Department of Commerce May 2017 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold a public hearing via webinar to solicit public comments on Draft Reef Fish Amendment 44Minimum Stock Size Threshold for Reef Fish Stocks.

The New England Fishery Management Council will hold six public hearings and one webinar to solicit comments on the Omnibus Deep Sea Coral Amendment.

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is scheduling a joint public meeting of its Monkfish Advisory Panel on Tuesday, May 23, 2017, to consider actions affecting New England fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Recommendations from this group will be brought to the full Council for formal consideration and action, if appropriate.

We, NMFS, issue a final rule to list six foreign marine elasmobranch species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). These six species are the daggernose shark (Isogomphodon oxyrhynchus), Brazilian guitarfish (Rhinobatos horkelii), striped smoothhound shark (Mustelus fasciatus), narrownose smoothhound shark (Mustelus schmitti), spiny angelshark (Squatina guggenheim), and Argentine angelshark (Squatina argentina). We are publishing this final rule to implement our final determination to list the daggernose shark, Brazilian guitarfish, striped smoothhound shark, spiny angelshark and Argentine angelshark as endangered species under the ESA, and the narrownose smoothhound shark as a threatened species under the ESA. We have reviewed the status of these six species, including efforts being made to protect these species, and considered public comments submitted on the proposed rule as well as new information received since publication of the proposed rule. We have made our final determinations based on the best scientific and commercial data available. We will not designate critical habitat for any of these species because the geographical areas occupied by these species are entirely outside U.S. jurisdiction, and we have not identified any unoccupied areas within U.S. jurisdiction that are essential to the conservation of any of these species.

We are proposing to approve and implement regulations submitted by the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils in Framework Adjustment 10 to the Monkfish Fishery Management Plan. This action would set monkfish specifications for fishing years 2017-2019 (May 1, 2017, through April 30, 2020). This action would also increase current days-at-sea allocations and trip limits to provide additional operational flexibility and fishing opportunities. This action is needed to allow the fishery to more effectively harvest its optimum yield.

On February 13, 2017, the Department of Commerce (Department) initiated an administrative review of the countervailing duty order on welded line pipe from the Republic of Turkey (Turkey) for nineteen companies. Based on timely withdrawal of requests for review, we are now rescinding this administrative review with respect to 17 of these companies.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on silicomanganese from Ukraine. The period of review (POR) is August 1, 2015, through July 31, 2016. The review covers two exporters of the subject merchandise, PJSC Zaporozhye Ferroalloy Plant (ZFP), and PJSC Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant (NFP). The Department preliminarily finds, based on the application of adverse facts available, that subject merchandise has been sold in the United States at prices below normal value during the POR.

As a result of determinations by the Department of Commerce (Department) and the International Trade Commission (ITC) that revocation of the antidumping duty (AD) orders on sulfanilic acid from the People's Republic of China (PRC) and India and the countervailing duty (CVD) order on sulfanilic acid from India would likely lead to continuation or recurrence of dumping and a countervailable subsidy and material injury to an industry in the United States, the Department is publishing this notice of continuation of these AD and CVD orders.

Notice is hereby given that Keith Ellenbogen, Keith Ellenbogen Photography, 795 Carroll St., Brooklyn, NY 11215, has applied in due form for a permit to conduct commercial or educational photography on marine mammals.

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit application contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. This Exempted Fishing Permit would allow four commercial fishing vessels, directed by Coonamessett Farm Foundation, to be exempt from Atlantic sea scallop regulations for the purpose of bycatch reduction research. Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed Exempted Fishing Permits.

NMFS implements an accountability measure for the commercial longline component for golden tilefish in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the South Atlantic. Commercial longline landings for golden tilefish are projected to reach the longline component's commercial annual catch limit (ACL) on May 2, 2017. Therefore, to provide sufficient notice to fishermen, NMFS closes the commercial longline component for golden tilefish in the South Atlantic EEZ on May 9, 2017, and it will remain closed until the start of the next fishing year, January 1, 2018. This closure is necessary to protect the golden tilefish resource.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will convene a meeting of its Economics and Groundfish Subcommittees of the Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC). The meeting is open to the public.

