Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 247 / Monday, December 27, 2010 / Proposed Rules 81201 

commercial interest to the requester is 

not sufficiently large in comparison 

with the public interest in disclosure to 

render the disclosure one that is 

primarily in the commercial interest of 

the requester. 

(d) DOT furnishes documents without 

charge or at a reduced charge when the 

official having initial denial authority 

determines that the request concerns 

records related to the death of an 

immediate family member who was, at 

the time of death, a DOT employee. 

(e) DOT furnishes documents without 

charge or at a reduced charge if the 

official having initial denial authority 

determines that the request is by the 

victim of a crime who seeks the record 

of the trial at which the requester 

testified. 

(f) DOT does not assess the following 

fees when DOT fails to comply with the 

time limits under §§ 7.31 or 7.33 and no 

unusual or exceptional circumstances 

(see § 7.34(a) and (c)) apply to the 

processing of the request or appeal: 

(1) Search fees otherwise chargeable 

under § 7.42(h) and (j); and 

(2) Duplication fees otherwise 

chargeable under § 7.42(i). 

§ 7.44 How can I pay a processing fee for 

records requested under subpart B or 

subpart C? 

(a) Fees should be paid online, using 

a credit card, debit card, or electronic 

check. The DOT FOIA page (http:// 

www.dot.gov/foia) has direct links to the 

electronic payment site. Any fees paid 

with a paper check, draft, or money 

order must be made payable to the U.S. 

Treasury and delivered as directed by 

the applicable FOIA Requester Service 

Center identified in § 7.27 (if the fees are 

for records made available under 

subpart C) or the DOT Dockets Office 

identified in § 7.12(b)(1) (if the fees are 

for records made available under 

subpart B). 

§ 7.45 When are pre-payments required for 

records requested under subpart C, and 

how are they handled? 

(a) When DOT estimates that the 

search charges, review charges, 

duplication fees, or any combination of 

fees that could be charged to the 

requester will likely exceed US $25, 

DOT notifies the requester of the 

estimated amount of the fees, unless the 

requester has previously indicated a 

willingness to pay fees as high as those 

anticipated. In cases where DOT notifies 

the requester that actual or estimated 

fees may amount to more than US $25, 

the time limit for responding to the 

request is tolled until the requester has 

agreed to pay the anticipated total fee 

(see § 7.35). The notice also informs the 

requester how to consult with the 

appropriate DOT officials with the 

object of reformulating the request to 

meet his or her needs at a lower cost. 

(b) DOT may require payment of fees 

prior to actual duplication or delivery of 

any releasable records to a requester. 

However, advance payment, i.e., before 

work is commenced or continued on a 

request, is not required unless: 

(1) Allowable charges that a requester 

may be required to pay are likely to 

exceed US $250; or 

(2) The requester has failed to pay 

within 30 days of the billing date fees 

charged for a previous request to any 

part of the U.S. Government. 

(c) When paragraph (b)(1) of this 

section applies, DOT notifies the 

requester of the estimated cost. If the 

requester has a history of prompt 

payment of FOIA fees, the requester 

must furnish satisfactory assurance of 

full payment of the estimated charges. 

Otherwise, the requester may be 

required to make advance payment of 

any amount up to the full estimated 

charges. 

(d) When paragraph (b)(2) of this 

section applies, DOT requires the 

requester to either demonstrate that the 

fee has been paid or pay the full amount 

owed, including any applicable interest, 

late handling charges, and penalty 

charges as discussed in § 7.46. DOT also 

requires such a requester to make an 

advance payment of the full amount of 

the estimated fee before DOT begins 

processing a new request or continues 

processing a pending request. 

(e) In the event that a DOT component 

is required to refund a prepayment, the 

processing of the refund may necessitate 

collection of the requester’s Taxpayer 

Identification Number or Social Security 

Number and direct deposit information 

(bank routing number and bank account 

number) under 31 U.S.C. 3325, 31 

U.S.C. 3332, and 31 CFR Part 208. 

§ 7.46 How are late payments handled? 

(a) DOT assesses interest on an 

unpaid bill starting on the 31st day 

following the day on which the notice 

of the amount due is first mailed to the 

requester. Interest accrues from the date 

of the notice of amount due at the rate 

prescribed in 31 U.S.C. 3717. Receipt by 

DOT of a payment for the full amount 

of the fees owed within 30 calendar 

days after the date of the initial billing 

stops the accrual of interest, even if the 

payment has not been processed. 

