[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 112 (Wednesday, June 10, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 35379-35381]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10268]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Parts 216 and 300

[Docket No. 200507-0131]
RIN 0648-BH48


International Fisheries; Pacific Tuna Fisheries; Procedures for 
the Active and Inactive Vessel Register

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

ACTION: Final rule; date of effectiveness for collection-of-information 
requirements; correcting amendment.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces approval by the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) of collection-of-information requirements contained in 
regulations published in a final rule on December 20, 2019. The final 
rule implements International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirements 
in Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) Resolution C-18-06 
(Resolution (Amended) on a Regional Vessel Register) and amendments to 
existing regulations governing inclusion on the IATTC Regional Vessel 
Register (Vessel Register) by purse seine vessels fishing in the 
eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO). The intent of this final rule is to inform 
the public of the effectiveness of the collection-of-information 
requirements associated with the final rule. This final rule also 
corrects the regulatory text to implement two collection-of-information 
requirements that were included in the December 20, 2019, final rule 
and inadvertently set to become effective on January 21, 2020, before 
being approved by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Those 
two collection-of-information requirements were corrected in a 
correcting amendment in a final rule published on February 13, 2020 and 
are made effective in this final rule.

DATES: Effective June 10, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Copies of supporting documents are available via the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov, docket NOAA-NMFS-2018-
0030, or by contacting Daniel Studt, NMFS West Coast Region, 501 W 
Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802, or emailing 
[email protected].

[[Page 35380]]

    Written comments regarding the burden-hour estimates or other 
aspects of the collection-of-information requirements contained in this 
rule may be submitted to the NMFS West Coast Region Long Beach Office 
at the address listed above, by email to [email protected], 
or by fax to (202) 395-5806.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel Studt, NMFS, West Coast Region, 
562-980-4073.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On December 20, 2019, NMFS published a final rule in the Federal 
Register (84 FR 70040) under the Tuna Conventions Act of 1950, as 
amended, and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, as amended, to implement 
IMO requirements in IATTC Resolution C-18-06 (Resolution (Amended) on a 
Regional Vessel Register) and amendments to existing regulations 
governing inclusion on the Vessel Register by purse seine vessels 
fishing in the EPO. That final rule became effective January 21, 2020, 
except for amendatory instructions that included new or revised 
information collections, which were delayed until publication of a 
document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date. A 
correcting amendment was published in the Federal Register (85 FR 8198) 
on February 13, 2020, to correct two information collection 
requirements in 50 CFR 300.22(b)(4)(ii)(A) and 50 CFR 
300.22(b)(4)(iii)(B) allowing for the collection of a ``business email 
address'' that were included in the December 20, 2019, final rule and 
inadvertently set to become effective upon January 21, 2020, before 
being approved by OMB under the PRA and control number 0648-0387. OMB 
has now approved these collection-of-information requirements under 
control number 0648-387. Accordingly, this final rule announces 
effectiveness of the collection-of-information requirements that were 
published in the December 20, 2019, final rule and corrects the 
regulatory text to impose the collection of information requirements 
revised in the February 13, 2020, correcting amendment.

