Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 190 / Tuesday, October 3, 2017 / Proposed Rules 46011 

of the Federal Register, EPA is 

approving the State’s SIP submittal as a 

direct final rule without prior proposal 

because the Agency views this as a 

noncontroversial submittal and 

anticipates no adverse comments. A 

more detailed description of the state 

submittal and EPA’s evaluation is 

included in a technical support 

document (TSD) prepared in support of 

this rulemaking action. A copy of the 

TSD is available, upon request, from the 

EPA Regional Office listed in the 

ADDRESSES section of this document or 

is also available electronically within 

the Docket for this rulemaking action. If 

no adverse comments are received in 

response to this action, no further 

activity is contemplated. If EPA receives 

adverse comments, the direct final rule 

will be withdrawn and all public 

comments received will be addressed in 

a subsequent final rule based on this 

proposed rule. EPA will not institute a 

second comment period. Any parties 

interested in commenting on this action 

should do so at this time. 

DATES: Comments must be received in 

writing by November 2, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R03– 

OAR–2017–0396 at https://

www.regulations.gov, or via email to 

stahl.cynthia@epa.gov. For comments 

submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. Once submitted, comments 

cannot be edited or removed from 

Regulations.gov. For either manner of 

submission, the EPA may publish any 

comment received to its public docket. 

Do not submit electronically any 

information you consider to be 

confidential business information (CBI) 

or other information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Multimedia 

submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 

accompanied by a written comment. 

The written comment is considered the 

official comment and should include 

discussion of all points you wish to 

make. EPA will generally not consider 

comments or comment contents located 

outside of the primary submission (i.e. 

on the web, cloud, or other file sharing 

system). For additional submission 

methods, please contact the person 

identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the 

full EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

https://www2.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Gavin Huang, (215) 814–2042, or by 

email at huang.gavin@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For 

further information, please see the 

information provided in the direct final 

action, with the same title, that is 

located in the ‘‘Rules and Regulations’’ 

section of this issue of the Federal 

Register publication. 

Dated: September 7, 2017. 

Cecil Rodrigues, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region III. 

[FR Doc. 2017–21109 Filed 10–2–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

47 CFR Parts 1 and 20 

[MB Docket No 11–43; Report No. 3081] 

Petition for Reconsideration of Action 

in Rulemaking Proceeding 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Petition for Reconsideration. 

SUMMARY: A Petition for Reconsideration 

(Petition) has been filed in the 

Commission’s rulemaking proceeding 

by Rick Chessen, on behalf of NCTA– 

The Internet & Television Association. 

DATES: Oppositions to the Petition must 

be filed on or before October 18, 2017. 

Replies to an opposition must be filed 

on or before October 30, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: Federal Communications 

Commission, 445 12th Street SW., 

Washington, DC 20554. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lyle 

Elder, Media Bureau, at (202) 418–2365 

or email: Lyle.Elder@FCC.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s 

document, Report No. 3081, released 

September 21, 2017. The full text of the 

Petition is available for viewing and 

copying at the FCC Reference 

Information Center, 445 12th Street SW., 

Room CY–A257, Washington, DC 20554. 

It also may be accessed online via the 

Commission’s Electronic Comment 

Filing System at: http://apps.fcc.gov/ 

ecfs/. The Commission will not send a 

Congressional Review Act (CRA) 

submission to Congress or the 

Government Accountability Office 

pursuant to the CRA, 5.U.S.C. because 

no rules are being adopted by the 

Commission. 

Subject: Video Description: 

Implementation of the Twenty-First 

Century Communications and Video 

Accessibility Act of 2010, FCC 17–88, 

published at 82 FR 37345, August 10, 

2017, in MB Docket No. 11–43. This 

document is being published pursuant 

to 47 CFR 1.429(e). See also 47 CFR 

1.4(b)(1) and 1.429(f), (g). 

Number of Petitions Filed: 1. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene H. Dortch, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2017–21239 Filed 10–2–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

50 CFR Part 20 

[Docket No. FWS–HQ–MB–2017–0028; 

FF09M21200–178–FXMB1231099BPP0] 

RIN 1018–BB73 

Migratory Bird Hunting; Supplemental 

Proposals for Migratory Game Bird 

Hunting Regulations for the 2018–19 

Hunting Season; Notice of Meetings 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; supplemental. 

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service (Service), proposed in 

an earlier document this year to 

establish annual hunting regulations for 

certain migratory game birds for the 

2018–19 hunting season. This 

supplement to that proposed rule 

provides the regulatory alternatives for 

the 2018–19 duck hunting seasons, 

announces the Service Migratory Bird 

Regulations Committee (SRC) and 

Flyway Council meetings, and provides 

Flyway Council recommendations 

resulting from their March meetings. 

