86116 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 237 / Tuesday, December 12, 2023 / Notices 

provide the public with real-time data, 

the Department of Commerce must 

collect and provide timely aggregated 

summaries about these imports. The 

Aluminum Import License is the tool 

used to collect the necessary 

information. The Census Bureau 

currently collects import data and 

disseminates aggregate information 

about aluminum imports. However, the 

time required to collect, process, and 

disseminate this information through 

Census can take up to 45 days after 

importation of the product, giving 

interested parties and the public far less 

time to respond to injurious sales. 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations. 

Frequency: On occasion 

Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary. 

Legal Authority: 13 U.S.C. 301(a) and 

302. 

This information collection request 

may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov. 

Follow the instructions to view the 

Department of Commerce collections 

currently under review by OMB. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be 

submitted within 30 days of the 

publication of this notice on the 

following website www.reginfo.gov/ 

public/do/PRAMain. Find this 

particular information collection by 

selecting ‘‘Currently under 30-day 

Review—Open for Public Comments’’ or 

by using the search function and 

entering either the title of the collection 

or the OMB Control Number 0625–0279. 

Sheleen Dumas, 

Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of 

the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, 

Commerce Department. 

[FR Doc. 2023–27249 Filed 12–11–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XD560] 

Fisheries Off West Coast States; 

Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; 

Trawl Rationalization Program; 2024 

Cost Recovery Fee Notice 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice. 2024 cost recovery fee 

percentages and average mothership 

cooperative program pricing. 

SUMMARY: This action provides 

participants in the Pacific Coast 

Groundfish Trawl Rationalization 

Program with the 2024 cost recovery fee 

percentages and the average mothership 

(MS) price per pound to be used in the 

catcher/processor (C/P) Co-operative 

(Co-op) program to calculate the fee 

amount for the upcoming calendar year. 

For the 2024 calendar year, NMFS 

announces the following fee percentages 

by sector specific program: 3 percent for 

the Shorebased Individual Fishing 

Quota (IFQ) Program; 0.1 percent for the 

C/P Co-op Program; and 1.8 percent for 

the MS Co-op Program. For 2024, the 

MS pricing to be used as a proxy by the 

C/P Co-op Program is $0.11 per pound 

for Pacific whiting. 

DATES: This action is effective January 1, 

2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christopher Biegel, (206) 247–8252, 

christopher.biegel@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

304(d)(2)(A) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act (MSA) authorizes and requires 

NMFS to collect fees to recover the costs 

directly related to the management, data 

collection and analysis, and 

enforcement connected to and in 

support of a limited access privilege 

program (LAPP) (16 U.S.C. 1854(d)(2)), 

also called ‘‘cost recovery.’’ Cost 

recovery fees recover the actual costs 

directly related to the management, data 

collection and analysis, and 

enforcement of the programs (MSA 

section 303A(e), 16 U.S.C. 1853a(e)). 

Section 304(d)(2)(B) of the MSA 

mandates that cost recovery fees not 

exceed 3 percent of the annual ex-vessel 

value of fish harvested by a program 

subject to a cost recovery fee, and that 

the fee be collected either at the time of 

landing, filing of a landing report, or 

sale of such fish during a fishing season 

or in the last quarter of the calendar year 

in which the fish is harvested. 

The Pacific Coast Groundfish Trawl 

Rationalization Program is a LAPP, 

implemented in 2011, and consists of 

three sector-specific programs: the 

Shorebased IFQ Program, the MS Co-op 

Program, and the C/P Co-op Program. In 

accordance with the MSA, and based on 

a recommended structure and 

methodology developed in coordination 

with the Pacific Fishery Management 

Council (Council), NMFS began 

collecting mandatory fees of up to three 

percent of the ex-vessel value of 

groundfish from each program 

(Shorebased IFQ Program, MS Co-op 

Program, and C/P Co-op Program) in 

2014. NMFS collects the fees to recover 

the incremental costs of management, 

data collection and analysis, and 

enforcement of the Groundfish Trawl 

Rationalization Program. Additional 

background can be found in the cost 

recovery proposed rule (78 FR 7371, 

February 1, 2013) and final rule (78 FR 

75268, December 11, 2013). The details 

of cost recovery for the Groundfish 

Trawl Rationalization Program are in 

regulation at 50 CFR 660.115 (Trawl 

fishery—cost recovery program), 

§ 660.140 (Shorebased IFQ Program), 

§ 660.150 (MS Co-op Program), and 

§ 660.160 (C/P Co-op Program). 

