[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 139 (Wednesday, July 20, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43337-43339]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-18252]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R9-R-2011-N152; 93261-12630000-9X]


Proposed Information Collection; Hunting and Fishing Application 
Forms and Activity Reports for National Wildlife Refuges

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) will ask the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) to renew approval for the information 
collection (IC) described below. As required by the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 and as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork 
and respondent burden, we invite the general public and other Federal 
agencies to take this opportunity to comment on this IC. This IC is 
scheduled to expire on January 31, 2012. 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.

[[Page 43338]]


DATES: To ensure that we are able to consider your comments on this IC, 
we must receive them by September 19, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments on the IC to the Service Information 
Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service, MS 2042-PDM, 
4401 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203 (mail); or 
[email protected] (e-mail). Please include ``1018-0140'' in the subject 
line of your comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information 
about this IC, contact Hope Grey at [email protected] (e-mail) or 703-
358-2482 (telephone).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (16 
U.S.C. 668dd-668ee), as amended (Administration Act), and the Refuge 
Recreation Act of 1962 (16 U.S.C. 460k-460k-4) (Recreation Act) govern 
the administration and uses of national wildlife refuges and wetland 
management districts. The Administration Act consolidated all the 
different refuge areas into a single Refuge System. It also authorizes 
us to permit public uses, including hunting and fishing, on lands of 
the Refuge System when we find that the activity is compatible and 
appropriate with the purpose for which the refuge was established. The 
Recreation Act allows the use of refuges for public recreation when the 
use is not inconsistent or does not interfere with the primary 
purpose(s) of the refuge.
    There are 408 national wildlife refuges where we administer hunting 
and/or fishing programs. We only collect user information at about 20 
percent of these refuges. Information that we plan to collect will help 
us:
     Administer and monitor hunting and fishing programs on 
refuges.
     Distribute hunting and fishing permits in a fair and 
equitable manner to eligible participants.
    We use nine application and report forms associated with hunting 
and fishing on refuges. We may not allow all opportunities on all 
refuges; therefore, we developed different forms to simplify the 
process and avoid confusion for applicants. The currently approved 
forms are available online at http://www.fws.gov/forms/. Not all 
refuges will use each form and some refuges may collect the identical 
information in a nonform format.
    We use the following application forms when we assign areas, dates, 
and/or types of hunts via a drawing because of limited resources, high 
demand, or when a permit is needed to hunt. We issue application forms 
for specific periods, usually seasonally or annually.
     FWS Form 3-2354 (Quota Deer Hunt Application).
     FWS Form 3-2355 (Waterfowl Lottery Application).
     FWS Form 3-2356 (Big/Upland Game Hunt Application).
     FWS Form 3-2357 (Migratory Bird Hunt Application).
     FWS Form 3-2358 (Fishing/Shrimping/Crabbing Application).
    We collect information on:
     Applicant (name, address, phone number) so that we can 
notify applicants of their selection.
     User preferences (dates, areas, method) so that we can 
distribute users equitably.
     Whether or not the applicant is applying for a special 
opportunity for disabled or youth hunters.
     Age of youth hunter(s) so that we can establish 
eligibility.
    We ask users to report on their success after their experience so 
that we can evaluate hunting/fishing quality and resource impacts. We 
use the following activity reports, which we distribute during 
appropriate seasons, as determined by State or Federal regulations.
     FWS Form 3-2359 (Big Game Harvest Report).
     FWS Form 3-2360 (Fishing Report).
     FWS Form 3-2361 (Migratory Bird Hunt Report).
     FWS Form 3-2362 (Upland/Small Game/Furbearer Report).
    We collect information on:
     Names of users so we can differentiate between responses.
     City and State of residence so that we can better 
understand if users are local or traveling.
     Dates, time, and number in party so we can identify use 
trends and allocate staff and resources.
     Details of success by species so that we can evaluate 
quality of experience and resource impacts.

II. Data

    OMB Control Number: 1018-0140.
    Title: Hunting and Fishing Application Forms and Activity Reports 
for National Wildlife Refuges, 50 CFR parts 25, 26, 27, 30, 31, and 32.
    Service Form Number(s): FWS Forms 3-2354, 3-2355, 3-2356, 3-2357, 
3-2358, 3-2359, 3-2360, 3-2361, 3-2362.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals and households.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion (for applications, usually 
once per year at the beginning of the hunting season; for activity 
reports, once at the conclusion of the hunting/fishing experience).
    Nonhour Cost Burden: We estimate the annual nonhour cost burden to 
be $60,000 for hunting application fees at some refuges.

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                                                                                    Completion
                                                     Number of       Number of       time per      Total annual
                    Activity                        respondents      responses      response  (    burden hours
                                                                                       utes)
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FWS Form 3-2354.................................         180,000         180,000              30          90,000
FWS Form 3-2355.................................          93,000          93,000              30          46,500
FWS Form 3-2356.................................           2,600           2,600              30           1,300
FWS Form 3-2357.................................           5,200           5,200              30           2,600
FWS Form 3-2358.................................           2,600           2,600              30           1,300
FWS Form 3-2359.................................          88,000          88,000              15          22,000
FWS Form 3-2360.................................         412,000         412,000              15         103,000
FWS Form 3-2361.................................          31,000          31,000              15           7,750
FWS Form 3-2362.................................          26,000          26,000              15           6,500
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
                                                         840,400         840,400  ..............         280,950
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[[Page 43339]]

 III. Comments

    We 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 imize the burden of the collection of information 
on respondents.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request 
to OMB to approve this IC. 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 us in your comment to withhold your personal 
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we 
will be able to do so.

    Dated: July 14, 2011.
Tina A. Campbell,
Chief, Division of Policy and Directives Management, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-18252 Filed 7-19-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P