Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 187 / Wednesday, September 28, 2005 / Rules and Regulations 56593 

require an environmental assessment or 

an environmental impact statement. 

We have also analyzed this proposed 

rule under the Clean Air Act, as 

amended (CAA) section 176(c), (42 

U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) and implementing 

regulations promulgated by the 

Environmental Protection Agency. 

Approval of this action is exempt from 

the CAA’s General conformity 

requirement since it involves 

rulemaking and policy development and 

issuance. See 40 CFR 93.153(c)(2). It 

would not result in any emissions 

increase nor would it have any potential 

to result in emissions that are above the 

general conformity rule’s de minimis 

emission threshold levels. Moreover, it 

is reasonably foreseeable that the rule 

would not increase total CMV mileage, 

change the routing of CMVs, how CMVs 

operate, or the CMV fleet-mix of motor 

carriers. This action merely clarifies 

procedures and extends compliance 

dates for CDL school bus operators 

obtaining a school bus endorsement on 

their CDL. 

Executive Order 13211 (Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use) 

We have analyzed this rule under 

Executive Order 13211, Actions 

Concerning Regulations that 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use. This action is not 

a significant energy action within the 

meaning of section 4(b) of the Executive 

Order because it is not economically 

significant and not likely to have a 

significant adverse effect on the supply, 

distribution, or use of energy. 

Additionally, the Administrator of the 

Office of Information and Regulatory 

Affairs has not designated this rule as a 

significant energy action. For these 

reasons, a Statement of Energy Effects 

under Executive Order 13211 is not 

required. 

List of Subjects 

49 CFR Part 383 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Highway safety, and Motor 

carriers. 

49 CFR Part 384 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Highway safety, and Motor 

carriers. 

■ In consideration of the foregoing, 

FMCSA amends title 49, Code of 

Federal Regulations chapter III, 

subchapter B, as set forth below. 

PART 383—COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S 

LICENSE STANDARDS; 

REQUIREMENTS AND PENALTIES 

■ 1. The authority citation for 49 CFR 

part 383 is revised to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 521, 31136, 31301 et 

seq., 31502; sec. 214 of Pub. L. 106–159, 113 

Stat. 1766, 1767; sec. 1012(b) of Pub. L. 107–

56, 115 Stat. 397; sec. 4140 of Pub. L. 10-59, 

119 Stat. 1144; and 49 CFR 1.73. 

■ 2. Amend § 383.123 by adding a new 

paragraph (a)(4), and revising paragraph 

(b)(3) to read as follows: 

§ 383.123 Requirements for a school bus 

endorsement. 

(a) * * * 

(4) Exception. Knowledge and skills 

tests administered before September 30, 

2002 and approved by FMCSA as 

meeting the requirements of this 

section, meet the requirements of 

paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(3) of this 

section. 

(b) * * * 

(3) After September 30, 2006, the 

provisions in paragraph (b) of this 

section do not apply. 

PART 384—STATE COMPLIANCE 

WITH COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S 

LICENSE PROGRAM 

■ 3. The authority citation for part 384 

is revised to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 31136, 31301 et seq., 

31502; sec. 103 of Pub. L. 106–159, 113 Stat. 

1753, 1767; sec. 4140 of Pub. L. 10-59, 119 

Stat. 1144; and 49 CFR 1.73. 

■ 4. Section 384.301 is amended by 

revising paragraph (b) to read as follows: 

§ 384.301 Substantial compliance-general 

requirements. 

* * * * * 

(b)(1) A State must come into 

substantial compliance with the 

requirements of subpart B of this part in 

effect as of September 30, 2002 as soon 

as practical, but, unless otherwise 

specifically provided in this part, not 

later than September 30, 2005. 

(2) Exception. A State must come into 

substantial compliance with 49 CFR 

383.123 not later than September 30, 

2006. 

Issued on: September 20, 2005. 

Annette M. Sandberg, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 05–19292 Filed 9–27–05; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Parts 222 and 223 

[Docket No. 050922245–5245–01; I.D. 

092005A] 

RIN 0648–AT89 

Sea Turtle Conservation; Shrimp 

Trawling Requirements 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule. 

SUMMARY: NMFS issues this temporary 

rule for a period of 30 days, to allow 

shrimp fishermen to use limited tow 

times as an alternative to Turtle 

Excluder Devices (TEDs) in state and 

Federal waters from the Florida/ 

Alabama border, westward to the 

boundary of Cameron Parish, Louisiana 

(approximately 92° 37′ W. long.), and 

extending offshore 50 nautical miles. 

