Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 96 /Tuesday, May 19, 1998 /Rules and Regulations 27485

EEZ within the Maine mahogany

quahog zone, except at a facility

participating in an overall food safety

program, operated by the official state

agency having jurisdiction, that utilizes

food safety-based procedures including

sampling and analyzing for PSP toxin

consistent with procedures used by the

State of Maine for such purpose.

* * * * *

(x) * * *

(1) * * *

(ii) Surf clams or ocean quahogs

landed from a trip for which notification

was provided under § 648.15(b) or

§ 648.70(b) are deemed to have been

harvested in the EEZ and count against

the individual’s annual allocation

unless the vessel has a valid Maine

mahogany quahog permit issued

pursuant to § 648.4(a)(4)(i) and is not

fishing for an individual allocation

under § 648.70.

(iii) Surf clams or ocean quahogs

found in cages without a valid state tag

are deemed to have been harvested in

the EEZ and are deemed to be part of an

individual’s allocation, unless the vessel

has a valid Maine mahogany quahog

permit issued pursuant to

§ 648.4(a)(4)(i) and is not fishing for an

individual allocation under § 648.70; or,

unless the preponderance of available

evidence demonstrates that he/she has

surrendered his/her surf clam and ocean

quahog permit issued under § 648.4 and

he/she conducted fishing operations

exclusively within waters under the

jurisdiction of any state. * * *

* * * * *

7. In § 648.15, paragraph (b)(4) is

added to read as follows.

§ 648.15 Facilitation of enforcement.

* * * * *

(b) * * *

(4) Suspension of notification

requirements. The Regional

Administrator may suspend notification

requirements for vessels fishing under a

Maine mahogany quahog permit issued

pursuant to § 648.4(a)(4)(i) if he

determines that such notification is not

necessary to enforce effectively the

management measures in the Maine

mahogany quahog zone. The Regional

Administrator may rescind such

suspension if he concludes that the

original determination is no longer

valid. A suspension or recision of

suspension of the notification

requirements by the Regional

Administrator shall be published in the

Federal Register.

* * * * *

8. In § 648.73, paragraph (d) is added

to read as follows.

§ 648.73 Closed areas.

* * * * *

(d) Areas closed due to the presence

of paralytic shellfish poisoning toxin—

(1) Maine mahogany quahog zone. The

Maine mahogany quahog zone is closed

to fishing for ocean quahogs except in

those areas of the zone that are tested by

the State of Maine and deemed to be

within the requirements of the National

Shellfish Sanitation Program and

adopted by the Interstate Shellfish

Sanitation Conference as acceptable

limits for the toxin responsible for

paralytic shellfish poisoning. Harvesting

is allowed in such areas during the

periods specified by the Maine

Department of Marine Resources during

which quahogs are safe for human

consumption. For information regarding

these areas contact the State of Maine

Division of Marine Resources at (207–

624–6550).

(2) [Reserved]

9. In § 648.75, introductory text is

added to read as follows:

§ 648.75 Cage identification.

Except as provided in § 648.76, the

following cage identification

requirements apply to all vessels issued

a Federal fishing permit for surf clams

and ocean quahogs:

* * * * *

10. Section 648.76 is added to subpart

E to read as follows.

§ 648.76 Maine mahogany quahog zone.

(a) Landing requirements. (1) A vessel

issued a valid Maine mahogany quahog

permit pursuant to § 648.4(a)(4)(i), and

fishing for or possessing ocean quahogs

within the Maine mahogany quahog

zone, must land its catch in the State of

Maine.

(2) A vessel fishing under an

individual allocation permit, regardless

of whether it has a Maine mahogany

quahog permit, fishing for or possessing

ocean quahogs within the zone, may

land its catch in the State of Maine, or,

consistent with applicable state law in

any other state that utilizes food safetybased procedures including sampling

and analyzing for PSP toxin consistent

with those food safety-based procedures

used by the State of Maine for such

purpose, and must comply with all

requirements in §§ 648.70 and 648.75.

