[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 146 (Wednesday, July 29, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 45571-45573]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16446]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
RIN 0648-BJ18
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act
Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Amendment 21
to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management
Plan
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of Availability of proposed fishery management plan
amendment; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council has submitted
Amendment 21 to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery
Management Plan to NMFS. Amendment 21 proposes revisions to the summer
flounder commercial state quota allocation percentages and the fishery
management plan goals and objectives. Amendment 21 is intended to
increase equity in state allocations when annual coastwide commercial
quotas are at or above historical averages, while recognizing the
economic reliance coastal communities have on the state allocation
percentages currently in place.
DATES: Public comments must be received on or before September 28,
2020.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by
NOAA-NMFS-2020-0107, by the following method:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal.
1. Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2020-0107;
2. Click the ``Comment Now!'' icon and complete the required
fields; and
3. Enter or attach your comments.
Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period,
may not be considered by us. All comments received are a part of the
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily
by the sender will be publicly accessible. We will accept anonymous
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain
anonymous).
Copies of Amendment 21, including the Environmental Impact
Statement, the Regulatory Impact Review, and the Initial Regulatory
Flexibility Analysis (EIS/RIR/IRFA) prepared in support of this action
are available from Dr. Christopher M. Moore, Executive Director, Mid-
Atlantic Fishery Management Council, Suite 201, 800 North State Street,
Dover, DE 19901. The supporting documents are also accessible via the
internet at: http://www.mafmc.org.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Keiley, Fishery Policy Analyst,
(978) 281-9116, or email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The summer flounder fishery is managed cooperatively under the
provisions of the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery
Management Plan (FMP) developed by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management
Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, in
consultation with the New England Fishery Management Council. The
management unit specified in the FMP includes summer flounder
(Paralichthys dentatus) in U.S. waters of the Atlantic Ocean from the
southern border of North Carolina northward to the U.S./
[[Page 45572]]
Canada border. States manage summer flounder within 3 nautical miles
(4.83 km) of their coasts, under the Commission's plan for summer
flounder. The Federal summer flounder regulations govern fishing in
Federal waters of the Exclusive Economic Zone (3 to 200 nautical miles,
4.83 km to 160.93 km offshore), as well as vessels possessing a summer
flounder moratorium permit, regardless of where they fish.
On September 16, 2014 (79 FR 55432), the Council published a notice
of intent (NOI) to prepare an EIS for Amendment 21 to consider, in
coordination with the Commission: (1) Performing a comprehensive review
of all aspects of the FMP related to summer flounder; (2) updating the
FMP goals and objectives for summer flounder management; and (3)
modifying management strategies and measures as necessary to achieve
those goals and objectives. The Council and Commission held scoping
meetings during September and October of 2014 to solicit comments from
the public regarding the range of commercial and recreational summer
flounder management issues should be considered in the amendment.
On March 29, 2018 (83 FR 13478), the Council published a
supplemental NOI announcing that the scope of the amendment would be
narrowed to include only commercial summer flounder management
considerations. Due to ongoing revisions to the recreational data by
the Marine Recreational Information Program, the Council and Commission
chose to delay development of any issues that would rely heavily on
recreational data. This includes quota allocation between the
commercial and recreational sectors as well as recreational management
measures and strategies. The supplemental NOI identified that the
commercial fishery-focused amendment would consider revisions to:
Current qualification criteria for Federal moratorium
permit holders;
Current state-by-state allocation of commercial quota;
List of frameworkable items in the FMP; and
FMP goals and objectives for summer flounder.
On August 17, 2018 (83 FR 41072), the Environmental Protection
Agency announced the public comment period for the Amendment 21 draft
environmental impact statement (DEIS). The public comment period
extended until October 12, 2018. During that time, the Council and
Commission held public hearings on the DEIS in Old Lyme, Connecticut;
Washington, North Carolina; Dover, Delaware; Newport News, Virginia;
Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts; Narragansett, Rhode Island; