Draft Policy on Interpretation of the Phrase “Significant Portion of Its Range” in the Endangered Species Act's Definitions of “Endangered Species” and “Threatened Species”, 6138-6139 [2012-2667]

Download as PDF tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES 6138 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 25 / Tuesday, February 7, 2012 / Notices practical utility; (2) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology (e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses). This Notice also lists the following information: Title of Proposal: Data Collection for Full Housing Choice Voucher Program Administrative Fee Study. Description of the need for the information and proposed use: This request is for the clearance of on-site and telephone data collection from public housing agencies (PHAs) in support of the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program Administrative Fee Study. The purpose of the study is to collect accurate information on the costs of administering the HCV program across a national sample of highperforming and efficient PHAs, and to use this information to develop a new administrative fee allocation formula for the HCV program. This request for clearance is the fourth OMB request in support of this study and is for data collection for the full national study. The prior OMB requests have covered the reconnaissance or research design phase of the study, pretesting the full national study design, and conducting additional reconnaissance visits to increase the study sample. For the current OMB request, the research team proposes three main types of data collection: (1) Measuring the time that HCV staff spend working on the various activities required to administer the program over a two-month period; (2) collecting information via interviews and document review on overhead costs, other costs related to HCV program administration that cannot be captured by measuring staff time, and ‘‘transaction counts’’ (the number of times an HCV program activity is completed over a specified period of time) in order to translate the staff time spent on that activity into a time per activity or cost per activity; and (3) a telephone survey of 130 small HCV programs (fewer than 250 vouchers) to understand how smaller agencies administer the HCV program effectively without the benefit of economies of scale that apply to larger programs. The results of the data collection will be used to generate estimates of total cost per activity per PHA and to build a multivariate regression model that tests VerDate Mar<15>2010 19:58 Feb 06, 2012 Jkt 226001 how much the variation across PHAs in administrative costs can be explained by PHA, participant, and market characteristics. The results of the model will be used to inform the development of an administrative fee formula that is based on the average cost per activity and takes into account the most important factors that cause some HCV programs to be more costly to administer than others. OMB Approval Number: Pending. Agency form numbers: None. Members of Affected Public: An average of 25 PHA staff per site at up to 60 PHAs and an average of 2 PHA staff per site at up to 130 PHAs, for a total of 1,760 PHA staff persons across 190 PHAs. Estimation of the total number of hours needed to prepare the information collection including number of respondents, frequency of response, and hours of response: The research team plans to collect time measurement and cost data at up to 60 PHAs across the country and to survey an additional 130 PHAs with small HCV programs. There are four data collection activities that involve PHA staff. First, up to 3 staff at each of the 60 PHAs will spend a total of 1,440 hours assembling overhead cost data and preparing for the site visit (3 staff × 8 hours × 60 sites = 1,440 hours). Second, up to 3 staff at each of the 60 PHAs will spend up to 2 days each being interviewed in person or by telephone by the study team about program overhead costs, transaction counts, and recent changes in voucher program operations (3 staff × 16 hours × 60 sites = 2,880 hours). Third, an average of 20 HCV program staff per site will participate in the time measurement data collection. This will entail receiving 2 hours of training (20 staff × 2 hours × 60 sites = 2,400 hours) and responding to notifications via a smart phone provided by the study team on their work activities over a twomonth period (40 working days). Responding to the notifications will take approximately 15 minutes per day per staff, for a total of 10 hours per staff over the 40 working days (20 staff × 10 hours × 60 sites = 12,000 hours). Finally, up to 2 PHA staff at 130 PHAs will participate in the small program telephone survey. These staff will spend up to 2 hours preparing for the telephone survey, including assembling financial statements and other documentation, and an average of 45 minutes completing the survey (2 staff × 2.75 hours × 130 PHAs = 715 hours). The total estimated burden across all proposed data collection activities is 19,435 hours. PO 00000 Frm 00084 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Status of the proposed information collection: Pending OMB approval. Authority: Section 3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended. Dated: January 30, 2012. Erika Poethig, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research. [FR Doc. 2012–2720 Filed 2–6–12; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4210–67–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [Docket No. FWS–R9–ES–2011–0031; FXES11130900000C6–123—FF09E32000; DOC Docket No. 110131072–1277–01] RIN 1018–AX49; 0648–BA78 Draft Policy on Interpretation of the Phrase ‘‘Significant Portion of Its Range’’ in the Endangered Species Act’s Definitions of ‘‘Endangered Species’’ and ‘‘Threatened Species’’ Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior; National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, Commerce. ACTION: Notice of extension of public comment period. AGENCIES: We, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively, the Services), announce a 30-day extension of the period for submission of public comments on the draft policy interpreting the phrase ‘‘significant portion of its range’’ in the Endangered Species Act’s (Act’s) definitions of ‘‘endangered species’’ and ‘‘threatened species.’’ We encourage all interested parties to provide us with information and comments regarding the draft policy. Information previously submitted does not need to be resubmitted, and will be incorporated into the public record and fully considered in our development of a final policy. DATES: We will consider comments and information we receive from all interested parties on or before March 8, 2012. