DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service [Docket No. FWS-R7-ES-2026-1255; FXES111607MRG01-267-FF07CAMM00] Marine Mammal Protection Act; Permit Applications and Issuances AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Notice of receipt of permit applications; notice of issuance of permits. SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), invite public comment on applications for permits to conduct certain activities involving marine mammals for which the Service has jurisdiction under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. In addition, we announce permits that we have issued recently in response to prior applications. DATES: We must receive comments on the new permit applications by August 6, 2026. Comments submitted electronically using the Federal eRulemaking Portal (see ADDRESSES , below) must be received by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on the closing date. To ensure your comment is received and considered, you must submit it using one of the methods identified in the ADDRESSES section of this document. Comments submitted through any method not authorized in this document, or sent to an address not listed here, will not be considered. ADDRESSES: Obtaining Documents: • Application Materials: The applications, application supporting materials, and any comments and other materials that we receive are available for public inspection at https://www.regulations.gov in Docket No. FWS-R7-ES-2026-1255. • Issued Permits: To access materials pertaining to the permits we have issued, see Permits Issued by the Service under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION . Comment submission: All submissions must include the docket number [FWS-R7-ES-2026-1255] for this document. You must submit comments using one of the following methods: • Electronic submission: Federal eRulemaking Portal at: https://www.regulations.gov. In the Search box, enter FWS-R7-ES-2026-1255, which is the docket number for this action. Then click the Search button. On the resulting page, you may submit a comment by clicking on “Comment.” Please ensure that you have found the correct document before submitting your comments. • U.S. mail: Public Comments Processing, Attn: Docket No. FWS-R7-ES-2026-1255, Policy and Regulations Branch, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB (JAO/3W), 5275 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803. Comments submitted through any method not authorized in this document, or sent to an address not listed here, will not be considered. We will not accept comments via email, fax, or hand delivery. We are not required to consider comments that are submitted after the comment period ends or that are submitted via a method outside of these instructions. Comments containing profanity, vulgarity, threats, or other inappropriate content will not be considered. For more information, see Public Comment Procedures under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION . FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Katrina Liebich, via email at [email protected] or by telephone at 907-786-3800. Individuals in the United States who are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay services offered within their country to make international calls to the point-of-contact in the United States. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background With some exceptions, the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (MMPA; 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq. ), prohibits the take and importation of marine mammals and marine mammal products absent Federal authorization. In carrying out our responsibilities under the MMPA, we, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), may authorize such activities via permits after receipt of an application and verification that MMPA statutory and regulatory requirements are met. Section 104(c) of the MMPA specifies the conditions for authorizing the taking or importation of a marine mammal for purposes of scientific research, public display, or enhancing the survival or recovery of a species or stock under the MMPA. This notice provides information about two aspects of the MMPA permitting process: application and issuance. In section II, we provide the public with notice of and the opportunity to comment on applications that we have received from entities or individuals to conduct certain activities with marine mammals for which the Service has jurisdiction under the MMPA. In section III, we announce recently issued MMPA permits to entities or individuals in response to prior applications. II. Applications Available for Public Review To help us carry out our conservation responsibilities for affected species, and in consideration of section 104(c) of the MMPA, we invite the public and local, State, Tribal, and Federal agencies to comment on the applications listed below before final action is taken. Concurrent with publishing this notice in the Federal Register , we are forwarding copies of these marine mammal applications to the Marine Mammal Commission and the Committee of Scientific Advisors for their review. A. Permit Applications Received We invite comments on the following applications: Applicant: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, AK; Permit No. PER10641535 [CSTASK5815578] The applicant requests a modification to their scientific research permit to collect blood and skin samples from 11 captive Pacific walruses ( Odobenus rosmarus divergens ) to improve aging methods. This information will add to a body of knowledge that can inform population estimates and improve understanding of demographic parameters essential for assessing conservation needs, such as age-specific survival and reproduction. B. Public Comment Procedures 1. How do I comment on permit applications? Before issuing any requested permit, we will take into consideration any information that we receive during the public comment period. You may submit your comments and materials by one of the methods in ADDRESSES . We will not consider comments sent by email, or to an address not in ADDRESSES . We will not consider or include in our administrative record comments that we receive after the close of the comment period (see DATES ). When submitting comments, please specify the name of the applicant and the permit number at the beginning of your comment. Provide sufficient information to allow us to authenticate any scientific or commercial data you include. The comments and recommendations that will be most useful and likely to influence agency decisions are: (a) Those supported by quantitative information or studies; and (b) those that include citations to, and analyses of, the applicable laws and regulations. 2. May I review comments submitted by others? You may view public comments at https://www.regulations.gov unless our allowing so would violate the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) or other Federal law. 3. Who will see my comments? If you submit a comment at https://www.regulations.gov, your entire comment, including any personal identifying information, will be posted on the website. If you submit a hardcopy comment that includes personal identifying information, such as your address, phone number, or email address, you may request at the top of your document that we withhold this information from public review. However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. Moreover, all submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, will be made available for public disclosure in their entirety. C. Next Steps for Submitted Applications After the comment period closes, we will make decisions regarding permit issuance. If we issue permits to any of the applicants listed above in this notice, we will publish a subsequent notice in the Federal Register . You may locate the notice announcing the permit issuance by searching https://www.regulations.gov for the permit number listed above in this document. For example, to find information about the potential issuance of Permit No. 12345A, you would go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for “12345A”. III. Permits Issued by the Service We have issued permits to conduct certain activities involving marine mammals and marine mammal products in response to prior permit applications that we received. This notice informs the public that the Service has issued the permits listed in table 1 below. The permittees' original permit application materials, along with public comments we received during public comment periods for the applications, are available for review. To locate the application materials and received comments, go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for the appropriate permit number ( e.g., PER12345) or docket number ( e.g., FWS-R7-ES-2026-1255) provided in table 1. Table 1—MMPA Permits Recently Issued Permit number Applicant Permit issuance date Docket number PER19222522 U.S. Geological Survey 12/02/25 FWS-R7-ES-2025-0037 PER14048379 University of Memphis 03/12/26 FWS-R7-ES-2025-0037 IV. Authority We issue this notice under the authority of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq. ), and its implementing regulations. Drew Crane, Acting Assistant Regional Director, Fisheries and Ecological Services, Alaska Region. [FR Doc. 2026-13707 Filed 7-6-26; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4333-15-P