34432 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 104 / Tuesday, May 30, 2000 / Proposed Rules

will publish these amounts in each

Federal Register solicitation for

applications.

(b) Applicants shall not include

application initiation or credit

processing fees or any other expenses

associated with the application process

(such as fees associated with obtaining

the required preliminary rating opinion

letter) among eligible project costs for

the purpose of calculating the maximum

33 percent credit amount referenced in

§ 80.5(a).

(c) If, in any given year, there is

insufficient budget authority to fund the

credit instrument for a qualified project

that has been selected to receive

assistance under TIFIA, the DOT and

the approved applicant may agree upon

a supplemental fee to be paid by or on

behalf of the approved applicant at the

time of execution of the term sheet to

reduce the subsidy cost of that project.

No such fee may be included among

eligible project costs for the purpose of

calculating the maximum 33 percent

credit amount referenced in § 80.5(a).

(d) The DOT will require borrowers to

pay servicing fees for each credit

instrument approved for funding.

Separate fees may apply for each type of

credit instrument (e.g., a loan guarantee,

a secured loan with a single

disbursement, a secured loan with

multiple disbursements, or a line of

credit), depending on the costs of

servicing the credit instrument as

determined by the Secretary. Such fees

will be set at a level to enable the DOT

to recover all or a portion of the costs

to the Federal Government of TIFIA

credit instruments.

7. Revise § 80.19 to read as follows:

§ 80.19 Reporting requirements.

At a minimum, any recipient of

Federal credit assistance under this part

shall submit an annual project

performance report and audited

financial statements to the DOT within

180 days following the recipient’s fiscal

year-end for each year during which the

recipient’s obligation to the Federal

Government remains in effect. The DOT

may conduct periodic financial and

compliance audits of the recipient of

credit assistance, as determined

necessary by the DOT. The specific

credit agreement between the recipient

of credit assistance and the DOT may

contain additional reporting

requirements.

8. Add § 80.21 to read as follows:

§ 80.21 Use of administrative offset.

The DOT will not apply an

administrative offset to recover any

losses to the Federal Government

resulting from project risk the DOT has

assumed under a TIFIA credit

instrument. The DOT may, however, use

an administrative offset in cases of

fraud, misrepresentation, false claims,

or similar criminal acts or acts of

malfeasance or wrongdoing.

Issued on: May 15, 2000.

Rodney E. Slater,

Secretary of Transportation.

[FR Doc. 00–13271 Filed 5–26–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–62–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[I.D. 051900D]

Western Pacific Fishery Management

Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting/public

hearings.

SUMMARY: The Western Pacific Fishery

Management Council (Council) will

hold its 104th meeting June 13 through

June 16, 2000, in Makena, HI. Public

hearings will be held on criteria to allow

new entry into the Mau Zone limited

entry bottomfish fishery in the

Northwest Hawaiian Islands (NWHI)

and on amendments to the Bottomfish

and Seamount Groundfish, Crustaceans,

and Precious Corals Fishery

Management Plans (FMPs).

DATES: The Council’s Standing

Committees will meet on June 13, 2000.

The full Council meeting will be held

on June 14–16, 2000, from 8:30 a.m. to

5 p.m. The public hearings will be held

on June 16, 2000. See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for specific dates and times

for these meetings and the hearings.

ADDRESSES: The Council meeting will be

held at the Prince Ballroom at the Maui

Prince Hotel, 5415 Makena Alanui,

Makena, HI 96753; telephone 808–874–

1111. Copies of documents that provide

information on options to be discussed

at the public hearings are available from

the Western Pacific Fishery

Management Council, 1164 Bishop St.,

Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI, 96813.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kitty M. Simonds, Executive Director;

telephone 808–522–8220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Dates and Times

Committee Meetings

The following Standing Committees

of the Council will meet on June 13,

2000. Enforcement/Vessel Monitoring

System (including meeting with

industry) from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.;

International Fisheries/Pelagics from

9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.; Executive/

Budget and Program from 11:30 a.m. to

1:30 p.m.; Precious Corals from 1:30

p.m. to 3 p.m.; Crustaceans from 1:30

p.m. to 3 p.m.; Bottomfish from 3 p.m.

to 4:30 p.m; Ecosystem and Habitat from

3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Fishery Rights of

Indigenous People from 4:30 p.m. to

5:30 p.m.; and Joint Bottomfish,

Crustacean, Ecosystem and Habitat,

Precious Corals, and Fishery Rights of

Indigenous People from 5:30 p.m. to

6:30 p.m.

