4942 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 17 / Wednesday, January 28, 2009 / Notices 

directed to Cristi Reid, (301) 713–1622 

x206 or Cristi.Reid@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

The National Environmental Policy 

Act (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 through 

4327) and the Council on 

Environmental Quality (CEQ) 

implementing regulations (40 CFR parts 

1500 through 1508) require that an 

environmental analysis be completed 

for all major Federal actions 

significantly affecting the environment. 

NEPA applies only to the actions of 

Federal agencies. While those Federal 

actions may include a Federal agency’s 

decision to fund non-Federal projects 

under grants and cooperative 

agreements, NEPA requires agencies to 

assess the environmental impacts of 

actions proposed to be taken by these 

recipients only when the Federal agency 

has sufficient discretion or control over 

the recipient’s activities to deem those 

actions as Federal actions. To determine 

whether the activities of the recipient of 

a Federal financial assistance award 

(i.e., grant or cooperative agreement) 

involve sufficient Federal discretion or 

control, and to undertake the 

appropriate environmental analysis 

when NEPA is required, NOAA must 

assess information which can only be 

provided by the Federal financial 

assistance applicant. Thus, NOAA has 

developed an environmental 

information questionnaire to provide 

grantees and Federal grant managers 

with a simple tool to ensure that project 

and environmental information is 

obtained. The questionnaire applies 

only to those programs where actions 

are considered major Federal actions or 

to those where NOAA must determine 

if the action is a major Federal action. 

The questionnaire includes a list of 

questions that encompasses a broad 

range of subject areas. The applicants 

are not required to answer every 

question in the questionnaire. Each 

program draws from the comprehensive 

list of questions to create a relevant 

subset of questions for applicants to 

answer. The information provided in 

answers to the questionnaire is used by 

NOAA staff to determine compliance 

requirements for NEPA and conduct 

subsequent NEPA analysis as needed. 

The information provided in the 

questionnaire may also be used for other 

regulatory review requirements 

associated with the proposed project, 

such as permitting. 

II. Method of Collection 

Methods of submittal include paper 

forms via the mail, Internet, and 

facsimile transmission. 

III. Data 

OMB Control Number: 0648–0538. 

Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Regular submission. 

Affected Public: Business or other for 

profit organizations; individuals or 

households; not-for-profit institutions; 

state, local, or tribal government; and 

Federal government. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

1,000. 

Estimated Time per Response: 3 

hours. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours: 3,000. 

Estimated Total Annual Cost to 

Public: $1,000 in miscellaneous costs. 

IV. Request for Comments 

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether 

the proposed collection of information 

is necessary for the proper performance 

of the functions of the agency, including 

whether the information shall have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden 

(including hours and cost) of the 

proposed collection of information; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on respondents, including through the 

use of automated collection techniques 

or other forms of information 

technology. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this notice will be summarized and/or 

included in the request for OMB 

approval of this information collection; 

they also will become a matter of public 

record. 

Dated: January 22, 2009. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. E9–1746 Filed 1–27–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–NW–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XM69 

Fisheries in the Western Pacific; 

American Samoa Pelagic Longline 

Limited Entry Program 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; availability of permits. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is soliciting 

applications for American Samoa 

pelagic longline limited entry permits. 

At least 22 permits of various class sizes 

will be available for 2009. Longline 

fishermen with the earliest documented 

participation on a Class A vessel (less 

than or equal to 40 feet (12.2 m) in 

length) have the highest priority to 

qualify for a permit. Fishermen with the 

earliest documented participation in 

larger size class vessels (in order of size) 

receive the next priority to qualify for 

permits. This notice is intended to 

announce the availability of permits and 

to solicit applications for the permits. 

DATES: Completed permit applications 

must be received by NMFS by May 28, 

2009. 

ADDRESSES: Request blank application 

forms from NMFS Pacific Islands Region 

(PIR), 1601 Kapiolani Blvd., Suite 1110, 

Honolulu, HI 96814–4733, or the PIR 

website www.fpir.noaa.gov. 

