Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 59143 

conservation and management 

measures, including in cases of force 

majeure and where the Assistant 

Administrator has determined that such 

services are essential to the safety, 

health, and welfare of the crew. 

[FR Doc. 2010–24196 Filed 9–24–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 600 

[Docket No. 080102007–0337–03] 

RIN 0648–AW18 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act; 

Regional Fishery Management 

Councils; Operations 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: NMFS publishes changes to 

the regulations that address the 

operations and administration of the 

Regional Fishery Management Councils 

(Councils). The regulatory changes 

implement the 2006 amendments to the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) that, among 

other things, establish the Council 

Coordinating Committee (CCC), require 

that the Councils’ science and statistical 

committee (SSC) members disclose their 

financial interests, and provide for 

training of Council members and staff. 

Additionally, this final rule clarifies the 

Council documents that should be 

available to the public; the restrictions 

on lobbying; the procedures for Council 

member nomination, including timing 

for submission of nominations; and also 

requires Councils to provide procedures 

for deeming regulations necessary and 

or appropriate for implementing fishery 

management plans and plan 

amendments. These regulations also set 

forth additional financial disclosure 

requirements for Council members, and 

revise the security assurance procedures 

for nominees to and members of the 

Councils. Finally, this rule makes 

technical and minor corrections to the 

regulations unrelated to the most recent 

Magnuson-Stevens Act amendments. 

DATES: Effective October 27, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments 

regarding the burden-hour estimates or 

other aspects of the collection-ofinformation requirements contained in 

this rule may be submitted to Alan 

Risenhoover, Director, Office of 

Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 

Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West 

Highway, SSMC3, Silver Spring, MD 

20910, Fax: 301–713–1175, and by email to 

OIRAlSubmission@omb.eop.gov, or fax 

to (202) 395–7285. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

William Chappell, at 301–713–2337. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A 

proposed rule for this action was 

published on March 27, 2009 (74 FR 

13386), with public comment accepted 

though July 6, 2009. Several Regional 

Fishery Management Councils requested 

that the comment period be extended, 

and NMFS responded by extending the 

public comment period to November 2, 

2009 (74 FR 31224, June 30, 2009). 

Subsequently, NMFS published a 

supplementary rule addressing elements 

of this action on December 7, 2009 (74 

FR64042, December 7, 2009), with a 

comment period ending January 6, 2010. 

A detailed description of the statutory 

and regulatory authority and need for 

this rule is contained in the preamble of 

the proposed rules and is not repeated 

here. 

This final rule does not finalize 

regulations on all the elements of the 

proposed rules. For those elements not 

finalized in this action, additional 

public comment will be sought on the 

proposed rules, or a new proposed rule 

may be issued for public comment. 

Specifically, issues regarding stipends 

for Scientific and Statistical Committees 

(SSCs) and Advisory Panels need 

additional public review and comment. 

Issues addressing the functions of SSCs 

have been addressed by a recent 

rulemaking, i.e., the publication of the 

final rule on National Standard 1 

Guidelines, (74 FR 3178, January 16, 

2009), or will be addressed in other 

actions (i.e. pending National Standard 

2 Guidelines (proposed rule published 

at 74 FR 56724, December 11, 2009). 

Comments on the Proposed Rule 

NMFS received thirteen written 

responses from organizations and 

individuals to a call for comments on a 

proposed rule published on March 27, 

2009 (74 FR 13386). Responses included 

five letters from fishery management 

councils, one from an attorney for a 

fishing industry group, three from 

environmental non-governmental 

organizations (ENGOs), a letter from the 

U.S. Small Business Administration 

(SBA), and three on-line submissions 

from individuals. 

In response to the supplemental 

proposed rule (74 FR 64042, December 

7, 2009), NMFS received a second letter 

from one of the fishery management 

councils and two from ENGOs that had 

previously commented. A fishing 

industry association and the Marine 

Mammal Commission (MMC) also 

responded to the request for comments. 

Comment 1: A letter from an ENGO 

supported the idea of defining the terms 

‘‘advisory panel’’ (AP) and ‘‘fishing 

industry advisory committee’’ (FIAC) 

and differentiating the groups from one 

another. Three Councils commented 

that the definitions should not 

distinguish between the types of 

advisory groups for the purposes of 

authorizing stipends for one, the APs, 

but not for the other, the FIACs. They 

noted that the names given advisory 

groups and the functions of those 

groups are not consistent with the 

proposed rule and vary in usage from 

Council to Council. Also, one 

respondent noted that MagnusonStevens Act Sec. 302(g)(4) refers to the 

formation of APs, yet it is not referenced 

in the proposed definition of advisory 

panels and asks if this is an oversight. 

Response: Under the MagnusonStevens Act, the Councils are authorized 

to establish committees and advisory 

panels at Sec. 302(g)(1) (SSCs), (g)(2) 

(APs), and (g)(3) (FIACs) as per separate 

sections of the statute. Sec 301(g)(4) 

authorized the Secretary to establish 

APs for Atlantic highly migratory 

species. Council practice, however, has 

made little distinction between APs and 

FIACs. In addition, what would be 

considered an AP under Sec. 302(g)(2) 

is often called a committee, and the 

terms have been used interchangeably 

and inconsistently from Council to 

Council. The 2007 reauthorization of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act authorized 

stipends for APs, but not for FIACs. The 

proposed rule suggested definitions to 

aid Councils in distinguishing which 

Council advisory groups’ members 

would be authorized to receive a 

stipend. In order to determine their 

eligibility for stipends and whether they 

are required to meet the meeting notice 

requirements of 50 CFR 600.135, these 

definitions are retained and the 

Councils are now required to declare 

under which section in the MagnusonStevens Act the organization is 

organized. 

Comment 2: A letter from ENGOs 

suggested the term ‘‘fishing industry 

advisory committee’’ be replaced by 

‘‘community advisory panel’’ to ensure 

the definition does not preclude 

membership by individuals who are not 

representatives of the fishing industry. 

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59144 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

Response: The proposed definition of 

the term ‘‘fishing industry advisory 

committee’’ is taken from the term’s 

usage in Sec. 302(g)(3)(A) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act. NMFS cannot 

change the term in the MagnusonStevens Act; however, there is nothing 

in the Magnuson-Stevens Act that 

would preclude a Council’s discretion 

to establish a community advisory panel 

or other advisory groups with 

representation from a broad set of 

interests. 

Comment 3: Several commenters 

responded to NMFS’ request for 

guidance on the payment of stipends to 

certain members of the SSCs and APs. 

One commenter stated that stipends 

were meant primarily to compensate 

and enable participation by experts who 

would not normally be employed and 

paid directly to do so. The MagnusonStevens Act specifies that SSC and AP 

members who are federal employees 

and state marine fisheries agency staff 

are not entitled stipends. Other 

individuals who are similarly employed 

(e.g., by state enforcement agencies, 

marine fisheries commissions, ENGOs, 

tribal governments, etc.) should also not 

be entitled to stipend funds. One 

commenter noted that the amounts paid 

as stipends to SSC and AP members 

should be the same for all Councils and 

should be at the same rate as Council 

members are paid for their service. 

Another respondent recommended that 

stipends should not be paid until the 

eligibility criteria and business rules for 

payment are specified in the Council’s 

statements of organization, practices, 

and procedures. A letter from ENGOs 

stresses that funding for SSC and AP 

stipends should be given a high priority. 

Response: The final rule reiterates the 

eligibility for stipends as it was 

presented in the 2006 reauthorization of 

the Magnuson-Stevens Act. In addition, 

the final rule clarifies that employees of 

State agencies that have management, 

conservation, or enforcement 

jurisdiction over marine fisheries in 

their state are considered employees of 

State marine fisheries agencies and thus 

are ineligible for stipends. Similarly, 

employees of tribal agencies with 

marine fisheries responsibilities are 

considered employees of State marine 

fisheries agencies. 

Comment 4: Respondents from 

industry, Councils, ENGOs, and a 

government agency expressed support 

for the proposal requiring Councils to 

post their statements of organization, 

practices, and procedures (SOPPs) on 

the Council website. The SBA suggested 

that the SOPPs also should be made 

available by other means (e.g., printed 

copies upon request) for individuals 

without Internet access. 

Response: NMFS concurs with the 

comments. Through this final rule, each 

Council is required to post its SOPP on 

the Council’s Internet site. Copies of 

SOPPs are currently available for 

download from most of the Council 

websites and will remain available in 

print format upon request to the 

Council. 

Comment 5: Two Councils, noting 

that SOPPs must be approved by the 

Assistant Administrator of the NMFS, 

asked for clarification on the process for 

making minor edits and technical 

corrections to the SOPP and asked 

whether such amendments, so long as 

they are consistent with the MagnusonStevens Act, can be made without 

NOAA approval. 

Response: SOPPs are a means for 

Councils to describe how their 

procedures and practices are consistent, 

not only with the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, but also with a body of law 

associated with federal assistance and 

grant administration. NMFS 

understands the need for some 

flexibility to allow a Council to make 

minor changes to its SOPP. NMFS has 

drafted procedures for Secretarial 

approval of SOPP amendments. The 

procedures will be posted on the NMFS 

policy directives system Web site. They 

will provide guidance on how to effect 

minor technical changes and when 

Secretarial approval is needed. 

