55592 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 207 / Monday, October 27, 1997 / Notices

Trade Mission Participation Criteria

The recruitment and selection of

private sector participants in this

mission will be conducted according to

the Statement of Policy Governing

Department of Commerce Overseas

Trade Missions announced by Secretary

Daley on March 3, l997. For the India

business development mission,

individuals must be at a level of

executive seniority appropriate to the

goals of the mission. Company

participation will be determined on the

basis of:

• Consistency of the company’s goals

with the scope and desired outcome of

the mission as described herein;

• Relevance of a company’s business

line to the plan for the mission;

• Past, present and prospective

business activity in India; and

• Diversity of company size, type,

location, demographics and traditional

under-representation in business.

An applicant’s partisan political

activities (including political

contributions) are irrelevant to the

selection process. An interested party

must fill out an application to be

considered for participation in the

mission.

Endorsements/Referrals

Third parties may nominate or

endorse potential applicants, but

companies that are nominated or

endorsed must themselves submit an

application to be eligible for

consideration. Referrals from political

organizations will not be considered.

Costs

The fees to participant in the mission

have not yet been determined, and will

be based on the number of participants.

The fees will not cover travel or lodging

expenses.

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 1512.

Robert Marro,

Regional Director, Office of Africa, Near East

and South Asia, International Trade

Administration, Department of Commerce.

[FR Doc. 97–28305 Filed 10–24–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510 FP–U

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[I.D. 102097A]

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management

Council; Public Meetings

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meetings.

SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery

Management Council (Council) and its

committees will convene public

meetings.

DATES: The meetings will be held on

November 10–13, 1997. See

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for specific

dates and times.

ADDRESSES: These meetings will be held

at the Holiday Inn Longboat Key, 4949

Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key

(Sarasota), FL; telephone: 941–383–

3771.

Council address: Gulf of Mexico

Fishery Management Council, 3018 U.S.

Highway 301 North, Suite 1000, Tampa,

FL 33619.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Wayne E. Swingle, Executive Director,

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management

Council; telephone: (813) 228–2815.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Council

November 12

8:30 a.m.—Convene.

8:45 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.—Appointment of

Committees.

9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon—Receive

public testimony on a control date for

dolphin/wahoo; interim/emergency

action on red snapper size limits; and

reef fish total allowable catch (TAC).

During the meeting the Council will

review stock assessments for red

snapper and gag (grouper) and

determine whether to specify or modify

the TAC for these stocks for the 1998

fishing year. The Council will also

consider whether to request by

emergency rule that the minimum size

limit for red snapper remain at 15

inches or be set at 14 inches. Without

some action the minimum size limit

will become 16 inches on January 1,

1998. The Council will also consider

whether to specify a control date for the

fisheries for dolphin (fish) and wahoo.

If approved, the control date would

notify commercial fishermen that if a

limited access system is developed for

these fisheries, persons that enter the

fishery after that date may not be

allowed to participate.

1:30 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.—Receive a

report on a peer-group review of

management of the red snapper fishery

and the information used for

management. This review was

mandated by Congress through passage

of the Sustainable Fisheries Act (SFA).

In complying with this mandate, NMFS

empaneled three groups of scientists

from outside the Gulf region to conduct

the peer-group review during July and

August. The panels reviewed

information provided by NMFS and by

the commercial fishing industry related

to: (1) the statistical information and

analyses, (2) the economic information

and analyses, and (3) management and

science procedures and data, including

stock assessments.

3:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.—Hear a status

report on development of new bycatch

reduction device (BRD) designs and a

protocol for certifying BRDs for use in

trawls.

3:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.—Receive a

summary of the report by NMFS to

Congress that identified overfished

stocks in each region. For the Gulf,

stocks that were identified include: red

snapper, red drum, Gulf-group king

Mackerel, jewfish, and Nassau grouper.

The Council has previously prohibited

any harvest or possession of red drum,

jewfish, and Nassau grouper in Federal

waters. NMFS will also discuss the new

provisions of the SFA that will apply to

restoration of these stocks. If only the

impacts on fishing communities are

taken into consideration TACs must be

specified that will restore the stock to

maximum sustainable yield (MSY)

within 10 years. This consideration will

likely require reducing TAC for some

stocks.

4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.—Receive a

report of the Reef Fish Management

Committee.

5:30 p.m.—CLOSED SESSION -

Appointment of members to Reef Fish

and Red Snapper Advisory Panels and

chairs to the Louisiana/Mississippi

Habitat Advisory Panel.

November 13

8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.—Continue the

report of the Reef Fish Management

Committee.

10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.—Receive a

report of the Mackerel Management

Committee

2:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m.—Receive a

report of the Migratory Species

Management Committee.

2:15 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.--Receive a report

of the Habitat Protection Management

Committee.

2:30 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.—Receive a

report of the Stone Crab Management

Committee.

2:45 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.—Receive a

report of the Administrative Policy

Committee.

3:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.—Receive reports

of the Highly Migratory Species Billfish

Advisory Panel, Longline Advisory

Panel, Tuna, Swordfish, and Shark

Advisory Panel, and International

Commission for the Conservation of

Atlantic Tunas Advisory Committee.

3:30 p.m. - 3:45 p.m.—Receive a

report on NMFS/Council Working

Group meeting.
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 207 / Monday, October 27, 1997 / Notices 55593

3:45 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.—Receive

Enforcement Reports.

4:00 p.m. - 4:25 p.m.— Receive

Director’s Reports.

4:25 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.—Other business

to be discussed.

