Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 216 / Thursday, November 9, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 52011 

however, That the Refuge Manager, 

pursuant to § 36.42, may designate areas 

where, and establish periods when, no 

taking of a particular population of fish 

or wildlife shall be permitted. 

(b) The exercise of valid commercial 

fishing rights or privileges obtained 

pursuant to existing law, including any 

use of refuge areas for campsites, cabins, 

motorized vehicles, and aircraft landing 

directly incident to the exercise of such 

rights or privileges, is authorized; 

Provided, however, That the Refuge 

Manager may restrict or prohibit the 

exercise of these rights or privileges or 

uses of federally owned lands directly 

incident to such exercise if he 

determines, after conducting a public 

hearing in the affected locality, that they 

are inconsistent with the purposes of 

the refuge and that they constitute a 

significant expansion of commercial 

fishing activities within such refuge 

beyond the level of such activities in 

1979. 

(c) The following provisions shall 

apply to any person while engaged in 

the taking of fish and wildlife within an 

Alaska National Wildlife Refuge: 

(1) Trapping and sport hunting. (i) 

Each person shall secure and possess all 

required State licenses and shall comply 

with the applicable provisions of State 

law unless further restricted by Federal 

law; 

(ii) Each person shall comply with the 

applicable provisions of Federal law; 

and 

(iii) In addition to the requirements of 

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

each person shall continue to secure a 

trapping permit from the appropriate 

Refuge Manager prior to trapping on the 

Kenai, Izembek and Kodiak Refuges and 

the Aleutian Islands Unit of the Alaska 

Maritime Refuge. 

(iv) It shall be unlawful for a person 

having been airborne to use a firearm or 

any other weapon to take or assist in 

taking a wolf or wolverine until after 

3:00 a.m. on the day following the day 

in which the flying occurred, except 

that a trapper may use a firearm or any 

other weapon to dispatch a legally 

caught wolf or wolverine in a trap or 

snare on the same day in which the 

flying occurred. This prohibition does 

not apply to flights on regularly 

scheduled commercial airlines between 

regularly maintained public airports. 

(2) Sport and commercial fishing. (i) 

Each person shall secure and possess all 

required State licenses and shall comply 

with the applicable provisions of State 

law unless further restricted by Federal 

law; and 

(ii) Each person shall comply with the 

applicable provisions of Federal law. 

(d) Nothing in this section shall apply 

to the taking of fish and wildlife for 

subsistence uses. 

(e) Nothing in these rules shall be 

interpreted as waiving the requirements 

of other fish and wildlife conservation 

statutes such as the Airborne Hunting 

Act or those provisions of subchapter C 

of title 50 CFR regarding the taking of 

depredating wildlife. Animal control 

programs shall only be conducted in 

accordance with a special use permit 

issued by the Refuge Manager. 

■ 11. Amend § 36.42 by revising 

paragraphs (a), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g), and 

(h) to read as follows: 

§ 36.42 Public participation and closure 

procedures. 

(a) Authority. The Refuge Manager 

may close an area or restrict an activity 

on an emergency, temporary, or 

permanent basis. 

* * * * * 

(c) Emergency closures or restrictions. 

(1) Emergency closures or restrictions 

relating to the use of aircraft, 

snowmachines, motorboats, or nonmotorized surface transportation shall 

be made after notice and hearing; 

(2) Emergency closures or restrictions 

relating to the taking of fish and wildlife 

shall be accompanied by notice with a 

subsequent hearing; 

(3) Other emergency closures or 

restrictions shall become effective upon 

notice as prescribed in paragraph (f) of 

this section; and 

(4) No emergency closure or 

restriction shall be for a period 

exceeding 30 days. 

(d) Temporary closures or restrictions. 

(1) Temporary closures or restrictions 

relating to the use of aircraft, 

snowmachines, motorboats or nonmotorized surface transportation, or to 

the taking of fish and wildlife, shall not 

be effective prior to notice and hearing 

in the vicinity of the area(s) affected by 

such closures or restriction, and other 

locations as appropriate; 

(2) Other temporary closures shall be 

effective upon notice as prescribed in 

paragraph (f) of this section; and 

(3) Temporary closures or restrictions 

shall extend only for so long as 

necessary to achieve their purposes, and 

in no case may exceed 12 months or be 

extended beyond that time. 

(e) Permanent closures or restrictions. 