Comment 6: One Council, which has 

recently made a number of 

improvements to its SOPP based on 

recommendations made by the General 

Accounting Office (GAO), suggested that 

the GAO’s recommended measures be 

applied to all of the Councils and 

addressed in a standardized manner in 

all of the SOPPs. 

Response: The recommendations of 

the GAO report that are applicable to all 

Councils have been addressed in this 

final rule. Specifically, Council 

members will now be required to 

specify the nature of the financial 

interest when recusing themselves. 

Further, Councils are now required to 

maintain current and archived copies of 

documents available for public 

inspection on their Web sites. The 

availability of documents on the Web 

sites should reduce the need and 

volume of material needed in response 

to Freedom of Information Act requests. 

Comment 7: An ENGO asked for 

NMFS to specify with which regulatory 

requirements the SOPPs must comply. 

Response: The requirements of a 

SOPP are included in Subchapter B (50 

CFR §§ 600.105 to 600.115). The 

regulatory and administrative 

requirements that must be addressed in 

a SOPP may change occasionally as 

policies and governing statutes are 

updated. Rather than listing the 

requirements in regulation, NMFS will 

provide the Councils with a SOPP 

template listing the basic requirements 

of the SOPP as part of the SOPPs 

amendment procedures. 

Comment 8: Two Councils requested 

that the basis for salary of Council 

executive directors be put on par with 

that of NMFS Regional Administrators 

and the senior executive service pay 

scale. Also, they suggested that 

commensurate adjustments should be 

made to the salaries of Council staffs. 

Response: NMFS notes the comment; 

however, this topic is outside the scope 

of this rulemaking. 

Comment 9: A commenter from an 

ENGO supported expanding the role of 

the SSC. A representative of a fishery 

association noted that the MagnusonStevens Act calls for both an SSC and 

a peer review body, and suggested that 

the SSC should consist of individuals 

with technical expertise in various 

fisheries and a peer review panel should 

be separate and distinct from it. 

Response: This final rule addresses 

only the organization of the SSC. The 

role of the SSC with regard to its 

responsibilities and Magnuson-Stevens 

Act National Standard 2 is detailed in 

§ 600.315 and is outside the scope of 

this rulemaking. It is a topic of the 

separate National Standard 2 

rulemaking ( proposed rule published at 

74 FR 65724, December 11, 2009). 

Comment 10: One respondent 

suggested adjusting the roles of the SSC 

to ensure the determination of the 

annual catch limit (ACL) is completely 

separated from the determination of 

how to allocate the ACL. 

Response: The role of the SSC relative 

to the determination of ACLs is 

addressed in regulations implementing 

Magnuson-Stevens Act National 

Standard 1 at § 600.310 and is outside 

the scope of this rulemaking. 

Comment 11: With regard to 

announcing forthcoming Council and 

committee meetings, one commenter 

stated that 45 days advanced notice is 

necessary to allow fishing industry 

members to plan their attendance. The 

commenter also suggested that the term 

‘‘wide publicity’’ be read to require 

publication of meeting announcements 

in local and national trade magazines 

and distribution via the vessel 

monitoring system (VMS) in order to 

reach more industry members. The SBA 

stated its support for the changes in 

meeting announcement media, 

including the condition that 

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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 59145 

announcement over the Internet alone is 

not sufficient. 

Response: NMFS agrees that meetings 

of all types should be announced as far 

ahead as possible, however, the 

minimum 14-day advance notification 

requirements are retained. Councils 

need the flexibility of shorter 

notification windows in order to ensure 

the meetings can provide a timely 

response to emerging and urgent issues. 

Schedules for most full Council 

meetings and many major committee 

meetings are usually established well in 

advance of the meeting date. Full 

agendas for the meetings, however, may 

not be known until just several weeks 

prior to the meeting. The Councils are 

encouraged to provide as much advance 

notice of meetings as is possible and use 

the media, including industry 

publications, which will be most 

effective for meeting announcements. 

NMFS does not concur that announcing 

meetings is an appropriate use of the 

VMS due to low data transmission rates 

and high costs to the fishermen. 

Comment 12: One commenter cited 

the Magnuson-Stevens Act provision 

that SSC meetings should be held, to the 

extent practicable, in conjunction with 

Council meetings. The commenter noted 

that some Councils appear to have made 

little effort to align the meetings and to 

ease the burden on those people who 

would like to attend both. 

Response: NMFS encourages Councils 

to adjust their meeting schedules to 

allow SSC and Council meetings to be 

held in conjunction with one another. 

However, scheduling of Council and 

committee meetings is a function of how 

each Council operates. Some Councils 

have successfully aligned the Council 

meetings with SSC and other committee 

meetings. Others are supporting 

processes in which the SSC meeting 

must precede Council meetings by a 

certain period in order for the SSC’s 

outcomes to be considered in the 

Council meeting. 

Comment 13: In three letters from 

ENGOs, respondents expressed concern 

that the meeting announcement 

requirements do not seem to apply to 

Interdisciplinary Planning Teams, 

consisting of members and NMFS/ 

Council staff and occasionally relying 

on input from outside experts (also 

called Plan Development Teams, 

Fishery Management Action Teams, or 

Technical Teams). They stated that the 

meetings of such teams should be fully 

open to the public and announced in 

advance, just as Council meetings are; or 

otherwise, the use of such teams should 

be discontinued. 

Response: Many Councils have ad hoc 

planning and development teams that 

are not constituted under MSA Section 

302(g), and are not subject to the 

meeting notice and conduct 

requirements as for a Council or AP 

meeting. These groups are organized for 

the purpose of preparing information for 

subsequent review of a Council, AP, or 

other MSA Section 302(g) committee. 

Presentation of their work products at a 

Council, AP, or other MSA Section 

302(g) committee meeting, followed by 

public comment provides adequate 

public input. To the extent practicable, 

NMFS encourages notice and public 

attendance meetings of these ad hoc 

planning and development teams. 

Comment 14: Comments from 

industry representatives, ENGOs, the 

Councils, and the SBA supported the 

proposed rule requiring Councils to 

establish a written procedure for 

deeming proposed regulations necessary 

or appropriate for the purposes of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act and for 

submitting proposed regulations to the 

Secretary. The SBA recommended that 

NMFS provide guidance to the Councils 

on the procedures in order to ensure 

consistency and transparency across 

Councils. 

Response: The NOAA General 

Counsel for Fisheries has consulted 

with the Councils, through the Council 

Coordinating Committee, on the 

requirements for deeming proposed 

regulations necessary or appropriate for 

the Council’s purposes. Different 

Regions and Councils have different 

agreements concerning who does 

regulatory drafting. Therefore, each 

NMFS regional office, the Council, the 

Council attorney-advisor from the 

NOAA Office of General Counsel, and 

NOAA General Counsel for Fisheries 

will collaborate to ensure the 

procedures are efficient, responsive to 

specific regional needs, consistent with 

the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and 

transparent from the public’s 

perspective. 

Comment 15: Letters from an ENGO, 

an industry association representative, 

the MMC, and the SBA supported the 

proposed requirement for each Council 

to post on its Internet website a variety 

of documents, including fishery 

management plans (FMPs), FMP 

amendments under consideration, 

supporting analysis of alternatives, 

minutes of past meetings of the Council 

and its committees, and the pre-meeting 

information packages that are provided 

to Council members. Both respondents 

stated that NMFS should require and 

support the ability of the Councils to 

maintain the information technology 

infrastructure capacity necessary to 

fulfill this requirement and that the 

posting of a document should never be 

considered impracticable. 

Response: NMFS concurs with the 

comments and agrees that there should 

be no technological constraints to 

Councils posting their current and 

archived documents on the Internet. 

This final rule does not retain the ‘‘to the 

extent practicable’’ clause, but it has 

been revised to require the Councils to 

maintain copies of documents too large 

to maintain on the Web site at the 

Council office for viewing during 

regular business hours. 

Comment 16: One Council 

commented that a Council should not be 

required to record and post on the 

Internet minutes from the meetings of 

its committees and advisory bodies. 

Wide distribution of meeting reports 

should suffice. 

Response: NMFS considers it a 

responsibility of the each Council to 

post records of the Council and the 

Council’s committees on the Internet. 

The intent of the rule is not to require 

Councils to change their formats for 

taking down a record of meetings of the 

Council and its committees, but to 

require that those records, whatever 

their format, be made available for 

viewing via the Council’s Internet site. 

The language in this final rule has been 

adjusted so as not to imply that 

verbatim minutes of advisory group 

meetings are required. 

Comment 17: One Council stated its 

disagreement with the proposed 

requirement that past Council members 

take a full year break in service before 

becoming eligible for reappointment to 

fill an off-cycle opening. 

Response: NMFS acknowledges the 

comment, but makes no change to the 

requirement in this final rule. The 

previous requirement was for a one-year 

break in service between appointments 

and this requirement stands. The intent 

of the change to this section was to 

remove obsolete language. NMFS 

interprets the intent of the requirement 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Act at Section 

302(b)(3) as providing the opportunity 

for a variety of people to serve on 

Councils. This rule reduces the 

opportunity to put forth a candidate 

who will resign shortly after 

appointment, allowing the member with 

3 consecutive terms to apply 

immediately for that position. This rule 

does not preclude a Council member 

from being nominated for a term 

beginning one year after completing his 

or her third term. 

