Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules 9735 

Federal eRulemaking Portal at http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

• Mail: P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK 

99802. 

• Fax: (907) 586–7557. 

• Hand delivery to the Federal 

Building: 709 West 9th Street, Room 

420A, Juneau, AK. 

All comments received are a part of 

the public record. Comments will 

generally be posted without change. All 

Personal Identifying Information (for 

example, name, address, etc.) 

voluntarily submitted by the commenter 

may be publicly accessible. Do not 

submit Confidential Business 

Information or otherwise sensitive or 

protected information. 

We will accept anonymous comments 

(enter N/A in the required fields, if you 

wish to remain anonymous). You may 

submit attachments to electronic 

comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, 

WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file formats 

only. 

The proposed rule, status review 

report, and other materials relating to 

this proposal can be found on the 

Alaska Region Web site at: http:// 

alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Tamara Olson, NMFS Alaska Region, 

(907) 271–5006; Kaja Brix, NMFS 

Alaska Region, (907) 586–7235; or Marta 

Nammack, Office of Protected 

Resources, Silver Spring, MD (301) 713– 

1401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On December 10, 2010 (75 FR 77476), 

we published a proposed rule to list the 

Beringia and Okhotsk Distinct 

Population Segments (DPSs) of the 

bearded seal as threatened under the 

ESA. Based on the status of these DPSs, 

we also proposed protective regulations 

pursuant to section 4(d) of the ESA for 

these DPSs to include all of the 

prohibitions in section 9(a)(1) of the 

ESA. The original due date for 

comments on these proposed actions 

(February 8, 2011) was extended to 

March 25, 2011 (76 FR 6754; February 

8, 2011). 

Public Hearings 

Joint Commerce-Interior ESA 

implementing regulations state that the 

Secretary shall promptly hold at least 

one public hearing if any person 

requests one within 45 days of 

publication of a proposed regulation to 

list a species or to designate critical 

habitat (see 50 CFR 424.16(c)(3)). In 

response to requests from various 

parties to hold public hearings in a 

number of locations in Alaska, we will 

hold three public hearings: one in 

Anchorage, one in Barrow, and one in 

Nome. We will accept oral and written 

comments on both the proposed rule for 

bearded seals and the proposed rule for 

ringed seals (75 FR 77476; December 10, 

2010) during these hearings. 

People wishing to make an oral 

statement for the record at a public 

hearing are encouraged to provide a 

written copy of their statement and 

present it to us at the hearing. In the 

event that attendance at the public 

hearings is large, the time allotted for 

oral statements may be limited. Oral and 

written statements receive equal 

consideration. There are no limits on 

the length of written comments 

submitted to us. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1533 et seq. 

Dated: February 15, 2011. 

Helen Golde, 

Acting Director, Office of Protected Resources. 

[FR Doc. 2011–3882 Filed 2–16–11; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[Docket No. 110207101–1097–01] 

RIN 0648–BA54 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish 

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Red 

Snapper Management Measures 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS issues this proposed 

rule that would implement a regulatory 

amendment to the Fishery Management 

Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the 

Gulf of Mexico (FMP) prepared by the 

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 

Council (Council). This proposed rule 

would increase the commercial and 

recreational quotas for red snapper in 

the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) reef fish 

fishery for the 2011 fishing year, 

provided that NMFS determines the 

total allowable catch (TAC) was not 

exceeded in the 2010 fishing year. This 

rule also proposes minor revisions to 

codified text, including revisions to the 

definition of ‘‘actual ex-vessel value,’’ 

extending the maintenance window for 

the Gulf individual fishing quota (IFQ) 

programs, and removing obsolete 

codified text for Gulf grouper. The 

intended effect of this proposed rule is 

to help achieve optimum yield (OY) for 

Gulf red snapper without increasing the 

risk of the red snapper resource 

experiencing overfishing, allow for 

better functioning and enforcement of 

the Gulf IFQ programs, and to 

implement a technical correction to the 

regulations. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before March 24, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the proposed rule, identified by 

0648–BA54, by any of the following 

methods: 

• Electronic submissions: Submit 

electronic comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Mail: Rich Malinowski, Southeast 

Regional Office, NMFS, 263 13th 

Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701. 