Permanent closures or restrictions shall 

be made only after notice and public 

hearings in the affected vicinity and 

other locations as appropriate, and after 

publication in the Federal Register. 

(f) Notice. Emergency, temporary, or 

permanent closures or restrictions shall 

be: 

(1) Published in at least one 

newspaper of general circulation in the 

State and in at least one local 

newspaper if available, posted at 

community post offices within the 

vicinity affected, made available for 

broadcast on local radio stations in a 

manner reasonably calculated to inform 

residents in the affected vicinity, and 

designated on a map which shall be 

available for public inspection at the 

office of the Refuge Manager and other 

places convenient to the public; or 

(2) Designated by the posting of 

appropriate signs; or 

(3) Both. 

(g) Openings. In determining whether 

to open an area to public use or activity 

otherwise prohibited, the Refuge 

Manager shall provide notice in the 

Federal Register and shall, upon 

request, hold a hearing in the affected 

vicinity and other location, as 

appropriate, prior to making a final 

determination. 

(h) Prohibitions. Except as otherwise 

specifically permitted under the 

provisions of this part, entry into closed 

areas or failure to abide by restrictions 

established under this section is 

prohibited. 

Dated: August 30, 2017. 

Todd Willens, 

Acting Assistant Secretary for Fish and 

Wildlife and Parks. 

[FR Doc. 2017–24324 Filed 11–8–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4333–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Parts 679 and 680 

[Docket No. 170412391–7999–02] 

RIN 0648–BG84 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands Management Area; 

American Fisheries Act; Bering Sea 

and Aleutian Islands Crab 

Rationalization Program 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: NMFS issues regulations to 

implement Amendment 48 to the 

Fishery Management Plan for Bering 

Sea/Aleutian Islands King and Tanner 

Crabs (Crab FMP) and to revise 

regulations implementing the American 

Fisheries Act (AFA) Program and the 


nshattuck on DSK9F9SC42PROD with RULES
52012 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 216 / Thursday, November 9, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 

Crab Rationalization (CR) Program. This 

final rule revises the Crab FMP and 

regulations that govern how NMFS 

determines the amount of limited access 

privileges held and used by groups in 

the Western Alaska Community 

Development Quota Program (CDQ 

Program) for the purposes of monitoring 

the excessive share limits under the 

AFA Program and the CR Program. This 

final rule is necessary to align 

regulations and the Crab FMP to be 

consistent with an amendment to the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) and NMFS’ 

current method of monitoring excessive 

share limits for CDQ groups in the AFA 

Program and the CR Program. This final 

rule is intended to promote the goals 

and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, the Crab FMP, and other applicable 

law. 

DATES: Effective December 11, 2017. 

ADDRESSES: Electronic copies of 

Amendment 48 to the Crab FMP, the 

Regulatory Impact Review (RIR), and the 

Categorical Exclusion prepared for this 

action are available from http://

www.regulations.gov or from the NMFS 

Alaska Region Web site at http://

alaskafisheries.noaa.gov. 

The CR Program Environmental 

Impact Statement (EIS), RIR, and Final 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, as well 

as the AFA Program EIS and RIR, are 

available from the NMFS Alaska Region 

Web site at http://

alaskafisheries.noaa.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Stephanie Warpinski, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final 

rule implements Amendment 48 to the 

Crab FMP and regulatory amendments 

to the CR Program. NMFS published a 

notice of availability for Amendment 48 

to the Crab FMP in the Federal Register 

on August 3, 2017 (82 FR 36111). 

Comment on Amendment 48 was 

invited through October 2, 2017. The 

Secretary of Commerce approved 

Amendment 48 on October 31, 2017, 

after accounting for information from 

the public, and determining that 

Amendment 48 is consistent with the 

Crab FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 

and other applicable law. NMFS 

published the proposed rule to 

implement Amendment 48 on August 

22, 2017 (82 FR 39743). The comment 

period on the proposed rule ended on 

September 21, 2017. NMFS received 1 

comment on the proposed rule. A 

summary of the comment and NMFS’ 

responses is provided in the Comments 

and Responses section of this preamble. 