DATES: Comments: We will accept 

comments on this proposed rule and 

any subsequent proposed rules resulting 

from upcoming SRC meetings until 

January 15, 2018. 

Meetings: The SRC will meet to 

consider and develop proposed 

regulations for the 2018–19 migratory 

game bird hunting seasons on October 

17–18, 2017. Meetings on both days will 

commence at approximately 8:30 a.m. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the proposals by one of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments 

on Docket No. FWS–HQ–MB–2017– 

0028. 

• U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public 

Comments Processing, Attn: FWS–HQ– 

MB–2017–0028; Division of Policy, 

Performance, and Management 

Programs; U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, MS: BPHC; 5275 Leesburg Pike, 

Falls Church, VA 22041. 


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We will not accept emailed or faxed 

comments. We will post all comments 

on http://www.regulations.gov. This 

generally means that your entire 

submission—including any personal 

identifying information—will be posted 

on the Web site. See the Public 

Comments section, below, for more 

information. 

Meetings: The October 17–18, 2017, 

SRC meeting will be at the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service Midwest Regional 

Office, 5600 American Boulevard, 

Bloomington, MN 55437. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron 

W. Kokel at: Division of Migratory Bird 

Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, Department of the Interior, MS: 

MB, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, 

VA 22041; (703) 358–1714. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

New Process for the Annual Migratory 

Game Bird Hunting Regulations 

As part of DOI’s retrospective 

regulatory review, 2 years ago we 

developed a schedule for migratory 

game bird hunting regulations that is 

more efficient and provides hunting 

season dates much earlier than was 

possible under the old process. The new 

process makes planning easier for the 

States and all parties interested in 

migratory bird hunting. Beginning in the 

summer of 2015, with the development 

of the 2016–17 hunting seasons, we 

started promulgating our annual 

migratory game bird hunting regulations 

using a new schedule that combines the 

previously used early- and late-season 

regulatory processes into a single 

process. We make decisions for harvest 

management based on predictions 

derived from long-term biological 

information and established harvest 

strategies and, therefore, can establish 

migratory bird hunting seasons much 

earlier than the system we used for 

many years. Under the new process, we 

develop proposed hunting season 

frameworks for a given year in the fall 

of the prior year. We then finalize those 

frameworks a few months later, thereby 

enabling the State agencies to select and 

publish their season dates in early 

summer. We provided a detailed 

overview of the new process in the 

August 3, 2017, Federal Register (82 FR 

36308). This proposed rule is the second 

in a series of proposed and final rules 

for the establishment of the 2018–19 

hunting seasons. 

Service Migratory Bird Regulations 

Committee Meetings 

The SRC will meet October 17–18, 

2017, to review information on the 

current status of migratory game birds, 

consider Flyway Council 

recommendations, and develop 2018–19 

migratory game bird regulations 

recommendations for these species. In 

accordance with Departmental policy, 

these meetings are open to public 

observation. You may submit written 

comments to the Service on the matters 

discussed. 

Regulatory Schedule for 2017–18 

On August 3, 2017, we published a 

proposal to amend title 50 of the Code 

of Federal Regulations (CFR) at part 20 

(82 FR 36308). The proposal provided a 

background and overview of the 

migratory bird hunting regulations 

process, and addressed the 

establishment of seasons, limits, and 

other regulations for hunting migratory 

game birds under §§ 20.101 through 

20.107, 20.109, and 20.110 of subpart K. 

This document is the second in a series 

of proposed, supplemental, and final 

rules for migratory game bird hunting 

regulations. We will publish additional 

supplemental proposals for public 

comment in the Federal Register as 

population, habitat, harvest, and other 

information become available. Major 

steps in the 2018–19 regulatory cycle 

relating to open public meetings and 

Federal Register notifications were 

illustrated in the diagram at the end of 

the August 3, 2017, proposed rule (82 

FR 36308). 

All sections of this and subsequent 

documents outlining hunting 

frameworks and guidelines are 

organized under the numbered headings 

set forth in the August 3, 2017, 

proposed rule (82 FR 36308). Later 

sections of this and subsequent 

documents will refer only to numbered 

items requiring attention. Therefore, it is 

important to note that we will omit 

those items requiring no attention, and 

remaining numbered items will be 

discontinuous, thereby making the list 

appear incomplete. 

The regulatory alternatives for the 

2018–19 duck hunting seasons are 

shown at the end of this document. We 

plan to publish proposed season 

frameworks in mid-December 2017. We 

plan to publish final season frameworks 

in late February 2018. 

