[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 50, Volume 7]
[Revised as of January 1, 2007]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 50CFR216.23]

[Page 18-20]
 
                    TITLE 50--WILDLIFE AND FISHERIES
 
  CHAPTER II--NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE, NATIONAL OCEANIC AND 
           ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
 
PART 216_REGULATIONS GOVERNING THE TAKING AND IMPORTING OF MARINE 
 
                      Subpart C_General Exceptions
 
Sec. 216.23  Native exceptions.

    (a) Taking. Notwithstanding the prohibitions of subpart B of this 
part 216, but subject to the restrictions contained in this section, any 
Indian, Aleut, or Eskimo who resides on the coast of the North Pacific 
Ocean or the Arctic Ocean may take any marine mammal without a permit, 
if such taking is:
    (1) By Alaskan Natives who reside in Alaska for subsistence, or
    (2) For purposes of creating and selling authentic native articles 
of handicraft and clothing, and
    (3) In each case, not accomplished in a wasteful manner.
    (b) Restrictions. (1) No marine mammal taken for subsistence may be 
sold or otherwise transferred to any person other than an Alaskan Native 
or delivered, carried, transported, or shipped in interstate or foreign 
commerce, unless:
    (i) It is being sent by an Alaskan Native directly or through a 
registered agent to a tannery registered under paragraph (c) of this 
section for the purpose of processing, and will be returned directly or 
through a registered agent to the Alaskan Native; or
    (ii) It is sold or transferred to a registered agent in Alaska for 
resale or transfer to an Alaskan Native; or
    (iii) It is an edible portion and it is sold in an Alaskan Native 
village or town.
    (2) No marine mammal taken for purposes of creating and selling 
authentic native articles of handicraft and clothing may be sold or 
otherwise transferred to any person other than an Indian, Aleut or 
Eskimo, or delivered, carried, transported or shipped in interstate or 
foreign commerce, unless:
    (i) It is being sent by an Indian, Aleut or Eskimo directly or 
through a registered agent to a tannery registered under paragraph (c) 
of this section for the purpose of processing, and will be returned 
directly or through a registered agent to the Indian, Aleut or Eskimo; 
or
    (ii) It is sold or transferred to a registered agent for resale or 
transfer to an Indian, Aleut, or Eskimo; or
    (iii) It has first been transformed into an authentic native article 
of handicraft or clothing; or
    (iv) It is an edible portion and sold (A) in an Alaskan Native 
village or town, or (B) to an Alaskan Native for his consumption.
    (c) Any tannery, or person who wishes to act as an agent, within the 
jurisdiction of the United States may apply

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to the Director, National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Department of 
Commerce, Washington, DC 20235, for registration as a tannery or an 
agent which may possess and process marine mammal products for Indians, 
Aleuts, or Eskimos. The application shall include the following 
information:
    (i) The name and address of the applicant;
    (ii) A description of the applicant's procedures for receiving, 
storing, processing, and shipping materials;
    (iii) A proposal for a system of bookkeeping and/or inventory 
segregation by which the applicant could maintain accurate records of 
marine mammals received from Indians, Aleuts, or Eskimos pursuant to 
this section;
    (iv) Such other information as the Secretary may request;
    (v) A certification in the following language:

    I hereby certify that the foregoing information is complete, true 
and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief. I understand that 
this information is submitted for the purpose of obtaining the benefit 
of an exception under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16 
U.S.C. 1361 through 1407) and regulations promulgated thereunder, and 
that any false statement may subject me to the criminal penalties of 18 
U.S.C. 1001, or to penalties under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 
1972.

    (vi) The signature of the applicant.

The sufficiency of the application shall be determined by the Secretary, 
and in that connection, he may waive any requirement for information, or 
require any elaboration or further information deemed necessary. The 
registration of a tannery or other agent shall be subject to such 
conditions as the Secretary prescribes, which may include, but are not 
limited to, provisions regarding records, inventory segregation, 
reports, and inspection. The Secretary may charge a reasonable fee for 
processing such applications, including an appropriate apportionment of 
overhead and administrative expenses of the Department of Commerce.
    (d) Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this section, 
whenever, under the MMPA, the Secretary determines any species of stock 
of marine mammals to be depleted, he may prescribe regulations pursuant 
to section 103 of the MMPA upon the taking of such marine animals by any 
Indian, Aleut, or Eskimo and, after promulgation of such regulations, 
all takings of such marine mammals shall conform to such regulations.
    (e) Marking and reporting of Cook Inlet Beluga Whales--(1) 
Definitions. In addition to definitions contained in the MMPA and the 
regulations in this part:
    (i) Reporting means the collection and delivery of biological data, 
harvest data, and other information regarding the effect of taking a 
beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) from Cook Inlet, as required by 
NMFS.
    (ii) Whaling captain or vessel operator means the individual who is 
identified by Alaskan Natives as the leader of each hunting team 
(usually the other crew on the boat) and who is the whaling captain; or 
the individual operating the boat at the time the whale is harvested or 
transported to the place of processing.
    (iii) Cook Inlet means all waters of Cook Inlet north of 59[deg] 
North latitude, including, but not limited to, waters of Kachemak Bay, 
Kamishak Bay, Chinitna Bay, and Tuxedni Bay.
    (2) Marking. Each whaling captain or vessel operator, upon killing 
and landing a beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) from Cook Inlet, 
Alaska, must remove the lower left jawbone, leaving the teeth intact and 
in place. When multiple whales are harvested during one hunting trip, 
the jawbones will be marked for identification in the field to ensure 
correct reporting of harvest information by placing a label marked with 
the date, time, and location of harvest within the container in which 
the jawbone is placed. The jawbone(s) must be retained by the whaling 
captain or vessel operator and delivered to NMFS at the Anchorage Field 
Office, 222 West 7th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska 99513 within 72 hours of 
returning from the hunt.
    (3) Reporting. Upon delivery to NMFS of a jawbone, the whaling 
captain or vessel operator must complete and mail a reporting form, 
available from NMFS, to the NMFS Anchorage Field Office within 30 days. 
A separate form is required for each whale harvested.
    (i) To be complete, the form must contain the following information: 
the