This final rule modifies regulations at 

50 CFR 679.2, 679.7, 680.2, and 680.42 

that specify how NMFS determines 

holding and use of limited access 

privileges (LAPs) for the purposes of 

monitoring excessive share limits for 

CDQ groups under the AFA Program 

and the CR Program. The following 

section of the preamble provides a brief 

description of the AFA, CR, and CDQ 

Programs, and the elements of these 

programs that apply to Amendment 48 

and this final rule. For a more detailed 

description, please see the preamble of 

the proposed rule (82 FR 39743; August 

22, 2017) and Sections 2.6 through 2.8 

of the RIR (see ADDRESSES). 

Excessive Share Limits 

Section 303A(c)(5)(D) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act requires NMFS 

to establish excessive share limits to 

prevent excessive consolidation of 

harvesting and processing LAPs in order 

to maintain an appropriate distribution 

of economic and social benefits for 

fishery participants and communities 

(16 U.S.C. 1853a(c)(5)(D)). Because 

determination of excessive shares must 

consider the specific circumstances of 

each fishery, the North Pacific Fishery 

Management Council (Council) and 

NMFS have implemented different 

excessive share limits in the LAP 

programs in Alaska’s fisheries, 

including the AFA and CR Programs. 

NMFS implemented use caps for the 

AFA Program in 2002 (67 FR 79692; 

December 30, 2002) and holding and 

use caps for the CR Program in 2005 (70 

FR 10174; March 2, 2005). Regulations 

at 50 CFR 679.2, 679.7, 680.2, and 

680.42 prohibit a person from using 

more than the harvesting and processing 

limits established in the AFA Program 

and from holding and using more than 

a specific portion of the LAPs allocated 

under the CR Program. Under 50 CFR 

679.2, ‘‘person’’ includes individuals, 

corporations, partnerships, associations, 

and other non-individual entities. 

NMFS determines a person’s holding 

and use of a LAP in the AFA Program 

and CR Program by summing (1) the 

amount directly held and used by that 

person, and (2) the amount held and 

used by that person indirectly through 

an ownership interest in or control of 

another entity that also holds and uses 

the LAPs. Ownership attribution refers 

to the method NMFS uses to assess the 

relationships between different entities 

that participate in LAP programs. 

NMFS uses two ownership attribution 

methods to determine the holding and 

use of LAPs. These two methods for 

attributing holding and use of a LAP are 

commonly known as the ‘‘individual 

and collective rule’’ and the ‘‘10-percent 

rule.’’ Under the individual and 

collective rule, NMFS attributes holding 

and use of LAPs by one person 

proportionally to their ownership in or 

control of another entity that holds and 

uses LAPs. For example, if Company A 

has a 15 percent ownership of Company 

B that holds LAPs, Company A would 

be attributed 15 percent of Company B’s 

holding and use of the LAPs. In 

contrast, under the 10-percent rule, a 

person is attributed 100 percent of an 

entity’s LAPs if that person owns or 

otherwise controls 10 percent or more of 

that entity. Thus, if Company A owns or 

controls 10 percent or more of Company 

B, then 100 percent of Company B’s 

holdings and use of LAPs are attributed 

to Company A. When a person owns or 

controls 10 percent or more of another 

entity, the individual and collective rule 

is less restrictive than the 10-percent 

rule because a person is only attributed 

holding and use of LAPs in proportion 

to how much that person owns or 

controls of other entities, rather than 

attributing 100 percent of the other 

entity’s LAP holdings once the 10- 

percent ownership or control threshold 

is met. Under a holding and use cap, the 

individual and collective rule would 

allow a person to hold and use more 

LAPs than if the person was evaluated 

using the 10-percent rule. 

AFA Program Use Caps 

Section 210(e)(1) of the AFA restricts 

an individual, corporation, or other 

entity to harvesting no more than 17.5 

percent of the pollock available to be 

harvested in the directed pollock 

fishery. Section 210(e)(2) of the AFA 

directed the Council to recommend for 

Secretarial approval conservation and 

management measures to prevent any 

particular individual or entity from 

processing an excessive share of pollock 

available in the directed pollock fishery. 

The Council and NMFS set this limit at 

30 percent of the sum of the directed 

fishing allowances for pollock (67 FR 

79692, 79698; December 30, 2002). 

Every year, these limits are published in 

the annual harvest specifications (see 81 

FR 14773; March 18, 2016 (final 2016– 

2017 harvest specifications); see also 81 

FR 52367; August 8, 2016). 

Section 210(e)(3) of the AFA also 

specified that any entity in which 10 

percent or more of the interest is owned 

or controlled by another individual or 

entity shall be considered to be the same 

entity as the other individual or entity 

for purposes of monitoring the 

harvesting and processing use caps. 