Comment 18: One Council supported 

the proposed changes that would allow 

more time for submission of member 

nomination packages. A letter from 

ENGOs stated that existing regulations 

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59146 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

concerning Council nominations and 

appointments provide for a clear and 

fair process and that simply adhering to 

the existing requirements would solve 

many procedural challenges. Further, 

they suggest that the period between the 

nomination and paperwork submission 

deadlines will be used for intense 

activism by opponents of the nominees 

to derail the appointments. 

Response: NMFS retains the March 15 

date for substantially complete 

nomination packages to be received 

from the Governors. NMFS drafted the 

proposed rule to address recurrent 

problems in the nomination and 

appointment processes regarding the 

submission of information for 

background investigations. This final 

rule requiring the background 

investigation to be initiated after the 

member is conditionally appointed will 

afford more time in which to receive 

and prepare extensive background and 

security assurance documents. 

Therefore, the deadline for package 

submission is unchanged in this final 

rule. 

Comment 19: One respondent 

suggested that NMFS contact state 

governors earlier in the year and specify 

qualifications for nominees, and, by 

January 15, should detail the process in 

the Federal Register and set up a 

dedicated website with information. 

Also, after the nomination deadline 

passes, NMFS should commit to 

publishing the nominees’ names on the 

website within five days. 

Response: NMFS acknowledges the 

comments as helpful ideas for 

consideration in the future, but will not 

specify these details in regulation 

because current regulations are 

sufficient to address these concerns. 

NMFS contacts governors’ offices 

regarding nominations beginning in 

December. NMFS makes a formal 

request for nominations from each 

governor in mid January. An earlier 

formal request is not practicable in some 

cases, due to changes in state 

administration in January following 

state elections in November. NMFS 

follows up with a reminder to the 

Governors in mid February and works 

closely with the governors’ offices and 

state representatives on the Councils to 

help in completing the packages. 

Council members, state representatives 

and governors’ offices are very aware of 

upcoming Council seat vacancies, and 

earlier notification is not likely to solve 

the problem of late nomination package 

submissions. NMFS does provide a 

public list of nominees once all 

nominees have completed an initial 

vetting. 

Comment 20: One letter suggested 

that NMFS require each nomination 

package to include a letter from the 

nominee to the governor requesting to 

serve on the Council. 

Response: NMFS concurs that it 

would be helpful to have written 

acknowledgement from nominees 

acknowledging their nomination and 

their commitment to serve on the 

Council if appointed by the Secretary. 

This suggestion will be added to the 

requirements of the nomination 

materials submitted to the governors 

and/or the nominees rather than in this 

regulation. 

Comment 21: One commenter 

suggested that NMFS should specify 

how governors can replace nominees 

who turn out to be unqualified or 

unsuitable for appointment. 

Response: The current regulations at 

50 CFR 600.215(e) state that governors 

should submit a list of at least three 

qualified nominees for each open seat. 

In the event that a preferred nominee is 

deemed unsuitable or unqualified, an 

alternate will be selected from the list 

submitted by the governor. Under 

section 302(b)(2)(C), if the Secretary 

determines that any individual is not 

qualified, the Secretary shall notify the 

appropriate Governor of that 

determination. The Governor shall then 

submit a revised list or resubmit the 

original list with an additional 

explanation of the qualifications of the 

individual in question. An individual is 

not eligible for appointment by the 

Secretary until that individual complies 

with the applicable financial disclosure 

requirements under section 302(k). 

Comment 22: One respondent noted 

support for including the oath of office 

for Council members in the rule. 

Response: NMFS acknowledges the 

comment. The oath of office is 

unchanged in this final rule. 

Comment 23: In the supplementary 

proposed rule, a heading at 50 CFR 

600.235(a) lists ‘‘advocacy’’ and 

‘‘lobbying’’ as types of reportable 

financial interest relationships, yet the 

definitions in the proposed rule text do 

not include references to advocacy or 

lobbying. The definition should be 

updated to indicate the types of income 

stemming from advocacy and lobbying 

that must be disclosed by affected 

individuals. 

Response: Both proposed rules 

referred to the existing rule, so changes 

proposed in the first proposed rule did 

not appear in the second proposed rule. 

In this final rule, the proposed changes 

from both proposed rules have been 

adopted and consolidated. NMFS 

considers any income derived from 

lobbying or advocacy to be disclosable. 

Therefore, NMFS did not specify the 

types of income as it would be too 

limiting on what is reportable. 

Comment 24: Three Councils 

commented on the proposed new 

regulations regarding lobbying by 

Council members, staff, and contractors. 

Two called for clarification on how the 

rule bears on interactions between 

Council members/staff and the 

executive branch, particularly as regards 

a Council’s obligations under the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act to advise and 

direct the Secretary of Commerce and to 

consult with other agencies on essential 

fish habitat. A third Council and an 

ENGO suggested that NMFS specify 

how the new regulations differ from 

existing regulations on lobbying and 

provide greater clarity with regard to 

specific prohibited activities. 

Response: The regulations regarding 

lobbying make no change from previous 

law or guidance, but serve to provide 

some general direction and emphasis on 

this matter. The rule has no effect on the 

Council’s interactions with NMFS and 

other agencies pursuant to a Council’s 

obligations under the MagnusonStevens Act. Nor does the rule affect 

Council interaction with NMFS 

regarding Council administration, 

budget, and planning. The regulations 

do highlight the pre-existing limits 

regarding the Councils’ interaction with 

Congress by specifically prohibiting 

attempts to influence the introduction 

and content of legislation. 

Comment 25: One ENGO addressed 

the subject of Council member conflicts 

of interest and recusal in two separate 

letters. The commenter suggested that 

voluntary recusal is insufficient and that 

NMFS establish mandatory 

requirements for Council members to 

recuse themselves from discussion and 

voting when they have interests likely to 

be directly affected by the outcome of 

the vote. The ENGO suggested that noncompliance with the recusal 

requirement should be penalized and 

the subject vote should be vacated. 

Response: While NMFS acknowledges 

the commenter’s concern, we believe 

existing regulations and penalties are 

sufficient. Existing regulations at 50 

C.F.R. § 600.235(c)(1) require that an 

affected individual may not vote on any 

Council decision that would have a 

significant and predictable effect on a 

financial interest disclosed in his/her 

report. Paragraph (i) of the same section 

states that it is unlawful for an affected 

individual to knowingly and willfully 

fail to disclose, or to falsely disclose, 

any financial interest as required by this 

section, or to knowingly vote on a 

Council decision in violation of this 

section. In addition to the penalties 

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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 59147 

applicable under the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, a violation of this provision 

removes that person from the exemption 

from 18 U.S.C. 208, the general federal 

conflict of interest statute, and may 

result in criminal prosecution. This may 

also result in removal of the affected 

individual from Council membership. 

Comment 26: An ENGO stated its 

support for the requirement to have 

Council members identify their affected 

financial interests when recusing 

themselves. Further, they called for a 

requirement to have the recusals and the 

stated affected financial interests 

included in the official public record of 

the meeting. 

Response: NMFS agrees that Council 

minutes must record when member 

recuse themselves and the reasons for 

that recusal, however no changes are 

made to the regulations. Since a Council 

member must state the reason for a 

recusal as noted at § 600.235(d), it 

follows that the Council minutes must 

reflect that. Further, Statements of 

financial interest are already a matter of 

record and available at Council 

meetings as noted at § 600.235(b)(3). 

Comment 27: An ENGO called for all 

votes made by each Council member to 

be included in the official public record 

of the meetings. 

Response: NMFS does not agree that 

all votes by a Council need a roll call 

vote. Motions and the votes taken on 

them are already required to be in the 

minutes under Roberts Rules of Order, 

as practiced by all Councils. Not all 

votes taken by a Council require a roll 

call and a specific record of each 

member’s vote. Voting in accordance 

with Robert’s Rules of Order may take 

several forms. A Council member may 

call for a vote by roll call, in which case 

each member’s vote is recorded. This is 

the usual case for important or 

contentious votes. Other forms of 

voting, i.e., a hand vote, may not result 

in a record of voting by each individual 

member, but by a count. A voice vote 

may be taken when the issue is more 

routine, i.e., motion to adjourn. Some 

votes, such as those for officers, may be 

by secret ballot. 

Comment 28: A letter from ENGOs 

expressed concern that the revised 

guidelines regarding conflict of interest 

might be construed to preclude an 

ENGO’s representative on a Council 

from voting. The respondent argues that 

NMFS should make a distinction 

between representatives of ENGOs and 

those from industry as regards the 

financial stake consequent to a Council 

vote. Employment in an ENGO alone 

should not be grounds for determining 

a conflict of interests exists. 

Response: NMFS concurs with this 

interpretation of the conflict of interest 

guidelines. The condition of being 

employed by an ENGO should in itself 

not be grounds for a Council member’s 

recusal, unless it is reasonable to 

conclude that the outcome of the vote 

may have a significant and predictable 

effect on the financial interests of the 

member. No changes to the regulations 

are necessary. 

Comment 29: A representative of an 

industry association commented that 

SSC members should be subjected to the 

same recusal guidelines as Council 

members. 

