58746 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 191 / Monday, October 2, 2000 / Notices

North Carolina Aquariums (applicant),

Raleigh, North Carolina. If granted, the

EFP would authorize the applicant, with

certain conditions, to collect up to 60

red porgy and up to 500 lb (227 kg) of

coral/live rock each year for 2 years in

Federal waters off North Carolina for

public display. The three North Carolina

Aquariums are located at Roanoke

Island, Pine Knoll Shores, and Kure

Beach, North Carolina.

DATES: Comments must be received no

later than 5 p.m., eastern standard time,

on November 1, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the

application must be mailed to Peter

Eldridge, Southeast Regional Office,

NMFS, 9721 Executive Center Drive N.,

St. Petersburg, FL 33702. Comments

also may be sent via fax to 727-570-

5583. Comments will not be accepted if

submitted via e-mail or Internet. The

application and related documents are

available for review upon written

request to the same address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Peter Eldridge, 727-570-5305; fax 727-

570-5583; e-mail:

peter.eldridge@noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EFP is

requested under the authority of the

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery

Conservation and Management Act (16

U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), and regulations at

50 CFR 600.745(b) concerning exempted

fishing.

According to the applicant, the North

Carolina Aquariums (NCA), located at

Roanoke Island, Pine Knoll Shores, and

Kure Beach, are public, non-profit, selfsupporting institutions established to

promote an awareness, understanding,

and appreciation of the diverse natural

and cultural resources associated with

North Carolina’s ocean, estuaries, rivers,

streams and other aquatic environments.

The aquariums are major educational

and conservation institutions with free

admission to school children in groups

and extensive field study and outreach

programs. The specimens will be

maintained in the NCA for public

display.

The applicant intends to collect for

public display up to 60 red porgy during

a 2-year period and up to 500 lb (227 kg)

of coral/live rock annually during a 2-

year period.

The proposed collection for public

display involves activities otherwise

prohibited by regulations implementing

the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for

Coral, Coral Reefs, and Live/Hard

Bottom Habitats, and the FMP for the

Snapper-Grouper Fisheries of the South

Atlantic Region. The applicant requires

authorization to harvest and possess

corals, live rock, and red porgy taken

from Federal waters off North Carolina.

Based on a preliminary review, NMFS

finds that this application warrants

further consideration and intends to

issue an EFP. A final decision on

issuance of the EFP will depend on a

NMFS review of public comments

received on the application, conclusions

of environmental analyses conducted

pursuant to the National Environmental

Policy Act, and consultations with

North Carolina, the South Atlantic

Fishery Management Council, and the

U.S. Coast Guard. The applicant

requests a 24-month effective period for

the EFP.

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

Dated: September 26, 2000.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 00–25221 Filed 9–29–00; 8:45 am]

Billing Code: 3510–22–S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Telecommunications and

Information Administration

Performance Review Board;

Membership

The following individuals are eligible

to serve on the Performance Review

Board in accordance with the Senior

Executive Service Performance

Appraisal System of the National

Telecommunications and Information

Administration.

Bernadette McGuire-Rivera

William Hatch

Neil Seitz

Frederick Wentland

Ronald Hack

Vicki G. Brooks,

Executive Secretary, Economic Development

Administration, Performance Review Board.

[FR Doc. 00–25224 Filed 9–29–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–BS–M

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Patent and Trademark Office

[Docket No. 000718211–0211–01]

RIN 0651–AB24

Study of Alternative Fee Structures

AGENCY: United States Patent and

Trademark Office, Commerce.

SUMMARY: The United States Patent and

Trademark Office (USPTO), in response

to certain provisions of the ‘‘American

Inventors Protection Act of 1999,’’ is

proposing to study alternative patent fee

structures to determine how best to

encourage maximum participation of

the U.S. inventor community in the

patent system. In examining the

evolution of the current fee structure,

the USPTO has identified several fee

structure issues which it considers

important. These issues in several cases

involve fee structures unconstrained by

current statutory requirements, in

keeping with the perceived intent of the

Act. The agency will prepare a report to

Congress identifying critical fee

structure issues and will continue to

evaluate these alternatives to determine

the effects of implementation. The

USPTO asks for comments on the issues

raised and questions posed in this

document.

DATES: To be ensured of consideration,

written comments must be received on

or before October 31, 2000. No public

hearing will be held.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent

by electronic mail message via the

Internet addressed to

barry.riordan@uspto.gov. Comments

may also be submitted by mail

addressed to: Office of Corporate

Planning, Crystal Park One, Suite 807,

Washington, D.C. 20231, or by facsimile

to (703) 305–8138, marked to the

attention of Barrett J. Riordan. If

comments are submitted by mail, the

Office would prefer that the comments

be submitted on a DOS formatted 31⁄2

inch disk accompanied by a paper copy.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Barrett J. Riordan by telephone at (703)

305–8475, by e-mail at

barry.riordan@uspto.gov, by facsimile at

(703) 305–8138, or by mail marked to

his attention and addressed to Office of

Corporate Planning, Crystal Park 1,

Suite 807, Washington, D.C. 20231.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

American Inventors Protection Act of

1999, Pub. L. 106–113, 113 Stat. 1501

(1999), Section 4204 (enacted November

29, 1999), instructs the Director of the

United States Patent and Trademark

Office to ‘‘conduct a study of alternative

fee structures that could be adopted

* * * to encourage maximum

participation by the inventor

community in the United States.’’ Such

study is to be submitted to Congress no

later than one year after enactment.

To assist in the preparation of this

study, the USPTO requests comments

on the range of topics which could

potentially be considered therein. The

USPTO is interested in comments that

the public has regarding these and other

related fee issues that the respondent

believes to be appropriate. The USPTO

encourages interested persons to