[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 71 (Thursday, April 15, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19875-19876]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-07750]


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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; West Coast Region Vessel Monitoring System Requirement in the 
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery

    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 January 11, 2021, (86 FR 1947), 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: West Coast Region Vessel Monitoring System Requirement in 
the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery.
    OMB Control Number: 0648-0573.
    Form Number(s): N/A.
    Type of Request: Regular submission (revision of a current 
information collection).
    Number of Respondents: 1,000.
    Average Hours per Response: Four hours to install and activate a 
VMS unit; one hour to maintain a VMS unit, five minutes to complete and 
fax a check-in report or to complete an exemption report; four minutes 
for a declaration report.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: 2,021.
    Needs and Uses: This is a request for a revision and extension of a 
currently approved information collection. The National Marine 
Fisheries Service (NMFS) implemented a Vessel Monitoring Program in 
2004, consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (MSA) and the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery 
Management Plan (FMP). Under this program described at 50 CFR 660.13 
and 660.14, all commercial fishing vessels fishing in the exclusive 
economic zone off the West Coast that take and retain groundfish in 
federal waters, or transit through federal waters

[[Page 19876]]

with groundfish on board, are required to have a working vessel 
monitoring system (VMS). To support the VMS monitoring program, the 
following information must be submitted to NMFS: (1) VMS installation/
activation certification reports, (2) position reports, (3) exemption 
reports, and (4) declaration reports. The VMS, along with the fishing 
declaration reporting requirements, allows for monitoring and 
enforcement of areas closed to fishing by gear type as traditional 
enforcement methods (such as aerial surveillance, boarding at sea via 
patrol boats, landing inspections and documentary investigation) are 
especially difficult to use when the closed areas are large-scale and 
the lines defining the areas are irregular.
    The collection is being revised to remove the position report from 
the collection with regard to burden. The position reports are 
automatically transmitted location signals from the VMS unit that do 
not require any action on the part of the captain or crew.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; 
individuals or households.
    Frequency: Installation/Activation/Maintenance once every four 
years; exemption reports are optional (estimated 2/year for 500 
participants); declaration reports are estimated to be sent by each 
participant 20 times per year.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: 50 CFR 660.13 and 660.14.
    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 0648-0573.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2021-07750 Filed 4-14-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P