Public Hearings

The public hearing on new entry

crtieria for the Mau Zone bottomfish

fishery will be held on Friday, June 16,

2000, at 9:30 a.m. The public hearing on

amendments to the Bottomfish and

Seamount Groundfish, Crustaceans, and

Precious Corals FMPs will be held on

June 16, 2000, at 2 p.m.

The agenda during the full Council

meeting will include the items listed. In

addition, the Council will hear

recommendations from its advisory

panels, plan teams, scientific and

statistical committee, and other ad hoc

groups. The order in which agenda

items are addressed may change. The

Council will meet as late as necessary to

complete scheduled business.

Agenda

1. Introductions

2. Approval of Agenda

3. Approval of 103rd Meeting Minutes

4. Island Reports

A. American Samoa

B. Guam

C. Hawaii

D. Commonwealth of the Northern

Mariana Islands (CNMI)

5. Fishery Agency and Organization

Reports

A. Department of Commerce

(1) NMFS

(a) Southwest Region, Pacific Island

Area Office

(b) Southwest Fisheries Science

Center, La Jolla and Honolulu

Laboratories

(2) NOAA General Counsel,

Southwest Region

B. Department of the Interior

(1) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

(FWS)

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 104 / Tuesday, May 30, 2000 / Proposed Rules 34433

6. Enforcement

A. U.S. Coast Guard activities

B. NMFS activities

C. Commonwealth, Territories, and

State Activities

D. Cooperative agreements for Guam/

CNMI

E. Status of violations

7. Vessel Monitoring System (VMS)

A. Regional VMS report

B. National VMS efforts

C. Report on Forum Fisheries

Agency’s VMS program

8. Ecosystems and Habitat

A. Federal and state initiatives

(1) U.S. Coral Reef Task Force

National Action Plan

(2) Congressional coral reef bills

(3) Federal agencies (NMFS, FWS)

(4) Local agencies (American Samoa,

Guam, Hawaii, CNMI)

B. Habitat issues

(1) Tern Island (French Frigate

Shoals)

(2) Midway

(3) Research (including the

DeepWorker subs)

C. Advisory body comments on the

Coral Reef Ecosystem FMP preferred

alternatives

(1) Coral Reef Ecosystem Plan Team

(2) Ecosystem and Habitat Advisory

Panel

(3) Bottomfish Plan Team/Advisory

Panel

(4) Crustaceans Plan Team/Advisory

Panel

(5) Precious Corals Plan Team/

Advisory Panel

(6) Native and Indigenous Rights

Advisory Panel

D. Organization of coral reef FMP

E. Other issues

9. Fishery Rights of Indigenous People

A. Status of Marine Conservation

Plans

B. Status of Community Development

Program/Demonstration Projects,

including eligibility criteria

C. Pelagic and crustacean limited

entry permits for Community

Development Program

D. Access to Military Shore

Installations

10. Pelagic Fisheries

A. 1st quarter 2000 Hawaii and

American Samoa longline fishery report

B. Island Issues

(1) Status of American Samoa

framework measure

(2) Domestic fishery development—SK preliminary results

C. Shark management (1) Shark catch

and disposition in 1st Quarter of 2000

in the Hawaii Longline fishery

(2) Blue shark stock assessment

(3) Cultural study of sharks and shark

fishing in the Western Pacific (WP)

Region

(4) Pelagic FMP amendment for shark

management

(5) State of Hawaii legislation for

shark finning

(6) State of Hawaii management of

shark fishing

(7) Shark management in rest of WP

Region

(8) Federal shark fin legislation

(9) Blue Shark Utilization

(10) Research priorities

D. Seabird management

(1) Status of FMP amendment to

mitigate seabird take

(2) Status of the Biological Opnion on

Short-tailed Albatross take

E. Sea turtle management

(1) Status of litigation

(2) Environmental Assessment

(3) Federal import embargoes related

to incidental sea turtle catches

(4) Turtle research/Azores project

update

(5) Observer program

F. International

(1) Outcome of Multilatteral High

Level Conference 6

(2) Tongan Highly Migratory Species

Fishery Management

Plans

G. Purse seining in the Central

Western Pacific and untethered Fish

Aggregation Device fishing

11. Bottomfish Fisheries

A. 1999 Annual Report/Status of the

fishery

B. New entry criteria for Mau Zone

C. Status of Litigation

D. Research Plan

E. Public hearing on new entry

criteria for the Mau Zone bottomfish

fishery.