Documentation required by the state

and other laws and regulations

applicable to food safety-based

procedures must be made available by

federally-permitted dealers for

inspection by NMFS .

(b) Quota monitoring and closures—

(1) Catch quota. (i) The annual quota for

harvest of mahogany quahogs from

within the Maine mahogany quahog

zone is 100,000 Maine bushels (35,150

hL). The quota may be revised annually

within the range of 17,000 and 100,000

Maine bushels (5,975 and 35,150 hL)

following the procedures set forth in

§ 648.71.

(ii) All mahogany quahogs landed for

sale in Maine by vessels issued a Maine

mahogany quahog permit and not

fishing for an individual allocation of

ocean quahogs under § 648.70 shall be

applied against the Maine mahogany

quahog quota, regardless of where the

mahogany quahogs are harvested.

(iii) All mahogany quahogs landed by

vessels fishing in the Maine mahogany

quahog zone for an individual allocation

of quahogs under § 648.70 will be

counted against the ocean quahog

allocation for which the vessel is

fishing.

(iv) The Regional Administrator will

monitor the quota based on dealer

reports and other available information

and shall determine the date when the

quota will be harvested. NMFS shall

publish notification in the Federal

Register advising the public that,

effective upon a specific date, the Maine

mahogany quahog quota has been

harvested and notifying vessel and

dealer permit holders that no Maine

mahogany quahog quota is available for

the remainder of the year.

(2) Maine Mahogany Quahog

Advisory Panel. The Council shall

establish a Maine Mahogany Quahog

Advisory Panel consisting of

representatives of harvesters, dealers,

and the Maine Department of Marine

Resources. The Advisory Panel shall

make recommendations, through the

Surf Clam and Ocean Quahog

Committee of the Council, regarding

revisions to the annual quota and other

management measures.

[FR Doc. 98–13284 Filed 5–14–98; 4:41 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

15 CFR Part 902

50 CFR Part 622

[Docket No. 980513127-8127-01;

I.D.050598A]

RIN 0648–AL15

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Shrimp

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Data

Collection

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
27486 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 96 /Tuesday, May 19, 1998 /Rules and Regulations

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Interim rule; request for

comments.

SUMMARY: This interim rule requires

vessels in the shrimp fishery of the Gulf

of Mexico to maintain and submit

fishing records, to carry a NMFSapproved observer, and/or to carry a

vessel monitoring system unit (VMS

unit), if selected by NMFS to do so. This

rule also informs the public of the

approval by the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB) of the collection-ofinformation requirements contained in

this rule and publishes the OMB control

numbers for these collections. The

intended effect of this rule is to collect

information on the operational

effectiveness of bycatch reduction

devices (BRDs) in shrimp trawls in

reducing the mortality of juvenile red

snapper, and, thereby, to determine

management measures necessary to

reduce overfishing of red snapper.

DATES: This rule is effective on May 14,

1998, through November 16, 1998.

Comments must be received no later

than June 18, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Comments on this interim

rule must be sent to, and copies of

documents supporting this rule may be

obtained from, the Southeast Regional

Office, NMFS, 9721 Executive Center

Drive N., St Petersburg, FL 33702.

Comments regarding the collection-ofinformation requirements contained in

this rule should be sent to Edward E.

Burgess, Southeast Regional Office,

NMFS, 9721 Executive Center Drive N.,

St. Petersburg, FL 33702, and to the

Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget, Washington, DC 20503

(Attention: NOAA Desk Officer).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Michael E. Justen, phone: 813–570–5305

or fax: 813–570–5583.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Fishery Management Plan for the

Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico

(FMP) was prepared by the Gulf of

Mexico Fishery Management Council

(Council) and is implemented under the

authority of the Magnuson-Stevens

Fishery Conservation and Management

Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) by

regulations at 50 CFR part 622.

