2462 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 12 / Friday, January 19, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

within this emergency rule meets the 

fishing mortality objectives of the FMP 

and satisfies section 120(a) of the 

Reauthorized Magnuson-Stevens Act. 

Until this rule is effective, states and 

commercial fishermen are held to the 

quotas published on December 14, 2006. 

As a result of the Reauthorized 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, the quotas 

published on December 14, 2006, are 

rendered unnecessarily restrictive and 

are substantially less than the quotas 

available under the increased TAL. If 

effectiveness of the rule is delayed, state 

quotas and subsequent management 

measures designed to attain the quotas 

derived from the lower TAL would be 

inconsistent with the increased TAL 

available from the revised rebuilding 

period. Waiver of the notice-andcomment rulemaking period will serve 

the public by allowing states to 

implement commercial quotas and 

management measures afforded under 

the increased TAL in a timely fashion 

for the 2007 fisheries that began on 

January 1, 2007. States in the southern 

reaches of the Northeast Region have 

very active commercial fisheries that 

begin in January of each year while 

more northern states have need of 

establishing their annual management 

measures early within the new year so 

that fishery participants may plan first 

quarter fishing activities. The time 

required by NMFS to conduct noticeand-comment rulemaking for this 

emergency rule would require states to 

establish management measures for up 

to several months based on the lower 

TAL in place as of January 1, 2007. State 

management measures would likely 

require more restrictive possession and 

trip limits that increase the potential for 

discards and the likelihood that TALs 

may be attained and fisheries to be 

closed before additional quota is made 

available by this emergency rule. 

In addition, state agencies are 

currently developing and preparing 

conservation equivalency proposals for 

the 2007 recreational fishery to be 

submitted to the Atlantic States Marine 

Fisheries Commission during their 

January 29, 2007, meeting. Recreational 

fisheries do not begin in earnest until 

spring and NMFS anticipates publishing 

a final rule for 2007 recreational 

measures in March 2007. A delay of this 

emergency rule by notice-and-comment 

rulemaking would require states to craft 

conservation equivalency measures that 

meet the objectives of the lower TAL. 

Such measures would be inconsistent 

with the objectives of the increased TAL 

and would be unnecessarily more 

restrictive, requiring further revision 

after this rule becomes effective. 

Additional rulemaking would be 

required to implement less restrictive 

measures that meet the objectives of the 

higher TAL. 

NMFS did not initiate the emergency 

action earlier because provision of the 

Reauthorized Magnuson-Stevens Act 

that allows an extension of the summer 

founder rebuilding period and the 

subsequent increase in 2007 TAL was 

not signed into law by the President 

until January 12, 2007. The revised TAL 

is within the range of quota alternatives 

considered and analyzed by the 

Council, and discussed in the proposed 

rule that published on October 27, 2006, 

with a 21–day comment period. NMFS 

intends to provide a 30–day postpromulgation comment period 

following the implementation of this 

emergency rule. 

Waiver of this delay will allow state 

promulgated commercial management 

measures to be applied within days of 

the start of the 2007 fishing season and 

for recreational management measures 

to be proposed to meet the objectives 

contained within the higher TAL. These 

state measures will be consistent with 

the publicly and Congressionally 

expected increase in TAL resulting from 

the extended rebuilding time frame 

authorized in section 120(a) of the 

Reauthorized Magnuson-Stevens Act. 

For the same reasons, the Assistant 

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA, 

finds good cause pursuant to 5 U.S.C 

553(d)(3) to make this rule effective 

immediately, thereby waiving the 30–

day delayed effective date required by 5 

U.S.C. 553(d). 

This final rule has been determined to 

be not significant for purposes of 

Executive Order 12866. 

This rule is exempt from the 

procedures of the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act because the rule is not subject to the 

requirement to provide prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment 

pursuant to 5 USC 553 or any other law. 

Dated: January 17, 2007. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 07–231 Filed 1–17–07; 1:10 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 060216045–6045–01; I.D. 

011107F] 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Pollock in Statistical 

Area 610 in the Gulf of Alaska 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is prohibiting directed 

fishing for pollock in Statistical Area 

610 in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This 

action is necessary to prevent exceeding 

the A season allowance of the 2007 total 

allowable catch (TAC) of pollock for 

Statistical Area 610 in the GOA. 

DATES: Effective 1200 hrs, Alaska local 

time (A.l.t.), January 22, 2007, through 

1200 hrs, A.l.t., March 10, 2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jennifer Hogan, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

manages the groundfish fishery in the 

GOA exclusive economic zone 

according to the Fishery Management 

Plan for Groundfish of the Gulf of 

Alaska (FMP) prepared by the North 

Pacific Fishery Management Council 

under authority of the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act. Regulations governing 

fishing by U.S. vessels in accordance 

with the FMP appear at subpart H of 50 

CFR part 600 and 50 CFR part 679. 

The A season allowance of the 2007 

TAC of pollock in Statistical Area 610 

of the GOA is 3,352 metric tons (mt) as 

established by the 2006 and 2007 

harvest specifications for groundfish of 

the GOA (71 FR 10870, March 3, 2006). 

In accordance with § 679.20(d)(1)(i), 

the Regional Administrator has 

determined that the A season allowance 

of the 2007 TAC of pollock in Statistical 

Area 610 of the GOA will soon be 

reached. Therefore, the Regional 

Administrator is establishing a directed 

fishing allowance of 3,337 mt, and is 

setting aside the remaining 15 mt as 

bycatch to support other anticipated 

groundfish fisheries. In accordance with 

§ 679.20(d)(1)(iii), the Regional 

Administrator finds that this directed 

fishing allowance has been reached. 

Consequently, NMFS is prohibiting 

directed fishing for pollock in Statistical 

Area 610 of the GOA. 

After the effective date of this closure 

the maximum retainable amounts at 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 12 / Friday, January 19, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 2463 

§§ 679.20(e) and (f) apply at any time 

during a trip. 

Classification 

This action responds to the best 

available information recently obtained 

from the fishery. The Assistant 

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA 

(AA), finds good cause to waive the 

requirement to provide prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment 

pursuant to the authority set forth at 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(B) as such requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest. This requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest as it would prevent NMFS from 

responding to the most recent fisheries 

data in a timely fashion and would 

delay the closure of pollock in 

Statistical Area 610 of the GOA. NMFS 

was unable to publish a notice 

providing time for public comment 

because the most recent, relevant data 

only became available as of January 11, 

2007. 

The AA also finds good cause to 

waive the 30 day delay in the effective 

date of this action under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3). This finding is based upon 

the reasons provided above for waiver of 

prior notice and opportunity for public 

comment. 

This action is required by § 679.20 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

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

Dated: January 12, 2007. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 07–211 Filed 1–16–07; 2:42 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


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