[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 4 (Friday, January 6, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1056-1057]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-00027]


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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; South Pacific Tuna Act

    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 September 6, 2022 (87 FR 54481) during a 60-day 
comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public 
comments.
    Agency: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Commerce.
    Title: South Pacific Tuna Act.
    OMB Control Number: 0648-0218.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Request: Regular submission (extension of a current 
information collection).
    Number of Respondents: 21.
    Average Hours per Response: License application, 1 hour; Vessel 
Monitoring System (VMS) registration application, 45 minutes; catch 
report, 1 hour; unloading logsheet, 30 minutes; expression of interest, 
2 hours; and renewal, 15 minutes.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: 207.
    Needs and Uses: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
(NOAA) collects vessel license, vessel registration, catch, and 
unloading information from operators of U.S. purse seine vessels 
fishing under the provisions of the Treaty on Fisheries between the 
Governments of Certain Pacific Island States and the Government of the 
United States of America (Treaty). The Treaty provides access for U.S. 
purse seine vessels to fish in the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of 
Pacific Island Parties to the Treaty (PIPs). The PIPs include 
Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, 
Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New 
Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. This 
collection of information is required to meet U.S. obligations under 
the Treaty.
    The South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988 (16 U.S.C. 973-973r) and U.S. 
implementing regulations (50 CFR part 300, subpart D) authorize the 
collection of information from U.S. purse seine vessels fishing in the 
EEZs of PIPs under the Treaty. Vessel operators must submit annual 
vessel license and registration (including registration of vessel 
monitoring system (VMS) units) applications and periodic written 
reports of catch and unloading of fish from licensed vessels. They are 
also required to ensure the continued operation of VMS units on board 
licensed vessels, which is expected to require periodic maintenance of 
the units. The information collected is submitted to the Pacific 
Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) through the U.S. government, 
NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The license and 
registration application information is used by the FFA to determine 
the operational capability and financial responsibility of a vessel 
operator interested in fishing under the Treaty. Information obtained 
from vessel catch and unloading reports is used by the FFA to assess 
fishing effort and fishery resources in the region and to track the 
amount of fish caught within each PIP's EEZ. Maintenance of VMS units 
is needed to ensure the continuous operation of the VMS units, which, 
as part of the VMS administered by the FFA, are used as an enforcement 
tool. If the information is not collected, the U.S. government will not 
meet its obligations under the Treaty, and the lack of fishing 
information will result in poor management of the fishery resources.
    There are no changes to the collection.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: 16 U.S.C. 973-973r.
    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.

[[Page 1057]]

    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 0648-0218.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2023-00027 Filed 1-5-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P