Background

Shrimp trawls have a significant

bycatch of non-target finfish and

invertebrates, most of which are

discarded dead. In particular, the

shrimp fishery bycatch in the Gulf of

Mexico includes a high mortality of

juvenile (ages 0 and 1) red snapper, a

valuable reef fish species for

commercial and recreational fisheries.

The red snapper stock of the Gulf of

Mexico is overfished. Red snapper stock

assessments prepared in 1995 and 1997

indicated that shrimp trawl bycatch of

red snapper must be reduced to rebuild

the red snapper resource to a spawning

potential ratio (SPR) of 20 percent by

the year 2019. The Council’s Fishery

Management Plan for the Reef Fish

Resources of the Gulf of Mexico

establishes the 20 percent SPR level as

its goal for rebuilding the red snapper

stock.

The Council developed FMP

Amendment 9 to require the use of

NMFS-certified BRDs in shrimp trawls

towed in the Gulf of Mexico exclusive

economic zone (EEZ), shoreward of the

100–fm (183–m) depth contour west of

85°30’ W. long., the approximate

longitude of Cape San Blas, Florida. To

be certified, these BRDs must meet the

FMP’s bycatch reduction criterion

requiring the reduction of shrimp trawl

bycatch mortality of juvenile red

snapper by a minimum of 44 percent

from the average level of mortality of

these age groups during 1984–89.

Additional background on BRDs and the

Council’s rationale for requiring their

use are contained in the preamble for

the proposed and final rules

implementing Amendment 9 (62 FR

35774, July 2, 1997; 63 FR 18139, April

14, 1998), and are not repeated here.

NMFS published an interim rule (63

FR 18144, April 14, 1998) to reserve part

of the 1998 Gulf of Mexico red snapper

total allowable catch (TAC) and to

establish a procedure for releasing all or

part of the reserved part of the TAC to

commercial and recreational red

snapper fisheries on September 1, 1998,

based on the results of an immediate

and major research effort to evaluate the

effectiveness of BRDs in reducing

juvenile red snapper bycatch mortality.

This rule establishes regulations to

govern this research program; the

research effort will begin with the

issuance of this rule.

Description of Research Program

The focus of the research program is

to determine the operational

effectiveness of NMFS-certified BRDs in

the shrimp trawl fishery and to improve

the data used for assessing the status of

the red snapper stock. This information

will be obtained by evaluating BRD

performance, BRD exclusion mortality

(mortality of juvenile red snapper

excluded by the BRD), and industry

compliance with the BRD requirements.

The information will be used by NMFS

to determine what portion of the

reserved red snapper TAC may be

released for harvest on September 1,

1998.

BRD performance will be measured by

observers placed on as many as 100

shrimp vessels during the period May

14, 1998, through August 15, 1998. The

observers will collect red snapper

bycatch data (i.e., number of red

snapper in the BRD-equipped net

compared to the number in a control

net) to determine the reduction in

bycatch mortality on a tow-by-tow basis.

Survival of red snapper after they leave

the BRDs will also be examined. NMFS

enforcement personnel will document

the level of industry compliance with

the BRD regulations during at-sea

boardings and dock-side inspections.

The research program will also focus

on improving estimates of shrimp

fishing effort to be used in calculations

of the shrimp fishery’s total red snapper

bycatch (i.e., improving scientific

estimates of the total bycatch mortality

of red snapper in the shrimp fishery).

This will involve the use of interviews,

logbooks, and VMS unit surveillance in

the shrimp fleet. A vessel logbook will

be used to collect data on shrimp fishing

effort and location. Selected vessels will

be required to report data on the number

and average duration of tows, the

number of nets used, the size of the

trawl opening, the length of the head

rope, the total pounds of shrimp caught,

and the type of BRD used. VMS units

aboard vessels will be used to transmit

vessel position, course, and speed in

encrypted form via satellite or cellular

phone to a land-based data acquisition

system. This information will be used to

evaluate the accuracy of logbook

reports.

