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[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 2, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 21491-21493]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-10739]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 625

[Docket No. 950421111-5111-01; I.D. 022895B]

Summer Flounder Fishery; Dealer Reporting Requirements

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS proposes to amend the regulations implementing the 
Fishery Management Plan for the Summer Flounder Fishery (FMP), to 
reduce reporting requirements for federally permitted dealers, to make 
it easier for them to comply with remaining reporting requirements, and 
to improve monitoring of the commercial summer flounder quota.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 1, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the proposed rule or on the proposed Interactive 
Voice Response system should be sent to Jon Rittgers, Acting Regional 
Director, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Regional Office, 
1 Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the 
envelope ``Comments on Summer Flounder, Dealer Reporting.'' Comments on 
the proposed Interactive Voice Response system should also be sent to 
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: NOAA Desk 
Officer, Office of Management and Budget, Washington, D.C. 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hannah Goodale, 508-281-9101, or 
Regina Spallone, 508-281-9221.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FMP was developed jointly by the 
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Mid-Atlantic 
Fishery Management Council in consultation with the New England and 
South Atlantic Fishery Management Councils. The management unit for the 
FMP is summer flounder (Paralichthys dentatus) in U.S. waters of the 
Atlantic Ocean from the southern border of North Carolina northward to 
the U.S.-Canadian border. Implementing regulations for the FMP are 
found at 50 CFR part 625.
    The summer flounder fishery is managed under a quota system. The 
quota is divided among the coastal states based upon set percentages. 
Landings must be monitored weekly in order to determine when a state's 
quota has been reached.
    Since 1993, federally permitted summer flounder dealers have been 
required to report weekly all fish purchases. While several of the 
species of fish purchased by these dealers are under quota management 
systems (summer flounder, squid, mackerel, butterfish), only the summer 
flounder quota requires weekly monitoring at this time. The quotas for 
the remaining species purchased by these dealers can be adequately 
monitored through monthly reports. NMFS believes that reporting 
purchases of all species on a weekly basis is unnecessary and 
burdensome. Therefore, NMFS proposes to revise the weekly reporting 
requirement to make it pertain to summer flounder purchases only. The 
comprehensive reporting of all fish purchases would be required monthly 
rather than weekly. This proposed change would reduce the burden 
associated with the reporting requirement, and, as a secondary benefit, 
would allow more accurate price information to be collected, since such 
information is often unavailable to dealers on a weekly basis.
    NMFS further proposes to require that the weekly summer flounder 
purchase report be made via an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system, 
rather than by a written report. Dealers would be provided with a toll-
free number to call to report weekly purchases of summer flounder using 
either a touch-tone system or voice mail. An IVR system would make it 
easier for dealers to comply with the weekly reporting requirement and 
would be a more efficient method of collecting the data required for 
weekly monitoring of the commercial summer flounder quota.
    NMFS proposes to require dealers to report the following 
information weekly through the IVR system: Dealer permit number, pounds 
of summer flounder purchased, week in which summer flounder was 
purchased, and state(s) of landing for summer flounder purchased. If no 
summer flounder were purchased during the week, the dealer would be 
required to make a report so stating through the IVR system. This 
proposed requirement is less burdensome than the current weekly report. 
It confines the requirement to summer flounder, and, rather than 
requiring the purchases to be reported by vessel, it allows dealers to 
report their weekly summer flounder purchases by state.
    Dealers would continue to report the following information monthly 
on forms supplied by or approved by the Director, Northeast Region, 
NMFS (Regional Director): Dealer name and mailing address; dealer 
number; name and permit number, or name and hull number (U.S. Coast 
Guard Documentation Number or state registration number, as 
appropriate) of vessels from which fish are landed or received; dates 
of purchases; pounds by species (by market category if applicable); 
price by species (by market category if applicable) or total value by 
species (by market category if applicable); port landed; signature of 
dealer or other authorized individual; and any other information deemed 
necessary by the Regional Director. If no fish were purchased during 
the month, the dealer would be required to make a report so stating on 
the required form. Dealers would still have the option of submitting 
the required information electronically if authorized in writing by the 
Regional Director.
    NMFS also proposes to modify three requirements pertaining to 
federally permitted dealers. Dealers are currently required to report 
the Federal permit number of the vessels from which fish are purchased. 
However, many of the species purchased by dealers are not subject to 
Federal management and are caught by vessels that hold no Federal 
permits. This requirement would be modified to indicate that dealers 
must report either the Federal permit number or the hull number (U.S. 
Coast Guard Documentation Number or state registration number, as 
appropriate) of the vessels from which fish are purchased.
    The existing monthly dealer report form specifies market categories 
for many species. NMFS proposes to modify the regulations to clarify 
that dealers must report species purchased by market category, when 
applicable.
    Dealers are currently required to report price per pound for 
species purchased. Many dealers have said that it is easier to report 
the total value of a species purchase rather than the price per pound. 
NMFS proposes to amend the regulations to make either manner of 
reporting acceptable.
    NMFS also proposes to add a paragraph to the regulations concerning 
the collection of biological data (fish lengths) and samples (scales 
and/or otoliths for ageing), which are necessary to characterize the 
composition of landed catch. While most dealers have historically 
allowed access to their premises for the collection of these data, NMFS 
proposes to revise the regulations to make it explicit that federally 
permitted dealers must allow such access.
    In addition, to protect against the unauthorized submission of 
reports, NMFS proposes to require that all monthly report forms be 
signed by the dealer or other authorized individual.

