Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 171 / Wednesday, September 8, 2021 / Notices 50331 

issues specifically identified in the 

agenda and any issues arising after 

publication of this notice that require 

emergency action under Section 305(c) 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act, 

provided the public has been notified of 

the Council’s intent to take-action to 

address the emergency. 

Special Accommodations 

These meetings are physically 

accessible to people with disabilities. 

Requests for sign language 

interpretation or other auxiliary aid 

should be directed to Kathy Pereira, 

(813) 348–1630, at least 5 days prior to 

the meeting date. 

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

Dated: September 3, 2021. 

Tracey L. Thompson, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–19487 Filed 9–7–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID: 0648–XB359] 

Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 

Council (MAFMC); Public Meeting 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council’s Surfclam and 

Ocean Quahog Advisory Panel will hold 

a public meeting. 

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

Wednesday, October 13, 2021 from 9:30 

a.m. until 12:00 p.m. For agenda details, 

see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held 

via webinar. Webinar connection 

information will be available at: https:// 

www.mafmc.org/council-events. 

Council address: Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, 800 N State 

Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE 19901; 

telephone: (302) 674–2331; 

www.mafmc.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christopher M. Moore, Ph.D., Executive 

Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, telephone: (302) 

526–5255. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The MidAtlantic Fishery Management Council’s 

Surfclam and Ocean Quahog Advisory 

Panel will meet to provide input on a 

draft document being prepared for the 

Council to address issues related to the 

species separation requirements in the 

Atlantic surfclam and ocean quahog 

fisheries. 

Special Accommodations 

The meeting is physically accessible 

to people with disabilities. Requests for 

sign language interpretation or other 

auxiliary aid should be directed to 

Shelley Spedden, (302) 526–5251, at 

least 5 days prior to the meeting date. 

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

Dated: September 3, 2021. 

Tracey L. Thompson, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–19484 Filed 9–7–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID: 0648–XB411] 

Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 

Council (MAFMC); Public Meeting 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council’s Spiny Dogfish 

Committee will hold a public meeting. 

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

Friday, October 1, 2021; from 9:30 a.m. 

to 1 p.m. For agenda details, see 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held 

via webinar. Webinar connection 

information will be available at: https:// 

www.mafmc.org/council-events. 

Council address: Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, 800 N State 

Street, Suite 201, Dover, DE 19901; 

telephone: (302) 674–2331 or on their 

website at www.mafmc.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Christopher M. Moore, Ph.D., Executive 

Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council, telephone: (302) 

526–5255. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

purpose of the meeting is for the Spiny 

Dogfish Committee to provide 

recommendations regarding future 

specifications, including potential 

federal trip limit modifications. 

Special Accommodations 

The meeting is physically accessible 

to people with disabilities. Requests for 

sign language interpretation or other 

auxiliary aid should be directed to 

Shelley Spedden at (302) 526–5251, at 

least 5 days prior to any meeting date. 

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

Dated: September 3, 2021. 

Tracey L. Thompson, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–19493 Filed 9–7–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB330] 

Notice of Availability of a Draft 

Environmental Impact Statement for 

the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 

Halibut Abundance-Based 

Management of Amendment 80 

Prohibited Species Catch Limit 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of availability of a draft 

environmental impact statement (DEIS); 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: This DEIS is prepared 

pursuant to the National Environmental 

Policy Act (NEPA) to assess the 

environmental impacts from alternatives 

associated with a proposed management 

measure to link the Pacific halibut 

(Hippoglossus stenolepis) prohibited 

species catch (PSC) limit for the 

Amendment 80 commercial groundfish 

trawl fleet in the Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands (BSAI) groundfish 

fisheries to halibut abundance. The 

objectives of linking the PSC limit are to 

minimize halibut PSC to the extent 

practicable under National Standard 9 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(MSA) and to achieve optimum yield in 

the BSAI groundfish fisheries on a 

continuing basis under National 

Standard 1. The action would also be 

expected to provide incentives for the 

Amendment 80 fleet to minimize 

halibut mortality at all times. 

