The proposed solution anticipates that private sector software vendors will develop and sell e-logbook software to fishers. Software vendors will have a profit motive for bearing the cost of developing the solution. Fishers will buy the commercial software solutions because with these solutions they can more efficiently satisfy their record keeping and reporting obligations, and, the e-logbook solutions can add additional value by improving the efficiency of fishing operations. NMFS maintains some control of e-logbook software through a certification program; certified e-logbook software will be required for electronic e-logbook submissions.
Because costs of the e-logbook software (and its e-signature component) are not incurred by the agency, this section only considers costs of the certification program and computer programs to process the electronic submissions and generate receipts.
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Activity
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Resources
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Non-recurring
Cost
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Recurring
Cost
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Certification process: development through deployment
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Project funded by FIS
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$55,000
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Certification process: maintenance and operations
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1 man week/year - Manager
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$3,000
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Certification assessment per application (quantity estimated as 2)
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4 man weeks - Manager
4 man weeks - Technical
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$24,000
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Data import program for portable media: development through deployment
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1 man month - Programmer
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$12,000
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Data import program for portable media: maintenance and operations
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1 man week/year - Programmer
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$3,000
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Email interface program for email submissions: development through deployment
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1 man month - Programmer
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$12,000
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Email interface program for email submissions: maintenance and operations
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1 man week/year - Programmer
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cost of incorporating e-signatures into the existing and proposed WCEFT software application(s) is expected to be relatively minimal in the short-term. Our expectation is that the e-signature requirements will include maintenance of a username/password database for buyers and the addition of the terms and conditions language described under the WCEFT Implementation Details page of this document.
While the current e-fishticket capture and submission application is based on the State paper fishtickets, the electronic fishticket system is only mandatory in the Federally managed Pacific whiting fishery. While it is difficult at this point to predict what costs may be incurred in the States fishticket systems as they further embrace the e-ticket technology the expectation is that costs of adherence to the described e-signature protocols will be manageable.