30148 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 108 / Tuesday, June 5, 2001 / Proposed Rules

may be significantly or uniquely

impacted by the rule.

EPA has determined that the

proposed action does not include a

Federal mandate that may result in

estimated costs of $100 million or more

to either State, local, or tribal

governments in the aggregate, or to the

private sector. This proposed Federal

action acts on pre-existing requirements

under State or local law, and imposes

no new requirements. Accordingly, no

additional costs to State, local, or tribal

governments, or to the private sector,

result from this action.

E. National Technology Transfer and

Advancement Act

Section 12 of the National Technology

Transfer and Advancement Act

(NTTAA) of 1995 requires Federal

agencies to evaluate existing technical

standards when developing a new

regulation. To comply with NTTAA,

EPA must consider and use ‘‘voluntary

consensus standards’’ (VCS) if available

and applicable when developing

programs and policies unless doing so

would be inconsistent with applicable

law or otherwise impractical.

EPA believes that VCS are

inapplicable to today’s proposed action

because it does not require the public to

perform activities conducive to the use

of VCS.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

Environmental protection, Air

pollution control, Intergovernmental

relations, Sulfur oxides, Nitrogen

dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Dated: May 8, 2001.

Jane Diamond,

Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.

[FR Doc. 01–14082 Filed 6–4–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–U

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife

and Plants; Notice of Availability of a

Genetics Study for the Status Review

of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo in the

Western United States and Reopening

of Comment Period

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability and

reopening of comment period.

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service (Service), in

conjunction with the United States

Geological Service (USGS), announce

the availability of a genetics study

entitled the ‘‘Taxonomic and

Evolutionary Significant Unit (ESU)

Status of Western Yellow-billed

Cuckoos (Coccyzus americanus).’’ This

study, contracted by both agencies, was

prepared by Dr. Robert Fleischer of the

National Zoological Park, Smithsonian

Institute, Washington DC.

We are also providing notice of the

reopening of the comment period for the

12-month finding on a petition to list

this species as endangered to allow all

interested parties to comment

simultaneously on the 90-day petition

and study. Comments previously

submitted need not be resubmitted as

they will be incorporated into the public

record as part of this reopened comment

period, and will be fully considered in

the 12-month petition finding.

DATES: We will accept public comments

until June 20, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to review

the study may receive a copy by

contacting the Sacramento Fish and

Wildlife Office, 2800 Cottage Way,

Room W–2605, Sacramento, California

95825. Written comments and

information should be submitted to the

Field Supervisor at the address above.

For electronic mail address and further

instructions on commenting, refer to the

Public Comments Solicited section of

this notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dwight Harvey or Stephanie Brady at

the Sacramento Fish and Wildlife

Office, at the above address (telephone

916/414–6600).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

On February 17, 2000, we published

in the Federal Register a 90-day finding

on a petition to list the yellow-billed

cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) as

endangered, pursuant to the Endangered

Species Act (Act) of 1973, as amended

(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) (65 FR 8104).

We determined that the petition

presented substantial information that

the listing of the yellow-billed cuckoo

may be warranted, and initiated a status

review which will result in a 12-month

finding at the conclusion of the review.

The information presented suggested

that the yellow-billed cuckoo may be

endangered in a significant portion of its

range (i.e., the western United States),

and that the western United States

represents the range of a valid

subspecies, termed the western yellowbilled cuckoo. In our 90-day petition

finding, while we determined that the

listing of the yellow-billed cuckoo may

be warranted, the taxonomy of the

species is unclear.

To clarify the validity and range of a

western subspecies, the Service and

USGS solicited proposals for a genetic

analysis throughout the species

breeding range in the United States and

Mexico. We selected and funded a

proposal submitted by Dr. Robert

Fleischer of the Smithsonian Institution

from a total of five proposals. We

received the final genetics study

prepared by Dr. Fleischer on April 24,

2001.

Public Comments Solicited

We will accept written comments and

information during this reopened

comment period. If you wish to

comment, you may submit your

comments and materials by any of

several methods:

(1) You may submit written comments

and information to the Field Supervisor,

Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office,

2800 Cottage Way, Room W–2605,

Sacramento, California 95825.

(2) You may send comments by

electronic mail (e-mail) to:

FW1YBC@fws.gov. If you submit

comments by e-mail, please submit

them as an ASCII file and avoid the use

of special characters and any form of

encryption. Please also include your

name and return address in your e-mail

message. If you do not receive a

conformation from the system that we

have received your e-mail message,

contact us directly by calling our

Sacramento Fish and Wildlife Office at

telephone number 916/414–6600.

(3) You may hand-deliver comments

to our Sacramento Fish and Wildlife

Office at the address given above.

Comments and materials received, as

well as supporting documentation used

in preparation of the 12-month petition

finding to list the yellow-billed cuckoo,

will be available for inspection, by

appointment, during normal business

hours at the address listed under (1)

above. Copies of the study and the 90-

day petition finding are available by

writing to the Field Supervisor at the

address under (1) above.

Author(s)

The primary authors of this notice are

Stephanie Brady (see ADDRESSES

section), and Barbara Behan, U.S. Fish

and Wildlife Service, Regional Office,

911 N.E. 11th Avenue, Portland, Oregon

97232.

Authority: The authority for this action is

the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as

amended, 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq..

