Fish and Wildlife Service Updates Refuge Permit Paperwork Requirements
Published Date: 1/17/2025
Notice
Summary
The Fish and Wildlife Service is updating the forms and reports needed for special permits to use National Wildlife Refuges. If you apply for these permits, you might see some changes in how you fill out paperwork, but no new fees or big time costs are expected. You have until February 18, 2025, to share your thoughts on these updates.
Analyzed Economic Effects
5 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 2 costs, 0 mixed.
Commercial Application Fee: $100 Per Filing
There is an estimated nonhour annual cost of $370,100 for application fees tied to commercial use activities; the notice states a $100.00 fee per application for individuals and private-sector respondents. This cost applies to those applying for commercial special use permits.
Simpler 'EZ' Permit Form
The Service will add Form 3-1383-EZ, a simplified General Activities Special Use Permit application for common, non-economic activities like recreational berry picking or boat mooring. The EZ form is optional, pulled from the existing Form 3-1383-G (no new questions), and refuge staff may offer it after an initial request to reduce paperwork burden.
Commercial Permit Form Updated Options
Form 3-1383-C (Commercial Activities Special Use Permit Application) will change question options: remove 'mineral lease' and 'cabins', add 'food and beverage vendors' (e.g., food trucks) and 'Fishing/Frogging', and change 'Recreation Events' to 'Events'. Question 14 is reworded to require specific dates, times, frequency, and an occupancy timeline for activities.
Paperwork Burden and Time Estimates
The collection estimates 14,511 annual respondents and 14,511 annual responses, with total estimated annual burden of 22,495 hours. Estimated completion time per response varies from 10 minutes to 5 hours depending on the activity.
Bid Sheet Streamlines Economic Use Bidding
The Service will use FWS Form 3-1384 (Bid Sheet) to collect pre-award information for economic uses like grazing livestock, harvesting hay/stock feed, or removing timber. The form is intended to simplify bidding and reduce time and burden for bidders and refuge staff during pre-award selection.
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