Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 187 / Thursday, September 28, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 45207 

concerns about complying with these 

requirements by the compliance date. 

Programs may voluntarily come into 

compliance at an earlier date if they 

have the processes already in place. 

Programs that do not have processes 

already in place, have until September 

30, 2018, to comply with the 

requirements on background checks at 

45 CFR 1302.90(b) and the requirement 

to participate in their states’ QRIS at 45 

CFR 1302.53(b)(2). 

Dated: September 6, 2017. 

Steven Wagner, 

Acting Assistant Secretary for Children and 

Families. 

Approved: September 6, 2017. 

Thomas E. Price, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2017–20499 Filed 9–27–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[Docket No. 130312235–3658–02] 

RIN 0648–XF683 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; SnapperGrouper Resources of the South 

Atlantic; Commercial Trip Limit 

Reduction for Vermilion Snapper 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; trip limit 

reduction. 

SUMMARY: NMFS reduces the 

commercial trip limit for vermilion 

snapper in or from the exclusive 

economic zone (EEZ) of the South 

Atlantic to 500 lb (227 kg), gutted 

weight, 555 lb (252 kg), round weight. 

This trip limit reduction is necessary to 

protect the South Atlantic vermilion 

snapper resource. 

DATES: This rule is effective 12:01 a.m., 

local time, October 2, 2017, until 12:01 

a.m., local time, January 1, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Mary Vara, NMFS Southeast Regional 

Office, telephone: 727–824–5305, email: 

mary.vara@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

snapper-grouper fishery in the South 

Atlantic includes vermilion snapper and 

is managed under the Fishery 

Management Plan for the SnapperGrouper Fishery of the South Atlantic 

Region (FMP). The South Atlantic 

Fishery Management Council prepared 

the FMP. The FMP is implemented by 

NMFS under the authority of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) by regulations 

at 50 CFR part 622. 

The commercial ACL (commercial 

quota) for vermilion snapper in the 

South Atlantic is divided into two 6- 

month time periods, January through 

June, and July through December. For 

the July 1 through December 31, 2017, 

fishing season, the commercial quota is 

388,703 lb (176,313 kg), gutted weight, 

431,460 lb (195,707 kg), round weight 

(50 CFR 622.190(a)(4)(ii)(D)). As 

specified in 50 CFR 622.190(a)(4)(iii), 

any unused portion of the commercial 

quota from the January through June 

2017 fishing season will be added to the 

commercial quota for the July through 

December 2017 fishing season. 

Accordingly, NMFS determined that 

20,379 lb (9,407 kg), round weight, of 

the commercial quota was not harvested 

in the January through June 2017 fishing 

season, and NMFS added that to the 

July through December commercial 

quota. 

Under 50 CFR 622.191(a)(6)(ii), NMFS 

is required to reduce the commercial 

trip limit for vermilion snapper from 

1,000 lb (454 kg), gutted weight, 1,110 

lb (503 kg), round weight, to 500 lb (227 

kg), gutted weight, 555 lb (252 kg), 

round weight, when 75 percent of the 

fishing season commercial quota is 

reached or projected to be reached, by 

filing a notification to that effect with 

the Office of the Federal Register. Based 

on current information, NMFS has 

determined that 75 percent of the 

commercial quota for the July through 

December 2017 fishing season for 

vermilion snapper (including the 

January through June unused quota) was 

reached by September 19, 2017. 

Accordingly, NMFS is reducing the 

commercial trip limit for vermilion 

snapper to 500 lb (227 kg), gutted 

weight, 555 lb (252 kg), round weight, 

in or from the South Atlantic EEZ at 

12:01 a.m., local time, on October 2, 

2017. This reduced commercial trip 

limit will remain in effect until the start 

of the next commercial fishing season 

on January 1, 2018, or until the 

commercial quota is reached and the 

commercial sector closes, whichever 

occurs first. 

Classification 

The Regional Administrator, 

Southeast Region, NMFS, has 

determined this temporary rule is 

necessary for the conservation and 

management of South Atlantic 

vermilion snapper and is consistent 

with the Magnuson-Stevens Act and 

other applicable laws. 

This action is taken under 50 CFR 

622.191(a)(6)(ii) and is exempt from 

review under Executive Order 12866. 

These measures are exempt from the 

procedures of the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act because the temporary rule is issued 

without opportunity for prior notice and 

comment. 

This action responds to the best 

scientific information available. The 

Assistant Administrator for NOAA 

Fisheries (AA) finds that the need to 

immediately implement this 

commercial trip limit reduction 

constitutes good cause to waive the 

requirements to provide prior notice 

and opportunity for public comment 

pursuant to the authority set forth in 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(B), because prior notice 

and opportunity for public comment on 

this temporary rule is unnecessary and 

contrary to the public interest. Such 

procedures are unnecessary, because the 

rule establishing the trip limit and trip 

limit reduction has already been subject 

to notice and comment, and all that 

remains is to notify the public of the trip 

limit reduction. Prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment is 

contrary to the public interest, because 

any delay in reducing the commercial 

trip limit could result in the commercial 

quota being exceeded. There is a need 

to immediately implement this action to 

protect the vermilion snapper resource, 

since the capacity of the fishing fleet 

allows for rapid harvest of the 

commercial quota. Prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment on this 

action would require time and increase 

the probability that the commercial 

sector could exceed its quota. 

For the aforementioned reasons, the 

AA also finds good cause to waive the 

30-day delay in the effectiveness of this 

action under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). 

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

Dated: September 25, 2017. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2017–20792 Filed 9–25–17; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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