Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 114 / Tuesday, June 14, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 35901 

a category of actions that do not 

individually or cumulatively have a 

significant effect on the human 

environment. A Record of 

Environmental Consideration 

supporting this determination is 

available in the docket. For instructions 

on locating the docket, see the 

ADDRESSES section of this preamble. 

This technical amendment is 

categorically excluded under paragraphs 

A3 and L54 of Appendix A, Table 1 of 

Department of Homeland Security 

Instruction Manual 023–01–001–01, 

Rev. 1. Paragraph A3 pertains to the 

promulgation of rules, issuance of 

rulings or interpretations, and the 

development and publication of 

policies, orders, directives, notices, 

procedures, manuals, advisory circulars, 

and other guidance documents of the 

following nature: (a) Those of a strictly 

administrative or procedural nature; (b) 

those that implement, without 

substantive change, statutory or 

regulatory requirements; (c) those that 

implement, without substantive change, 

procedures, manuals, and other 

guidance documents; and (d) those that 

interpret or amend an existing 

regulation without changing its 

environmental effect. Paragraph L54 

pertains to regulations which are 

editorial or procedural. This technical 

amendment involves non-substantive 

technical, organizational, and 

conforming amendments to existing 

Coast Guard regulations. 

List of Subjects in 46 CFR Part 4 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Drug testing, Investigations, 

Marine safety, National Transportation 

Safety Board, Nuclear vessels, Radiation 

protection, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Safety, Transportation. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Coast Guard amends 46 

CFR part 4 as follows: 

PART 4—MARINE CASUALTIES AND 

INVESTIGATIONS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 4 is 

revised to read as follows: 

Authority: 14 U.S.C. 102; 43 U.S.C. 1333; 

46 U.S.C. 2103, 2303A, 2306, 6101, 6301, 

6305, 70034; 50 U.S.C. 198; DHS Delegation 

00170.1, Revision No. 01.2. Subpart 4.40 

issued under 49 U.S.C. 1131(a)(1)(E). 

§ 4.40–5 [Amended] 

■ 2. In § 4.40–5 amend paragraph (d)(3) 

by removing the text ‘‘$2,000,000’’ and 

adding, in its place, the text ‘‘$500,000’’. 

Dated: June 6, 2022. 

Michael Cunningham, 

Chief, Office of Regulations and 

Administrative Law, U.S. Coast Guard. 

[FR Doc. 2022–12473 Filed 6–13–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 300 

[Docket No. 220325–0079; RTID 0648– 

XC089] 

Pacific Halibut Fisheries; Catch 

Sharing Plan; Inseason Action 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason 

adjustment; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: This document announces 

four additional season dates for Pacific 

halibut recreational fisheries in the 

International Pacific Halibut 

Commission’s regulatory Area 2A off 

Washington, Oregon, and California. 

Specifically, this action adds the dates 

of June 10, 17, and 24 for the 

Washington North Coast subarea, June 

28 and 30 for the Washington South 

Coast subarea, and June 13 and 20 for 

the Columbia River subarea, which 

includes waters off Washington and 

Oregon. This action is intended to 

conserve Pacific halibut and provide 

angler opportunity where available. 

DATES: This action is effective June 9, 

2022, through September 30, 2022. 

Submit comments on or before June 29, 

2022. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by NOAA–NMFS–2022–0003, 

by either 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–2022–0003 in the Search 

box. Click on the ‘‘Comment’’ icon, 

complete the required fields, and enter 

or attach your comments. 

• Mail: Submit written comments to 

Scott M. Rumsey, c/o Kathryn Blair, 

West Coast Region, NMFS, 1201 NE 

Lloyd Blvd., Suite 1100, Portland, OR, 

97232. 

Instructions: NMFS may not consider 

comments if they are sent by any other 

method, to any other address or 

individual, or received after the 

comment period ends. All comments 

received are a part of the public record 

and NMFS will post them 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 is 

publicly accessible. NMFS will accept 

anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/A’’ in 

the required fields if you wish to remain 

anonymous). 

