Information Collection Request Sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Approval; Captive Wildlife Safety Act, 56690-56691 [2016-19920]

Agencies

• Fish and Wildlife Service
• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 162 (Monday, August 22, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56690-56691]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-19920]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FWS-HQ-LE-2016--N250; FF09L00200-FX-LE18110900000]


Information Collection Request Sent to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for Approval; Captive Wildlife Safety Act

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Service) have sent an 
Information Collection Request (ICR) to OMB for review and approval. We 
summarize the ICR below and describe the nature of the collection and 
the estimated burden and cost. This information collection is scheduled 
to expire on August 31, 2016. We may not conduct or sponsor and a 
person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless 
it displays a currently valid OMB control number. However, under OMB 
regulations, we may continue to conduct or sponsor this information 
collection while it is pending at OMB.

DATES: You must submit comments on or before September 21, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments and suggestions on this information 
collection to the Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior at 
OMB-OIRA at (202) 395-5806 (fax) or OIRA_Submission@omb.eop.gov 
(email). Please provide a copy of your comments to the Service 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service, MS BPHC, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 
(mail); or hope_grey@fws.gov (email). Please include ``1018-0129'' in 
the subject line of your comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information 
about this ICR, contact Hope Grey at hope_grey@fws.gov (email) or 703-
358-2482 (telephone). You may review the ICR online at https://www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to review Department of the 
Interior collections under review by OMB.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    OMB Control Number: 1018-0129.
    Title: Captive Wildlife Safety Act, 50 CFR 14.250-14.255.
    Service Form Number: None.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Description of Respondents: Accredited wildlife sanctuaries.
    Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
    Frequency of Collection: Ongoing.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 750.
    Estimated Number of Responses: 750.
    Completion Time per Response: 1 hour.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 750.
    Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: $300.
    Abstract: The Captive Wildlife Safety Act (CWSA) amends the Lacey 
Act by making it illegal to import, export, buy, sell, transport, 
receive, or acquire, in interstate or foreign commerce, live lions, 
tigers, leopards, snow leopards, clouded leopards, cheetahs, jaguars, 
or cougars, or any hybrid combination of any of these species, unless 
certain exceptions are met. There are several exemptions to the 
prohibitions of the CWSA, including accredited wildlife sanctuaries.
    There is no requirement for wildlife sanctuaries to submit 
applications to qualify for the accredited wildlife sanctuary 
exemption. Wildlife sanctuaries themselves will determine if they 
qualify. To qualify, they must meet all of the following criteria:
     Obtain approval by the United States Internal Revenue 
Service (IRS) as a corporation that is exempt from taxation under 
section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, which is described 
in sections 501(c)(3) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) of that code.
     Do not engage in commercial trade in the prohibited 
wildlife species, including offspring, parts, and products.
     Do not propagate the prohibited wildlife species.
     Have no direct contact between the public and the 
prohibited wildlife species.
    The basis for this information collection is the recordkeeping 
requirement that we place on accredited wildlife sanctuaries. We 
require accredited wildlife sanctuaries to maintain complete and 
accurate records of any possession, transportation, acquisition, 
disposition, importation, or exportation of the prohibited wildlife 
species as defined in the CWSA (50 CFR 14, subpart K). Records must be 
up to date and include: (1) Names and addresses of persons to or from 
whom any prohibited wildlife species has been acquired, imported, 
exported, purchased, sold, or otherwise transferred; and (2) dates of 
these transactions. Accredited wildlife sanctuaries must:
     Maintain these records for 5 years.
     Make these records accessible to Service officials for 
inspection at reasonable hours.
     Copy these records for Service officials, if requested.

Comments Received and Our Responses

    On April 6, 2016, we published in the Federal Register (81 FR 
19990) a notice of our intent to request that OMB renew approval for 
this information collection. In that notice, we solicited comments for 
60 days, ending on June 6, 2016. We received the following comments in 
response to that notice.
    Comment: One comment suggested that the recordkeeping requirement

