Department of Commerce 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) as amended, notification is hereby given that we have issued an incidental harassment authorization (IHA) to the U.S. Navy (Navy) to incidentally harass, by Level B harassment only, three species of marine mammals during construction activities associated with a pier maintenance project at Naval Base Kitsap Bremerton, WA.

This notice announces the Department of Commerce's (Department) proposal to amend the system of records entitled ``COMMERCE/NOAA-1, Applicants for the NOAA Corps,'' under the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps) is the uniformed service of NOAA, a bureau of the Department of Commerce. The NOAA Corps provides a cadre of professionals trained in engineering, earth sciences, oceanography, meteorology, fisheries science, and other related disciplines who serve their country by supporting NOAA's mission of surveying the Earth's oceans, coasts, and atmosphere to ensure the economic and physical well-being of the Nation. This record system is necessary in order to identify both minimum eligibility and level of qualification of applicants for the NOAA Corps.

In response to a request by Thai Union Group Public Co., Ltd. (Thai Union Group), a producer/exporter of certain frozen warmwater shrimp (shrimp) from Thailand, and pursuant to section 751(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act), 19 CFR 351.216, and 19 CFR 351.221(c)(3)(ii), the Department of Commerce (the Department) is initiating a changed circumstances review (CCR) of the antidumping duty (AD) order on shrimp from Thailand with regard to Thai Union Group. Based on the information received, we preliminarily determine that Thai Union Group is the successor-in-interest to Thai Union Frozen Products Public Co., Ltd. (Thai Union Frozen) for purposes of determining AD liability. Interested parties are invited to comment on these preliminary results.

On November 18, 2015, Irving Paper Limited filed a First Request for Panel Review with the United States Section of the NAFTA Secretariat pursuant to Article 1904 of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Also, on November 18, 2015, additional Requests for Panel Review were filed on behalf of Resolute FP Canada Inc., Port Hawkesbury Paper LP, the Government of Canada and the Governments of the Provinces of British Columbia, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Qu[eacute]bec. Panel Review was requested of the U.S. Department of Commerce's final affirmative countervailing duty determination regarding Supercalendered Paper from Canada. This determination was published in the Federal Register (80 FR 63535), on October 20, 2015. The NAFTA Secretariat has assigned Case Number USA-CDA-2015-1904-01 to this request.

The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and the NMFS Northwest and Southwest Fisheries Science Centers (NWFSC and SWFSC, respectively) will hold a public workshop to review and critique its groundfish stock assessment process in 2015. The Groundfish Stock Assessment Process Review Workshop is open to the public.

In this notice, the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) International Trade Administration (ITA) announces that it will begin accepting applications for the International Buyer Program (IBP) for calendar year 2017 (January 1, 2017, through December 31, 2017). The announcement also sets out the objectives, procedures and application review criteria for the IBP. The purpose of the IBP is to bring international buyers together with U.S. firms in industries with high export potential at leading U.S. trade shows. Specifically, through the IBP, the ITA selects domestic trade shows which will receive ITA assistance in the form of global promotion in foreign markets, provision of export counseling to exhibitors, and provision of matchmaking services at the trade show. This notice covers selection for IBP participation during calendar year 2017.

