2012-5283. Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

The Department of Commerce will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).

Agency: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Title: Pacific Islands Region Seabird-Fisheries Interaction Recovery Reporting.

OMB Control Number: 0648-0456.

Form Number(s): NA.

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

Number of Respondents: 1.

Average Hours per Response: 1 hour.

Burden Hours: 3.

Needs and Uses: This request is for extension of a currently approved information collection.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) requires longline vessel operators to notify NMFS in the event an endangered short-tailed albatross is hooked or entangled during fishing operations. Following the retrieval of the seabird from the ocean, as required by Federal regulations at 50 CFR 665.815, the vessel captain must record the condition of the injured short-tailed albatross on a recovery data form. The information will be used by a veterinarian in providing advice to the captain caring for the short-tailed albatross. If the albatross is dead, the captain must attach an identification tag to the carcass to assist the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) biologists in follow-up studies on the specimen. This collection is one of the terms and conditions contained in the biological opinion issued by USFWS, and is intended to maximize the probability of the long-term survival of short-tailed albatross accidentally taken by longline gear.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations.

Frequency: On occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.

OMB Desk Officer: [e-mail].

Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained by calling or writing Jennifer Jessup, Departmental Paperwork Clearance Officer, [phone], Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th and Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at [e-mail]).

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to [e-mail].

Dated: February 29, 2012.

Gwellnar Banks,

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.