Justification for change

JUSTIFICATION STATEMENT
LARGE PELAGIC FISHING SURVEY
OMB CONTROL NO. 0648-0380

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS) is requesting two minor changes to the Large Pelagics Telephone Survey
(LPTS) to be piloted in Puerto Rico only: 1) changes to the questionnaire used for the LPTS,
and 2) addition of an electronic Internet reporting option for respondents in Puerto Rico as an
alternative to the traditional phone interview or fax options. In order for the survey to start on
time in Puerto Rico, approval is needed no later than June 1.
The LPTS form was included in a 2008 revision to OMB Control Number 0648-0380, expiration
date: 08/31/2011. The revised form, to be administered in Puerto Rico only, shows additional
questions highlighted (questions 31-35). The additional questions are designed to help fisheries
scientists improve estimates of post-release mortality of billfish that are caught and released.
This information is important because over 95% of billfish caught by recreational anglers are
released. The mortality rate associated with catch and release fishing is difficult to estimate.
Controlled experiments have shown correlations between mortality rates and factors related to
the catch event, including hook types used, hook location, water temperature, and water depth
when fish are hooked. These questions will be asked only of a small subset of LPTS interviews:
i.e. Puerto Rico interviews only and only when respondents indicate they have caught and
released a billfish during the 2-week reporting period.
These questions will add an estimated average of two minutes per large pelagic trip profiled.
Based on previous survey results, we estimate that each successful LPTS contact in Puerto Rico
will result in an average of 0.43 profiled large pelagic trips. Incorporating the estimated target
sample size of 2,860 contacts annually for Puerto Rico, we estimate the increased burden hours
for this form changes as follows:
2,860 contacts X 0.43 trips per contact X 2 minutes per trip*
= 2,459.6 minutes or 41 hours
To improve response rates, this action also seeks to add an electronic Internet reporting option to
the Puerto Rico LPTS. Internet surveys are generally thought to take less time to complete
compared to telephone interviews. We estimate the Internet option will take respondents 3
minutes less to complete per profiled trip compared to the telephone survey. We also estimate
that 25% of profiled trips will be reported via the Internet. The estimated decrease in burden
hours resulting from this change is calculated as follows:
2,860 contacts X 0.43 trips per contact X 3 minutes per trip X 0.25
= 922.35 minutes or 15.4 (15) hours
*This results in a 1 minute increase per trip
The net increase in burden hours resulting from the two changes requested is 25 hours (41 minus
15).