The Council intends to develop a

framework amendment to the FMP for

Bottomfish and Seamount Groundfish

Fisheries of the Western Pacific Region.

The amendment will establish criteria

for new entry into the limited access

Mau Zone bottomfish fishery in the

Northwest Hawaiian Islands. In

developing the framework document,

the Council will consider a range of

alternatives and impacts on Northwest

Hawaiian Island bottomfish fishery.

Currently, there are no Federal

regulations that specify how new

permits are to be issued in the Mau

Zone once the number of vessels in the

Zone falls below the target number,

which is now established at 10 permits.

The Council seeks to solicit public

comment and input on eligibility

criteria including but not limited to the

following: weighted point system based

on past participation in the main and

NWHI, free and limited transferability of

permits, and a lottery system.

12. Crustacean Fisheries

A. Draft 1999 Annual Report

B. 2000 NWHI lobster fishery/harvest

guidelines/population assessment

C. Consideration of amendment to

replace lobster assessment model

D. Research plans

E. Possible additions to Crustaceans

management unit species (e.g.,

deepwater shrimp, crabs)

F. Status of litigation

(1) Experimental Fishing Permit

13. Precious Corals

A. Status of framework amendment

B. Stock monitoring

C. Research plans (NWHI DeepWorker

sub surveys)

D. American Deepwater Engineering

requests

(1) Revise quotas for selective gear

harvest

(2) Expand beds based on new data

14. Program Planning

A. Sustainable Fishery Act

amendment revisions

(1) Bycatch (bottomfish, pelagics)

(2) Overfishing (bottomfish,

crustaceans, pelagics)

(3) Fishing communities

(4) Plan Team recommendations

B. Draft amendments to include CNMI

and Pacific Remote Island Areas (PRIA)

in the bottomfish, precious corals and

crustaceans FMPs

C. Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) Changes

D. Marine debris conference/update

E. Palmyra Atoll

F. Report on program planning

initiatives G. Advisory Panel

modifications

H. Western Pacific Fisheries

Information Network/Fisheries Data

Coordinating Committee

I. Recreational Fisheries Data Task

Force

J. Public hearing on amendments to

include CNMI and PRIA in the

bottomfish, precious corals and

crustaceans FMPs

The Council intends to develop

amendments to the Bottomfish and

Seamount Groundfish, Crustaceans, and

Precious Corals FMPs. In developing

these amendments, the Council will

consider a range of alternatives and

impacts for management of bottomfish,

crustaceans and precious corals

fisheries of PRIA and CNMI. The PRIA

is defined as Kingman Reef, Johnston

Atoll, Palmyra Atoll, and Howland,

Baker, Jarvis, Wake, and Midway

34434 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 104 / Tuesday, May 30, 2000 / Proposed Rules

islands. The Council is evaluating the

need to amend the bottomfish,

crustaceans and precious corals FMPs to

better achieve the management

objectives of these FMPs. Currently, no

Federal regulations are in place to

manage the bottomfish, crustacean and

precious coral fishery resources in the

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) waters

surrounding the CNMI. There are also

no Federal regulations in place for the

bottomfish and crustacean fisheries in

EEZ waters surrounding PRIA. The

amendments will be developed by

considering a wide range of

management alternatives to address data

short falls and possible impacts from the

bottomfish, crustacean, and precious

coral fisheries in PRIA and CNMI. The

Council seeks public comment and

input on a wide range of management

alternatives, including but not limited to

the following: Prohibit the use of

destructive fishing techniques including

the use of explosives, poisons, bottomset gillnets, bottom trawls, and tangle

nets; additions to the managed species

list; Federal permit and data reporting

requirements; limited access; observer

programs; gear restrictions; size limits;

catch quotas; and the designation of

essential fish habitat.

