[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 159 (Friday, August 16, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66695-66696]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-18385]


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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; Coral Reef Conservation Program

    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 April 30, 2024, during a 60-day comment period. 
This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.
    Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Commerce.
    Title: Coral Reef Conservation Program.
    OMB Control Number: 0648-0448.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Request: Revision of a current information collection.
    Number of Respondents: 49.
    Average Hours per Response: 13.7.
    Total Annual Burden Hours: 1004.
    Needs and Uses: This request is for revision to an approved 
collection of information and new information collection under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., and implementing 
regulations at 5 CFR part 1320. The Coral Reef Conservation Act of 
2000, 16 U.S.C. 6401 et seq., has been amended since the last approval 
and the revised requirements for information collection are outlined 
below.
    The Coral Reef Conservation Act was enacted to conserve and restore 
the condition of United States coral reef ecosystems challenged by 
natural and human-accelerated changes; to promote the science-based 
management and sustainable use of coral reef ecosystems to benefit 
local communities and the Nation; to develop sound scientific 
information on the condition of coral reef ecosystems, continuing and 
emerging threats to such ecosystems, and the efficacy of innovative 
tools, technologies, and strategies to mitigate stressors and restore 
such ecosystems; to assist in the preservation of coral reefs by 
supporting science-based, consensus-driven, and community-based coral 
reef management by covered States (Florida, Hawaii, and the territories 
of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
Guam, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands) and covered 
Native entities (an Indian Tribe, the Department of Hawaiian Home 
Lands, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, or a Native Hawaiian 
organization with interests in a coral reef ecosystem); to provide 
financial resources, technical assistance, and scientific expertise to 
supplement, complement, and strengthen community-based management 
programs and conservation and restoration projects of non-Federal 
reefs; to establish a formal mechanism for collecting and allocating 
monetary donations from the private sector to be used for coral reef 
conservation and restoration projects; to support rapid, effective, and 
science-based assessment and response to exigent circumstances that 
pose immediate and long-term threats to coral reefs; and to serve as a 
model for advancing similar international efforts to monitor, conserve, 
and restore coral reef ecosystems.
    Under section 6406 of the Act (Block Grants), covered States are 
responsible for documenting and reporting the State's use of Federal 
funds received under the Act; and expenditures of non-Federal funds 
made in furtherance of coral reef management and restoration as the 
NOAA Administrator (Administrator) deems appropriate. The Administrator 
is responsible for providing guidance on the proper documentation of 
expenditures.
    Under section 6410 of the Act (Ruth D. Gates Coral Reef 
Conservation Grant Program), the NOAA Administrator, and subject to the 
availability of appropriations, is authorized to provide up to 
$3,500,000 annually (per section 6414(c)) in grants for coral reef 
conservation projects.
    Under section 6405 of the Act, Federal agencies, covered State or 
County resource management agencies, and/or covered Native entities may 
form and chair stewardship partnerships to further community-based 
stewardship of coral reefs. The NOAA Administrator is responsible for 
identifying ecologically significant coral reef units that stewardship 
partnerships may be focused on and adjudicating multiple applicants for 
stewardship of the same of overlapping reef units to ensure no 
geographic overlap in representation among stewardship partnerships.
    The match waiver requests and request for written comments are 
being removed from this collection as they are no longer applicable. 
The match waiver requests may still be made under Ruth D. Gates but are 
not expected and not requested of applicants. They were included in the 
original because all territories (5) requested a match waiver, however, 
their awards are now located in Block Grants, and there is no matching 
requirement. The Ruth D. Gates application process now requires 
``evidence of support for the project by appropriate representatives of 
States . . . in which the project will be conducted'' on the front end.
    Additionally, the Performance Progress Report (PPR) from collection 
0648-0718 is being added to this collection so that all program 
requirements are under a single control number. The PPR will be removed 
from 0648-0718 at the next renewal period.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; 
nonprofit, nongovernmental, and not-for-profit institutions; state or 
local government; institutions of higher education; and regional 
fishery management councils established under the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.).
    Frequency: Annually.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits for 
grant-related collections, or voluntary for coral reef stewardship 
partnership submissions.

[[Page 66696]]

    Legal Authority: The Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000, 16 U.S.C. 
6401 et seq.,
    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 0648-0448.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Under Secretary for 
Economic Affairs, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2024-18385 Filed 8-15-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-08-P