73068 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 174 / Monday, September 9, 2024 / Notices 

information will assist in determining 

the performance of the MEP Centers at 

both local and national levels, provide 

information critical to monitoring and 

reporting on MEP programmatic 

performance and assist management in 

policy decisions. Responses to the 

collection of information are mandatory 

per the regulations governing the 

operation of the MEP Program (15 CFR 

parts 290, 291, 292, and H.R. 1274— 

section 2). The information collected 

will include center inputs and activities 

including services delivered, clients 

served, center staff, expenses and 

revenues that are reported annually, 

semi-annually, and quarterly, partners, 

strategic plans, operation plans, and 

client success stories. No confidentiality 

for information submitted is promised 

or provided. In order to reflect new 

initiatives and new data needs, NIST 

MEP has identified a need to revise its 

existing reporting processes by 

modifying existing reporting elements 

that will enable NIST MEP to better 

monitor and assess the extent to which 

the Centers are meeting program goals 

and milestones. 

II. Method of Collection 

The information will be collected 

from the MEP Centers through the MEP 

Enterprise Information System (MEIS), 

https://meis.nist.gov. 

III. Data 

OMB Control Number: 0693–0032. 

Form Number(s): None. 

Type of Review: Regular submission, 

extension of a current information 

collection. 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

51. 

Estimated Time Per Response: 

Recipients of NIST MEP Base awards 

should anticipate an additional burden 

based on the requirements of the 

cooperative agreement as follows, 22 

Hours for Quarterly Review, 6 Hours for 

Semi-Annual Review, 30 hours for the 

Annual Review; 80 hours for Panel 

Review. Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours: 6,120 hours for quarterly, semiannual, and annual Review; and 1,360 

hours for Panel Review. 

Estimated Total Annual Cost to 

Public: $0. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Mandatory. 

IV. Request for Comments 

We are soliciting public comments to 

permit the Department/Bureau to: (a) 

Evaluate whether the proposed 

information collection is necessary for 

the proper functions of the Department, 

including whether the information will 

have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the 

accuracy of our estimate of the time and 

cost burden for this proposed collection, 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; (c) 

Evaluate ways to enhance the quality, 

utility, and clarity of the information to 

be collected; and (d) Minimize the 

reporting burden on those who are to 

respond, including the use of automated 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology. 

Comments that you submit in 

response to this notice are a matter of 

public record. We will include or 

summarize each comment in our request 

to OMB to approve this ICR. Before 

including your address, phone number, 

email address, or other personal 

identifying information in your 

comment, you should be aware that 

your entire comment—including your 

personal identifying information—may 

be made publicly available at any time. 

While you may ask us in your comment 

to withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Sheleen Dumas, 

Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of 

the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, 

Commerce Department. 

[FR Doc. 2024–20266 Filed 9–6–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XE257] 

Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; 

Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative 

Management Act Provisions; General 

Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; 

Application for Exempted Fishing 

Permits 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional 

Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, 

Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has 

made a preliminary determination that 

an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) 

application contains all of the required 

information and warrants further 

consideration. The EFP would allow 

federally permitted fishing vessels to 

fish outside fishery regulations in 

support of exempted fishing activities 

proposed by the Maine Department of 

Marine Resources (ME DMR). 

Regulations under the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act and the Atlantic 

Coastal Fisheries Cooperative 

Management Act require publication of 

this notification to provide interested 

parties the opportunity to comment on 

applications for proposed EFPs. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before September 24, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit written 

comments by email to nmfs.gar.efp@

noaa.gov. Include in the subject line 

‘‘ME DMR Ventless Trap EFP.’’ 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christine Ford, Fishery Management 

Specialist, Christine.Ford@noaa.gov, 

(978) 281–9185. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: ME DMR 

submitted a complete application for an 

EFP to conduct commercial fishing 

activities that the regulations would 

otherwise restrict. The EFP would 

provide distribution, abundance, and 

biological data on juvenile lobsters and 

Jonah crabs from times and areas with 

low coverage from traditional surveys. 

This EFP would exempt the 

participating vessels from the following 

Federal regulations: 

TABLE 1—REQUESTED EXEMPTIONS

CFR citation Regulation Need for exemption 

50 CFR 697.21(c) ........................... Gear specification requirements .... To allow for closed escape vents and smaller trap mesh and entrance heads. 

§ 697.19 ........................................... Trap limit requirements .................. To allow for 3 additional traps per fishing vessel, for a total of up to 

60 additional traps. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 174 / Monday, September 9, 2024 / Notices 73069 

TABLE 1—REQUESTED EXEMPTIONS—Continued 

CFR citation Regulation Need for exemption 

§ 697.19(j) ........................................ Trap tag requirements ................... To allow for the use of untagged traps (though each modified trap will 

have the participating fisherman’s identification attached). 

