Department of Commerce 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The New England Fishery Management Council's (Council) Groundfish Advisory Panel and Oversight Committee will meet to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) Damage Assessment, Remediation, and Restoration Program (DARRP) is announcing new indirect cost rates on the recovery of indirect costs for its component organizations involved in natural resource damage assessment and restoration activities for fiscal year (FY) 2012. The indirect cost rates for this fiscal year and date of implementation are provided in this notice. More information on these rates and the DARRP policy can be found at the DARRP Web site at www.darrp.noaa.gov.

The Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Administration, with the concurrence of the General Services Administration, renewed the Charter for the United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board on August 19, 2013.

NMFS proposes to modify the declaration requirements for vessels required to use Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) units in Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) fisheries. This proposed rule would require operators of vessels that have been issued HMS permits and are required to use VMS to use their VMS units to provide hourly position reports 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (24/7). The proposed rule would also allow the operators of such vessels to make declarations out of the fishery when not retaining or fishing for HMS for specified periods of time encompassing two or more trips. These changes would make the current Atlantic HMS VMS requirements consistent with other VMS-monitored Atlantic fisheries and provide additional reporting flexibility for vessel operators by eliminating the requirement to hail-out two hours in advance of leaving port. Additionally, these changes will continue to provide NOAA's Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) with information necessary to facilitate enforcement of HMS regulations. This rule would affect all commercial fishermen who fish for Atlantic HMS who are required to use VMS.

This final rule finalizes interim measures put in place for the May 1, 2013, start of the Northeast (NE) multispecies fishing year. This action intends to do the following: Finalize interim rule measures put in place by Framework Adjustment (FW) 48, FW 50, and in the 2013 Sector Operations Plan rulemakings; respond to public comments received on the interim measures; and notify the public of changes being made to Eastern U.S./Canada Area quota monitoring and associated reporting requirements.

NMFS proposes regulations to implement measures in Amendment 14 to the Atlantic Mackerel, Squid and Butterfish Management Plan. The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council developed Amendment 14 to improve catch monitoring for the Atlantic mackerel, squid, and butterfish fisheries and to address incidental catch of river herring and shad through responsible management. Amendment 14 management measures include: Revising dealer and vessel reporting requirements, and requirements for vessel monitoring systems; increasing observer coverage on midwater trawl mackerel and Tier 1, 2 and 3 small-mesh bottom trawl mackerel vessels; implementing partial industry funding for observer coverage; revising vessel requirements to improve at-sea sampling by observers; establishing slippage caps to discourage the discarding of catch prior to sampling by observers; and establishing a mortality cap for river herring and shad with amounts to be set during specifications.

NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amounts of Pacific cod from vessels using jig gear and catcher vessels greater than 60 feet (18.3 meters) length overall (LOA) using hook-and-line gear to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 meters) LOA using hook-and-line or pot gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area. This action is necessary to allow the 2013 total allowable catch of Pacific cod to be harvested.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's Spiny Dogfish Advisory Panel (AP) will meet to develop a Fishery Performance Report for the Spiny Dogfish fishery in preparation for the Council and the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee review of specifications that have been set for the 2014 fishing year. The meeting date and time are being corrected in this document. All other information previously- published is repeated here.

NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amounts of Pacific cod from catcher vessels using trawl gear to American Fisheries Act trawl catcher/processors and Amendment 80 catcher/processors in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area. This action is necessary to allow the 2013 total allowable catch of Pacific cod to be harvested.

Beginning August 26, 2013, the northern red hake possession limit is reduced to the incidental possession limit for the remainder of the 2013 fishing year.

NMFS hereby proposes to amend the regulations implementing the Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Plan (Plan). This proposed rule would revise the Plan by eliminating the consequence closure strategy enacted in 2010 based on deliberations by the Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Team. This action is necessary to prevent the improper triggering of consequence closure areas based on target harbor porpoise bycatch rates that no longer accurately reflect actual bycatch in New England sink gillnets due to fishery-wide changes in fishing practices.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will convene a conference call of its Coastal Pelagic Species Management Team (CPSMT) and its Coastal Pelagic Species Advisory Subpanel (CPSAS). There may be opportunities for the public to attend the meeting remotely, and a public listening station will be made available.

We are conducting a new shipper review of the antidumping duty order on glycine from the People's Republic of China (PRC). The new shipper review covers Hebei Donghua Jiheng Fine Chemical Company, Ltd. (Donghua Fine Chemical) for the period of review March 1, 2012, through August 31, 2012. We have preliminarily determined that Donghua Fine Chemical does not qualify as a new shipper. Therefore, we are preliminarily rescinding this new shipper review.

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for arrowtooth flounder in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area (BSAI). This action is necessary to prevent exceeding the 2013 arrowtooth flounder initial total allowable catch (ITAC) in the BSAI.

In addition to a Swearing-In Ceremony for new South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) Members and a Council Member Visioning Workshop, the Council will hold a meetings of the: Ecosystem- Based Management Committee: Dolphin Wahoo Committee; Southeast Data, Assessment and Review Committee (partially Closed Session); Snapper Grouper Committee; King & Spanish Mackerel Committee; Advisory Panel Selection Committee (closed session); Protected Resources Committee; Executive Finance Committee; Data Collection Committee; and a meeting of the Full Council. The Council will take action as necessary. The Council will also hold an informal public question and answer session regarding agenda items and a formal public comment session.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (MAFMC) Bluefish Monitoring Committee and Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Monitoring Committee will hold a public meeting.