[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 231 (Monday, December 6, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69017-69018]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-26362]


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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; Economic Surveys of the Commercial and Charter Fishing Sectors 
of Federally Managed Fisheries

AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites 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. The 
purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment 
preceding submission of the collection to OMB.

DATES: To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed 
information collection must be received on or before February 4, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments to 
Adrienne Thomas, NOAA PRA Officer, at [email protected]. Do not 
submit Confidential Business Information or otherwise sensitive or 
protected information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
specific questions related to collection activities should be directed 
to Dr. Joe Terry, Office of Science and Technology, 1315 East-West 
Hwy., Bldg. SSMC3, Silver Spring, MD 20910-3282, (858) 454 -2547, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    This request is for a new information collection.
    The Office of Science and Technology is sponsoring this collection. 
Economic surveys will be conducted for the commercial and charter 
fishing sectors of federally managed fisheries of the United States.
    The requested information will include different components of 
operating costs/expenditures, earnings, employment, ownership, vessel 
characteristics, effort/gear descriptors, employment, and demographic 
information. The information will be collected from the owners and 
operators of fishing vessels that participated in the commercial and/or 
charter fishing sectors, where the vessels that participated in the 
charter sector include guide boats, 6-pack boats, charter boats, 
commercial passenger fishing vessels, and party/head boats.
    A variety of laws, Executive Orders (E.O.s), and NOAA Fisheries 
strategies and policies include requirements for economic data and the 
analyses they support. When met adequately, those requirements allow 
better-informed conservation and management decisions on the use of 
living marine resources and marine habitat in federally managed 
fisheries. Obtaining these data improves the ability of NOAA Fisheries 
and the Regional Fishery Management Councils (Councils) to monitor, 
explain and predict changes in the economic performance and impacts of 
federally managed fisheries. Measures of economic performance include 
costs, earnings, and profitability (net revenue); productivity and 
economic efficiency; capacity; economic stability; the level and 
distribution of net economic benefits to society; and market power. The 
economic impacts include sector, community or region-specific and 
national employment, sales, value-added, and income impacts. Economic 
data are required to support more than a cursory effort to comply with 
or support the following laws, E.O.s, and NOAA Fisheries strategies and 
policies:

1. The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA)
2. The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA)
3. The Endangered Species Act (ESA)
4. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
5. The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
6. E.O. 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review)

[[Page 69018]]

7. E.O. 13771 (Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs)
8. E.O. 12898 (Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in 
Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations)
9. E.O. 13840 (Ocean Policy to Advance the Economic, Security, and 
Environmental Interests of the United States)
10. The NOAA Fisheries Guidelines for Economic Reviews of Regulatory 
Actions
11. The NOAA Fisheries Strategic Plan 2019-2022 (Strategic Plan)
12. The NOAA Fisheries Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management (EBFM) Road 
Map
13. The NOAA Fisheries National Bycatch Reduction Strategy
14. NOAA's Catch Share Policy

    Data collections will focus each year on a different set of 
fisheries. This cycle of data collection will facilitate economic data 
being available and updated for all federally managed fisheries.
    There will be an effort to coordinate the data collections in order 
to reduce the additional burden for those who participate in multiple 
fisheries. To further reduce the burden, the requested information for 
a specific fishery will be limited to that which is not available from 
other sources. Participation in these data collections will be 
voluntary.

II. Method of Collection

    The information will be collected by mail, internet, phone, video 
call, and in-person interviews. Where feasible, survey respondents will 
have the option to respond to an on-line survey. If phone and in-person 
interviews are not feasible or not desired by the potential 
respondents, the information will be collected by mail or internet.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0648-XXXX.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Review: Regular submission (a new collection).
    Affected Public: Individuals or households and business or other 
for-profit organizations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 7,052.
    Estimated Time per Response: 55 minutes.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 6,464.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Legal Authority: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act.

IV. Request for Comments

    We are soliciting public comments to permit the Department/Bureau 
to: (a) Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is 
necessary for the proper functions of the Department, including whether 
the information will have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the accuracy 
of our estimate of the time and cost burden for this proposed 
collection, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (c) Evaluate ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (d) Minimize the reporting burden 
on those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request 
to OMB to approve this ICR. 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 may 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.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2021-26362 Filed 12-3-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P