Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 38 / Monday, February 27, 1995 / Proposed Rules 10535

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

48 CFR Parts 1516 and 1552

[FRL–5161–1]

Acquisition Regulation

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency.

ACTION: Extension of comments on

proposed rule.

SUMMARY: This document extends the

due date for comments by 30 days for

the proposed revision to the EPA

Acquisition Regulation (EPAAR)

coverage on cost-plus-award fee (CPAF)

contracts (60 FR 5888, January 31,

1995).

DATES: Written comments on this

proposed rule must be received on or

before April 3, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Environmental Protection Agency,

Office of Acquisition Management

(3802F), 401 M Street SW, Washington,

DC 20460, Attn: Louise Senzel (202)

260–6204.

Dated: February 13, 1995.

Betty L. Bailey,

Director, Office of Acquisition Management.

[FR Doc. 95–4593 Filed 2–24–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

50 CFR Part 17

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife

and Plants; 12-Month Finding for a

Petition to List the Dakota Skipper as

Endangered or Threatened

AGENCY: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of 12-month petition

finding.

SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service (Service) announces a 12-month

finding for a petition to list the Dakota

skipper (Hesperia dacotae Skinner)

under the Endangered Species Act of

1973, as amended. The Service finds

that the petition does not present

substantial scientific or commercial

information indicating that the listing

may be warranted at this time.

DATES: The finding announced in this

document was made on February 16,

1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments, or questions

concerning this petition should be

submitted to the Chief, Division of

Endangered Species, U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service, Bishop Henry Whipple

Federal Building, 1 Federal Drive, Fort

Snelling, Minnesota 55111–4056. The

petition finding, supporting data, and

comments are available for public

inspection, by appointment, during

normal business hours at the above

address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

Carlita Shumate, Invertebrate Species

Coordinator, Division of Endangered

Species, at the above address (612/725–

3276).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Section 4(b)(3)(B) of the Endangered

Species Act (Act) of 1973, as amended

(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), requires that,

for any petition to revise the List of

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife

and Plants that presents substantial

scientific and commercial information,

the Service make a finding within 12

months of the date of the receipt of the

petition on whether the petitioned

action is (a) not warranted, (b)

warranted, or (c) warranted but

precluded from immediate proposal by

other pending proposals of higher

priority. Section 4(b)(3)(C) requires that

petitions for which the requested action

is found to be warranted but precluded

should be treated as though resubmitted

on the date of such finding, i.e.,

requiring a subsequent finding to be

made within 12 months. Such 12-month

findings are to be published promptly in

the Federal Register.

On January 21, 1994, The Service

received a petition dated January 15,

1994, from Brendan McManus of the

Biodiversity Legal Foundation, to list

the Dakota skipper (Hesperia dacotae)

as endangered or threatened and

designate critical habitat. The Service

made a 90-day finding that the petition

presented substantial information

indicating that the requested action may

be warranted. The 90-day finding was

announced in the Federal Register on

July 28, 1994 (59 FR 38424). A status

review of the species was continued.

The Dakota skipper was designated a

category 2 candidate species in the May

22, 1984, Notice of Review (49 FR

21664) and has remained in category 2

to date (January 6, 1989, 54 FR 572;

November 21, 1991, 56 FR 58830; and

November 15, 1994, 59 FR 59020). A

category 2 candidate is a species for

which information in the Service’s

possession indicates that listing is

possibly appropriate, but for which

insufficient information on biological

vulnerability and threats is not currently

available to support a proposal for

listing under the Act.

The Service has reviewed the petition,

literature cited in the petition,

information presented by various parties

in response to the 90-day finding, other

available literature and information, and

has consulted with biologists and

researchers familiar with the Dakota

skipper. On the basis of the best

scientific and commercial information

available, the Service finds listing is not

warranted at this time. The review

concludes that there is not persuasive

evidence that elevation of the species to

category 1 is appropriate and, therefore,

the species will be retained in category

2.

The Dakota skipper is a small to

medium-sized butterfly found in midand tall grass prairie. Information on

current status can be summarized as

follows. Dakota skippers are reported in

Iowa, Minnesota, North and South

Dakota, and Manitoba, Canada. The

species was formerly found in Illinois.

The species is currently known in 12

counties (19 population sites) in

Minnesota, 17 counties (32 population

sites) in North Dakota, and seven

counties (18 population sites) in South

Dakota, and in one county (one

population site) in Iowa (Royer and

Marrone 1992; Ronald Royer, Minot,

North Dakota, State University, in litt.

1994; Robert Dana, Minnesota

Department of Natural Resources, in litt.

