48488 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 200 / Wednesday, October 18, 2017 / Notices 

on the port and starboard sides of the 

deckhouse or hull, and weather deck. In 

addition, certain fisheries are required 

to display their assigned color code. The 

official number and color code identify 

each vessel and should be visible at 

distance from the sea and in the air. 

These markings provide law 

enforcement personnel with a means to 

monitor fishing, at-sea processing, and 

other related activities, to ascertain 

whether the vessel’s observed activities 

are in accordance with those authorized 

for that vessel. The identifying official 

number is used by NMFS, the United 

States Coast Guard, and other marine 

agencies in issuing violations, 

prosecutions, and other enforcement 

actions. Vessels that are authorized for 

particular fisheries are readily 

identified, gear violations are more 

readily prosecuted, and this allows for 

more cost-effective enforcement. 

In addition to vessel marking, 

requirements that fishing gear be 

marked are essential to facilitate 

enforcement. The ability to link fishing 

gear to the vessel owner is crucial to 

enforcement of regulations issued under 

the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. The marking of fishing gear is also 

valuable in actions concerning damage, 

loss, and civil proceedings. The 

requirements imposed in the Southeast 

Region are for coral aquacultured live 

rock; golden crab traps; mackerel gillnet 

floats; spiny lobster traps; black sea bass 

pots; and buoy gear. 

II. Method of Collection 

Markings, such as numbers, are 

placed directly on the vessels and gear. 

III. Data 

OMB Control Number: 0648–0358. 

Form Number(s): None. 

Type of Review: Regular submission 

(extension of a currently approved 

information collection). 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

7,825. 

Estimated Time per Response: Vessel 

marking: 45 minutes. Gear marking: 

aquacultured live rocks, 10 seconds 

each; golden crab traps, 2 minutes each; 

spiny lobster traps, 7 minutes each; sea 

bass pots, 16 minutes each; and 

mackerel gillnets, and buoy gear, 20 

minutes each. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours: 50,687. 

Estimated Total Annual Cost to 

Public: $670,901 in recordkeeping and 

reporting 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: October 12, 2017. 

Sarah Brabson, 

NOAA PRA Clearance Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2017–22547 Filed 10–17–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

RIN 0648–XF746 

Marine Mammals; File No. 21315 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice; receipt of application. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

the Alaska Department of Fish and 

Game (Lori Quakenbush, Responsible 

Party) P.O. Box 25526, Juneau, AK 

99802, has applied in due form for a 

permit to collect, receive, import, and 

export marine mammal parts for 

scientific research. 

DATES: Written, telefaxed, or email 

comments must be received on or before 

November 17, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: The application and related 

documents are available for review by 

selecting ‘‘Records Open for Public 

Comment’’ from the ‘‘Features’’ box on 

the Applications and Permits for 

Protected Species (APPS) home page, 

https://apps.nmfs.noaa.gov, and then 

selecting File No. 21315 from the list of 

available applications. 

These documents are also available 

upon written request or by appointment 

in the Permits and Conservation 

Division, Office of Protected Resources, 

NMFS, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 

13705, Silver Spring, MD 20910; phone 

(301) 427–8401; fax (301) 713–0376. 

Written comments on this application 

should be submitted to the Chief, 

Permits and Conservation Division, at 

the address listed above. Comments may 

also be submitted by facsimile to (301) 

713–0376, or by email to 

NMFS.Pr1Comments@noaa.gov. Please 

include the File No. 21315 in the subject 

line of the email comment. 

Those individuals requesting a public 

hearing should submit a written request 

to the Chief, Permits and Conservation 

Division at the address listed above. The 

request should set forth the specific 

reasons why a hearing on this 

application would be appropriate. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa 

Lierheimer or Jennifer Skidmore, (301) 

427–8401. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

subject permit is requested under the 

authority of the Marine Mammal 

Protection Act of 1972, as amended 

(MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.), the 

regulations governing the taking and 

importing of marine mammals (50 CFR 

part 216), the Endangered Species Act of 

1973, as amended (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 

et seq.), the regulations governing the 

taking, importing, and exporting of 

endangered and threatened species (50 

CFR 222–226), and the Fur Seal Act of 

1966, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1151 et 

seq.). 

The objectives of the proposed 

research are to obtain information on 

population status and distribution, stock 

structure, age distribution, mortality 

rates, productivity, feeding habits, and 

health that would be used for 

conservation and management 

purposes. The applicant proposes to 

collect, receive, import, and export 

biological samples from up to 500 

cetaceans and 1,000 pinnipeds 

(excluding walrus) annually from legal, 

foreign and domestic subsistence-hunts; 

scientists in academic, Federal, and 

state institutions involved in legally 

authorized marine mammal research; 

dead beach-cast species; and incidental 

commercial fisheries bycatch. Import/ 

export activities would occur worldwide. No live animal takes are being 

requested under this permit. The 

requested duration of the permit is five 

years. 

In compliance with the National 

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), an initial 

determination has been made that the 

activity proposed is categorically 

excluded from the requirement to 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 200 / Wednesday, October 18, 2017 / Notices 48489 

prepare an environmental assessment or 

environmental impact statement. 

Concurrent with the publication of 

this notice in the Federal Register, 

NMFS is forwarding copies of the 

application to the Marine Mammal 

Commission and its Committee of 

Scientific Advisors. 

Dated: October 13, 2017. 

