Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 75 / Tuesday, April 19, 2022 / Proposed Rules 23155 

‘‘for small business concerns with fewer 

than 25 employees,’’ pursuant to the 

Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 

2002, Public Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C. 

3506(c)(4). Provisions of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act of 1980, 5 U.S.C. 601– 

612, do not apply to this proceeding. 

Members of the public should note 

that all ex parte contacts are prohibited 

from the time a Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking is issued to the time the 

matter is no longer subject to 

Commission consideration or court 

review, see 47 CFR 1.1208. There are, 

however, exceptions to this prohibition, 

which can be found in Section 1.1204(a) 

of the Commission’s rules, 47 CFR 

1.1204(a). 

See Sections 1.415 and 1.420 of the 

Commission’s rules for information 

regarding the proper filing procedures 

for comments, 47 CFR 1.415 and 1.420. 

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 73 

Television. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Thomas Horan, 

Chief of Staff, Media Bureau. 

Proposed Rule 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Federal Communications 

Commission proposes to amend 47 CFR 

part 73 as follows: 

PART 73—RADIO BROADCAST 

SERVICE 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 73 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 155, 301, 303, 

307, 309, 310, 334, 336, 339. 

§ 73.622 [Amended] 

■ 2. In § 73.622 in paragraph (j), amend 

the Table of Allotments under Virginia 

by revising the entry for Hampton to 

read as follows: 

§ 73.622 Table of allotments. 

* * * * * 

(j) * * * 

Community Channel No. 

* * * * * 

VIRGINIA 

* * * * * 

Hampton .................... 35 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2022–08342 Filed 4–18–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 220413–0094] 

RIN 0648–BL28 

Pacific Halibut Fisheries; Catch 

Sharing Plan 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS issues this proposed 

rule to revise regulations for the 

commercial individual fishing quota 

(IFQ) Pacific halibut (halibut) fisheries 

for the 2022 IFQ fishing year. This 

proposed rule would remove limits on 

the maximum amount of halibut IFQ 

that may be harvested by a vessel, 

commonly known as vessel use caps, in 

IFQ regulatory Areas 4A (Eastern 

Aleutian Islands), 4B (Central and 

Western Aleutian Islands), 4C (Central 

Bering Sea), and 4D (Eastern Bering 

Sea). This action is needed to provide 

additional flexibility to IFQ participants 

in 2022 to ensure allocations of halibut 

IFQ can be harvested by the limited 

number of vessels operating in these 

areas. This action is within the authority 

of the Secretary of Commerce to 

establish additional regulations 

governing the taking of halibut that are 

in addition to, and not in conflict with, 

those adopted by the International 

Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC). 

This action is intended to promote the 

goals and objectives of the IFQ Program, 

the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 

(Halibut Act), and other applicable laws. 

DATES: Submit comments on or before 

May 4, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on this document, identified by FDMS 

Docket number NOAA–NMFS–2022– 

0037, by any of the following methods: 

• Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and enter 

NOAA–NMFS–2022–0037 in the Search 

box. Click on 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. 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, etc.), 

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 Categorical 

Exclusion and the Regulatory Impact 

Review (RIR) (herein referred to as the 

‘‘Analysis’’) prepared for this action are 

available from www.regulations.gov or 

from the NMFS Alaska Region website 

at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/ 

region/alaska. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Abby Jahn, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority for Action 

The IPHC promulgates regulations 

governing the halibut fishery under the 

Convention between the United States 

and Canada for the Preservation of the 

Halibut Fishery of the Northern Pacific 

Ocean and Bering Sea (Convention). The 

IPHC’s regulations are subject to 

approval by the Secretary of State with 

the concurrence of the Secretary of 

Commerce. NMFS publishes the IPHC’s 

regulations as annual management 

measures pursuant to 50 CFR 300.62. 

The 2022 IPHC annual management 

measures published on March 7, 2022 

(87 FR 12604). 