The observer study will involve

NMFS’ random selection of

approximately 100 offshore shrimp

trawlers. Owners of vessels selected for

observer coverage will be required to

notify NMFS prior to their vessel’s

departure on a fishing trip. Required

notification procedures will be specified

in the notice of selection sent to the

vessel owner. Costs associated with

carrying the observers will be borne by

NMFS, except for certain costs

associated with a selected vessel’s

compliance with regulations at 50 CFR

part 600 regarding observer health and

safety. NMFS intends to issue a rule

shortly amending regulations at 50 CFR

600.725 and 600.746 that require

owners and operators of fishing vessels

that carry observers to comply with

guidelines, regulations, and conditions

in order to ensure that the vessels are

adequate and safe for the purposes of

carrying an observer and allowing

normal observer functions. These

compliance costs are estimated at
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 96 /Tuesday, May 19, 1998 /Rules and Regulations 27487

$6,960 in aggregate for approximately 83

vessels selected to carry observers that

may not already be in compliance with

U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) regulations

regarding vessel safety and sanitation.

Approximately 310 shrimp vessels

will be required to maintain and submit

to NMFS logbooks, and approximately

50 will be required to have a VMS unit

(transponder) installed by NMFS at a

cost borne by NMFS. Up to 460 shrimp

vessels will be selected to participate in

the combined observer, logbook, and

VMS unit programs. Participating vessel

owners are expected to incur costs of

$14,080 in aggregate, or about $30.61

each. These costs will be the value of

the owners’ time required to participate

in the data gathering programs.

Other

The NMFS Southeast Fisheries

Science Center has determined that this

interim rule is based on the best

available scientific information. NMFS

has determined that this interim rule is

consistent with the requirements of

section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens

Act regarding the promulgation of

interim measures necessary to reduce

overfishing for a fishery; this rule

addressed the overfishing of red

snapper. Specifically, this rule is

necessary to provide improved scientific

information regarding the effectiveness

of BRDs in reducing red snapper

bycatch mortality in the Gulf shrimp

fishery and regarding the total shrimp

fishing effort. This information is

required to calculate a more reliable

estimate of the total bycatch mortality of

red snapper in the shrimp fishery for

1998. Based on this estimate, an

appropriate portion of the red snapper

TAC will be released to the commercial

and recreational fisheries on September

1. Any released portion of the TAC,

based on the new scientific information

and calculations resulting from this

rule, should maintain the current red

snapper stock rebuilding program and

prevent overfishing of this resource.

NMFS finds that this regulatory action

is needed to reduce overfishing of red

snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. NMFS

issues this interim rule, effective for no

more than 180 days, as authorized by

section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens

Act. This interim rule may be extended

for an additional 180 days provided that

the public has had an opportunity to

comment on it. Public comments on this

interim rule will be considered in

determining whether to extend it.

Under NOAA Administrative Order

205–11, 7.01, dated December 17, 1990,

the Under Secretary for Oceans and

Atmosphere, Department of Commerce,

has delegated authority to sign material

for publication in the Federal Register

to the Assistant Administrator for

Fisheries, NOAA.

Classification

The Assistant Administrator for

Fisheries, NOAA (AA), has determined

that this rule is necessary to obtain

estimates of the operational efficiencies

of BRDs in reducing red snapper

bycatch mortality, to improve estimates

of red snapper bycatch mortality, and,

thereby, to contribute to reducing

overfishing of red snapper in the Gulf of

Mexico. The AA has also determined

that this rule is consistent with the

Magnuson-Stevens Act and other

applicable laws.

This interim rule has been determined

to be not significant for purposes of E.O.

12866.

Because prior notice and an

opportunity for public comment are not

required to be provided for this rule by

5 U.S.C. 553 or by any other law, the

analytical requirements of the

Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601

et seq., are inapplicable.