Docket: This rule is accessible via the 

internet at the Office of the Federal 

Register website at https://www.federal

register.gov/. Background information 

and documents are available at the 

NOAA Fisheries website at https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/2022- 

pacific-halibut-catch-sharing-plan and 

at the Pacific Fishery Management 

Council’s (Council) website at https://

www.pcouncil.org. Other comments 

received may be accessed through 

www.regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joshua Lindsay, phone: 562–980–4034, 

fax: 562–980–4018, or email: 

joshua.lindsay@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 

1, 2022, NMFS published a final rule 

approving changes to the Pacific halibut 

Area 2A Catch Sharing Plan and 

implementing recreational (sport) 

management measures for 2022 (87 FR 

19007), as authorized by the Northern 

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

773–773(k)). The 2022 Catch Sharing 

Plan provides a recommended 

framework for NMFS’ annual 

management measures and subarea 

allocations based on the 2022 Area 2A 

Pacific halibut catch limit of 1,490,000 

pounds (lb) (675.9 metric tons (mt)) set 

by the International Pacific Halibut 

Commission (IPHC). These Pacific 

halibut management measures include 

recreational fishery season dates and 

subarea allocations. 

Federal regulations at 50 CFR 

300.63(c), ‘‘Flexible Inseason 

Management Provisions for Sport 

Halibut Fisheries in Area 2A,’’ allow the 

NMFS’ Regional Administrator to 

modify annual regulations during the 

season. These inseason provisions allow 

the Regional Administrator to modify 

sport (recreational) fishing periods, bag 

limits, size limits, days per calendar 

week, and subarea quotas, if it is 

determined it is necessary to meet the 

allocation objectives and the action will 

not result in exceeding the catch limit. 

NMFS has determined that, due to 

lower than expected landings in 

portions of Washington and Oregon, 

specifically the Washington North and 

South Coast subareas and Columbia 


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35902 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 114 / Tuesday, June 14, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 

River subarea, inseason action to modify 

the 2022 annual regulations for the 

recreational fishery is warranted at this 

time to provide additional opportunity 

for fishery participations to achieve the 

Area 2A allocations as published in the 

final rule (87 FR 19007; April 1, 2022). 

As stated above, inseason modification 

of the fishing season is authorized by 

Federal regulations at 50 CFR 300.63(c). 

After consulting with IPHC, the Council, 

the Washington Department of Fish and 

Wildlife (WDFW), and the Oregon 

Department of Fish and Wildlife 

(ODFW), NMFS determined the 

following inseason action is necessary 

to meet the management objective of 

attaining the subarea allocations, and is 

consistent with the inseason 

management provisions allowing for the 

modification of sport fishing periods 

and sport fishing days per calendar 

week. Notice of these additional dates 

and closure of the fisheries will also be 

announced on the NMFS hotline at 206– 

526–6667 or 800–662–9825. 

Inseason Action 

Description of the action: This 

inseason action implements three 

additional fishing dates for the 

Washington North Coast, two additional 

fishing dates for the Washington South 

Coast, and two additional dates for 

Columbia River subareas during the 

2022 recreational fishery. 

Reason for the action: The purpose of 

this inseason action is to provide 

additional opportunity for anglers in the 

Washington North Coast subarea on 

June 10, 17, and 24, the South Coast 

subarea on June 28 and 30, and the 

Columbia River subarea on June 13 and 

20. The recreational fishery in these 

subareas opened on May 5, 2022. NMFS 

has determined that these additional 

dates are warranted due to lower than 

expected landings through May 2022, 

and the expectation that a substantial 

amount of subarea allocation will go 

unharvested without additional fishing 

dates. As of May 27, anglers in the 

Washington North and South Coast and 

Columbia River subareas have harvested 

35,066 lb (15.91 mt) of the 221,439 lb 

(100.44 mt) allocations (16 percent), 

leaving 186,373 lb (84.54 mt) remaining 

(84 percent of the subarea allocation). 

This is a result of poor weather and 

ocean conditions preventing anglers 

from safely participating in the 

recreational fishery off the coast of 

Washington and the area off of the 

Columbia River. For reference, by the 

end of May 2021, fishery participants in 

the Washington North and South Coast 

and Columbia River subareas had 

attained 74 percent of the available 

recreational allocation. Without the 

additional fishing days in this action, 

the season dates implemented in the 

April 1, 2022 (87 FR 19007), final rule 

would likely result in substantial 

unharvested allocation in these 

subareas. 

