Additional rule changes may be pursued which are reasonably related to those discussed here.
3. Description of the Existing Policies Relevant to the Rule, New Policies Proposed to be Included In the Rule, and an Analysis of Policy Alternatives
The proposals in this rule would support the efforts of the new “Wisconsin Walleye Initiative," which is intended for state, municipal, tribal, and private fish hatchery operations to increase the production of large walleye fingerlings for stocking in Wisconsin waters. The Fisheries Management Bureau does not currently manage a grant program for that purpose, but the department has extensive experience with managing grant programs to private and municipal entities that can serve as examples for this program.
The department is statutorily required to create the grant program through administrative rule using policy listed in statute.
4. Detailed Explanation of Statutory Authority for the Rule (Including the Statutory Citation and Language)
Section
29.014(1), Stats., directs the department to establish and maintain conditions governing the taking of fish that will conserve the fish supply and ensure the citizens of this state continued opportunities for good fishing.
Section
29.041, Stats., provides that the department may regulate fishing on and in all interstate boundary waters and outlying waters.
Section
29.709, Stats., provides that the department may operate state fish hatcheries, including receiving fish eggs or fish donated to the state or purchased, and procure, receive, exchange, distribute, and dispose of fish eggs and fish.
Section
29.739, Stats., directs the department to establish a grant program to award grants on a competitive basis to cities, villages, towns, and counties; to federally recognized Indian tribes or bands located in this state; and to fish farms.
Section
29.740, Stats., provides that the department may enter into contracts with local governmental units, federally recognized Indian tribes or bands located in this state, and fish farms for the purpose of increasing the amount of walleye available for stocking in the waters of the state.
5. Estimate of Amount of Time that State Employees Will Spend Developing the Rule and of Other Resources Necessary to Develop the Rule
200 hours.
6. List with Description of all Entities that may be Affected by the Proposed Rule
•
Municipal fish hatcheries: fish hatcheries that are owned or operated by a city, village, town, county, or a federally recognized Indian tribe or band located in Wisconsin.
•
Private fish farms: farms registered with the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection under s.
95.60, Stats.
•
Tribal and non-tribal fishers: sustenance and recreational fishers will likely benefit from additional walleye stocking opportunities.
7. Summary and Preliminary Comparison with any Existing or Proposed Federal Regulation that is Intended to Address the Activities to be Regulated by the Proposed Rule
There is no federal authority over the proposed actions. None of the rule proposals violate or conflict with federal regulations.
8. Anticipated Economic Impact of Implementing the Rule (Note if the Rule is Likely to Have a Significant Economic Impact on Small Businesses)
Minimal to no negative economic impact (Level 3).
The rule is not expected to have an adverse effect on the economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, jobs, or the overall economic competitiveness of the State. It will have a positive impact by providing $1 million annually in the 2013-15 biennium to municipal fish hatcheries and private fish farms through a competitive grant program. Grants will be used for building and improving hatchery buildings, rearing ponds, equipment and other facilities. In addition, $500,000 will be available annually starting in fiscal year 2014-15 for the department to contract with municipal fish hatcheries and private fish farms to purchase fish for the purpose of raising walleye for stocking with Wisconsin waters.
The rule will not allow for the potential to establish a reduced fine for small businesses, nor will it establish “alternative enforcement mechanisms" for “minor violations" of administrative rules made by small businesses.
9. Anticipated Number, Month and Locations of Public Hearings
The Department anticipates holding one public hearing in the month of January 2014. Hearing cities will be: Madison, WI.
The Department will hold this hearing in this location to gather input on the implementation of walleye population maintenance and enhancement grants that are required by the 2013-15 state budget.
10. Contact Person
Mike Staggs, Fisheries Management Bureau Director, 608-267-0796.
Natural Resources
Fish, Game, etc., Chs.
NR 1—
(DNR # FH-26-13 (E))
This statement of scope was approved by the Governor on August 13, 2013.
Rule No.
Relating to
Lake trout harvest limits in Lake Superior.
Rule Type
Emergency.
1. Finding/Nature of Emergency (Emergency Rule Only)
The welfare of state-licensed commercial fishers, tribal commercial fishers, recreational anglers, and associated businesses is threatened by a decline in the lake trout population in the Apostle Islands vicinity of Lake Superior. The emergency rule is necessary to implement harvest limits for the 2013-14 lake trout commercial harvest season.
