[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 120 (Tuesday, June 23, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35969-35970]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-15329]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-R4-R-2015-N125; FXRS1263040000-156-FF04R08000]
Proposed Information Collection; National Wildlife Refuge Visitor
Check-In Permit and Use Report
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) will ask the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) to approve the information collection (IC)
described below. As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and
as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent
burden, we invite the general public and other Federal agencies to take
this opportunity to comment on this IC. This IC is scheduled to expire
on December 31, 2015. 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: To ensure that we are able to consider your comments on this IC,
we must receive them by August 24, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Send your comments on the IC to the Information Collection
Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS BPHC, 5275
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 (mail); or hope_grey@fws.gov
(email). Please include ``1018-0153'' in the subject line of your
comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information
about this IC, contact Hope Grey at hope_grey@fws.gov (email) or 703-
358-2482 (telephone).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract. The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act
of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 668dd-668ee), as amended by the National Wildlife
Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, and the Refuge Recreation Act of
1962 (16 U.S.C. 460k-460k-4) govern the administration and uses of
national wildlife refuges and wetland management districts. We are
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authorized to allow public uses on lands of the National Wildlife
Refuge System, including hunting, fishing, wildlife observation,
wildlife photography, and environmental education and interpretation,
and other visitor uses, when we find that the activities are compatible
and appropriate with the purpose or purposes for which the refuges were
established.
We collect information on hunters and anglers and other visitors to
help us protect refuge resources and administer and evaluate the
success of visitor programs. Because of high demand and limited
resources, we often provide visitor opportunities by permit, based on
dates, locations, or type of public use. We may not allow all
opportunities on all refuges, and harvest information differs for each
refuge. We use FWS Form 3-2405 (Self-Clearing Check-In Permit) to
collect this information. Not all refuges will use the form, and some
refuges may collect the information in a nonform format. We collect:
Information on the visitor (name, address, and contact
information). We use this information to identify the visitor or
driver/passengers of a vehicle while on the refuge. Having this
information readily available is critical in a search and rescue
situation. We do not maintain or record this information.
Information on whether or not hunters/anglers were
successful (number and type of harvest/caught).
Purpose of visit (hunting, fishing, wildlife observation,
wildlife photography, auto touring, birding, hiking, boating/canoeing,
visitor center, special event, environmental education class,
volunteering, other recreation).
Date of visit.
The above information is a vital tool in meeting refuge objectives
and maintaining quality visitor experiences. It will help us:
Administer and monitor visitor programs and facilities on
refuges.
Distribute visitor permits to ensure safety of visitors.
Ensure a quality visitor experience.
Minimize resource disturbance, manage healthy game
populations, and ensure the protection of fish and wildlife species.
Assist in Statewide wildlife management and enforcement
and develop reliable estimates of the number of all game fish and
wildlife.
Determine facility and program needs and budgets.
II. Data
OMB Control Number: 1018-0153.
Title: National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Check-In Permit and Use
Report.
Service Form Number: 3-2405.
Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Description of Respondents: Individuals who visit national wildlife
refuges.
Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
Frequency of Collection: On occasion.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 650,000.
Estimated Annual Number of Responses: 650,000.
Estimated Completion Time per Response: 5 minutes.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 54,167.
III. Comments
We invite comments concerning this information collection on:
Whether or not the collection of information is necessary,
including whether or not the information will have practical utility;
The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this
collection of information;
Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of
information on respondents.
Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request
to OMB to approve this IC. Before including your address, phone number,
email address, or other personal identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that your entire comment, including your
personal identifying information, may be made publicly available at any
time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we
will be able to do so.
Dated: June 17, 2015.
Tina A. Campbell,
Chief, Division of Policy, Performance, and Management Programs, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-15329 Filed 6-22-15; 8:45 am]
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