[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 23, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4279-4281]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01121]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XD626]


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone off Alaska; Application 
for an Exempted Fishing Permit

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application for exempted fishing permit.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces NMFS' receipt of an application and the 
public comment period for an exempted fishing permit (EFP) from Real 
Time Data North America, LLC (RTDNA), a private company specializing in 
software/application development. If issued, this permit would allow 
the applicant to test methods for its software application to interface 
with and meet the electronic logbook (ELB) requirements without also 
meeting the duplicate hard copies recordkeeping and reporting 
requirement. The objectives of this EFP, if issued, would be to exempt 
fishery participants from the requirement to print paper logbooks when 
using a RTDNA ELB, and to test and scale a fully electronic reporting 
system in partnership with the NMFS Alaska Regional Office. Field 
testing would be conducted between March 1, 2024 and January 1, 2026. 
This experiment would have the potential to streamline recordkeeping 
and reporting requirements and thus promote the objectives of the 
Magnuson-Stevens

[[Page 4280]]

Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act).

DATES: Comments on this EFP application must be submitted to NMFS on or 
before February 12, 2024. The North Pacific Fishery Management Council 
(Council) will consider the application at its meeting from February 5, 
2024 through February 12, 2024.

ADDRESSES: The Council meeting will be held virtually and in person in 
Seattle, WA. The agenda for the Council meeting is available at https://www.npfmc.org. In addition to submitting public comments during the 
Council meeting through the Council website, you may submit your 
comments, identified by NOAA-NMFS-2023-0158, by either of the following 
methods:
     Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and enter [NOAA-NMFS-2023-0158] in the Search box 
(note: copying and pasting the FDMS Docket Number directly from this 
document may not yield search results). Click on the ``Comment'' icon, 
complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Gretchen Harrington, 
Assistant Regional Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries Division, 
Alaska Region NMFS, Attn: Records Office. Mail comments to P.O. Box 
21668, Juneau, AK 99802-1668.
     Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any 
other address or individual, or received after the end of the comment 
period, may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part 
of the public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on 
https://www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address), confidential business information, 
or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily by the sender 
will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter 
``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain anonymous).
    Electronic copies of the EFP application and the basis for a 
categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act are 
available from https://www.regulations.gov or from the NMFS Alaska 
Region website at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/region/alaska.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amy Hadfield, 907-586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS manages the groundfish fisheries in the 
exclusive economic zone of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) 
and GOA under the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Groundfish of the 
BSAI Management Area (BSAI FMP) and the FMP for Groundfish of the GOA 
(GOA FMP). The Council prepared the BSAI and GOA FMPs under the 
authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Act, 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. Regulations governing the BSAI and GOA 
groundfish fisheries appear at parts 600 and 679. The FMPs and the EFP-
implementing regulations at Sec.  600.745(b) and Sec.  679.6 allow the 
NMFS Regional Administrator to authorize, for limited experimental 
purposes, fishing that would otherwise be prohibited. Procedures for 
issuing EFPs are contained in the implementing regulations.

Background and Need for Exempted Fishing Permit

    NMFS requires daily fishing logbooks to be completed by most 
catcher vessels operating under a Federal Fisheries Permit. NMFS 
logbooks serve as a record of the location and time of fishing gear 
deployment and retrieval and the harvest and discard of target and non-
target species. Logbook data are used to manage fisheries and assist in 
monitoring compliance with fishery regulations. Most vessel operators 
currently use paper logbooks to record the required information. 
However, upon approval of the Regional Administrator, vessel operators 
may use NMFS-approved electronic versions of the logbook. These systems 
are called electronic logbooks (ELBs).
    Beginning in 2015, NMFS developed, with Council input, the 
Electronic Technologies Implementation Plan for the Alaska Region to 
guide integration of monitoring technologies into North Pacific 
fisheries management and provide goals and benchmarks to evaluate 
attainment of goals (plan and updates are available at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/fisheries-observers/electronic-technologies-implementation-plans). The plan identified several North 
Pacific fisheries where electronic logbooks would be beneficial to 
management.
    In 2023, RTDNA was awarded funding by the National Fish and 
Wildlife Federation to advance the development of electronic logbooks 
in Alaska's fishing industry. Throughout the year, RTDNA implemented 
the Deckhand ELB on 29 vessels as part of a pilot project. This 
initiative highlighted several regulatory challenges, particularly for 
smaller vessels. The feedback from vessel operators delivered to both 
RTDNA and NMFS staff revealed that existing regulations, initially 
designed without considering modern technologies like tablets, hinder 
the transition from paper-based recordkeeping to fully electronic 
logbooks. This pilot phase underscored the need for regulatory 
adaptations to accommodate electronic logbook systems.
    Current regulations in the Alaska Region mandate daily printing and 
signatures on board vessels for users of NMFS-approved ELBs in Alaska 
federal fisheries. These regulations significantly limit the ability 
and potential for ELB technology to comprehensively benefit fishers and 
NMFS. NMFS believes the printing and signature requirements should be 
reconsidered and updated to allow innovation in modern ELB 
technologies. This requested EFP would exempt fishers from the 
regulations found in Sec.  679.5(f)(3) and (4) that require fishing 
vessels to produce printed copies of ELB logsheets, ELB discard 
reports, and signatures on printed copies. If approved, this EFP would 
facilitate further research into necessary regulatory changes to 
integrate electronic logbooks effectively with modern technology.