1994). Unknown Dakota skipper

populations may exist; nine of the

fifteen respondents to the 90-day notice

indicated that additional areas need to

be surveyed, including areas of North

Dakota, Minnesota, and Iowa.

The Dakota skipper faces loss and

degradation of its prairie habitat due to

certain harmful burning, haying, grazing

and pesticide use practices. Invasion of

prairie by alien plants, natural

succession, and habitat loss through

physical conversion of prairie to other

purposes are also negative factors. The

Dakota skipper (and its habitat) are in

long-term decline, but the demise of the

species does not appear imminent. The

Service believes additional information

is required concerning the species and

its threats before making the

determination that the species is

endangered or threatened within the

definition of the Act. Timely protection

and appropriate prairie management

might eliminate the need to list the

species.

Further details regarding the

biological status of the species are

contained in the administrative finding.

Interested persons may obtain a copy of

the finding by contacting the office

indicated in the ADDRESSES section of

this notice.
10536 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 38 / Monday, February 27, 1995 / Proposed Rules

References Cited

Royer, R.A., and G.M. Marrone. 1992.

Conservation status of the Dakota

skipper (Hesperia dacotae) in North and

South Dakota. Report to U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Svc., Denver, CO. 44 pp.

Author

The primary author of this document is

Charles G. Kjos, U.S. Fish and Wildlife

Service, Twin Cities Field Office,

Bloomington, MN 55425–1665, telephone

612/725–3548.

Authority

The authority for this action is the

Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531

et seq.).

Dated: February 16, 1995.

Mollie H. Beattie,

Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

[FR Doc. 95–4780 Filed 2–24–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–55–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 641

[I.D. 021595A]

Reef Fish Fishery of the Gulf of

Mexico; Regulatory Amendment Public

Hearings

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Public hearings; request for

comments.

SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery

Management Council (Council) will

convene two public hearings on a draft

proposed Regulatory Amendment to the

regulations implementing the Fishery

Management Plan for the Reef Fish

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico. The draft

proposed Regulatory Amendment,

developed under an FMP framework

procedure for adjusting management

measures, would decrease the current

20 inch minimum size for red grouper

to 18 inches for both commercial and

recreational fisheries. A reduction of the

current five fish daily bag limit for red

grouper in the recreational fishery (five

fish for all grouper species combined)

may also be considered along with the

proposed minimum size limit change. A

final Regulatory Amendment to reduce

the minimum size limit for red grouper

to 18 inches was previously submitted

to NMFS for review, approval, and

implementation. NMFS subsequently

informed the Council that it should

consider new fishery information

regarding the impacts of the proposed

regulatory changes which became

available to the Council. Also, NMFS

requested that the Council evaluate

more completely the expected biological

and regulatory impacts of the proposed

measures. At the public hearings, the

Council will make available for public

review and comment the draft proposed

Regulatory Amendment and other

available information. Based on the

public hearing testimony and on a

consideration of the new fishery

information, the Council intends to

make the appropriate changes in the

Regulatory Amendment and resubmit it

to NMFS.

DATES: Written comments on the draft

proposed Regulatory Amendment or on

the additional fishery information from

NMFS will be accepted until March 10,

1995. The hearings are scheduled from

7 p.m. to 10 p.m. as follows:

1. Thursday, March 9, 1995, in

Tampa, FL; and

2. Thursday, March 9, 1995, in

Sarasota, FL

ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft proposed

Regulatory Amendment are available

from, Mr. Steven M. Atran, Gulf of

Mexico Fishery Management Council,

5401 West Kennedy Boulevard, Suite

331, Tampa, FL 33609; FAX: 813–225–

7015. Written comments on this

document should be addressed to the

same individual.

The hearings will be held at the

following locations:

1. Tampa, FL—Ramada Airport Hotel,

5303 West Kennedy Boulevard, Tampa,

FL 33609

2. Sarasota, FL—Holiday Inn Lido

Beach, 233 Ben Franklin Drive,

Sarasota, FL 34236

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Steven M. Atran, Populations Dynamics

Statistician, 813–228–2815.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: These

meetings are physically accessible to

people with disabilities. Requests for

sign language interpretation or other

auxiliary aids should be directed to Julie

Krebs (see ADDRESSES) by March 1,

1995.

Additional opportunity for public

testimony on this issue will be

scheduled at the Council meeting in

New Orleans on Wednesday, March 15,

beginning at 8:45 a.m. Persons testifying

at this meeting must turn in registration

cards before the start of the testimony.

Dated: February 21, 1995.

David S. Crestin,

Acting Director, Office of Fisheries

Conservation and Management, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 95–4646 Filed 2–24–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F