Instructions: 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, address, etc.) 

voluntarily submitted by the commenter 

may be publicly accessible. Do not 

submit Confidential Business 

Information or otherwise sensitive or 

protected information. 

To submit comments through the 

Federal e-rulemaking portal http:// 

www.regulations.gov, enter ‘‘NOAA– 

NMFS–2011–0018’’ in the keyword 

search, then check the box labeled 

‘‘Select to find documents accepting 

comments or submissions,’’ then select 

‘‘Send a comment or submission.’’ 

NMFS will accept anonymous 

comments (enter N/A in the required 

field if you wish to remain anonymous). 

You may submit attachments to 

electronic comments in Microsoft Word, 

Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file 

formats only. 

Comments received through means 

not specified in this proposed rule will 

not be considered. 

Copies of the regulatory amendment, 

which includes an environmental 

assessment and a regulatory impact 

review, may be obtained from the Gulf 

of Mexico Fishery Management Council, 

2203 North Lois Avenue, Suite 1100, 

Tampa, FL 33607; telephone 813–348– 

1630; fax 813–348–1711; e-mail 

gulfcouncil@gulfcouncil.org; or may be 

downloaded from the Council’s Web 

site at http://www.gulfcouncil.org/. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rich 

Malinowski, 727–824–5308. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The reef 

fish fishery of the Gulf of Mexico is 

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9736 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules 

managed under the FMP. The FMP was 

prepared by the Council and is 

implemented through regulations at 50 

CFR part 622 under the authority of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act). 

Background 

The Southeast Data, Assessment, and 

Review (SEDAR) update assessment for 

Gulf red snapper was conducted in 

August 2009 (SEDAR 9), with the 

objective of updating the SEDAR 7 

benchmark assessment conducted in 

2005 (SEDAR 7). To accomplish this 

goal, the 2009 SEDAR assessment 

updated, reviewed, and incorporated 

into the model all data included in 

SEDAR 7. The 2009 SEDAR update 

assessment projected that overfishing 

had ended for the red snapper stock, 

and therefore, TAC for this species may 

be increased. The stock, however, is still 

overfished and under a rebuilding plan. 

The rebuilding plan for Gulf red 

snapper was outlined in Amendment 22 

to the FMP, and implemented through 

regulations in 2005. The final rule 

implementing Amendment 22 to the 

FMP became effective on July 5, 2005 

(70 FR 32266, June 2, 2005). Actions 

taken through Joint Amendment 27 to 

the FMP and Amendment 14 to the FMP 

for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of 

Mexico (implemented February 28, 

2008, 73 FR 5117, published January 29, 

2008) revised the red snapper rebuilding 

strategy with the intent to end 

overfishing by 2009 or 2010, and to 

rebuild red snapper by 2032 to the 

biomass levels that can support harvest 

of the maximum sustainable yield 

(MSY). The revised rebuilding plan 

outlined that after 2010, TAC would be 

increased consistent with a fishing 

mortality rate that produces MSY. 

In response to the rebuilding plan, the 

Council’s Scientific and Statistical 

Committee (SSC) recommended 3 years 

of increasing acceptable biological catch 

(ABC) levels from 2010 through 2012. 

The ABC level for red snapper set by the 

SSC is 25-percent below the overfishing 

limit, which is also the rebuilding yield, 

to account for scientific uncertainty in 

the numbers. This buffer further 

increases the likelihood that red 

snapper will be rebuilt by 2032. In 2010, 

however, the Council and NMFS raised 

the TAC for 2010 only. 

In February 2010, the Council 

submitted a regulatory amendment to 

set the red snapper TAC for 2010 at 

6.945 million lb (3.150 million kg), 

which was the ABC recommended by 

the SSC. The Council chose not to set 

TACs beyond 2010 because of scientific 

uncertainty about future levels of red 

snapper stock, and concern regarding 

the likelihood of the recreational sector 

to overrun the quota. NMFS published 

a final rule on May 3, 2010 (75 FR 

23186), implementing the February 

2010 regulatory amendment. That rule 

set the commercial quota for Gulf red 

snapper at 3.542 million lb (1.607 

million kg), and the recreational quota 

at 3.403 million lb (1.544 million kg). 

