[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 153 (Friday, August 7, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47982-47984]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-17325]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-HQ-ES-2020-N071; FXES11130900000-201-FF09E32000; OMB Control 
Number 1018-0095]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Endangered and 
Threatened Wildlife, Experimental Populations

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, we, the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service (we, Service), are proposing to renew an 
existing information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
September 8, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments on this information collection request 
(ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget's Desk Officer for the 
Department of the Interior by email at [email protected]; or 
via facsimile to (202) 395-5806. Please provide a copy of your comments 
to the Service Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service, MS: PRB (JAO/3W), 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, 
VA 22041-3803 (mail); or by email to [email protected]. Please 
reference OMB Control Number 1018-0095 in the subject line of your 
comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Madonna L. Baucum, Service Information 
Collection Clearance Officer, by email at [email protected], or by 
telephone at (703) 358-2503. Individuals who are hearing or speech 
impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339 for TTY 
assistance. You may also view the ICR at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1), we 
provide the general public and other Federal agencies with an 
opportunity to comment on new, proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps us assess the impact of our 
information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting 
burden. It also helps the public understand our information

[[Page 47983]]

collection requirements and provide the requested data in the desired 
format.
    On February 4, 2020, we published in the Federal Register (85 FR 
6212) 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 6, 2020. We received the following comments in 
response to that notice:
    Comment 1--Comment received via email on February 26, 2020, from 
Jean Public: The commenter did not address the information collection 
requirements.
    Agency Response to Comment 1: No response required.
    Comment 2--Comment received via email on April 6, 2020, from 
Michael Robinson of the Center for Biological Diversity: This comment 
suggested two additional categories of information collection under 
this renewal related to depredation-related take. Specifically, Mr. 
Robinson suggested collecting information on preventative measures 
taken by landowners to protect livestock prior to implementing lethal 
take, and to measure the amount of time between a depredation-related 
take of an individual of an experimental population and renewed 
depredation of the same landowner's livestock.
    Agency Response to Comment 2: Mr. Robinson's suggestions for 
information collection include data that are already collected and 
tracked by Service employees as specified in 50 CFR part 17 subpart H, 
as well as in each species-specific final rule issued by the Service 
establishing the experimental population. Additionally, the Service 
acknowledges the usefulness of this type of information and will take 
into consideration this information in future rulemaking actions.
    As part of our continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent 
burdens, we are again soliciting comments from the public and other 
Federal agencies on the proposed ICR that is described below. We are 
especially interested in public comment addressing the following:
    (1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether or not the information will have practical utility;
    (2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection 
of information, including the validity of the methodology and 
assumptions used;
    (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    (4) How might the agency minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of 
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., 
permitting electronic submission of response.
    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 us in your comment to withhold your personal 
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we 
will be able to do so.
    Abstract: Section 10(j) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 
amended (ESA, 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), authorizes the Secretary of the 
Interior to establish experimental populations of endangered or 
threatened species. Because the ESA protects individuals of 
experimental populations, the information we collect is important for 
monitoring the success of reintroduction and recovery efforts. This is 
a nonform collection (meaning there is no designated form associated 
with this collection). Regulations at 50 CFR 17.84 contain information 
collection requirements for experimental populations of vertebrate 
endangered and threatened species. These regulations identify and 
describe the three categories of information we collect, which include:
    (1) General take or removal. ``Take'' is defined by the ESA as 
``[to] harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, 
or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct.'' In this 
information collection, take most commonly is considered to be in the 
form of human-related mortality, including:
    a. Unintentional taking incidental to otherwise lawful activities 
(e.g., highway mortalities);
    b. Animal husbandry actions authorized to manage the population 
(e.g., translocation or providing aid to sick, injured, or orphaned 
individuals);
    c. Take in defense of human life;
    d. Take related to defense of property (if authorized); or
    e. Take in the form of authorized harassment.
    (2) Depredation-related take. Involves take for management purposes 
of documented livestock depredation, and may include authorized 
harassment or authorized lethal take of experimental population animals 
in the act of attacking livestock. See 50 CFR 17.84 for specific 
provisions of harassment for each species within this section.
    The information that we collect includes:
    a. Name, address, and phone number of reporting party,
    b. Species involved,
    c. Type of incident,
    d. Quantity of take,
    e. Location and time of the reported incident, and
    f. Description of the circumstances related to the incident.
    (3) Specimen collection, recovery, or reporting of dead 
individuals. This information documents incidental or authorized 
scientific collection. Most of the information collected addresses the 
reporting of sightings of experimental population animals or the 
inadvertent discovery of an injured or dead individual.
    Service recovery specialists use this information to determine the 
success of reintroductions in relation to established recovery plan 
goals for the experimental populations of vertebrate endangered and 
threatened species involved. In addition, this information helps us to 
assess the effectiveness of control activities in order to develop 
better means to reduce problems with livestock for those species where 
depredation is a problem.
    Title of Collection: Endangered and Threatened Wildlife, 
Experimental Populations, 50 CFR 17.84.
    OMB Control Number: 1018-0095.
    Form Numbers: None.
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals and households, private 
sector, and State/local/Tribal governments.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Frequency of Collection: On occasion.
    Total Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: None.

[[Page 47984]]



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                                                  Annual  number                    Completion
                   Requirement                          of         Total annual      time per      Total annual
                                                    respondents      responses       response     burden hours *
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                                      Notification--General Take or Removal
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Individuals.....................................              12              12              .5               6
Private Sector..................................               7               7              .5               4
Government......................................              29              29              .5              15
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                                     Notification--Depredation-Related Take
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Individuals.....................................              25              25              .5              13
Private Sector..................................               2               2              .5               1
Government......................................               9               9              .5               5
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                                        Notification--Specimen Collection
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Individuals.....................................               3               3              .5               2
Private Sector..................................               2               2              .5               1
Government......................................              16              16              .5               8
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals......................................             105             105  ..............              55
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* Rounded.

    An agency 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.
    The authority for this action is the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

    Dated: August 4, 2020.
Madonna Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-17325 Filed 8-6-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P