Justification for change

JUSTIFICATION FOR CHANGE

ALASKA CRAB COST RECOVERY

OMB CONTROL NO. 0648-0570

JUSTIFICATION FOR CHANGE: Add the Crab Rationalization Program (CR) Registered Crab Receiver Fee Form from OMB Control No. 0514 and change the name of this collection to read, “Alaska Crab Cost Recovery”.

In January 2004, the U.S. Congress amended Section 313(j) of Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. (Magnuson-Stevens Act) to mandate the Secretary of Commerce to implement the Crab Rationalization Program for the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area crab fisheries (CR Program). The CR Program allocates Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI) crab resources among harvesters, processors, and coastal communities. The North Pacific Fishery Management Council prepared, and NMFS approved, the Fishery Management Plan for BSAI King and Tanner Crabs (FMP). The FMP establishes criteria for the management of certain aspects of the BSAI crab fisheries by the State of Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The FMP is implemented by regulations at 50 CFR part 680. Crab fishing under the CR Program began when the first rationalized fisheries opened on August 15, 2005.

This change request would move a cost recovery form, the Registered Crab Receiver Fee Submission Form, to this collection, OMB Control No. 0648-0570, Alaska Crab Reports, from OMB Control No. 0648-0514, Alaska Region BSAI Crab Permits collection.

The Registered Crab Receiver fee submission form may be viewed at

http://www.fakr.noaa.gov/sustainablefisheries/crab/rat/ram/rcrfeesubmission.pdf

and

https://www.fakr.noaa.gov/webapps/crabaccounts/Login.

In addition, the name of this collection would be changed from “Alaska Crab Reports” to read “Alaska Crab Cost Recovery.”

This move and name change would make the Alaska CR collections more transparent as to content.

No net change would occur from this change, as the form still will be required from the same participants, only in a different collection. The respondents, responses, burden and cost of this collection will increase by the same amount that the OMB Control No. 0648-0514 collection will be decreased: 25 respondents and responses, 13 hours and $8 in recordkeeping/reporting costs. An adjustment will be made to OMB Control No. 0648-0514 in its next iteration.

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