Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 120 / Friday, June 25, 2021 / Notices 33725 

for purposes of publication in the 

Federal Register. 

Aaron Santa Anna, 

Federal Register Liaison, Department of 

Housing and Urban Development. 

[FR Doc. 2021–13624 Filed 6–24–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4210–67–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–R8–ES–2021–N163; 

FXES11140800000–212–FF08EVEN00] 

Draft Habitat Conservation Plan and 

Draft Categorical Exclusion for the 

Vintage Ranch Project; Santa Barbara 

County, California 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice of availability; request 

for comments. 

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service (Service), announce the 

availability of a draft habitat 

conservation plan (HCP) and draft 

categorical exclusion screening form for 

activities described in an application for 

an incidental take permit (ITP) under 

the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

amended. The ITP would authorize take 

of a listed species incidental to 

construction of a residential 

development in the community of 

Orcutt within Santa Barbara County, 

California. The applicants developed 

the draft HCP in support of their 

application for an ITP. The Service 

prepared a draft categorical exclusion 

screening form in accordance with the 

National Environmental Policy Act to 

evaluate the potential effects to the 

natural and human environment 

resulting from issuing an ITP to the 

applicants. We invite public comment 

on these documents. 

DATES: Written comments should be 

received on or before July 26, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: To obtain documents: You 

may download a copy of the draft HCP 

and categorical exclusion screening 

form at http://www.fws.gov/ventura/, 

available in ‘‘Latest News Stories’’ 

under the ‘‘News Room’’ tab, or you 

may request copies of the documents by 

sending U.S. mail to our Ventura office 

(address below), or by phone (see FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). 

To submit written comments: Please 

send us your written comments by one 

of the following methods: 

• U.S. mail: Stephen P. Henry, Field 

Supervisor, Ventura Fish and Wildlife 

Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 

2493 Portola Road, Suite B, Ventura, CA 

93003. 

• Email: rachel_henry@fws.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Rachel Henry, Biologist, by email, via 

the Federal Relay Service at 1–800–877– 

8339 for TTY assistance, or by mail to 

the Ventura Fish and Wildlife office (by 

mail; see ADDRESSES). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We, the 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), 

announce the availability of a draft 

habitat conservation plan (HCP), and 

associated draft categorical exclusion 

screening form, submitted by Vintage 

Ranch Orcutt, LLC (applicant) with an 

application for an ITP. The permit 

would authorize take of the federally 

endangered Santa Barbara County 

distinct population segment (DPS) of the 

California tiger salamander (Ambystoma 

californiense) incidental to activities 

described in the HCP for the 

construction of an approximately 15- 

acre residential development within a 

33-acre lot in the community of Orcutt 

within Santa Barbara County, California. 

The applicant developed a draft HCP as 

part of their application for an ITP 

under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the 

Endangered Species Act of 1973, as 

amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 

The Service prepared a draft categorical 

exclusion screening form in accordance 

with the National Environmental Policy 

Act of 1969 (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

seq.) to evaluate the potential effects to 

the natural and human environment 

resulting from issuing an ITP to the 

applicants. We invite public comment 

on these documents. 

Background 

The Service listed the Santa Barbara 

County DPS of the California tiger 

salamander as endangered on 

September 21, 2000 (65 FR 57242). 

Section 9 of the ESA prohibits take of 

fish and wildlife species listed as 

endangered (16 U.S.C. 1538). Under the 

ESA, ‘‘take’’ is defined to include the 

following activities: ‘‘to harass, harm, 

pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, 

capture, or collect, or to attempt to 

engage in any such conduct’’ (16 U.S.C. 

1532). Under section 10(a)(1)(B) of the 

ESA (16 U.S.C. 1539(a)(1)(B)), we may 

issue permits to authorize take of listed 

fish and wildlife species that is 

incidental to, and not the purpose of, 

carrying out an otherwise lawful 

activity. Regulations governing 

incidental take permits for endangered 

species are in the Code of Federal 

Regulations (CFR) at 50 CFR 17.22. 

Issuance of an ITP also must not 

jeopardize the existence of federally 

listed fish, wildlife, or plant species, 

pursuant to section 7 of the ESA and 50 

CFR 402.02. The permittee would 

receive assurances under our ‘‘No 

Surprises’’ regulations (50 CFR 

17.22(b)(5)). 

Applicants’ Proposed Activities 

The applicant has applied for a 20- 

year term permit for incidental take of 

the Santa Barbara County DPS of the 

California tiger salamander. The take 

would occur in association with the 

construction of a residential 

development and associated activities 

such as vegetation removal, site 

grubbing, and grading for proposed 

development. The proposed 

development and all associated 

disturbance areas would be sited on 

approximately 15 acres of a 33-acre 

property. 

The HCP includes avoidance and 

minimization measures for the Santa 

Barbara County DPS of the California 

tiger salamander and mitigation for 

unavoidable loss of habitat. As 

mitigation for habitat loss, the applicant 

proposes to purchase credits from a 

Service-approved mitigation bank. 

Public Availability of Comments 

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 can ask us in your comment 

to withhold your personal identifying 

information from public view, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. 

Authority 

We provide this notice under section 

10(c) of the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 

and its implementing regulations (50 

CFR 17.22) and NEPA (42 U.S.C. 4321 

et seq.) and its implementing 

regulations (40 CFR 1506.6). 

Stephen Henry, 

Field Supervisor, Ventura Fish and Wildlife 

Office, Ventura, California. 

[FR Doc. 2021–13518 Filed 6–24–21; 8:45 am] 

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