[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 116 (Friday, June 14, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 30490-30493]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-15172]
[[Page 30489]]
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Part X
Department of the Interior
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Fish and Wildlife Service
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50 CFR Part 20
Migratory Bird Hunting; Supplemental Proposals for Migratory Game Bird
Hunting Regulations; Proposed Rule
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 116 / Friday, June 14, 1996 /
Proposed Rules
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[[Page 30490]]
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
50 CFR Part 20
RIN 1018-AD69
Migratory Bird Hunting; Supplemental Proposals for Migratory Game
Bird Hunting Regulations
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Proposed rule; supplemental.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (hereinafter the Service)
proposed in an earlier document to establish annual hunting regulations
for certain migratory game birds for the 1996-97 hunting season. This
supplement to the proposed rule describes the Service's proposed
regulatory alternatives for the 1996-97 duck hunting season and
announces the Service's intent to consider establishing a special youth
waterfowl hunting day.
DATES: The Service Migratory Bird Regulations Committee will consider
and develop proposed regulations for early-season migratory bird
hunting on June 25, 26, and 27, and for late-season migratory bird
hunting on July 31, August 1, and 2. The Service will hold public
hearings on proposed early- and late-season frameworks at 9:00 a.m. on
June 27 and August 2, 1996, respectively. The Service Migratory Bird
Regulations Committee will discuss the proposed regulatory alternatives
for the 1996-97 duck hunting season and the special youth waterfowl
hunting day at the June 25, 26, and 27 meetings.
The comment period on the proposed regulatory alternatives for the
1996-97 duck hunting season ends on July 5, 1996. The comment period
for proposed migratory bird hunting-season frameworks for Alaska,
Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and other early seasons,
including the consideration of a proposed youth hunting day, ends on
July 25, 1996. The comment period for late-season frameworks ends on
September 3, 1996. The Service will publish the final regulatory
alternatives for the 1996-97 duck hunting season in a July supplemental
containing the Service's proposed early-season frameworks.
ADDRESSES: The Service Migratory Bird Regulations Committee will meet
in room 200 of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Arlington Square
Building, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia. The Service will
hold public hearings in the Auditorium of the Department of the
Interior Building, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC. Parties should
submit written comments on the proposals and/or a notice of intent to
participate in either hearing to the Chief, Office of Migratory Bird
Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior,
ms 634--ARLSQ, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC 20240. The public may
inspect comments during normal business hours in room 634, ARLSQ
Building, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul R. Schmidt, Chief, Office of
Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, (703) 358-
1714.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Regulations Schedule for 1996
On March 22, 1996, the Service published in the Federal Register
(61 FR 11992) a proposal to amend 50 CFR part 20. The proposal dealt
with the establishment of seasons, limits, and other regulations for
migratory game birds under Secs. 20.101 through 20.107, 20.109, and
20.110 of subpart K. On June 13, 1996, the Service published a second
document providing supplemental proposals for early- and late-season
migratory bird hunting regulations frameworks. The June 13 supplement
also provided detailed information on the 1996-97 regulatory schedule
and announced the Service Migratory Bird Regulations Committee and
Flyway Council meetings.
This document is the third in a series of proposed, supplemental, and
final rules for migratory game bird hunting regulations. The Service
will propose early-season frameworks in late June and late-season
frameworks in early August. The Service will publish final regulatory
alternatives for the regular duck hunting season on or about July 15,
1996. The Service will publish final regulatory frameworks for early
seasons on or about August 14, 1996, and those for late seasons on or
about September 23, 1996.
This supplement describes the Service's proposed regulatory
alternatives for the 1996-97 duck hunting season and the Service's
consideration of a proposed youth waterfowl hunting day. The Service
published specific Flyway Council recommendations regarding the
formation of these regulatory alternatives in the June 13 Federal
Register. The Service will consider all comments in the regulations-
development process and will publish responses to proposals, written
comments, and public-hearing testimony when developing final regulatory
alternatives and final frameworks.
New proposals and modifications to previously described proposals
are discussed below. The headings correspond to the numbered items in
the March 22, 1996, Federal Register.
1. Ducks
A. Harvest Strategy Considerations
In the March 22, 1996, Federal Register, the Service described the
underlying principles of Adaptive Harvest Management (AHM) and the
progress made on its implementation in 1995. In addition, the Service
reported recommendations made by an AHM technical working group for the
1996-97 regulatory process. Comprised of representatives from the
Service and the four Flyway Councils, the working group was established
in 1992 to develop technical recommendations for improving duck harvest
regulations.
One of the recommendations of the AHM working group for the 1996-97
regulatory process was to continue the regulatory alternatives used in
1995, with a minor exception in the Pacific Flyway. In 1995, the
Service limited the choice of regulatory alternatives for the 1995-96
regular duck hunting season to three sets of frameworks similar to
those in effect during the 1979-93 hunting seasons. These three sets of
frameworks, or regulatory alternatives, were described in a relative
sense as restrictive, moderate, and liberal. In general, specific
guidelines for selection of one of the regulatory alternatives are
based on the size of the mallard breeding population and habitat
conditions.
In the June 13, 1996, Federal Register, the Service reported that
all four Flyways continued to express support for the AHM approach to
setting duck hunting regulations. The Mississippi, Central, and Pacific
Flyway Councils recommended some specific modifications to the
regulatory alternatives recommended by the working group and these
recommendations were identified in the June 13, 1996, document.
For the 1996-97 regular duck hunting season, the Service proposes
the three regulatory alternatives detailed in the accompanying table.
Alternatives are specified for each Flyway and are designated as
``RES'' for the restrictive, ``MOD'' for the moderate, and ``LIB'' for
the liberal alternative. The Service will publish final regulatory
alternatives in July and propose a specific regulatory alternative when
survey data on waterfowl population and habitat status are available.