This action is necessary because 

environmental conditions resulting from 

Hurricane Katrina are preventing some 

fishermen from using TEDs effectively. 

DATES: Effective from September 23, 

2005 through October 24, 2005. 

ADDRESSES: Requests for copies of the 

Environmental Assessment on this 

action should be addressed to the Chief, 

Marine Mammal Division, Office of 

Protected Resources, NMFS, 1315 EastWest Highway, Silver Spring, MD 

20910. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Barnette, 727–551–5794. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

All sea turtles that occur in U.S. 

waters are listed as either endangered or 

threatened under the Endangered 

Species Act of 1973 (ESA). The Kemp’s 

ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), 

leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), and 

hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata) 

turtles are listed as endangered. The 

loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and green 

(Chelonia mydas) turtles are listed as 

threatened, except for breeding 

populations of green turtles in Florida 

and on the Pacific coast of Mexico, 

which are listed as endangered. 

Sea turtles are incidentally taken and 

killed as a result of numerous activities, 

including fishery-related trawling 

activities in the Gulf of Mexico and 

along the Atlantic seaboard. Under the 

ESA and its implementing regulations, 

56594 Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 187 / Wednesday, September 28, 2005 / Rules and Regulations 

the taking of sea turtles is prohibited, 

with exceptions identified in 50 CFR 

223.206(d), or according to the terms 

and conditions of a biological opinion 

issued under section 7 of the ESA, or 

according to an incidental take permit 

issued under section 10 of the ESA. The 

incidental taking of turtles during 

shrimp or summer flounder trawling is 

exempted from the taking prohibition of 

section 9 of the ESA if the conservation 

measures specified in the sea turtle 

conservation regulations (50 CFR 223) 

are followed. The regulations require 

most shrimp trawlers and summer 

flounder trawlers operating in the 

southeastern United States (Atlantic 

area, Gulf area, and summer flounder 

sea turtle protection area, see 50 CFR 

223.206) to have a NMFS-approved TED 

installed in each net that is rigged for 

fishing to allow sea turtles to escape. 

TEDs currently approved by NMFS 

include single-grid hard TEDs and 

hooped hard TEDs conforming to a 

generic description, the flounder TED, 

and one type of soft TED the Parker soft 

TED (see 50 CFR 223.207). 

TEDs incorporate an escape opening, 

usually covered by a webbing flap, 

which allows sea turtles to escape from 

trawl nets. To be approved by NMFS, a 

TED design must be shown to be 97 

percent effective in excluding sea turtles 

during testing based upon specific 

testing protocols (50 CFR 223.207(e)(1)). 

Most approved hard TEDs are described 

in the regulations (50 CFR 223.207(a)) 

according to generic criteria based upon 

certain parameters of TED design, 

configuration, and installation, 

including height and width dimensions 

of the TED opening through which the 

turtles escape. 

The regulations governing sea turtle 

take prohibitions and exemptions 

provide for the use of limited tow times 

as an alternative to the use of TEDs for 

vessels with certain specified 

characteristics or under certain special 

circumstances. The provisions of 50 

CFR 223.206(d)(3)(ii) specify that the 

NOAA Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries (AA) may authorize 

compliance with tow time restrictions 

as an alternative to the TED requirement 

if the AA determines that the presence 

of algae, seaweed, debris, or other 

special environmental conditions in a 

particular area makes trawling with 

TED-equipped nets impracticable. The 

provisions of 50 CFR 223.206(d)(3)(i) 

specify the maximum tow times that 

may be used when tow time limits are 

authorized as an alternative to the use 

of TEDs. Each tow may be no more than 

55 minutes from April 1 through 

October 31 and no more than 75 

minutes from November 1 through 

March 31, as measured from the time 

that the trawl doors enter the water until 

they are removed from the water. These 

tow time limits are designed to 

minimize the level of mortality of sea 

turtles that are captured by trawl nets 

not equipped with TEDs. 

