Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 189 / Thursday, October 1, 2009 / Proposed Rules 50759 

an intercompany item after the 

liquidation of a target corporation. This 

modification was made necessary in 

light of the regulations under section 

368 that were issued in October 2007 

addressing transfers of assets or stock 

following a reorganization. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Mary W. Lyons, (202) 622–7930 (not a 

toll-free number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

A notice of proposed rulemaking by 

cross-reference to temporary regulations 

that is the subject of this document is 

under section 1502 of the Internal 

Revenue Code. 

Need for Correction 

As published, a notice of proposed 

rulemaking by cross-reference to 

temporary regulations (REG–139068–08) 

contains errors that may prove to be 

misleading and are in need of 

clarification. 

Correction of Publication 

Accordingly, the publication of a 

notice of proposed rulemaking by crossreference to temporary regulations 

(REG–139068–08), which was the 

subject of FR Doc. E9–21323, is 

corrected as follows: 

§ 1.1502–13 [Corrected] 

1. On page 45791, column 1, 

paragraph (f)(5)(ii)(B)(1), lines 2 and 3, 

the language ‘‘amendments to § 1.1502– 

13(B)(1) is the same as the text of 

§ 1.1502–13T(B)(1)’’ is corrected to read 

‘‘amendments to § 1.1502– 

13(f)(5)(ii)(B)(1) is the same as the text 

of § 1.1502–13T(f)(5)(ii)(B)(1)’’. 

2. On page 45791, column 1, 

paragraph (f)(5)(ii)(B)(2), lines 2 and 3, 

the language ‘‘amendments to § 1.1502– 

13(B)(2) is the same as the text of 

§ 1.1502–13T(B)(2)’’ is corrected to read 

‘‘amendments to § 1.1502– 

13(f)(5)(ii)(B)(2) is the same as the text 

of § 1.1502–13T(f)(5)(ii)(B)(2)’’. 

3. On page 45791, column 1, 

paragraph (f)(5)(ii)(F), lines 2 and 3, the 

language ‘‘amendments to § 1.1502– 

13(F) is the same as the text of § 1.1502– 

13T(F)’’ is corrected to read 

‘‘amendments to § 1.1502–13(f)(5)(ii)(F) 

is the same as the text of § 1.1502– 

13T(f)(5)(ii)(F)’’. 

LaNita Van Dyke, 

Chief, Publications and Regulations Branch, 

Legal Processing Division, Associate Chief 

Counsel (Procedure and Administration). 

[FR Doc. E9–23645 Filed 9–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4830–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 0909011267–91269–01] 

RIN 0648–AY19 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

Provisions; Fisheries of the 

Northeastern United States 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is proposing to 

implement a regulatory amendment to 

modify the fishing vessel permit 

regulations to include specific terms 

and conditions for Federal fishing vessel 

permits obtained through the purchase 

of fishing vessels using Federal grant 

awards. The terms and conditions 

would authorize the NMFS 

Administrator, Northeast Region 

(Regional Administrator), to suspend, 

cancel, fail to renew, modify, or 

otherwise rescind any Federal fishing 

vessel permit, or the rights thereto, if the 

terms and conditions of any Federal 

grant award used to obtain said permit, 

or an associated memorandum of 

understanding, are violated by the grant 

recipient. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received no later than 5 p.m., eastern 

standard time, on November 2, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by RIN 0648–AY19, by any of 

the following methods: 

• Electronic submissions: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking portal http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

• Fax: (978) 281–9135, Attn: Michael 

Pentony. 

• Mail: Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional 

Administrator, NMFS, Northeast 

Regional Office, 55 Great Republic 

Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the 

outside of the envelope: ‘‘Comments on 

Vessel Permit Regulatory Amendment.’’ 

Instructions: All comments received 

are 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. 

NMFS will accept anonymous 

comments. Attachments to electronic 

comments will be accepted via 

Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, 

WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file formats 

only. 

