[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 73 (Monday, April 15, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26133-26134]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-07898]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment
Request; Socioeconomics of Coral Reef Conservation
The Department of Commerce will submit the following information
collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for
review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995, on or after the date of publication of this notice. We invite the
general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and
continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of
our information collection requirements and minimize the public's
reporting burden. Public comments were previously requested via the
Federal Register on January 5, 2024, during a 60-day comment period.
This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.
Agency: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
Title: Socioeconomics of Coral Reef Conservation.
OMB Control Number: 0648-0646.
[[Page 26134]]
Form Number(s): None.
Type of Request: Revision and extension of a current information
collection.
Number of Respondents: 9,840.
Average Hours per Response: 20 minutes (0.33 hours).
Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,093 hours.
Needs and Uses: This request is for revision and extension to an
approved collection of information, OMB Control Number 0648-0646, under
the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., and implementing
regulations at 5 CFR part 1320. This previously-approved information
collection assists NOAA in the administration of the National Coral
Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP), which was established by the NOAA
Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) under the authority of the Coral
Reef Conservation Act of 2000, 16 U.S.C. 6401 et seq. This act
authorizes CRCP to, among other things, conserve and restore the
condition of United States coral reef ecosystems and enhance public
awareness, understanding, and appreciation of coral reefs and coral
reef ecosystems and their ecological and socioeconomic value. In
accordance with its mission goals, NOAA developed a survey to track
relevant information regarding each jurisdiction's population, social
and economic structure, the benefits of coral reefs and related
habitats, the impacts of society on coral reefs, and the impacts of
coral management on communities. The survey is repeated in each
jurisdiction every five to seven years in order to provide longitudinal
data and information for managers to effectively conserve coral reefs
for current and future generations.
The purpose of this information collection is to obtain human
dimensions information from residents in the seven United States (U.S.)
jurisdictions containing coral reefs: Florida, U.S. Virgin Islands
(USVI), Puerto Rico, Hawai`i, American Samoa, Guam, and the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Specifically, NOAA
is seeking information on the behaviors and activities related to coral
reefs, as well as information on perceptions of coral reef conditions
and attitudes toward specific reef conservation activities. Each survey
has a core set of questions that are asked across all jurisdictions to
allow for information to be tracked over time and across jurisdictions.
To account for geographical, cultural and linguistic differences
between jurisdictions, the survey questions include items that are
specific to the local context and developed based on jurisdictional
partner feedback.
We intend to use the information collected through this instrument
for research purposes, as well as for measuring and improving the
results of our reef protection programs. Because many of our efforts to
protect reefs rely on education and changing attitudes toward reef
protection, the information collected will allow CRCP to ensure that
programs are designed appropriately at the start, future program
evaluation efforts are as successful as possible, and outreach efforts
are targeting the intended recipients with useful information.
No survey question concept or theory has changed since the first
hybrid-generic clearance of this information collect request in 2021.
However, NOAA sought feedback from survey administration teams and
jurisdictional partners in American Samoa (2021), Puerto Rico (2022),
and Guam (2023), as well as during preparation for survey
administration in the CNMI (2024) and the USVI (2025). Responses came
primarily from state and local natural resource management agencies,
fisheries management councils and NGOs. In addition, NOAA adjusted each
of the jurisdictional surveys based on respondents' feedback to the
instrument. This feedback resulted in non-substantive survey instrument
revisions that reduce question complexity, reduce respondent burden,
simplify terminology for translation into other languages, improve
clarity, and maintain consistent formatting.
Affected Public: Individuals or households.
Frequency: Every 5-7 years.
Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
Legal Authority: Coral Reef Conservation Act of 2000.
This information collection request may be viewed at
www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view the Department of
Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.
Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information
collection should be submitted within 30 days of the publication of
this notice on the following website www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
Find this particular information collection by selecting ``Currently
under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search
function and entering either the title of the collection or the OMB
Control Number 0648-0646.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Under Secretary for
Economic Affairs, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2024-07898 Filed 4-12-24; 8:45 am]
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