Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 37 / Friday, February 23, 2024 / Notices 13695 

1At a March 2023 False Killer Whale Take 

Reduction Team meeting, NMFS introduced a False 

Killer Whale Management Area that included areas 

inside and outside the EEZ around Hawaii with a 

PBR calculated to be 33 pelagic false killer whales. 

The False Killer Whale Management Area and 

associated PBR are not yet available for current 

management use. NMFS is using the PBR (16) from 

the 2022 final SAR to revise the SEZ trigger. 

NMFS set the annual observer 

coverage rate in the Hawaii deep-set 

longline fishery for 2024 at 13.5 percent. 

Observer coverage was previously set at 

20 percent, but has been reduced due to 

increased program costs and available 

funding for the observer program. The 

abundance estimate for the Hawaii 

pelagic stock of false killer whales is 

2,086 (CV = 0.35) individuals in the 

Hawaii EEZ. The minimum population 

abundance (Nmin), used for calculating 

PBR, is 1,567 animals within the EEZ 

around Hawaii.1 The PBR published in 

the final 2022 SAR for this stock within 

the EEZ is calculated as 16 pelagic false 

killer whales (Carretta et al., 2023). 

Based on the current published PBR of 

16 whales for the Hawaii pelagic stock 

of false killer whales within the EEZ, 

and the 2024 annual observer coverage 

(13.5 percent), the trigger value is 

calculated as 3 observed M/SI of false 

killer whales. This value is smaller than 

the currently published trigger value 

because of the decrease in the observer 

coverage rate. Therefore, NMFS sets the 

trigger value for SEZ closure at three 

observed false killer whale M/SI in the 

deep-set longline fishery in the EEZ 

around Hawaii. 

Information on the Plan is available 

on the internet at the following address: 

https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/ 

national/marine-mammal-protection/ 

false-killer-whale-take-reduction. Copies 

of reference materials may also be 

obtained from the NMFS Pacific Islands 

Regional Office, Protected Resources 

Division, 1845 Wasp Blvd., Building 

176, Honolulu, HI 96818. 

This notice serves as a notification to 

fishermen, the fishing industry, and the 

general public that the SEZ closure 

trigger value is three observed false 

killer whale M/SI in the deep-set 

longline fishery in the EEZ around 

Hawaii. 

References 

Carretta, J.V., E. Oleson, D.W. Weller, A.R. 

Lang, K.A. Forney, J. Baker, B. Hanson, 

K Martien, M.M. Muto, M.S. Lowry, J. 

Barlow, D. Lynch, L. Carswell, R.L. 

Brownell Jr., D.K. Mattila, and M.C. Hill. 

2012. U.S. Pacific Marine Mammal Stock 

Assessments: 2012. NOAA Technical 

Memorandum NOAA–TM–NMFS– 

SWFSC–504. 378p. 

Carretta, J.W., E.M. Oleson, K.A. Forney, 

M.M. Muto, D.W. Weller, A.R. Lang, J. 

Baker, B. Hanson, A.J. Orr, J. Barlow, J.E. 

Moore, and R.L. Brownell. 2023. U.S. 

Pacific Marine Mammal Stock 

Assessments: 2022. U.S. Department of 

Commerce. NOAA Technical 

Memorandum NMFS–SWFSC–684. 409 

p. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq. 

Dated: February 16, 2024. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–03664 Filed 2–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Request for Public Comment on 

Interagency Marine Debris 

Coordinating Committee 

Recommendations 

AGENCY: National Ocean Service, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration (NOAA), Department of 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of request for comments. 

SUMMARY: NOAA’s Marine Debris 

Program, on behalf of the Interagency 

Marine Debris Coordinating Committee 

(IMDCC), is soliciting public comments 

regarding draft recommendations to 

address marine debris. The IMDCC is 

required to submit a biennial report to 

Congress that includes the status of 

implementation of any 

recommendations and strategies of the 

Committee. These recommendations 

will replace the recommendations first 

published by the IMDCC in 2008. 