Additionally, the Northern Pacific 

Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut Act), 16 

U.S.C. 773c(a) and (b), provides the 

Secretary of Commerce with general 

responsibility to carry out the 

Convention and the Halibut Act, 

including the authority to adopt 

regulations necessary to carry out the 

purposes and objectives of the 

Convention. The Halibut Act, 16 U.S.C. 

773c(c), also provides the North Pacific 

Fishery Management Council (Council) 

with authority to develop regulations, 

including limited access regulations, 

that are in addition to, and not in 

conflict with, approved IPHC 

regulations. Regulations recommended 

by the Council may be implemented by 

NMFS only after approval by the 

Secretary of Commerce. 

The Council has exercised its 

authority in developing halibut 

management programs for the 


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23156 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 75 / Tuesday, April 19, 2022 / Proposed Rules 

subsistence, sport, and commercial 

halibut fisheries. The Secretary of 

Commerce exercised authority to 

implement the commercial IFQ halibut 

fishery management program (58 FR 

59375; November 9, 1993). The IFQ 

Program for the halibut fishery is 

implemented by Federal regulations at 

50 CFR part 679. 

The halibut IFQ fishery is managed in 

specific areas defined by the IPHC. 

These IFQ regulatory areas (areas) are: 

Area 2A (California, Oregon, and 

Washington); Area 2B (British 

Columbia); Area 2C (Southeast Alaska), 

Area 3A (Central Gulf of Alaska), Area 

3B (Western Gulf of Alaska), and Area 

4 (subdivided into five Areas, 4A 

through 4E, in the Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands of Western Alaska). 

These Areas are described at 50 CFR 

part 679, Figure 15. The halibut IFQ 

fishery is limited to persons holding 

quota share (QS). Halibut allocated 

under the IFQ program in Areas 2C, 3A, 

3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, and 4E are subject 

to limits on the maximum amount of 

halibut IFQ that may be harvested by a 

vessel, commonly known as vessel use 

caps. Throughout this preamble, the 

term ‘‘vessel use cap’’ refers to 

regulations applicable to the halibut IFQ 

fishery (§ 679.42(h)(1)). 

As relevant to this action, a 

Community Quota Entity (CQE) is 

authorized to hold halibut QS in Area 

4B. IFQ halibut derived from QS held by 

a CQE is subject to vessel use caps 

(§ 679.42(h)(1)(ii)). NMFS also allocates 

halibut to the Western Alaska 

Community Development Quota (CDQ 

Program) in Areas 4B, 4C, 4D, and 4E 

(§ 679.31(a)(2)), but those allocations are 

not subject to a vessel use cap and are 

not affected by this rulemaking. 

Background 

This proposed rule would implement 

regulations to temporarily remove vessel 

use caps in Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D 

in 2022. The existing vessel use caps 

were recommended by the Council and 

implemented by NMFS as part of the 

IFQ Program (58 FR 59375; November 9, 

1993) as regulations that were in 

addition to, and not in conflict with, 

those adopted by the IPHC, consistent 

with the Halibut Act (16 U.S.C. 773c(c)). 

The following sections describe the IFQ 

Program; halibut IFQ vessel use caps; 

the rationale and effects of temporarily 

removing vessel use caps in Areas 4A, 

4B, 4C, and 4D; and the regulations that 

would be implemented under this 

proposed rule. 

IFQ Program 

Commercial halibut and sablefish 

fisheries in Alaska are subject to 

regulation under the IFQ Program and 

the CDQ Program (50 CFR part 679). A 

key objective of the IFQ Program is to 

support the social and economic 

character of the fisheries and the coastal 

fishing communities where many of 

these fisheries are based. For more 

information about the IFQ Program, 

please refer to Section 2.4 of the 

Analysis. Because this rule is specific to 

the halibut IFQ fishery, reference to the 

IFQ Program in this preamble is specific 

to halibut unless otherwise noted. 

Under the IFQ Program, access to the 

commercial halibut fisheries is limited 

to those persons holding QS, which is 

the limited access permit NMFS uses to 

calculate a person’s IFQ each year. 