Review of Public Comments 

This proposed rulemaking describes 

recommended changes or specific 

preliminary proposals that vary from the 

2017–18 regulations and issues 

requiring discussion, action, or the 

attention of the States or tribes. We will 

publish responses to all proposals and 

written comments when we develop 

final frameworks for the 2018–19 

season. We seek additional information 

and comments on this supplemental 

proposed rule. 

New proposals and modifications to 

previously described proposals are 

discussed below. Wherever possible, 

they are discussed under headings 

corresponding to the numbered items 

identified in the August 3, 2017, 

proposed rule (82 FR 36308). Only those 

categories requiring attention or for 

which we received Flyway Council 

recommendations are discussed below. 

1. Ducks 

Duck harvest management categories 

are: (A) General Harvest Strategy; (B) 

Regulatory Alternatives, including 

specification of framework dates, season 

length, and bag limits; (C) Zones and 

Split Seasons; and (D) Special Seasons/ 

Species Management. 

A. General Harvest Strategy 

Council Recommendations: The 

Mississippi Flyway Council 

recommended that regulation changes 

be restricted to one step per year, both 

when restricting as well as liberalizing 

hunting regulations. 

Service Response: As we stated in the 

August 3, 2017, proposed rule (82 FR 

36308), we intend to continue use of 

Adaptive Harvest Management (AHM) 

to help determine appropriate duckhunting regulations for the 2018–19 

season. AHM is a tool that permits 

sound resource decisions in the face of 

uncertain regulatory impacts, as well as 

providing a mechanism for reducing 

that uncertainty over time. The current 

AHM protocol is used to evaluate four 

alternative regulatory levels based on 

the population status of mallards and 

their breeding habitat (i.e., abundance of 

ponds). Special hunting restrictions are 

enacted for certain species, such as 

canvasbacks, black ducks, scaup, and 

pintails. 

Regarding the Mississippi Flyway 

Council recommendation to limit 

regulatory changes to one step per year, 

we recognize the longstanding interest 

by the Council to impose a one-step 

constraint on regulatory changes. We 

note that the Central and Mississippi 

Flyways have worked with Service staff 

during the past 3 years to revisit the 

AHM protocol for managing harvest of 

mid-continent mallards. This effort has 

included a discussion of appropriate 

management objectives, regulatory 

packages, and management of nonmallard stocks. These discussions are 

the appropriate venue to discuss what 

role, if any, a one-step constraint might 

play in management of waterfowl in the 

Central and Mississippi Flyways. Such 

discussions should include the potential 

impact of a one-step constraint on the 


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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 190 / Tuesday, October 3, 2017 / Proposed Rules 46013 

frequency of when the liberal, moderate, 

and restrictive packages would be 

recommended. On a final note, while 

we recognize the Council’s concern 

about potentially communicating a large 

regulatory change to hunters, we have 

concerns about the appropriateness of a 

one-step constraint in situations when 

the status of the waterfowl resource may 

warrant such a measure. We look 

forward to continued work with the 

Flyway Councils on this issue. 

B. Regulatory Alternatives 

Council Recommendations: The 

Mississippi and Central Flyway 

Councils recommended that regulatory 

alternatives for duck hunting seasons 

remain the same as those used in 2017– 

18. The Mississippi Flyway Council 

further recommended changing the 

framework closing date to January 31 

during ‘‘moderate’’ and ‘‘liberal’’ 

seasons. 

Service Response: As we stated in 

final rules published last year (81 FR 

17302, March 28, 2016) and earlier this 

year (82 FR 24786, May 30, 2017), we 

do not support the Council’s 

recommendation to extend the duck 

season framework closing date to 

January 31 at this time. We note that the 

current framework opening and closing 

dates were developed through a 

cooperative effort between all four 

Flyway Councils and that framework 

dates are only one of several 

components that comprise the 

regulatory packages utilized in AHM. 

Regulatory packages also consider 

season length, daily bag limits, and 

shooting hours. The current regulatory 

packages in the Mississippi Flyway 

should remain unchanged until 

revisions to the AHM protocols have 

been completed. Those efforts will 

include examination of duck harvest 

management objectives, model updates, 

and revisions to regulatory packages, 

including framework dates. We prefer 

that the issue of framework dates and 

any other component of the regulatory 

packages be addressed through this 

cooperative process and would prefer a 

comprehensive approach to revising 

regulatory packages rather than making 

incremental changes. 

