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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 205 (Wednesday, October 25, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73354-73355]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-23533]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Geological Survey

[GX24NN00TH3L700, OMB Control Number 1028-NEW]

Agency Information Collection Activities; Central Flyway Online 
Goose Harvest Assessment

AGENCY: U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior.

ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 
the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is proposing a new information 
collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
December 26, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments on this information collection request 
(ICR) by mail to USGS, Information Collections Clearance Officer, 12201 
Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 159, Reston, VA 20192; or by email to [email protected]. Please reference OMB Control Number 1028-NEW 
Central Flyway Goose Harvest Assessment in the subject line of your 
comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information 
about this ICR, contact Jay VonBank by email at [email protected], or 
by telephone at (701) 368-0177. Individuals in the United States who 
are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may 
dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay 
services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay 
services offered within their country to make international calls to 
the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.) and 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1), all information collections require 
approval. We may not conduct or sponsor, nor are you required to

[[Page 73355]]

respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently 
valid OMB control number.
    As part of our continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent 
burdens, we invite the public and other federal agencies to comment on 
new, proposed, revised, and continuing collections of information. This 
helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements 
and minimize the public's reporting burden. It also helps the public 
understand our information collection requirements and provide the 
requested data in the desired format.
    We are especially interested in public comment addressing the 
following:
    (1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether or not the information will have practical utility;
    (2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection 
of information, including the validity of the methodology and 
assumptions used;
    (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    (4) How the agency might minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of 
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., 
permitting electronic submission of response.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. Before including your address, phone number, email 
address, or other personally identifiable information (PII) in your 
comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--including your 
PII--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us 
in your comment to withhold your PII from public review, we cannot 
guarantee that we will be able to do so.
    Abstract: To estimate the species and age composition of U.S. goose 
harvest, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) annually conducts two 
separate surveys from a sample of hunters in each flyway: a Parts 
Collection Survey (PCS) used to identify age and species of goose and 
the Migratory Bird Harvest Survey (i.e., Diary Survey) to estimate the 
total number of geese harvested. Data from each survey are then 
combined post hoc to estimate species- and age-specific harvests. 
Harvest data are then incorporated into models to estimate population 
abundance for many goose species. These monitoring efforts are 
essential to estimating annual harvest and subsequent population size, 
but FWS managers have identified several potential biases that need to 
be addressed. Information provided by hunters via the PCS may introduce 
potential biases. Due to liberalization in bag limits and hunting-
season lengths, as well as PCS participation fatigue, some participants 
only submit a subset of daily harvested waterfowl or do not request 
additional envelopes to continue participation once the initial supply 
of envelopes is exhausted (i.e., completeness bias). Thus, hunter-
collected samples for the PCS are likely temporally biased toward early 
in the hunting season (e.g., hunters quit participating during the 
hunting season, or they only submit as many samples as the initial 
envelopes provided allow, with a decreasing number of hunters 
requesting additional envelopes). Therefore, fewer parts are submitted 
later in the season, resulting in a temporal harvest bias in addition 
to a quantity- and completeness bias. Our proposed study aims to 
integrate both surveys into one easily accessible, robust data 
collection platform that reduces the burden on hunters and is expected 
to increase participation. In an effort to develop and evaluate an 
additional survey to the PCS and Diary Survey that may help to 
alleviate the concerns outlined above, we propose the development of an 
online/mobile application survey platform to allow goose harvest 
reporting of species and age directly from hunters without the need to 
participate in two surveys or to collect and mail parts. We propose a 
short-term study within Central Flyway states on the design, 
implementation, comparability, and efficacy of an online survey 
methodology. This study will determine if such a survey is feasible to 
accurately estimate future goose harvests and reduce the identified 
biases, costs, burden, and time involved in the current PCS and Diary 
surveys. Understanding biases and assumptions in current harvest survey 
protocols has direct management implications as many goose harvest 
strategies are predicated on harvest and population estimates. 
Developing alternative methods to address these biases are necessary to 
ensure accurate, reliable, and increasingly precise estimates of 
harvest and abundance. Furthering our understanding of assumptions 
related to current practices and surveys will aid in improving the 
management process for North American goose populations.
    Title of Collection: Central Flyway online goose harvest 
assessment.
    OMB Control Number: 1028-NEW.
    Form Number: None.
    Type of Review: New.
    Respondents/Affected Public: General Public.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 3,552.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 4 per respondent (total 
of 14,208 annual responses).
    Estimated Completion Time per Response: 2 minutes.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 474 hours.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Frequency of Collection: Frequency Once annually.
    Total Estimated Annual Non-hour Burden Cost: None.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, nor is a person required to 
respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently 
valid OMB control number.
    The authority for this action is the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Robert A Gleason,
Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Center Director, 
Midcontinent Region, USGS.
[FR Doc. 2023-23533 Filed 10-24-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4388-11-P
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