The final rule also included a closure 

date for the 2010 recreational sector 

based on estimates of when the 

recreational quota was projected to be 

caught. NMFS projected that the 

recreational sector quota for red snapper 

would be met after a 53-day fishing 

season, and on July 24, 2010, NMFS 

closed the recreational sector for red 

snapper. The Magnuson-Stevens Act 

requires NMFS to close the recreational 

red snapper sector in Federal waters 

when the quota is met or projected to be 

met. 

Although NMFS had already 

projected a recreational season for red 

snapper for the 2010 fishing year, an 

unforeseen event occurred in April 2010 

that contributed to the recreational 

quota not being met by the closure date. 

On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater 

Horizon MC252 deep-sea drilling rig 

exploded and sank off the coast of 

Louisiana. Because of the resulting oil 

spill, approximately one-third of the 

Gulf was closed to fishing for much of 

the summer. The direct loss of fishing 

opportunities due to the closure, plus 

the reduction in tourism throughout the 

Gulf coast, resulted in a much lower 

catch than had been projected. In a 

report dated August 13, 2009 (http:// 

sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sf/pdfs/2010_

Recreational_Red_Snapper_Quota_

Closure_Analysis_Fall_Reopening.pdf), 

NMFS estimated 2.3 million lb (1.1 

million kg) of the 3.4 million lb (1.5 

million kg) recreational quota remained 

unharvested. Consequently, on October 

1, 2010, the Council and NMFS 

reopened the recreational red snapper 

season for 24 more fishing days (eight 

consecutive weekends—Fridays, 

Saturdays, and Sundays—through 

November 21, 2010). The reopening of 

the recreational red snapper season was 

intended to provide fishermen the 

opportunity to harvest the recreational 

red snapper quota and achieve the OY 

for the fishery. 

At present, there is no evidence that 

the oil spill has adversely impacted the 

adult stock of red snapper, and the 

fishing mortality rate of red snapper 

remains below the overfishing 

threshold. The next SEDAR benchmark 

stock assessment currently scheduled 

for Gulf red snapper is in 2014. 

Management Measures Contained in 

This Proposed Rule 

This Gulf red snapper regulatory 

amendment would set the TAC for 2011 

and subsequent fishing years at 7.185 

million lb (3.259 million kg), provided 

that the 2010 TAC has not been 

exceeded. Based on the current 

commercial and recreational allocations 

(51-percent commercial and 49-percent 

recreational), the TAC would be 

implemented through this proposed rule 

by setting the Gulf red snapper 

commercial quota at 3.664 million lb 

(1.662 million kg), and the recreational 

quota at 3.521 million lb (1.544 million 

kg). However, if NMFS determines the 

combined commercial and recreational 

quota from 2010 was exceeded, NMFS 

will maintain the quota from 2010 in the 

2011 fishing year. If this is the case, the 

Assistant Administrator will file a 

notification with the Office of the 

Federal Register to announce the 

commercial and recreational quotas will 

remain at the quotas of the 2010 fishing 

year. 

The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires 

NMFS to close the recreational red 

snapper sector in Federal waters when 

the quota is met or projected to be met. 

NMFS will set the recreational season 

length for 2011 after finalized 2010 

recreational landings data are available 

and before the season opens on June 1, 

2011. NMFS may announce the 

recreational red snapper season in the 

final rule associated with this action. 

The red snapper management 

measures contained in this proposed 

rule would achieve the goal of National 

Standard 1 of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, which states that conservation and 

management measures shall prevent 

overfishing while achieving, on a 

continuing basis, the optimum yield for 

the fishery. 