Response: Magnuson-Stevens Act 

considers SSC members to be ‘‘affected 

individuals’’ and as such specifies 

certain provisions under section 302(j), 

‘‘Disclosure of Financial Interest and 

Recusal,’’ apply to SSC members. The 

Magnuson-Stevens Act does not specify 

that subparagraph (j)(7), which requires 

recusal from Council votes under 

certain circumstances, applies to SSC 

members. NMFS has not set forth 

financial recusal requirements for SSC 

members in this final rule; however, 

Councils may establish local procedures 

for its committees and advisory groups 

that would call on members to 

announce their financial interests in the 

subject matter of the proceedings. 

Comment 30: A Council suggested 

that the consequence of an SSC member 

not completing the financial disclosure 

form should be stated in the rule. 

Response: The consequences of an 

affected individual’s falsifying or failing 

to complete the financial disclosure 

form are specified in 50 CFR 235(i). It 

is unlawful for an affected individual to 

knowingly and willfully fail to disclose, 

or to falsely disclose, any financial 

interest as required. Consequences of an 

SSC member’s non-compliance with the 

requirement to submit a correct, 

complete, and current financial 

disclosure form may include removal 

from the SSC, censure by the Council, 

and civil prosecution for falsifying 

information in an official form, subject 

to penalties under the MagnusonStevens Act and 18 U.S.C. 208 conflict 

of interest guidelines. 

Comment 31: Several commenters 

noted the inadequacy of NOAA’s 

current forms for disclosing one’s 

financial interests. The form is awkward 

for those who are not employed in the 

fishing industry, and it does not 

accommodate reporting on all of the 

interests addressed under the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act. One commenter 

provided very detailed suggestions for 

revising the form. 

Response: NMFS acknowledges the 

need to update the financial disclosure 

form. A new form is being drafted and 

will be submitted for clearance through 

the procedures of the Paperwork 

Reduction Act subject to the outcome of 

this rule. Under these procedures a 

notice requesting comments on the draft 

form will be published in the Federal 

Register in the fall of 2010. 

Comment 32: An ENGO supports the 

requirement that Council members 

update their financial disclosures 

annually. 

Response: NMFS concurs with this 

current requirement. 

Comment 33: Several respondents 

commented on the types of income and 

the sources of income that must be 

disclosed by affected individuals. An 

industry association representative and 

the SBA called on NMFS to require 

disclosure of any grants or other 

financial interests held by any SSC 

member, particularly where the issue is 

of concern to the management process. 

Further, the term ‘‘financial interest’’ 

should be broadened and clarified to 

include any income, grant, or other 

monetary or in-kind remuneration 

received by any of the persons or 

entities from any organization seeking to 

influence the decisions of any Council 

for which the SSC provides advice. 

Response: NMFS is revising the 

financial disclosure form and will 

provide instructions that make clear 

what sources and types of income are 

reportable. 

Comment 34: Two letters from ENGOs 

supported the proposed requirement for 

affected individuals to disclose 

employment by subsidiaries and 

associates of entities that may be 

affected by Council decisions. An 

industry association noted that such 

business relationships may not be 

knowable to the affected individual. The 

industry association suggested that this 

provision not be implemented until 

further deliberation of the implications 

of the provision and the breadth of its 

applicability. 

Response: NMFS is revising the 

financial disclosure form and will 

provide instructions that make clear 

what sort of business relationships will 

be reportable. NMFS will specify in this 

final rule that parent entities and 

subsidiaries of the entity providing 

compensation to the affected individual 

will have to be listed on the form if the 

entities are involved in regional 

fisheries under the jurisdiction of the 

subject Council. 

Comment 35:A respondent suggested 

that NMFS rephrase 50 CFR 

600.235(c)(2) to clarify existing 

regulations that currently can be read as 

treating IFQ-managed fisheries 

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differently from others for determining 

when recusal is required. 

Response: NMFS concurs with the 

comment and has revised the sentence 

as suggested to clarify that holding any 

percentage of IFQ is not dispositive of 

the question of whether a Council 

decision will have a ‘‘significant and 

predictable effect on a financial interest’’ 

requiring recusal. Rather, the percentage 

IFQ held will be used to assess the 

relative financial interests of the 

Council member. 

Comment 36: A letter from ENGOs 

expressed the concern that background 

investigations would not be conducted 

for all nominees to a Council seat, but 

only for those appointed to the Council. 

The ENGOs called for a requirement for 

all individuals nominated for a Council 

seat to disclose any prior felony 

convictions as part of the nomination 

packages submitted to the Secretary, 

and in so doing, helping to avoid 

removal of an appointed Council 

member when prior felonies are 

discovered as the security assurances 

are completed. 

Response: NMFS does not agree that 

background investigations are needed 

for all nominees prior to their 

appointment. Reviews by the governors 

and enforcement checks by NMFS have 

been found to be adequate for initial 

selections. Appointments conditional 

upon a favorable background 

investigation will ensure that only 

suitable appointments are made. The 

additional work required by the 

nominee and by the agency 

investigating the information for 

background investigations is costly and 

time consuming, resulting in few or no 

differences in appointments. 

NMFS conducts initial vetting and 

enforcement checks of nominees in 

which most issues that would affect a 

nominee’s ability to serve are 

discovered. It is expected that governors 

will conduct some level of background 

and suitability review before 

nominating individuals to the Council 

per Magnuson-Stevens Act 

requirements. A past felony conviction 

may be disqualifying. Further, the 

background investigation forms require 

disclosure of past criminal history. 

Failure to report such matters truthfully 

and fully would be grounds for an 

unfavorable background check. 

Comment 37: A respondent stated 

support for making final Council 

appointments conditional upon 

favorable background investigation and 

noted that NMFS should specify what 

circumstances would result in an 

unfavorable background investigation 

triggering revocation of Council 

membership. 

Response: NMFS agrees that final 

Council appointments are contingent 

upon a favorable background check. 

This requirement is retained in the final 

rule. While it would be inappropriate, 

because of national security 

considerations, to list all criteria that 

would be cause for disapproval, some of 

the most obvious reasons for an 

unfavorable background investigation 

are noted in the response to Comment 

36, above. Background investigations 

explore a great variety of information 

about the nominee and a favorable 

check indicates that the person is 

acceptable as an employee of the United 

States. Finally, background 

investigations are confidential, and 

reasons for determining a nominee is 

unsuitable for appointment will not be 

disclosed to the public. 

Comment 38: Two respondents 

addressed the requirement for new 

Council members to attend training. 

One called for NMFS to provide training 

materials to nominated members before 

their swearing-in. The other suggested 

that the training be required of veteran 

members and Council staffs and that the 

subject matter should include 

innovations in fisheries science in 

addition to legal and procedural 

matters. 

Response: The Magnuson-Stevens Act 

requires that training be provided to 

newly appointed members; therefore, 

they receive top priority for training 

resources in order to ensure NMFS is 

compliant with the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. NMFS has made training available 

to veteran members and staff subject to 

availability of space and funding. NMFS 

posts all past training materials on the 

Internet and sent training materials to 

Council nominees prior to swearing-in 

in 2010 and will do so in the future. 

NMFS also received comments on a 

number of other topics that are not 

addressed in the proposed or final rule. 

Subjects discussed in these comments 

included the length of NEPA 

documents, diversity of representation 

of sectors in Council membership, 

NMFS’s role in overseeing the Council 

and approving its decisions, the status 

of overfishing relative to the quality of 

management provided by the Councils, 

procedural transparency, and standards 

for Council websites. NMFS takes notes 

of all these comments, but will not 

address these matters further, as they 

are not relevant to the subjects 

addressed in this particular rulemaking. 

Changes from the Proposed Rule 

In § 600.10, the definitions for 

‘‘advisory panel (AP)’’ and ‘‘fishing 

industry advisory committee (FIAC)’’ 

were retained. As noted in the response 

to Comment 1, Council practice has 

made little distinction between the two 

types of advisory group, therefore, this 

final rule requires that the section of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act under which the 

panel or committee or other group was 

formed be identified. 

In § 600.10, the definition for 

‘‘Regional Administrator’’ has been 

further revised by removing the 

reference to the previous title of 

‘‘Regional Director’’, as this title is no 

longer in use. 

In § 600.133, paragraph (b) is moved 

to a new § 600.134. Paragraph (c) 

reserved for peer review is removed, as 

peer review will be addressed in the 

National Standard Guideline 2 final 

rule, codified at § 600.315. Paragraphs 

(a)(1)–(a)(4) are redesignated as 

paragraphs (a)–(d). 

A new § 600.134 is added to explain 

that SCC and AP members may be 

eligible to receive stipends. State marine 

fisheries agencies are defined as 

including any state or tribal agency that 

has conservation, management, or 

enforcement responsibility for any 

marine fishery resources. 

In § 600.135, the wording of 

paragraphs (a), (c), and (d) is revised to 

clarify that all committees of each 

Council must follow the procedures of 

the section. Committees do not include 

groups that consist of only Council staff 

and Federal employees. 

In § 600.150(b), the regulation has 

been revised to require pertinent 

documents to be on each Council’s 

Internet site, with alternative methods 

of retrieval for specific documents. The 

words ‘‘to the extent practicable’’ have 

been removed. 

In § 600.215(e), in the introductory 

language, the wording regarding receipt 

of the nomination packages is revised to 

reinstate and clarify the requirement 

that nomination packages must be 

received by March 15 each year. The 

language is carried forward to paragraph 

(e)(2). This is made possible by a change 

to § 600.240 that now requires only 

persons appointed as Council members 

to get security assurances instead of all 

nominees, reducing time and 

administrative burden. 

