17272 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 65 / Wednesday, April 5, 1995 / Rules and Regulations

30. Section 577.8 is revised to read as

follows:

§ 577.8 Disclaimers.

(a) A notification sent pursuant to

§§ 577.5, 577.6, 577.9 or 577.10

regarding a defect which relates to

motor vehicle safety shall not, except as

specifically provided in this part,

contain any statement or implication

that there is no defect, that the defect

does not relate to motor vehicle safety,

or that the defect is not present in the

owner’s or lessee’s vehicle or item of

replacement equipment. This section

also applies to any notification sent to

a lessor or directly to a lessee by a

manufacturer.

(b) A notification sent pursuant to

§§ 577.5, 577.6, 577.9 or 577.10

regarding a noncompliance with an

applicable motor vehicle safety standard

shall not, except as specifically

provided in this part, contain any

statement or implication that there is

not a noncompliance, or that the

noncompliance is not present in the

owner’s or lessee’s vehicle or item of

replacement equipment. This section

also applies to any notification sent to

a lessor or directly to a lessee by a

manufacturer.

31. A new § 577.10 is added to read

as follows:

§ 577.10 Follow-up notification.

(a) If, based on quarterly reports

submitted pursuant to § 573.6 of this

part or other available information, the

Administrator decides that a

notification of a safety-related defect of

a noncompliance with a Federal motor

vehicle safety standard sent by a

manufacturer has not resulted in an

adequate number of vehicles or items of

equipment being returned for remedy,

the Administrator may direct the

manufacturer to send a follow-up

notification in accordance with this

section. The scope, timing, form, and

content of such follow-up notification

will be established by the

Administrator, in consultation with the

manufacturer, to maximize the number

of owners, purchasers, and lessees who

will present their vehicles or items of

equipment for remedy.

(b) The Administrator may consider

the following factors in deciding

whether or not to require a

manufacturer to undertake a follow-up

notification campaign:

(1) The percentage of covered vehicles

or items of equipment that have been

presented for the remedy;

(2) The amount of time that has

elapsed since the prior notification(s);

(3) The likelihood that a follow-up

notification will increase the number of

vehicles or items of equipment receiving

the remedy;

(4) The seriousness of the safety risk

from the defect or noncompliance;

(5) Whether the prior notification(s)

undertaken by the manufacturer

complied with the requirements of the

statute and regulations; and

(6) Such other factors as are consistent

with the purpose of the statute.

(c) A manufacturer shall be required

to provide a follow-up notification

under this section only with respect to

vehicles or items of equipment that have

not been returned for remedy pursuant

to the prior notification(s).

(d) Except where the Administrator

determines otherwise, the follow-up

notification shall be sent to the same

categories of recipients that received the

prior notification(s).

(e) A follow-up notification must

include:

(1) A statement that identifies it as a

follow-up to an earlier communication;

(2) A statement urging the recipient to

present the vehicle or item of equipment

for remedy; and

(3) Except as determined by the

Administrator, the information required

to be included in the initial notification.

(f) The manufacturer shall mark the

outside of each envelope in which it

sends a follow-up notification in a

manner which meets the requirements

of § 577.5(a) of this part.

(g) Notwithstanding any other

provision of this Part, the Administrator

may authorize the use of other media

besides first-class mail for a follow-up

notification.

Issued on: March 24, 1995.

Ricardo Martinez,

Administrator.

[FR Doc. 95–8130 Filed 4–4–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–59–P

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 650

[Docket No. 950118017–5081–02; I.D.

122994A]

RIN 0648–AH82

Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery;

Framework Adjustment 4; Temporary

Reduction in Crew Size Limit

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: NMFS issues this final rule to

implement Framework Adjustment 4 to

the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery

Management Plan (FMP). This

framework adjustment temporarily

adjusts the maximum crew limit on

certain vessels participating in the

scallop fishery from nine to seven

through February 29, 1996.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 1, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Copies of Amendment 4, its

regulatory impact review, the initial

regulatory flexibility analysis, the final

supplemental environmental impact

statement, and the supporting

documents for Framework Adjustment 4

are available from Douglas Marshall,

Executive Director, New England

Fishery Management Council, Suntaug

Office Park, 5 Broadway, Saugus, MA

01906–1097.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul

H. Jones, NMFS, Fishery Policy Analyst,

508–281–9273.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The final rule implementing

Amendment 4 to the FMP was

published on January 19, 1994 (59 FR

2757), with an effective date for most

measures of March 1, 1994. The

amendment retained the FMP’s

objectives to: (1) Restore adult stock

abundance and age distribution; (2)

increase yield per recruit for each stock;

(3) evaluate plan research, development

and enforcement costs; and (4)

minimize adverse environmental

impacts on sea scallops.

