2023-02568. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Designation of Fishery Management Council Members and Application for Reinstatement of State ...

The Department of Commerce will submit the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, on or after the date of publication of this notice. We invite the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. Public comments were previously requested via the Federal Register on November 7, 2022, during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.

Agency: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

Title: Designation of Fishery Management Council Members and Application for Reinstatement of State Authority.

OMB Control Number: 0648-0314.

Form Number(s): None.

Type of Request: Regular (extension of a current information collection).

Number of Respondents: 275.

Average Hours per Response: 80 hours for a nomination for Council appointment; 16 hours for background documentation for nominees; 1 hour to designate a principal state fishery official(s) or for a request to reinstate authority.

Total Annual Burden Hours: 4,607.

Needs and Uses: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) authorizes the establishment of eight Regional Fishery Management Councils to manage fisheries within regional jurisdictions. This collection pertains to several sections of the Magnuson-Stevens Act related to the Councils. Section 302(b) provides for appointment of Council members nominated by State Governors, Territorial Governors, or Tribal Governments and for designation of a principal state fishery official for the purposes of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Section 306(b)(2) provides for a request by a state for reinstatement of state authority over a managed fishery. Nominees for Council membership must provide their State Governor, Territorial Governor, or Tribal Government leadership with background documentation, which is then submitted to NOAA, on behalf of the Secretary of Commerce to review qualifications for Council membership. The information collected with these actions is used to ensure that the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act are being met in regard to Council membership and state authority.

Affected Public: State, local, or Tribal government.

Frequency: Annual.

Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.

Legal Authority: Magnuson-Stevens Act section 302(b), section 306(b)(2), and 50 CFR 600.215.

This information collection request may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view the Department of Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be submitted within 30 days of the publication of this notice on the following website www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function and entering either the title of the collection or the OMB Control Number 0648-0314.

Sheleen Dumas,

Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Commerce Department.