In § 600.235, the definition of 

‘‘Financial interest in harvesting, 

processing, lobbying, advocacy, or 

marketing’’ is revised to clarify in what 

entities a Council member must declare 

a financial interest. The language is 

revised by changing ‘‘any subsidiary of 

such entities’’ to the following: 

‘‘employment with any entity that has 

any percentage ownership in or by 

another entity’’. 

In § 600.235(c), the language is 

clarified to explain that the percentage 

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of an affected individual’s percentage 

holdings in an IFQ is used to determine 

the individual’s financial interest in a 

fishery, since this percentage can be 

directly related to total financial 

benefits in the fishery. 

In § 600.240, the requirement for 

background investigations to be 

reinitiated every 5 years for serving 

members is rescinded. This requirement 

matches current requirements for 

Federal employees requiring the same 

level of background investigation. 

Classification 

The Acting Director, Office of 

Sustainable Fisheries, NMFS, 

determined that this final rule is 

necessary for the conservation and 

management of the fisheries and that it 

is consistent with the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act and other applicable 

laws. 

This final rule has been determined to 

be not significant for purposes of 

Executive Order 12866. 

The Chief Counsel for Regulation of 

the Department of Commerce certified 

to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration during 

the proposed rule stage that this action 

would not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. The factual basis for is 

published in the proposed rule and is 

not repeated here. No comments were 

received regarding this certification. As 

a result, a regulatory flexibility analysis 

was not required and none has been 

prepared. 

This final rule contains a collectionof-information requirement subject to 

the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) and 

which has been approved by OMB 

under Control Number 0649–0192. 

Public reporting burden for completing 

and submitting the Statement of 

Financial Interests, Form 88–195, is 

estimated to average 35 minutes per 

response, including the time for 

reviewing instructions, searching 

existing data sources, gathering and 

maintaining the data needed, and 

completing and reviewing the collection 

of information. Send comments 

regarding this burden estimate, or any 

other aspect of this data collection, 

including suggestions for reducing the 

burden, to NMFS (see ADDRESSES) and 

by e-mail to OIRA 

Submission@omb.eop.gov or fax to (202) 

395–7285. 

Notwithstanding any other provision 

of the law, no person is required to 

respond to, and no person shall be 

subject to penalty for failure to comply 

with, a collection of information subject 

to the requirements of the PRA, unless 

that collection of information displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 600 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Confidential business 

information, Fisheries, Fishing, Fishing 

vessels, Foreign relations, 

Intergovernmental relations, Penalties, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Statistics. 

Dated: September 21, 2010. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator For 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

■ For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, NMFS amends 50 CFR part 

600 as follows: 

PART 600—MAGNUSON-STEVENS 

ACT PROVISIONS 

1. The authority citation for part 600 

continues to read: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 561 and 16 U.S.C. 1801 

et seq. 

■ 2. In § 600.10, add definitions for 

‘‘Advisory panel (AP),’’ and ‘‘Fishing 

industry advisory committee (FIAC)’’ in 

alphabetical order; and revise the 

definitions for ‘‘Region’’, ‘‘Regional 

Administrator’’, and ‘‘Science and 

Research Director’’ to read as follows: 

§ 600.10 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

Advisory panel (AP) means a 

committee formed, selected, and 

formally designated as a MagnusonStevens Act Section 302(g)(2) advisory 

panel by the Council’s Statement of 

organization, practices, and procedures 

(SOPP), or by a formal charge to the 

committee made by the chair and 

recorded in the Council’s minutes, to 

assist it in carrying out its functions. An 

AP may include individuals who are not 

members of the Council. 

* * * * * 

Fishing industry advisory committee 

(FIAC) means an advisory group formed 

and selected by a regional fishery 

management council under the 

authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act 

section 302(g)(3)(A) and formally 

designated in the Council’s SOPP or by 

a formal charge to the FIAC made by the 

chair and recorded in the Council’s 

minutes. A FIAC is not an ‘‘advisory 

panel’’ as defined under this section. 

* * * * * 

Region means one of six NMFS 

Regional Offices responsible for 

administering the management and 

development of marine resources of the 

United States in their respective 

geographical regions. 

Regional Administrator means the 

Administrator of one of the six NMFS 

Regions described in Table 1 to 

§ 600.502, or a designee. 

* * * * * 

Science and Research Director (also 

referred to as ‘‘Center Director’’) means 

the Director of one of the six NMFS 

Fisheries Science Centers described in 

Table 1 to § 600.502, or a designee. 

* * * * * 

■ 3. In § 600.15: 

a. Redesignate paragraphs (a)(9) 

through (a)(15) as paragraphs (a)(11) 

through (a)(17), respectively. 

b. Redesignate paragraphs (a)(5) 

through (a)(8) as paragraphs (a)(6) 

through (a)(9), respectively. 

c. Add new paragraphs (a)(5) and 

(a)(10) to read as follows: 

§ 600.15 Other acronyms. 

(a) * * * 

(5) CCC–Council coordination 

committee 

* * * * * 

(10) FIAC–Fishing industry advisory 

committee 

* * * * * 

■ 4. In § 600.105, revise paragraph (b) to 

read as follows: 

§ 600.105 Intercouncil boundaries. 

* * * * * 

(b) Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic 

Councils. The boundary begins at the 

seaward boundary between the States of 

Virginia and North Carolina (36°33′01.0′′ 

N. lat), and proceeds due east to the 

point of intersection with the outward 

boundary of the EEZ as specified in the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act. 

* * * * * 

■ 5. In § 600.115, revise paragraph (b) to 

read as follows: 

§ 600.115 Statement of organization, 

practices, and procedures (SOPP). 

* * * * * 

(b) Amendments to current SOPPs 

must be consistent with the guidelines 

in this section, subpart C of this part, 

the terms and conditions of the 

cooperative agreement (the funding 

agreement between the Council and 

NOAA that establishes Council funding 

and mandates specific requirements 

regarding the use of those funds), the 

statutory requirements of the MagnusonStevens Act, and other applicable law. 

Upon approval of a Council’s SOPP 

amendment by the Secretary, a notice of 

availability must be published in the 

Federal Register that includes an 

Internet address from which the 

amended SOPP may be read and 

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which the public may write to request 

copies. 

* * * * * 

■ 6. Section 600.117 is added to subpart 

B to read as follows: 

§ 600.117 Council coordination committee 

(CCC). 

(a) The Councils may establish a 

Council coordination committee (CCC) 

consisting of the chairs, vice chairs, and 

executive directors of each of the eight 

Councils or other Council members or 

staff, in order to discuss issues of 

relevance to all Councils. 

(b) The CCC is not subject to the 

requirements of the Federal Advisory 

Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 2). 

Procedures for announcing and 

conducting open and closed meetings of 

the CCC shall be in accordance with 

§ 600.135. 

■ 7. In § 600.125, revise paragraph (a) to 

read as follows: 

§ 600.125 Budgeting, funding, and 

accounting. 

(a) Council grant activities are 

governed by 15 CFR part 14 (Uniform 

Administrative Requirements for Grants 

and Agreements with Institutions of 

Higher Education, Hospitals, and other 

Non-Profit and Commercial 

Organizations), 2 CFR part 230 (Cost 

Principles for Non-Profit Organizations), 

15 CFR part 14 (Audit Requirements for 

Institutions of Higher Education and 

Other Non-Profit Organizations), and 

the terms and conditions of the 

cooperative agreement. 

* * * * * 

■ 8. Section 600.133 is added to subpart 

B to read as follows: 

§ 600.133 Scientific and Statistical 

Committee (SSC). 

(a) Each Council shall establish, 

maintain, and appoint the members of 

an SSC to assist it in the development, 

collection, evaluation, and peer review 

of such statistical, biological, economic, 

social, and other scientific information 

as is relevant to such Council’s 

development and amendment of any 

fishery management plan. 

(b) Each SSC shall provide its Council 

ongoing scientific advice for fishery 

management decisions, including 

recommendations for acceptable 

biological catch, preventing overfishing, 

maximum sustainable yield, and 

achieving rebuilding targets, and reports 

on stock status and health, bycatch, 

habitat status, social and economic 

impacts of management measures, and 

sustainability of fishing practices. 

(c) Members appointed by the 

Councils to the SSCs shall be Federal 

employees, State employees, 

academicians, or independent experts 

and shall have strong scientific or 

technical credentials and experience. 

(d) An SSC shall hold its meetings in 

conjunction with the meetings of the 

Council, to the extent practicable. 

■ 8a. Section 600.134 is added to read 

as follows: 

§ 600.134 Stipends. 

Stipends are available, subject to the 

availability of appropriations, to 

members of committees formally 

designated as SSCs under Sec. 

301(g)(1)(a) or APs under Sec. 302(g)(2) 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Act who are 

not employed by the Federal 

Government or a State marine fisheries 

agency. For the purposes of this section, 

a state marine fisheries agency includes 

any state or tribal agency that has 

conservation, management, or 

enforcement responsibility for any 

marine fishery resource. 

■ 9. In § 600.135, paragraphs (a), (b), (c), 

(d), and (e) are revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 600.135 Meeting procedures. 

