75 



While processing times for permits have improved over the 

 past year, the Commission believes that further improvement is 

 possible and would be beneficial. For the 30 permits issued by 

 the National Marine Fisheries Service and the 3 permits issued by 

 the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1993, it took, on average, over 

 three months to complete agency review once the application had 

 been determined to be complete. The Commission believes that, 

 even with a mandatory 30-day public comment period, the Services 

 should be able to complete most reviews within 60 days. In this 

 regard, it might be useful if the committee were to instruct the 

 Services to make a concerted effort to meet this goal. If, by 

 the end of 1995, the average time between receipt of a complete 

 application and issuance of a permit for scientific research 

 exceeds 60 days, the Services should be asked to (1) report as to 

 why they have been unable to meet this objective and (2) suggest 

 changes that would facilitate processing. 



Another possible way to speed up review of applications for 

 scientific research permits would be to authorize the Secretaries 

 of Commerce and the Interior to exempt certain carefully selected 

 categories of research, through regulation, from the notice and 

 comment reguirement and perhaps other existing permit 

 reguirements (e.g. , the reguirement that all permits specify the 

 number of animals authorized to be taken) . It would seem, for 

 instance, that expedited review and issuance of permits would be 

 appropriate in cases where, based upon past experience, it is 

 clear that the research would have negligible effects on both 

 individual and population health and welfare. 



In this context, it is important to keep in mind that the 

 likelihood and significance of possible effects may vary 

 depending upon the species being studied, the type of aircraft, 

 surface vessel, or other eguipment being used, and the experience 

 and expertise of the researcher, as well as the nature of the 

 activity itself. For example, while there is no doubt that 

 certain researchers have learned through experience how to 

 approach certain species of whales in certain areas without 

 disturbing them, it does not necessarily follow that 

 inexperienced researchers can carry out the activity with a 

 similar low likelihood of disturbance or that the same type of 

 approach necessarily would have the same low probability of 

 disturbing other species or the same species in different 

 settings. Similarly, it does not follow that disturbing, 

 handling, or tagging 100 individuals necessarily would have the 

 same effect on every species or population — e.g. , endangered 

 Hawaiian monk seals, threatened Steller sea lions, and much more 

 numerous northern elephant seals and California sea lions. 



Also, the process for authorizing the importation of 

 specimen material for scientific research might be simplified by 

 authorizing the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior to 

 exempt, through regulation, such importation from the Marine 