Copies of the Regulatory Impact 

Review (RIR) are available upon request 

from Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional 

Administrator, NMFS, Northeast 

Regional Office, 55 Great Republic 

Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Pentony, Senior Fishery Policy 

Analyst, phone (978) 281–9283. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

This proposed rule would implement 

changes to the Northeast (NE) fisheries 

regulations at 50 CFR part 648 to 

authorize the Regional Administrator to 

suspend, cancel, fail to renew, modify, 

or otherwise rescind any Federal fishing 

vessel permit, including the rights 

thereto, held by a person, corporation, 

non-profit organization, or government 

entity if the terms and conditions of any 

Federal grant award used to obtain said 

permit, or an associated memorandum 

of understanding, are violated by the 

grant recipient. The intent of this 

proposed action is to establish a new 

regulatory mechanism through which 

NOAA would be able to enforce the 

terms and conditions of any Federal 

grant award used to obtain Federal 

fishing vessel permits in the NE Region. 

As several fisheries in the NE Region 

begin to transition to catch-share 

management strategies, various fishing 

organizations, conservations groups, 

and states are exploring alternatives to 

the traditional vessel-permit ownership 

model. Traditionally, an individual or 

corporation invests in a fishing vessel 

and obtains the appropriate vessel 

permits necessary to participate in the 

target fishery. An individual or 

corporation may own multiple vessels, 

but each of these vessels is generally 

associated with a unique vessel permit 

(or, a unique set of permits to operate 

in different fisheries may be associated 

with each vessel). An alternative model 

known as ‘‘permit banking’’ is 

developing in the Northeast, whereby an 

organization obtains a suite of permits 

in a particular fishery, with the option 

to lease out the fishing rights associated 

with those permits. 

Permit banks hold promise for 

addressing two important issues related 

to the development and implementation 

of effective catch-share management 

programs: First, permit banks can be 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with PROPOSALS
50760 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 189 / Thursday, October 1, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

used to ease the transition to catch-share 

management by expanding the pool of 

catch shares available for use; and, 

second, permit banks could demonstrate 

that small fishing operations and small 

communities can be successful 

participants in catch-share management 

programs. Depending on the structure of 

the permit bank, and the criteria used 

for participation, permit banks could be 

very effective at protecting the fishing 

interests of small communities and 

small fishing operations by mitigating 

some of the consolidation of fishing 

rights that often follows implementation 

of catch-share programs. 

Examples of new permit banks in the 

Northeast Region include those being 

developed by the Cape Cod Fisheries 

Trust, the Northeast Seafood Coalition, 

and The Nature Conservancy in 

partnership with the Penobscot East 

Resource Center. These groups are using 

donations and other funds to purchase 

fishing vessels with NE multispecies 

fishing permits. The permits would be 

held by the permit bank organization, 

which would then make the fishing 

rights associated with the permits 

available to its members or other 

qualified applicants. The fishing rights 

associated with the permits initially 

would include days-at-sea, to be leased 

out at generally below-market value. 

With the development of sector 

management in the NE multispecies 

fishery, the fishing rights may include 

annual catch entitlements (ACEs) 

associated with the permits (i.e., the 

shares of the overall quotas allocated to 

each permit based on fishing history). 

The ACEs may be used in establishing 

a new fishing sector, or to bolster the 

total catch shares available to an 

existing sector. 

Interest in developing permit banking 

programs is expanding in the NE and, 

because of NOAA’s policy position 

promoting catch-share management, the 

NMFS NE Regional Office has proposed 

a pilot program designed to guide the 

development and expansion of permit 

banks in order to facilitate the 

implementation of effective catch-share 

programs. In the spending plan for a 

recent Congressional authorization for 

New England fisheries assistance, 

NOAA proposed to award a $1 million 

grant to develop this pilot permit 

banking program in the State of Maine. 

Since then, we have been working in 

partnership with Maine’s Division of 

Marine Resources on a program that 

would allow the state to use the grant 

award to purchase fishing vessels with 

associated permits. The fishing rights 

associated with those permits would 

then serve as the basis for a permit bank 

to be operated by the state to facilitate 

the transition to catch-share 

management by leasing additional 

fishing opportunities to qualified 

vessels in small ports. The State of 

Maine is very interested in developing 

such a partnership and establishing a 

permit bank. If the pilot program proves 

successful, NOAA may consider 

expanding the program throughout 

other parts of the NE Region. 

