Swim With and Approach Regulation for Hawaiian Spinner Dolphins Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act; Ratification of Regulation

Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 216 [Docket No. 210901-0173] AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Ratification. SUMMARY: NOAA is publishing notification of the NOAA Administrator's ratification of a rule. DATES: The ratification was signed on July 8, 2022. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Brindock, NMFS, Pacific Islands Region, Deputy Assistant Regional Administrator, Protected Resources Division, (808) 725-5146; or Trevor Spradlin, NMFS, Office of Protected Resources, Deputy Chief, Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Conservation Division, Office of Protected Resources, (301) 427-8402. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 8, 2022, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator, Dr. Richard W. Spinrad, ratified a final rule issued by NMFS on September 28, 2021, that restricts swimming with and approaching Hawaiian spinner dolphins within 50 yards (45.7 m) in designated waters of Hawaii, subject to certain exceptions. See Swim With and Approach Regulation for Hawaiian Spinner Dolphins under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, 86 FR 53818 (Sept. 28, 2021) (Approach Rule). NOAA is now publishing the ratification in the Federal Register out of an abundance of caution. Neither the ratification nor the publication is a statement that the ratified action would be invalid absent the ratification, whether published or ot…