Department of the Interior June 23, 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), are proposing to renew an information collection.

This notice advises the public that the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) and Lower Colorado River Authority Transmission Services Corporation (LCRA TSC), have applied for an enhancement of survival (EOS) permit supported by the Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances for the Texas pimpleback (Cyclonaias petrina), Texas fawnsfoot (Truncilla macrodon), Texas fatmucket (Lampsilis bracteata), and Balcones spike (Fusconaia iheringi) in the Lower Colorado River Basin below O.H. Ivie Reservoir (CCAA). LCRA is a conservation and reclamation district in the State of Texas that provides multiple services in the Colorado River basin, including managing water supplies, managing floods along the Highland Lakes, producing and delivering power, managing parks and recreation areas, and supporting community development. LCRA TSC is a nonprofit corporation conducting electric transmission operations within Texas. They own and operate 5,500 circuit miles of electric transmission lines and maintain and operate equipment at approximately 430 electric substations across the state. The requested EOS permit, if approved, would authorize incidental take of four proposed freshwater mussel species, Texas pimpleback, Texas fawnsfoot, Texas fatmucket, and Balcones spike resulting from activities covered by the CCAA, including freshwater mussel conservation actions, operations, inspections, repairs, construction, and maintenance activities in the Colorado River basin in Texas. We have made a preliminary determination that the CCAA is eligible for categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The basis for this determination is contained in a draft NEPA screening form to support the use of a categorical exclusion under NEPA, which evaluates the impacts of EOS permit issuance and implementation of the proposed CCAA. The documents available for comment include the NEPA screening form, the CCAA, and the EOS permit application.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), propose to expand hunting opportunities on three National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs). We also propose to make changes to existing station-specific regulations in order to reduce the regulatory burden on the public, increase access for hunters and anglers on Service lands and waters, and comply with a Presidential mandate for plain language standards. Finally, the best available science, analyzed as part of this proposed rulemaking, indicates that lead ammunition and tackle have negative impacts on both wildlife and human health. In this proposed rule, Blackwater, Chincoteague, Eastern Neck, Erie, Great Thicket, Patuxent Research Refuge, Rachel Carson, and Wallops Island NWRs are each proposing a non-lead requirement, which would take effect on September 1, 2026, if we adopt them as part of a final rule. While the Service continues to evaluate the future of lead use in hunting and fishing on Service lands and waters, this rulemaking does not include any opportunities proposing to increase or authorize the new use of lead beyond fall 2026.