By December 31 of each year, NMFS 

announces the next year’s fee 

percentages and the applicable MS 

pricing for the C/P Co-op Program. To 

calculate the fee percentages, NMFS 

used the formula specified in regulation 

at § 660.115(b)(1), where the fee 

percentage by sector equals the lower of 

3 percent or direct program costs (DPC) 

for that sector divided by total ex-vessel 

value (V) for that sector multiplied by 

100. 

‘‘DPC,’’ as defined in the regulations 

at § 660.115(b)(1)(i), are the actual 

incremental costs for the previous fiscal 

year directly related to the management, 

data collection and analysis, and 

enforcement of each program 

(Shorebased IFQ Program, MS Co-op 

Program, and C/P Co-op Program). 

Actual incremental costs means those 

net costs that would not have been 

incurred but for the implementation of 

the Groundfish Trawl Rationalization 

Program, including both increased costs 

for new requirements of the program 

and reduced costs resulting from any 

program efficiencies or adjustments to 

costs from previous years. 

‘‘V,’’ as specified at § 660.115(b)(1)(ii), 

is the total ex-vessel value, as defined at 

§ 660.111, for each sector from the 

previous calendar year. To determine 

the ex-vessel value for the Shorebased 

IFQ Program, NMFS used the ex-vessel 

value for calendar year 2022 as reported 

in the Pacific Fisheries Information 

Network from Shorebased IFQ 

electronic fish tickets as this was the 

most recent complete set of data. To 

determine the ex-vessel value for the 

MS Co-op Program and the C/P Co-op 

Program, NMFS used the retained catch 

estimates (weight) for each sector as 

reported in the North Pacific Observer 

Program database multiplied by the 

average price of Pacific whiting as 

reported by participants in the MS Coop program for 2022. 

The fee calculations for the 2024 fee 

percentages are described below. 

IFQ Program: 

• 3.5 percent = ($1,927,301.37/ 

$54,406,343.00) × 100. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 237 / Tuesday, December 12, 2023 / Notices 86117 

C/P Co-op Program: 

• 0.1 percent = ($29,364.40/ 

$33,367,530.60) × 100. 

MS Co-op Program: 

• 1.8 percent = ($280,187.19/ 

$15,425,857.68) × 100. 

However, the calculated fee 

percentage cannot exceed the statutory 

limit of 3 percent. The IFQ Program fee 

calculation (3.5 percent) exceeds this 

limit, therefore, the 2024 fee percentage 

for the IFQ Program is 3 percent. The 

final 2024 fee percentages are 3.0 

percent for the IFQ Program, 0.1 percent 

for the C/P Co-op Program, and 1.8 

percent for the MS Co-op Program. 

MS Average Pricing 

MS pricing is the average price per 

pound that the C/P Co-op Program will 

use to determine the fee amount due for 

that sector. The C/P sector value is 

calculated by multiplying the retained 

catch estimates (weight) of Pacific 

whiting harvested by the vessel 

registered to a C/P-endorsed limited 

entry trawl permit by the MS pricing. 

NMFS has calculated the 2024 MS 

pricing to be used as a proxy by the CP 

Co-op Program as: $0.11 per pound for 

Pacific whiting. 

Cost recovery fees are submitted to 

NMFS by fish buyers via Pay.gov 

(https://www.pay.gov). Fees are only 

accepted in Pay.gov by credit/debit card 

or bank transfers. Cash or checks cannot 

be accepted. Fish buyers registered with 

Pay.gov can login in the upper righthand corner of the screen. Fish buyers 

not registered with Pay.gov can go to the 

cost recovery forms directly from the 

website below. The links to the Pay.gov 

forms for each program (IFQ, MS, or 

C/P) are listed below: 

• IFQ: https://www.pay.gov/public/ 

form/start/58062865; 

• MS: https://www.pay.gov/public/ 

form/start/58378422; and 

• C/P: https://www.pay.gov/public/ 

form/start/58102817. 