Achievement of these objectives could 

result in additional harvest 

opportunities in the commercial halibut 

fishery. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before October 25, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by NOAA–NMFS–2021–0074, 

by any of the following methods: 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with NOTICES
50332 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 171 / Wednesday, September 8, 2021 / Notices 

• Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and enter 

NOAA–NMFS–2021–0074 in the Search 

box. Click the ‘‘Comment’’ icon, 

complete the required fields, and enter 

or attach your comments. 

• Mail: Submit written comments to 

Glenn Merrill, Assistant Regional 

Administrator, Sustainable Fisheries 

Division, Alaska Region NMFS, Attn: 

Records Office. Mail comments to P.O. 

Box 21668, Juneau, AK 99802–1668. 

Instructions: Comments sent by any 

other method, to any other address or 

individual, or received after the end of 

the comment period, may not be 

considered by NMFS. All comments 

received are a part of the public record 

and will generally be posted for public 

viewing on www.regulations.gov 

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 

‘‘N/A’’ in the required fields if you 

wish to remain anonymous). 

Electronic copies of the DEIS may be 

obtained from http://

www.regulations.gov or from the NMFS 

Alaska Region website at https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/bycatch/ 

bering-sea-and-aleutian-islands-bsaihalibut-abundance-based-management. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joseph Krieger, telephone: 907–586– 

7221. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

International Pacific Halibut 

Commission (IPHC) and NMFS manage 

Pacific halibut fisheries through 

regulations established under the 

authority of the Northern Pacific Halibut 

Act of 1982 (Halibut Act) (16 U.S.C. 

773–773k). The IPHC adopts regulations 

governing the target fishery for Pacific 

halibut under the Convention between 

the United States of America and 

Canada for the Preservation of the 

Halibut Fishery of the Northern Pacific 

Ocean and Bering Sea (Convention), 

signed at Ottawa, Ontario, on March 2, 

1953, as amended by a Protocol 

Amending the Convention (signed at 

Washington, DC, on March 29, 1979). 

For the United States, regulations 

governing the fishery for Pacific halibut 

developed by the IPHC are subject to 

acceptance by the Secretary of State 

with concurrence from the Secretary of 

Commerce. After acceptance by the 

Secretary of State with the concurrence 

of the Secretary of Commerce, NMFS 

publishes the IPHC regulations in the 

Federal Register as annual management 

measures pursuant to 50 CFR 300.62. 

IPHC and NMFS regulations authorize 

the harvest of halibut in commercial, 

personal use, sport and subsistence 

fisheries by hook-and-line gear and pot 

gear. In the BSAI, (which largely 

coincides with IPHC Regulatory Area 4 

(hereafter referred to as ‘‘Area 4’’) and 

its five subsareas (ABCDE)), halibut is 

harvested in all of these fisheries. 

Section 5(c) of the Halibut Act also 

provides the North Pacific Fisheries 

Management Council (Council) with 

authority to develop regulations that are 

in addition to, and not in conflict with, 

approved IPHC regulations. The Council 

has exercised this authority in the 

development of Federal regulations for 

the halibut fishery such as (1) 

subsistence halibut fishery management 

measures, codified at 50 CFR 300.65; (2) 

the limited access program for charter 

vessels in the guided sport fishery, 

codified at § 300.67; and (3) the 

Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program 

for the commercial halibut and sablefish 

fisheries, codified at 50 CFR part 679, 

under the authority of Section 5 of the 

Halibut Act and Section 303(b) of the 

MSA. 

The Council manages the groundfish 

fisheries of the BSAI under the authority 

of the MSA and the Fishery 

Management Plan for the Groundfish for 

the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 

(BSAI FMP). National Standard 9 of the 

MSA requires that fishery conservation 

and management measures shall, to the 

extent practicable: (1) Minimize 

bycatch; and (2) to the extent bycatch 

cannot be avoided, minimize the 

mortality of such bycatch. 

