# Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; West Coast Fisheries Participation Survey
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 December 10, 2025, during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.
*Agency:* National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
*Title:* West Coast Fisheries Participation Survey.
*OMB Control Number:* 0648-0749.
*Form Number(s):* None.
*Type of Request:* Regular submission. A revision and extension of a current information collection.
*Number of Respondents:* 908.
*Average Hours per Response:* 0.25 (15 minutes).
*Total Annual Burden Hours:* 227 hours.
*Needs and Uses:* This request is for a revision and extension of an existing information collection. This survey updates the 2023 survey to remove a question regarding identity in underserved groups and provide multiple choice answer options for two questions that were previously open-ended in order to reduce response time.
This collection is sponsored by the Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The overall purpose of collecting these data is to develop stakeholder-based societal inputs relative to fisheries participation, but these survey data will also increase the capacity of NOAA to respond effectively to relevant mandates and executive orders that guide social science activities within the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MFCMA) and its National Standard 8, and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
Fishing livelihoods are both centrally dependent on ecosystems and part of the forces acting on these ecosystems, including resident marine species. Alongside social factors like economics and management, fisheries population fluctuations shape fishing livelihoods. However, the decisions fishermen make regarding which fisheries to access and when to access them are not fully understood, particularly within the food web frameworks offered up by ecosystem-based approaches to research and management. An understanding and predictive capacity for these movements of fishermen across fisheries in the context of ecological and social variability presents a significant gap in management-oriented knowledge. Managing fisheries in a way that enhances their socioeconomic value, mitigates risks to ecosystems and livelihoods, and facilitates sustainable adaptation, requires this fundamental knowledge.
For this reason, the NWFSC seeks to conduct a follow-up U.S. mail survey, replicating the surveys administered during 2017, 2020, and 2023. This survey updates the 2023 survey to remove a question regarding identity in underserved groups and provide multiple choice answer options for two questions that were previously open-ended in order to reduce response time. The survey will be voluntary, and contacted individuals may decline to participate. Respondents will be asked to answer questions about their motivations for fishing and factors that affect participation in the suite of West Coast commercial fisheries. Fishing and non-fishing employment information will also be collected. This survey is essential because data on smaller scale fishing practices, values, participation decisions and fishing livelihoods are sparse; yet, they are critical to the development of fishery ecosystem models that account for non-pecuniary fishing benefits, as well as the ways in which fishing practices shape individual and community well-being.
*Affected Public:* Individuals or households.
*Frequency:* Every three years.
*Respondent's Obligation:* Voluntary.
*Legal Authority:* Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MFCMA) and its National Standard 8, and NEPA.
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 0648-0749.
Sheleen Dumas,
Departmental PRA Compliance Officer, Office of the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs, Commerce Department.