Classification

    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of E.O. 12866.
    This rule is subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act and clarifies 
or modifies requirements previously approved under OMB Control #0648-
0229 (2 minutes per response). The requirement to use an Interactive 
Voice Response system for weekly reporting has been submitted to OMB 
for approval. This requirement and the other modifications to existing 
reporting requirements are expected to slightly reduce or not affect 
[[Page 21493]] the burden on respondents. The rule also restates a 
requirement for mandatory reporting of employment data in the Annual 
Processed Products Report. This requirement is estimated to take 2 
minutes per response and has been approved by OMB under control number 
0648-0018. Any comments on the proposed Interactive Voice Response 
system should be sent to the address specified in ADDRESSES.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 625

    Fisheries, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: April 26, 1995.
Gary Matlock,
Program Management Officer, National Marine Fisheries Service.
    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 625 is 
proposed to be amended as follows:

PART 625--SUMMER FLOUNDER FISHERY

    1. The authority citation for part 625 continues to read as 
follows:

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

    2. In Sec. 625.2, the definition for ``reporting month'' is added, 
in alphabetical order, to read as follows:

Sec. 625.2  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Reporting month means the calendar month.
* * * * *
    3. Section 625.6 is amended by redesignating paragraphs (a)(2) 
through (a)(6) as paragraphs (a)(3) through (a)(7); by revising 
paragraph (a)(1), and newly redesignated paragraphs (a)(3), (a)(6), and 
(a)(7); and by adding new paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(8) to read as 
follows:

Sec. 625.6  Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

    (a) Dealers--(1) Weekly report. Dealers must submit the following 
information, and any other information required by the Regional 
Director, on a weekly basis to the Regional Director, or an official 
designee, via an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system established by 
the Regional Director: Dealer number, pounds of summer flounder 
purchased, week in which summer flounder was purchased, and state(s) of 
landing for summer flounder purchased. Even if no summer flounder are 
purchased during the week, a report so stating must be submitted 
through the IVR system.
    (2) Monthly reports. Dealers must send by mail to the Regional 
Director, or an official designee, on a monthly basis on forms supplied 
by or approved by the Regional Director, a report of all fish 
purchases. If authorized in writing by the Regional Director, dealers 
may submit reports electronically or through other media. The following 
information, and any other information required by the Regional 
Director, must be provided in the report: Name and mailing address of 
dealer; dealer number; name and permit number, or name and hull number 
(U.S. Coast Guard Documentation Number or state registration number, as 
appropriate) of the vessels from which fish were landed or received; 
dates of purchases; pounds by species (by market category if 
applicable); price by species (by market category if applicable) or 
value by species (by market category if applicable); and port landed. 
Even if no fish were purchased during the month, a report so stating 
must be submitted on the required form. All monthly report forms must 
be signed by the dealer or the dealer's authorized representative.
    (3) Annual report. All persons required to submit reports under 
paragraph (a)(1) of this section are required to complete the 
``Employment Data'' section of the Annual Processed Products Reports; 
completion of other sections on that form is voluntary. Required data 
are the number of employees handling fishery products by month. Reports 
for a given calendar year must be submitted to: NMFS Statistics, One 
Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-2298, and must be postmarked by 
February 10th of the following year.
* * * * *
    (6) Submitting reports. Weekly reports must be made by noon each 
Tuesday for the previous reporting week. Monthly reports must be made 
within 10 days after the end of each reporting month. If monthly 
reports are mailed, such reports will be considered made in a timely 
manner if postmarked within 10 days after the end of the reporting 
month. Dealers will be sent, shortly after receipt of a dealer permit, 
forms and instructions, including a chart identifying reporting weeks, 
the telephone number and instructions for the IVR system for submission 
of weekly reports, and the address to which to submit monthly reports. 
If no fish are purchased during a required reporting period, a report 
so stating must be submitted.
    (7) At-sea activities. All federally permitted summer flounder 
dealers purchasing, receiving, or processing any fish at sea for 
landing at any port of the United States must submit information 
identical to that required by paragraphs (a)(1), (2) and (3) of this 
section and provide those reports to the Regional Director or designee 
on the same frequency basis.
    (8) Additional data and sampling. Dealers are required to allow 
access to their premises and to make available to an official designee 
of the Regional Director any fish purchased from vessels for the 
collection of biological data. Such data include, but are not limited 
to, length measurements of fish and the collection of age structures 
such as otoliths or scales.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 95-10739 Filed 5-1-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
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