60182 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 216 / Friday, November 7, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 960717195–7255–03; I.D.

100897E]

RIN 0648–AI95

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic

Zone Off Alaska; Insurance Coverage

Provisions for Observer Contractors

under the North Pacific Interim

Groundfish Observer Program

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: NMFS issues regulations that

clarify an insurance coverage provision

for observer contractors who provide

observer services to vessels and

shoreside processors participating in the

groundfish fisheries of the Gulf of

Alaska (GOA) and the Bering Sea and

Aleutian Islands management area

(BSAI). This action is necessary to

respond to the North Pacific Fishery

Management Council’s (Council’s)

Insurance Technical Committee (ITC)

recommendation to correct the

terminology used to delineate required

insurance coverages, by changing the

references to ‘‘Contractual General

Liability’’ to read ‘‘Commercial General

Liability.’’

DATES: Effective November 7, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim

S. Rivera, 907–586–7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 1994,

the ITC recommended that standardized

insurance coverage provisions be

required of

observer contractors who provide

observer services to vessels and

shoreside processors participating in the

groundfish fisheries of the GOA and the

BSAI. In 1996, NMFS implemented

regulations (61 FR 56425, November 1,

1996) reflecting the ITC’s

recommendation and required observer

contractors to provide NMFS with

copies of ‘‘certificates of insurance’’ that

verified the following coverage

provisions: (1) Maritime Liability to

cover ‘‘seamen’s’’ claims under the

Merchant Marine Act (Jones Act) and

General Maritime Law, (2) coverage

under the U.S. Longshore and Harbor

Workers’ Compensation Act, (3) States

Workers’ Compensation as required, and

(4) Contractual General Liability.

At its June 4, 1997, meeting, the ITC

clarified that its 1994 recommendation

for standardized insurance provisions

was intended to include a requirement

for Comprehensive General Liability,

not Contractual General Liability.

Contractual General Liability refers to

an endorsement to a Comprehensive

General Liability policy, and extends

the liability coverage to an additional

party, for example, the vessel owner. In

this instance, a contractual endorsement

represents a shift in the responsibility of

certain liabilities from the vessel owner

to the observer contractor. While the

observer contractor may offer this

endorsement as an opinion in their

contracts with vessel owners, the ITC

intended that this shift of liability

responsibilities be optional, not

mandatory.

After the June Council meeting, the

ITC clarified further that due to a recent

change in the use of the standard

liability coverage form used by

insurance brokers, Commercial General

Liability is the correct term to use, not

Comprehensive General Liability.

Therefore, in consultation with the

Council’s ITC, NMFS clarifies

regulations requiring standardized

insurance provisions for observer

contractors to accurately reflect the

original intent of the ITC. Accordingly,

NMFS revises the regulation at

§ 679.50(i) (2) (xiv) (E) (4) to clarify that

observer contractors are required to

provide a certificate of insurance that, in

addition to other listed requirements,

verifies Commercial General Liability

coverage. This change means that

observer contractors are not required to

carry a contractual endorsement on their

Commercial General Liability policy but

they could offer the contractual

endorsement as an option to the entities

with whom they have contracts.

Classification

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 (b) (B), a rule

may be issued without prior notice and

opportunity for public comment if

providing such notice and comment

would be impractical, unnecessary, or

contrary to the public interest.

Additionally, a rule may be made

effective prior to 30 days after its

issuance if the rule relieves a restriction

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 (d) (1).

This final rule accurately implements

the original intent of the ITC and NMFS

concerning standardized insurance

coverage provisions for observer

contractors. The Assistant

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA,

(Assistant Administrator) finds that

providing an opportunity for prior

notice and comment on this rule is

unnecessary. This rule does not

eliminate the basic insurance

requirement. Rather, by using the

correct terminology, it merely clarifies

the original intent to allow vessel

owners and observer contractors to

choose who pays for a particular type of

endorsement. Furthermore, for parties

who were previously required to

purchase the endorsement, and who opt

not to purchase that endorsement in the

future, this rule will relieve a

restriction. Accordingly, for the reasons

set forth above, the Assistant

Administrator finds good cause to

dispense with prior notice and

opportunity for public comment and to

make this rule effective immediately

upon publication in the Federal

Register.

Because prior notice and opportunity

for public comment are not required for

this rule by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other

law, the analytical requirements of the

Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601

et seq., are inapplicable.

This rule has been determined to be

not significant for purposes of E.O.

12866.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 679

Alaska, Fisheries, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

Dated: October 30, 1997.

David L. Evans,

Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

For reasons set out 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 part 679

continues to read as follows:

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

seq., and 3631 et seq.

2. In § 679.50, paragraph

(i)(2)(xiv)(E)(4) is revised to read as

follows:

§ 679.50 Groundfish Observer Program

applicable through December 31, 1997.

* * * * *

(i) * * *

(2) * * *

(xiv) * * *

(E) * * *

(4) Commercial General Liability.

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 97–29507 Filed 11–6–97; 8:45 am]

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