Julia Harrison, 

Chief, Permits and Conservation Division, 

Office of Protected Resources, National 

Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2017–22565 Filed 10–17–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

United States Patent and Trademark 

Office 

Representative and Address 

Provisions 

ACTION: Proposed collection; comment 

request. 

SUMMARY: The United States Patent and 

Trademark Office (USPTO), as required 

by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)), invites 

comment on a proposed extension of an 

existing information collection: 0651– 

0035 (Representative and Address 

Provisions). 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before December 18, 

2017. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by any of the following methods: 

• Email: InformationCollection@

uspto.gov. Include ‘‘0651–0035 

comment’’ in the subject line of the 

message. 

• Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://

www.regulations.gov. 

• Mail: Marcie Lovett, Records and 

Information Governance Division 

Director, Office of the Chief Technology 

Officer, United States Patent and 

Trademark Office, P.O. Box 1450, 

Alexandria, VA 22313–1450. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information 

should be directed to Raul Tamayo, 

Senior Legal Advisor, Office of Patent 

Legal Administration, United States 

Patent and Trademark Office, P.O. Box 

1450, Alexandria, VA 22313–1450; by 

telephone at 571–272–7728; or by email 

to Raul.Tamayo@uspto.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

This information collection includes 

the information necessary to submit a 

request to grant or revoke power of 

attorney for an application, patent, or 

reexamination proceeding, and for a 

registered practitioner to withdraw as 

attorney or agent of record. This 

collection also includes the information 

necessary to change the correspondence 

address for an application, patent, or 

reexamination proceeding, to request a 

Customer Number and manage the 

correspondence address and list of 

practitioners associated with a Customer 

Number, and to designate or change the 

correspondence address or fee address 

for one or more patents or applications 

by using a Customer Number. 

Under 35 U.S.C. 2 and 37 CFR 1.31– 

1.32, power of attorney may be granted 

to one or more joint inventors or a 

person who is registered to practice 

before the USPTO to act in an 

application or a patent. In particular, for 

an application filed before September 

16, 2012, or for a patent which issued 

from an application filed before 

September 16, 2012, power of attorney 

may be granted by the applicant for 

patent (as set forth in 37 CFR 1.41(b) 

(pre-AIA)) or the assignee of the entire 

interest of the applicant. For an 

application filed on or after September 

16, 2012, or for a patent which issued 

from an application filed on or after 

September 16, 2012, power of attorney 

may be granted by the applicant for 

patent (as set forth in 37 CFR 1.42) or 

the patent owner. 

The rules of practice (37 CFR 1.33) 

also provide for a correspondence 

address and daytime telephone number 

to be supplied for receiving notices, 

official letters, and other 

communications from the USPTO. For 

an application filed before September 

16, 2012, the address and number may 

be supplied by a practitioner of record, 

all of the applicants, or an assignee. In 

addition, a practitioner not of record 

may supply the address and number for 

an application filed before September 

16, 2012, if the practitioner is named in 

the transmittal papers accompanying 

the original application and if an oath 

or declaration by any of the inventors 

has yet to be filed. For an application 

filed on or after September 16, 2012, the 

address and number may be supplied by 

a practitioner of record or the applicant. 

A practitioner not of record who acts in 

a representative capacity may supply 

the address and number for an 

application filed on or after September 

16, 2012, if the practitioner is named in 

the application transmittal papers and if 

any power of attorney has yet to be 

appointed. 

37 CFR 1.36 provides for the 

revocation of a power of attorney at any 

stage in the proceedings of a case. 37 

CFR 1.36 also provides a path by which 

a registered patent attorney or patent 

agent who has been given a power of 

attorney may withdraw as attorney or 

agent of record. 

The USPTO’s Customer Number 

practice permits applicants, patent 

owners, assignees, and practitioners of 

record, or the representatives of record 

for a number of applications or patents, 

to change the correspondence address of 

a patent application or patent with one 

change request instead of filing separate 

requests for each patent or application. 

Customers may request a Customer 

Number from the USPTO and associate 

this Customer Number with a 

correspondence list or a list of registered 

practitioners. Any changes to the 

address or practitioner information 

associated with a Customer Number will 

be applied to all patents and 

applications associated with said 

Customer Number. 

The Customer Number practice is 

optional, in that changes of 

correspondence address or power of 

attorney may be filed separately for each 

patent or application without using a 

Customer Number. However, a 

Customer Number associated with the 

correspondence address for a patent 

application is required in order to 

access private information about the 

application using the Patent Application 

Information Retrieval (PAIR) system, 

which is available through the USPTO 

Web site. The PAIR system gives 

authorized individuals secure online 

access to application status information, 

but only for patent applications that are 

linked to a Customer Number. Customer 

Numbers may be associated with U.S. 

patent applications as well as 

international Patent Cooperation Treaty 

(PCT) applications. The use of a 

Customer Number also is required in 

order to grant power of attorney to more 

than ten practitioners or to establish a 

separate ‘‘fee address’’ for maintenance 

fee purposes that is different from the 

correspondence address for a patent or 

application. 

Customers may use a Customer 

Number Upload Spreadsheet to 

designate or change the correspondence 

address or fee address for a list of 

patents or applications by associating 

them with a Customer Number. The 

Customer Number Upload Spreadsheet 

may not be used to change the power of 

attorney for patents or applications. 

Customers may download a Microsoft 

Excel template with instructions from 

the USPTO Web site to assist them in 

preparing the spreadsheet in the proper 

format. 


ethrower on DSK3G9T082PROD with NOTICES