In the BSAI FMP, the Council has 

designated Pacific halibut, along with 

several other fully utilized species such 

as salmon, herring, and crab species, as 

‘‘prohibited species’’ in the groundfish 

fisheries (Section 3.6.1 of the BSAI 

FMP). By regulation, the operator of any 

vessel fishing for groundfish in the BSAI 

must minimize the catch of prohibited 

species (§ 679.21(a)(2)(i)). The Council 

has also set catch limits for individual 

PSC species, which are defined in BSAI 

FMP Section 3.6.2.1. Under the 

designation as a PSC species; their 

capture is required to be avoided; and 

their retention is prohibited except 

when retention is required or authorized 

by other applicable law. Unintended 

removals of prohibited species are 

separately monitored and controlled 

under the BSAI FMP. 

The Council does not have authority 

to set catch limits for the commercial 

halibut fisheries, and halibut PSC in the 

groundfish fisheries is only one of the 

factors that affects harvest limits for the 

commercial halibut fisheries. 

Nonetheless, halibut PSC in the 

groundfish fisheries is a significant 

portion of total mortality in BSAI IPHC 

areas and has the potential to affect 

catch limits for the commercial halibut 

fisheries in Area 4 under the current 

IPHC harvest policy. While the impact 

of halibut PSC reductions on catch 

limits for commercial halibut fisheries is 

dependent on IPHC policy and 

management decisions, reductions to 

the current Amendment 80 halibut PSC 

limit in the BSAI could provide 

additional harvest opportunities in the 

BSAI commercial halibut fishery. 

A Notice of Intent to prepare this 

DEIS was published in the Federal 

Register on December 12, 2017 (82 FR 

58374). This DEIS analyzes alternative 

management measures to link the 

Pacific halibut PSC limit for the 

Amendment 80 commercial groundfish 

trawl fleet in the BSAI groundfish 

fisheries to halibut abundance. The 

Council is considering a program that 

provides incentives for the fleet to 

minimize halibut mortality at all times, 

that could promote conservation of the 

halibut stock, and may provide 

additional opportunities for the directed 

halibut fishery. 

Pacific halibut is targeted in Alaska in 

commercial, personal use, recreational 

(sport), and subsistence halibut 

fisheries. Halibut has significant social, 

cultural, and economic importance to 

fishery participants and communities 

throughout the geographic range of the 

resource. Halibut is also incidentally 

taken as bycatch in commercial 

groundfish fisheries. 

The Council is examining abundancebased approaches to set the halibut PSC 

limit for the Amendment 80 sector in 

the BSAI. Currently halibut PSC limits 

for groundfish fishery sectors are set in 

the BSAI FMP at a fixed amount of 

halibut mortality in metric tons. When 

halibut abundance declines, halibut PSC 

becomes a larger proportion of total 

halibut removals and can result in lower 

catch limits for directed halibut 

fisheries. This action is limited to the 

Amendment 80 sector because that 

sector is responsible for the majority of 

BSAI halibut mortality in the groundfish 

fisheries. In light of the continued 

decline of the halibut stock, both the 

Council and the IPHC have expressed 

concern about impacts on directed 

halibut fisheries under the status quo 

and identified abundance-based halibut 

PSC limits as a potential management 

approach to address these concerns. 

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


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 171 / Wednesday, September 8, 2021 / Notices 50333 

Dated: September 2, 2021. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–19380 Filed 9–7–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XB402] 

North Pacific Fishery Management 

Council; Public Meeting 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of web conference. 

SUMMARY: The North Pacific Fishery 

Management Council (Council) Halibut 

and Sablefish Individual Fishing Quota 

Committee (IFQ Committee) will meet. 

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

Monday, September 27, 2021, from 9 

a.m. to 4 p.m., Alaska Time. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be a web 

conference. Join online through the link 

at https://meetings.npfmc.org/Meeting/ 

Details/2500. 

