Justification for change

JUSTIFICATION FOR CHANGE
INDIVIDUAL FISHING QUOTAS FOR PACIFIC HALIBUT & SABLEFISH IN THE
ALASKA FISHERIES
OMB CONTROL NO. 0648-0272
JUSTIFICATION FOR CHANGE: Minor adjustments to two IFQ permit applications.
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is modifying two forms in the Individual Fishing
Quota (IFQ) Program to improve efficiency in the permit process: the Application for Hired
Master Permit and the Application for Registered Buyer Permit. The contents of the applications
do not appear in the regulations at 50 CFR part 679. Therefore, regulations do not need to be
modified. There will be no change in the amount or frequency of reports associated with the
participants as a result of these adjustments.
Application for Hired Master Permit
The Hired Master Permit is required for persons (hired masters or skippers) who are harvesting
IFQ halibut, IFQ sablefish, or Western Alaska Community Development Quota (CDQ) halibut
for an IFQ permit holder. A separate application must be completed for each vessel, each IFQ
permit number, or CDQ permit number.
This change request modifies the Hired Master Permit application by removing the requirement
for a notarized signature and by allowing the application and its attachments to be faxed to
NMFS. Dropping the notary requirement and allowing submittal by fax will make the permitting
process faster and maybe a bit less expensive for constituents, potentially increasing their
operational efficiency. This notary removal will result in a cost savings. The costs of faxing
instead of notarizing the application are about the same ($3,750), however, the cost of postage
would be saved (0.44 x 750 = $330); thus, the cost would be reduced overall by about $330.
Overall, for an estimated 750 applications annually submitted for a hired master permit x 10
minutes saved by faxing instead of notarizing is estimated to result in a savings of 125 hr.
Application for Registered Buyer Permit
A Registered Buyer Permit is required for:
♦ Each person who receives IFQ Pacific halibut, IFQ sablefish, or CDQ Pacific halibut
from the harvester within Alaska.
♦ Each IFQ/CDQ permit holder who harvests IFQ/CDQ fish and then transfers those fish in
dockside sales to individuals for personal consumption, outside an IFQ regulatory area, or
outside the State of Alaska.
♦ Each vessel operator when IFQ Pacific halibut, IFQ sablefish, or CDQ Pacific halibut are
transferred outside the State of Alaska.
♦ Each facility (i.e., tender, mothership, shoreside processor, etc.) that receives IFQ Pacific
halibut, IFQ sablefish, or CDQ Pacific halibut in Alaska is required to have its own
Registered Buyer permit number.

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Entities receiving IFQ Pacific halibut, IFQ sablefish, or CDQ Pacific halibut at locations outside
Alaska do not need these permits and will not be issued them. In such cases the vessel operator
must be a Registered Buyer.
This change request modifies the Registered Buyer permit application by removing Block C –
password information. NMFS no longer assigns separate passwords for each Registered Buyer
permit. Dropping this password requirement is not expected to alter the time or cost to complete
the application.
Both the Hired Master Permit application and Registered Buyer Permit application are available
through the Internet on the NMFS Alaska Region Web site at
http://www.alaskafisheries.noaa.gov.

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