[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 24 (Tuesday, February 7, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 9530]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-02462]



[[Page 9530]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

[Docket No. 160527473-6999-02]
RIN 0648-BG09


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Individual Bluefin Quota 
Program; Inseason Transfers; Correction

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

ACTION: Stay of final rule; correction.

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SUMMARY: NMFS published a ``Stay of final rule'' on January 31, 2017--
in accordance with the memorandum of January 20, 2017, from the 
Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, entitled ``Regulatory 
Freeze Pending Review,'' published in the Federal Register on January 
24, 2017 (the Memorandum)--to delay the effective date of the final 
rule NMFS published on December 29, 2016. This notification corrects 
the effectiveness date from ``March 21, 2017'' to ``February 10, 
2017.'' For consistency and clarity, the complete new DATES section has 
been set out below in its entirety.

DATES: Effective February 7, 2017, the final rule amending 50 CFR part 
635, that published on December 29, 2016, at 81 FR 95903, is stayed 
until February 10, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas Warren or Sarah McLaughlin, 
978-281-9260; Carrie Soltanoff, 301-427-8503.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On December 29, 2016, NMFS published this final rule modifying the 
Atlantic highly migratory species (HMS) regulations regarding the 
distribution of inseason Atlantic bluefin tuna quota transfers to the 
Longline category. This final rule provides NMFS the ability to 
distribute quota inseason either to all qualified Individual Bluefin 
Quota (IBQ) share recipients (i.e., share recipients who have 
associated their permit with a vessel) or only to permitted Atlantic 
Tunas Longline vessels with recent fishing activity, whether or not 
they are associated with IBQ shares. This action is necessary to 
optimize fishing opportunity in the directed pelagic longline fishery 
for target species such as tuna and swordfish and to improve the 
functioning of the IBQ Program and its leasing provisions consistent 
with the objectives of Amendment 7 to the 2006 Consolidated HMS Fishery 
Management Plan.
    On January 20, 2017, the White House issued a memo instructing 
Federal agencies to temporarily postpone the effective date for 60 days 
after January 20, 2017, of any regulations or guidance documents that 
have published in the Federal Register but not yet taken effect, for 
the purpose of ``reviewing questions of fact, law, and policy they 
raise.'' Because its effective date has already passed, we enacted a 
stay of the rule published on December 29, 2016, at 81 FR 95903 (see 
DATES above) until March 21, 2017, in a ``Stay of final rule'' document 
published on January 31, 2017 (82 FR 8821).

Need for Correction

    After the ``Stay of final rule'' published on January 31, 2017, 
NMFS is correcting the effective date of ``March 21, 2017'' to 
``February 10, 2017'' to better align with current fisheries management 
goals. NMFS publishes this notification to correct the stay of 
effective date.

Corrections

    In the Federal Register of January 31, 2017, in FR Doc. 2017-02043, 
``March 21, 2017'' is corrected to read ``February 10, 2017'' in the 
following places:
    1. In the DATES section on page 8821 in the first column, which is 
also set out in its entirety above for clarity and consistency;
    2. On page 8821, second column, first paragraph, last sentence; and
    3. On page 8821, in amendatory instruction 2.

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

    Dated: February 2, 2017.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-02462 Filed 2-6-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P