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002391 18950 Federal Rest.lar 1 Vol. 51, No. 1061 Tue.d.y. June 3, 1968 1 Rule. and Resulallon. by one commenter. However. although Informa) consultation t. nol required. a Federal agency may UIe lhal procell .nd/or the blologlcl' ......m.nl proce.. 10 remove an action that "I. nol likely 10 odve...ly offect.. Ii.tod .p.cl.. or critical habit. I from tho lormal conaultQtlon requirement. Propoled parlgraph (c). a "no Idve..e effect" excepUon. we. attaclced 8S weakening the Act. One comrnenter remlolrked thal thl. procedure unre.li.licllly allow. Fader" .gencl.. to determine the pre.ence of 8 "detrimental elf.ct," through Informal conllulfaUon. when the precise obJecUve oUarmal consultaUon I. to reach that lame goal. The Service doell not agree. because formal con8ultation II conducted to determine if an action 16 lilcely 10 ;eopardJze the conlinued exlstence of liated apeciee or result in the dellln1ction or adverse modification of critical habitat. Adverse effects may exiot withoul con.tiluting jeopardy. However. Ihe Service hall changed the trigger for fonnal consultation to "may affect" with certain exceptions contained In paragraph (b). The exception. In paragraph (b) are derived from the "will nOladveroely alfecI" exception in propoaed 1402.15(c) and from lhe confirmation of the preliminary biological opinion In :.' ',. p[opo.ed i402.15(b). The first exception , ,.1"'\'';0 modified 10 "nollil<ely fo advenely , ,: alfeJ;!" 10 make the biological . 8.ae..ment provisions compaUble with the fonnal conlullation provisions. Underiection 7(c) of the Ac~ a biolOgiCal assel.men, J, completed to facllilale compliance with the conaullalion provlolonl of aectlon 7(a)(2) by identifying whether any .peciea or critlcll habUat i. "likely to be affected." If the Federal agency determine.. wilh Service concurrence. that lti....ction ill nOllikely to adve..ely affecl any lioled species at critical habitat. there i8 no need for formal con.u1laUon. Impoaing Ihe Ume delay. and inConnll.t1on relponAibUitiel of Cormal con.ulration on .uch action. would not provide any addllional prolecllon 10 Ii.led .peela. or altlcel habilat and may dlllcourage Interagency cooperaUon. Regulatory Oexlblllty i. .ppropriale b.re to eliminate undua burden.. By requlrlns the Service'. "written conCWT.nce" with . "not likely to .dv....ly .ff.ct" finding .. . prerequl.lle to invoking tho exception 10 formal conlullaUon, tho Servtce bell.vel It bo. relaln.d adequ.le review .uthority through informal COnlullation. If the Information m.de IVlllabll during Informal conlullatlon i. nol oullId.nllo make lhl. d.tonnln.tion. formal con.uIlatlon S-47_ 0026(DIX)J-MAY-U-JJcl7,IJ) I. rsqulrod. The COl. 01 Romoro-Borcelo v. Brown. ll43 F.Zd 835 (l.t Clr. 1ll61). rev'd on other ,round. .ub nom. Woinbof'8or v.lloml1ro-BarcaJo, ~ U.S. 306 (1982). do.. not preclud. W. chango. Th.1 docl.lon Inl.rpret.d tho 1978 rule hUI did nol..t. mIn1mWII thnllhold for initiation of form.1 con.uJlatlon und.r th. Act. Pangr.ph. (a) .nd (b). II .dopled, are lot.lly within tha .tatutory .uthority of tho Service. Th. other .xception to th. g.nor.1 formal con.u1I.Uon requirem.ntl. tho confinnaUon of a preliminary bIological opinion II the final biological opinion. If early conoullation lake. place, the ServlC8- willl..ue a pre\lmInary biological opinion. When tho pro.pective applicant .pplle. for. Federal permit or llcanle. tho Fed.ral agency may,reque.t that tho Service confirm the preliminary biological opinion II the final biological opinion thlt would have b..n I..ued after formal co".uJlatlon. U the Service review. the propo.ed action and find. no .Ignlficant change. In the action .. planned and no .lgn1fIcanl chang.. In tha Information u..d during early con.ullation, .uch a confirmation wtU be I..ued. Con.u1lation 10 roqulnld If the