Mail completed applications and 

payment to NMFS PIR, ATTN: ASLE 

Permits, 1601 Kapiolani Blvd., Suite 

1110, Honolulu, HI 96814–4733. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Walter Ikehara, Sustainable Fisheries, 

NMFS PIR, tel 808–944–2275, fax 808– 

973–2940, or e-mail PIROpermits@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On May 

25, 2005, NMFS published a final rule 

that established a limited entry program 

for the pelagic longline fishery based in 

American Samoa (70 FR 29646). 

American Samoa longline limited entry 

permits were established for four vessel 

size classes, based on length: 

a. Class A – less than or equal to 40 

ft (12.2 m); 

b. Class B (and B–1) – over 40 ft (12.2 

m) to 50 ft (15.2 m) inclusive; 

c. Class C (and C–1) – over 50 ft (15.2 

m) to 70 ft (21.3 m) inclusive; and 

d. Class D (and D–1) – over 70 ft (21.3 

m). 

A total of 60 initial American Samoa 

longline limited entry permits were 

issued: 22 in Class A, five in Class B, 12 

in Class C, and 21 in Class D. These 

numbers represent the maximum 

number of vessels allowed in each size 

class, pursuant to the regulations 

implementing the limited entry program 

at title 50 of the Code of Federal 

Regulations, part 665.36 (i.e., 50 CFR 

665.36). The limited entry program 

allows for new permits to be issued if 

the numbers of permits in each size 

class fall below the maximum. To date, 

not all permit holders have renewed 

their permits, invalidating those 

permits, and making 22 permits 

available for issuance (note that the 

number of available permits may change 

before the application period closes). Of 

the 22 available permits, thirteen are for 


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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 17 / Wednesday, January 28, 2009 / Notices 4943 

vessel size Class A, four for Class B, four 

for Class C, and one for Class D. 

Persons with the earliest documented 

participation in the fishery on a Class A 

sized vessel will receive the highest 

priority for obtaining permits in any size 

class, followed by persons with the 

earliest documented participation in 

Classes B, C, and D, in that order. If 

there is a tie in priority, the person with 

the second earliest documented 

participation will be ranked higher in 

priority. 

Complete applications must include 

the completed and signed application 

form, legible copies of documents 

supporting historical participation in 

the American Samoa pelagic longline 

fishery, and payment for the nonrefundable permit application 

processing fee, in accordance with the 

regulations at 50 CFR 665.13. 

Applications must be received by NMFS 

(see ADDRESSES) by May 28, 2009 to be 

considered for a permit; applications 

will not be accepted if received after 

that date. 

Authoritative additional information 

on the American Samoa limited entry 

program may be found in 50 CFR part 

665. 

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

Dated: January 22, 2009. 

Alan D. Risenhoover, 

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, 

National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–1727 Filed 1–27–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XM50 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Snapper– 

Grouper Fishery off the Southern 

Atlantic States; Comprehensive 

Annual Catch Limit Amendment 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of intent (NOI) to prepare 

a draft environmental impact statement 

(DEIS); notice of scoping meetings; 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council (Council) intends 

to prepare a DEIS to assess the impacts 

on the natural and human environment 

of the management measures proposed 

in its draft Comprehensive Annual 

Catch Limit Amendment 

(Comprehensive ACL Amendment) for 

the South Atlantic Region. 

DATES: Written comments on the scope 

of the issues to be addressed in the DEIS 

will be accepted until February 27, 

2009, at 5 p.m. 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent by 

any of the following methods, mail: Kate 

Michie, NMFS, Southeast Regional 

Office, 263 13th Avenue South, St. 