(a) Regular meetings. Public notice of 

a regular meeting, including the meeting 

agenda, of each Council, CCC, SSC, AP, 

FIAC, or other committees established 

under Magnuson-Stevens Act, Sec. 

302(g), must be published in the Federal 

Register at least 14 calendar days prior 

to the meeting date. Appropriate notice 

by any means that will result in wide 

publicity in the major fishing ports of 

the region (and in other major fishing 

ports having a direct interest in the 

affected fishery) must be given. E-mail 

notification and website postings alone 

are not sufficient. The published agenda 

of a regular meeting may not be 

modified to include additional matters 

for Council action without public notice 

given at least 14 calendar days prior to 

the meeting date, unless such 

modification is necessary to address an 

emergency under section 305(c) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, in which case 

public notice shall be given 

immediately. Drafts of all regular public 

meeting notices must be received by 

NMFS headquarters office at least 23 

calendar days before the first day of the 

regular meeting. Councils must ensure 

that all public meetings are accessible to 

persons with disabilities, and that the 

public can make timely requests for 

language interpreters or other auxiliary 

aids at public meetings. 

(b) Emergency meetings. Drafts of 

emergency public notices must be 

transmitted to the NMFS headquarters 

office at least 5 working days prior to 

the first day of the emergency meeting. 

Although notices of and agendas for 

emergency meetings are not required to 

be published in the Federal Register, 

notices of emergency meetings must be 

promptly announced through any 

means that will result in wide publicity 

in the major fishing ports of the region. 

E-mail notification and website postings 

alone are not sufficient. 

(c) Closed meetings. After proper 

notification by any means that will 

result in wide publicity in the major 

fishing ports within the region and, 

having included in the notification the 

time and place of the meeting and the 

reason for closing any meeting or 

portion thereof to the public, a Council, 

CCC, SSC, AP, FIAC, or other 

committees: 

(1) Must close any meeting, or portion 

thereof, that concerns information 

bearing a national security 

classification. 

(2) May close any meeting, or portion 

thereof, that concerns matters or 

information pertaining to national 

security, employment matters, or 

briefings on litigation in which the 

Council is interested. 

(3) May close any meeting, or portion 

thereof, that concerns internal 

administrative matters other than 

employment. Examples of other internal 

administrative matters include 

candidates for appointment to AP, SSC, 

and other subsidiary bodies and public 

decorum or medical conditions of 

members of a Council or its subsidiary 

bodies. In deciding whether to close a 

portion of a meeting to discuss internal 

administrative matters, the Council, 

CCC, SSC, AP, FIAC, or other 

committees should consider not only 

the privacy interests of individuals 

whose conduct or qualifications may be 

discussed, but also the interest of the 

public in being informed of Council 

operations and actions. 

(d) Without the notice required by 

paragraph (c) of this section, a Council, 

CCC, SSC, AP, FIAC, or other 

committees may briefly close a portion 

of a meeting to discuss employment or 

other internal administrative matters. 

The closed portion of a meeting that is 

closed without notice may not exceed 

two hours. 

(e) Before closing a meeting or portion 

thereof, the Council, CCC, SSC, AP, 

FIAC, or other committees should 

consult with the NOAA Office of 

General Counsel to ensure that the 

matters to be discussed fall within the 

exceptions to the requirement to hold 

public meetings described in paragraph 

(c) of this section. 

* * * * * 

■ 10. Section 600.140 is added to 

subpart B to read as follows: 

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§ 600.140 Procedure for proposed 

regulations. 

(a) Each Council must establish a 

written procedure for proposed 

regulations consistent with section 

303(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. 

The procedure must describe how the 

Council deems proposed regulations 

necessary or appropriate for the 

purposes of implementing a fishery 

management plan or a plan amendment, 

or making modifications to regulations 

implementing a fishery management 

plan or plan amendment. In addition, 

the procedure must describe how the 

Council submits proposed regulations to 

the Secretary. 

(b) The Councils must include the 

procedure for proposed regulations in 

its SOPP, see § 600.115, or other written 

documentation that is available to the 

public. 

■ 11. In § 600.150, add paragraph (b) to 

read as follows: 

§ 600.150 Disposition of records. 

* * * * * 

(b) Each Council is required to 

maintain documents generally available 

to the public on its Internet site. 

Documents for posting must include: 

fishery management plans and their 

amendments for the fisheries for which 

the Council is responsible, drafts of 

fishery management plans and plan 

amendments under consideration, 

analysis of actions the Council has 

under review, minutes or official reports 

of past meetings of the Council and its 

committees, materials provided by the 

Council staff to Council members in 

preparation for meetings, and other 

Council documents of interest to the 

public. For documents too large to 

maintain on the Web site, not available 

electronically, or seldom requested, the 

Council must provide copies of the 

documents for viewing at the Council 

office during regular business hours or 

may provide the documents through the 

mail. 

■ 12. Section 600.207 is added to 

subpart C to read as follows: 

§ 600.207 Pacific Fishery Management 

Council Tribal Indian representative and 

alternate. 

(a) The tribal Indian representative to 

the Pacific Fishery Management Council 

may designate an alternate during the 

period of the representative’s term. The 

designee must be knowledgeable 

concerning tribal rights, tribal law, and 

the fishery resources of the geographical 

area concerned. 

(b) New or revised designations of an 

alternate by the tribal Indian 

representative must be delivered in 

writing to the appropriate NMFS 

Regional Administrator and the Council 

chair at least 48 hours before the 

designee may vote on any issue before 

the Council. In that written document, 

the tribal Indian representative must 

indicate how the designee meets the 

knowledge requirements under 

paragraph (a) of this section. 

■ 13. In § 600.210 revise paragraph (c) to 

read as follows: 

§ 600.210 Terms of Council members. 

* * * * * 

(c) A member who has completed 

three consecutive terms will be eligible 

for appointment to another term one full 

year after completion of the third 

consecutive term. 

■ 14. In § 600.215, redesignate 

paragraphs (c), (d), and (e) as paragraphs 

(d), (e), and (f), respectively; add 

paragraph (c); and revise paragraph 

(b)(5) and the newly redesignated 

paragraph (e) to read as follows: 

§ 600.215 Council nomination and 

appointment procedures. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(5) When the terms of both an 

obligatory member and an at-large 

member expire concurrently, the 

Governor of the state holding the 

expiring obligatory seat may indicate 

that the nominees who were not 

selected for appointment to the 

obligatory seat may be considered for 

appointment to an at-large seat, 

provided that the resulting total number 

of nominees submitted by that governor 

for the expiring at-large seat is no fewer 

than three different nominees. 

* * * * * 

(c) Nominees to the Gulf of Mexico 

Fishery Management Council. (1) The 

Governors of States submitting 

nominees to the Secretary for 

appointment to the Gulf of Mexico 

Fishery Management Council shall 

include: 

(i) At least one nominee each from the 

commercial, recreational, and charter 

fishing sectors, except that an 

individual who owns or operates a fish 

farm outside the United States shall not 

be considered to be a representative of 

the commercial or recreational sector; 

and 

(ii) At least one other individual who 

is knowledgeable regarding the 

conservation and management of 

fisheries resources in the jurisdiction of 

the Council. 

(2) Notwithstanding the requirements 

of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, 

if the Secretary determines that the list 

of names submitted by the Governor 

does not meet the requirements of 

paragraph (c)(1) of this section, the 

Secretary shall: 

(i) Publish a notice in the Federal 

Register asking the residents of that 

State to submit the names and pertinent 

biographical data of individuals who 

would meet the requirements of this 

section that were not met for 

appointment to the Council; and 

(ii) Add the name of any qualified 

individual submitted by the public who 

meets the requirements of this section 

that were not met to the list of names 

submitted by the Governor. 

(3) The requirements of this paragraph 

(c) shall expire at the end of fiscal year 

2012, meaning through September 30, 

2012. 

* * * * * 

(e) Nomination deadlines. 

Nomination packages (governors’ letters 

and completed nomination kits) must be 

forwarded by express mail under a 

single mailing to arrive at the address 

specified by the Assistant Administrator 

by March 15. For appointments outside 

the normal cycle, the Secretary will 

provide a deadline for receipt of 

nominations to the affected Council and 

state governors. 

(1) Obligatory seats. (i) The Governor 

of the state for which the term of an 

obligatory seat is expiring should 

submit the names of at least three 

qualified individuals to fill that seat by 

the March 15 deadline. The Secretary 

will appoint to the Pacific Fishery 

Management Council a representative of 

an Indian tribe from a list of no fewer 

than three individuals submitted by the 

tribal Indian governments. 

(ii) If the Governor or tribal Indian 

governments fail to provide a 

nomination letter and at least three 

complete nomination kits by March 15, 

the obligatory seat will remain vacant 

until all required information has been 

received and processed and the 

Secretary has made the appointment. 

(2) At-large seats. (i) If a Governor 

chooses to submit nominations for an atlarge seat, he/she must submit lists that 

contain at least three qualified nominees 

for each vacant seat. A nomination letter 

and a nomination kit for each qualified 

nominee must be forwarded by express 

mail under a single mailing to arrive at 

the address specified by the Assistant 

Administrator by March 15. 

(ii) Nomination packages that are not 

substantially complete by March 15 may 

be returned to the nominating Governor. 