Amendment 4 changed the primary

management strategy from a meat count

(size) control to effort control. The

amendment controls total fishing effort

through limited access permits and a

schedule of reductions in allowable

days-at-sea. Supplemental measures

include limits on increases in vessel

fishing power to control the amount of

fishing pressure and to help control the

size of scallops landed, gear restrictions,

and limits on the number of crew

members. The amendment also includes

a framework procedure for adjusting the

management measures in the FMP.

Initially, the maximum crew size was

set at nine.

In response to very high levels of

recruitment documented in the MidAtlantic resource area (Regional

Director’s Status Report, January 1994),

the New England Fishery Management

Council (Council) recommended

lowering the maximum crew size limit

from nine to seven until December 31,

1994. NMFS concurred and through

Framework Adjustment 1, which was

published on July 19, 1994 (59 FR
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 65 / Wednesday, April 5, 1995 / Rules and Regulations 17273

36720), with an effective date of August

17, 1994, lowered the maximum crew

size from nine to seven until December

31, 1994.

Because the conditions that justified

lowering the maximum crew size limit

to seven still exist, the Council

recommended extending the maximum

crew size limit of seven through the end

of the 1995–96 scallop fishing year.

The adjustments being made through

the framework process (§ 650.40) are

within the scope of analyses contained

in Amendment 4 and the final

supplemental environmental impact

statement. Supplemental rationale and

analyses of expected biological effects,

economic impacts, impacts on

employment, and safety concerns are

contained within the supporting

documents for Framework Adjustments

1 and 4 (see ADDRESSES).

NMFS is adjusting the scallop

regulations following the procedure for

framework adjustments established by

Amendment 4 and codified in 50 CFR

part 650, subpart C. The Council

followed this procedure, by developing

and analyzing the actions over the span

of at least two Council meetings, on

October 26 and December 8, 1994.

However, because the December 8,

1994, meeting was not announced as the

second and final of the two required

meetings, the Council recommended

that the Director, Northeast Region,

NMFS (Regional Director) publish the

measures contained in Framework

Adjustment 4 as a proposed rule to

ensure that the public has been afforded

sufficient opportunity for notice and

comment.

In accordance with the regulations,

public comments on the framework

adjustment were taken by the Council

during its October 26, 1994, and

December 8, 1994, meetings. The

comments made at those meetings, as

well as written comments received,

were discussed in detail in the proposed

rule (60 FR 8622, February 15, 1955)

and are not repeated here.

No additional comments were

received during the comment period

that followed publication of the

proposed rule, and the proposed rule is

adopted as final without change.

Classification

This final rule has been determined to

be not significant for purposes of E.O.

12866.

When this rule was proposed, the

Assistant General Counsel of the

Department of Commerce certified to

the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the

Small Business Administration that, if

adopted as proposed, it would not have

a significant economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities

because: (1) It would be unlikely to

force vessels to cease or substantially

modify operations, (2) many vessels

already carried crew sizes of seven or

less because of low stock abundance of

sea scallops, and (3) short-term benefits

of harvesting immature sea scallops in

1995 that have never produced young

for future years would be greatly

outweighed by longer-term benefits to

small entities for the next several years.

As a result, a regulatory flexibility

analysis was not prepared.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 650

Fisheries, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

Dated: March 29, 1995.

Samuel W. McKeen,

Acting Assistant Administrator for Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

For the reasons set out in the

preamble, 50 CFR part 650 is amended

as follows:

PART 650—ATLANTIC SEA SCALLOP

FISHERY

1. The authority citation for part 650

continues to read as follows:

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

2. Section 650.21, paragraph (c) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 650.21 Gear and crew restrictions.

* * * * *

(c) Crew restrictions. Limited access

vessels participating in or subject to the

scallop DAS allocation program may

have no more than seven people aboard,

including the operator, when not

docked or moored in port through

February 29, 1996, and nine people

aboard when not docked or moored in

port thereafter, including the operator,

unless participating in the small dredge

program specified in paragraph (e) of

this section, or otherwise authorized by

the Regional Director.

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 95–8249 Filed 3–30–95; 3:55 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F