Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Permits, City of Scotts Valley and Santa Cruz County, CA

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We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), have received applications from the County of Santa Cruz (County) and the City of Scotts Valley (City) (applicants) for incidental take permits under section the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We are considering issuing permits that would authorize the applicants' take of the Federally endangered Mount Hermon June beetle (Polyphylla barbata) incidental to otherwise lawful activities that would result in the permanent loss of 139 acres of habitat for the species in Santa Cruz County, California. The permits would also include the Federally endangered Ben Lomond spineflower (Chorizanthe pungens var. hartwegiana) as a covered species. We invite comments from the public on the applications, which include an Interim Programmatic Habitat Conservation Plan (IPHCP) and an Implementing Agreement (IA) that describe the proposed project and measures the applicants would undertake to minimize and mitigate anticipated take of the species. We also invite comments from the public on the draft environmental assessment (EA) prepared to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).