Exempted Fishing Permit

    On October 20, 2023, Mr. Lange Solberg of RTDNA submitted an 
application for an EFP to develop and test changes in regulations found 
in Sec.  679.5(f)(3) and Sec.  679.5(f)(4) that require vessels using 
ELB logbooks to produce printed copies of ELB logsheets, ELB discard 
reports, and signatures on printed copies. The objectives of this 
proposed EFP are as follows:
     To test 100 percent electronic submission of logbook and 
discard reports.
     To evaluate the effectiveness of electronic reporting in 
improving data accuracy and timeliness.
     To assess the feasibility of transferring data 
electronically to observers and International Pacific Halibut 
Commission port samplers.
     To demonstrate the potential for cost savings and 
efficiency gains through digital processes.
     To explore ways to enhance compliance with fishing 
regulations via electronic reporting.
     To gather data on the impact of electronic reporting on 
vessel operations.
    Vessel operators participating in this project would utilize the 
Deckhand ELB platform, which is an iPad with RTDNA's software 
application installed, for data collection in halibut and groundfish 
fisheries in the North Pacific. Vessel operators would provide

[[Page 4281]]

access to these devices to authorized personnel on request and test 
alternate methods to a physical signature. Ideas that are currently 
under consideration include a digital signature component for 
validation, using a personal identification number (PIN) for each 
operator.
    Vessel operators would also assist in the testing methods for 
transferring logbook data to observers, IPHC port samplers and other 
authorized personnel either directly from the electronic device or via 
electronic communications. This project aims to improve overall 
efficiency, provide access to necessary ELB data and enable an end-to-
end testing of a fully electronic logbook data collection and 
submission framework.

Exemptions

    Two exemptions are necessary to conduct this project. First, an 
exemption would be necessary from the requirement at Sec.  679.5(f)(3) 
for printed copies of ELB logsheet and discard reports on board 
participating vessels.
    The second exemption would be from Sec.  679.5(f)(4)'s requirement 
for physical signatures on printed ELB logsheets and discard reports on 
board participating vessels. Physical signatures would be replaced by 
electronic signatures using PINs.

Permit Conditions, Review, and Effects

    The applicant would be required to submit to NMFS a report of the 
EFP results six months after the close of the 2025 IFQ fishing season. 
The report would include the method(s) chosen for digital signature and 
a comparison among methods if applicable; interactions with observers, 
port samplers and an analysis of both benefits and challenges of 
transferring required data to them electronically; and an analysis of 
cost savings, efficiency and impact aboard participating vessels. Under 
the current regulations, observers and port samplers both collect 
physical hard copies of the logbooks. Since there would no longer be 
physical pages under this EFP, best methods for the vessel operator to 
provide that information electronically must be developed. The 
activities that would be conducted under this EFP are not expected to 
have a significant impact on the human environment, as detailed in the 
categorical exclusion for this action (see ADDRESSES).
    In accordance with Sec. Sec.  679.6 and 600.745, NMFS has 
determined that the application warrants further consideration and has 
forwarded the application to the Council to initiate consultation. The 
Council is scheduled to consider the EFP application during its 
February 2024 meeting, which will be held in person in Seattle, WA with 
an option to participate virtually. The EFP application will also be 
provided to the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee for 
review at the February Council meeting. The applicant has been invited 
to speak in support of the application.

Public Comments

    Interested persons may comment on the application during the 
February 2024 Council meeting during public testimony or the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal (see ADDRESSES) until February 12, 2024 when the 
comment period ends. Information regarding the meeting is available at 
the Council's website at http://www.npfmc.org. Copies of the 
application and categorical exclusion are available for review from 
NMFS (see ADDRESSES). Comments may also be submitted directly to NMFS 
(see ADDRESSES) by the end of the comment period (see DATES).
    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: January 17, 2024.
Everett Wayne Baxter,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-01121 Filed 1-22-24; 8:45 am]
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