Justification for change

JUSTIFICATION OF CHANGE

SOUTHEAST REGION LOGBOOK FAMILY OF FORMS

OMB CONTROL NO. 0648-0016

This request is to modify the paper logbook catch reporting form that has already been approved for the Coastal Fisheries Vessel trip report for Snapper-Grouper, Reef Fish, Mackerel and Dolphin-Wahoo permit holders. Changes are requested in two areas: 1) gear section and

2) trip expense and payment section (highlighted in yellow on the revised form). The requested modifications are not expected to change the number of respondents or the response time.

1. Gear section changes: Lines have been added for buoy gear reporting to better reflect current fishing techniques. The average response time is not expected to change because permit holders will be completing information for this new gear type instead of one of the existing gear types. All permit holders are required to submit a form after each fishing trip, so no new additional respondents are expected.

2. Trip expense and payment section changes:

A) A reporting box has been added for IFQ allocation leased for the trip since IFQ Programs now dominate much of the fishing industry in the Gulf. The average response time is not expected to significantly change as these records should be readily available to permit holders who lease catch allocation in their respective fishery;

B) The captain & crew share payout reporting box has been split into two separate boxes - one for the captain share payout and one for the crew share payout - to better identify trends in labor payments to the captain and crew members. The average response time is not expected to change because permit holders will be asked to identify payments to captain and crew as before, only in a slightly different format.

C) A reporting box has also been added for Trip Tackle and Supplies which was previously lumped into Trip Miscellaneous Expense. The average response time is not expected to change because permit holders will be asked to report expenses for tackle and supplies independently; whereas, before they would make the same calculation but list these expenses with others in Trip Miscellaneous Expense. The number of respondents will not be affected by the requested modifications because completion of the trip expense and payment section is mandatory only for selected vessels and the methodology of selecting vessels remains the same.