As stated in the preamble to the cost 

recovery proposed and final rules, in the 

spring of each year, NMFS will release 

an annual report documenting the 

details and data used for the fee 

percentage calculations. Annual reports 

are available at: https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/west-coast/ 

sustainable-fisheries/west-coastgroundfish-trawl-catch-shareprogram#cost-recovery. 

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

U.S.C.773 et seq.; 16 U.S.C. 7001 et seq. 

Dated: December 6, 2023. 

Everett Wayne Baxter, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–27188 Filed 12–11–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission to the Office of 

Management and Budget for Review 

and Approval; Comment Request; 

Atlantic Highly Migratory Species 

Scientific Research, Exempted Fishing, 

and Exempted Activity Submissions 

AGENCY: National Oceanic & 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of information collection, 

request for comment. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Commerce, in accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(PRA), invites the general public and 

other Federal agencies to comment on 

proposed, and continuing information 

collections, which helps us assess the 

impact of our information collection 

requirements and minimize the public’s 

reporting burden. The purpose of this 

notice is to allow for 60 days of public 

comment preceding submission of the 

collection to the Office of Management 

and Budget. 

DATES: To ensure consideration, 

comments regarding this proposed 

information collection must be received 

on or before February 12, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments to 

Adrienne Thomas, NOAA PRA Officer, 

at Adrienne.thomas@noaa.gov. Please 

reference OMB Control Number 0648– 

0471 in the subject line of your 

comments. Do not submit Confidential 

Business Information or otherwise 

sensitive or protected information. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

specific questions related to collection 

activities should be directed to Cliff 

Hutt, Fisheries Management Specialist, 

National Marine Fisheries Service 

(NMFS), Highly Migratory Species 

(HMS) Management Division, 1315 EastWest Highway, SSMC3, Silver Spring, 

MD 20910; 301–427–8503; or cliff.hutt@

noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

Atlantic highly migratory species 

(HMS) fisheries are managed under the 

2006 Consolidated HMS Fishery 

Management Plan (FMP) and its 

amendments, pursuant to the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C. 1801 

et seq.) and consistent with the Atlantic 

Tunas Convention Act (ATCA; 16 U.S.C. 

971 et seq.). The implementing 

regulations for HMS fisheries are found 

at 50 CFR part 635. 

Issuance of exempted fishing permits 

(EFPs), scientific research permits 

(SRPs), display permits, letters of 

acknowledgment (LOAs), and shark 

research fishery permits is necessary for 

the collection of HMS for public display 

and scientific research that requires 

exemption from regulations (e.g., 

seasons, prohibited species, authorized 

gear, minimum sizes) that otherwise 

may prohibit such collection. Display 

permits are issued for the collection of 

HMS for the purpose of public display, 

and a limited number of shark research 

fishery permits are issued for the 

collection of fishery-dependent data for 

future stock assessments and 

cooperative research with commercial 

fishermen to meet the shark research 

objectives of the Agency. 

Regulations at 50 CFR 600.745 and 50 

CFR 635.32 govern scientific research 

activity, exempted fishing, and 

exempted educational activities with 

respect to HMS. Since the MagnusonStevens Act does not include scientific 

research within the definition of 

‘‘fishing,’’ scientific research is exempt 

from this statute, and NMFS does not 

issue EFPs for bona fide research 

activities (e.g., research conducted from 

a research vessel and not a commercial 

or recreational fishing vessel) involving 

species that are only regulated under the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act (e.g., most 

species of sharks) and not under ATCA. 

NMFS requests copies of scientific 

research plans for these activities and 

indicates concurrence by issuing a LOA 

to researchers to indicate that the 

proposed activity meets the definition of 

scientific research and is therefore 

exempt from regulation. 

Scientific research is not exempt from 

regulation under ATCA. NMFS issues 

SRPs for collection of species managed 

under this statute (i.e., tunas, swordfish, 

billfish, and some shark species), which 

authorize researchers to collect HMS 

from bona fide research vessels (e.g., 

NMFS or university research vessel). 

NMFS will issue an EFP when research/ 

collection involving such species occurs 


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