Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; an Observer Program for At-Sea Processing Vessels in the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery
| Published date | 02 April 2021 |
| Citation | 86 FR 17369 |
| Record Number | 2021-06802 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration |
Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 62 (Friday, April 2, 2021)
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 62 (Friday, April 2, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Page 17369]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06802]
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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; an Observer Program for At-Sea Processing Vessels in the
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery
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 January 6, 2021 (86 FR 522), 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: An Observer Program for At-Sea Processing Vessels in the
Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery.
OMB Control Number: 0648-0500.
Form Number(s): None.
Type of Request: Regular submission (extension of a current
information collection).
Number of Respondents: 268 (5 providers (supplying a total of 75
observers or catch monitors) and 263 fishing vessels).
Average Hours per Response: For providers: 15 minutes for observer
training/briefing/debriefing registration, notification of observer
physical examination, observer status reports, other reports on
observer harassment, safety concerns, or performance problems, catch
monitor status reports, and other catch monitor reports on harassment,
prohibited actions, illness or injury, or performance problems; 5
minutes for observer safety checklist submission to NMFS, observer
provider contracts, observer information materials, catch monitor
provider contracts, and catch monitor informational materials; 10
minutes for certificate of insurance; 7 minutes for catch monitor
training/briefing registration, notification of catch monitor physical
examination, and catch monitor debriefing registration. For vessels: 10
minutes for fishing departure reports and cease-fishing reports.
Total Annual Burden Hours: 621 hours.
Needs and Uses: In 2011, the National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) mandated observer requirements for the West Coast groundfish
trawl catch shares program. For all fishery sectors, observers must be
obtained through third-party observer provider companies operating
under permits issued by NMFS. The regulations at Sec. Sec. 660.140
(h), 660.150 (j), and 660.160 (g), specify observer coverage
requirements for trawl vessels and define the responsibilities for
observer providers, including reporting requirements. Regulations at
Sec. 660.140 (i) specify requirements for catch monitor coverage for
first receivers. Data collected by observers are used by NMFS to
estimate total landed catch and discards, monitor the attainment of
annual groundfish allocations, estimate catch rates of prohibited
species, and as a component in stock assessments. These data are
necessary to comply with the Magnuson-Stevens Act requirements to
prevent overfishing. In addition, observer data is used to assess
fishing related mortality of protected and endangered species.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations.
Frequency: Reporting on occasion, weekly, or yearly.
Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
Legal Authority: Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act.
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 0648-0500.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2021-06802 Filed 4-1-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