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 108 / Tuesday, June 5, 2001 / Proposed Rules 30149

Dated: May 30, 2001.

Alexandra Pitts,

Acting Manager, California and Nevada

Operations Office.

[FR Doc. 01–14052 Filed 6–4–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 010515128–1128-01; I.D.

041801C]

Fisheries of the Northeastern United

States; Black Sea Bass Fishery

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Advance notice of proposed

rulemaking; notice of a control date for

the purposes of controlling capacity or

latent effort in the black sea bass

commercial fishery.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that it is

considering, and is seeking public

comment on, a proposed rulemaking to

place additional controls on access to

the black sea bass (Centropristis striata)

fishery under the Magnuson-Stevens

Fishery Conservation and Management

Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). This

announcement is intended , in part, to

discourage speculative increases in

effort or capacity while the Mid-Atlantic

Fishery Management Council (Council)

and NMFS are considering whether and

how to additionally control access in

this fishery. The date of publication of

this announcement, June 5, 2001, shall

be known as the control date and may

be used for establishing revised

eligibility criteria for participation in

the fishery; i.e., the level of fishing

activity after this date will not

necessarily be used for future eligibility

criteria.

DATES: Written comments must be

received on or before 5 p.m., local time,

July 5, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should

be sent to Daniel T. Furlong, Executive

Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery

Management Council, Room 2115

Federal Building, 300 South Street,

Dover, DE 19904. Mark the outside of

the envelope, ‘‘Comments on Black Sea

Bass Control Date.’’ Comments also may

be sent via facsimile (fax) to (302) 674–

5399. Comments will not be accepted if

submitted via e-mail or the Internet.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jennifer L. Anderson, Fishery

Management Specialist, (978) 281–9226,

e-mail: Jennifer.Anderson@noaa.gov or

Christopher M. Moore, Ph.D., Deputy

Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery

Management Council, (302) 674–2331.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The black

sea bass fishery is a major fishery on the

Atlantic coast that extends from Cape

Hatteras north to Maine. Regulations

implementing Amendment 9 to the

Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea

Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP)

(61 FR 58461, November 16, 1996)

control fishing mortality on black sea

bass through a variety of management

measures including a commercial quota,

a limit on the number of commercial

permits, gear regulations, and minimum

fish size restrictions.

The most recent assessment on black

sea bass, completed in June 1998,

indicates that black sea bass are overexploited and at a low biomass level

(27th Stock Assessment Workshop).

However, more recent results from the

Northeast Fisheries Science Center’s

spring survey indicate that the black sea

bass biomass has increased in recent

years. In fact, the preliminary biomass

index for 2000 is the highest in the time

series since 1976.

Commercial landings of black sea

bass, which are harvested in Federal

and state waters using a variety of gears,

have varied without trend since 1981,

ranging from a low of 2.0 million lb

(907.2 mt) in 1994, to a high of 4.3

million lb (1950.4 mt) in 1984. Since

1998, commercial landings have been

constrained by quotas at an annual level

of 3.025 million lb (1372.1 mt).

A moratorium on the entry of

additional commercial vessels into the

black sea bass fishery was put in place

on November 16, 1996, with the

implementation of Amendment 9 to the

FMP. However, the qualifying criteria

for obtaining initial permits under the

moratorium were liberal and only

required that vessels provide a black sea

bass landing receipt demonstrating at

least 1 lb (0.45 kg) of black sea bass

landed between January 26, 1989, and

January 26, 1993. Based on this

criterion, a number of vessels attained a

permit even though those vessels only

rarely or occasionally landed black sea

bass during this period. There were 992

and 974 Federal black sea bass permit

holders in 1999 and 2000, respectively.

Based on dealer reports, 795 and 727 of

these vessels in 1999 and 2000,

respectively, landed black sea bass.

However, 83 percent of the permit

holders participating in the black sea

bass fishery in 1999 accounted for less

than 9 percent of the black sea bass

landings. The 1999 fishing year is the

last full fishing year of complete

landings information.

The management measures for black

sea bass implemented under

Amendment 9 to the FMP have begun

to rebuild the black sea bass stock.

Although the Council and NMFS are

concerned that increasing stock

abundance may stimulate the use of

unused capacity or effort by permit

holders, there is equal concern that

management measures have reduced

fishing opportunities and income for

commercial fishermen who have

historically depended on black sea bass

for a major portion of their income. An

activation of latent effort could quickly

erode the benefits to traditional

operators who have sacrificed income as

part of the rebuilding program.

A control date of June 5, 2001 is

intended to discourage speculative

activation of previously unused effort or

capacity in the black sea bass fishery

while alternative allocation schemes

and potential management regimes to

control capacity or latent effort are

discussed and possibly developed and

implemented. The control date may be

used by the Council and NMFS in

determining historical or traditional

participation in the black sea bass

fishery. The control date communicates

to black sea bass permit holders that

performance or fishing effort after that

date may not be treated the same as

performance or effort that was expanded

prior to the control date. The Council

and NMFS could choose different and

variably weighted methods to qualify

fishermen based on the type and length

of participation in the fishery or on the

quantity of landings. A control date

does not commit the Council or NMFS

to develop any particular management

regime or criteria for participation in

this fishery. The Council or NMFS may

choose a different control date, or may

choose a management program that does

not make use of such a date.