Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 107 / Friday, June 2, 2000 / Proposed Rules 35315

welfare of human beings, and the

welfare and survival of wildlife and

wildlife resources in the United States.

However, injurious wildlife may be

imported by permit for zoological,

educational, medical, or scientific

purposes in accordance with permit

regulations at 50 CFR 16.22, or by

Federal agencies without a permit solely

for their own use. If the process initiated

by this notice results in the addition of

M. piceus to the list of injurious wildlife

contained in 50 CFR part 16, their

importation into the United States

would be prohibited except under the

conditions, and for the purposes,

described above.

This notice solicits economic,

biologic, or other information

concerning M. piceus. The information

will be used to determine if the species

is a threat, or potential threat, to those

interests of the United States delineated

above, and thus warrants addition to the

list of injurious wildlife in 50 CFR

16.13. The information will also assist

us in preparing impact analyses and

examining alternative protective

measures under the Regulatory

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601).

Authority: This notice is issued under the

authority of the Lacey Act (18 U.S.C. 42).

Dated: May 16, 2000.

Jamie Rappaport-Clark,

Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 00–13557 Filed 6–1–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

RIN 1018–AF45

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife

and Plants; Reopening of Comment

Period and Notice of Public Hearing on

Proposed Rule To List the

Southwestern Washington/Columbia

River Coastal Cutthroat Trout in

Washington and Oregon as Threatened

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service,

Interior.

ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening of

comment period and notice of public

hearing.

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service (FWS) gives notice of a public

hearing on the proposed rule to list the

southwestern Washington/Columbia

River coastal cutthroat trout in

Washington and Oregon. In addition,

the comment period which originally

closed on May 15, 2000, will be

reopened. The new comment period and

hearing will allow all interested parties

to submit oral or written comments on

the proposal.

DATES: The comment period for this

proposal now closes on July 3, 2000.

Any comments received by the closing

date will be considered in the final

decision on this proposal. The public

hearing will be held from 1 p.m. until

3 p.m. and from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. on

June 20, 2000, in Ilwaco, Washington.

ADDRESSES: The public hearing will be

held at the Ilwaco Heritage Museum,

115 SE Lake Street, Ilwaco, Washington.

Written comments and materials should

be sent to Kemper McMaster, State

Supervisor, Oregon Fish and Wildlife

Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,

2600 SE 98th Avenue, Suite 100,

Portland, Oregon 97266. Comments and

materials received will be available for

public inspection, by appointment,

during normal business hours at the

above FWS address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kemper McMaster, at the above

Portland, Oregon address, phone 503–

231–6179, facsimile 503–231–6195, for

written comments or Gerry Jackson,

State Supervisor, Western Washington

Fish and Wildlife Office, 510 Desmond

Dr., Suite 102, Lacey, Washington,

phone 360–753–9440, facsimile 503–

231–9008 for information on the public

hearing.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On April 5, 1999, the National Marine

Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the Fish

and Wildlife Service (FWS) published a

notice in the Federal Register (64 FR

16397) proposing to list the coastal

cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki

clarki) population in southwestern

Washington and the Columbia River,

excluding the Willamette River above

Willamette Falls, as threatened pursuant

to the Endangered Species Act of 1973,

as amended (Act). The FWS published

a notice in the Federal Register (65 FR

20123) on April 14, 2000, to extend the

deadline from April 5, 2000, to October

5, 2000 for the final action on the

proposed rule to list this population in

Washington and Oregon; and to provide

a 30-day comment period. The 6-month

extension was necessary to obtain and

review new information needed to

resolve substantial scientific

disagreement about the status of this

population.

In response to a request for a public

hearing during the public comment

period for the 6-month extension, the

FWS will hold a public hearing on the

date and address described in the DATES

and ADDRESSES sections above.

Anyone wishing to make an oral

statement for the record is encouraged

to provide a written copy of their

statement and present it to the FWS at

the hearing. In the event there is a large

attendance, the time allotted for oral

statements may be limited. Oral and

written statements receive equal

consideration. There are no limits to the

length of written comments presented at

the hearing or mailed to the FWS. Legal

notices announcing the date, time, and

location of the hearing will be published

in newspapers concurrently with the

Federal Register notice.

Comments from the public regarding

the accuracy of this proposed rule are

sought, especially regarding: (1)

Biological or other relevant data

concerning any threat to cutthroat trout;

(2) The range, distribution, and

population size of coastal cutthroat trout

in southwestern Washington and the

Columbia River; (3) Current or planned

activities in the subject area and their

possible impacts on the species; (4)

Cutthroat trout escapement, particularly

escapement data partitioned into natural

and hatchery components; (5) The

proportion of naturally reproducing fish

that were reared as juveniles in a

hatchery; (6) Homing and straying of

natural and hatchery fish; (7) The

reproductive success of naturally

reproducing hatchery fish and their

relationship to southwestern

Washington and the Columbia River

coastal cutthroat trout populations; and

(8) Efforts being made to protect native,

naturally reproducing populations of

coastal cutthroat trout.

Reopening of the comment period

will enable the FWS to respond to the

request for a public hearing on the

proposed action. The comment period

on this proposal closes on July 3, 2000.

Written comments should be submitted

to the FWS office listed in the

ADDRESSES section.

Author

The primary author of this notice is

Jim Muck (Fish and Wildlife Service,

Western Washington Office, 510

Desmond Dr. SE, Suite 102, Lacey,

Washington, 98503).

Authority

The authority for this action is the

Endangered Species Act of 1973, as

amended (16 U.S.C. 1531–1544).

Dated: May 12, 2000.

Thomas J. Dwyer,

Acting Regional Director.

[FR Doc. 00–12494 Filed 6–1–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–U