[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 47 (Friday, March 9, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10435-10436]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-04729]


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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: Individual Fishing Quotas for Pacific Halibut and Sablefish 
in the Alaska Fisheries.
    OMB Control Number: 0648-0272.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Request: Regular (extension of a currently approved 
information collection).
    Number of Respondents: 2,653.
    Average Hours per Response: Application for Eligibility to receive 
QS/IFQ (TEC), QS holder form (Identification of Ownership Interest), 
Application for Transfer of QS/IFQ (includes sweep-up); Application for 
Military Transfer, and Application for Emergency Medical Transfer, 2 
hours each; Application for IFQ/CDQ Hired Master Permit, Application 
for Registered Buyer permit, QS/IFQ Designated Beneficiary Form, and 
Application for replacement of certificates, permits, or licenses, 30 
minutes each; Registered Buyer landing report, and Transshipment 
Authorization, 12 minutes each; Prior Notice of Landing (PNOL), and IFQ 
Departure Report, 15 minutes each; IFQ Administrative Waiver, and 
Dockside Sales Receipt, 6 minutes each.
    Burden Hours: 6,394.
    Needs and Uses: This request is for revision and extension of a 
currently approved information collection.
    The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) established the 
Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program to improve the long-term 
productivity of the sablefish and Pacific halibut fisheries by further 
promoting the conservation and management objectives of the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, 16 U.S.C. 1801 et 
seq., (with respect to sablefish) and the Northern Pacific Halibut Act 
of 1982 (with respect to Pacific halibut) while retaining the character 
and distribution of the fishing fleets as much as possible. The IFQ 
Program includes several provisions, such as ownership caps and vessel 
use caps that protect small harvesters and processors, part-time 
participants, and entry-level participants that otherwise could be 
adversely affected by excessive consolidation.
    The IFQ Program also includes other restrictions to prevent the 
halibut and sablefish fisheries from domination by large boats or by 
any particular vessel class. NMFS designed the requirements to maintain 
a predominantly owner-operated fishery, which was a key characteristic 
of the halibut and sablefish fisheries prior to the implementation of 
the IFQ Program. The IFQ Program provides each fisherman an IFQ that 
can be used any time during the open season to allow each fisherman to 
set his/her own pace and fishing effort.
    Under the IFQ Program, quota share (QS) represents a harvesting 
privilege for a person. Annually, NMFS issues IFQ to QS holders to 
harvest specified poundage. The specific amount of IFQ held by a person 
is determined by the number of QS units held, the total number of QS 
units issued in a specific regulatory area, and the total pounds of 
sablefish or halibut allocated for the IFQ fisheries in a particular 
year. Fishermen may harvest the IFQ over the entire fishing season, 
which extends approximately from March through November 15.
    The IFQ Manual Landing Report form will be removed from this 
information collection. This form is approved under OMB Control Number 
0648-0515 (Alaska Interagency Electronic Reporting System (IERS)) and 
will remain in that collection.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; not-
for-profit institutions; individuals or households.
    Frequency: Annually and on occasion.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    This information collection request may be viewed at reginfo.gov. 
Follow

[[Page 10436]]

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: March 6, 2018.
Sarah Brabson,
NOAA PRA Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2018-04729 Filed 3-8-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P