Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council

AGENCY:

Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of teleconference.

SUMMARY:

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a public teleconference meeting of the Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council (Council). A Federal advisory committee, the Council was created in part to foster partnerships to enhance public awareness of the importance of aquatic resources and the social and economic benefits of recreational fishing and boating in the United States. This teleconference meeting is open to the public, and interested persons may make oral statements to the Council or may file written statements for consideration.

DATES:

Teleconference: Tuesday, January 17, 2017, 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (Eastern daylight time). For deadlines and directions on registering to listen to the teleconference, submitting written material, and giving an oral presentation, please see Public Input under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Brian Bohnsack, Council Coordinator, via U.S. mail at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mailstop FAC, Falls Church, VA 22041; via telephone at (703) 358-2435; via fax at (703) 358-2487; or via email at brian_bohnsack@fws.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

In accordance with the requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. App., we announce that the Sport Fishing and Boating Partnership Council will hold a teleconference.

Background

The Council was formed in January 1993 to advise the Secretary of the Interior, through the Director of the Service, on nationally significant recreational fishing, boating, and aquatic resource conservation issues. The Council represents the interests of the public and private sectors of the sport fishing, boating, and conservation communities and is organized to enhance partnerships among industry, constituency groups, and government. The 18-member Council, appointed by the Secretary of the Interior, includes the Service Director and the president of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, who both serve in ex officio capacities. Other Council members are directors from State agencies responsible for managing recreational fish and wildlife resources and individuals who represent the interests of saltwater and freshwater recreational fishing, recreational boating, the recreational fishing and boating industries, recreational fisheries resource conservation, Native American tribes, aquatic resource outreach and education, and tourism. Background information on the Council is available at http://www.fws.gov/sfbpc.

Meeting Agenda

The Council will hold a teleconference to:

• Consider and approve the Council's Boating Infrastructure Grant Program
• Review Sub-Committee's funding recommendations for fiscal year 2017 proposals;
• Consider and approve the Council's recommendations on priority focus areas for the new administration;
• Schedule an upcoming spring meeting; and
• Consider other Council business.

The final agenda will be posted on the Council's Web site at http://www.fws.gov/sfbpc.

Public Input

Submitting Written Information or Questions

Interested members of the public may submit relevant information or questions for the Council to consider during the teleconference. Written statements must be received by the date listed, so that the information may be made available to the Council for their consideration prior to this teleconference. Written statements must be supplied to the Council Coordinator in one of the following formats: One hard copy with original signature, and one electronic copy via email (acceptable file formats are Adobe Acrobat PDF, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, or rich text file).

Giving an Oral Presentation

Individuals or groups requesting to make an oral presentation during the teleconference will be limited to 2 minutes per speaker, with no more than a total of 15 minutes for all speakers. Interested parties should contact the Council Coordinator, in writing (preferably via email; see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT), to be placed on the public speaker list for this teleconference. To ensure an opportunity to speak during the public comment period of the teleconference, members of the public must register with the Council Coordinator. Registered speakers who wish to expand upon their oral statements, or those who had wished to speak but could not be accommodated on the agenda, may submit written statements to the Council Coordinator up to 30 days subsequent to the teleconference.

Meeting Minutes

Summary minutes of the teleconference will be maintained by the Council Coordinator (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT) and will be available for public inspection within 90 days of the meeting and will be posted on the Council's Web site at http://www.fws.gov/sfbpc.