After consulting with WDFW and 

ODFW, it was determined that in order 

for anglers to have the opportunity to 

achieve the combined subarea 

allocations in Washington and off the 

Columbia River, and with little risk of 

the subarea or coastwide allocations 

being exceeded, additional season dates 

were warranted for participants in the 

Washington North and South Coast and 

Columbia River subareas. Therefore, 

through this action NMFS is 

announcing new season dates in June 

that were not previously implemented 

in the April 1, 2022, final rule (87 FR 

19007). Specifically, the additional 

season dates for the Washington North 

Coast subarea are June 10, 17, and 24, 

Washington South Coast are June 28 and 

30, and June 13 and 20 for the Columbia 

River subarea. 

Notice of these additional dates will 

also be announced on the NMFS hotline 

at 206–526–6667 or 800–662–9825. 

Weekly catch monitoring reports for 

the recreational fisheries in Washington, 

Oregon, and California are available on 

their respective state Fish and Wildlife 

agency websites. NMFS and the IPHC 

will continue to monitor recreational 

catch obtained via state sampling 

procedures until NMFS has determined 

there is not sufficient allocation for 

another full day of fishing, and the area 

is closed by the IPHC, or the season 

closes on September 30, whichever is 

earlier. 

Classification 

NMFS issues this action pursuant to 

the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 

1982. This action is taken under the 

regulatory authority at 50 CFR 300.63(c), 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B), 

there is good cause to waive prior notice 

and an opportunity for public comment 

on this action, as notice and comment 

would be impracticable and contrary to 

the public interest. WDFW and ODFW 

provided updated landings data to 

NMFS on May 27, 2022, showing that 

the fishery participants in the 

recreational fishery off of Washington 

had only caught 16 percent of 

Washington North and South Coast and 

the Columbia River subarea’s combined 

allocations. NMFS uses fishing rates 

from previous years to determine the 

number of recreational fishing dates 

needed to attain subarea allocations. 

The level of attainment of the allocation 

for 2022 is substantially lower than past 

years for this same point in time, and 

was not anticipated when the 2022 final 

rule setting the 2022 recreational fishery 

season dates was developed. This action 

should be implemented as soon as 

possible to allow fishery participants to 

take advantage of the additional fishing 

dates prior to the end of the season. As 

the fishery closes on September 30, 

2022, implementing this action through 

proposed and final rulemaking would 

limit the benefit this action would 

provide to fishery participants. Without 

implementation of additional season 

dates, the Washington North and South 

Coast and Columbia River subarea 

allocations are unlikely to be harvested, 

limiting economic benefits to the 

participants and not meeting the goals 

of the Catch Sharing Plan and the 2022 

management measures. It is necessary 

that this rulemaking be implemented in 

a timely manner so that planning for 

these new fishing days can take place, 

and for business and personal decision 

making by the regulated public 

impacted by this action, which includes 

recreational charter fishing operations, 

associated port businesses, and private 

anglers who do not live near the coastal 

access points for this fishery, among 

others. To ensure the regulated public is 

fully aware of this action, notice of this 

regulatory action will also be provided 

to anglers through a telephone hotline, 

news release, and by the relevant state 

fish and wildlife agencies. NMFS will 

receive public comments for 15 days 

after publication of this action, in 

accordance with 50 CFR 300.63(c)(4)(ii). 

No aspect of this action is controversial, 

and changes of this nature were 

anticipated in the process described in 

regulations at 50 CFR 300.63(c). 

For the reasons discussed above, there 

is also good cause under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3) to waive the 30-day delay in 

effective date and make this action 

effective immediately upon filing for 

public inspection, as a delay in 

effectiveness of this action would 

constrain fishing opportunity and be 

inconsistent with the goals of the Catch 

Sharing Plan and current management 

measures, as well as potentially limit 

the economic opportunity intended by 

this rule to the associated fishing 

communities. NMFS regulations allow 

the Regional Administrator to modify 

sport fishing periods, bag limits, size 

limits, days per calendar week, and 

subarea quotas, provided that the action 

allows allocation objectives to be met 

and will not result in exceeding the 

catch limit for the subarea. NMFS 

recently received information on the 

progress of landings in the recreational 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 114 / Tuesday, June 14, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 35903 

fisheries in Washington subareas, 

indicating additional dates should be 

added to the fishery to ensure optimal 

and sustainable harvest of the subarea 

allocation. As stated above, it is in the 

public interest that this action is not 

delayed, because a delay in the 

effectiveness of these new dates would 

not allow the allocation objectives of the 

recreational Pacific halibut fishery to be 

met. 

Dated: June 9, 2022. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2022–12811 Filed 6–9–22; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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