2. Detailed Description of the Objective of the Proposed Rule
The purpose of the emergency rule is to amend Lake Superior lake trout harvest limits as required by revisions to the State-Tribal Lake Superior Agreement. The total allowable catch of lake trout in Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior is divided among tribal commercial fisheries, state-licensed commercial fisheries, tribal subsistence fishers, and state recreational anglers. The 10-year State-Tribal Lake Superior Agreement specifies annual allowable lake trout harvests, defines refuges and special fishing areas, and establishes other terms and arrangements for state and tribal commercial fishing. The Agreement was last negotiated in 2005, and has been amended three times, most recently in November 2012. Lake trout harvest limits will be amended by October 2013 via negotiation between the Department of Natural Resources and the Red Cliff and Bad River Bands of Lake Superior Chippewa and put in place by emergency rule for the 2013-14 open season. The Wisconsin State-Tribal Technical Committee, which is made up of Department, Red Cliff, and Bad River biologists, has recommended about a 15 percent reduction in lake trout harvest for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons. However, this is only a recommendation and must be formally agreed upon through the negotiation process before becoming final. These harvest limits must be ordered through Administrative Code by emergency rule so limits are in place by November 28, 2013, the beginning of the 2013-14 season.
The rule will:
•
Modify the annual commercial fishing harvest limit for lake trout on Lake Superior.
•
Revise rules used to determine the footage of gill net that may be set in the water by each fisher, also called “fishing effort." No commercial fisher may set more than his or her allowable gill net effort during the lake trout open season, based on a formula to determine each commercial fisher's allowable gill net effort in feet of net. When targeting whitefish with gill nets, each fisher is allowed to fish only the amount of net that would cause an incidental catch and kill of his or her lake trout quota. However, harvest may be only moderately affected because fishers can shift to using trap nets that are not subject to the same effort restrictions governing gill nets.
•
Allow the department to enforce a reduced recreational daily bag limit for lake trout in Lake Superior if the recreational lake trout harvest exceeds a percentage of the total allowable harvest. Lake trout harvest limits are created for both commercial and recreational fishers in Lake Superior in order to manage the total population.
Additional rule changes may be pursued which are reasonably related to those discussed in this scope.
3. Description of the Existing Policies Relevant to the Rule, New Policies Proposed to be Included In the Rule, and an Analysis of Policy Alternatives
The allowable lake trout harvests are reviewed by a state-tribal biological committee, using the latest available data and modeling results. Based on those results and recommendations from the biological committee, the Agreement is re-negotiated as needed to change the total annual harvest of lake trout by all fishers, and possibly to address other issues related to shared harvest of lake trout and other species by state and tribal fishers.
There has been a steady decline in lean lake trout abundance in Lake Superior since the early 2000s. This decline has been confirmed by independent surveys conducted by the Department and has been projected by models used to set safe harvest levels. Some level of decline was expected because of high harvest limits in the early 2000s, which were in response to several large year classes (numbers of fish spawned in the same year) predicted to enter the fishery. However, these year classes did not attain the abundance originally anticipated and, as a result, the overall lake trout population did not reach the levels previously expected. This combination of increased harvest and re-scaled estimates of lake trout abundance has caused actual lake trout abundance to decline. While relatively stable abundances of spawning lake trout suggest that this decline is still reversible, action needs to be taken to arrest the lean lake trout population's decline. The continued, persistent decline in lake trout population abundances and predicted further declines necessitate harvest reductions in order to ensure a sustainable lake trout fishery over the long-term.
Lake trout harvest limits were reduced by emergency rule for the 2012-13 open season. Rule alternatives are not being considered because the recommendations must be negotiated through the State-Tribal Lake Superior Agreement.
4. Detailed Explanation of Statutory Authority for the Rule (Including the Statutory Citation and Language)
The proposed rule amends the annual commercial fishing harvest limit for lake trout on Lake Superior, which is an “outlying water." Commercial fishing harvest limits are authorized under s.
29.014 (1), Stats., which directs the Department to establish and maintain any bag limits and conditions governing the taking of fish that will conserve the fish supply and ensure the citizens of this state continued opportunities for good fishing.
Section
29.041, Stats., provides that the Department may regulate fishing on and in all interstate boundary waters and outlying waters.
Section
29.519 (1m) (b), Stats., grants discretion to the Department to establish commercial fish species harvest limits after giving due consideration to the recommendations made by the commercial fishing boards. It also specifies that the limitations on harvests must be based on the available harvestable population of fish and in the wise use and conservation of the fish, so as to prevent over-exploitation.
5. Estimate of Amount of Time that State Employees will Spend Developing the Rule and of Other Resources Necessary to Develop the Rule
Employees may spend up to 200 hours developing the emergency rule. It will require in-state travel to meet with tribal negotiators.