Additional Measures Contained in This 

Proposed Rule 

IFQ Program Changes 

In § 622.2 of the current regulations, 

‘‘actual ex-vessel value’’ is defined as the 

total monetary sale amount a fisherman 

receives from IFQ landings from a 

registered IFQ dealer. Many Gulf reef 

fish IFQ dealers, however, are reporting 

very low ex-vessel prices for IFQ fish 

because trip expenses and transferred 

(leased) allocation are deducted from 

the price paid by the dealer. Through 

this rulemaking, NMFS proposes to 

revise the definition of ‘‘actual ex-vessel 

value’’ in § 622.2 of the regulations, so 

that actual ex-vessel value represents 

the price paid per pound of fish before 

any deductions are made for transferred 

(leased) allocation and goods and 

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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules 9737 

services (e.g., bait, ice, fuel, repairs, 

machinery replacement, etc.). This 

revision will allow NMFS to more 

accurately analyze the total value of the 

Gulf red snapper and grouper and 

tilefish fisheries, and will more 

appropriately align the definition with 

the original intent of the IFQ programs. 

Sections 622.16 and 622.20 of the 

current regulations restrict IFQ 

transactions during a 12-hour 

maintenance window at year-end. The 

regulations state that all transactions 

must be completed by 6 p.m. eastern 

time December 31 and may resume at 6 

a.m. eastern time January 1 of the next 

year. This maintenance window is 

necessary to provide NMFS time to 

reconcile IFQ accounts, adjust 

allocations for the upcoming fishing 

year if the commercial quotas for IFQ 

managed species have changed, and to 

update shares and allocations for the 

upcoming fishing year. This 

maintenance window, however, is too 

short to complete all of the necessary 

changes and updates to the IFQ program 

prior to the start of the next fishing year. 

This rulemaking proposes to extend the 

maintenance window an additional 8 

hours to allow for more time to conduct 

end-of-year maintenance. It also clarifies 

how fishermen can submit an IFQ 

landing notification during the 

maintenance window. This revision is 

not expected to have any effects on 

fishermen or dealers. During the first 4 

years of the Red Snapper IFQ program 

and first year of the Grouper-Tilefish 

IFQ program, no landing transactions 

were completed between 6 a.m. and 2 

p.m. on January 1. Additionally, IFQ 

participants may still submit an 

advanced notice of landing during the 

maintenance window. 

Removing Obsolete Regulations 

In Amendment 30B to the FMP, 

NMFS removed the February 15–March 

15 seasonal closure of the commercial 

sector of the Gulf reef fish fishery for 

gag, red grouper, and black grouper 

through a final rule that published April 

16, 2009 (74 FR 17603). When the 

February 15–March 15 closure was 

effective, the sale and purchase of gag, 

red grouper, and black grouper was 

prohibited, as specified in 

§ 622.45(c)(4). However, NMFS 

inadvertently did not remove 

§ 622.45(c)(4) in the final rule for 

Amendment 30B. This rulemaking 

proposes to remove this obsolete 

paragraph. 

These additional measures are 

unrelated to the actions contained in the 

red snapper regulatory amendment. 

Classification 

Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, the NMFS 

Assistant Administrator has determined 

that this proposed rule is consistent 

with the regulatory amendment, other 

provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, and other applicable law, subject to 

further consideration after public 

comment. 

This proposed rule has been 

determined to be not significant for 

purposes of Executive Order 12866. The 

Chief Counsel for Regulation of the 

Department of Commerce certified to 

the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration that this 

proposed rule, if adopted, would not 

have a significant economic impact on 

a substantial number of small entities. 

The factual basis for this determination 

is as follows: 

The preamble of this proposed rule 

provides a statement of the need for and 

objectives of this rule, and it is not 

repeated here. The Magnuson-Stevens 

Act provides the statutory basis for this 

proposed rule. 

This proposed rule, if implemented, 

would be expected to directly affect 

commercial and for-hire fishing vessels 

that harvest red snapper in the Gulf of 

Mexico and federally permitted dealers 

who purchase IFQ species. Under the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), an 

agency must complete an Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) 

with a proposed regulation if the 

proposed regulation is expected to have 

a significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

The Small Business Administration 

administers those provisions of the 

RFA, and has established size criteria 

for all major industry sectors in the U.S. 

including fish harvesters. A business 

involved in fish harvesting is classified 

as a small business if it is independently 

owned and operated, is not dominant in 

its field of operation (including its 

affiliates), and has combined annual 

receipts not in excess of $4.0 million 

(NAICS code 114111, finfish fishing) for 

all its affiliated operations worldwide. 

