[Federal Register: February 22, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 35)]
[Notices]
[Page 8005-8006]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22fe07-73]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Information Collection Sent to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for Approval; Export of Caviar or Meat of Paddlefish or
Sturgeon from the Wild
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We (Fish and Wildlife Service) have sent an Information
Collection Request (ICR) to OMB for review and approval. The ICR, which
is summarized below, describes the nature of the collection and the
estimated burden and cost. We may not conduct or sponsor and a person
is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it
displays a currently valid OMB control number.
DATES: You must submit comments on or before March 26, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Send your comments and suggestions on this ICR to the Desk
Officer for the Department of the Interior at OMB-OIRA at (202) 395-
6566 (fax) or OIRA_DOCKET@OMB.eop.gov (e-mail). Please provide a copy
of your comments to Hope Grey, Information Collection Clearance
Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service, MS 222-ARLSQ, 4401 North Fairfax
Drive, Arlington, VA 22203 (mail); (703) 358-2269 (fax); or
hope_grey@fws.gov (e-mail).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information
about this ICR, contact Hope Grey by mail, fax, or e-mail (see
ADDRESSES), or by telephone at (703) 358-2482.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
OMB Control Number: None.
Title: Export of Caviar or Meat of Paddlefish or Sturgeon from the
Wild.
Service Form Number(s): 3-200-76.
Type of Request: New collection.
Affected Public: Fishers; commercial dealers/distributors/suppliers
and importers/exporters of paddlefish and sturgeon caviar and meat; and
freight forwarders/brokers.
Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
Frequency of Collection: On occasion.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 12.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 120.
Estimated Time Per Response: 3 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 360 hours.
Abstract: This information collection is associated with
regulations implementing the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). CITES regulates
international trade in listed species through a system of permits and
certificates. The Service assesses permit requests according to
[[Page 8006]]
criteria in CITES and Federal regulations for the issuance, suspension,
revocation, or denial of permits.
We have developed a new permit application form specific to permit
requests for the export of caviar and/or meat of wild-origin paddlefish
and/or U.S. native sturgeon species. In the past, we have used FWS Form
3-200-27 (Export of Wildlife Removed from the Wild) to collect the
information necessary for us to evaluate these permit requests. When
using that general form, applicants have had considerable difficulty
understanding what information is necessary and how to supply it. The
new form, FWS Form 3-200-76, clarifies these issues.
Comments: On September 20, 2006, we published in the Federal
Register (71 FR 55004) a notice of our intent to request that OMB
approve this information collection. In that notice, we solicited
comments for 60 days, ending on November 20, 2006. In addition, we
conducted public outreach by sending a copy of the notice to members of
the caviar community and asked for their comments. We received two
comments.
One commenter was a State fisheries coordinator who supported the
new form. The second commenter stated that the proposed form has more
focused information and would assist applicants in preparing
applications. The second commenter also had two suggestions:
(1) That we increase the estimated time to complete the
application. After considering this comment, we increased the estimated
average time to complete an application to 3 hours and revised the
estimated annual burden on the public.
(2) That we revise the wording in the application to more
accurately reflect how caviar exporters work. Wholesalers and suppliers
typically do not provide the fishermen information directly to the
applicant because it may be considered proprietary information. Due to
the concern, we are not requiring that the intermediary provide the
information to the applicant who is responsible for submitting the
application. Instead, the supplier may submit it directly to the
Service provided that it is clear which application is being
referenced. In such cases, if the supplier believes the information is
proprietary, the supplier should identify it as proprietary and/or
business confidential, as appropriate. The applicant is still
responsible for providing a complete application to the Service.
We again invite comments concerning this information collection on:
(1) whether or not the collection of information is necessary,
including whether or not the information will have practical utility;
(2) the accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection
of information;
(3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
(4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
respondents.
Comments submitted in response to this notice are a matter of
public record.
Dated: January 22, 2007
Hope Grey,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. E7-2962 Filed 2-21-07; 8:45 pm]
Billing Code 4310-55-S