This final rule implements Amendment 9 to the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP) (Amendment 9) to bring smoothhound sharks under Federal management and establishes an effective date for previously-adopted shark management measures finalized in Amendment 3 to the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic HMS FMP (Amendment 3) and the 2011 Final Rule to Modify the Retention of Incidentally-Caught Highly Migratory Species in Atlantic Trawl Fisheries (August 10, 2011) (2011 HMS Trawl Rule). Specifically, this final rule establishes Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico regional smoothhound shark annual commercial quotas based on recent stock assessments; implements the shark gillnet requirements of the 2012 Shark and Smoothhound Biological Opinion (BiOp); and modifies current regulations related to the use of vessel monitoring systems (VMS) by Atlantic shark fishermen using gillnet gear. The term ``smoothhound sharks'' collectively refers to smooth dogfish (Mustelus canis), Florida smoothhound (M. norrisi), Gulf smoothhound (M. sinusmexicanus), small eye smoothhound (M. higmani), and any other Mustelus spp. that might be found in U.S. waters of the Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean, collectively. This rule also implements the smooth dogfish specific provisions in the Shark Conservation Act of 2010 (SCA). The SCA requires that all sharks landed from Federal waters in the United States be landed with their fins naturally attached to the carcass, but includes a limited exception for smooth dogfish. For the Federal Atlantic shark fisheries, current HMS regulations require federally-permitted shark fishermen to land all sharks with fins naturally attached to the carcass. The SCA's fins-attached requirement is being addressed nationwide through a separate ongoing rulemaking. This final rule only addresses the provision contained in the SCA that allows at-sea fin removal of Atlantic smooth dogfish. Additionally, NMFS will hold an operator-assisted, public conference call and webinar on December 15, 2015, to discuss the methodology used to calculate the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico smoothhound shark quotas (see ADDRESSES).

The Department of Commerce publishes this notice to announce the effective date of a Privacy Act System of Records notice entitled Notice of Amendment to: COMMERCE/DEPT-5, Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act Request Records.

The Department of Commerce publishes this notice to announce the effective date of a Privacy Act System of Records notice entitled ``Notice of Proposed Amendment to Privacy Act System of Records: COMMERCE/NOAA-16, Crab Economic Data Report (EDR) for BSAI off the Coast of Alaska.''

This notice announces a change in the location of a public meeting of the multistakeholder process concerning the collaboration between security researchers and software and system developers and owners to address security vulnerability disclosure.

The New England Fishery Management Council announces its intention to prepare, in cooperation with NMFS, an environmental impact statement in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act. An environmental impact statement may be necessary to provide analytical support for Amendment 22 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan, which would set criteria for a limited entry program for the small-mesh multispecies (whiting) fishery. This notice is to alert the interested public of the scoping process and potential development of a draft environmental impact statement and to outline opportunity for public participation in that process.

The SEDAR 45 assessment of the Gulf of Mexico Vermilion Snapper will consist of one in-person workshop and a series of webinars. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

The Department of Commerce (Commerce) announces, in coordination with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), a test of the International Trade Data System (ITDS) involving the electronic submission to CBP of forms and certifications related to importation of uranium products from the Russian Federation (Russia), using the Document Image System (DIS) of the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). CBP and Commerce have developed this program to test and assess the electronic transmission to CBP of certain import documentation for incoming shipments subject to the applicable provisions of the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Investigation on Uranium from the Russian Federation (Suspension Agreement).\1\ The test will involve forms and certifications required by the Suspension Agreement for shipments of uranium products from Russia that must be filed with CBP at the time of entry when an entry has been filed in ACE. Under this test, such documents must be submitted using DIS. This test applies to all entry types filed in ACE at any port. The electronic submission to CBP of such documentation through DIS is in addition to, and does not replace, the timely filing of the documentation required by the Suspension Agreement with Commerce through Enforcement and Compliance's (E&C) electronic filing system, Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Centralized Electronic Service System (ACCESS), available at access.trade.gov.\2\

NMFS proposes to implement annual catch limits (ACL) and, where necessary, other annual reference points (overfishing limits (OFL) and acceptable biological catches (ABC)) for certain stocks in the monitored and prohibited harvest species categories under the Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The proposed ACLs are: Jack mackerel, 31,000 metric tons (mt); northern subpopulation of northern anchovy, 9,750 mt; central subpopulation of northern anchovy, 25,000 mt; and krill, zero. Additionally, an OFL of 39,000 mt, an ABC of 9,750 mt and an annual catch target (ACT) of 1,500 mt is being proposed for the northern subpopulation of northern anchovy. This rule is intended to conserve and manage these stocks off the U.S. West Coast. If the ACL for any one of these stocks is reached, then fishing for that stock will be closed until it reopens at the start of the next fishing season.