For for-hire vessels, the other qualifiers 

apply and the revenues threshold is $7.0 

million (NAICS code 713990, 

recreational industries). 

Based on logbook records, for the 

period 2007–2008, an average of 312 

commercial vessels per year recorded 

red snapper landings in the Gulf. The 

total average annual ex-vessel revenues 

from all logbook-recorded harvests from 

all species for these vessels during this 

period was approximately $28.943 

million (2008 dollars), of which 

approximately $9.435 million came 

from red snapper. The average annual 

total revenue per vessel for these 

commercial vessels during this period 

was approximately $93,000 (2008 

dollars). 

Some fleet activity occurs in the Gulf 

commercial reef fish fishery. Based on 

permit data, the maximum number of 

permits reported to be owned by the 

same entity is six, though additional 

permits may be linked through other 

affiliations which cannot be identified 

with current data. Using the average 

revenue per vessel provided above, the 

average annual estimated maximum 

combined revenues for this entity would 

be approximately $558,000 (2008 

dollars). 

The for-hire fleet in the Gulf is 

comprised of charter vessels, which 

charge a fee on a vessel basis, and 

headboats, which charge a fee on an 

individual angler (head) basis. A Gulf 

reef fish for-hire permit is required to 

harvest red snapper in the Gulf. On 

December 17, 2010, there were 1,355 

valid or renewable Gulf reef fish for-hire 

permits. A valid permit is a non-expired 

permit. Expired permits may not be 

actively fished, but are renewable for up 

to one year after expiration. Although 

the for-hire permit does not distinguish 

between headboats and charter vessels, 

an estimated 79 headboats and 1,276 

charter vessels operate in the Gulf. It 

cannot be determined with available 

data how many of these for-hire vessels 

harvest red snapper, so all permitted 

vessels are assumed to comprise the 

universe of potentially affected for-hire 

vessels. The average charter vessel is 

estimated to earn approximately 

$88,000 (2008 dollars) in annual 

revenues, while the average headboat is 

estimated to earn approximately 

$461,000 (2008 dollars). 

For seafood dealers, the SBA uses an 

employee threshold rather than a 

receipts threshold, or 100 or fewer 

persons on a full-time, part-time, 

temporary, or other basis, at all its 

affiliated operations worldwide. On 

January 19, 2011, 190 dealers possessed 

a Federal permit to purchase reef fish 

species. All dealers with a Federal reef 

fish permit are eligible to obtain an 

account required to purchase IFQ 

species, however, on January 19, 2011, 

only 169 dealers had an IFQ account. 

No current information is available on 

the employment profile of these dealers. 

Based on the average revenue 

estimates provided above, all 

commercial and for-hire vessels 

expected to be directly affected by this 

proposed rule are determined for the 

purpose of this analysis to be small 

business entities. Although no current 

information is available on the 

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9738 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules 

employment profile of the dealers 

expected to be directly affected by this 

rule, if enacted, all dealers are 

determined for the purpose of this 

analysis to be small business entities. 

This proposed rule would not 

establish any new reporting, recordkeeping or other compliance 

requirements. No duplicative, 

overlapping, or conflicting Federal rules 

have been identified. This proposed 

rule, if implemented, is expected to 

result in an increase in commercial red 

snapper harvests and a longer red 

snapper recreational fishing season 

relative to the season that would occur 

without a TAC increase (the status quo). 

The increase in commercial red snapper 

harvests would be expected to increase 

commercial annual ex-vessel revenues 

to the whole commercial fleet by 

approximately $400,000, and a longer 

recreational red snapper fishing season 

would be expected to increase annual 

net operating revenues to the whole forhire fleet by up to $225,000. Therefore, 

all of the expected direct economic 

impacts on small entities of this 

proposed rule, if implemented, are 

positive. No reduction in the revenues 

or profits of affected entities would be 

expected. 