preliminary biological opinion I. nol confirmed. Paragraph (c) of 140Z.14 Ipecifle. the required conlenla of. roquellIor formal con.u1lation. ThI. paragrapb I. .dopted lub.lanllally from propo.ed i i402.12(b)(7) and 402.15(d). According 10 one commenler. the Informatlon requlremenla 01 paragr.pb (c). wblch apply 10 all action. Involved In formal co".u1lation,lack .tatulory authority. The Service dte. tha oblJaation to ule tho "be.1 acIenliflc and commercfal data avaa.bl." and the overeD re.pon.lblllty 10 co".u111n good faith und.r ..ction 7[0)(2) a. ampl. .uthority for tho Information requirem.ntl. Propol8d llam (vi). requlrlns a 11.1 of Fed.reI agend.. thot have luri.dlcllon in the .ctIon ..... and how they m.y be .lfocled, I. too broad .lnee much of lhl. Informatioo would be unrel.led to tho conaullation. Oth.r F.der.1 actio". that 11'0 int.rrelated or Inlerd.pend.nt would be dlacuaood olons with tho .If.cta of tho actloD. Therefore, thI1 itl1llla DOl Included in tho final ruI.. The re",_lnl~g UelDl are ".enllalln delarmtnlng tho paramalero of tho .ctlon. tho .xton~ duralloa. and _erity of Ita Impactl. and tho .fI'octa 01 other .ctlOnl In tho .ctIob are.. Tho llervIce reWno the.. e'Mntlal tnformallon roquiremenll. a/thouah It b.. notad undor .ubparqraph (5) thaI only H",I~ant.. reporla. includJna F4701.FMT...(1UO)......15-ae Invlt,nm.nlallmp.cI .lala_nla, ale.. n..d be .uppllod, becauao conoullatlofll will In mo. I ca... be complalod prior to lb. production of final NEPA docum.nlation for thl .ubJ.cI action. Thl conclud1n, ..nlance. of p.r.sr.ph [c) penn/IF.dorsl agend... .ubJocl to tha Director'. .pprovalto lailor th.lt requ..I. for conlullation to a particular .egm.nt of a comprehenllva plan. .0 long a. tha .ff.cta of tho .ctlon .. a whole are conlldored. To clarify thI. pa..as., .. roque.lad by ODB comman"'r, tho Servlca ..... the exampl. of the lIWl88.m.n~ punuant to . compreh.n1lva plan. of a N.tIonal Wildlife Refug. thet I. Inhabllad by . 1I.I.d .poet... Section 1 conlullation may ba wul.rt&k.n on . Iognlent of thai management program. .uch .a big-same hunting. and a biological opinion wtU be i..uad on !hat phs.. of the program only. How.ver. In formulallog Ita biological opinion. th.!;orv!ca mllOl con.td.r tho .lfocta, including indirect effecta. of the .ctlon .. . ""hal., and cumulative elfecta of unrelat.d management programs In reaching the conclu.lob of "jeopardy" or Hno j.opardy." The concluding paaoago of paragraph (c) Wualrale. the flexibility Inhersnlln the formal conlullallon proce.. and tho care with wblch the prolectlonl of lOctIon 1 are p.....rved. Paragraph (d) of 1402.14 repeala tho roqulred Informallon ltandard of lOctIon 7(a)(2): "be.llCi.nliflc and commercfal dalB .vailable," ThI. paragraph Ia adopted e..entially withoul chango from propo..d I 402.15{ d)(2). excepl tha~ purouant to public commen~ the Service chBIl8ed ''blologlcallnformallon'' 10 ".denliflc and comm.rdal dota" to bring the language of the regulation In 1In. with the Act. Ona comman!er IU88ealed thaI tho phre.. "or which can be d.valoped during tho COtIIullatiob proce.... be removed from thIa paragrapb. Tho Service h.1 modified the wording to .lala thai th.lnformation ref.mrd 10 In lhll paragraph Ie Information thai can be oblalned durlIlg tha conlullallon. Wa bell.ve that Information could become avaU.bl. al any time during the conaullatlon, and IUch Inlormadob Ibould be .ulmltted to the Service for lla conaldazallOQ. The laglalativa b1a1..,.. of tha 1911l Amendmenla IIUppOI'la thIa prov\elon. H.R. Conf. Rap. No. fJI17, geth Cons. lot Sell. 1Z (1911l). Thl 8emco Ie IItWlad !ha I thI1 paragrapb adoqualB1y mandaln!ha UN of tho beal .vaJlabl. acIenliflc and comman:lal data, roqutraa Fed.reI ....ncIaa to IDJlPly thIa dala .1 an, tIm. cIurinc loroW OOIIIIIItallon, lIlId ..........1- thol thIa InformaUOll requ1romalllll . Padaral8J0DC7