[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 24 (Monday, February 8, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8609-8610]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-02566]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; Alaska Region Permit Family of Forms

    The Department of Commerce will submit the following information 
collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for 
review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, on or after the date of publication of this notice. We invite the 
general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and 
continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of 
our information collection requirements and minimize the public's 
reporting burden. Public comments were previously requested via the 
Federal Register on November 30, 2020, (85 FR 76536) during a 60-day 
comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public 
comments.
    Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Commerce.
    Title: Alaska Region Permit Family of Forms.
    OMB Control Number: 0648-0206.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Request: Regular submission [extension of a current 
information collection].
    Number of Respondents: 484.
    Average Hours per Response: FFP application, 21 minutes; FPP 
application, 25 minutes; EFP application, 100 hours.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: 474 hours.
    Needs and Uses: The National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS), 
Alaska Region, is requesting extension of a currently approved 
information collection for the applications for the Federal Fisheries 
Permit (FFP), the Federal Processor Permit (FPP), and the Exempted 
Fishing Permit (EFP).
    NMFS requires an FFP or FPP for participation in the groundfish 
fisheries of the exclusive economic zone off Alaska. NMFS issues an EFP 
to allow groundfish fishing activities that would otherwise be 
prohibited under regulations for groundfish fishing. EFPs are issued to 
support projects that could benefit the groundfish fisheries and the 
environment and result in gathering information not otherwise available 
through research or commercial fishing operations. Regulations 
governing these permits are at 50 CFR 600.745, 679.4, and 679.6.
    Operators of vessels and managers of processors must have a permit 
on board or on site when fishing, receiving, buying, or processing 
groundfish and non-groundfish species. The permit information provides 
harvest gear types; descriptions of vessels, shoreside processors, and 
stationary floating processors; and expected fishery activity levels. 
The information requested on the permit applications is used for 
fisheries management and regulatory compliance by NMFS Sustainable 
Fisheries Division, NMFS Restricted Access Management Program, NMFS 
Observer Program, NOAA Office of Law Enforcement, the U.S. Coast Guard, 
and the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council.
    Section 303(b)(1) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act specifically recognizes the need for permit issuance. 
Requiring a permit for marine resource users is one of the regulatory 
steps taken to carry out conservation and management objectives. Permit 
issuance is essential in fishery resources management for 
identification of the participants and expected activity levels and for 
regulatory compliance.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households; Business or other for-
profit organizations.

[[Page 8610]]

    Frequency: Annually; Every 3 years; On occasion.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to Obtain or Retain Benefits; 
Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act.
    This information collection request may be viewed at 
www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view the Department of 
Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be submitted within 30 days of the publication of 
this notice on the following website www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. 
Find this particular information collection by selecting ``Currently 
under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search 
function and entering either the title of the collection or the OMB 
Control Number 0648-0206.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2021-02566 Filed 2-5-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P