Halibut QS is designated for a specific 

geographic area of harvest, a specific 

vessel operation type (catcher vessel 

(CV) or catcher/processor), and for a 

specific range of vessel sizes that may be 

used to harvest the halibut (vessel 

category). Out of the four vessel 

categories of halibut QS, category A 

shares are designated for catcher/ 

processors that process their catch at sea 

(e.g., freezer longline vessels) and do not 

have a vessel length designation, 

whereas category B, category C, and 

category D shares are designated to be 

fished on CVs that meet specific length 

designations (§ 679.40(a)(5)). 

NMFS annually issues IFQ permits to 

each QS holder. IFQ permits authorize 

permit holders to harvest a specified 

amount of a particular IFQ species in an 

area from a specific operation type and 

vessel category, consistent with the QS 

they hold. IFQ is expressed in pounds 

(lbs) and is based on the amount of QS 

held by the permit holder in relation to 

the total QS pool for each area with an 

assigned catch. 

The IFQ Program also established: (1) 

Limits on the maximum amount of QS 

that a person could use (i.e., be used to 

receive annual IFQ) (§ 679.42(f)); (2) 

limits on the number of small amounts 

of indivisible QS units, known as QS 

blocks, that a person can hold 

(§ 679.42(g)); (3) limits on the ability of 

IFQ assigned to one CV vessel category 

(vessel category B, C, or D IFQ) to be 

fished on a different (larger) vessel 

category with some limited exceptions 

(§ 679.42(a)(2)); and (4) limits on the 

maximum amount of halibut IFQ that 

may be harvested by a vessel during an 

IFQ fishing year (§ 679.42(h)). Only 

qualified individuals and initial 

recipients of QS are eligible to hold CV 

QS, and they are required to be on the 

vessel when the IFQ is being fished, 

with a few limited exceptions 

(§ 679.41(h)(2)). All of these limitations 

were established to retain the owneroperator nature of the CV halibut IFQ 

fisheries, limit consolidation of QS, and 

ensure the annual IFQ is not harvested 

on a small number of larger vessels. 

Halibut IFQ Vessel Use Caps 

The IFQ Program established vessel 

use caps to limit the maximum amount 

of halibut that could be harvested on 

any one vessel. The limits are intended 

to help ensure that a minimum number 

of vessels are engaged in the halibut IFQ 

fishery and to address concerns about 

the socio-economic impacts of 

consolidation under the IFQ Program. 

For additional detail on vessel use caps, 

see the preamble to the proposed rule 

for the IFQ Program (57 FR 57130; 

December 3, 1992). 

This proposed rule refers to halibut 

catch limits, commercial halibut 

allocations, and vessel use caps in net 

pounds or net metric tons. Net pounds 

and net metric tons are defined as the 

weight of halibut from which the gills, 

entrails, head, and ice and slime have 

been removed. This terminology used in 

this proposed rule is consistent with the 

IPHC, which establishes catch limits 

and calculates mortality in net pounds. 

Relevant to this proposed rule, for IFQ 

regulatory Areas 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 

4D, and 4E; vessels cannot be used to 

harvest more halibut IFQ than on-half 

percent of the combined total catch 

limits of halibut (§ 679.42(h)(1)). 

Applying this regulation to 2022 yields 

a vessel use cap of 101,490 (46.0 mt). 

This vessel use cap applies to vessels 

harvesting IFQ halibut in the regulatory 

areas subject to this proposed rule: 

Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D. 

Applicable to Area 4B for this 

proposed action, a CQE is authorized to 

hold halibut QS in Area 4B on behalf of 

the community of Adak, Alaska (79 FR 

8870; February 14, 2014). A CQE is a 

NMFS-approved non-profit organization 

that represents small, remote, coastal 

communities that meet specific criteria 

to purchase and hold CV halibut QS on 

behalf of an eligible community. The 

CQE holds QS and leases the IFQ 

derived from the underlying QS to 

community residents. Any vessel 

harvesting halibut IFQ derived from the 

QS held by the CQE representing the 

community of Adak is subject to the 

vessel use cap regulations at 

§ 679.42(h)(1)(ii), which limit a vessel to 

harvest no more than 50,000 lb (22.7 

mt), in addition to those set forth at 

§ 679.42(h)(1) introductory text and 

679.42(h)(i). 