This section of the AFA directed NMFS 

to use the 10-percent rule to determine 

the use of AFA Program harvesting and 

processing privileges. 


nshattuck on DSK9F9SC42PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 216 / Thursday, November 9, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 52013 

CR Program Use Caps 

The CR Program was implemented on 

April 1, 2005 (70 FR 10174; March 2, 

2005). The CR Program established a 

LAP program for nine crab fisheries in 

the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands 

(BSAI) and assigned quota share (QS) to 

persons based on their historic 

participation in one or more of those 

nine BSAI crab fisheries during a 

specific period. Each year, a person who 

holds QS may receive an exclusive 

harvest privilege called individual 

fishing quota (IFQ). NMFS also issued 

processor quota share (PQS) under the 

CR Program. Each year, PQS yields an 

exclusive privilege to process a portion 

of the IFQ in each of the nine BSAI crab 

fisheries, called individual processor 

quota (IPQ). The CR Program includes 

limits on the amount of QS and PQS 

that a person can hold and the amount 

of IFQ and IPQ that a person can use 

(see Section 2.7 of the RIR for more 

information). 

For processing privileges, the CR 

Program limits a person to holding no 

more than 30 percent of the PQS 

initially issued in the fishery, and to 

using no more than the amount of IPQ 

resulting from 30 percent of the PQS 

initially issued in a given fishery, with 

a limited exemption for persons 

receiving more than 30 percent of the 

initially-issued PQS (50 CFR 680.42(b)). 

50 CFR 680.42(b)(3) specifies that NMFS 

uses the 10-percent rule to monitor 

holding and use caps for PQS and IPQ 

for all CR Program participants as 

recommended by the Council and 

addressed in the preamble to the 

proposed rule for the CR Program (69 FR 

63200, 63219, and 63226; October 29, 

2004). 

Use Caps for CDQ Groups 

The CDQ Program was established by 

the Council and NMFS in 1992, and 

authorization for the Program was 

incorporated into the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act in 1996. The purpose of the CDQ 

Program is (1) to provide eligible 

western Alaska villages with the 

opportunity to participate and invest in 

fisheries in the BSAI, (2) to support 

economic development in western 

Alaska, (3) to alleviate poverty and 

provide economic and social benefits for 

residents of western Alaska, and (4) to 

achieve sustainable and diversified local 

economies in western Alaska (16 U.S.C. 

1855(i)(1)(A)) (see Section 2.8 of the 

RIR). 

CDQ groups participate in LAP 

programs, including the AFA and the 

CR Programs, by purchasing harvesting 

and processing privileges and through 

ownership of vessels and processors 

that participate in these fisheries. The 

Magnuson-Stevens Act was amended by 

the Coast Guard and Maritime 

Transportation Act of 2006 (Pub. L. 

109–241; the Coast Guard Act) to 

specify the method that NMFS must use 

for monitoring excessive share limits as 

they apply to CDQ groups—the 

proportional or ‘‘individual and 

collective’’ rule. 

NMFS implemented in practice the 

method specified in the 2006 

amendment to the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act for CDQ groups to monitor 

excessive share limits in the AFA 

Program and the CR Program; however, 

the Crab FMP and the regulations for the 

AFA Program and the CR Program were 

not revised to be consistent with the 

2006 amendment to the MagnusonStevens Act. 

This Final Rule 

This section of the preamble provides 

a brief description of this final rule. For 

a more detailed description of the 

rationale for this final rule, see the 

preamble of the proposed rule (82 FR 

39743; August 22, 2017). This final rule 

revises the AFA Program to specify that 

NMFS uses the individual and 

collective rule for CDQ groups to 

attribute harvesting and processing 

privileges of AFA pollock 

proportionally to the CDQ groups’ 

ownership or control of vessels and 

processors active in those fisheries. For 

example, if a CDQ group owns 15 

percent of an entity that uses AFA 

harvesting and processing privileges, 

the CDQ group will be attributed 15 

percent of the harvesting or processing 

privileges of that company for purposes 

of monitoring excessive harvesting and 

processing use caps under the AFA. 

This final rule also implements 

Amendment 48 to the Crab FMP and 

revises the CR Program to specify that 

NMFS uses the individual and 

collective rule for CDQ groups to 

attribute holding and use of PQS and 

IPQ based on the CDQ groups’ 

proportional ownership or control of 

entities that hold and use PQS and IPQ. 