(b) If DOT does not receive payment 

of the fees charged within 30 calendar 

days after the date the initial notice of 

the amount due is first mailed to the 

requester, DOT assesses an 

administrative charge to cover the cost 

of processing and handling the 

delinquent claim. In addition, DOT 

applies a penalty charge with respect to 

any principal amount of a debt that is 

more than 90 days past due. Where 

appropriate, DOT uses other steps 

permitted by Federal debt collection 

statutes, including disclosure to 

consumer reporting agencies and use of 

collection agencies, to encourage 

payment of amounts overdue. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on December 

20, 2010. 

Ray LaHood, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2010–32407 Filed 12–23–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–62–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 222 

RIN 0648–XA016 

2011 Annual Determination for Sea 

Turtle Observer Requirement 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notification of annual 

determination. 

SUMMARY: The National Marine 

Fisheries Service (NMFS) is providing 

notification that the agency will not 

identify additional fisheries to observe 

on the Annual Determination (AD) for 

2011, pursuant to its authority under the 

Endangered Species Act (ESA). Through 

an AD, NMFS identifies fisheries 

operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and Pacific Ocean that will be 

required to take observers upon NMFS’ 

request. The purpose of observing 

identified fisheries is to learn more 

about sea turtle interactions in a given 

fishery, evaluate existing measures to 

prevent or reduce prohibited sea turtle 

takes, and to determine whether 

additional measures to implement the 

prohibition against sea turtle takes may 

be necessary. Fisheries identified in the 

2010 AD (see Table 1) remain on the AD 

and are therefore required to carry 

observers upon NMFS’ request, until 

2014. 

ADDRESSES: See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for a listing of all Regional 

Offices. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Kristy Long, Office of Protected 

Resources, 301–713–2322; Ellen Keane, 

Northeast Region, 978–282–8476; 


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81202 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 247 / Monday, December 27, 2010 / Proposed Rules 

Dennis Klemm, Southeast Region, 727– 

824–5312; Elizabeth Petras, Southwest 

Region, 562–980–3238; Kim Maison, 

Pacific Islands Region, 808–944–2257. 

Individuals who use a 

telecommunications device for the 

hearing impaired may call the Federal 

Information Relay Service at 1–800– 

877–8339 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. 

Eastern time, Monday through Friday, 

excluding Federal holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Availability of Published Materials 

Information regarding the Sea Turtle 

Observer Requirement for Fisheries (72 

FR 43176, August 3, 2007) may be 

obtained at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/ 

pr/species/turtles/regulations.htm or 

from any NMFS Regional Office at the 

addresses listed below: 

NMFS, Northeast Region, 55 Great 

Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930– 

2298; 

NMFS, Southeast Region, 263 13th 

Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701; 

NMFS, Southwest Region, 501 W. 

Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200, Long Beach, 

CA 90802–4213; or 

NMFS, Pacific Islands Region, 

Protected Resources, 1601 Kapiolani 

Boulevard, Suite 1100, Honolulu, HI 

96814–4700. 

Purpose of the Sea Turtle Observer 

Requirement 

Under the ESA, 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq., 

NMFS has the responsibility to 

implement programs to conserve marine 

life listed as endangered or threatened. 

All sea turtles found in U.S. waters are 

listed as either endangered or 

threatened under the ESA. Kemp’s 

ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), 

leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), and 

hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) sea 

turtles are listed as endangered. 

Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), green 

(Chelonia mydas), and olive ridley 

(Lepidochelys olivacea) sea turtles are 

listed as threatened, except for breeding 

colony populations of green turtles in 

Florida and on the Pacific coast of 

Mexico and breeding colony 

populations of olive ridleys on the 

Pacific coast of Mexico, which are listed 

as endangered. Due to the inability to 

distinguish between populations of 

green and olive ridley turtles away from 

the nesting beach, NMFS considers 

these turtles endangered wherever they 

occur in U.S. waters. While some sea 

turtle populations have shown signs of 

recovery, many populations continue to 

decline. 

Incidental take, or bycatch, in fishing 

gear is one of the main sources of sea 

turtle injury and mortality nationwide. 

Section 9 of the ESA prohibits the take 

(including harassing, harming, 

pursuing, hunting, shooting, wounding, 

killing, trapping, capturing, or collecting 

or attempting to engage in any such 

conduct), including incidental take, of 

endangered sea turtles. Pursuant to 

section 4(d) of the ESA, NMFS has 

issued regulations extending the 

prohibition of take, with exceptions, to 

threatened sea turtles (50 CFR 223.205 

and 223.206). Sections 9 and 11 of the 

ESA authorize the issuance of 

regulations to enforce the take 

prohibitions. NMFS may grant 

exceptions to the take prohibitions with 

an incidental take statement or an 

incidental take permit issued pursuant 

to ESA section 7 or 10, respectively. To 

do so, NMFS must determine that the 

activity that will result in incidental 

take is not likely to jeopardize the 

continued existence of the affected 

listed species. For some Federal 

fisheries and most state fisheries, NMFS 

has not granted an exception primarily 

because we lack information about 

fishery-sea turtle interactions. 