Rationale and Effects of Temporarily 

Removing Vessel Use Caps in Areas 4A, 

4B, 4C, and 4D 

On February 10, 2022, at its regularlyscheduled meeting, the Council 


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addressed requests from IFQ fishery 

stakeholders to remove vessel use caps 

applicable to the halibut IFQ fisheries in 

Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D (Sections 1 

and 2.3 of the Analysis). The Council 

requested this proposed rule because of 

the ongoing socio-economic impacts of 

the COVID–19 pandemic as identified 

by the public, including coastal 

communities and fishery participants in 

Area 4. NMFS proposes this rule to 

provide additional flexibility to vessels 

operating in Area 4 during the 2022 

fishing season. This action is expected 

to facilitate the harvest of halibut 

allocated under the IFQ program in Area 

4 and provide additional harvest 

flexibility to vessels operating in Area 4. 

This action is needed because of the 

relatively large proportion of vessels 

participating in the Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, 

and 4D halibut IFQ fisheries that are 

operating near the current vessel use 

cap, thereby limiting the amount of 

additional IFQ that could be harvested 

on vessels operating in those areas 

(Section 2.3 of the Analysis). 

Additionally, this action is expected to 

provide flexibility to the CQE 

representing the community of Adak, 

Alaska, because the minimum number 

of vessels needed under current use 

caps exceeds the number of vessels 

owned by residents of the community 

(Section 2.5.2 of the Analysis). 

The reader is referred to the Analysis, 

particularly Sections 2.3, 2.6, and 2.7, 

for additional detail on the efficacy of 

2020 and 2021 rulemakings that 

temporarily removed vessel use caps in 

Area 4, a broader discussion of the range 

of factors considered for this proposed 

rule, and the anticipated effects of 

removing the vessel use caps in Areas 

4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D for both CQE and 

non-CQE-associated vessels. 

The Council recommended 

‘‘expedited action’’ to remove vessel use 

caps for the halibut IFQ fishery in Areas 

4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D to be effective 

during the 2022 fishing year, which 

ends on December 7, 2022. NMFS 

accordingly has established an 

expedited 15-day comment period for 

this proposed rule. 

The Council did not recommend, and 

this proposed rule does not include, 

measures to relieve the vessel use caps 

for the sablefish IFQ fishery, or for other 

halibut IFQ areas, due to the larger 

number of vessels that are currently 

active in the sablefish IFQ fishery and 

these other halibut areas. Area 4E was 

not included because it is entirely 

allocated to harvest under the CDQ 

Program; therefore, vessel use caps do 

not apply. Detailed information 

indicating that halibut harvests in these 

other IFQ areas would not be 

constrained under the current vessel use 

caps is available in Section 2.5.2.1 of the 

Analysis. 

NMFS also considered the potential 

impacts on halibut conservation and 

management if vessel use caps vessels 

in Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D are relieved 

for the 2022 IFQ fishing year. The 

proposed regulatory amendments in this 

rule would temporarily add a regulation 

that would remove vessel use caps in 

Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D. This 

proposed rule would provide additional 

flexibility to facilitate harvest of the 

halibut resource and is responsive to the 

Council request to implement expedited 

rulemaking for the 2022 IFQ fishing year 

due to the ongoing economic, social, 

and public health impacts of the 

COVID–19 pandemic. This rule does not 

modify the vessel use cap provisions in 

future years, consistent with the 

Council’s goals in implementing vessel 

use caps in this fishery (Section 2.3 in 

the Analysis). This proposed rule would 

not modify other elements of the IFQ 

Program. This proposed rule would not 

increase or otherwise modify the 2022 

halibut catch limits adopted by the 

IPHC and implemented by NMFS (87 FR 

12604, March 7, 2022). This proposed 

rule would not modify any other 

conservation measures recommended by 

the IPHC and adopted by NMFS, nor 

any other conservation measures 

implemented by NMFS independent of 

the IPHC. This proposed rule would not 

modify other limitations on the use of 

QS and IFQ described in the previous 

sections of this preamble. 