November 10

9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.—Convene the

Reef Fish Management Committee to

review stock assessments for red

snapper and gag, biological information

on gray triggerfish, and the

recommendations of the scientific and

statistical committee, stock assessment

panel, socioeconomic panel, and

advisory panels. The committee will

develop their recommendations to the

Council on TAC for red snapper and gag

stocks. The committee will also select

preferred alternatives for Draft Reef Fish

Amendment 16 which will be presented

at public hearings in February, 1998.

This amendment contains alternatives

for phasing out the fish trap fishery,

removing some species from Federal

management, instituting bag and size

limits for certain species that will be

compatible with the limits in Florida

waters, and restrictions on harvest of

speckled hind and warsaw grouper.

2:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.—Convene the

Administrative Policy Committee to

develop the functions or charges for

three new ad hoc committees for marine

reserves, vessel monitoring, and

sustainable fisheries.

5:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.—Convene the

Stone Crab Management Committee to

consider a draft amendment that

proposes to extend the moratorium on

registration of commercial vessels by

NMFS.

November 11

8:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.—Convene the

Habitat Protection Committee consider

action on a cooperative agreement

related to completion of an amendment

describing essential fish habitat and

hear a status report on preparation of

this amendment. They will also

consider action on a proposed dredgeand-fill project in Louisiana and hear a

report on a project to culture fish in

cages on an oil platform off Texas.

10:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon—Convene the

Migratory Species Committee to

consider recommendations of the

Billfish Advisory Panel on provisions

for an amendment regulating the harvest

of marlin and sailfish that will be

implemented by NMFS next year.

1:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.—Convene the

Mackerel Management Committee to

select preferred alternatives for Draft

Mackerel Amendment 9 that will be

submitted to the South Atlantic Fishery

Management Council for consideration.

Public hearing on the amendment will

be scheduled in February, 1998.

Amendment 9 includes alternatives that

would:

1. Possible changes to the fishing year

for Gulf group king mackerel - currently

July 1;

2. Possible prohibitions of sale of

mackerel caught under the recreational

allocation;

3. Provisions for mandatory reporting

requirements for commercial and forhire vessels;

4. Reallocations of TAC for the

commercial fishery for Gulf group king

mackerel in the Eastern Zone (Florida

east coast and Florida west coast) -

currently 50/50 split;

5. Reallocations of TAC for Gulf group

king mackerel between the recreational

and commercial sectors - currently 68

percent and 32 percent, respectively;

6. Additional subdivisions of the

commercial, hook-and-line allocation of

TAC for Gulf group king mackerel by

area and/or season for both the Florida

west coast and the Western Zone

(Alabama through Texas);

7. Possible trip limits for vessels

fishing for Gulf group king mackerel in

the Western Zone;

8. Further restrictions on the use of

net gear to harvest Gulf group king

mackerel off the Florida west coast;

9. Possible changes to the minimum

size limit for Gulf group king mackerel

(currently 20–inches fork length) and

establishment of a maximum size limit

or both a minimum and maximum, (i.e.

a slot limit); and

10. Consideration of re-establishing an

annual allocation of Gulf group Spanish

mackerel for the purse seine fishery.

Although other issues not contained

in this agenda may come before the

Council for discussion, in accordance

with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation Act, those issues may not

be the subject of formal Council action

during these meetings. Council action

will be restricted to those issues

specifically identified in the agenda

listed in this notice.

Special Accommodations

These meetings are physically

accessible to people with disabilities.

Requests for sign language

interpretation or other auxiliary aids

should be directed to Anne Alford at the

Council (see ADDRESSES) by November

3, 1997.

Dated: October 22, 1997.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–28419 Filed 10–22–97; 2:14 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

COMMITTEE FOR THE

IMPLEMENTATION OF TEXTILE

AGREEMENTS

Adjustment of Import Limits for Certain

Cotton, Wool and Man-Made Fiber

Textile Products Produced or

Manufactured in Taiwan

October 21, 1997.

AGENCY: Committee for the

Implementation of Textile Agreements

(CITA).

ACTION: Issuing a directive to the

Commissioner of Customs adjusting

limits.

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 29, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Janet Heinzen, International Trade

Specialist, Office of Textiles and

Apparel, U.S. Department of Commerce,

(202) 482–4212. For information on the

quota status of these limits, refer to the

Quota Status Reports posted on the

bulletin boards of each Customs port or

call (202) 927–5850. For information on

embargoes and quota re-openings, call

(202) 482–3715.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Authority: Executive Order 11651 of March

3, 1972, as amended; section 204 of the

Agricultural Act of 1956, as amended (7

U.S.C. 1854).

The current limits for certain

categories are being adjusted, variously,

for swing and special shift.

A description of the textile and

apparel categories in terms of HTS

numbers is available in the

CORRELATION: Textile and Apparel

Categories with the Harmonized Tariff

Schedule of the United States (see

Federal Register notice 61 FR 66263,

published on December 17, 1996). Also

see 61 FR 58043, published on

November 12, 1996.

The letter to the Commissioner of

Customs and the actions taken pursuant

to it are not designed to implement all

of the provisions of the bilateral

agreement, but are designed to assist

only in the implementation of certain of

its provisions.

Troy H. Cribb,

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation

of Textile Agreements.

Committee for the Implementation of Textile

Agreements

October 21, 1997.

Commissioner of Customs,

Department of the Treasury, Washington, DC

20229.

Dear Commissioner: This directive

amends, but does not cancel, the directive

issued to you on November 4, 1996, by the

Chairman, Committee for the Implementation

of Textile Agreements. That directive