NMFS prepared a Regulatory Impact

Review (RIR) that describes the

expected economic costs and benefits of

this rule (see ADDRESSES). The RIR notes

that most of the costs associated with

this rule accrue to NMFS in terms of

costs of conducting the observer

program, the logbook program, the VMS

unit program, and the allied research

that will be used in combination with

the information derived from observers,

logbooks, and VMS unit programs. In

addition, NMFS is expected to incur

costs related to enforcing the rule and

administrative costs of preparing and

monitoring the rule. The total NMFS

costs for the research program are

estimated to be $3,110,000. Up to 460

shrimpers will be selected for

participation in the observer, logbook,

and VMS programs together. In

aggregate, these shrimpers will incur a

cost of $23,770. This cost includes an

estimated $6,960 in aggregate for

compliance by vessels selected for

observers with USCG regulations for

vessel safety and sanitation required by

50 CFR 600.725 and 600.746, as

amended by a separate rule NMFS

intends to issue shortly. This estimate is

based on the assumption that a

maximum of 83 vessels would have to

make special efforts to comply with

USCG dockside safety inspection

requirements as a prerequisite for

carrying observers. The costs related to

vessel safety and sanitation are not

attributed to this interim rule, but rather

to USCG regulations. The remainder of

the total estimated cost is the value of

the shrimpers’ time required to

participate in these programs. Since the

rule is not expected to have any effect

on the status quo level of shrimp

harvests or shrimp fishing effort

patterns, no short-term changes in

industry costs or benefits relative to

status quo are expected. The benefits

from this rule are those associated with

providing better information for future

management decisions regarding the

Gulf shrimp and red snapper fisheries.

These decisions are likely to affect net

benefits related to the harvest of shrimp

and red snapper in future years.

However, there is no way to quantify

these benefits at this time, Copies of the

RIR are available (see ADDRESSES).

Notwithstanding any other provision

of law, no person is required to respond

to nor shall a person be subject to a

penalty for failure to comply with a

collection of information subject to the

requirements of the Paperwork

Reduction Act (PRA) unless that

collection of information displays a

currently valid OMB control number.

This rule contains two new

collection-of-information requirements

subject to the PRA—namely, the

requirement that, if selected, the owner

or operator of a vessel in the Gulf of

Mexico shrimp fishery must (1) notify

NMFS in advance of each trip so that a

NMFS-approved observer may be

embarked and (2) have a VMS unit

installed and in use when at sea. The

installation and use of a VMS unit

includes five elements: Notification to

the Special Agent-in-Charge, NMFS,

Office of Enforcement, Southeast Region

(SAC), or his designee as to when the

vessel will next be in port so that NMFS

may install the VMS unit; the

installation of the unit; the automatic

sending of position information by the

unit; maintenance of the unit by NMFS;

and its removal by NMFS. These two

new requirements have been approved

by OMB under OMB control number

0648-0343. The public reporting

burdens for these collections of

information are estimated at 5 minutes

per response for the observer

notification requirement and 6 hours

per response for installation and use of

a VMS unit. This rule also contains the

collection-of-information requirement

that, if selected, a vessel owner or

operator must maintain and submit

fishing records. Specifically, this rule

extends to vessels in the shrimp fishery

of the Gulf of Mexico the requirement

approved by OMB under OMB control

number 0648-0016. The reporting

burden is estimated at 10 minutes per

response. The estimates of public

reporting burdens for these collections

of information include the time for

reviewing instructions, searching
27488 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 96 /Tuesday, May 19, 1998 /Rules and Regulations

existing data sources, gathering and

maintaining the data needed, and

completing and reviewing the

collections of information. Send

comments regarding these burden

estimates or any other aspects of the

collections of information, including

suggestions for reducing the burdens, to

NMFS and OMB (see ADDRESSES).