15. Administrative Matters

A. Administrative reports

B. Advisory body membership

changes

C. Meetings and workshops D. 105th

Council Meeting in Midway

16. Other Business

Although non-emergency issues not

contained in this agenda may come

before the Council for discussion, those

issues may not be the subject of formal

Council action during this meeting.

Council action will be restricted to those

issues specifically listed in this

document and any issue arising after

publication of this document that

requires emergency action under section

305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act,

provided the public has been notified of

the Council’s intent to take final action

to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

This meeting is physically accessible

to people with disabilities. Requests for

sign language interpretation or other

auxiliary aids should be directed to

Kitty M. Simonds, 808–522–8220

(voice) or 808–522–8226 (fax), at least 5

days prior to meeting date.

Authority: 1801 et seq.

Dated: May 24, 2000.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 00–13459 Filed 5–26–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[I.D. 051500D ]

RIN 0648-AM72

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Western Alaska

Community Development Quota

Program

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability; request

for comments.

SUMMARY: The North Pacific Fishery

Management Council (Council) has

submitted Amendment 66 to the Fishery

Management Plan for the Groundfish

Fishery of the Bering Sea and Aleutian

Islands Area (FMP) to remove the

allocation of squid to the Western

Alaska Community Development Quota

(CDQ) Program. The Council has

recommended this amendment to

prevent the incidental catch of squid in

the pollock CDQ fisheries from

preventing the CDQ groups from fully

harvesting the pollock CDQ allocation

required under the American Fisheries

Act (AFA).

DATES: Comments on Amendment 66

must be submitted by July 31, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to

Sue Salveson, Assistant Regional

Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries

Division, Alaska Region, NMFS, P.O.

Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802, Attn:

Lori Gravel. Hand delivery or courier

delivery of comments may be sent to the

Federal Building, 709 West 9th Street,

Juneau, AK. Comments will not be

accepted if submitted via e-mail or the

Internet.

Copies of Amendment 66 to the FMP

and of the Environmental Assessment/

Regulatory Impact Review/Initial

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis prepared

for this action are available from the

Council, 605 West 4th Ave., Suite 306,

Anchorage, AK 99501–2252, telephone

907–271–2809; from NMFS at the above

address; or by calling the Alaska Region,

NMFS, at 907–586–7228.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sally Bibb, 907–586–7389,

sally.bibb@noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires that

each Regional Fishery Management

Council submit any FMP or FMP

amendment it prepares to NMFS for

review and approval, disapproval, or

partial approval. The Magnuson-Stevens

Act also requires that NMFS, upon

receiving an FMP or amendment,

immediately publish a notification in

the Federal Register that the FMP or

amendment is available for public

review and comment. Therefore, NMFS

solicits comments on the approval,

disapproval, or partial approval of this

amendment.

The Council adopted Amendment 66

at its June 1999 meeting. If approved by

NMFS, this amendment would remove

the allocation of 7.5 percent of the squid

total allowable catch (TAC) to the CDQ

Program. Currently, each CDQ group

must manage its CDQ fisheries to ensure

that its squid CDQ allocation is not

exceeded. The pollock fishery takes

squid as incidental catch. The potential

exists that if a CDQ group were to catch

its full squid allocation, it would be

precluded from continuing to fish for

pollock. This potential constraint on the

pollock CDQ fisheries existed when the

pollock CDQ allocation was 7.5 percent

of the pollock TAC. The potential is

more likely now that the pollock CDQ

allocation has been increased to 10

percent of the TAC under the AFA. In

passing the AFA, Congress manifested

its intent that CDQ groups be able to

harvest their full pollock allocations.

Therefore, the Council is recommending

removal of squid as a CDQ species.

NMFS solicits public comments on

the amendment through July 31, 2000.

A proposed rule that would implement

the amendment may be published in the

Federal Register for public comment

following NMFS’s evaluation under the

Magnuson-Stevens Act procedures.

Public comments on the proposed rule

must be received by the end of the

comment period on the amendment to

be considered in the approval/

disapproval decision on the

amendment. All comments received by

the end of the comment period on the

amendment, whether specifically

directed to the amendment or to the

proposed rule, will be considered in the

approval/disapproval decision;

comments received after that date will

not be considered in the approval/

disapproval decision on the

amendment. To be considered,