Thus, the regulatory alternatives 

proposed in the August 3, 2017, Federal 

Register (82 FR 36308) will be used for 

the 2018–19 hunting season (see 

accompanying table at the end of this 

document for specific information). In 

2005, the AHM regulatory alternatives 

were modified to consist only of the 

maximum season lengths, framework 

dates, and bag limits for total ducks and 

mallards. Restrictions for certain species 

within these frameworks that are not 

covered by existing harvest strategies 

will be addressed in the proposed 

frameworks rule in early December 

2017. For those species with specific 

harvest strategies (pintails, black ducks, 

and scaup), those strategies will again 

be used for the 2018–19 hunting season. 

D. Special Seasons/Species Management 

i. September Teal Seasons 

Council Recommendations: The 

Mississippi Flyway Council 

recommended that early teal seasons in 

Iowa, Michigan, and Wisconsin be made 

operational beginning with the 2018 

season and remain operational 

thereafter. The frameworks would 

follow the teal harvest strategy, except 

that Iowa would retain the option of 

selecting an early September duck 

season in lieu of an early teal season. 

Iowa would choose between an early 

September duck season or early teal 

season beginning with the 2018–19 

hunting season, and this decision will 

remain in effect under current 

frameworks. The Council also 

recommended that Kentucky and 

Tennessee be granted operational 4-day 

teal only seasons when 16-day teal 

seasons are offered for the 2018–19 

season and beyond. If a 9-day teal 

season is offered, the Council 

recommends that both States would 

revert to their original 5-day wood duck 

and teal seasons. The Kentucky and 

Tennessee seasons would follow the 

existing teal harvest strategy. 

16. Doves 

Council Recommendations: The 

Atlantic and Mississippi Flyway 

Councils recommended that the 

framework closing date for mourning 

doves in the Eastern Management Unit 

(EMU) be moved from January 15 to 

January 31 for the 2018–19 hunting 

season, and that the National Mourning 

Dove Harvest Strategy be revised 

accordingly. The Central and 

Mississippi Flyway Councils 

recommended that the National 

Mourning Dove Harvest Strategy be 

revised to allow a fixed opening 

framework date of September 14 for the 

Texas South Dove Zone. 

Service Response: We agree with the 

Atlantic and Mississippi Flyway 

Councils’ recommendation to extend the 

EMU’s framework closing date to 

January 31. A review of the available 

data on mourning dove nesting 

phenology in the EMU indicated that <1 

percent of all mourning dove nest 

initiations detected occurred in January; 

thus, the impacts on mourning dove 

reproduction will be minimal. 

Furthermore, the maximum additional 

harvest expected as a result of this 

action is negligible in relation to the 

number of mourning doves in the EMU 

(<0.2 percent of the fall population). 

Therefore, we do not expect that this 

action will result in significant impacts 

to the EMU mourning dove population. 

However, we also note that nesting 

phenology may have changed in some 

areas since the studies cited in the EMU 

recommendation were conducted and 

may continue to change in the future. 

Thus, framework dates later than 

January 31 should not be considered 

without new studies that document 

contemporary nesting phenology 

throughout the EMU, which would 

allow assessment of the impact of a later 

closing date on mourning dove 

productivity. 

Regarding the Central and Mississippi 

Flyway Councils’ recommendation, we 

supported a change in the opening date 

to September 14 for the Texas South 

Dove Zone (82 FR 24794, May 30, 2017). 

However, we noted that the National 

Dove Harvest Strategy used to guide 

dove harvest management had language 

that did not allow the earlier date, and 

would need to be revised. Therefore, we 

delayed implementation of the earlier 

opening date until the 2018–19 season. 

We support the recommendations and 

the change made to the Harvest Strategy, 

which will allow the earlier framework 

date in the Texas South Dove Zone for 

the 2018–19 season. 

Public Comments 

The Department of the Interior’s 

policy is, whenever practicable, to 

afford the public an opportunity to 

participate in the rulemaking process. 

Accordingly, we invite interested 

persons to submit written comments, 

suggestions, or recommendations 

regarding the proposed regulations. 

Before promulgation of final migratory 

game bird hunting regulations, we will 

take into consideration all comments we 

receive. Such comments, and any 

additional information we receive, may 

lead to final regulations that differ from 

these proposals. 

You may submit your comments and 

materials concerning the proposed rule 

by one of the methods listed in 

ADDRESSES. We will not accept 

comments sent by email or fax or to an 

address not listed in ADDRESSES. 