The provisions of this interim rule

provide the means for further scientific

evaluation of the operational

effectiveness of BRDs for reducing the

bycatch mortality of juvenile red

snapper in the shrimp trawl fishery.

Absent scientific evidence that BRDs,

under operational conditions, are more

effective in reducing bycatch mortality

than was previously estimated, the

reserved portion of the 1998 red snapper

TAC will not be released prior to the

end of the year. Any delay in

implementing the provisions contained

in this rule would delay any potential

for releasing the reserved portion of the

red snapper TAC (i.e., the results of the

data collection and research provisions

have the potential to relieve a restriction

in the near future). The potential release

of reserved red snapper TAC is

contingent upon positive findings from

the outlined data collection and

research program. Therefore, it is

critical to commence this research as

soon as possible. Accordingly, pursuant

to authority set forth at 5 U.S.C.

553(b)(B), the AA finds that these

reasons constitute good cause to waive

the requirement to provide prior notice

and the opportunity for prior public

comment, as such procedures would be

contrary to the public interest.

Similarly, the need to implement these

measures in a timely manner, for the

reasons expressed above, constitutes

good cause under authority contained in

5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), to waive the 30-day

delay in effective date. Accordingly, this

rule is effective on May 14, 1998.

List of Subjects

15 CFR Part 902

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

50 CFR Part 622

Fisheries, Fishing, Puerto Rico,

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Virgin Islands.

Dated: May 13, 1998.

David L. Evans,

Deputy Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

For the reasons set out in the

preamble, 15 CFR part 902 and 50 CFR

part 622 are amended as follows:

15 CFR Chapter IX

PART 902—NOAA INFORMATION

COLLECTION REQUIREMENTS UNDER

THE PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT:

OMB CONTROL NUMBERS

1. The authority citation for part 902

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

§ 902.1 [Amended]

2. In § 902.1(b), in the table, under 50

CFR, the entry ‘‘622.9’’ is added in

numerical order in the left column, and

the corresponding entry ‘‘–0016 and

–0205’’ is added in the right column.

50 CFR Chapter VI

PART 622—FISHERIES OF THE

CARIBBEAN, GULF, AND SOUTH

ATLANTIC

3. The authority citation for part 622

continues to read as follows:

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

4. In § 622.7, paragraph (aa) is added

to read as follows:

§ 622.7 Prohibitions.

* * * * *

(aa) Fail to comply with the Gulf

shrimp interim measures specified in

§ 622.9.

(bb) [Reserved]

5. In subpart A, § 622.9 is added to

read as follows:

§ 622.9 Gulf shrimp interim measures.

(a) Vessel logbooks. In addition to the

requirements of § 622.5(a)(1)(iii), the

owner or operator of a vessel that fishes

for shrimp in the Gulf EEZ who is

selected to report by the SRD must

maintain fishing records on forms

available from the SRD. The owner or

operator must submit completed fishing

records to the SRD postmarked not later

than 7 days after the end of each fishing

trip. If no fishing occurred during a

calendar month, the owner or operator

must submit a report so stating on one

of the forms postmarked not later than

7 days after the end of that month.

Information to be reported is indicated

on the form and its accompanying

instructions.

(b) Observer coverage. (1) If a vessel

is selected by the SRD for observer

coverage, the owner or operator of the

vessel that fishes for shrimp in the Gulf

EEZ must carry a NMFS-approved

observer aboard the vessel.

(2) When notified in writing by the

SRD that his or her vessel has been

selected to carry a NMFS-approved

observer, the owner or operator must

advise the SRD in writing not less than

5 days in advance of each trip of the

port, dock, date, and time of departure

and the port, dock, date, and time of

landing.

(3) An owner or operator of a vessel

on which a NMFS-approved observer is

embarked must:

(i) Provide accommodations and food

that are equivalent to those provided to

the crew.

