Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 16 / Tuesday, January 26, 2016 / Notices 4265 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the 

ESA, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

maintains a list of endangered and 

threatened wildlife and plant species at 

50 CFR 17.11 (for animals and 17.12 (for 

plants). Section 4(c)(2)(A) of the ESA 

requires that we conduct a review of 

listed species at least once every five 

years. On the basis of such reviews 

under section 4(c)(2)(B), we determine 

whether or not any species should be 

delisted or reclassified from endangered 

to threatened or from threatened to 

endangered. Delisting a species must be 

supported by the best scientific and 

commercial data available and only 

considered if such data substantiates 

that the species is neither endangered 

nor threatened for one or more of the 

following reasons: (1) The species is 

considered extinct; (2) the species is 

considered to be recovered; and/or (3) 

the original data available when the 

species was listed, or the interpretation 

of such data, were in error. Any change 

in Federal classification would require a 

separate rulemaking process. The 

regulations in 50 CFR 424.21 require 

that we publish a notice in the Federal 

Register announcing those species 

currently under active review. This 

notice announces our active review of 

the Southern Resident killer whale 

distinct population segment (DPS) 

currently listed as endangered (70 FR 

69903; November 18, 2005). 

Background information on Southern 

Resident killer whales including the 

endangered listing, critical habitat 

designation, recovery planning and 

protective regulations is available on the 

NMFS West Coast Region Web site at 

http://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.

gov/. Below is a brief list of several 

significant actions since the endangered 

listing of the Southern Resident killer 

whale DPS. Critical habitat was 

designated in November 2006 (71 FR 

69054) and includes 2,560 square miles 

(6,630 sq km) of marine habitat in Haro 

Strait and waters around the San Juan 

Islands, Puget Sound, and the Strait of 

Juan de Fuca. The final Recovery Plan 

was released in January 2008 (73 FR 

4176), and contains detailed 

information on status, threats and 

recovery actions for Southern Residents. 

Regulations to protect Southern 

Resident killer whales from vessel 

effects were released in April 2011 (76 

FR 20870). A five year review was 

completed in 2011 and concluded that 

no change was needed to the 

endangered status (NMFS 2011). In 2014 

we released a report summarizing 

research and recovery efforts over the 

last 10 years. The report and other 

supporting documents and media are 

available on our Web site at http://www.

nwfsc.noaa.gov/news/features/killer_

whale_report/index.cfm. In 2015 

Southern Resident killer whales were 

named as a Species in the Spotlight, one 

of eight species among the most at risk 

of extinction in the near future. For 

more information on the Species in the 

Spotlight program, please visit our Web 

site at http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/

stories/2015/05/05_14_15species_in_

the_spotlight.html. 

Determining if a Species Is Threatened 

or Endangered 

Section 4(a)(1) of the ESA requires 

that we determine whether a species is 

endangered or threatened based on one 

or more of the five following factors: (1) 

The present or threatened destruction, 

modification, or curtailment of its 

habitat or range; (2) overutilization for 

commercial, recreational, scientific, or 

educational purposes; (3) disease or 

predation; (4) the inadequacy of existing 

regulatory mechanisms; or (5) other 

natural or manmade factors affecting its 

continued existence. Section 4(b) also 

requires that our determination be made 

on the basis of the best scientific and 

commercial data available after taking 

into account those efforts, if any, being 

made by any State or foreign nation, to 

protect such species. 

Public Solicitation of New Information 

To ensure that the 5-year review is 

complete and based on the best 

available scientific and commercial 

information, we are soliciting new 

information from the public, 

governmental agencies, Tribes, the 

scientific community, industry, 

environmental entities, and any other 

interested parties concerning the status 

of Southern Resident killer whales. The 

5-year review considers the best 

scientific and commercial data and all 

new information that has become 

available since the listing determination 

or most recent status review. Categories 

of requested information include: (1) 

Species biology including, but not 

limited to, population trends, 

distribution, abundance, demographics, 

and genetics; (2) habitat conditions 

including, but not limited to, amount, 

distribution, and important features for 

conservation; (3) status and trends of 

threats; (4) conservation measures that 

have been implemented that benefit the 

species, including monitoring data 

demonstrating effectiveness of such 

measures; (5) need for additional 

conservation measures or updates to the 

Recovery Plan, (6) adequacy of the 

recovery criteria, including information 

on recovery criteria that have or have 

not been met; and (7) other new 

information, data, or corrections 

including, but not limited to, taxonomic 

or nomenclatural changes, identification 

of erroneous information contained in 

the list of endangered and threatened 

species, and improved analytical 

methods for evaluating extinction risk. 

Any new information will be 

considered during the 5-year review and 

may also be useful in evaluating the 

ongoing recovery program for Southern 

Resident killer whales. For example, 

information on conservation measures 

will assist in tracking implementation of 

actions in the Recovery Plan. Habitat 

information received during the 5-year 

review process may also be useful in our 

consideration of a revision to the 

designated critical habitat for Southern 

Resident killer whales. In February 

2015, we published a 12-month finding 

notice on a petition requesting that we 

revise critical habitat (80 FR 9682). The 

12-month finding describes how we 

intend to proceed with the requested 

revision and lays out a timeline. The 

critical habitat designation process is 

separate from this 5-year review and 

will include a separate opportunity for 

public comment. 

If you wish to provide information for 

this 5-year review, you may submit your 

information and materials electronically 

or via mail (see ADDRESSES section). We 

request that all information be 

accompanied by supporting 

documentation such as maps, 

bibliographic references, or reprints of 

pertinent publications. We also would 

appreciate the submitter’s name, 

address, and any association, 

institution, or business that the person 

represents; however, anonymous 

submissions will also be accepted. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. 

