Participants in the federally-regulated fisheries in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic are required to obtain Federal permits under the existing permit program for the specific fishery management plans of each region. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) needs information from the applications and associated data collections to identify fishing vessels, dealers, and participants, as well as properly manage the fisheries and generate fishery-related data.
To clarify and reorganize the small business and organization certification instructions and section on the respective forms, we have included the instructions that apply to all applicants directly in the small business and organization certification section of the forms. Conversely, we moved the instructions regarding affiliation, which only affect a minority of applicants with complex ownership relationships, to the main instructions for the form. In addition, some instructions were moved from the top of small business and organization certification section directly into the flow diagram to improve comprehension of the diagram and how to correctly fill out the questions included therein. We also added check boxes for the “yes or no” questions in the flow diagram per requests received from the applicants, as the lack of such was creating confusion about how to proceed through the diagram. In addition, we clarified that each applicant only has to answer the questions associated with one of the seven boxes in the flow diagram, as some applicants mistakenly thought they had to answer all questions associated with all seven boxes. We also more clearly indicate at what point an applicant has completed the section and explicitly state which section of the form to proceed to when they have completed the small business and organization certification section. We also clarified that crew on fishing vessels are not considered “employees” and should not be included in the applicant’s employment estimate when such an estimate is needed to complete that section of the form.
PL:
Pub.L. 94 - 265 303A
Name of Law: Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act
Program changes are proposed to add approximately 228 hours to the annual time burden. NMFS proposes revisions to several information collections under OMB Control Number 0648-0205 to enhance the information collected on several federal permit application forms for economic analysis, for purposes of notifying respondents, and to clarify instructions and requirements, as described in Question 1. These proposed revisions will increase the annual time burden for respondents due to additional information collected from respondents, as well as the additional corresponding instructions as explained herein.
Adjustments are proposed to add a net of 9 hours to the annual time burden. NMFS has adjusted annual estimates of respondents, responses, burden hours, and costs to respondents, based on analysis and updates to these elements, as well as feedback from affected respondents. Twenty-seven of those hours are due to inclusion of three small collections that had been inadvertently not included at some point: Permit holder change of information, request for duplicate permits or cards, and application to consolidate reef fish permits.
NMFS estimates that under the collection of information in OMB Control No. 0648-0205:
• The number of annual respondents would decrease from 13,909 to 10,311, and
• The number of annual responses would decrease from 16,639 to 11,745.
$526,725
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Uncollected
Adam Bailey 808 944-2248
No
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Fishing in Colombian Treaty Waters Vessel Permit Application
0205 SER Permit Family of Forms Change Request Justification final.docx
Fishing in Colombian Treaty Waters Vessel Permit Application