Proposed Regulations 

After considering the best available 

information, the Convention, the status 

of the halibut resource, and the 

potential social and economic costs of 

maintaining the vessel use cap limits 

described in the preamble, this 

proposed rule would add a new, 

temporary provision at 50 CFR 

679.42(h)(1)(iii) to remove vessel use 

caps for vessels harvesting IFQ halibut 

in Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D during the 

2022 IFQ fishing year. Because vessel 

use caps are applied under existing 

regulations at the fishery level including 

harvest in all areas, the proposed 

regulations clarify that harvest of IFQ 

halibut in regulatory Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, 

and 4D is excluded from the calculation 

of vessel use caps in IFQ regulatory 

Areas 2C, 3A, or 3B during the 2022 IFQ 

fishing year. 

Classification 

Regulations governing the U.S. 

fisheries for Pacific halibut are 

developed by the International Pacific 

Halibut Commission (IPHC), the Pacific 

Fishery Management Council, the North 

Pacific Fishery Management Council 

(Council), and the Secretary of 

Commerce. Section 5 of the Northern 

Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut Act, 

16 U.S.C. 773c) allows the Regional 

Council authority over a particular 

geographical area, to develop 

regulations governing the allocation and 

catch of halibut in U.S. Convention 

waters as long as those regulations do 

not conflict with IPHC regulations. This 

proposed action is consistent with the 

Council’s authority to allocate halibut 

catch among fishery participants in 

Convention waters in and off Alaska. 

This rule has been determined to be 

not significant for purposes of Executive 

Order 12866. 

A Regulatory Impact Review was 

prepared to assess costs and benefits of 

available regulatory alternatives. A copy 

of this analysis is available from NMFS 

(see ADDRESSES). Specific aspects of the 

economic analysis are discussed below 

in the Initial Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis section. 

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

This Initial Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis (IRFA) was prepared for this 

proposed rule, as required by Section 

603 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(RFA) (5 U.S.C. 603), to describe the 

economic impact this proposed rule, if 

adopted, would have on small entities. 

The IRFA describes the action; the 

reasons why this proposed rule is 

proposed; the objectives and legal basis 

for this proposed rule; the number and 

description of directly regulated small 

entities to which this proposed rule 

would apply; the recordkeeping, 

reporting, and other compliance 

requirements of this proposed rule; and 

the relevant Federal rules that may 

duplicate, overlap, or conflict with this 

proposed rule. The description of the 

proposed action, its purpose, and the 

legal basis are explained in the 

preamble and are not repeated here. 

For RFA purposes only, NMFS has 

established a small business size 

standard for businesses, including their 

affiliates, whose primary industry is 

commercial fishing (see 50 CFR 200.2). 

A business primarily engaged in 

commercial fishing (NAICS code 11411) 

is classified as a small business if it is 

independently owned and operated, is 

not dominant in its field of operation 

(including its affiliates), and has 

combined annual receipts not in excess 

of $11 million for all its affiliated 

operations worldwide. 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
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Number and Description of Small 

Entities Regulated by This Proposed 

Rule 

This proposed rule would directly 

regulate the owners and operators of 

vessels that harvest halibut IFQ in IFQ 

Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, or 4D. As of 2020 (the 

most recent year of gross revenue data), 

there were 99 unique vessels that 

harvested halibut IFQ in IFQ Areas 4A, 

4B, 4C, or 4D. Based on average annual 

gross revenue data, including 

affiliations, all but one of these vessels 

that landed halibut in 2020 are 

considered small entities based on the 

applicable $11 million threshold. 

Additional details are included in 

Sections 2.9 in the Analysis prepared 

for this proposed rule (see ADDRESSES). 