At-large members will be appointed 

from among the nominations submitted 

by the governors who complied with the 

nomination requirements. 

* * * * * 

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59152 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

■ 15. Section 600.220 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 600.220 Oath of office. 

As trustees of the nation’s fishery 

resources, all voting members must take 

an oath specified by the Secretary as 

follows: ‘‘I, [name of the person taking 

oath], as a duly appointed member of a 

Regional Fishery Management Council 

established under the MagnusonStevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act, hereby promise to 

conserve and manage the living marine 

resources of the United States of 

America by carrying out the business of 

the Council for the greatest overall 

benefit of the Nation. I recognize my 

responsibility to serve as a 

knowledgeable and experienced trustee 

of the Nation’s marine fisheries 

resources, being careful to balance 

competing private or regional interests, 

and always aware and protective of the 

public interest in those resources. I 

commit myself to uphold the 

provisions, standards, and requirements 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act and 

other applicable law, and shall conduct 

myself at all times according to the rules 

of conduct prescribed by the Secretary 

of Commerce. This oath is given freely 

and without mental reservation or 

purpose of evasion.’’ 

■ 16. In § 600.225 redesignate 

paragraphs (b)(2) through (b)(8) as 

paragraphs (b)(3) through (b)(9) 

respectively; and add a new paragraph 

(b)(2) to read as follows: 

§ 600.225 Rules of conduct. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(2) Council members, employees, and 

contractors must comply with the 

Federal Cost Principles Applicable to 

Regional Fishery Management Council 

Grants and Cooperative Agreements, 

especially with regard to lobbying, and 

other restrictions with regard to 

lobbying as specified in § 600.227 of this 

part. 

* * * * * 

■ 17. Section 600.227 is added to 

subpart C to read as follows: 

§ 600.227 Lobbying. 

(a) Council members, employees and 

contractors must comply with the 

requirements of 31 U.S.C. 1352 and 

Department of Commerce implementing 

regulations published at 15 CFR part 28, 

‘‘New Restrictions on Lobbying.’’ These 

provisions generally prohibit the use of 

Federal funds for lobbying the Executive 

or Legislative Branches of the Federal 

Government in connection with the 

award. Because the Councils receive in 

excess of $100,000 in Federal funding, 

the regulations mandate that the 

Councils must complete Form SF-LLL, 

‘‘Disclosure of Lobbying Activities,’’ 

regarding the use of non Federal funds 

for lobbying. The Form SF-LLL shall be 

submitted within 30 days following the 

end of the calendar quarter in which 

there occurs any event that requires 

disclosure or that materially affects the 

accuracy of the information contained 

in any disclosure form previously filed. 

The recipient must submit the Forms 

SF-LLL, including those received from 

subrecipients, contractors, and 

subcontractors, to the Grants Officer. 

(b) Council members, employees, and 

contractors must comply with the 

Federal Cost Principles Applicable to 

Regional Fishery Management Council 

Grants and Cooperative Agreements 

summarized as follows: 

(1) Title 2 CFR part 230 - Cost 

Principles for Nonprofit Organizations 

(OMB CircularA–122) is applicable to 

the Federal assistance awards issued to 

the Councils. 

(2) The purpose of the cost principles 

at 2 CFR part 230 is to define what costs 

can be paid on Federal awards issued to 

non-profit organizations. The regulation 

establishes both general principles and 

detailed items of costs. 

(3) Under 2 CFR part 230, costs for 

certain lobbying activities are 

unallowable as charges to Federal 

awards. These activities would include 

any attempts to influence: 

(i) The introduction of Federal or state 

legislation; 

(ii) The enactment or modification of 

any pending legislation by preparing, 

distributing, or using publicity or 

propaganda, or by urging members of 

the general public to contribute to or to 

participate in any demonstration, 

march, rally, fundraising drive, lobbying 

campaign, or letter writing or telephone 

campaign. 

(4) Generally, costs associated with 

providing a technical and factual 

presentation directly related to the 

performance of a grant, through hearing 

testimony, statements, or letters to 

Congress or a state legislature are 

allowable if made in response to a 

documented request. 

(5) Costs associated with lobbying to 

influence state legislation in order to 

reduce the cost or to avoid material 

impairment of the organization’s 

authority to perform the grant are also 

allowable. 

■ 18. In § 600.235: 

a. In paragraph (a), add paragraph (3) 

to the definition of ‘‘Affected 

individual’’, remove the definition of 

‘‘Financial interest in harvesting, 

processing, or marketing’’, and add 

definitions for ‘‘Financial Interest Form’’ 

and ‘‘Financial interest in harvesting, 

processing, lobbying, advocacy, or 

marketing’’ in alphabetical order. 

b. Revise paragraph (b). 

c. Revise paragraph (c)(2) and add 

paragraph (c)(4).‘ 

d. Revise paragraphs (d), (h), and (i). 

The revisions and additions read as 

follows: 

§ 600.235 Financial disclosure. 

(a) * * * 

Affected individual * * * 

(3) A member of an SSC shall be 

treated as an affected individual for the 

purposes of paragraphs (b)(1), (b)(5) 

through (b)(7), and (i) of this section. 

* * * * * 

Financial Interest Form means NOAA 

Form 88–195, ‘‘STATEMENT OF 

FINANCIAL INTERESTS For Use By 

Voting Members of, and Nominees to, 

the Regional Fishery Management 

Councils, and Members of the Scientific 

and Statistical Committee (SSC)’’ or 

such other form as the Secretary may 

prescribe. 

Financial interest in harvesting, 

processing, lobbying, advocacy, or 

marketing (1) includes: 

(i) Stock, equity, or other ownership 

interests in, or employment with, any 

company, business, fishing vessel, or 

other entity or employment with any 

entity that has any percentage 

ownership in or by another entity 

engaging in any harvesting, processing, 

lobbying, advocacy, or marketing 

activity in any fishery under the 

jurisdiction of the Council concerned; 

(ii) Stock, equity, or other ownership 

interests in, or employment with, any 

company or other entity or employment 

with any entity that has any percentage 

ownership in or by another entity that 

provides equipment or other services 

essential to harvesting, processing, 

lobbying, advocacy, or marketing 

activities in any fishery under the 

jurisdiction of the Council concerned, 

such as a chandler or a dock operation; 

(iii) Employment with, or service as 

an officer, director, or trustee of, an 

association whose members include 

companies, vessels, or other entities 

engaged in any harvesting, processing, 

lobbying, advocacy, or marketing 

activities, or companies or other entities 

providing services essential to 

harvesting, processing, lobbying, 

advocacy, or marketing activities in any 

fishery under the jurisdiction of the 

Council concerned; and 

(iv) Employment with an entity that 

has any percentage ownership in or by 

another entity providing consulting, 

legal, or representational services to any 

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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 59153 

entity engaging in, or providing 

equipment or services essential to 

harvesting, processing, lobbying, 

advocacy, or marketing activities in any 

fishery under the jurisdiction of the 

Council concerned, or to any association 

whose members include entities 

engaged in the activities described in 

paragraphs (1)(i) and (ii) of this 

definition; 

(2) Does not include stock, equity, or 

other ownership interests in, or 

employment with, an entity engaging in 

scientific fisheries research in any 

fishery under the jurisdiction of the 

Council concerned, unless it is covered 

under paragraph (1) of this definition. A 

financial interest in such entities is 

covered by 18 U.S.C. 208, the Federal 

conflict-of-interest statute. 

(b) Reporting. (1) The MagnusonStevens Act requires the disclosure of 

any financial interest in harvesting, 

processing, lobbying, advocacy, or 

marketing activity that is being, or will 

be, undertaken within any fishery over 

which the Council concerned has 

jurisdiction. An affected individual 

must disclose such financial interest 

held by that individual; the affected 

individual’s spouse, minor child, 

partner; or any organization (other than 

the Council) in which that individual is 

serving as an officer, director, trustee, 

partner, or employee. The information 

required to be reported must be 

disclosed on the Financial Interest Form 

(as defined in paragraph (a) of this 

section), or such other form as the 

Secretary may prescribe. 

(2) The Financial Interest Form must 

be filed by each nominee for Secretarial 

appointment to the Council with the 

Assistant Administrator by April 15 or, 

if nominated after March 15, one month 

after nomination by the Governor. A 

seated voting member appointed by the 

Secretary must file a Financial Interest 

Form with the Executive Director of the 

appropriate Council within 45 days of 

taking office; must file an update of his 

or her statement with the Executive 

Director of the appropriate Council 

within 30 days of the time any such 

financial interest is acquired or 

substantially changed by the affected 

individual or the affected individual’s 

spouse, minor child, partner, or any 

organization (other than the Council) in 

which that individual is serving as an 

officer, director, trustee, partner, or 

employee; and must update his or her 

form annually and file that update with 

the Executive Director of the 

appropriate Council by February 1 of 

each year, regardless of whether any 

information has changed on that form. 

(3) The Executive Director must, in a 

timely manner, provide copies of and 

updates to the Financial Interest Forms 

of appointed Council members to the 

NMFS Regional Administrator, the 

Regional Attorney who advises the 

Council, the Department of Commerce 

Assistant General Counsel for 

Administration, and the NMFS Office of 

Sustainable Fisheries. These completed 

Financial Interest Forms shall be kept 

on file in the office of the NMFS 

Regional Administrator and at the 

Council offices, and shall be made 

available for public inspection at such 

offices during normal office hours. In 

addition, the forms shall be made 

available at each Council meeting or 

hearing and shall be posted for 

download from the Internet on the 

Council’s website. 