[[Page 56691]]

should be expanded to other exempted entities under the CWSA, including 
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) licensed facilities 
and State-licensed wildlife rehabilitators.
    Response: The Service does not have the authority to establish a 
recordkeeping requirement on the other entities exempted under the 
CWSA. The accredited wildlife sanctuary was the only exemption that was 
specifically defined in the CWSA, and as such, was the only exemption 
that lent itself to a recordkeeping requirement.
    Comment: One comment suggested that appropriate records should be 
made available to the Service on an annual basis.
    Response: The Service feels that the submission of records only on 
an as needed basis is adequate to substantiate that a particular 
wildlife sanctuary qualifies as accredited under the CWSA. The 
submission of records on an annual basis would require an application 
or other mechanism to receive and evaluate those records. In the 
development of the regulations to implement the CWSA, we considered 
options for developing some type of formal accreditation mechanism for 
wildlife sanctuaries, but concluded that because of a lack of available 
staff and resources to manage the submission of records on an annual 
basis, such a step was not practical.
    Comment: One comment suggested that records should be made 
available to the public through an on-line database or through Freedom 
of Information Act requests.
    Response: The Service feels that the requirements in the final rule 
to implement the CWSA by requiring wildlife sanctuaries to submit 
records on an as needed basis is adequate to substantiate that a 
particular wildlife sanctuary qualifies as accredited under the CWSA. 
We considered options for developing some type of formal electronic on-
line database for wildlife sanctuaries, but concluded that because of a 
lack of available resources and staff to adequately implement such a 
mechanism, such a step was not practical. Any records the Service 
possesses could be made available to the public subject to the 
provisions of the Privacy Act.
    Comment: One comment suggested that the Service incorporate an 
electronic recordkeeping system for wildlife sanctuaries that could be 
accessed and used by other Federal, State, or local agencies, and in 
particular, APHIS, to among other things, reconcile the information 
obtained under the CWSA with that maintained by APHIS under the Animal 
Welfare Act to ensure compliance.
    Response: We considered options for developing some type of formal 
electronic accreditation mechanism for wildlife sanctuaries that could 
be accessed by other agencies, but concluded that, because of a lack of 
available resources and staff to adequately implement such a mechanism, 
such a step was not practical.
    Comment: One comment suggested that records maintained by an 
accredited wildlife sanctuary must identify specific prohibited species 
and include the date of birth, age, and date of death of the specimen, 
and that specimens ``otherwise transferred,'' as stated in the 
requirements, should include specific information on the disposition of 
the specimen remains.
    Response: The Service feels that the requirements, as written, are 
sufficient to confirm the acquisition or disposition of specimens.
    Comment: One comment suggested that an electronic recordkeeping 
system for wildlife sanctuaries could alleviate the time required to 
maintain records.
    Response: We considered options for developing some type of formal 
electronic accreditation mechanism for wildlife sanctuaries, but 
concluded that, because of a lack of available resources and staff to 
adequately implement such a mechanism, such a step was not practical.
    Comment: One comment suggested that maintaining records by an 
accredited wildlife sanctuary should not be considered a ``burden.''
    Response: We used the term ''burden'' in our Federal Register 
notice simply because ``burden'' is the term typically used to measure 
the impact of an information collection.
    Comment: One comment suggested that records maintained by an 
accredited wildlife sanctuary must be updated within 30 days.
    Response: The Service feels that the submission of records only on 
an as needed basis is adequate to substantiate that a particular 
wildlife sanctuary qualifies as accredited under the CWSA. Updating 
records within 30 days would require an application or other mechanism 
to receive and evaluate those records. In the development of the 
regulations to implement the CWSA, we considered options for developing 
some type of formal accreditation mechanism for wildlife sanctuaries, 
but concluded that because of a lack of available staff and resources 
to manage the submission of records on an annual basis, such a step was 
not practical
    Comment: One comment suggested that records maintained by an 
accredited wildlife sanctuary should be maintained for 7 years.
    Response: Under 50 CFR 14.254, we require that accredited wildlife 
sanctuaries maintain complete and accurate records of any possession, 
transportation, acquisition, disposition, importation, or exportation 
of the prohibited wildlife species for 5 years. This time period is 
consistent with the records requirements contained in our general 
permit procedures in 50 CFR 13.46. Since wildlife sanctuaries may have 
applied for and been issued permits under the general permit 
procedures, we believe it would be in the public interest that the 
records maintenance requirements of this information collection be 
consistent with those in the general permit procedures.

Request for Public Comments

    We again invite comments concerning this information collection on:
     Whether or not the collection of information is necessary, 
including whether or not the information will have practical utility;
     The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this 
collection of information;
     Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
     Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. Before including your address, phone number, email 
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 OMB in your comment to withhold your personal 
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that it 
will be done.

    Dated: August 16, 2016.
Tina A. Campbell,
Chief, Division of Policy, Performance, and Management Programs, U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-19920 Filed 8-19-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4333-15-P