[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 21 (Thursday, February 2, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9058-9059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-02162]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    The Department of Commerce will submit to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of 
information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 
U.S.C. Chapter 35).
    Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
    Title: Atlantic Mackerel, Squid and Butterfish Amendment 14 Data 
Collection.
    OMB Control Number: 0648-0679.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Request: Regular (extension of a currently approved 
information collection).
    Number of Respondents: 426.
    Average Hours Per Response: Vessel trip reports, 5 minutes; VMS 
activity declarations, 5 minutes; released catch affidavit form, 5 
minutes observer pre-trip notification of trip, 5 minutes; trip 
cancellation, 1 minute.
    Burden Hours: 3,385.
    Needs and Uses: This request is for extension of a current 
information collection. Under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act, the Secretary of Commerce has the responsibility 
for the conservation and management of marine fishery resources. Much 
of this responsibility has been delegated to NOAA's National Marine 
Fisheries Service (NMFS). Under this stewardship role, the Secretary 
was given certain regulatory authorities to ensure the most beneficial 
uses of these resources. One of the regulatory steps taken to carry out 
the conservation and management objectives is to collect information 
from users of the resources.
    This collection requires vessel trip reports (VTRs) to be submitted 
weekly

[[Page 9059]]

for all mackerel, squid, and butterfish permit holders. In addition, 
all limited access mackerel and longfin squid/butterfish moratorium 
permit holders must maintain a VMS unit on their vessels and declare 
intent to target Atlantic mackerel or longfin squid and submit daily 
catch reports via VMS. They must also submit daily catch reports via 
VMS. Vessels that land over 20,000 lb of mackerel must notify NMFS 
Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) via VMS of the time and place of 
offloading at least 6 hours prior to crossing the VMS demarcation line 
on their return trip to port, or if the vessel does not fish seaward of 
the VMS demarcation line, at least 6 hours prior to landing.
    This collection also requires limited access mackerel and longfin 
squid/butterfish moratorium permit holders to bring all catch aboard 
the vessel and make it available for sampling by an observer. If catch 
is not made available to an observer before discard, that catch is 
defined as slippage, and the vessel operator must complete a ``Released 
Catch Affidavit'' form within 48 hours of the end of the fishing trip 
which details why catch was slipped, estimates the quantity and species 
composition of the slipped catch, and records the time and location of 
the slipped catch.
    Finally, this collection requires any vessel with a limited access 
mackerel permit intending to land over 20,000 lbs of mackerel to 
contact NMFS at least 48 hours in advance of a fishing trip to request 
an observer. Vessels currently contact NMFS via phone, and selection 
notices or waivers are issued by NMFS via VMS. If service providers are 
unable to provide coverage, an owner, operator, or vessel manager may 
request a waiver by calling the Northeast Fisheries Observer Program.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations.
    Frequency: Weekly, daily and on occasion.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    This information collection request may be viewed at reginfo.gov. 
Follow the instructions to view Department of Commerce collections 
currently under review by OMB.
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice 
to [email protected] or fax to (202) 395-5806.

    Dated: January 27, 2017.
Sarah Brabson,
NOAA PRA Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2017-02162 Filed 2-1-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P