(ii) Allow the observer access to and

use of the vessel’s communications

equipment and personnel upon request

for the transmission and receipt of

messages related to the observer’s

duties.

(iii) Allow the observer access to and

use of the vessel’s navigation equipment

and personnel upon request to

determine the vessel’s position.

(iv) Allow the observer free and

unobstructed access to the vessel’s

bridge, working decks, holding bins,

weight scales, holds, and any other

space used to hold, process, weigh, or

store fish.

(v) Allow the observer to inspect and

copy the vessel’s log, communications

logs, and any records associated with

the catch and distribution of fish for that

trip.

(vi) On or after May 14, 1998, comply

with the observer’s instructions to make

an installed bycatch reduction device

(BRD) inoperative; use of a trawl net

with an inoperative BRD in accordance

with the observer’s instructions while

the observer is aboard is not a violation

of § 622.41(h)(1).

(c) Vessel monitoring. (1) If a vessel is

selected by the SRD for monitoring, the

owner or operator of the vessel that

fishes for shrimp in the Gulf EEZ must

carry a NMFS-supplied vessel

monitoring system (VMS) unit on board

the vessel.

(2) Upon selection by the SRD for

monitoring, the vessel owner or operator

must advise the Special Agent-inCharge, NMFS, Office of Enforcement,

Southeast Region, St. Petersburg, FL

(SAC) or his designee by telephone

(813–570–5344) as to when the vessel

will next be in port so that NMFS may

arrange for installation of the VMS unit.

During installation of the VMS unit, the

owner or operator must provide NMFS

access to the vessel’s on-board power

supply.

(3) After the VMS unit is installed, the

vessel owner or operator must maintain

power to the VMS unit when the vessel

is at sea. When the vessel is in port, the

owner or operator must provide access

to the VMS unit for maintenance, repair,

inspection, or removal.

(4) No person may interfere with,

impede, delay, or prevent the

installation, maintenance, repair,
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 96 /Tuesday, May 19, 1998 /Rules and Regulations 27489

1A definition of RACT is cited in a General

Preamble-Supplement published at 44 FR 53761

(September 17, 1979). RACT is defined as the

lowest emission limitation that a particular source

is capable of meeting by the application of control

technology that is reasonably available, considering

technological and economic feasibility. CTGs are

documents published by EPA which contain

information on available air pollution control

techniques and provide recommendations on what

the EPA considers the ‘‘presumptive norm’’ for

RACT.

inspection, or removal of a VMS unit or

interfere with, tamper with, alter,

damage, disable, or impede the

operation of a VMS unit, or attempt any

of the same.

[FR Doc. 98–13290 Filed 5–14–98; 3:51pm

am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Customs Service

19 CFR Part 191

[T.D. 98–16]

RIN 1515–AB95

Drawback; Correction

AGENCY: U.S. Customs Service,

Department of the Treasury.

ACTION: Correcting amendments.

SUMMARY: Customs published in the

Federal Register of March 5, 1998, a

document issuing final regulations

regarding drawback (T.D. 98–16). This

document contains corrections to those

final regulations.

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 6, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Russell Berger, Regulations Branch,

Office of Regulations and Rulings, (202–

927–1605).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The final regulations relating to

drawback that are the subject of these

corrections were published as T.D. 98–

16 in the Federal Register (63 FR

10970), on March 5, 1998. Corrections to

these regulations were published in the

Federal Register on March 17, 1998 (63

FR 13105) and on March 31, 1998 (63

FR 15287).

Need For Corrections

As published, it has come to Customs

attention that the final regulations still

contain errors which may prove to be

misleading. This document corrects

those errors.

List of Subjects in 19 CFR Part 191

Canada, Commerce, Customs duties

and inspection, Exports, Imports,

Mexico, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Trade agreements (North

American Free Trade Agreement).

PART 191—DRAWBACK

Accordingly, part 191, Customs

Regulations (19 CFR part 191) is

corrected by making the correcting

amendments set forth below.