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15'0'!)"" 

---,,,,11:AHI Longline Fishing 

Prohibited Area 

Figure 1. Southern Exclusion Zone. 

N 

A 
13696 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 37 / Friday, February 23, 2024 / Notices 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before March 25, 2024, 11:59 p.m. 

Eastern Time (ET). 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be 

submitted via email to yael.seid-green@

noaa.gov. Instructions: All comments 

received are a part of the public record. 

All personal identifying information 

(name and address) voluntarily 

submitted by the commenter may be 

publicly accessible. Do not submit 

confidential business information or 

otherwise sensitive or protected 

information. Comments that are not 

related to the IMDCC recommendations, 

or that contain profanity, vulgarity, 

threats, or other inappropriate language 

will not be considered. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ya’el Seid-Green, Executive Secretariat, 

IMDCC, Marine Debris Program; Phone 

240–622–5910; Email yael.seid-green@

noaa.gov or visit the IMDCC website at 

https://marinedebris.noaa.gov/ourwork/IMDCC. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Marine Debris Act establishes the 

IMDCC. 33 U.S.C. 1954. The IMDCC is 

a multi-agency body responsible for 

coordinating a comprehensive program 

of marine debris research and activities 

among Federal agencies, in cooperation 

and coordination with nongovernmental organizations, industry, 

academia, States, Tribes, and other 

nations, as appropriate. Representatives 

meet to share information, assess and 

promote best management practices, 

and coordinate the Federal 

Government’s efforts to address marine 

debris. NOAA serves as the Chairperson 

of the IMDCC. 

Why develop the recommendations? 

The IMDCC is required to submit a 

biennial report to Congress that includes 

the status of implementation of any 

recommendations and strategies of the 

Committee and an analysis of their 

effectiveness. 33 U.S.C. 1954(e). In its 

first report to Congress, in 2008, the 

IMDCC published recommendations for 

addressing marine debris. The 25 

recommendations were organized into 

four themes and eight subthemes. The 

goal of the recommendations was to 

‘‘guide the Federal government’s 

strategies with respect to the problems 

of persistent marine debris (IMDCC 

2008)’’. They were ‘‘designed to be 

broad in scope, with the intention that 

federal agencies work collaboratively 

through the IMDCC to develop more 

detailed priorities and an action plan 

(ibid)’’. The 2008 report can be accessed 

at https://marinedebris.noaa.gov/sites/ 

default/files/publications-files/

imdccreport_2008.pdf. 

A report from the Government 

Accountability Office (GAO) in 

September 2019 (GAO–19–653) 

highlighted that the biennial reports did 

not include an analysis of the 

effectiveness of the IMDCC’s 

recommendations and strategies. The 

GAO recommended that the IMDCC 

develop and implement a process to 

analyze the effectiveness of the 

recommendations and strategies, and 

include the results in its biennial 

reports. 

However, it is difficult to analyze the 

effectiveness of the 2008 

recommendations based on their scope 

and age. In addition, several new 

agencies have joined as members of the 

IMDCC, and the recommendations do 

not reflect the full scope of current 

IMDCC member agency activities. As a 

result, the IMDCC has developed an 

entirely new set of draft 

recommendations through a 

collaborative process. Once finalized, 

the new recommendations will be 

included in the Fiscal Year 2022–2023 

IMDCC Biennial Report to Congress. 

The Recommendations 

The new draft recommendations 

attempt to identify and express what the 

IMDCC sees as priorities for reducing 

the impacts of marine debris, aligning 

with the purposes and policies 

articulated in the Marine Debris Act and 

based on current authorities and 

activities of the IMDCC member 

agencies. The recommendations are 

designed to be broad in scope and are 

written to maintain relevance for several 

years. Not all IMDCC member agencies 

have activities that are relevant to each 

recommendation. The recommendations 

are divided into seven categories. The 

number of recommendations in each 

category varies. 