The most effective way for NMFS to 

learn more about sea turtle-fishery 

interactions in order to prevent or 

minimize take is to place observers 

aboard fishing vessels. In 2007, NMFS 

issued a regulation (50 CFR 222.402) to 

establish procedures through which 

each year NMFS will identify, pursuant 

to specified criteria and after notice and 

opportunity for comment, those 

fisheries in which the agency intends to 

place observers (72 FR 43176, August 3, 

2007). These regulations specify that 

NMFS may place observers on U.S. 

fishing vessels, either recreational or 

commercial, operating in U.S. territorial 

waters, the U.S. exclusive economic 

zone (EEZ), or on the high seas, or on 

vessels that are otherwise subject to the 

jurisdiction of the U.S. Failure to 

comply with the requirements under 

this rule may result in civil or criminal 

penalties under the ESA. 

NMFS and/or interested cooperating 

entities will pay the direct costs for 

vessels to carry observers. These include 

observer salary and insurance costs. 

NMFS may also evaluate other potential 

direct costs, should they arise. Once 

selected, a fishery will be eligible to be 

observed for five years without further 

action by NMFS. This will enable NMFS 

to develop an appropriate sampling 

protocol to investigate whether, how, 

when, where, and under what 

conditions incidental takes are 

occurring; to evaluate whether existing 

measures are minimizing or preventing 

takes; and to determine whether 

additional measures are needed to 

implement ESA take prohibitions and 

conserve turtles. 

2011 Annual Determination 

NMFS is providing notification that 

the agency will not identify additional 

fisheries to observe for the 2011 AD, 

pursuant to its authority under the ESA. 

NMFS is not identifying additional 

fisheries at this time given lack of 

resources to implement new or expand 

existing observer programs to focus on 

sea turtles (50 CFR 222.402(a)(4)). 

Fisheries identified in the 2010 AD (see 

Table 1) remain on the AD and are 

therefore required to carry observers, 

upon NMFS’ request, until 2014. 

TABLE 1—STATE AND FEDERAL COMMERCIAL FISHERIES INCLUDED ON THE ANNUAL DETERMINATION

Fishery Years eligible to 

carry observers 

Trawl Fisheries 

Atlantic shellfish bottom trawl .......................................................................................................................................................... 2010–2014 

Mid-Atlantic bottom trawl ................................................................................................................................................................. 2010–2014 

Mid-Atlantic mid-water trawl (including pair trawl) ........................................................................................................................... 2010–2014 

Southeastern U.S. Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico shrimp trawl ................................................................................................................ 2010–2014 

Gillnet Fisheries 

CA halibut, white seabass and other species set gillnet (>3.5 in. mesh) ....................................................................................... 2010–2014 

CA yellowtail, barracuda, and white seabass drift gillnet (mesh size >3.5 in. and <14 in.) ........................................................... 2010–2014 

Chesapeake Bay inshore gillnet ...................................................................................................................................................... 2010–2014 

Long Island inshore gillnet ............................................................................................................................................................... 2010–2014 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 247 / Monday, December 27, 2010 / Proposed Rules 81203 

TABLE 1—STATE AND FEDERAL COMMERCIAL FISHERIES INCLUDED ON THE ANNUAL DETERMINATION—Continued 

Fishery Years eligible to 

carry observers 

Mid-Atlantic gillnet ............................................................................................................................................................................ 2010–2014 

North Carolina inshore gillnet .......................................................................................................................................................... 2010–2014 

Northeast sink gillnet ....................................................................................................................................................................... 2010–2014 

Southeast Atlantic gillnet ................................................................................................................................................................. 2010–2014 

Trap/Pot Fisheries 

Atlantic blue crab trap/pot ................................................................................................................................................................ 2010–2014 

Atlantic mixed species trap/pot ........................................................................................................................................................ 2010–2014 

Northeast/mid-Atlantic American lobster trap/pot ............................................................................................................................ 2010–2014 

Pound Net/Weir/Seine Fisheries 

Mid-Atlantic haul/beach seine .......................................................................................................................................................... 2010–2014 

Mid-Atlantic menhaden purse seine ................................................................................................................................................ 2010–2014 

U.S. mid-Atlantic mixed species stop seine/weir/pound net (except the NC roe mullet stop net) ................................................. 2010–2014 

Virginia pound net ............................................................................................................................................................................ 2010–2014 

Dated: December 17, 2010. 

Helen M. Golde, 

Deputy Director, Office of Protected 

Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2010–32341 Filed 12–23–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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