Recent Events 

On September 12, 2005, the NMFS 

Southeast Regional Administrator 

received requests from the Marine 

Fisheries Division of the Alabama 

Department of Conservation and Natural 

Resources (ALDCNR) and the Louisiana 

Department of Wildlife and Fisheries 

(LADWF) to allow the use of tow times 

as an alternative to TEDs in state and 

Federal waters because of the presence 

of excessive storm-related debris on the 

fishing grounds as a result of Hurricane 

Katrina. NMFS received a similar 

request from the Mississippi 

Department of Marine Resources 

(MDMR) on September 13. When a TED 

is clogged with debris, it can no longer 

catch shrimp effectively nor can it 

effectively exclude turtles. Phone 

conversations between NMFS Southeast 

Region’s Protected Resources staff, 

fishermen, and state resource agency 

staffs confirm there are problems with 

debris in state and Federal waters off 

Alabama, westward to the boundary of 

Cameron Parish, Louisiana, and 

extending offshore 50 nautical miles, 

which are likely to affect the 

effectiveness of TEDs. 

Special Environmental Conditions 

The AA finds that debris washed into 

state and fFederal waters by Hurricane 

Katrina from the Florida/Alabama 

border, westward to the boundary of 

Cameron Parish, Louisiana 

(approximately 92° 37′ W. long.), and 

extending offshore 50 nautical miles, 

has created special environmental 

conditions that make trawling with 

TED-equipped nets impracticable. 

Therefore, the AA issues this 

notification to authorize the use of 

restricted tow times as an alternative to 

the use of TEDs in state and federal 

waters off Alabama, westward to the 

boundary of Cameron Parish, Louisiana 

(approximately 92° 37′ W. long.), and 

extending offshore 50 nautical miles, for 

a period of 30 days. Tow times must be 

limited to no more than 55 minutes 

measured from the time trawl doors 

enter the water until they are retrieved 

from the water. 

Continued Use of TEDs 

NMFS encourages shrimp trawlers in 

the affected areas to continue to use 

TEDs if possible, even though they are 

authorized under this action to use 

restricted tow times. 

NMFS’ gear experts have provided 

several general operational 

recommendations to fishermen to 

maximize the debris exclusion ability of 

TEDs that may allow some fishermen to 

continue using TEDs without resorting 

to restricted tow times. To exclude 

debris, NMFS recommends the use of 

hard TEDs made of either solid rod or 

of hollow pipe that incorporate a bent 

angle at the escape opening, in a 

bottom-opening configuration. In 

addition, the installation angle of a hard 

TED in the trawl extension is an 

important performance element in 

excluding debris from the trawl. High 

installation angles can trap debris either 

on or in front of the bars of the TED; 

NMFS recommends an installation 

angle of 45°, relative to the normal 

horizontal flow of water through the 

trawl, to optimize the TED’s ability to 

exclude turtles and debris. Furthermore, 

the use of accelerator funnels, which are 

allowable modifications to hard TEDs, is 

not recommended in areas with heavy 

amounts of debris or vegetation. Lastly, 

the webbing flap that is usually 

installed to cover the turtle escape 

opening may be modified to help 

exclude debris quickly: the webbing flap 

can either be cut horizontally to shorten 

it so that it does not overlap the frame 

of the TED or be slit in a fore-and-aft 

direction to facilitate the exclusion of 

debris. The use of the double cover flap 

TED will also aid in debris exclusion. 

All of these recommendations 

represent legal configurations of TEDs 

for shrimpers fishing in the affected 

areas. This action does not authorize 

any other departure from the TED 

requirements, including any illegal 

modifications to TEDs. In particular, if 

TEDs are installed in trawl nets, they 

may not be sewn shut. 

Alternative to Required Use of TEDs 

The authorization provided by this 

rule applies to all shrimp trawlers that 

would otherwise be required to use 

TEDs in accordance with the 

requirements of 50 CFR 223.206(d)(2) 

who are operating in state and Federal 

waters affected by Hurricane Katrina off 

Alabama, westward to the boundary of 

Cameron Parish, Louisiana 

(approximately 92° 37′ W. long.), and 

extending offshore 50 nautical miles, for 

a period of 30 days. Through this 

temporary rule, shrimp trawlers may 

chose either restricted tow times or 

TEDs to comply with the sea turtle 

conservation regulations, as prescribed 

above. 

Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 187 / Wednesday, September 28, 2005 / Rules and Regulations 56595 

Alternative to Required Use of TEDs; 

Termination 

The AA, at any time, may withdraw 

or modify this temporary authorization 

to use tow time restrictions in lieu of 

TEDs through publication of a notice in 

the Federal Register, if necessary to 

ensure adequate protection of 

endangered and threatened sea turtles. 

