Agency Information Collection Activities; Captive Wildlife Safety Act

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of information collection; request for comment.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing to renew an information collection.

DATES:

Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before February 25, 2019.

ADDRESSES:

Send your comments on the information collection request (ICR) by mail to the Service Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: BPHC, 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 (mail); or by email to Info_Coll@fws.gov. Please reference OMB Control Number 1018-0129 in the subject line of your comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Madonna L. Baucum, Service Information Collection Clearance Officer, by email at Info_Coll@fws.gov, or by telephone at (703) 358-2503.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we provide the general public and other Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on new, proposed, revised, and continuing collections of information. This helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. It also helps the public understand our information collection requirements and provide the requested data in the desired format.

We are soliciting comments on the proposed ICR that is described below. We are especially interested in public comment addressing the following issues: (1) Is the collection necessary to the proper functions of the Service; (2) will this information be processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden accurate; (4) how might the Service enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the Service minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, including through the use of information technology.

Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request to OMB to approve this ICR. Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Abstract: The Captive Wildlife Safety Act (CWSA; Pub. L. 108-191; 16 U.S.C. 3371 note and 16 U.S.C. 3372 note) amends the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. 3371 et seq.; 18 U.S.C. 42-43) by making it illegal to import, export, buy, sell, transport, receive, or acquire, in interstate or foreign commerce, live lions, tigers, leopards, snow leopards, clouded leopards, cheetahs, jaguars, or cougars, or any hybrid combination of any of these species, unless certain exceptions are met. There are several exemptions to the prohibitions of the CWSA, including accredited wildlife sanctuaries. There is no requirement for wildlife sanctuaries to submit applications to qualify for the accredited wildlife sanctuary exemption. Wildlife sanctuaries themselves will determine if they qualify. To qualify, they must meet all of the following criteria:

• Obtain approval by the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as a corporation that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (Pub. L. 99-514), which is described in sections 501(c)(3) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) of that code.
• Do not engage in commercial trade in the prohibited wildlife species, including offspring, parts, and products.
• Do not propagate the prohibited wildlife species.
• Have no direct contact between the public and the prohibited wildlife species.

The basis for this information collection is the recordkeeping requirement that we place on accredited wildlife sanctuaries. We require accredited wildlife sanctuaries to maintain complete and accurate records of any possession, transportation, acquisition, disposition, importation, or exportation of the prohibited wildlife species as defined in the CWSA (see title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at part 14, subpart K). Records must be up to date and include: (1) Names and addresses of persons to or from whom any prohibited wildlife species has been acquired, imported, exported, purchased, sold, or otherwise transferred; and (2) dates of these transactions. Accredited wildlife sanctuaries must:

• Maintain these records for 5 years.
• Make these records accessible to Service officials for inspection at reasonable hours.
• Copy these records for Service officials, if requested.

Title of Collection: Captive Wildlife Safety Act, 50 CFR 14.250-14.255.

OMB Control Number: 1018-0129.

Form Number: None.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Respondents/Affected Public: Accredited wildlife sanctuaries.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 750.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 750.

Estimated Completion Time per Response: 1 hour.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 750.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.

Frequency of Collection: Ongoing.

Total Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: $300.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

The authority for this action is the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).