6. List with Description of all Entities that may be Affected by the Proposed Rule
•
State-licensed commercial fishers on Lake Superior
•
Recreational fishers on Lake Superior
•
Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
•
Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
State-licensed and tribal commercial fishers may be affected by the amount of fish they are able to harvest. It is not expected that fishers will have any compliance expenditures or reporting changes associated with the rule.
7. Summary and Preliminary Comparison with any Existing or Proposed Federal Regulation that is Intended to Address the Activities to Be Regulated by the Proposed Rule
No federal regulations apply. None of the rule proposals violate or conflict with federal regulations.
8. Anticipated Economic Impact of Implementing the Rule (Note if the Rule is Likely to Have a Significant Economic Impact on Small Businesses)
The rule may impact the commercial harvest of lake trout and other species by state-licensed and tribal commercial fishers. The total dockside value of the reported state commercial lake trout harvest in 2012 was approximately $20,000. Harvest is not expected to change by more than 15 percent. Therefore the impacted to the value of the lake trout fishery is not expected to exceed ±$3,000. However, this rule may also alter the amount of gill net effort commercial fishers can use to target whitefish since lake trout are frequently caught in the same nets. Changes in gill net effort therefore have the potential to cause commercial fishers additional income changes. The total dockside value of whitefish harvested by state commercial fishers using gill nets was approximately $155,000 in 2012. Harvest is expected to be modified by no more than 15 percent putting the total value adjustment at no more than ±$23,000 and likely less because fishers can shift to using trap nets that are not subject to the same effort restrictions governing gill nets. Moreover, commercial fishers can continue current efforts to adjust the location, time, and manner in which they set gill nets targeting whitefish so as to reduce harvest of non-target lake trout. The exact amount of economic impact is unknown, but is not expected to exceed $50,000.
9. Anticipated Number, Month and Locations of Public Hearings
The Department anticipates holding one public hearing in the month of December 2013. Hearing city will be: Bayfield.
The Department will hold the hearing in this location to collect public input on the proposed lake trout harvest quota.
10. Contact Person
Peter Stevens, Lake Superior Fisheries Supervisor, 715-779-4035 ext. 12.
Natural Resources
Environmental Protection — General, Chs.
NR 100—
(DNR # AM-28-13 and AM-29-13 (E))
This statement of scope was approved by the Governor on August 14, 2013.
Rule No.
Relating to
Stage 2 Vapor Recovery System Removal Grants.
Rule Type
Permanent and Emergency.
1. Finding/Nature of Emergency
The Department is requesting authority to begin both a permanent and an emergency rulemaking process to establish a grant program for the removal of stage 2 vapor recovery equipment at gasoline stations located in the counties of Kenosha, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Sheboygan, Washington, and Waukesha.
Stage 2 vapor recovery equipment captures fuel vapors (volatile organic compounds or VOC) that have the potential to escape during refueling and returns them to an underground gasoline storage tank where they condense. Beginning with 1998 model year cars, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) phased in requirements for onboard (on the vehicle) refueling vapor recovery (ORVR) systems. These systems essentially serve the same purpose as stage 2 vapor recovery equipment at a gasoline station. On May 16, 2012, the U.S. EPA published a finding in the Federal Register that ORVR technology is in “widespread use" (77 FR 28772). They stated that “more than 75 percent of gasoline refueling nationwide occurs with ORVR-equipped vehicles, so stage 2 programs have become largely redundant control systems." The U.S. EPA also stated that the limited compatibility between ORVR and stage 2 vapor recovery equipment may ultimately result in an emissions increase. As such, the U.S. EPA authorized states to remove the requirements for stage 2 vapor recovery equipment from their ozone State Implementation Plans (SIPs).
This grant program will provide incentive to gasoline station owners and operators to remove their stage 2 vapor recovery equipment in a timely manner. Removal of this equipment will allow station owners and operators to avoid those costs associated with maintenance of the equipment that would otherwise be incurred. Timely removal will also hasten the avoidance of potential VOC emission increases cited by the U.S. EPA above.
2. Description of the Objective of the Proposed Rule
The proposed rule will establish a grant program for the removal of stage 2 vapor recovery equipment, as required by s.
285.31 (6) (b), Stats. For the purposes of the proposed rule, the term “remove" will be defined as proper decommissioning of stage 2 vapor recovery equipment, thereby removing it from service. A description of what constitutes proper decommissioning will be included as part of the proposed rule. In addition, the proposed rule will focus on the administration of the grant program, including which costs are eligible grant costs.
