Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 210 / Thursday, October 30, 1997 / Proposed Rules 58703

Communications Commission, 1919 M

Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20554.

24. There are no ex parte or disclosure

requirements applicable to this

proceeding pursuant to § 1.1204(a)(4) of

the Commission’s Rules, 47 CFR

1.1204(a)(4).

List of Subjects 47 CFR Parts 20, 22, 24,

and 90

Radio.

Federal Communications Commission.

William F. Caton,

Acting Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–28762 Filed 10–29–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[I.D. 102197D]

RIN 0648–AG27

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of

Mexico, and South Atlantic; SnapperGrouper Fishery off the Southern

Atlantic States; Amendment 8

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability of an

amendment to a fishery management

plan; request for comments.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the

South Atlantic Fishery Management

Council (Council) has submitted

Amendment 8 to the Fishery

Management Plan for the SnapperGrouper Fishery of the South Atlantic

Region for review, approval, and

implementation by NMFS. Written

comments are requested from the

public.

DATES: Written comments must be

received on or before December 29,

1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be mailed

to the Southeast Regional Office, NMFS,

9721 Executive Center Drive N., St.

Petersburg, FL 33702.

Requests for copies of Amendment 8,

which includes a final supplemental

environmental impact statement, an

initial regulatory flexibility analysis, a

regulatory impact review, and a social

impact assessment, should be sent to the

South Atlantic Fishery Management

Council, One Southpark Circle, Suite

306, Charleston, SC 29407–4699; phone:

803–571–4366; fax: 803–769–4520.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Peter J. Eldridge, 813–570–5305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires each

regional fishery management council to

submit any fishery management plan or

amendment to NMFS for review and

approval, disapproval, or partial

approval. The Magnuson-Stevens Act

also requires that NMFS, upon receiving

an amendment, immediately publish a

document in the Federal Register

stating that the amendment is available

for public review and comment.

Amendment 8 would: Limit access to

the commercial snapper-grouper fishery;

allow the retention of snapper-grouper

in excess of the bag limits on a

permitted vessel that has a single bait

net or cast nets on board; subject to

specific conditions, exempt snappergrouper lawfully harvested in Bahamian

waters from the requirement that they

be maintained with head and fins intact

in the exclusive economic zone of the

South Atlantic; redefine ‘‘optimum

yield,’’ ‘‘overfished,’’ and ‘‘overfishing’’

for snapper-grouper; and establish a

‘‘threshold level’’ for snapper-grouper,

i.e., the level of spawning potential ratio

at which the Council will take

appropriate action including, but not

limited to, eliminating directed fishing

mortality and evaluating measures to

eliminate any bycatch mortality.

A proposed rule to implement

Amendment 8 has been received from

the Council. In accordance with the

Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS is

evaluating the proposed rule to

determine whether it is consistent with

Amendment 8, the Magnuson-Stevens

Act, and other applicable law. If that

determination is affirmative, NMFS will

publish it in the Federal Register for

public review and comment.

Comments received by December 29,

1997, whether specifically directed to

the amendment or the proposed rule,

will be considered by NMFS in its

decision to approve, disapprove, or

partially approve Amendment 8.

Comments received after that date will

not be considered by NMFS in this

decision. All comments on Amendment

8 or on the proposed rule during their

respective comment periods will be

addressed in the final rule.

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

Dated: October 23, 1997.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97–28713 Filed 10-29-97; 8:45 am]

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