NMFS reopens the commercial sector for king mackerel in the western and northern zones, and the run-around gillnet component in the southern zone of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) exclusive economic zone (EEZ) through this temporary rule. NMFS recently published a final rule that modified the zones and annual catch limits (ACLs) for king mackerel in the Gulf EEZ, which increased the commercial quotas for king mackerel. This final rule will be effective on May 11, 2017. Therefore, NMFS is reopening the western, northern, and southern (gillnet) zones of the Gulf EEZ because there is available king mackerel commercial quota to harvest in these zones at 12:01 a.m., local time, on May 11, 2017, through the end of the respective 2016- 2017 fishing year or until the applicable commercial quotas are reached, whichever happens first. NMFS intends through this temporary rule to maximize harvest benefits for the king mackerel commercial sector in the Gulf by allowing the commercial quotas to be caught.

The SEDAR 50 assessment of the Atlantic stock of blueline tilefish will consist of a series of workshops and webinars: Stock ID Work Group Meeting; Data Workshop; Assessment Workshop and Webinars; and a Review Workshop. See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (MAFMC) Ecosystem and Ocean Planning Committee will hold a public meeting.

The Science and Statistical Committee (SSC) of the Mid- Atlantic Fishery Management Council's (Council) will hold a meeting.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is rescinding the administrative review of the antidumping duty order on steel wire garment hangers from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (Vietnam). The period of review is February 1, 2016, through January 31, 2017.

The Department of Commerce (the Department) is conducting an administrative review of the antidumping duty order on drawn stainless steel sinks (drawn sinks) from the People's Republic of China (PRC). The period of review (POR) is April 1, 2015, through March 31, 2016. The review covers two mandatory respondents, Guangdong Dongyuan Kitchenware Industrial Co., Ltd. (Dongyuan) and Guangdong Yingao Kitchen Utensils Co. Ltd (Yingao). We preliminarily determine that sales of subject merchandise by both respondents have been made at prices below normal value (NV). We also preliminarily grant separate rates to ten companies, which demonstrated eligibility for separate rate status, but were not selected for individual examination. Finally, we preliminarily find that New Shichu Import and Export Company Limited (New Sichu) made no shipments of subject merchandise during the POR. We invite interested parties to comment on these preliminary results.

NMFS has received an application, pursuant to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), from the U.S. Air Force 86 Fighter Weapons Squadron (86 FWS) for authorization to take marine mammals incidental to Long Range Strike Weapons System Evaluation Program (LRS WSEP) activities in the Barking Sands Underwater Range Expansion (BSURE) area of the Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) off Kauai, Hawaii, for the period of August 23, 2017, through August 22, 2022. NMFS is proposing regulations to govern that take, and requests comments on the proposed regulations.

NMFS announces the 2017 recreational fishing seasons for the private angling and Federal charter vessel/headboat (for-hire) components for red snapper in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) through this temporary rule. The Federal recreational season for red snapper in the Gulf EEZ begins at 12:01 a.m., local time, on June 1, 2017. For recreational harvest by the private angling component, the season closes at 12:01 a.m., local time, on June 4, 2017. For recreational harvest by the Federal for-hire component, the season closes at 12:01 a.m., local time, on July 20, 2017. These closures are necessary to prevent the private angling and Federal for-hire components from exceeding their respective quotas (annual catch limits (ACLs)) for the 2017 fishing year and to prevent overfishing of the Gulf red snapper resource.

The Department of Commerce is rescinding the administrative review of the antidumping duty order on polyethylene terephthalate film, sheet, and strip from the People's Republic of China for the period November 1, 2015, through October 31, 2016.

In response to requests for additional time, the Department of Commerce (Department) is extending the closing deadline for submitting comments to a request for public comment and information entitled Certain Aluminum Foil From the People's Republic of China: Notice of Initiation of Inquiry Into the Status of the People's Republic of China as a Nonmarket Economy Country Under the Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Laws, 82 FR 16162 (April 3, 2017). In the request for public comment and information, and as part of the less-than-fair-value investigation of certain aluminum foil from the People's Republic of China (PRC), the Department is seeking broad input from the public regarding whether the PRC should continue to be treated as a nonmarket economy (NME) country under the antidumping and countervailing duty laws. The Department is seeking public comment and information with respect to the factors to be considered under the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (the Act).

Notice is hereby given of a Sanctuary System Business Advisory Council (council) meeting. The meeting is open to the public and will be conducted as a web-based conference call, where participants may provide comments at the appropriate time during the meeting. Participants can choose to access the meeting's audio via telephone, or both the meeting's audio and web-based visual components on a computer.

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that two Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) applications contain all of the required information and warrant further consideration. These EFPs would allow commercial fishing vessels to land Atlantic halibut under the minimum size limit and in excess of the possession limit for studies by the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, School for Marine Science and Technology, and The Nature Conservancy. Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed EFPs.