[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 62 (Friday, March 30, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 19175-19176]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-7578]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

RIN 0648-XA920


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; 2012 Atlantic Bluefin Tuna 
Quota Specifications

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

ACTION: Notice of public hearings.

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SUMMARY: On March 16, 2012, NMFS published a proposed rule to establish 
2012 BFT quota specifications, and announced that public hearings would 
be scheduled in a future notice. In this notice NMFS is announcing 
public hearings in Gloucester, MA, and Silver Spring, MD, in order to 
provide greater opportunity for public comment on the proposed rule.

DATES: A hearing will be held on April 4, 2012, from 2 to 4 p.m. in 
Gloucester, MA, and a hearing will be held on April 10, 2012, from 2:30 
to 4 p.m. in Silver Spring, MD. Public comments on the proposed rule 
must be received on or before April 16, 2012. See SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION for further details.

ADDRESSES: As published on March 16, 2012 (77 FR 15712), you may submit 
comments, identified by ``NOAA-NMFS-2012-0048'', by any one of the 
following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov. 
To submit comments via the e-Rulemaking Portal, first click the 
``submit a comment'' icon, then enter ``NOAA-NMFS-2012-0048'' in the 
keyword search. Locate the document you wish to comment on from the 
resulting list and click on the ``Submit a Comment'' icon on the right 
of that line.
     Fax: 978-281-9340, Attn: Sarah McLaughlin.
     Mail: Sarah McLaughlin, Highly Migratory Species 
Management Division, Office of Sustainable Fisheries (F/SF1), NMFS, 55 
Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
     Instructions: Comments must be submitted by one of the 
above methods to ensure that the comments are received, documented, and 
considered by NMFS. Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered. All comments received are a part of the public 
record and will generally be posted for public viewing on http://www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.) submitted voluntarily by the 
sender will be publicly accessible. Do not submit confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive or protected information. NMFS will 
accept anonymous comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you 
wish to remain anonymous). Attachments to electronic comments will be 
accepted in Microsoft Word or Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file 
formats only.
    Supporting documents, including the 2011 Environmental Assessment, 
Regulatory Impact Review, and Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, as 
well as others, such as the Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management 
Plans may be downloaded from the HMS Web site at www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/. These documents also are available by sending your request to 
Sarah McLaughlin at the mailing address specified above.
    The public hearing locations are:
    1. Gloucester, MA--NMFS, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 
01930.
    2. Silver Spring, MD--NMFS Science Center, 1301 East-West Highway, 
Silver Spring, MD 20910.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah McLaughlin or Brad McHale, 978-
281-9260.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Atlantic bluefin tuna, bigeye tuna, albacore 
tuna, yellowfin tuna, and skipjack tuna (hereafter referred to as 
``Atlantic tunas'') are managed under the dual authority of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act) and the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act (ATCA). As an active 
member of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic 
Tunas (ICCAT), the United States implements binding ICCAT 
recommendations to comply with this international treaty. ATCA 
authorizes the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to promulgate 
regulations, as may be necessary and appropriate, to implement ICCAT 
recommendations. The authority to issue regulations under the Magnuson-
Stevens Act and ATCA

[[Page 19176]]

has been delegated from the Secretary to the Assistant Administrator 
for Fisheries, NMFS.
    In the proposed rule, NMFS indicated that dates and locations for 
public hearings on the proposed action would be specified in a separate 
document in the Federal Register to be published at a later date. In 
this document, NMFS is announcing that it will hold a public hearing in 
Gloucester, MA, and one in Silver Spring, MD. These hearings, in 
addition to written comment collected via the methods described above, 
will allow NMFS to collect public comments on the proposed rule, which 
will assist NMFS in determining the final 2012 BFT quota 
specifications, consistent with the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP, the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act, ATCA, and other applicable law.

    Dated: March 26, 2012.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-7578 Filed 3-26-12; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P