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date and location of kill, the method of harvest, and the coloration of 
the whale. The respondent will also be invited to report on any other 
observations concerning the animal or circumstance of the harvest.
    (ii) Data collected pursuant to paragraph (e) of this section will 
be reported on forms obtained from the Anchorage Field Office. These 
data will be maintained in the NMFS Alaska Regional Office in Juneau, 
Alaska, where such data will be available for public review.
    (4) No person may falsify any information required to be set forth 
on the reporting form as required by paragraph (e) of this section.
    (5) The Anchorage Field Office of NMFS is located in room 517 of the 
Federal Office Building, 222 West 7th Avenue; its mailing address is: 
NMFS, Box 43, Anchorage, AK. 99513.
    (f) Harvest management of Cook Inlet beluga whales--(1) Cooperative 
management of subsistence harvest. Subject to the provisions of 16 
U.S.C. 1371(b) and any further limitations set forth in Sec. 216.23, 
any taking of a Cook Inlet beluga whale by an Alaska Native must be 
authorized under an agreement for the co-management of subsistence uses 
(hereinafter in this paragraph ``co-management agreement'') between the 
National Marine Fisheries Service and an Alaska Native organization(s).
    (2) Limitations. (i) Sale of Cook Inlet beluga whale parts and 
products. Authentic Native articles of handicraft and clothing made from 
nonedible by-products of beluga whales taken in accordance with the 
provisions of this paragraph may be sold in interstate commerce. The 
sale of any other part or product, including food stuffs, from Cook 
Inlet beluga whales is prohibited, provided that nothing herein shall be 
interpreted to prohibit or restrict customary and traditional 
subsistence practices of barter and sharing of Cook Inlet beluga parts 
and products.
    (ii) Beluga whale calves or adults with calves. The taking of a calf 
or an adult whale accompanied by a calf is prohibited.
    (iii) Season. All takings of beluga whales authorized under Sec. 
216.23(f) shall occur no earlier than July 1 of each year.
    (iv) Taking during 2001-2004. The harvest of Cook Inlet beluga 
whales is restricted during the four-year period of 2001-2004 as 
follows:
    (A) Strike limitations. Subject to the suspension provision of 
subparagraph (C), a total of six (6) strikes, which could result in up 
to six landings, are to be allocated through co-management agreement(s).
    (B) Strike allocations. Four strikes, not to exceed one per year, 
are allocated to the Native Village of Tyonek. The remaining two strikes 
will be allocated over the 4-year period through co-management agreement 
with other Cook Inlet community hunters, with no more than one such 
strike being allocated during every other year.
    (C) Emergency provisions. Takings of beluga whales authorized under 
Sec. 216.23 will be suspended whenever unusual mortalities exceed six 
(6) whales in any year. ``Unusual mortalities'' include all documented 
human-caused mortality (including illegal takings and net entanglements 
but excluding all legally harvested whales) and all documented mortality 
resulting from unknown or natural causes that occur above normal levels, 
considered for the purposes of this provision to be twelve beluga whales 
per year. The level of unusual mortalities shall be calculated by 
documenting mortality for the calendar year and subtracting twelve. The 
sum of this result and the carry over of unusual mortality from any 
previous year from which the population has not recovered is the level 
of unusual mortalities for the current year. If in any year the number 
of unusual mortalities exceeds six whales, no strikes will be allowed in 
that year or in subsequent years until the population has recovered from 
those mortalities through foregone future harvests and natural 
recruitment.
    (v) Taking during 2005 and subsequent years. [Reserved]

[39 FR 1852, Jan. 15, 1974, as amended at 59 FR 50376, Oct. 3, 1994; 64 
FR 27927, May 24, 1999; 69 FR 17980, Apr. 6, 2004]

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