: You must send comments on or before January 22, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments and suggestions on this information 
collection to the Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior at 
OMB-OIRA at (202) 395-5806 (fax) or [email protected] (e-mail). 
Please provide a copy of your comments to Hope Grey, Information 
Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife

[[Page 68277]]

Service, MS 222-ARLSQ, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203 
(mail) or [email protected] (e-mail).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information 
about this ICR, contact Hope Grey by mail or e-mail (see ADDRESSES) or 
by telephone at (703) 358-2482.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    OMB Control Number: 1018-0012.
    Title: Declaration for Importation or Exportation of Fish or 
Wildlife, 50 CFR 14.61 - 14.64.
    Service Form Number(s): 3-177 and 3-177a.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Affected Public: Businesses or individuals that import or export 
fish, wildlife, or wildlife products; scientific institutions that 
import or export fish or wildlife scientific specimens; and government 
agencies that import or export fish or wildlife specimens for various 
purposes.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion.

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                                   Number of annual    Number of annual   Completion time per    Annual burden
            Activity                  respondents          responses            response             hours
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3-177 - Hard Copy Submission....               4,200              37,000  15 minutes.........              9,251
3-177 -Electronic Submission....              16,500             145,000  10 minutes.........             24,166
    Totals......................              20,700             182,000  ...................             33,417
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    Abstract: The Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) makes 
it unlawful to import or export fish, wildlife, or plants without 
filing a declaration or report deemed necessary for enforcing the Act 
or upholding the Convention on International Trade in Endangered 
Species (CITES) (see 16 U.S.C. 1538(e)). With a few exceptions, 
businesses, individuals, or government agencies importing into or 
exporting from the United States any fish, wildlife, or wildlife 
product must complete and submit to the Service an FWS Form 3-177 
(Declaration for Importation or Exportation of Fish or Wildlife). This 
form as well as FWS Form 3-177a (Continuation Sheet) and instructions 
for completion are available for electronic submission at https://edecs.fws.gov. These forms are also available in hard copy at http://www.fws.gov/forms/ .
    The information that we collect is unique to each wildlife shipment 
and enables us to:
     Accurately inspect the contents of the shipment;
     Enforce any regulations that pertain to the fish, 
wildlife, or wildlife products contained in the shipment; and
     Maintain records of the importation and exportation of 
these commodities.
    Businesses or individuals must file FWS Forms 3-177 and 3-177a with 
us at the time and port where they request clearance of the import or 
export of wildlife or wildlife products. Our regulations allow for 
certain species of wildlife to be imported or exported between the 
United States and Canada or Mexico at U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection ports, even though our wildlife inspectors may not be 
present. In these instances, importers and exporters may file the forms 
with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. We collect the following 
information:
    (1) Name of the importer or exporter and broker.
    (2) Scientific and common name of the fish or wildlife.
    (3) Permit numbers (if permits are required).
    (4) Description, quantity, and value of the fish or wildlife.
    (5) Natural country of origin of the fish or wildlife.
    In addition, certain information, such as the airway bill or bill 
of lading number, the location of the fish or wildlife for inspection, 
and the number of cartons containing fish or wildlife, assists our 
wildlife inspectors if a physical examination of the shipment is 
necessary.
    Comments: On August 13, 2009, we published in the Federal Register 
(74 FR 40836) a notice of our intent to request that OMB renew this 
ICR. In that notice, we solicited comments for 60 days, ending on 
October 13, 2009. We received one comment. The commenter strongly 
supported the collection of this information and suggested the 
following ways to improve the quality of data collected:
    Issue: FWS Form 3-177 should have language stating that filing a 
false or incomplete declaration may result in a penalty.
    Response: The form already includes this language. FWS Form 3-177 
contains the following statement: ``Knowingly making a false statement 
in a Declaration for Importation or Exportation of Fish and Wildlife 
may subject the declarant to the penalty provided by 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 
16 U.S.C. 3372(d).'' In addition, item 22 of the form includes the 
following certification statement prior to signature ``I certify under 
penalty of perjury that the information furnished is true and 
correct.'' We have added this language to the instructions as well.
    Issue: The instructions for FWS Form 3-177 should include more 
direction on how the species and subspecies should be identified. Also, 
instructions are needed regarding entering the identifier number and ID 
type for questions 13, 14, and 15.
    Response: The instructions for FWS Form 3-177 include guidance for 
accurately identifying species, including the requirement to provide 
the scientific name (Latin name including genus and species and 
subspecies, if applicable) and the common name in English. The 
instructions also include guidance for entering the identifier number 
and ID type.
    Issue: The Service should standardize the units of measure used on 
FWS Form 3-177 incorporating quantity, length, weight, and volume.
    Response: We do not believe that this is practical and have not 
made any changes to the form or instructions.
    We again invite comments concerning this information collection on:
     Whether or not the collection of information is necessary, 
including whether or not the information will have practical utility;
     The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this 
collection of information;
     Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
     Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail 
address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you 
should be aware that your entire comment, including your personal 
identifying information, may be made publicly available at any time. 
While you can ask OMB in your comment to withhold your personal 
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that it 
will be done.


[[Page 68278]]


    Dated: December 17, 2009.
Hope Grey,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. E9-30552 Filed 12-22-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-S