The proposed revision to the 

definition of ‘‘actual ex-vessel value’’ to 

mean price paid per pound of fish 

before any deductions are made for 

transferred (leased) allocation and goods 

and services, would be expected to 

affect fishermen and dealers who report 

ex-vessel prices net of cost deductions. 

Because cost recovery fees are based on 

the ex-vessel revenues, the proposed 

revision to the definition of ex-vessel 

value would be expected to result in an 

increase in cost recovery fees, 

potentially reducing revenues to both 

fishermen and dealers. While dealers 

would be expected to pass a portion of 

any increased cost recovery fees onto 

fishermen, thereby reducing fishing 

revenues, the competitive market may 

require dealers to absorb some portion 

of these increased fees. 

The number of affected entities and 

the magnitude of effect cannot be 

determined with certainty at this time, 

but would be expected to vary by IFQ 

species and assumptions on the 

appropriate price threshold (i.e., the 

baseline price for comparison). For 

example, based on 2010 red snapper 

IFQ data, if reported ex-vessel prices 

below the average ($3.48/lb), median 

($4.00/lb), and mode ($4.25/lb) prices 

are adjusted to the respective threshold, 

the proposed revision would result in 

an increase in cost recovery fees, and 

total reduced revenues to all dealers and 

fishermen combined, of approximately 

$57,000, $76,000, and $88,000 under the 

respective thresholds. In 2010, assuming 

a threshold price of $3.00/lb, 29 dealers 

and 128 vessels recorded transactions 

with prices less than $3.00/lb. 

Comparable results for other IFQ species 

are approximately $13,000 to $20,000 

and 9 dealers and 9 vessels ($2.00/lb 

threshold price; the average reported 

price was $3.14/lb) for red grouper; 

approximately $1,000 to $4,000 and 19 

dealers and 42 vessels ($3.00/lb 

threshold price; the average reported 

price was $4.22/lb) for gag; 

approximately $6,000 to $3,000 and 11 

dealers and 32 vessels ($3.00/lb 

threshold price; the average reported 

price was $3.36/lb) for deepwater 

grouper (the range in effects decreases 

when comparing from average price to 

median price to mode price for this 

group because the prices decline in that 

order, unlike the case for most other 

species); approximately $1,000 to 

$3,000 and 29 dealers and 55 vessels 

($3.00/lb threshold price; the average 

reported price was $4.08/lb) for other 

shallow water grouper; and 

approximately $1,000 to a few hundred 

dollars and 16 dealers and 44 vessels 

($1.00/lb threshold price; the average 

reported price was $1.83/lb) for tilefish. 

Overlap in affected dealers and vessels 

would be expected, but has not been 

tabulated. 

Thus, the proposed revision to the 

definition of ‘‘actual ex-vessel value,’’ 

would be expected to reduce revenues 

to fishermen and dealers. However, the 

proposed revision is consistent with the 

intent of the original requirement to 

report ex-vessel values and remit cost 

recovery fees based on said value. The 

proposed revision would simply result 

in fishermen and dealers reporting the 

values and remitting the cost recovery 

fees they have been expected to provide 

since the implementation of the IFQ 

program. Therefore, none of the 

expected effects constitute new direct 

adverse economic effects on the affected 

entities. 

The proposed extension of the 

maintenance window would not be 

expected to have any adverse effects on 

fishermen or dealers because no 

transactions have historically been 

completed to date during the affected 

period. Finally, the proposed removal of 

obsolete text in the regulations is an 

administrative action and would not 

affect any small entities. 

Because this proposed rule, if 

implemented, is not expected to have 

any direct adverse economic impact on 

any small entities, an initial regulatory 

flexibility analysis is not required and 

none has been prepared. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 622 

Fisheries, Fishing, Puerto Rico, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Virgin Islands. 

Dated: February 14, 2011. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator For 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, 50 CFR part 622 is proposed 

to be amended as follows: 

PART 622—FISHERIES OF THE 

CARIBBEAN, GULF, AND SOUTH 

ATLANTIC 

1. The authority citation for part 622 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. 

2. In § 622.2, the definition of ‘‘actual 

ex-vessel value’’ is revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 622.2 Definitions and acronyms. 

