59298 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 212 / Monday, November 3, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

increased for the pipeline industry

pursuant to Section 199.11.

Issued in Washington, DC on October 28,

1997.

Richard B. Felder,

Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety.

[FR Doc. 97–28985 Filed 10–31–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–60–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 960531152–7241–05; I.D.

082897A]

RIN 0648–AI18

Fisheries in the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Technical

Amendment

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule; technical

amendment.

SUMMARY: NMFS issues a technical

amendment correcting minor errors in

the regulations implementing the

Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program

for fixed gear Pacific halibut and

sablefish fisheries in and off of Alaska.

This action is necessary to correct a

number of inadvertent errors in the

regulations implementing the IFQ

Program. The intent of this action is to

improve the clarity and coherence of the

IFQ regulations.

DATES: November 3, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be sent to

Chief, Fisheries Management Division,

Alaska Region, NMFS, 709 West 9th

Street, Room 453, Juneau, AK 99801 or

P.O. Box 21668, Juneau, AK, Attn: Lori

J. Gravel. Send comments regarding

burden estimates or any other aspect of

the data requirements, including

suggestions for reducing the burdens, to

NMFS and to the Office of Information

and Regulatory Affairs, Office of

Management and Budget (OMB),

Washington, DC 20530, Attn: NOAA

Desk Officer.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

James Hale, 907–586–7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The fixed gear halibut and sablefish

fisheries are managed by the IFQ

Program, a limited access system for

fixed gear Pacific halibut (Hippoglossus

stenolepis) and sablefish (Anoplopoma

fimbria) fisheries in and off of Alaska.

Under authority of the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and

Management Act and the Northern

Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut

Act), NMFS implemented the IFQ

Program in 1995, on the

recommendation of the North Pacific

Fishery Management Council (Council).

At 50 CFR 679.1(d)(2), the regulations

state that the term ‘‘fixed gear’’ is

described in 16 U.S.C. 773(d). The term

‘‘fixed gear’’ is not defined in 16 U.S.C.

773(d). However, it is defined, as an

‘‘authorized fishing gear’’ in 50 CFR

679.2, Definitions. The reference is

corrected.

On August 9, 1996, at 61 FR 41523,

NMFS published a final rule

implementing a number of regulatory

changes in the IFQ Program. Among

these changes, the requirements for

submitting IFQ Shipment Reports at 50

CFR 679.5(l)(2)(iii)(A) were revised to

require that Shipment Reports be

submitted to NMFS within 7 days of the

date of shipment, not prior to the

shipment as was formerly required. In

the revised regulations, the reference to

submission of Shipment Reports in 50

CFR 679.5(l)(2)(ii)(A) should also have

been revised to be consistent with the

new requirement. Moreover, this section

is redundant and awkward. To correct

the inconsistency and clarify the

requirements for shipping reports,

NMFS revises in its entirety

§ 679.5(l)(2).

Finally, a final rule published at 61

FR 43312, on August 22, 1996, revised

the definitions of vessel categories to

which quota share and IFQ can be

assigned (§ 679.40(a)(5)(ii)(B)), and

included an exception to the revised

definitions elsewhere in the regulations

(§ 679.42(a)). The exception is not

referenced in the definitions

themselves. For the sake of clarity, this

action revises the regulations defining

QS categories to reference the exception.

Classification

Because this technical amendment

makes only minor, non-substantive

corrections to an existing rule, prior

notice and opportunity for public

comment would serve no purpose.

Accordingly, the Assistant

Administrator for Fisheries, under 5

U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B), finds for good cause

that prior notice and opportunity for

public comment are unnecessary.

Because this is a non-substantive rule, 5

USC(d) does not require a delay in the

effective date.

Because this rule is being issued

without prior notice, it is not subject to

the Regulatory Flexibility Act

requirement for a regulatory flexibility

analysis, and none has been prepared.

This rule makes minor technical

changes to a rule that has been

determined to be not significant under

E.O. 12866. No change in the regulatory

impact previously reviewed and

analyzed will result from

implementation of this technical

amendment.

This rule repeats a collection-ofinformation requirement subject to the

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). The

requirement for an IFQ shipment report

has been approved by the Office of

Management Budget, Control Number

0648–0272. Public reporting burden for

this collection of information is

estimated to average 12 minutes per

response, including the time for

reviewing instructions, searching

existing data sources, gathering the data

needed, and completing and reviewing

the collection of information. Send

comments regarding these burden

estimates or any other aspect of the data

requirements, including suggestions for

reducing the burden, to NMFS and OMB

(see ADDRESSES).

Notwithstanding any other provision

of law, no person is required to respond

to, nor shall any person be subject to a

penalty for failure to comply with, a

collection-of-information subject to the

requirements of the PRA, unless that

collection -of-information displays a

currently valid OMB control number.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 679

Alaska, Fisheries, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

Dated: October 27, 1997.

David L. Evans,

Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

For the reasons set forth in the

preamble, 50 CFR part 679 is amended

as follows:

PART 679—FISHERIES OF THE

EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF

ALASKA

1. The authority citation for 50 CFR

part 679 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq., 1801 et

seq., and 3631 et seq.

2. In § 679.1, paragraph (d)(2) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 679.1 Purpose and scope.

* * * * *

(d) * * *

(2) Halibut. Regulations in this part

govern commercial fishing for halibut

by vessels of the United States using

fixed gear, as that term is defined in 50

CFR 679.2, in and off of Alaska.

* * * * *
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 212 / Monday, November 3, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 59299

3. In § 679.5, paragraph (l)(2) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 679.5 Recordkeeping and reporting.

* * * * *

(l) * * *

(2) IFQ shipment report—(i)

Registered buyer. Each registered buyer,

other than those conducting dockside

sales, must:

(A) Report on a shipment report any

shipments or transfers of IFQ halibut

and IFQ sablefish to the first destination

beyond the location of the IFQ landing.

(B) Complete a shipment report for

each shipment or transfer from that

register buyer prior to shipment and

assure that the shipment report is

submitted to, and received by, the

NMFS Alaska Enforcement Division,

within 7 days of the date shipment or

transfer commenced;

(C) Assure that a copy of the shipment

report or a bill of lading containing the

same information accompanies the

shipment to its first destination beyond

the location of the IFQ landing; and

(D) Submit a revised shipment report

if any information on the original

shipment report changes prior to the

first destination of the shipment. A

revised shipment report must be clearly

labeled ‘‘Revised Shipment Report,’’

and must be received by NMFS Alaska

Enforcement Division, within 7 days of

the change.

(ii) Shipment report. (A) A shipment

report must be submitted to NMFS

Alaska Enforcement Division in a

manner prescribed on the registered

buyer permit.

(B) A shipment report must specify:

Species and product type being

shipped, number of shipping units, fish

product weight, names of the shipper

and receiver, names and addresses of

the consignee and consignor, mode of

transportation, and intended route.

* * * * *

4. In § 679.40, paragraph (a)(5)(ii)(B) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 679.40 Sablefish and halibut QS.

* * * * *

(a) * * *

(5) * * *

(ii) * * *

(B) Category B QS and associated IFQ,

which authorizes an IFQ cardholder to

harvest IFQ species on a vessel of any

length, except as provided in

§ 679.42(a);

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 97–29025 Filed 10–31–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F