Department of Commerce May 5, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice announces the Department of Commerce's (Department's) proposal to amend the system of records entitled ``COMMERCE/NOAA-3, ``Commissioned Officer Official Personnel Folders'' under the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended. This amendment would change the name of the SORN from the ``Commissioned Officer Official Personnel Folders'' to ``NOAA Corps Officer Official Personnel Folders.'' This amendment would also update the following sections of the current NOAA- 3: Addresses, For Further Information Contact, Security Classification, Authority for Maintenance of the System, Storage, Purposes, and Routine Uses. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps) is the uniformed service of NOAA, a bureau of the Department. 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. Personnel records and folders must be created as they are required by law, Executive Order, operational guidance from central management agencies, and/or agency records management programs.

This action revises scale requirements for processing vessels that are required to weigh fish at sea, i.e., mothership and catcher/ processor vessels, and Shorebased Individual Fishery Quota Program (IFQ) first receivers. For motherships and catcher/processors that weigh fish at sea, the action requires the use of updated scale technology, requires enhanced daily scale testing for flow scales (also known as belt scales), and requires the use of video to monitor the flow scale and the area around the flow scale. For Shorebased IFQ first receivers, the action adds criteria for inseason flow scale tests. In addition, the action includes housekeeping changes that are intended to better align the regulations with defined terms, and to provide clarity and consistency between paragraphs. Action is needed to provide precise and accurate catch estimates and to reduce the likelihood that vessels will under report harvests.