* * * * * 

Actual ex-vessel value means the total 

monetary sale amount a fisherman 

receives per pound of fish for IFQ 

landings from a registered IFQ dealer 

before any deductions are made for 

transferred (leased) allocation and goods 

and services (e.g. bait, ice, fuel, repairs, 

machinery replacement, etc.). 

* * * * * 

3. In § 622.16, paragraph (c)(5) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 622.16 Gulf red snapper individual 

fishing quota (IFQ) program. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(5) Restricted transactions during the 

20-hour online maintenance window. 

All electronic IFQ transactions must be 

completed by December 31 at 6 p.m. 

eastern time each year. Electronic IFQ 

functions will resume again on January 

1 at 2 p.m. eastern time the following 

fishing year. The remaining 6 hours 

prior to the end of the fishing year, and 

the 14 hours at the beginning of the next 

fishing year, are necessary to provide 

NMFS time to reconcile IFQ accounts, 

adjust allocations for the upcoming year 

if the commercial quotas for Gulf red 

snapper have changed, and update 

shares and allocations for the upcoming 

fishing year. No electronic IFQ 

transactions will be available during 

these 20 hours. An advance notice of 

landing may still be submitted during 

the 20-hour maintenance window by 

using the vessel’s VMS unit or calling 

IFQ Customer Service at 1–866–425– 

7627. 

* * * * * 

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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 35 / Tuesday, February 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules 9739 

4. In § 622.20, paragraph (c)(5) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 622.20 Individual fishing quota (IFQ) 

program for Gulf groupers and tilefishes. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(5) Restricted transactions during the 

20-hour online maintenance window. 

All electronic IFQ transactions must be 

completed by December 31 at 6 p.m. 

eastern time each year. Electronic IFQ 

functions will resume again on January 

1 at 2 p.m. eastern time the following 

fishing year. The remaining 6 hours 

prior to the end of the fishing year, and 

the 14 hours at the beginning of the next 

fishing year, are necessary to provide 

NMFS time to reconcile IFQ accounts, 

adjust allocations for the upcoming year 

if the commercial quotas or catch 

allowances for Gulf groupers and 

tilefishes have changed, and update 

shares and allocations for the upcoming 

fishing year. No electronic IFQ 

transactions will be available during 

these 20 hours. An advance notice of 

landing may still be submitted during 

the 20-hour maintenance window by 

using the vessel’s VMS unit or calling 

IFQ Customer Service at 1–866–425– 

7627. 

* * * * * 

5. In § 622.42, paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and 

(a)(2)(i) are revised to read as follows: 

§ 622.42 Quotas. 

* * * * * 

(a) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(i) Red snapper—(A) For fishing year 

2010—3.542 million lb (1.607 million 

kg), round weight. 

(B) For fishing year 2011—3.664 

million lb (1.662 million kg), round 

weight, provided that the combined 

commercial and recreational quota from 

the prior fishing year is not exceeded. If 

landings, as estimated by the SRD, 

indicate the combined quota is 

exceeded, then the AA will file a 

notification with the Office of the 

Federal Register to maintain the 

commercial quota at the quota of the 

prior fishing year. 

* * * * * 

(2) * * * 

(i) Recreational quota for red 

snapper—(A) The 2010 recreational 

quota for red snapper is 3.403 million lb 

(1.544 million kg), round weight. 

(B) The 2011 recreational quota for 

red snapper is 3.521 million lb (1.597 

million kg), round weight, provided that 

the combined commercial and 

recreational quota from the prior fishing 

year is not exceeded. If landings, as 

estimated by the SRD, indicate the 

combined quota is exceeded, then the 

AA will file a notification with the 

Office of the Federal Register to 

maintain the recreational quota at the 

quota of the prior fishing year. 

* * * * * 

§ 622.45 [Amended] 

6. In § 622.45, paragraph (c)(4) is 

removed. 

[FR Doc. 2011–3735 Filed 2–18–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

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