[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 42 (Friday, March 2, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9021-9022]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-04206]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-HQ-R-2018-N030; FXGO1664091HCC0-FF09D00000-189]


International Wildlife Conservation Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, announces a public meeting of the 
International Wildlife Conservation Council (Council).

DATES: Friday, March 16, 2018, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Eastern 
Daylight Time). For deadlines and directions on registering to attend, 
submitting written material, and giving an oral presentation, please 
see Public Input under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held in the South Penthouse at the Main 
Interior Building, 1849 C Street NW, Washington, DC 20240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua Winchell, Council Designated 
Federal Officer, by U.S. mail at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 
National Wildlife Refuge System, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 
22041-3803; by telephone at (703) 358-2639; or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Council provides advice and 
recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary), regarding 
the benefits that result from United States citizens traveling to 
foreign nations to engage in hunting.

Background

    Formed in December 2017, the Council is an advisory body whose 
duties include, but are not limited to:
    (a) Developing a plan for public engagement and education on the 
benefits of international hunting.
    (b) Reviewing and making recommendations for changes, when needed, 
on all Federal programs, and/or regulations, to ensure support of 
hunting as:
    1. An enhancement to foreign wildlife conservation and survival; 
and
    2. An effective tool to combat illegal trafficking and poaching.
    (c) Recommending strategies to benefit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service's permit office in receiving timely country data and 
information so as to remove barriers that impact consulting with range 
states.
    (d) Recommending removal of barriers to the importation into the 
United States of legally hunted wildlife.
    (e) Ongoing review of import suspension/bans and providing 
recommendations that seek to resume the legal trade of those items, 
where appropriate.
    (f) Reviewing seizure and forfeiture actions/practices, and 
providing recommendations for regulations that will lead to a reduction 
of unwarranted actions.
    (g) Reviewing the Endangered Species Act's foreign listed species 
and interaction with the Convention on International Trade in 
Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna, with the goal of 
eliminating regulatory duplications.

[[Page 9022]]

    (h) Recommending methods for streamlining/expediting processing of 
import permits.

Meeting Agenda

    The Council will convene to discuss issues including:
    1. International wildlife conservation programs conducted by the 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service;
    2. U.S. Government efforts to combat wildlife trafficking; and
    3. Other Council business.
    The final agenda will be posted on the internet at http://www.fws.gov/iwcc.

Attendance

    To attend this meeting, register by close of business on the dates 
listed in Public Input. Please submit your name, time of arrival, email 
address, and phone number to the Council Designated Federal Officer 
(see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Space is limited and requests to 
attend will be accommodated in the order they are received.

Public Input

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                 You must contact the
                                              Council Designated Federal
              If you wish to:                  Officer (see FOR FURTHER
                                               INFORMATION CONTACT) no
                                                     later than:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attend the meeting.........................  March 12, 2018.
Submit written information or questions      March 12, 2018.
 before the meeting for the Council to
 consider during the meeting.
Give an oral presentation during the public  March 12, 2018.
 comment period.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Submitting Written Information or Questions

    Interested members of the public may submit relevant information or 
questions for the Council to consider during the public meeting. 
Written statements must be received by the date in Public Input, so 
that the information may be made available to the Council for their 
consideration prior to this meeting. Written statements must be 
supplied to the Council Designated Federal Officer in the following 
formats: One hard copy with original signature, and/or one electronic 
copy via email (acceptable file formats are Adobe Acrobat PDF, MS Word, 
MS PowerPoint, or rich text file).

Giving an Oral Presentation

    Depending on the number of people wishing to comment and the time 
available, the amount of time for individual oral comments may be 
limited. Interested parties must contact the Council Designated Federal 
Officer, in writing (preferably via email; see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT), to be placed on the public speaker list for this meeting. 
Nonregistered public speakers will not be considered during the 
meeting. Registered speakers who wish to expand upon their oral 
statements, or those who had wished to speak but could not be 
accommodated on the agenda, may submit written statements to the 
Council Designated Federal Officer up to 30 days subsequent to the 
meeting. Requests to address the Council during the public comment 
period will be accommodated in the order the requests are received.

Public Disclosure of Comments

    Before including your address, phone number, email address, or 
other personal identifying information in your comments, please 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.

Meeting Minutes

    Summary minutes of the conference will be maintained by the Council 
Designated Federal Officer (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). They 
will be available for public inspection within 90 days of the meeting.

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. Appendix 2.

Greg Sheehan,
Principal Deputy Director.
[FR Doc. 2018-04206 Filed 3-1-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P