Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; International Dolphin 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 May 18, 2026, during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments. ( printed page 66546)

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

Title: International Dolphin Conservation Program.

OMB Control Number: 0648-0387.

Form Number(s): None.

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

Number of Respondents: 223 respondents.

Average Hours per Response: Transit Waiver: 30 minutes, Vessel Permit Application: 35 minutes, Vessel Operator Permit Application: 10 minutes, Vessel Departure Notification: 10 minutes, Permit Operator Notification Changes: 10 minutes, Modified Net Notification: 10 minutes, Experimental Fishing Permit Applications and Reports: 10 hours, Dolphin Mortality Limit Request: 30 minutes, Vessel Register Annual Notification: 33 minutes, Notification Prior to Transfer of Vessel to Foreign Registry and Flag: 5 minutes, Documentary Evidence Requests by Administrator: 30 minutes, Notification of Purse Seine Closure Period: 12 minutes, Force Majeure Exemption Request: 1 hour, Application for IMO number and Exemption Application: 30 minutes, Sunk Status Request: 5 minutes, and Aging Fleet Request: 10 minutes.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 111 hours.

Needs and Uses: This request is for the revision and extension of OMB Control Number: 0648-0387, sponsored by NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) West Coast Region (WCR). This collection is being revised to remove five (5) of the twenty-one (21) information collections under OMB Control Number: 0648-0387 that were recently added to Control Number 0648-0335, which is sponsored by the NMFS Office of International Affairs, Trade, and Commerce (IATC). The purpose of this revision is to more accurately reflect how the information is being managed. The remaining sixteen (16) information collections are being renewed without modification.

The sixteen unmodified collections of information comply with the requirements of the International Dolphin Conservation Program Act (IDCPA), 16 U.S.C. 1414. The IDCPA amended the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), 16 U.S.C. Ch. 31, and the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act (DPCIA), 16 U.S.C. 1385. The IDCPA and the DPCIA authorize the Secretary of Commerce to promulgate regulations that, inter alia, implement the dolphin-safe labeling standard in the United States by the collection of documents on the dolphin-safe status of tuna import shipments and domestic tuna product processing; by allowing documentary requests to allow for an effective tracking and verification program; and by verifying that tuna was not harvested by a nation under embargo or otherwise prohibited from exporting tuna to the United States.

The IDCPA allows entry of yellowfin tuna into the United States, under specific conditions, from nations in the International Dolphin Conservation Program that would otherwise be under embargo. The IDCPA also allows U.S. fishing vessels to participate in the yellowfin tuna fishery in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean (ETP) on terms equivalent with the vessels of other nations. NOAA collects information to verify these conditions are met and that allows tracking and verification of “dolphin-safe” and “non-dolphin safe” tuna products from catch through the U.S. market.

This collection of information also complies with the requirements of the Tuna Conventions Act (TCA), 16 U.S.C. 951 et seq., which was amended by the “Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing Enforcement Act of 2015” (Pub. L. 114-81). The TCA gives the Secretary of Commerce the authority to enact regulations to fulfill the requirement that all member States maintain and provide to the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) a list of vessels flagged by the member State and (1) authorized by the member State to be used for fishing for tuna and tuna-like species in the IATTC Convention Area, or (2) authorized by other States to be used for fishing for tuna and tuna-like species in their areas of jurisdiction in the IATTC Area, and to maintain and provide for each vessel on that list certain information on its characteristics and its owner and operator. The TCA also gives the Secretary of Commerce authority to implement fishery management resolutions of the IATTC.

The information is used by NMFS, the United States Coast Guard (USGC), and the IATTC to monitor the size and composition of the vessel fleets in the IATTC Convention Area for compliance and scientific-related purposes. Knowing such information as the number of vessels, the details of the vessels and their ownership, and the types of gear employed enables effective monitoring of vessel activity for enforcement and assessment purposes. NMFS also uses this information for the purposes of managing the U.S. purse seine fleet capacity in the IATTC Convention Area.

This collection includes permit applications, notifications, reports, and certifications that provide information on vessel characteristics and operations in the ETP, documentary evidence requests, and certain other information necessary to implement the IDCPA.

The five information collections being removed from 0648-0387 that were added to 0648-0335 “Tuna Tracking and Verification Program” (90 FR 21752, May 21, 2025), also comply with requirements of the IDCPA and DPCIA. They include vessel arrival notifications, tuna tracking forms, tuna product receiving and processing reports, and documents/certifications that provide information on vessel characteristics and operations in the ETP, the origin of tuna and tuna products, and chain of custody recordkeeping requirements.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations.

Frequency: On occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: The information collections under this OMB Control Number have a respondent obligation that can be voluntary or required to obtain benefits based on each individual action.

Legal Authority: The International Dolphin Conservation Program Act (IDCPA), 16 U.S.C. 1414 and The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), 16 U.S.C. Ch. 31.

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 0648-0387.