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by one of the following methods: • Federal eRulemaking Portal: https:// www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\07FEN1.SGM 07FEN1 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 25 / Tuesday, February 7, 2012 / Notices on docket number FWS–R9–ES–2011– 0031. • U.S. mail or hand delivery: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS–R9– ES–2011–0031; Division of Policy and Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 North Fairfax Drive, MS 2042; Arlington, VA 22203. We will post all comments on https://www.regulations.gov. This generally means that we will post any personal information you provide us (see Public Comments section below for more information). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rick Sayers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Endangered Species Program, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 420, Arlington, VA 22203; telephone (703) 358–2171; facsimile (703) 358–1735; or Marta Nammack, National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Protected Resources, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910; telephone (301) 427–8469); fax (301) 713–0376). If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at (800) 877–8339. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On December 9, 2011, we published a notice of our draft policy (76 FR 76987) to establish a joint interpretation and application of ‘‘significant portion of its range’’ that reflects a permissible reading of the law and its legislative history and minimizes undesirable policy outcomes, while fulfilling the conservation purposes of the Act. That notice established a 60-day comment period ending February 7, 2012. We have received a number of requests to extend the public comment period. Considering the complexity of the issues addressed in the draft policy and the level of public interest, we have decided that additional time for public comment will be particularly valuable for this action and thus are extending the comment period for an additional 30 days. The draft policy and supporting materials are available for review at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. FWS–R9–ES–2011–0031. tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Public Comments; Request for Information We intend that the final policy on interpretation of the phrase ‘‘significant portion of its range’’ in the Act’s definitions of ‘‘endangered species’’ and ‘‘threatened species’’ will consider information and recommendations from all interested parties. We therefore solicit comments, information, and recommendations from governmental agencies, Native American tribes, the scientific community, industry groups, VerDate Mar<15>2010 17:34 Feb 06, 2012 Jkt 226001 environmental interest groups, and any other interested parties. All comments and materials received by the date listed in the DATES section above will be considered prior to the approval of a final document. For the complete list of subjects on which we seek comments, please refer to the December 9, 2011, draft policy (76 FR 76987), available on line at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. FWS–R9–ES–2011–0031. Please include sufficient information with your submission (such as references to scientific journal articles or other publications) to allow us to verify any scientific or commercial information you include. You may submit your information concerning this draft policy by one of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. If you submit information via https://www.regulations.gov, your entire submission—including any personal identifying information—will be posted on the Web site. If you submit a hardcopy that includes personal identifying information, you may request at the top of your document that we withhold this personal identifying information from public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. We will post all hardcopy submissions on https:// www.regulations.gov. Information and supporting documentation used in preparing this document is available for you to review at https://www.regulations.gov, or you may make an appointment during normal business hours at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Endangered Species Program (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). Authority We are taking this action under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). Dated: January 30, 2012. Daniel M. Ashe, Director, Fish and Wildlife Service. Dated: January 27, 2012. Alan D. Risenhoover, Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine Fisheries Service. [FR Doc. 2012–2667 Filed 2–6–12; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–55–P PO 00000 Frm 00085 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 6139 DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service [FWS–R9–IA–2012–N029; FXIA16710900000P5–123–FF09A30000] Endangered Species; Receipt of Applications for Permit Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Notice of receipt of applications for permit. AGENCY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invite the public to comment on the following applications to conduct certain activities with endangered species. With some exceptions, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) prohibits activities with listed species unless Federal authorization is acquired that allows such activities. DATES: We must receive comments or requests for documents on or before March 8, 2012. ADDRESSES: Brenda Tapia, Division of Management Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 212, Arlington, VA 22203; fax (703) 358–2280; or email DMAFR@fws.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brenda Tapia, (703) 358–2104 (telephone); (703) 358–2280 (fax); DMAFR@fws.gov (email). SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: SUMMARY: I. Public Comment Procedures A. How do I request copies of applications or comment on submitted applications? Send your request for copies of applications or comments and materials concerning any of the applications to the contact listed under ADDRESSES. Please include the Federal Register notice publication date, the PRTnumber, and the name of the applicant in your request or submission. We will not consider requests or comments sent to an email or address not listed under ADDRESSES. If you provide an email address in your request for copies of applications, we will attempt to respond to your request electronically. Please make your requests or comments as specific as possible. Please confine your comments to issues for which we seek comments in this notice, and explain the basis for your comments. Include sufficient information with your comments to allow us to authenticate any scientific or commercial data you include. The comments and recommendations that will be most useful and likely to influence agency decisions are: (1) E:\FR\FM\07FEN1.SGM 07FEN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 25 (Tuesday, February 7, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6138-6139]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-2667]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Docket No. FWS-R9-ES-2011-0031; FXES11130900000C6-123--FF09E32000; DOC 
Docket No. 110131072-1277-01]
RIN 1018-AX49; 0648-BA78