Petersburg, FL 33701; phone: 727–824– 

5305; fax: 727–824–5308; e–mail: 0648– 

XM50@noaa.gov. Scoping documents 

are available from the Council’s Web 

site at www.safmc.net. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim 

Iverson, Public Information Officer, 

South Atlantic Fisheries Management 

Council, 4055 Faber Place Drive, Suite 

201, North Charleston, SC 29405; 

phone: 843–571–4366, toll free 1–866– 

SAFMC–10; fax: 843–769–4520; e–mail: 

kim.iverson@safmc.net. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Revisions 

to the Magnuson–Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson–Stevens Act) in 2007 

require that by 2010, fishery 

management plans (FMPs), for fisheries 

determined by the Secretary of 

Commerce to be subject to overfishing, 

must establish a mechanism for 

specifying annual catch limits (ACLs) at 

a level that prevents overfishing and 

does not exceed the recommendations 

of the Council’s Scientific and 

Statistical Committee or other 

established peer review processes. 

These FMPs are also required to 

establish, by 2010, accountability 

measures for fisheries subject to 

overfishing. ACLs and accountability 

measures for species undergoing 

overfishing in the FMP for the Snapper– 

Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic 

Region are being addressed in 

Amendment 17 to that FMP. 

The Magnuson–Stevens Act also 

requires the Council to establish, by 

2011, ACLs and accountability measures 

for all other fisheries, except fisheries 

for species with annual life cycles. ACL 

specifications intended to fulfill this 

2011 requirement would be included in 

the subject Comprehensive ACL 

Amendment. 

In addition to ACLs and 

accountability measures, the 

Magnuson–Stevens Act requires that the 

Council’s Scientific and Statistical 

Committee specify overfishing levels 

and acceptable biological catch (ABC) 

levels for all species undergoing 

overfishing. The Comprehensive ACL 

Amendment may specify an ABC 

control rule that would describe how 

the ABC is to be calculated. 

The Council is also considering an 

action to remove some species from 

South Atlantic fishery management 

units (FMU)for respective FMPs, 

particularly those species that have a 

low occurrence in federal waters. The 

purpose of this action would be to 

ensure that fishery managers focus their 

attention and resources on species that 

are in need of conservation and 

management. Additionally, the Council 

is considering designating some species 

as Ecosystem Component species that 

are not part of a fishery but are in an 

FMP. Species may be included as 

Ecosystem Components in FMPs for 

data collection purposes; for ecosystem 

considerations related to optimum 

yield; and as considerations in the 

development of conservation and 

management measures for the associated 

fishery. 

The amendment may also limit total 

mortality of federally managed species 

in the South Atlantic to the annual 

catch targets (ACTs). To achieve this 

goal, the amendment may include 

measures such as commercial quotas, 

trip limits, vessel limits, size limits, bag 

limits, closed areas, closed seasons, and 

permit endorsements. Additionally, the 

Comprehensive ACL Amendment may 

address several issues concerning the 

spiny lobster fishery such as, trap 

impacts on staghorn and elkhorn corals, 

tailing permits, and the Federal 50– 

short rule that allows retention of 

undersized spiny lobster to be used as 

live attractants. 

This NOI is intended to inform the 

public of the preparation of a DEIS in 

support of the Comprehensive ACL 

Amendment. The DEIS may include: 

ACLs; ACTs; ecosystem component 

species; removing some species from 

South Atlantic FMUs; ABC control rule; 

and accountability measures; allocations 

among the commercial, recreational, 

and for–hire sectors for species not 

undergoing overfishing; limit total 

mortality for federally managed species 

to the ACTs; and address spiny lobster 

fishery issues. Following publication of 

this NOI, the Council will conduct 

public scoping meetings to determine 

the range of issues to be addressed in 

the DEIS and the associated 

Comprehensive ACL Amendment. 

Following consideration of public 

scoping comments, the Council plans to 

begin preparation of the draft 

Comprehensive ACL Amendment/DEIS. 

The Council and its Scientific and 

Statistical Committee will review the 

draft Comprehensive ACL Amendment/ 

DEIS in 2009. If the Council approves 

the document, public review may take 

place in late 2009. A comment period 

on the DEIS is planned, which will 


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