Classification

    This final rule has been determined to be not significant for the 
purposes of Executive Order 12866. This rule is not an Executive Order 
13771 regulatory action because this rule is not significant under 
Executive Order 12866.
    This final rule announces the date of effectiveness and corrects 
the regulatory text to reflect new and revised collection-of-
information requirements approved by OMB under PRA control number 0648-
0387 that were published in the Federal Register (84 FR 70040) on 
December 20, 2019. Comments regarding the burden estimates, or any 
other aspects of the collection of information should be sent to the 
NMFS West Coast Region Long Beach Office (see ADDRESSES above), by 
email to [email protected], or by fax to (202) 395-5806. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, no person is required 
to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty for failure 
to comply with, a collection of information subject to the requirements 
of the PRA, unless that collection of information displays a currently 
valid OMB Control Number. All currently approved NOAA collections of 
information may be viewed at: http://www.cio.noaa.gov/services_programs/prasubs.html.
    The NOAA Assistant Administrator for Fisheries (AA) finds there is 
good cause to waive prior notice and opportunity for public comment for 
this action pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) of the Administrative 
Procedure Act (APA), because prior notice and opportunity for public 
comment on this final rule is unnecessary and contrary to the public 
interest. In part, this action simply provides notice of OMB's approval 
of the reporting requirements at issue, which has already occurred, and 
renders those requirements effective. Thus, this part of this action 
does not involve any further exercise of agency discretion by NMFS or 
OMB. Moreover, the public has had prior notice and the opportunity to 
comment on the collection-of-information requirements. NMFS published a 
proposed rule including the collection-of-information requirements on 
April 16, 2019 (84 FR 15556), with comments accepted through May 16, 
2019. NMFS received two comments on the collection-of-information 
requirements related to a proposed supplementation of a vessel 
departure notification and an ability to apply for associated permit 
applications online. The final rule published on December 20, 2019 (84 
FR 70040), addressed these comments, keeping the proposed supplemental 
vessel departure notice in place for the reasons described there, while 
revising the purse seine vessel permit application collection-of-
information requirements to allow for an online process. Both such 
processes were considered and approved under PRA control number 0648-
0387. Additional opportunity for public comment at this point would not 
be meaningful and would be duplicative. Any further delay to allow for 
public comment is therefore unnecessary and would result in public 
confusion.
    For the aforementioned reasons, the AA also finds good cause to 
waive the 30-day delay in the effectiveness of this action under 5 
U.S.C. 553(d)(3).
    These measures are thus exempt from the procedures of the 
Regulatory Flexibility Act because prior notice and comment are not 
required under the APA.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Parts 216 and 300

    Fish, Fisheries, Fishing, Fishing vessels, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: May 7, 2020.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 300 is 
corrected by making the following correcting amendments:

PART 300--INTERNATIONAL FISHERIES REGULATIONS

Subpart C--Eastern Pacific Tuna Fisheries

0
1. The general authority citation for part 300 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority:  16 U.S.C. 951 et seq., 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq., 16 
U.S.C. 5501 et seq., 16 U.S.C. 2431 et seq., 31 U.S.C. 9701 et seq.

Subpart C also issued under 16 U.S.C. 951 et seq.

0
2. In Sec.  300.22, revise paragraphs (b)(4)(ii)(A) and (b)(4)(iii)(B) 
to read as follows:


Sec.  300.22   Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (4) * * *
    (ii) * * *
    (A) To request a purse seine vessel of 400 st (362.8 mt) carrying 
capacity or less be listed on the Vessel Register and be categorized as 
active, the vessel owner or managing owner must submit to the HMS 
Branch written notification including, but not limited to, a vessel 
photograph, the vessel information as described under paragraph (b)(3) 
of this section, and the owner or managing owner's signature, business 
email address, and business telephone and fax numbers. If a purse seine 
vessel of 400 st (362.8 mt) carrying capacity or less is

[[Page 35381]]

required by the Agreement on the IDCP to carry an observer, the vessel 
owner or managing owner must also submit payment of the vessel 
assessment fee to the IATTC.
* * * * *
    (iii) * * *
    (B) To request a tuna purse seine vessel of 400 st (362.8 mt) 
carrying capacity or less be listed on the Vessel Register and 
categorized as inactive for the following calendar year, the vessel 
owner or managing owner must submit to the HMS Branch a written 
notification including, but not limited to, the vessel name and 
registration number and the vessel owner or managing owner's name, 
signature, business address, business email address, and business 
telephone and fax numbers. Payment of the vessel assessment fee is not 
required for vessels of 400 st (362.8 mt) carrying capacity or less to 
be categorized as inactive.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2020-10268 Filed 6-9-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P