81 FR 1173 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Southeast Region Permit Family of Forms

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 6 (January 11, 2016)

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 6 (Monday, January 11, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1173-1174]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00261]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Southeast 
Region Permit Family of Forms

AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort 
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public 
and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on 
proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before March 11, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th 
and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet 
at [email protected]).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument and instructions should 
be directed to Adam Bailey, National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), 
Southeast Regional Office (SERO), 263 13th Avenue South, St. 
Petersburg, FL 33701, (727) 824-5305 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    This request is for a revision to the existing reporting 
requirements approved under OMB Control No. 0648-0205, Southeast Region 
Permit Family of Forms. The SERO Permits Office (Southeast Permits 
Office) administers Federal fishing permits in the Gulf of Mexico 
(Gulf), South Atlantic, and Caribbean Sea under the authority of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, 16 U.S.C. 
1801. The Southeast Permits Office proposes to revise two parts of the 
collection-of-information approved under OMB Control Number 0648-0205.
    Currently, NMFS requires fishermen (respondents) to display one 
adhesive decal on their vessel indicating that they have a Federal 
fishing permit in at least one of two Gulf fisheries; the applicable 
permits are the Charter Vessel/Headboat Permit for Gulf Reef Fish, the 
Charter Vessel/Headboat Permit for Gulf Coastal Migratory Pelagic fish, 
and their respective Historical Captain endorsements. NMFS proposes to 
revise OMB Control Number 0648-0205 to split the single decal covering 
both fisheries into two decals, with one decal administered with each 
specific fishery permit or endorsement. In addition, this revision also 
addresses a new fee of $10 per decal to cover administrative costs, as 
required by NOAA Finance Handbook, Exhibit 9-1. The Federal Permit 
Application for Vessels Fishing in the Exclusive Economic Zone would 
also be revised to reflect the new fee. The decal is currently issued 
at no cost to permit applicants. These decals allow individuals and law 
enforcement officials to easily identify vessels that have Federal 
permits.
    NMFS estimates this revision could affect up to 1,331 respondents 
(applicants), which is the total number of permitted charter and 
headboat vessels in these limited access fisheries, including the 
Historical Captain endorsements for each fishery. The maximum number of 
permits and endorsements at this time is 2,645. Generally, the 1,331 
respondents have a set of 2 permits, but it is not required. Each of 
the two permits or endorsements that a respondent may have can be split 
up and held by two respondents. Some of these have been split up and 
that is why there is an odd number of permits, and the number of 
respondents is not exactly half of the maximum number of permits and 
endorsements.
    Because of the new fee and instructions, NMFS has revised the time 
burden required to indicate which permit the respondent is renewing or 
transferring up to 30 seconds. The time burden estimated for this part 
of the revision is 11.1 hours annually. Although it is not expected, 
all 1,331 respondents could potentially renew, or transfer or obtain 2 
different permits or endorsements, requiring up to 2 decals to be 
purchased. NMFS estimates the total annual cost at up to $26,450.
    The Southeast Permits Office is also proposing to collect 
additional information on five applications for economic analysis and 
for purposes of notifying respondents. These data include race, sex, 
and business type and ownership information, as well as email addresses 
and the option to provide cellular contact information for digital 
notifications. The revision will also include a small business 
certification section, so NMFS can determine if the respondent is a 
small or large business according to standards established by the Small 
Business Administration.
    These proposed revisions will not change the current cost burden 
but will increase the annual time burden for respondents. NMFS 
estimates this revision could affect up to 6,641 respondents across the 
5 applications being revised, which includes the 1,331 respondents 
described above. The time burden estimated for this part of the 
revision is 925.9 hours annually.
    NMFS estimates that the requested revision would add 0 respondents, 
6,641 responses, 937 burden hours, and $26,450 in total costs annually 
to the collection-of-information under OMB Control Number 0648-0205.

II. Method of Collection

    Respondents complete applications on paper forms, and then can 
either mail or bring applications to the Southeast Permits Office. 
Online application renewals are currently available only for some of 
the permits included on the Federal Permit Application for Vessels 
Fishing in the Exclusive Economic Zone. The Southeast Permits Office 
can mail applications and instructions or they can be downloaded from 
the Southeast Permits Office Web site at sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/permits. 
The Southeast Permits Office cannot send or receive applications by fax 
or email, because applications must have an original signature, which 
is not possible by fax or email.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0648-0205.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Review: Regular submission (revision of current information 
collection).

[[Page 1174]]

    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 6,641.
    Estimated Time per Response: Vessel Application, 39 minutes; Dealer 
Application, 29 minutes; Operator Card, 21 minutes; Wreckfish 
Application, 21 minutes; Aquaculture Live Rock Application, 21 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 7,023.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $483,828 in recordkeeping or 
reporting costs.

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

    Dated: January 5, 2016.
Sarah Brabson,
NOAA PRA Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2016-00261 Filed 1-8-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P