[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 50 (Friday, March 14, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12524-12526]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-6485]
[[Page 12523]]
_______________________________________________________________________
Part IV
Department of the Interior
_______________________________________________________________________
Fish and Wildlife Service
_______________________________________________________________________
50 CFR Part 20
Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program; Participating States for
the 1997-98 Season; Proposed Rule
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 50 / Friday, March 14, 1997 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 12524]]
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 20
RIN 1018-AE13
Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program; Participating States
for the 1997-98 Season
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Fish and Wildlife Service (hereinafter Service) herein
proposes to amend the Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program
(hereinafter Program) regulations. The Service plans to add Arizona,
Florida, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Texas (beginning with the 1997-
98 hunting season) to the list of participating States. This regulatory
action will continue to require all licensed hunters who hunt migratory
game birds in participating States to register as migratory game bird
hunters and provide their name, address, and date of birth to the State
licensing authority. Hunters will be required to have evidence of
current participation in the Program on their person while hunting
migratory game birds in participating States. The quality and extent of
information about harvests of migratory game birds must be improved in
order to better manage these populations. Hunters' names and addresses
are necessary to provide a sample frame for voluntary hunter surveys to
improve harvest estimates for all migratory game birds. States will
gather migratory bird hunters' names and addresses and the Service will
conduct the harvest surveys.
DATES: The written comment period for the proposed rule will end on May
13, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to the Chief, Office of
Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 10815
Loblolly Pine Drive, Laurel, Maryland 20708-4028. Comments received
will be available for public inspection during normal business hours in
Building 158, 10815 Loblolly Pine Drive (Gate 4, Patuxent Wildlife
Research Center), Laurel, Maryland 20708-4028.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul I. Padding, Office of Migratory
Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 10815 Loblolly Pine
Drive, Laurel, Maryland 20708-4028, (301) 497-5980, FAX (301) 497-5981.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of this rule is to expand the
Program to include the States of Arizona, Florida, Kentucky, North
Carolina, and Texas beginning in the 1997-98 hunting season.
Background
The purpose of this cooperative Program is to annually obtain a
nationwide sample frame of migratory bird hunters, from which
representative samples of hunters will be selected and asked to
participate in voluntary harvest surveys. State wildlife agencies will
provide the sample frame by annually collecting the name, address, and
date of birth of each licensed migratory bird hunter in the State. To
reduce survey costs and to identify hunters who hunt less commonly-
hunted species, States will also request that each migratory bird
hunter provide a brief summary of his or her migratory bird hunting
activity for the previous year. States will send this information to
the Service, and the Service will sample hunters and conduct national
hunter activity and harvest surveys.
A notice of intent to establish the Program was published in the
June 24, 1991, Federal Register (56 FR 28812). A final rule that
established the Program and initiated a 2-year pilot phase in three
volunteer States (California, Missouri, and South Dakota) was published
in the March 19, 1993, Federal Register (58 FR 15093). The pilot phase
was completed following the 1993-94 migratory bird hunting seasons in
California, Missouri, and South Dakota.
A State/Federal technical group was formed to evaluate Program
requirements, the different approaches used by the pilot States, and
the Service's survey procedures during the pilot phase. Changes
incorporated into the Program as a result of the technical group's
evaluation were specified in a final rule, published in the October 21,
1994, Federal Register (59 FR 53334), that initiated the implementation
phase of the Program.
Currently, all licensed hunters who hunt migratory game birds in
participating States are required to have a Program validation,
indicating that they have identified themselves as migratory bird
hunters and have provided the required information to the State
wildlife agency. Hunters must provide the required information to each
State in which they hunt migratory birds. Validations are printed on or
attached to the annual State hunting license or on a State-specific
supplementary permit. The State may charge hunters a handling fee to
compensate hunting-license agents and to cover the State's
administrative costs for the Program.
The State/Federal technical group continues to evaluate the Program
to determine the adequacy and timeliness of the sample frame and the
time burden, cost, and other impacts on hunters, State license agents,
State wildlife agencies, and the Service. Emphasis is currently on the
time requirement for the sample frame and on alternative survey methods
for special groups of unlicensed hunters (e.g., junior and senior
hunters).
The Service's survey design calls for hunting-record forms to be
distributed to hunters selected for the survey before they forget the
details of their hunts. Because of this design requirement, States have
only a short time to obtain hunter names and addresses from license
vendors and to provide those names and addresses to the Service.
Currently, participating States must send the required information to
the Service within 30 calendar days of issuance of the hunting license
or permit.
The Service has requested the cooperation of participating States
to facilitate obtaining harvest estimates for hunters who are exempted
from a permit requirement and those that are also exempted from State
licensing requirements. This includes several categories of hunters
such as junior hunters, senior hunters, landowners, and other special
categories. Because exemptions and the methods for obtaining harvest
estimates for exempt groups vary from State to State, the Service will
incorporate these methods into individual memoranda of understanding
with participating States.
Excluding from the Program those hunters who are not required to
obtain an annual State hunting license also excludes their harvest from
the estimates. The level of importance of the excluded harvest on the
resulting estimates depends on how many hunters are excluded and on the
number of birds they bag. If the level of importance is significant,
excluding these hunters will result in serious bias. Minimum survey
standards are being developed for exempted categories. States may
require exempted hunters to obtain permits (e.g., Maryland required
exempted hunters to obtain permits upon entry to the Program in 1994).
Previously, the Service stated that States will continue to be
added to the Program until all States participate in 1998. A suggested
implementation schedule was published in the October 21, 1994, Federal
Register (59 FR 53334), and was revised in a final rule published in
the August 30, 1996,
[[Page 12525]]
Federal Register (61 FR 46350). Ohio has requested a one-year delay to
enable the State to implement improved license procedures that will
better accommodate the Program.