International Activities 

Recommendation #1: The IMDCC 

member agencies should strengthen the 

capacity of local actors in foreign 

nations to prevent marine debris; 

mitigate waste that may contribute to 

marine debris; and capture, clean up, 

and remove waste that may contribute 

to marine debris and existing marine 

debris in the environment. 

Recommendation #2: The IMDCC 

member agencies should participate in 

and support international efforts to 

address marine debris. 

Prevention 

Recommendation #1: The IMDCC 

member agencies should work to reduce 

the federal contribution of materials that 

may contribute to marine debris in their 

operations. 

Recommendation #2: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support external efforts to prevent 

marine debris and mitigate waste that 

may contribute to marine debris, 

incorporating principles of 

environmental justice and focusing on 

disadvantaged communities. 

Recommendation #3: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support efforts to prevent and mitigate 

abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded 

fishing gear. 

Capture, Clean Up, and Removal 

Recommendation #1: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support efforts to capture, clean up, and 

remove waste that may contribute to 

marine debris and existing marine 

debris in the environment, 

incorporating principles of 

environmental justice and focusing on 

disadvantaged communities. 

Outreach and Education 

Recommendation #1: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support public awareness and education 

efforts to inform communities and the 

general public about marine debris, 

incorporating principles of 

environmental justice and focusing on 

disadvantaged communities. 

Recommendation #2: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support efforts to engage members of the 

public in science and data collection 

efforts to learn about marine debris, 

incorporating principles of 

environmental justice and focusing on 

disadvantaged communities. 

Coordination 

Recommendation #1: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support outreach to partners to improve 

coordination across jurisdictions to 

more effectively prevent, remove, 

inform people about, research, and 

monitor marine debris. 

Research and Monitoring 

Recommendation #1: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support research to improve 

understanding of marine debris sources, 

abundance, distribution, transport, 

degradation, and the social, 

environmental, and economic impacts 

of marine debris. 

Recommendation #2: The IMDCC 

member agencies should collaborate 

with partners on congruent and 

harmonized data collection, as 

appropriate. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 37 / Friday, February 23, 2024 / Notices 13697 

Recommendation #3: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support efforts to develop and apply 

technologies (e.g., modeling or remote 

sensing) that support a more robust 

understanding of the status of marine 

debris, prevent marine debris, or 

address the impacts of marine debris. 

Recommendation #4: The IMDCC 

member agencies should conduct and 

support efforts to monitor marine debris 

to better understand marine debris 

sources, fate, and transport. 

Enforcement 

Recommendation #1: The IMDCC 

member agencies, as appropriate, 

should issue notices of non-compliance 

to correct violations of federal law and 

either address violations through agency 

administrative processes or, when 

violations warrant, refer violations of 

federal law for civil or criminal 

enforcement action. 

How Comments Will Be Addressed 

NOAA’s Marine Debris Program, on 

behalf of the IMDCC, invites comments, 

feedback, and recommendations on the 

draft recommendations. Following the 

comment period, the feedback provided 

will be reviewed and the 

recommendations will be updated as 

necessary. The final recommendations 

will be included in the Fiscal Year 

2022–2023 IMDCC Biennial Report to 

Congress and in a stand-alone report. 

An appendix will be added to the standalone report describing how comments 

from the public comment period were 

incorporated into the recommendations. 

This report will be posted to https://

marinedebris.noaa.gov/our-work/ 

IMDCC. 

The recommendations do not imply 

approval for any specific action, 

although they may inform future federal 

budget development. All activities 

included in the recommendations are 

subject to budgetary constraints, 

interagency processes, stakeholder input 

and other approvals, including the 

weighing of priorities and available 

resources by the Administration in 

formulating its annual budget and by 

Congress in legislating appropriations. 

In some cases, implementing the 

recommendations may require a 

sustained, multi-year effort by federal, 

state, tribal and community partners. 