Impacts of This Action on Small Entities 

This action could better facilitate 

harvest of IFQ in Area 4 in fishing 

season 2022. Although it is difficult to 

discern the entire scope of impact of the 

regulatory exemptions implemented for 

the 2020 and 2021 IFQ seasons, harvest 

rates achieved in 2020 and 2021 relative 

to prior years (2006–2019) indicate the 

regulatory flexibilities implemented in 

2020 and 2021 (both the temporary 

transfer provisions as well the vessel 

use cap exemption) had some positive 

impact on the harvest rates, as described 

in Section 2.7 of the Analysis (See 

ADDRESSES). 

Description of Significant Alternatives 

That Minimize Adverse Impacts on 

Small Entities 

The RFA requires identification of 

any significant alternatives to the 

proposed rule that accomplish the 

stated objectives of the proposed action, 

consistent with applicable statutes, and 

that would minimize any significant 

economic impact of the proposed rule 

on small entities. The Council requested 

one action alternative. No other 

alternatives were considered. 

Additionally, NMFS did not identify 

other action alternatives that would 

provide the same level of flexibility that 

was requested by the Council within the 

requested expedited timeframe. Further, 

this action is the same as the action 

implemented 2021 and similar to the 

action implemented in 2020. In 

consideration of the Council’s request, 

NMFS analyzed the impacts of the 

action alternative compared to the status 

quo. 

The status quo alternative would 

retain the existing vessel use cap 

restrictions as defined under 50 CFR 

679.42(h). It is possible that existing 

vessel use caps regulations under the 

status quo may increase the likelihood 

that some of the annual halibut 

allocation is left unharvested in Area 4. 

The action alternative would remove 

limits on the maximum amount of 

halibut IFQ that may be harvested by a 

vessel in IFQ regulatory Areas 4A, 4B, 

4C, and 4D. The action alternative and 

the regulations proposed by this action 

would provide additional flexibility to 

IFQ participants in 2022 to ensure 

allocations of halibut IFQ can be 

harvested by the limited number of 

vessels operating in these Areas. 

However, if this temporary flexibility is 

implemented for 2022, this may result 

in a reduction in crew jobs and 

opportunities for new entrants in Areas 

4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D. Additionally, if 

there are fewer participants in the 

fishery, it is possible that landings could 

consolidate to fewer processors and 

communities depending on landing 

location and historic harvesterprocessor relationships. 

Duplicate, Overlapping, or Conflicting 

Federal Rules 

NMFS has not identified any 

duplication, overlap, or conflict 

between this proposed rule and existing 

Federal rules. 

Recordkeeping, Reporting, and Other 

Compliance Requirements 

This action does not contain 

additional recordkeeping, reporting, or 

other compliance requirements. 

Collection-of-Information Requirements 

This proposed rule contains no 

information collection requirements 

under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 

1995. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 679 

Alaska, Fisheries, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

Dated: April 13, 2022. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, 50 CFR part 679 is proposed 

to be amended as follows: 

PART 679—FISHERIES OF THE 

EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF 

ALASKA 

■ 1. The authority citation for 50 CFR 

part 679 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq.; 1801 et 

seq.; 3631 et seq.; Pub. L. 108–447; Pub. L. 

111–281. 

■ 2. In § 679.42, add paragraph (h)(1)(iii) 

to read as follows: 

§ 679.42 Limitations on use of QS and IFQ. 

* * * * * 

(h) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(iii) Notwithstanding the vessel use 

caps specified in paragraphs (h)(1) 

introductory text and (h)(1)(ii) of this 

section, vessel use caps do not apply to 

vessels harvesting IFQ halibut in IFQ 

regulatory Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D 

during the 2022 IFQ fishing year. 

Harvest of IFQ halibut in regulatory 

Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D is excluded 

from the calculation of vessel use caps 

for IFQ regulatory Areas 2C, 3A, or 3B 

during the 2022 IFQ fishing year. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2022–08278 Filed 4–18–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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