E6-21894. Information Collection Sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Approval; OMB Control Number 1018-0067; Approval Procedures for Nontoxic Shot and Shot Coatings (50 CFR 20.134)

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice; request for comments.

SUMMARY:

We (Fish and Wildlife Service) have sent an Information Collection Request (ICR) to OMB for review and approval. The ICR, which is summarized below, describes the nature of the collection and the estimated burden and cost. This ICR is scheduled to expire on December 31, 2006. 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 January 22, 2007.

ADDRESSES:

Send your comments and suggestions on this ICR to the Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior at OMB-OIRA at [phone] (fax) or [e-mail] (e-mail). Please provide a copy of your comments to Hope Grey, Information Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service, MS 222-ARLSQ, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Arlington, VA 22203 (mail); [phone] (fax); or [e-mail] (e-mail).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request additional information about this ICR, contact Hope Grey at one of the addresses above or by telephone at [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

OMB Control Number: 1018-0067.

Title: Approval Procedures for Nontoxic Shot and Shot Coatings (50 CFR 20.134).

Service Form Number: None.

Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.

Affected Public: Businesses that produce and/or market shot or shot coatings.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain benefits.

Frequency of Collection: On occasion.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 2 per year.

Estimated Total Annual Responses: 2.

Estimated Time per Response: 3,200 hours.

Estimated Total Nonhour Cost Burden: $34,000 per year.

Abstract: This information collection is associated with regulations implementing the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) (16 U.S.C. 703 et seq.). The MBTA prohibits the unauthorized take of migratory birds and authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to regulate take of migratory birds in the United States. Under this authority, we control the hunting of migratory game birds through regulations in 50 CFR part 20. On January 1, 1991, we banned lead shot for hunting waterfowl and coots in the United States. At that time, only steel shot was available as a nontoxic alternative to lead shot. Over the years, we have encouraged manufacturers to develop types of shot for waterfowl hunting that are not toxic to migratory birds or other wildlife when ingested and are not harmful to the environment.

The regulations at 50 CFR 20.134 outline the application and approval process for new types of nontoxic shot. When considering approval of a candidate material as nontoxic, we must ensure that it is not hazardous in the environment and that secondary exposure (ingestion of spent shot or its components) is not a hazard to migratory birds. To make that decision, we require each applicant to collect information about the solubility and toxicity of the candidate material. Additionally, for law enforcement purposes, a noninvasive field detection device must be available to distinguish candidate shot from lead shot. This information constitutes the bulk of an application for approval of nontoxic shot.

Comments: On June 23, 2006, we published in the Federal Register (71 FR 36131) 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 August 22, 2006. We received one comment expressing the opinion that all shot material is harmful to the environment and that hunting is unethical. We have not made any changes to our information collection as a result of these comments.

We again invite comments concerning this information collection on:

(1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary, including whether or not the information will have practical utility;

(2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection of information;

(3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(4) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents. Comments submitted in response to this notice are a matter of public record.

Dated: November 16, 2006.

Hope Grey,

Information Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service.