Absent a regulatory change such as 

the proposed action, NOAA would not 

be able to retain sufficient control and 

oversight of the resulting permit 

banking program to ensure its success. 

Under current grant management rules 

and fishing vessel permit regulations, 

once a grant award is made to an 

organization, and the award is used to 

obtain fishing vessel permits, NOAA 

would lose all control over the 

implementation and operation of the 

resulting permit bank. Even if the grant 

includes special award conditions 

specifying the criteria to be used in 

operation of the permit bank, NOAA 

would have no effective mechanism to 

enforce those criteria once an 

organization obtains the permits. In 

order to protect NOAA’s and the 

public’s interests in the successful 

development, implementation, and 

operation of such a program, a 

regulatory change is required to provide 

NOAA with an appropriate enforcement 

mechanism. 

The proposed action would amend 

the NMFS NE Region regulations 

regarding fishing vessel permits to 

include specific terms and conditions 

that would apply to Federal fishing 

vessel permits obtained through the 

purchase of fishing vessels using 

Federal grant awards. The terms and 

conditions would authorize the 

Regional Administrator to suspend, 

cancel, fail to renew, modify, or 

otherwise rescind any Federal fishing 

vessel permit, including the rights 

thereto, held by a person, corporation, 

non-profit organization, or government 

entity if the terms and conditions of any 

Federal grant award used to obtain said 

permit, or an associated memorandum 

of understanding, are violated by the 

grant recipient. 

Classification 

Pursuant to section 305(d) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, the NMFS 

Assistant Administrator has determined 

that this proposed rule is consistent 

with the Fishery Management Plans 

(FMPs) of the NE Region, other 

provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, and other applicable law, and is 

necessary to discharge the general 

responsibility to carry out said FMPs, 

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 intent of this proposed action is to 

establish a new regulatory mechanism 

through which NOAA would be able to 

enforce the terms and conditions of any 

Federal grant award used to obtain Federal 

fishing vessel permits. This action would 

have no effect on any Federal fishing vessel 

permit currently held by a person, 

corporation, non-profit organization, or 

government entity, and would only affect 

such permits obtained in the future if the 

person, corporation, non-profit organization, 

or government entity obtains a Federal 

fishing vessel permit using funds awarded to 

that entity through a Federal grant award. 

Further, the proposed action would have no 

effect on any entity unless that entity violates 

the terms and conditions of the Federal grant 

award used to obtain such a permit, or an 

associated memorandum of understanding. If 

the terms and conditions of a Federal grant 

award, or associated memorandum of 

understanding, are violated, this action 

would authorize the Regional Administrator 

to take appropriate action to enforce the 

terms and conditions of the grant award or 

memorandum of understanding. These 

administrative changes are intended to 

ensure NOAA has available appropriate 

enforcement mechanisms when awarding 

Federal grants that may be used to obtain 

Federal fishing vessel permits. As such, the 

rule will not have significant direct or 

indirect economic impacts on small entities. 

As a result, an initial flexibility analysis 

is not required and none has been 

prepared. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 648 

Fisheries, Fishing, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

Dated: September 28, 2009. 

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 648 is proposed 

to be amended as follows: 

PART 648—FISHERIES OF THE 

NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES 

1. The authority citation for part 648 

continues to read as follows: 

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

2. In § 648.4, paragraph (n) is added 

to read as follows: 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 189 / Thursday, October 1, 2009 / Proposed Rules 50761 

§ 648.4 Vessel permits. 

* * * * * 

(n) Federal grant awards. The 

Regional Administrator may suspend, 

cancel, fail to renew, modify, or 

otherwise rescind any Federal fishing 

vessel permit, issued pursuant to this 

section, including the rights thereto, 

held by a person, corporation, nonprofit organization, or government 

entity if the terms and conditions of any 

Federal grant award used to obtain said 

permit, or an associated memorandum 

of understanding, are violated by the 

grant recipient. 

[FR Doc. E9–23704 Filed 9–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with PROPOSALS