81 FR 18558 - Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act; Seafood Import Monitoring Program

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 62 (March 31, 2016)

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is announcing an extension to the comment period for the proposed rule on a seafood import monitoring program published in the Federal Register on February 5, 2016. The comment period is being extended from April 5, 2016 to April 12, 2016. Pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), this proposed rule would establish filing and recordkeeping procedures relating to the importation of certain fish and fish products, in order to implement the MSA's prohibition on the import and trade, in interstate or foreign commerce, of fish taken, possessed, transported or sold in violation of any foreign law or regulation. The information to be filed is proposed to be collected at the time of entry, and makes use of an electronic single window consistent with the Safety and Accountability for Every (SAFE) Port Act of 2006 and other applicable statutes. Specifically, NMFS proposes to integrate collection of catch and landing documentation for certain fish and fish products within the government-wide International Trade Data System (ITDS) and require electronic information collection through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) maintained by the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Under these procedures, NMFS would require an annually renewable International Fisheries Trade Permit (IFTP) and specific data for certain fish and fish products to be filed and retained as a condition of import to enable the United States to exclude the entry into commerce of products of illegal fishing activities. The information to be collected and retained will help authorities verify that the fish or fish products were lawfully acquired by providing information that traces each import shipment from point of harvest to entry-into commerce. The rule will also decrease the incidence of seafood fraud by collecting information at import and requiring retention of documentation so that the information reported (e.g., regarding species and harvest location) can be verified. This proposed rule stipulates the catch and landing data for imports of certain fish and fish products which would be required to be submitted electronically to NMFS through ACE and the requirements for recordkeeping concerning such imports.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 62 (Thursday, March 31, 2016)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 18558]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-07258]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Parts 300 and 600

[Docket No. 150507434-5999-01]
RIN 0648-BF09


Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act; Seafood 
Import Monitoring Program

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of the comment period.

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SUMMARY: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is announcing an 
extension to the comment period for the proposed rule on a seafood 
import monitoring program published in the Federal Register on February 
5, 2016. The comment period is being extended from April 5, 2016 to 
April 12, 2016. Pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (MSA), this proposed rule would establish filing and 
recordkeeping procedures relating to the importation of certain fish 
and fish products, in order to implement the MSA's prohibition on the 
import and trade, in interstate or foreign commerce, of fish taken, 
possessed, transported or sold in violation of any foreign law or 
regulation. The information to be filed is proposed to be collected at 
the time of entry, and makes use of an electronic single window 
consistent with the Safety and Accountability for Every (SAFE) Port Act 
of 2006 and other applicable statutes. Specifically, NMFS proposes to 
integrate collection of catch and landing documentation for certain 
fish and fish products within the government-wide International Trade 
Data System (ITDS) and require electronic information collection 
through the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) maintained by the 
Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP). 
Under these procedures, NMFS would require an annually renewable 
International Fisheries Trade Permit (IFTP) and specific data for 
certain fish and fish products to be filed and retained as a condition 
of import to enable the United States to exclude the entry into 
commerce of products of illegal fishing activities. The information to 
be collected and retained will help authorities verify that the fish or 
fish products were lawfully acquired by providing information that 
traces each import shipment from point of harvest to entry-into 
commerce. The rule will also decrease the incidence of seafood fraud by 
collecting information at import and requiring retention of 
documentation so that the information reported (e.g., regarding species 
and harvest location) can be verified. This proposed rule stipulates 
the catch and landing data for imports of certain fish and fish 
products which would be required to be submitted electronically to NMFS 
through ACE and the requirements for recordkeeping concerning such 
imports.

DATES: Written comments on the proposed rule published February 5, 2016 
(81 FR 6210) must be received on or before April 12, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on this action, identified by NOAA-NMFS-
2015-0122, may be submitted by either of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2015-0122, click the 
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or 
attach your comments.
     Mail: Mark Wildman, International Fisheries Division, 
Office for International Affairs and Seafood Inspection, NOAA 
Fisheries, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.
    All comments received are a part of the public record and will 
generally be posted to http://www.regulations.gov without change. All 
personal identifying information (for example, name and address) 
voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do 
not submit confidential business information or otherwise sensitive or 
protected information.
    NMFS will accept anonymous comments. Enter N/A in the required 
fields if you wish to remain anonymous. Attachments to electronic 
comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or 
Adobe portable document file (PDF) formats only.
    Written comments regarding the burden-hour estimates or other 
aspects of the collection-of-information requirements contained in this 
proposed rule may be submitted to the NOAA Fisheries Office for 
International Affairs and Seafood Inspection and by email to OIRA 
[email protected] or fax to (202) 395-7285.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Wildman, Office for International 
Affairs and Seafood Inspection, NOAA Fisheries (phone 301-427-8350, or 
email [email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Extension of Comment Period

    This document extends the public comment period established in the 
Federal Register for 7 days. There are a number of international 
stakeholders who are potential commenters who need some additional time 
to comment. NMFS is hereby extending the comment period, which was set 
to end on April 5, 2016, to April 12, 2016.

    Dated: March 25, 2016.
Eileen Sobeck,
Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-07258 Filed 3-30-16; 8:45 am]
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