Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 222 / Monday, November 20, 2023 / Notices 80695 

Permit No. 23188, issued on 

September 25, 2020 (85 FR 63524), 

authorizes the permit holder to conduct 

scientific research on northern elephant 

seals (NES; Mirounga angustirostris) in 

California. The permit activities 

continue a long-term research program 

started in 1968 to study NES population 

growth and status, reproduction, 

behavioral and physiological 

adaptations for diving and fasting, 

general physiology and metabolism, and 

sensory physiology. Authorized 

activities include behavioral 

observations, marking, capture, 

biological sampling (including skin, 

blubber, and muscle biopsies), active 

and passive acoustics, instrumentation, 

translocation studies, short-term captive 

holding for laboratory studies, use of 

hormone challenges and standard 

clinical tracer techniques, and 

unmanned aircraft system surveys. The 

permit authorizes unintentional 

mortalities of up to 5 NES annually 

during research, and euthanasia of up to 

10 moribund or abandoned NES pups 

annually. Three amendments to the 

permit were issued to: increase take 

numbers and add a new study area (No. 

23188–01; April 27, 2021); add new 

study areas and update methods for 

acoustic studies (No. 23188–02; 

November 19, 2021); and update 

methods for biological sampling and 

instrumentation (No. 23188–03; 

February 2, 2022). The permit holder is 

requesting the permit be amended to 

include authorization for additional 

reproductive studies to investigate 

embryonic diapause in NES. Over a 2- 

year study period, 39 adult females 

would be captured, anesthetized, 

marked, sampled, and instrumented, as 

currently authorized. Researchers would 

use a transrectal ultrasound to check for 

pregnancy and non-pregnant females 

would then have uterine endoscopy, 

cytology, lavage, and biopsy sampling. 

The lavage and biopsy procedures may 

result in egg, sperm, or blastocyst 

removal from the uterus. A subset of 

these females may be captured and 

sampled twice per year. An additional 

390 NES may be unintentionally 

harassed during these reproductive 

studies. The amendment would be valid 

for the duration of the permit, until 

September 30, 2025. 

A draft environmental assessment 

(EA) has been prepared in compliance 

with the National Environmental Policy 

Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), to 

examine whether significant 

environmental impacts could result 

from issuance of the proposed scientific 

research permit amendment. The draft 

EA is available for review and comment 

simultaneous with the scientific 

research permit amendment application. 

Concurrent with the publication of 

this notice in the Federal Register, 

NMFS is forwarding copies of this 

application to the Marine Mammal 

Commission and its Committee of 

Scientific Advisors. 

Dated: November 14, 2023. 

Julia M. Harrison, 

Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, 

Office of Protected Resources, National 

Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–25574 Filed 11–17–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XD543] 

Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 

Council (MAFMC); Public Meeting 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council’s Summer 

Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass 

Monitoring Committee will hold a 

public webinar meeting. 

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

Thursday, December 7, 2023 from 1:30 

p.m. until 3:30 p.m. EDT. For agenda 

details, see SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held 

via webinar. Connection information 

will be posted to the calendar prior to 

the meeting at www.mafmc.org. 

Council address: Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, 800 N State 

Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE 19901; 

telephone: (302) 674–2331; 

www.mafmc.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christopher M. Moore, Ph.D., Executive 

Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, telephone: (302) 

526–5255. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea 

Bass Monitoring Committee will meet 

via webinar to continue discussions 

from their November 13–14, 2023 

meeting related to 2024–2025 

recreational management measures for 

summer flounder and scup and 2024 

recreational management measures for 

black sea bass. Specifically, the 

Monitoring Committee will continue 

discussions to recommend the 

appropriate non-preferred coastwide 

and precautionary default measures 

(e.g., possession limits, fish size limits, 

seasons) associated with conservation 

equivalency for summer flounder and 

black sea bass, and revisit additional 

information in support of their 

recommendation for scup federal waters 

measures in 2024. 

Meeting materials will be posted to 

www.mafmc.org. 

Special Accommodations 

The meeting is physically accessible 

to people with disabilities. Requests for 

sign language interpretation or other 

auxiliary aid should be directed to 

Shelley Spedden, (302) 526–5251, at 

least 5 days prior to the meeting date. 

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

Dated: November 14, 2023. 

Rey Israel Marquez, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–25526 Filed 11–17–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Patent and Trademark Office 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

Review and Approval; Comment 

Request; Patent and Trademark 

Resource Center Metrics 

AGENCY: United States Patent and 

Trademark Office, Department of 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of information collection; 

request for comment. 

SUMMARY: The United States Patent and 

Trademark Office (USPTO), as required 

by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995, invites comments on the 

extension and revision of an existing 

information collection: 0651–0068 

(Patent and Trademark Resource Center 

Metrics). The purpose of this notice is 

to allow 60 days for public comment 

preceding submission of the information 

collection to OMB. 

DATES: To ensure consideration, 

comments regarding this information 

collection must be received on or before 

January 19, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments by 

any of the following methods. Do not 

submit Confidential Business 

Information or otherwise sensitive or 

protected information. 

• Email: InformationCollection@

uspto.gov. Include ‘‘0651–0068 


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