For example, if a CDQ group owns 15 

percent of a company that holds or uses 

PQS or IPQ, the CDQ group will be 

attributed 15 percent of the holding or 

use of that PQS or IPQ. 

NMFS has used the individual and 

collective rule for CDQ group ownership 

attribution for the AFA Program and the 

CR Program since enactment of the 

Coast Guard Act; however, the 

regulations and the Crab FMP for the 

PQS and IPQ holding and use caps have 

not been updated to reflect this change. 

This final rule updates the regulations, 

and Amendment 48 amends the Crab 

FMP, to be consistent with the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act and NMFS’ 

current method of ownership attribution 

for CDQ groups. This final rule and 

Amendment 48 to the Crab FMP benefit 

CDQ groups and the public by clarifying 

the method NMFS uses to attribute 

holding and use of harvesting and 

processing privileges by CDQ groups for 

purposes of monitoring holding and use 

caps for the AFA and CR Programs. 

This final rule does not alter the 

regulations for the QS and IFQ holding 

and use caps under the CR Program 

because current CR Program regulations 

specify that NMFS uses the individual 

and collective rule for all program 

participants, including CDQ groups, to 

attribute any participants’ holding and 

use of QS and IFQ based on their 

proportional ownership or control of 

entities that hold and use QS and IFQ. 

This final rule revises 50 CFR 679.2, 

679.7(k)(6) and (7), 680.2, and 680.42(b) 

to specify that NMFS uses the 

individual and collective rule for CDQ 

groups for purposes of ownership 

attribution in the AFA Program and the 

CR Program. In this final rule, NMFS 

clarifies the amendatory text from the 

proposed rule to specify that only the 

introductory text to the definition of 

Affiliation for the purpose of defining 

AFA and the Rockfish Program is 

revised to specify that CDQ groups are 

not subject to the 10-percent rule for 

purposes of affiliation. This final rule 

does not modify the remainder of the 

definition that describes the specific 

components of the 10-percent rule for 

the AFA Program and the Rockfish 

Program. NMFS did not make any 

changes to the regulatory text from the 

proposed rule to the final rule. 

Comments and Responses 

Comment 1: The commenter states 

that NMFS should consider rolling over 

unused quota or total allowable catches 

(TACs) to the next year to provide 

additional flexibility for harvesters. The 

commenter suggests that NMFS should 

prevent too many fish from being 

harvested, especially small fish and 

breeding females. 

Response: This comment addresses 

management issues that are beyond the 

scope of Amendment 48 and this 

regulatory action. This final rule does 

not change the process of allocating 

quota or establishing TACs under the 

AFA Program or the CR Program, nor 

will this final rule change specific 

management measures that govern the 

harvest of pollock and crab in the BSAI, 

such as fishing location, timing, effort, 

or authorized gear types. This final rule 

revises regulations describing the 

method NMFS uses to determine the 


nshattuck on DSK9F9SC42PROD with RULES
52014 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 216 / Thursday, November 9, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 

amount of limited access privileges held 

and used by CDQ groups for the 

purposes of monitoring the excessive 

share limits under the AFA Program and 

the CR Program. 

Classification 

The Administrator, Alaska Region, 

NMFS, has determined that Amendment 

48 to the Crab FMP and this final rule 

are necessary for the conservation and 

management of the AFA, CR, and CDQ 

Program fisheries and are consistent 

with the Magnuson-Stevens Act and 

other applicable laws. 

This final rule has been determined to 

be not significant for the 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 the 

certification was 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 was prepared, 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605. 

List of Subjects 

50 CFR Part 679 

Alaska, Fisheries, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

50 CFR Part 680 

Alaska, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

Dated: November 6, 2017. 

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 

679 and part 680 as follows: 

PART 679—FISHERIES OF THE 

EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF 

ALASKA 

■ 1. The authority citation for 50 CFR 

part 679 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq.; 1801 et 

seq.; 3631 et seq.; Pub. L. 108–447; Pub. L. 

111–281. 

■ 2. In § 679.2, revise the definitions for 

‘‘AFA entity’’ and the introductory text 

to the definition for ‘‘Affiliation for the 

purpose of defining AFA and the 

Rockfish Program’’ to read as follows: 

679.2 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

AFA entity means a group of affiliated 

individuals, corporations, or other 

business concerns, except for a CDQ 

group, that harvests or processes pollock 

in the BS directed pollock fishery. 