Draft Policy on Interpretation of the Phrase ``Significant 
Portion of Its Range'' in the Endangered Species Act's Definitions of 
``Endangered Species'' and ``Threatened Species''

AGENCIES: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior; National Marine 
Fisheries Service, NOAA, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of extension of public comment period.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the 
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively, the Services), 
announce a 30-day extension of the period for submission of public 
comments on the draft policy interpreting the phrase ``significant 
portion of its range'' in the Endangered Species Act's (Act's) 
definitions of ``endangered species'' and ``threatened species.'' We 
encourage all interested parties to provide us with information and 
comments regarding the draft policy. Information previously submitted 
does not need to be resubmitted, and will be incorporated into the 
public record and fully considered in our development of a final 
policy.

DATES: We will consider comments and information we receive from all 
interested parties on or before March 8, 2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments

[[Page 6139]]

on docket number FWS-R9-ES-2011-0031.
     U.S. mail or hand delivery: Public Comments Processing, 
Attn: FWS-R9-ES-2011-0031; Division of Policy and Directives 
Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 North Fairfax Drive, 
MS 2042; Arlington, VA 22203.
    We will post all comments on https://www.regulations.gov. This 
generally means that we will post any personal information you provide 
us (see Public Comments section below for more information).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rick Sayers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service, Endangered Species Program, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 
420, Arlington, VA 22203; telephone (703) 358-2171; facsimile (703) 
358-1735; or Marta Nammack, National Marine Fisheries Service, Office 
of Protected Resources, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 
20910; telephone (301) 427-8469); fax (301) 713-0376). If you use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at (800) 877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On December 9, 2011, we published a notice 
of our draft policy (76 FR 76987) to establish a joint interpretation 
and application of ``significant portion of its range'' that reflects a 
permissible reading of the law and its legislative history and 
minimizes undesirable policy outcomes, while fulfilling the 
conservation purposes of the Act. That notice established a 60-day 
comment period ending February 7, 2012. We have received a number of 
requests to extend the public comment period. Considering the 
complexity of the issues addressed in the draft policy and the level of 
public interest, we have decided that additional time for public 
comment will be particularly valuable for this action and thus are 
extending the comment period for an additional 30 days. The draft 
policy and supporting materials are available for review at https://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. FWS-R9-ES-2011-0031.

Public Comments; Request for Information

    We intend that the final policy on interpretation of the phrase 
``significant portion of its range'' in the Act's definitions of 
``endangered species'' and ``threatened species'' will consider 
information and recommendations from all interested parties. We 
therefore solicit comments, information, and recommendations from 
governmental agencies, Native American tribes, the scientific 
community, industry groups, environmental interest groups, and any 
other interested parties. All comments and materials received by the 
date listed in the DATES section above will be considered prior to the 
approval of a final document. For the complete list of subjects on 
which we seek comments, please refer to the December 9, 2011, draft 
policy (76 FR 76987), available on line at https://www.regulations.gov 
under Docket No. FWS-R9-ES-2011-0031.
    Please include sufficient information with your submission (such as 
references to scientific journal articles or other publications) to 
allow us to verify any scientific or commercial information you 
include.
    You may submit your information concerning this draft policy by one 
of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. If you submit 
information via https://www.regulations.gov, your entire submission--
including any personal identifying information--will be posted on the 
Web site. If you submit a hardcopy that includes personal identifying 
information, you may request at the top of your document that we 
withhold this personal identifying information from public review. 
However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. We will 
post all hardcopy submissions on https://www.regulations.gov.
    Information and supporting documentation used in preparing this 
document is available for you to review at https://www.regulations.gov, 
or you may make an appointment during normal business hours at the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service, Endangered Species Program (see FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT).

Authority

    We are taking this action under the authority of the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

    Dated: January 30, 2012.
Daniel M. Ashe,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
    Dated: January 27, 2012.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-2667 Filed 2-6-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P

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