[[Page 30491]]
G. Special Seasons/Species Management
The long-term conservation of North America's migratory bird
resources depends on the future paths and actions of today's youth. To
assist in the formation and development of a conservation ethic in
future generations, the Service is considering proposing the
establishment of a ``Youth Waterfowl Hunting Day'' and is seeking
public comment on such an action. The special day would provide an
opportunity for young hunters (16 or under), accompanied by an adult
(18 or older), to experience a safe, quality waterfowling experience.
The hunt day would have to be on a weekend or holiday when youth
hunters would have the maximum opportunity to participate. Both the
youth hunters and accompanying adults (who could not duck hunt) would
have to be licensed according to State law. The intent of establishing
this special day would be to introduce youth to the concepts of ethical
utilization and stewardship of waterfowl and other natural resources,
encourage youngsters and adults to experience the outdoors together,
and contribute toward the long-term conservation of the migratory bird
resource. Because the special 1-day hunt would be limited to youths,
the Service believes that waterfowl populations could support the
additional harvest and that the hunt would produce long-term benefits
to the resource.
To facilitate public comment, the Service is considering proposing
the following guidelines:
1. States may select 1 day, designated as ``Youth Waterfowl Hunting
Day'', in addition to their regular duck seasons.
2. The day must be held outside of any regular duck season on
either a weekend or holiday when youth hunters would have the maximum
opportunity to participate.
3. The day could be held up to 10 days before or after any regular
duck season or within any split of a regular duck season.
4. The daily bag limit may be no more than 4 ducks. Flyway species
restrictions would remain in effect.
5. Youth hunters must be 16 years of age or younger.
6. An adult at least 18 years of age must accompany the youth
hunter into the field. This adult could not duck hunt.
7. Both the youth hunter and the accompanying adult must be fully
licensed to hunt according to State law.
8. The special youth hunt day will be considered a trial for its
initial season and will be evaluated by the Service.
Public Comment Invited
The Service intends that adopted final rules be as responsive as
possible to all concerned interests and wants to obtain comments from
all interested areas of the public, as well as other government
agencies. Such comments, and any additional information received, may
lead to final regulations that differ from these proposals.
However, special circumstances involved in the establishment of
these regulations limit the amount of time the Service can allow for
public comment. Specifically, two considerations compress the time in
which the rulemaking process must operate: (1) the need to establish
final rules at a point early enough in the summer to allow affected
State agencies to appropriately adjust their licensing and regulatory
mechanisms; and (2) the unavailability, before mid-June, of specific,
reliable data on this year's status of some waterfowl and migratory
shore and upland game bird populations. Therefore, the Service believes
allowing comment periods past the dates specified is contrary to the
public interest.
Comment Procedure
It is the policy of the Department of the Interior to afford the
public an opportunity to participate in the rulemaking process,
whenever practical. Accordingly, interested persons may participate by
submitting written comments to the Chief, Office of Migratory Bird
Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior,
ms 634--ARLSQ, 1849 C Street, NW., Washington, DC 20240. The public may
inspect comments during normal business hours at the Service's office
in room 634, Arlington Square Building, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive,
Arlington, Virginia. The Service will consider all comments received
and will try to acknowledge received comments, but may not provide an
individual response to each commenter.
NEPA Consideration
NEPA considerations are covered by the programmatic document,
``Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement: Issuance of Annual
Regulations Permitting the Sport Hunting of Migratory Birds (FSES 88-
14),'' filed with EPA on June 9, 1988. The Service published a Notice
of Availability in the June 16, 1988, Federal Register (53 FR 22582).
The Service published its Record of Decision on August 18, 1988 (53 FR
31341). Copies of these documents are available from the Service at the
address indicated under the caption ADDRESSES.
Endangered Species Act Consideration
As in the past, the Service will design hunting regulations to
remove or alleviate chances of conflict between migratory game bird
hunting seasons and the protection and conservation of endangered and
threatened species. Consultations are presently under way to ensure
that actions resulting from these regulatory proposals will not likely
jeopardize the continued existence of endangered or threatened species
or result in the destruction or adverse modification of their critical
habitat. Findings from these consultations will be included in a
biological opinion and may cause modification of some regulatory
measures proposed in this document. The final frameworks will reflect
any such modifications. The Service's biological opinions resulting
from its consultation under Section 7 are public documents available
for public inspection in the Division of Endangered Species and the
Office of Migratory Bird Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
Arlington Square Building, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia.
Regulatory Flexibility Act; Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 and the
Paperwork Reduction Act
In the Federal Register dated March 22, 1996, the Service reported
measures it took to comply with requirements of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act and the Executive Order. One measure was to prepare a
Small Entity Flexibility Analysis (Analysis) in 1995 documenting the
significant beneficial economic effect on a substantial number of small
entities. The Analysis estimated that migratory bird hunters would
spend between $258 and $586 million at small businesses in 1995. Copies
of the Analysis are available upon request from the Office of Migratory
Bird Management. This rule was not subject to review by the Office of
Management and Budget under E.O. 12866.
The Service examined these proposed regulations under the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 and found no information collection requirements.
Authorship
The primary author of this proposed rule is Ron W. Kokel, Office of
Migratory Bird Management.
[[Page 30492]]
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 20
Exports, Hunting, Imports, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Transportation, Wildlife.
The rules that eventually will be promulgated for the 1996-97
hunting season are authorized under 16 U.S.C. 703-711, 16 U.S.C. 712,
and 16 U.S.C. 742 a-j.
Dated: June 7, 1996.
George T. Frampton, Jr.,
Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks.
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[FR Doc. 96-15172 Filed 6-13-96; 8:45 am]
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