54836 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 204 / Wednesday, October 22, 1997 / Notices

lobster permitted vessels that take

lobsters in the EEZ by a method other

than traps, (4) a prohibition on the

taking or possession of lobster in the

EEZ; (5) the application of current

Federal regulations (50 CFR part 649) to

the EEZ under ACFCMA; and (6) status

quo or no action taken. NMFS also

requests comments on the appropriate

regulatory authority under which it

should proceed with lobster

conservation measures.

NMFS has determined that the

preparation of an EIS is appropriate,

because of the potentially significant

impact of EEZ regulations on the human

environment. All of the Federal EEZ

measures recommended in draft

Amendment 3 to the ASMFC FMP will

be assessed also during the EIS process.

Participants in this fishery will be

affected and may face more restricted

harvests of lobster while the natural

stocks of lobster are allowed to recover.

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

Dated: October 17, 1997.

Gary Matlock,

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–27966 Filed 10–21–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 101597A]

Marine Mammals

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Issuance of photography permit

no. 860–1374

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

Mr. Michael deGruy, The Film Crew,

629 State Street, Suite 222, Santa

Barbara, California 93101, has been

issued a permit to take by Level B

harassment gray whales (Eschrichtius

robustus) and northern elephant seals

(Mirounga angustirostris) for purposes

of commercial photography.

ADDRESSES: The permit and related

documents are available for review

upon written request or by appointment

in the following offices:

Permits Division, Office of Protected

Resources, NMFS, 1315 East-West

Highway, Room 13130, Silver Spring,

MD 20910 (301/713–2289); and

Regional Administrator, Southwest

Region, NMFS, 501 West Ocean Blvd.,

Suite 4200, Long Beach, CA 90802–4213

(562/980–4001).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jeannie Drevenak, (301) 713-2289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

September 3, 1997, notice was

published in the Federal Register (62

FR 46484) that the above-named

applicant had submitted a request for a

permit to take gray whales and northern

elephant seals by Level B harassment

during the course of commercial

photographic activities in California

waters. The requested permit has been

issued, under the authority of section

104(c)(6) of the Marine Mammal

Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16

U.S.C. 1361 et seq.).

Dated: October 15, 1997.

Ann D. Terbush, Chief,

Permits and Documentation Division, Office

of Protected Resources, National Marine

Fisheries Service

[FR Doc. 97–27929 Filed 10–21–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Patent and Trademark Office

Request for Comments on Patent

Formalities Treaty

AGENCY: Patent and Trademark Office,

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of request for public

comments.

SUMMARY: The Patent and Trademark

Office is seeking comments to obtain

views of the public on the international

effort to simplify the formal

requirements associated with patent

applications and patents and the

consequent changes to United States

law and practice. Comments may be

offered on any aspect of this effort.

DATES: All comments are due by

December 1, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to offer

written comments should address those

comments to the Commissioner of

Patents and Trademarks, Box 4, Patent

and Trademark Office, Washington, DC

20231, marked to the attention of Mrs.

Lois E. Boland.

Comments may also be submitted by

facsimile transmission to (703) 305–

8885 or by electronic mail through the

Internet to plt.comments@uspto.gov. All

comments will be maintained for public

inspection in Room 902 of Crystal Park

II, at 2121 Crystal Drive, Arlington,

Virginia.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mrs. Lois E. Boland by telephone at

(703) 305–9300, by fax at (703) 305–

8885 or by mail marked to her attention

and addressed to Commissioner of

Patents and Trademarks, Box 4,

Washington, DC 20231.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. Background

The United States has been involved

in an effort to reduce the formal

requirements associated with patent

applications and patents in the different

countries of the world. A committee of

experts, meeting under the auspices of

the World Intellectual Property

Organization (WIPO), continues to

develop treaty articles and rules which

attempt to minimize the formal

requirements associated with patent

applications and patents. Upon

conclusion, these treaty articles and

rules will simplify the formal

obligations and reduce the associated

costs for patent applicants and owners

of patents in obtaining and preserving

their rights for inventions in many

countries of the world. The next (5th)

committee of experts meeting will take

place at WIPO in December of 1997. It

is likely that two additional such

meetings will take place in 1998. The

issue of when a Diplomatic Conference

will be convened to conclude these

negotiations will be discussed in a

March 1998 meeting at WIPO. WIPO has

suggested that a 1999 Diplomatic

Conference may be possible.

The United States Patent and

Trademark Office (USPTO), leading the

negotiations for the United States, is

interested in obtaining comprehensive

comments to assess continued support

for the effort. Prior to each of the

previous meetings of the committee of

experts, the USPTO informally solicited

and received comments on the thencurrent drafts of the treaty articles, rules

and notes. In light of the impending

conclusion of this effort, the USPTO

desires to ensure that the text of the

treaty is disseminated as widely as

possible and the opportunity to provide

comments is correspondingly

comprehensive.

Written comments may be offered on

any aspect of the draft treaty articles,

rules or notes or expected

implementation in the United States.

Comments are also welcome on the

following issues:

—The formalities/substantive

distinction, discussed, specifically,

with respect to Article 5, below;

—The subject matter appropriate for

treaty articles versus that which

should be relegated to rules; and

—Whether this effort should be

concluded by a separate treaty or as