Application and Reports for Scientific Research and Enhancement Permits Under the Endangered Species Act

This is a request for an extension of a currently approved information collection. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is responsible for conserving and recovering marine and anadromous species listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA; 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). With some exception, the ESA prohibits “take” of listed species. Take is defined by the ESA as “to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct." Section 10(a)(1)(A) of the ESA allows NMFS to issue permits that authorize take of listed species for scientific purposes or to enhance their propagation or survival. The regulations implementing the authority to issue permits for scientific research or enhancement are found at 50 CFR §222.308. The information collection discussed here relates to the issuance and continued exercise of scientific research permits under the ESA. The collection has not changed materially since 2021: we have always required prospective permittees to fill out applications and always required permit holders to annually report on their activities. The current collection effort is essentially the same as it was four years ago.

The latest form for Application and Reports for Scientific Research and Enhancement Permits Under the Endangered Species Act expires 2029-02-28 and can be found here.

Permit Applications

Federal Enterprise Architecture: Natural Resources - Conservation, Marine and Land Management

Review document collections for all forms, instructions, and supporting documents - including paper/printable forms.