Finally, we will not consider handdelivered comments that we do not 

receive, or mailed comments that are 

not postmarked, by the date specified in 

DATES. We will post all comments in 

their entirety—including your personal 

identifying information—on http://

www.regulations.gov. Before including 

your address, phone number, email 


asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with PROPOSALS
46014 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 190 / Tuesday, October 3, 2017 / Proposed Rules 

address, or other personal identifying 

information in your comment, you 

should be aware that your entire 

comment—including your personal 

identifying information—may be made 

publicly available at any time. While 

you can ask us in your comment to 

withhold your personal identifying 

information from public review, we 

cannot guarantee that we will be able to 

do so. Comments and materials we 

receive, as well as supporting 

documentation we used in preparing the 

proposed rule, will be available for 

public inspection on http://

www.regulations.gov, or by 

appointment, during normal business 

hours, at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service, Division of Migratory Bird 

Management, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls 

Church, VA. 

We will consider, but possibly may 

not respond in detail to, each comment. 

As in the past, we will summarize all 

comments we receive during the 

comment period and respond to them 

after the closing date in any final rules. 

Required Determinations 

Based on our most current data, we 

are affirming our required 

determinations made in the August 3, 

2017, proposed rule (82 FR 36308); see 

that document for descriptions of our 

actions to ensure compliance with the 

following statutes and Executive Orders: 

• National Environmental Policy Act; 

• Endangered Species Act; 

• Regulatory Flexibility Act; 

• Small Business Regulatory 

Enforcement Fairness Act; 

• Paperwork Reduction Act; 

• Unfunded Mandates Reform Act; 

and 

• Executive Orders 12630, 12866, 

12988, 13132, 13175, 13211, 13563, and 

13771. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 20 

Exports, Hunting, Imports, Reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements, 

Transportation, Wildlife. 

Authority 

The rules that eventually will be 

promulgated for the 2018–19 hunting 

season are authorized under 16 U.S.C. 

703–711, 16 U.S.C. 712, and 16 U.S.C. 

742 a–j. 

Dated: September 21, 2017. 

Todd D. Willens, 

Acting Assistant Secretary for Fish and 

Wildlife and Parks. 

BILLING CODE 4333–15–P 


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[FR Doc. 2017–21195 Filed 10–2–17; 8:45 a.m.] 


EP03OC17.000</GPH>asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with PROPOSALS

REGULATORY ALTERNATIVES FOR DUCK HUNTING DURING THE 2018-19 S

ATLANTIC FLYWAY MISSISSIPPI FLYWAY CENTRAL FLYWAY (a) 

RES MOD LIB RES MOD LIB RES MOD LIB 

Beginning 1/2 hr. 1/2 hr. 1/2 hr. 1/2 hr. 1/2 hr. 1/2 hr 1/2 hr. 1/2 hr. 1/2 hr 

Shooting before before before before before before before before before b

Time sunrise sunrise sunrise sunr1se sunrise sunrise sunrise sunrise sunrise s

Ending 

Shooting Sunset Sunset Sunset Sunset Sunset Sunset Sunset Sunset Sunset S

T1me 

Opening Oct1 Sat nearest Sat nearest Sat nearest Sat nearest Sat nearest Sat nearest Sat nearest Sat nearest Sa

Date Sept 24 Sept 24 Oct1 Sept 24 Sept 24 Oct 1 Sept 24 Sept 24 

Closing Jan. 20 Last Sunday Last Sunday Sun. nearest Last Sunday Last Sunday Sun. nearest Last Sunday Last Sunday Sun. 

Date 1n Jan. 1n Jan. Jan. 20 1n Jan. 1n Jan Jan. 20 1n Jan. 1n Jan. J

Season 30 45 60 30 45 60 39 60 74 

Length (in days) 

Daily Bag 3 6 6 3 6 6 3 6 6 

Species/Sex Limits within the Overall Daily Bag Limit 

Mallard (Total/Female) 3/1 412 4/2 2/1 4/1 4/2 3/1 5/1 5/2 

(a) In the High Plains Mallard Management Unit, all regulations would be the same as the remainder of the Central Flyway, with the exception of season length. Ad

be allowed under the various alternatives as follows: restrictive- 12, moderate and liberal- 23. Under all alternatives, additional days must be on or after the S

December 10. 

(b) In the Columbia Basin Mallard Management Unit, all regulations would be the same as the remainder of the Pacific Flyway, with the exception of season length. 

except the liberal alternative, an additional? days would be allowed. 

(c) In Alaska, framework dates, bag limits, and season length would be different from the remainder of the Pacific Flyway. The bag limit (depending on the area) w

alternative, and 7-10 under the moderate and liberal alternatives. Under all alternatives, season length would be 107 days and framework dates would be Sep.