The recommendations are not intended 

to, and do not, create any right or 

benefit, substantive or procedural, 

enforceable at law or in equity by any 

party against the United States, its 

departments, agencies, or entities, its 

officers, employees, or agents, or any 

other person. 

Scott Lundgren, 

Director, Office of Response and Restoration, 

National Ocean Service, National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2024–03678 Filed 2–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–JS–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Telecommunications and 

Information Administration 

Commerce Spectrum Management 

Advisory Committee 

AGENCY: National Telecommunications 

and Information Administration, U.S. 

Department of Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; reopening of application 

window for Advisory Committee 

nominations. 

SUMMARY: Through this Notice, the 

National Telecommunications and 

Information Administration (NTIA) is 

reopening an application window for 

nominations to the Commerce Spectrum 

Management Advisory Committee 

(CSMAC). On December 27, 2023, NTIA 

published a Notice seeking nominations 

to the CSMAC with a deadline of 

January 31, 2024, for submissions. In 

reopening this application window, 

NTIA seeks to expand the pool of 

applicants and best ensure that the 

composition of the committee reflects 

balanced points of view. 

DATES: Applications must be 

postmarked or electronically 

transmitted to the address below on or 

before March 4, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Persons may submit 

applications to Antonio Richardson, 

Designated Federal Officer, by email 

(preferred) to arichardson@ntia.gov or 

by U.S. mail or commercial delivery 

service to Office of Spectrum 

Management, National 

Telecommunications and Information 

Administration, 1401 Constitution 

Avenue NW, Room 4600, Washington, 

DC 20230. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Antonio Richardson at (202) 482–4156 

or arichardson@ntia.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

CSMAC was established and chartered 

by the Department of Commerce under 

the Federal Advisory Committee Act 

(FACA), 5 U.S.C. App. 2, and pursuant 

to section 105(b) of the National 

Telecommunications and Information 

Administration Organization Act, as 

amended, 47 U.S.C. 904(b). The 

committee will continue as provided in 

Executive Order 14109, effective 

September 29, 2023. The Department of 

Commerce re-chartered the CSMAC on 

November 21, 2023, for a two-year 

period. More information about the 

CSMAC may be found at http://

www.ntia.doc.gov/category/csmac. On 

December 27, 2023, NTIA published a 

Notice in the Federal Register seeking 

nominations for appointment to the 

CSMAC. See Commerce Spectrum 

Management Advisory Committee; Call 

for nominations to serve on Advisory 

Committee, 88 FR 89408 (December 27, 

2023), available at https://

www.ntia.gov/federal-register-notice/ 

2024/call-applications-servedepartment-commerce-spectrummanagement. The original application 

deadline was January 31, 2024. 

Through this Notice, NTIA is 

reopening the application window for 

10 days to expand the pool of applicants 

and best ensure that the composition of 

the committee reflects balanced points 

of view (e.g., past professional or 

academic accomplishments, industry 

sector representation, and educational 

background). All other requirements for 

appointment to the CSMAC appear in 

the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section 

of the December 27, 2023, Notice. 

Sean T. Conway, 

Deputy Chief Counsel, National 

Telecommunications and Information 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2024–03663 Filed 2–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–10–P 

COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM 

PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR 

SEVERELY DISABLED 

Procurement List; Proposed Deletions 

AGENCY: Committee for Purchase From 

People Who Are Blind or Severely 

Disabled. 

ACTION: Proposed deletions from the 

Procurement List. 

SUMMARY: The Committee is proposing 

to delete product(s) and service(s) from 

the Procurement List that were 

furnished by nonprofit agencies 

employing persons who are blind or 

have other severe disabilities. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before: March 24, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase 

From People Who Are Blind or Severely 

Disabled, 355 E Street SW, Suite 325, 

Washington, DC 20024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

further information or to submit 

comments contact: Michael R. 


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