Proposed Modifications to the Program
In addition to implementation of the Program in Arizona, Florida,
Kentucky, North Carolina, and Texas, the Service proposes to modify the
Program's implementation schedule by granting a one-year delay to Ohio.
NEPA Consideration
The establishment of the Harvest Information Program and options
have been considered in the ``Environmental Assessment: Migratory Bird
Harvest Information Program.'' Copies of this document are available
from the Service at the address indicated under the caption FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
On June 14, 1991, the Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and
Parks concluded that the rule would not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). This rule will eventually
affect about 3-5 million migratory game bird hunters when it is fully
implemented. It will require licensed migratory game bird hunters to
identify themselves and to supply their names, addresses, and birth
dates to the State licensing authority. Additional information will be
requested in order that they can be efficiently sampled for a voluntary
national harvest survey. Hunters will be required to have evidence of
current participation in the Program on their person while hunting
migratory game birds.
The States may require a handling fee to cover their administrative
costs. Many of the State hunting-license vendors are small entities,
but this rule should not economically impact those vendors. Only
migratory game bird hunters, individuals, would be required to provide
this information, so this rule should not adversely affect small
entities.
Collection of Information: Migratory Bird Harvest Information
Program
As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507
(d)), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has received approval for this
collection of information, with approval number 1018-0015, with the
expiration date of August 31, 1998.
The information to be collected includes: the name, address, and
date of birth of each licensed migratory bird hunter in each
participating State. Hunters' names, addresses, and other information
will be used to provide a sample frame for voluntary hunter surveys to
improve harvest estimates for all migratory game birds. The Service
needs and uses the information to improve the quality and extent of
information about harvests of migratory game birds in order to better
manage these populations.
All information is to be collected once annually from licensed
migratory bird hunters in participating States by the State license
authority. Participating States are required to forward the hunter
information to the Service within 30 calendar days of license or permit
issuance. Annual reporting and record-keeping burden for this
collection of information is estimated to average 0.015 hours per
response for 2,090,000 respondents, including the time for reviewing
instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the
collection of information. Thus, the total annual reporting and record-
keeping burden for this collection is estimated to be 31,350 hours.
Organizations and individuals desiring to submit comments on the
information collection requirements should direct them to the Service
Information Collection Clearance Officer, ms 224--ARLSQ, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC 20240, or the
Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project 1018-0015,
Washington, DC 20503.
The Department considers comments by the public on this proposed
collection of information in--
(1) Evaluating whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the
Department, including whether the information will have practical
utility;
(2) Evaluating the accuracy of the Department's estimate of the
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) Enhancing the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
(4) Minimizing the burden or the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic
submission of responses.
OMB is required to make a decision concerning the collection of
information contained in these proposed regulations between 30 and 60
days after publication of this document in the Federal Register.
Therefore, a comment to OMB is best assured of having its full effect
if OMB receives it within 30 days of publication. This does not effect
the deadline for the public to comment to the Department on the
proposed regulations.
Executive Order 12866
This rule was not subject to Office of Management and Budget review
under Executive Order 12866.
Unfunded Mandates
The Service has determined and certifies pursuant to the Unfunded
Mandates Act, 2 U.S.C. 1502 et seq., that this rulemaking will not
impose a loss of $100 million or more in any given year on local or
state governments or private entities.
Civil Justice Reform
The Department has determined that these proposed regulations meet
the applicable standards provided in Sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) of
Executive Order 12988.
Authorship
The primary author of this rule is Paul I. Padding, Office of
Migratory Bird Management.
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 20
Exports, Hunting, Imports, Reporting and record keeping
requirements, Transportation, Wildlife.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 20 is proposed
to be amended as set forth below.
PART 20--MIGRATORY BIRD HUNTING
1. The authority citation for part 20 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 703-711, 16 U.S.C. 712, and 16 U.S.C. 742
a--j.
2. In Section 20.20 paragraphs (a), (b) and (e) are revised to read
as follows:
Sec. 20.20 Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program.
(a) Information collection requirements. The collections of
information contained in Sec. 20.20 have been approved by the Office of
Management and Budget under 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. and assigned
clearance number 1018-0015. The information will be used to provide a
sampling frame for the national Migratory Bird Harvest Survey. Response
is required from licensed hunters to obtain the benefit of hunting
migratory game birds. Public reporting
[[Page 12526]]
burden for this information is estimated to average 0.015 hours per
response for 2,090,000 respondents, including the time for reviewing
instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the
collection of information. Thus, the total annual reporting and record-
keeping burden for this collection is estimated to be 31,350 hours.
Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of
this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the
burden, to the Service Information Collection Clearance Officer, MS-224
ARLSQ, Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, DC 20240, or the Office
of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project 1018-0015,
Washington, DC 20503.
(b) General provisions. Each person hunting migratory game birds in
Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois,
Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri,
North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota,
Tennessee, Texas, and Vermont shall have identified himself or herself
as a migratory bird hunter and given his or her name, address, and date
of birth to the respective State hunting licensing authority and shall
have on his or her person evidence, provided by that State, of
compliance with this requirement.
* * * * *
(e) Implementation schedule. The Service is completing the
implementation of this Program in 1998, which will incorporate
approximately 1.3 million additional migratory bird hunters. It is
proposed that the following States participate in 1998:
--Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Iowa,
Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode
Island, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia,
Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
Dated: March 5, 1997.
Don Barry,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.
[FR Doc. 97-6485 Filed 3-13-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE: 4310-55-F