Dated: January 20, 2016. 

Angela Somma, 

Chief, Endangered Species Division, Office 

of Protected Resources, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2016–01400 Filed 1–25–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

The Department of Commerce will 

submit to the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) for clearance the 

following proposal for collection of 

information under the provisions of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 

chapter 35). 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

4266 Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 16 / Tuesday, January 26, 2016 / Notices 

Agency: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 

Title: Mail Survey to Collect 

Economic Data from Federal Gulf of 

Mexico and South Atlantic For-Hire 

Permit Holders. 

OMB Control Number: 0648–xxxx. 

Form Number(s): None. 

Type of Request: Regular (request for 

a new information collection). 

Number of Respondents: 1,000. 

Average Hours per Response: 12 

minutes. 

Burden Hours: 200. 

Needs and Uses: This request is for a 

new information collection. 

The National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) 

Fisheries, Southeast Fisheries Science 

Center, proposes to collect very basic 

socioeconomic data from federallypermitted for-hire operators in the Gulf 

of Mexico and South Atlantic fisheries, 

using a mail sample survey. The 

National Marine Fisheries Service 

(NMFS) does not systematically collect 

information on for-hire trip prices and 

trip costs in the Southeast. The 

population consists of those for-hire 

operators who possess a federal for-hire 

permit for dolphin-wahoo, coastal 

migratory pelagics, snapper-grouper, or 

reef fish species in the South Atlantic or 

Gulf of Mexico. Each year we will 

sample approximately a third of the 

population. The two-page survey will be 

designed to collect basic data on trip 

revenues and trip costs as well as other 

related information. These data are 

needed to conduct socioeconomic 

analyses in support of management of 

the for-hire fishing industry and to 

satisfy legal requirements. The data will 

be used to assess how fishermen will be 

impacted by and respond to federal 

regulation likely to be considered by 

fishery managers. 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations. 

Frequency: Annually. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary. 

This information collection request 

may be viewed at reginfo.gov. Follow 

the instructions to view Department of 

Commerce collections currently under 

review by OMB. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

within 30 days of publication of this 

notice to OIRA_Submission@omb.

eop.gov or fax to (202) 395–5806. 

Dated: January 20, 2016. 

Sarah Brabson, 

NOAA PRA Clearance Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2016–01384 Filed 1–25–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

The Department of Commerce will 

submit to the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) for clearance the 

following proposal for collection of 

information under the provisions of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 

chapter 35). 

Agency: National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 

Title: Alaska Community Quota Entity 

(CQE) Program. 

OMB Control Number: 0648–0665. 

Form Number(s): None. 

Type of Request: Regular (extension of 

a currently approved information 

collection). 

Number of Respondents: 65. 

Average Hours Per Response: 200 

hours, Application to become a CQE; 2 

hours for Application to transfer QS– 

IFQ to or from CQE; 20 hours for 

Application for a CQE to receive a nontrawl LLP license; 1 hour each for 

Application for Community Charter 

Halibut Permit and CQE LLP 

Authorization Letter; 40 hours for CQE 

Annual Report. 

Burden Hours: 1,544. 

Needs and Uses: This request is for 

extension of a currently approved 

information collection. 

The Alaska Community Quota Entity 

(CQE) Program allocates to eligible 

communities a portion of the quotas for 

groundfish, halibut, crab, and 

prohibited species in the Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands Management Area 

(BSAI). Currently, there are 98 CQE 

eligible communities (45 Individual 

Fishing Quota (IFQ) and quota share 

(QS) halibut and sablefish, 32 charter 

halibut, and 21 License Limitation 

Program (LLP) communities), although 

only a few communities are currently 

participating. The allocations provide 

communities the means for starting or 

supporting commercial fisheries 

business activities that will result in an 

ongoing, regionally based, fisheriesrelated economy. A non-profit corporate 

entity that meets specific criteria to 

receive transferred halibut or sablefish 

QS on behalf of an eligible community 

may lease the resulting IFQ to persons 

who are residents of the eligible 

community. 

Affected Public: Not-for-profit 

institutions; individuals or households. 

Frequency: Annually. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Mandatory. 

This information collection request 

may be viewed at reginfo.gov. Follow 

the instructions to view Department of 

Commerce collections currently under 

review by OMB. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

within 30 days of publication of this 

notice to OIRA_Submission@

omb.eop.gov or fax to (202) 395–5806. 

Dated: January 19, 2016. 

Sarah Brabson, 

NOAA PRA Clearance Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2016–01385 Filed 1–25–16; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Office of the Secretary 

[Docket ID: DoD–2016–OS–0005] 

Proposed Collection; Comment 

Request 

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary of 

Defense (Personnel and Readiness), 

DoD. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense 

(Personnel and Readiness) announces a 

proposed public information collection 

and seeks public comment on the 

provisions thereof. Comments are 

invited on: (a) Whether the proposed 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

functions of the agency, including 

whether the information shall have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed information collection; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 

burden of the information collection on 

respondents, including through the use 

of automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

DATES: Consideration will be given to all 

comments received by March 28, 2016. 

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: Department of Defense, Office 

of the Deputy Chief Management 

Officer, Directorate of Oversight and 

Compliance, Regulatory and Audit 

Matters Office, 9010 Defense Pentagon, 

Washington, DC 20301–9010. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the agency name, docket 

number and title for this Federal 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES