[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 116 (Monday, June 19, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27866-27867]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-12727]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-R7-ES-2017-N057; FF07CAMM00.FX.ES111607MRG02]


Agency Information Collection Activities: OMB Control Number 
1018-0066; Marine Mammal Marking, Tagging, and Reporting Certificates, 
and Registration of Certain Dead Marine Mammal Hard Parts

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We (U.S. 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 information collection is scheduled to 
expire on June 30, 2017. 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 submit comments on or before July 19, 2017.

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] (email). 
Please provide a copy of your comments to the Service Information 
Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS BPHC, 
5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 (mail), or 
[email protected] (email). Please include ``1018-0066'' in the subject 
line of your comments. You may review the ICR online at http://www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to review Department of the 
Interior collections under review by OMB.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Service Information Collection 
Clearance Officer, at [email protected] (email) or (703) 358-2503 
(telephone).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    Under section 101(b) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 
(MMPA), as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361-1407), Alaska Natives residing in 
Alaska and dwelling on the coast of the North Pacific or Arctic Oceans 
may harvest polar bears, northern sea otters, and Pacific walruses for 
subsistence or handicraft purposes. Section 109(i) of the MMPA 
authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to prescribe marking, tagging, 
and reporting regulations applicable to the Alaska Native subsistence 
and handicraft take.
    On behalf of the Secretary, we implemented regulations at 50 CFR 
18.23(f) for Alaska Natives harvesting polar bears, northern sea 
otters, and Pacific walruses. These regulations enable us to gather 
data on the Alaska Native subsistence and handicraft harvest and on the 
biology of polar bears, northern sea otters, and Pacific walruses in 
Alaska to determine what effect such take may be having on these 
populations. The regulations also provide us with a means of monitoring 
the disposition of the harvest to ensure that any commercial use of 
products created from these species meets the criteria set forth in 
section 101(b) of the MMPA. We use three forms to collect the 
information: FWS Form 3-2414 (Polar Bear Tagging Certificates), FWS 
Form 3-2415 (Walrus Tagging Certificates), and FWS Form 3-2416 (Sea 
Otter Tagging Certificates). The information we collect includes, but 
is not limited to:
     Date of kill;
     Sex of the animal;
     Kill location;
     Age of the animal (i.e., adult, subadult, cub, or pup);
     Form of transportation used to make the kill of polar 
bears;
     Amount of time (i.e., hours/days hunted) spent hunting 
polar bears;
     Type of take (live-killed or beach-found) for walrus;

[[Page 27867]]

     Number of otters present in and number of otters harvested 
from pod;
     Condition of the polar bear and whether or not bear cubs 
were present; and
     Name of the hunter or possessor of the specified parts at 
the time of marking, tagging, and reporting.
    We use FWS Form 3-2406 (Registration of Certain Dead Marine Mammal 
Hard Parts) to record the collection of bones, teeth, or ivory of dead 
marine mammals by non-Native and Natives not eligible to harvest marine 
mammals under the MMPA. It is legal to collect such parts from a beach 
or from land within a quarter of a mile of the ocean (50 CFR 18.26). 
The information we collect via Form 3-2406 includes, but is not limited 
to:
     Date and location found.
     Age, sex, and size of the animal.
     Tag numbers.
     Name, address, phone number, and birthdate of the 
collector.

II. Data

    OMB Control Number: 1018-0066.
    Title: Marine Mammal Marking, Tagging, and Reporting Certificates, 
and Registration of Certain Dead Marine Mammal Hard Parts, 50 CFR 
18.23(f) and 18.26.
    Service Form Number(s): FWS Forms 3-2406, 3-2414, 3-2415, and 3-
2416.
    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.

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                                                                                    Completion
                                                     Number of       Number of       time per      Total annual
                    Activity                        respondents      responses       response      burden hours
                                                                                     (minutes)
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3-2414 (Polar Bear).............................              25              60              15              15
3-2415 (Walrus).................................             100             500              15             125
3-2416 (Sea Otter)..............................              75           1,280              15             320
3-2406 (Beach Found)............................             300             300              15              75
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals......................................             500           2,140  ..............             535
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    Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Costs: None.

III. Comments

    On February 24, 2017, we published in the Federal Register (82 FR 
11598) a notice of our intent to request that OMB approve this 
information collection. In that notice, we solicited comments for 60 
days, ending on April 25, 2017. We received one comment in response to 
that notice:
    Email comment dated April 24, 2017 from Marine Mammal Commission.
    The Marine Mammal Commission supports the continuation of the 
information collection programs related to the taking of marine mammals 
for subsistence and handicraft purposes by Alaska Natives. Collection 
of this information is authorized under section 109(i) of the Marine 
Mammal Protection Act. This information is important for tracking 
Native use of marine mammals and to provide the documentation that 
marine mammal parts were legally taken.
    The Commission also supports the continued use of FWS Form 3-2406 
for registering marine mammal hard parts found on beaches and near 
shore areas. Under applicable regulations, these parts can be retained 
only if they are registered with the FWS (or NMFS). As such, retention 
of the registration form is necessary.
    FWS Response: None required.

IV. Request for and Availability of Public Comments

    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, email 
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.

V. Authorities

    The authorities for this action are the Marine Mammal Protection 
Act of 1972 (MMPA), as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361-1407) and the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

    Dated: June 14, 2017.
Madonna L. Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-12727 Filed 6-16-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P