Under this procedure, the AA may 

modify the affected area or impose any 

necessary additional or more stringent 

measures, including more restrictive 

tow times, synchronized tow times, or 

withdrawal of the authorization if the 

AA determines that the alternative 

authorized by this rule is not 

sufficiently protecting turtles or no 

longer needed. The AA may also 

terminate this authorization if 

information from enforcement, state 

authorities, or NMFS indicates 

compliance cannot be monitored 

effectively. This authorization will 

expire automatically on October 24, 

2005, unless it is explicitly extended 

through another notification published 

in the Federal Register. 

Classification 

This action has been determined to be 

not significant for purposes of Executive 

Order 12866. 

The AA has determined that this 

action is necessary to respond to an 

environmental situation to allow more 

efficient fishing for shrimp, while 

providing adequate protection for 

endangered and threatened sea turtles 

pursuant to the ESA and applicable 

regulations. 

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

finds that there is good cause to waive 

prior notice and opportunity to 

comment on this rule. The AA finds that 

unusually high amounts of debris are 

creating special environmental 

conditions that make trawling with 

TED-equipped nets impracticable. Prior 

notice and opportunity to comment are 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest in this instance because 

providing notice and comment would 

prevent the agency from providing the 

affected industry relief from the effects 

of Hurricane Katrina in a timely 

manner. 

The AA finds that unusually high 

amounts of debris are creating special 

environmental conditions that make 

trawling with TED-equipped nets 

impracticable. Many fishermen may be 

unable to operate under these 

conditions without an alternative to the 

use of TEDs. Therefore, The AA finds 

that there is good cause to waive the 30–

day delay in effective date pursuant to 

5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to provide 

alternatives to comply with the sea 

turtle regulations in a timely manner. 

For the reasons above, the AA finds that 

this temporary rule should not be 

subject to a 30–day delay in effective 

date, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1). 

Since prior notice and an opportunity 

for public comment are not required to 

be provided for this action by 5 U.S.C. 

553, or by any other law, the analytical 

requirements of 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq. are 

inapplicable. 

The AA prepared an Environmental 

Assessment (EA) for this rule. Copies of 

the EA are available (see ADDRESSES). 

Dated: September 23, 2005. 

James W. Balsiger, 

Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 05–19373 Filed 9–23–05; 2:14 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 635 

[I.D. 091405F] 

Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; 

Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fisheries 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason catch 

limit adjustment. 

SUMMARY: NMFS has determined that 

the daily retention limit for Atlantic 

bluefin tuna (BFT) in the General 

category should be adjusted to allow 

maximum utilization of the General 

category October-January time period. In 

addition, NMFS is prohibiting the 

retention of school BFT less than 47 

inches (119 cm) in the recreational 

fishery for the remainder of the fishing 

year to ensure that U.S. BFT harvest is 

consistent with recommendations of the 

International Commission for the 

Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) 

pursuant to the Atlantic Tunas 

Convention Act (ATCA). 

DATES: Effective dates for BFT daily 

retention limits are provided in Table 1 

under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Dianne Stephan or Brad McHale, 978–

281–9260. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Regulations implemented under the 

authority of ATCA and the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act governing the harvest 

of BFT by persons and vessels subject to 

U.S. jurisdiction are found at 50 CFR 

part 635. The 2005 BFT fishing year 

began on June 1, 2005, and ends May 

31, 2006. During the rulemaking for the 

final initial 2005 BFT specifications and 

General category effort controls that 

were published on June 7, 2005 (70 FR 

33033), NMFS specifically requested 

comment on options related to a 

recommendation of ICCAT regarding a 

four-consecutive-year average 8 percent 

landings limit for harvest of school BFT. 

Numerous comments were received on 

this issue as well as a wide range of 

topics, including inseason management 

measures for the Atlantic tunas General, 

Highly Migratory Species (HMS) 

Charter/Headboat, and HMS Angling 

categories throughout the 2005 fishing 

year. 

Daily Retention Limits 

Pursuant to this temporary action and 

the final initial 2005 BFT specifications, 

noted above, the daily BFT retention 

limits for Atlantic Tunas General, HMS 

Charter/Headboat, and HMS Angling 

categories are as follows: 

TABLE 1. EFFECTIVE DATES FOR RETENTION LIMIT ADJUSTMENTS

Permit Category Effective Dates Areas BFT Size Class Limit 

General October 1, 2005, through January 

31, 2006, inclusive 

All Two BFT per vessel per day/trip, 

measuring 73 inches (185 cm) 

CFL or larger