* * * * * 

Affiliation for the purpose of defining 

AFA and the Rockfish Program means a 

relationship between two or more 

individuals, corporations, or other 

business concerns, except CDQ groups, 

in which one concern directly or 

indirectly owns a 10 percent or greater 

interest in another, exerts control over 

another, or has the power to exert 

control over another; or a third 

individual, corporation, or other 

business concern directly or indirectly 

owns a 10 percent or greater interest in 

both, exerts control over both, or has the 

power to exert control over both. 

* * * * * 

■ 3. In § 679.7, revise paragraphs (k)(6) 

and (7) to read as follows: 

§ 679.7 Prohibitions. 

* * * * * 

(k) * * * 

(6) Excessive harvesting shares. It is 

unlawful for an AFA entity or a CDQ 

group to harvest, through a fishery 

cooperative or otherwise, an amount of 

BS pollock that exceeds the 17.5 percent 

excessive share limit specified under 

§ 679.20(a)(5)(i)(A)(6). A CDQ group’s 

harvest of BS pollock will be calculated 

through its proportional ownership of 

individuals, corporations, or other 

business concerns that harvest BS 

pollock. The owners and operators of 

the individual vessels comprising the 

AFA entity or CDQ group that harvest 

BS pollock will be held jointly and 

severally liable for exceeding the 

excessive harvesting share limit. 

(7) Excessive processing shares. It is 

unlawful for an AFA entity or a CDQ 

group to process an amount of BS 

pollock that exceeds the 30-percent 

excessive share limit specified under 

§ 679.20(a)(5)(i)(A)(7). The amount of BS 

pollock processed by a CDQ group will 

be calculated through its proportional 

ownership of individuals, corporations, 

or other business concerns that process 

BS pollock. The owners and operators of 

the individual processors comprising 

the AFA entity or CDQ group that 

process BS pollock will be held jointly 

and severally liable for exceeding the 

excessive processing share limit. 

* * * * * 

PART 680—SHELLFISH FISHERIES OF 

THE EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE 

OFF ALASKA 

■ 4. The authority citation for 50 CFR 

part 680 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1862; Pub. L. 109– 

241; Pub. L. 109–479. 

■ 5. In § 680.2, in the definition of 

‘‘Affiliation’’, revise the introductory 

text and paragraph (1) introductory text 

to read as follows: 

§ 680.2 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

Affiliation means a relationship 

between two or more entities, except for 

CDQ groups, in which one directly or 

indirectly owns or controls a 10 percent 

or greater interest in, or otherwise 

controls, another, or a third entity 

directly or indirectly owns or controls a 

10 percent or greater interest in, or 

otherwise controls, both. For the 

purpose of this definition, the following 

terms are further defined: 

(1) Entity. An entity may be an 

individual, corporation, association, 

partnership, joint-stock company, trust, 

or any other type of legal entity, except 

for a CDQ group, any receiver, trustee in 

bankruptcy or similar official or 

liquidating agent, or any organized 

group of persons whether incorporated 

or not, that holds direct or indirect 

interest in: 

* * * * * 

■ 6. In § 680.42, revise paragraphs 

(b)(3)(ii) through (iv) to read as follows: 

§ 680.42 Limitations on use of QS, PQS, 

IFQ, and IPQ. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(3) * * * 

(ii) Is not a CDQ group and directly 

or indirectly owns a 10 percent or 

greater interest in an entity that holds 

PQS. 

(iii) A person that is not a CDQ group 

and holds PQS is limited to a PQS use 

cap that is calculated based on the sum 

of all PQS held by that PQS holder and 

all PQS held by any affiliate of the PQS 

holder. A CDQ group that holds PQS is 

limited to a PQS use cap that is 

calculated based on the sum of all PQS 

held, individually or collectively, by 

that CDQ group. 

(iv) A person that is not a CDQ group 

and holds IPQ is limited to an IPQ use 

cap that is calculated based on the sum 

of all IPQ held by that IPQ holder and 

all IPQ held by any affiliate of the IPQ 

holder. A CDQ group that holds IPQ is 

limited to an IPQ use cap that is 

calculated based on the sum of all IPQ 

held, individually or collectively, by 

that CDQ group. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2017–24403 Filed 11–8–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


nshattuck on DSK9F9SC42PROD with RULES