Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Reopening of Public Comment Period on the Proposed Rule to List the Arkansas River Basin Population of the Arkansas River Shiner as Endangered

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On August 3, 1994, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) proposed to list the Arkansas River basin population of the Arkansas (AR) River shiner (Notropis girardi) as an endangered species under the authority of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act)(59 FR 39532). Public comments were solicited, three public hearings were held, and the last comment period expired on February 3, 1995 (60 FR 2070). The enactment of Pub. L. 104-6 in April 1995, and a series of continuing resolutions from October 1, 1995, through April 26, 1996, established a moratorium against issuing final listings or critical habitat designations. The Service's listing program was essentially shut down and listing program personnel were reassigned to other duties. When the moratorium was lifted, the Service published guidance for assigning relative priorities to listing actions conducted under section 4 of the Act during Fiscal Year 1997 (61 FR 64475). This species was proposed for endangered status in 1994. New information concerning the AR River shiner's status has since become available. This notice identifies possible issues the public should be aware of and provides the public opportunity to