Council address: North Pacific 

Fishery Management Council, 1007 W 

3rd Ave., Anchorage, AK 99501–2252; 

telephone: (907) 271–2809. Instructions 

for attending the meeting via video 

conference are given under 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION, below. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Sarah Marrinan, Council staff; phone; 

(907) 271–2809; email: sarah.marrinan@

noaa.gov. For technical support please 

contact our admin Council staff, email: 

npfmc.admin@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Agenda 

Monday, September 27, 2021 

The IFQ Committee agenda will 

include the review of the Initial Review 

Analysis of an Omnibus IFQ 

amendment package. Under 

consideration in this package are 

proposed changes to regulations 

regarding the sablefish pot fishery: 

Including gear specifications, buoy 

requirements, pot limits, and gear 

retrieval. Additionally, this package 

considers authorizing jig gear as a legal 

gear type to harvest sablefish IFQ and 

temporarily removing the Adak CQE 

residency requirement. There will be 

time scheduled on the agenda for NMFS 

update on IFQ related issues and the 

Committee may also address other items 

of business as necessary. The agenda is 

subject to change, and the latest version 

will be posted at https://

meetings.npfmc.org/Meeting/Details/ 

2500 prior to the meeting, along with 

meeting materials. 

Connection Information 

You can attend the meeting online 

using a computer, tablet, or smart 

phone; or by phone only. Connection 

information will be posted online at: 

https://meetings.npfmc.org/Meeting/ 

Details/2500. 

Public Comment 

Public comment letters will be 

accepted and should be submitted 

electronically to https://

meetings.npfmc.org/Meeting/Details/ 

2500. 

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

Dated: September 3, 2021. 

Tracey L. Thompson, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–19486 Filed 9–7–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Office of the Secretary 

[Docket ID: DoD–2021–OS–0077] 

Notice of Request for Comments on 

Barriers Facing Small Businesses in 

Contracting With the Department of 

Defense 

AGENCY: Office of Small Business 

Programs, Office of the Deputy Assistant 

Secretary of Defense (Industrial Policy), 

Department of Defense (DoD). 

ACTION: Notice of request for public 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The participation of dynamic, 

resilient, and innovative small 

businesses in the defense industrial base 

is critical to the United States’ efforts to 

maintain its technological superiority, 

military readiness, and warfighting 

advantage. In furtherance of its efforts to 

maximize opportunities for small 

businesses to contribute to national 

security, the Department seeks public 

input on the barriers that small 

businesses face in working with the 

Department. This input will be used to 

update the Department’s Small Business 

Strategy led by the DoD Office of Small 

Business Programs. 

DATES: The due date for submitting 

comments is October 25, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by docket number and title, 

by any of the following methods: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

Mail: DoD cannot receive written 

comments at this time due to the 

COVID–19 pandemic. Comments should 

be sent electronically to the docket 

listed above. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the agency name, docket 

number and title for this Federal 

Register document. The general policy 

for comments and other submissions 

from members of the public is to make 

these submissions available as they are 

received, without change, including any 

personal identifiers or contact 

information for public viewing on the 

internet at http://www.regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Victoria Mundt, Associate Director, of 

the Office of Small Business Programs, 

at (703) 697–0051 or 

osd.business.defense@mail.mil. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

President Biden issued Executive 

Order (E.O.) 14017, ‘‘America’s Supply 

Chains’’; E.O. 13985, ‘‘Advancing Racial 

Equity and Support for Underserved 

Communities Through the Federal 

Government’’; and E.O. 14036, 

‘‘Promoting Competition in the 

American Economy.’’ E.O. 14017 

focuses on the need for resilient, 

diverse, and secure supply chains to 

ensure U.S. economic prosperity and 

national security. E.O. 13985 focuses on 

identifying potential barriers that 

underserved communities and 

individuals may face in taking 

advantage of agency procurement and 

contracting opportunities. E.O. 14036 

focuses on reviewing the state of 

competition within the defense 

industrial base, including areas where a 

lack of competition may be of concern. 

In support of E.O.s and through DoD’s 

Small Business Strategy, DoD is 

focusing on reducing barriers to entry 

that can reduce critical manufacturing 

capacity, competition and the 

availability and integrity of vital goods, 

products, and services. 

Small businesses play a major role in 

the DoD’s supply chains, and they allow 

the U.S. to maintain its technological 

superiority, military readiness, and 

warfighting advantages. These 

companies also play a crucial role in 

ensuring supply chain resilience. Last 

year, the Department awarded a record 

$80 billion dollars to small businesses 

through prime contracts, of which over 

$30 billion dollars was awarded to small 

disadvantaged businesses. 

Still, over the last decade small 

businesses in the defense industrial base 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with NOTICES