Document Headings

                    Document headings vary by document type but may contain                    the following:                  
                -                       the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document                    
                -                       the number of the CFR title and the number of each part                      the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly                      related to                    
                -                       the agency docket number / agency internal file number                    
                -                       the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in                      the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory                      Actions                    

                    See the                                          Document Drafting Handbook                                        for more details.                  

###### Department of Commerce

###### National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

          - RIN 0648-XG336

# AGENCY:

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

# ACTION:

Notice of public meeting.

# SUMMARY:

This notice announces the date, time, and location of the public meeting being held prior to the 67th meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC). Because the meeting will address U.S. positions, any U.S. citizen with an identifiable interest in U.S. whale conservation policy may participate, but NOAA reserves the authority to inquire about the interests of any person who appears at the meeting and to determine the appropriateness of that person's participation.

# DATES:

The public meeting will be held August 7, 2018 at 9:00 a.m.

# ADDRESSES:

The meeting will be held at the Silver Spring Civic Center, 1 Veterans Pl, Silver Spring, MD 20910, in the Spring Room.

# FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

                        Carolyn Doherty, Office of International Affairs and Seafood Inspection, NOAA Fisheries (phone: (301) 427-8385 or email:                         *Carolyn.Doherty@noaa.gov*).                    

# SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Secretary of Commerce is responsible for discharging the domestic obligations of the United States under the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, 1946. The U.S. IWC Commissioner has responsibility for the preparation and negotiation of U.S. positions on international issues concerning whaling and for all matters involving the IWC. The U.S. IWC Commissioner is staffed by the Department of Commerce and assisted by the Department of State, the Department of the Interior, the Marine Mammal Commission, and other U.S. Government agencies.

                    Additional information about the IWC meeting, including a draft agenda for the meeting, is posted on the IWC Secretariat's website at                     *https://iwc.int/​iwc67.*

NOAA will a hold public meeting to discuss the tentative U.S. positions for the September 2018 IWC meeting in Florianopolis, Brazil. Because the meeting will address U.S. positions, the substance of the meeting must be kept confidential. Any U.S. citizen with an identifiable interest in U.S. whale conservation policy may participate, but NOAA reserves the authority to inquire about the interests of any person who appears at the meeting and to determine the appropriateness of that person's participation. In particular, persons who represent foreign interests may not attend. Persons deemed by NOAA to be ineligible to attend will be asked to leave the meeting. These stringent measures are necessary to protect the confidentiality of U.S. negotiating positions.

The August 7, 2018, meeting will be held at 9:00 a.m. in the Spring Room of the Silver Spring Civic Center, 1 Veterans Pl, Silver Spring, MD 20910.

## Special Accommodations

                    The meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Carolyn Doherty,                     *Carolyn.Doherty@noaa.gov*                     or (301) 427-8385, by July 23, 2018.                

Dated: July 12, 2018.

Christopher W. Rogers,

Acting Director, Office of International Affairs and Seafood Inspection, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 2018-15237 Filed 7-16-18; 8:45 am]

 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P