(4) Councils must retain the Financial 

Interest Form for a Council member for 

at least 5 years after the expiration of 

that individual’s last term. 

(5) An individual being considered for 

appointment to an SSC must file the 

Financial Interest Form with the 

Regional Administrator for the 

geographic area concerned within 45 

days prior to appointment. A member of 

the SSC must file an update of his or her 

statement with the Regional 

Administrator for the geographic area 

concerned within 30 days of the time 

any such financial interest is acquired 

or substantially changed by the SSC 

member or the SSC member’s spouse, 

minor child, partner, or any 

organization (other than the Council) in 

which that individual is serving as an 

officer, director, trustee, partner, or 

employee; and must update his or her 

form annually and file that update with 

the Regional Administrator by February 

1 of each year. 

(6) An individual who serves as an 

SSC member to more than one Council 

shall file Financial Interest Forms with 

each Regional Administrator for the 

geographic areas concerned. 

(7) The Regional Administrator shall 

maintain on file the Financial Interest 

Forms of all SSC members for at least 

five years after the expiration of that 

individual’s term on the SSC. Such 

Forms are not subject to sections 

302(j)(5)(B) and (C) of the MagnusonStevens Act. 

(c) * * * 

(2) As used in this section, a Council 

decision will be considered to have a 

‘‘significant and predictable effect on a 

financial interest’’ if there is a close 

causal link between the decision and an 

expected and substantially 

disproportionate benefit to the financial 

interest in harvesting, processing, 

lobbying, advocacy, or marketing of any 

affected individual or the affected 

individual’s spouse, minor child, 

partner, or any organization (other than 

the Council) in which that individual is 

serving as an officer, director, trustee, 

partner, or employee, relative to the 

financial interests of other participants 

in the same gear type or sector of the 

fishery. The relative financial interests 

of the affected individual and other 

participants will be determined with 

reference to the most recent fishing year 

for which information is available. 

However, for fisheries in which IFQs are 

assigned, the percentage of IFQs 

assigned to the affected individual will 

be the determining factor. 

* * * * * 

(4) A member of an SSC is not subject 

to the restrictions on voting under this 

section. 

(d) Voluntary recusal. An affected 

individual who believes that a Council 

decision would have a significant and 

predictable effect on that individual’s 

financial interest disclosed under 

paragraph (b) of this section may, at any 

time before a vote is taken, announce to 

the Council an intent not to vote on the 

decision and identify the financial 

interest that would be affected. 

* * * * * 

(h) The provisions of 18 U.S.C. 208 

regarding conflicts of interest do not 

apply to an affected individual who is 

a voting member of a Council appointed 

by the Secretary, as described under 

section 302(j)(1)(A)(ii) of the MagnusonStevens Act, and who is in compliance 

with the requirements of this section for 

filing a financial disclosure report. The 

provisions of 18 U.S.C. 208 do not apply 

to a member of an SSC, unless that 

individual is an officer or employee of 

the United States or is otherwise 

covered by the requirements of 18 

U.S.C. 208. 

(i) It is unlawful for an affected 

individual to knowingly and willfully 

fail to disclose, or to falsely disclose, 

any financial interest as required by this 

section, or to knowingly vote on a 

Council decision in violation of this 

section. In addition to the penalties 

applicable under § 600.735, a violation 

of this provision may result in removal 

of the affected individual from Council 

or SSC membership. 

■ 19. In § 600.240, revise paragraph (a) 

to read as follows: 

§ 600.240 Security assurances. 

(a) DOC Office of Security will issue 

security assurances to Council members 

following completion of favorable 

background investigations. A Council 

member’s appointment is conditional 

until such time as the background 

investigation has been favorably 

adjudicated. The Secretary will revoke 

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59154 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 186 / Monday, September 27, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

the member’s appointment if that 

member receives an unfavorable 

background investigation. In instances 

in which Council members may need to 

discuss, at closed meetings, materials 

classified for national security purposes, 

the agency or individual (e.g., 

Department of State, U.S. Coast Guard) 

providing such classified information 

will be responsible for ensuring that 

Council members and other attendees 

have the appropriate security 

clearances. 

* * * * * 

■ 20. Section 600.250 is added to 

subpart C to read as follows: 

§ 600.250 Council member training. 

(a) The Secretary shall provide a 

training course covering a variety of 

topics relevant to matters before the 

Councils and shall make the training 

course available to all Council members 

and staff and staff from NMFS regional 

offices and science centers. To the 

extent resources allow, the Secretary 

will make the training available to 

Council committee and advisory panel 

members. 

(b) Council members appointed after 

January 12, 2007, shall, within one year 

of appointment, complete the training 

course developed by the Secretary. Any 

Council member who completed such a 

training course within 24 months of 

January 12, 2007, is considered to have 

met the training requirement of this 

section. 

[FR Doc. 2010–24222 Filed 9–24–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 100120036–0360–02] 

RIN 0648–XT99 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Black Sea Bass Fishery; 2010 

Black Sea Bass Specifications; 

Emergency Rule Extension; Correction 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; correction. 

SUMMARY: On July 7, 2010, NMFS 

published in the Federal Register a 

temporary rule to extend the emergency 

action to increase the 2010 black sea 

bass specifications. The preamble text of 

that rule incorrectly identified the 

revised commercial quota and 

recreational harvest limit (RHL) based 

on the increased 2010 black sea bass 

total allowable landings (TAL). This 

document corrects those values to 

ensure that they are consistent with the 

revised 2010 black sea bass 

specifications. 

DATES: Effective August 10, 2010, 

through December 31, 2010. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Sarah Heil, Fishery Management 

Specialist, (978) 281–9257. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A 

temporary rule to extend the emergency 

action to increase the 2010 black sea 

bass specifications was published in the 

Federal Register on July 7, 2010 (75 FR 

38935). On page 38935 of that rule, the 

commercial quota is incorrectly listed as 

1,813,000 lb (822 (mt), and the RHL is 

listed as 1,887,000 lb (856 mt). The 

corrected values for these specifications 

are as follows: The commercial quota is 

1,758,610 lb (798 mt) and the RHL is 

1,830,390 lb (830 mt). 

Classification 

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

Assistant Administrator (AA) for 

NOAA, Fisheries finds good cause to 

waive prior notice and opportunity for 

additional public comment for this 

action because any delay of this action 

would be contrary to the public interest. 

This rule corrects the commercial quota 

and RHL values published in the 

Federal Register on July 7, 2010 (75 FR 

38935), as part of the extension to the 

emergency rule to increase the 2010 

black sea bass specifications. The 

measures in the extension to the 

emergency rule, published in the 

Federal Register on July 7, 2010, were 

intended to be the same as those 

published in the initial emergency 

action on February 10, 2010 (75 FR 

6586). However, the extension to the 

emergency rule incorrectly identified 

the revised commercial quota and RHL 

values based on the increased 2010 

black sea bass TAL. To delay this 

correction notice would cause confusion 

over the revised 2010 black sea bass 

specifications because of the disparity 

between the revised specifications and 

the commercial quota and RHL values 

that were incorrectly identified in the 

extension to the emergency rule. 

Immediate publication of the corrected 

commercial quota and RHL will rectify 

any confusion on the revised 2010 black 

sea bass specifications. For the reasons 

provided above, the AA also finds good 

cause, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), to 

waive the 30-day delayed effective 

period for this correction. 

Because prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment are not required for 

this rule by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other 

law, the analytical requirements of the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601 

et seq., are inapplicable. 

This final rule is exempt from review 

under Executive Order 12866. 

Correction 

Accordingly, the final rule FR Doc. 

2010–16498, published on July 7, 2010 

(75 FR 38935), is corrected as follows: 

1. On page 38935, In the second 

column, in the first full paragraph, in 

the twentieth line, ‘‘1,813,000 lb (822 

mt),’’ is corrected to read ‘‘1,758,610 lb 

(798 mt),’’ and in the twenty-second 

line, ‘‘1,887,000 lb (856 mt),’’ is 

corrected to read ‘‘1,830,390 lb (830 

mt),’’. 

Dated: September 21, 2010. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2010–24219 Filed 9–24–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 0910051338–0151–02] 

RIN 0648–XZ07 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Northeast Multispecies 

Fishery; Trip Limit Reductions and 

Gear Modifications for the Common 

Pool Fishery 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason 

adjustment of landing limits and gear 

requirements. 

SUMMARY: This action decreases the 

landing limits for Gulf of Maine (GOM) 

cod to 100 lb (45.4 kg) per days-at-sea 

(DAS) up to 1000 lb (453.6 kg) per trip, 

Georges Bank (GB) yellowtail flounder 

to 100 lb (45.4 kg) per trip, and white 

hake to 100 lb (45.4 kg) per DAS up to 

500 lb (226.8 kg) per trip; expands the 

trawl gear restriction in the U.S./Canada 

Management Area to include the entire 

Western U.S./Canada Area; and 

authorizes the use of the rope separator 

trawl in the Western U.S./Canada Area 

for NE multispecies vessels fishing in 

the common pool for the remainder of 

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