The taking by harassment, injury, or
mortality of marine mammals is prohibited by the Marine Mammal
Protection Act (MMPA) unless exempted or authorized by permit. The
small-take program authorized the taking of marine mammals
incidental to maritime activities (oil industry, shipping). It is
the responsibility of the activity to determine if it might have a
"taking" and, if it does, to apply for an authorization.
Applications are necessary for NMFS to know that an authorization
is needed and to determine whether authorization can be made under
the MMPA. Reporting requirements are mandated by the MMPA and are
necessary to ensure that determinations made in regard to the
impact on marine mammals are valid.
US Code:
16
USC 1361 Name of Law: Marine Mammal Protection Act
Adjustments to Reponses and
Burden We based our burden estimates on discussions with current
Authorization holders from three different sectors (e.g., oil and
gas, state agency, and Federal government) and an accounting of the
number and different types of actions that we have processed during
the past three years (2013 – 2016). The total number of respondents
has remained in line with the previous PRA effort (93 compared to
96) and the breakdown of non-Federal applicants for Incidental
Harassment Authorizations and regulations/Letters of Authorization
has also remained in line with the previous effort reporting
information. The total annual burden hours have increased somewhat
(15,291 compared to 13,486); however, the makeup of our applicant
pool and the nature and complexity of their requested activities
may vary from one information collection request cycle to the next.
This inter-cycle variability will contribute to fluctuations in
estimations. Adjustments to Recordkeeping/Reporting Costs NMFS has
adjusted the total annual cost to the respondents t0 $100,626 from
the previous estimate $100,700, as there are slightly fewer
respondents (93 compared to 95 previously).
$701,550
No
No
No
No
No
No
Uncollected
Dale Youngkin 301
427-8426
No
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.