Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Antarctic Marine Living Resources Conservation and Management Measures

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 May 4, 2026, during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.

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

Title: Antarctic Marine Living Resources Conservation and Management Measures.

OMB Control Number: 0648-0194.

Form Number(s): None.

Type of Request: Regular submission [extension of a current information collection].

Number of Respondents: 79 unique respondents.

Average Hours per Response: 1 hour to apply for a CEMP research permit; 1 hour to report on research; 28 hours to supply information on potential new or exploratory fishing; 2 hours to apply for a harvesting permit; 5 minutes to transmit information by radio; 4 hours to install a vessel monitoring device (VMS); 2 hours for annual VMS maintenance; 15 minutes to mark a vessel; 5 minutes to mark buoys; 10 hours to mark pot gear; 2 minutes to mark trawl nets; 15 minutes to provide notice of transshipment within the Convention Area; 15 minutes to apply for a permit to be a first receiver of Antarctic marine living resources; 30 minutes to complete and submit a toothfish catch document; 15 minutes to apply for pre-approval of toothfish imports; 15 minutes to complete and submit re-export catch documents; 15 minutes to submit import tickets.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 355.

Needs and Uses: The Office of International Affairs, Trade, and Commerce of the National Marine Fisheries Service requests renewal of an existing information collection.

The 1982 Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (the Convention) established the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) for the purpose of protecting and conserving the marine living resources in the waters surrounding Antarctica. The Convention is based upon an ecosystem approach to the conservation of marine living resources and incorporates standards designed to ensure the conservation of individual populations and species and the Antarctic marine ecosystem.

The United States (U.S.) is a Contracting Party to the Convention and a member of CCAMLR and the Scientific Committee established by the Convention.

On November 8, 1984, the President signed Public Law 98-623, the Antarctic Marine Living Resources Convention Act (AMLRCA, or the Act). The Act directs and authorizes the U.S. to take actions necessary to meet its treaty obligations as a Contracting Party to the ( printed page 65730) Convention. The regulations implementing AMLRCA are at 50 CFR part 300, subpart G. The record keeping and reporting requirements at 50 CFR part 300 form the basis for this collection of information. This collection of information concerns CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Program (CEMP) activities, scientific research in the Convention Area, U.S. vessel permit applicants and/or harvesting vessel operators, and U.S. importers, exporters, and re-exporters of Antarctic marine living resources (AMLR).

U.S. regulations require U.S. individuals engaged in AMLR harvesting, transshipping, and importing or entering and/or conducting activities in a CEMP site to apply for and hold a permit for such activities. Individuals involved in certain scientific research in the Convention area are required to report information.

Members of CCAMLR are required to provide, in a manner and at such intervals as may be prescribed, information about harvesting activities, including fishing areas and vessels, so as to enable reliable catch and effort statistics to be compiled.

As part of U.S. obligations to monitor and control the import, export, and re-export of Antarctic marine living resources, NOAA requires dealers to submit applications for pre-approval certifications of imports of frozen Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish (also referred to as Chilean sea bass) and applications for re-exports of these species.

The collection is necessary for the U.S. to meet its treaty obligations as a contracting party to the Convention.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; not-for-profit institutions; individuals or households.

Frequency: Annual and on occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.

Legal Authority: Antarctic Marine Living Resources Convention Act, 16 U.S.C. 2431 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 0648-0194.