§§ 697.20(a), 697.20(d), 697.20(g), 

and 697.20(h)(1)–(2).

Possession restrictions .................. To allow for onboard biological sampling of undersized, v-notched, 

and egg-bearing lobsters and undersized and egg-bearing Jonah 

crabs. 

TABLE 2—PROJECT SUMMARY

Project title ........................... Maine lobster fishery dependent offshore ventless and commercial trap research program.

Project start .......................... 11/04/2024. 

Project end ........................... 11/03/2025. 

Project objectives ................. To develop a new survey, in partnership with Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation (CFRF), to provide distribution, abundance, and biological data on juvenile lobsters and Jonah crabs from times and areas in Federal 

waters with low coverage from traditional surveys. 

Project location ..................... Gulf of Maine: Statistical Areas 511, 512, and 513. 

Number of vessels ............... Up to 20. 

Number of trips .................... Up to 36 per vessel; up to 720 total. 

Trip duration (days) .............. Up to 3. 

Total number of days ........... Up to 108 per vessel; up to 2,160 total. 

Gear type(s) ......................... Trap. 

Number of tows or sets ........ 1 per trip. 

Duration of tows or sets ....... 7–10 days. 

Project Narrative 

This project would contribute to the 

ongoing effort by the CFRF to collect 

data on juvenile lobster and Jonah crab 

abundance and distribution in areas and 

times of the year with low or no 

coverage by traditional surveys. 

This project would include up to 20 

federally permitted Maine lobster 

vessels. Each vessel would fish with 3 

modified, ventless traps designed to 

catch juvenile lobsters, totaling up to 60 

modified traps. The ventless trap 

configuration is as follows: 40-inch 

length x 21-inch width x 14-inch height 

(101.6-centimeter (cm) length x 53.34- 

cm width x 35.56-cm height), single 

parlor, 1-inch (2.54-cm) square rubbercoated 12-gauge wire, standard shrimp 

mesh netting, cement runners, and 4- by 

6-inch (10.16- by 15.24-cm) disabling 

door. The modified traps would adhere 

to the standard coastwide survey gear 

for lobster and Jonah crab set by the 

Atlantic States Marine Fisheries 

Commission and would be fished with 

standard Atlantic Large Whale Take 

Reduction Plan-compliant trawls. 

This study would take place during 

regular fishing activity of the 

participating vessels, but catch from the 

modified traps would remain separate 

from that of standard gear. Operators 

would collect data on size, sex, presence 

of eggs, and shell hardness for lobsters 

and Jonah crabs, and v-notch and shell 

disease for lobsters. Operators would 

return all specimens from modified gear 

to the ocean once sampling is complete. 

The study is designed to inform 

management by addressing questions 

about changing reproduction and 

recruitment dynamics of lobster and to 

develop a foundation of knowledge for 

the data-deficient Jonah crab fishery. All 

data collected by the participants using 

the CFRF data collection app would be 

sent to ME DMR for processing. ME 

DMR would then share final datasets 

with CFRF, to further share with the 

Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics 

Program, the Northeast Fisheries 

Science Center, and the Atlantic States 

Marine Fisheries Commission. 

If approved, the applicant may 

request minor modifications and 

extensions to the EFP throughout the 

year. EFP modifications and extensions 

may be granted without further notice if 

they are deemed essential to facilitate 

completion of the proposed research 

and have minimal impacts that do not 

change the scope or impact of the 

initially approved EFP request. Any 

fishing activity conducted outside the 

scope of the exempted fishing activity 

would be prohibited. 

All comments received are a part of 

the public record and may be posted for 

public viewing without change. All 

personal identifying information (e.g., 

name, address), confidential business 

information, or otherwise sensitive 

information submitted voluntarily by 

the sender will be publicly accessible. 

NMFS will accept anonymous 

comments (enter ‘‘anonymous’’ as the 

signature if you wish to remain 

anonymous). 

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

Dated: September 3, 2024. 

Lindsay Fullenkamp, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–20156 Filed 9–6–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XE268] 

Endangered Species; File No. 28262 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

Kori Johnsen, 1792 Harrison Avenue, 

Melbourne, FL 32935, has applied in 

due form for a permit to take green 

(Chelonia mydas), hawksbill 

(Eretmochelys imbricata), and Kemp’s 

ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles 

for purposes of scientific research. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before October 9, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: The application and related 

documents are available for review by 

selecting ‘‘Records Open for Public 

Comment’’ from the ‘‘Features’’ box on 

the Applications and Permits for 

Protected Species home page, https://

apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then selecting 

File No. 28262 from the list of available 

applications. These documents are also 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1