[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 121 (Friday, June 24, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 37728-37729]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13570]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

15 CFR Part 922

[Docket No. 220621-0139]
RIN 0648-AV85


Amendments to National Marine Sanctuary Regulations; Delay of 
Effective Date

AGENCY: Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS), National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce (DOC).

ACTION: Interim final rule; delay of effective date.

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SUMMARY: On May 13, 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA) published an interim final rule in the Federal 
Register that amended the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS) 
regulations. That rule was published with a 30-day comment period, 
which ended on June 13, 2022, and a 45-day delayed effective date of 
June 27, 2022. This rule delays the effective date of the interim final 
rule by 90 days, until September 26, 2022.

DATES: As of June 24, 2022, the effective date for the interim final 
rule published May 13, 2022, at 87 FR 29606, is delayed to September 
26, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Vicki Wedell, NOAA Office of National 
Marine Sanctuaries, (240) 533-0650, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    In response to the interim final rule published on May 13, 2022 (87 
FR 29606), which updated and streamlined ONMS regulations, NOAA 
received eight comments before the end of the comment period on June 
13, 2022. The submitted comments are posted at regulations.gov under 
docket NOAA-NOS-2011-0120. Based on issues raised by some of the public 
comments, NOAA is preparing technical corrections and responses to 
those comments for the final rule. Therefore, NOAA is delaying the June 
27, 2022 effective date of the interim final rule by 90 days, to 
September 26, 2022. This action does not extend or reopen the comment 
period for NOAA's previous request for comments on the interim final 
rule.

National Marine Sanctuaries Act

    The National Marine Sanctuaries Act (NMSA) authorizes the Secretary 
of

[[Page 37729]]

Commerce (Secretary) to designate, manage, and protect, as a national 
marine sanctuary, any area of the marine environment that is of special 
national significance due to its conservation, recreational, 
ecological, historical, scientific, cultural, archeological, 
educational, or esthetic qualities (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.). NMSA 
provides the legal basis and serves as the authority under which NOAA 
issues this action.

Nicole R. LeBoeuf,
Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services and Coastal Zone Management, 
National Ocean Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-13570 Filed 6-23-22; 8:45 am]
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