1. The general authority citation for

part 191 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301, 19 U.S.C. 66, 1202

(General Note 20, Harmonized Tariff

Schedule of the United States), 1313, 1624.

§ 191.3 [Amended]

2. In § 191.3(a)(3), the parenthetical,

‘‘(see § 101.1(i) of this chapter)’’, is

revised to read, ‘‘(see § 101.1 of this

chapter)’’.

§ 191.6 [Amended]

3. In § 191.6(c)(3), the reference to

‘‘§ 191.32(c)(2)’’ is revised to read,

‘‘§ 191.32(c)’’.

§ 191.14 [Amended]

4. In § 191.14(c)(3)(iii)(D), at the end

of the penultimate sentence,

immediately before the period, the

following language is added: ‘‘; the

March 20 receipt (50 units at $1.08) is

not yet attributed to withdrawals for

export’’. 5. In § 191.14(c)(3)(iv)(C), in the

penultimate sentence, after the phrase,

‘‘February 25 (50 units at $1.05),’’, the

following language is added: ‘‘March 5

(50 units at $1.06),’’.

§ 191.92 [Amended]

6. In § 191.92(g), in the first sentence,

the term ‘‘stay,’’ is removed.

Dated: May 13, 1998.

Harold M. Singer,

Chief, Regulations Branch.

[FR Doc. 98–13237 Filed 5–18–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4820–02–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[IL169–1a; FRL–6012–7]

Approval and Promulgation of

Implementation Plan; Illinois

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

SUMMARY: On March 6, 1998, the State

of Illinois submitted to EPA amended

rules for controlling Volatile Organic

Material (VOM) emissions from wood

furniture coating operations in the

Chicago and Metro-East (East St. Louis)

ozone nonattainment areas, as a

requested revision to the ozone State

Implementation Plan (SIP). VOM, as

defined by the State of Illinois, is

identical to ‘‘Volatile Organic

Compounds’’ (VOC), as defined by EPA.

VOC is an air pollutant which combines

with nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere

to form ground-level ozone, commonly

known as smog. Ozone pollution is of

particular concern because of its

harmful effects upon lung tissue and

breathing passages. This plan was

submitted to meet the Clean Air Act

(Act) requirement for States to adopt

Reasonably Available Control

Technology (RACT) rules for sources

that are covered by Control Techniques

Guideline (CTG) documents. This

rulemaking action approves, through

direct final, the Illinois SIP revision

request.

DATES: The ‘‘direct final’’ rule is

effective on July 20, 1998, unless EPA

receives adverse or critical written

comments by June 18, 1998. If adverse

comment is received, EPA will publish

a timely withdrawal of the rule in the

Federal Register informing the public

that the rule will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the revision

request and EPA’s Technical Support

Document (TSD) for this rulemaking

action are available for inspection at the

following address: U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, Region 5, Air and

Radiation Division, 77 West Jackson

Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604. (It is

recommended that you telephone Mark

J. Palermo at (312) 886–6082 before

visiting the Region 5 Office.)

Written comments should be sent to:

J. Elmer Bortzer, Chief, Regulation

Development Section, Air Programs

Branch (AR–18J), U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, 77 West Jackson

Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mark J. Palermo, Environmental

Protection Specialist, at (312) 886–6082.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Section 182(b)(2) of the Act requires

all moderate and above ozone

nonattainment areas to adopt RACT

rules for sources covered by CTG

documents.1 In Illinois, the Chicago area

(Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry,

Will Counties and Aux Sable and Goose

Lake Townships in Grundy County and

Oswego Township in Kendall County) is

classified as ‘‘severe’’ nonattainment for

ozone, and the Metro-East area

(Madison, Monroe, and St. Clair

Counties) is classified as ‘‘moderate’’

nonattainment. See 40 CFR 81.314.

On September 9, 1994, EPA approved

and incorporated into the SIP a 1993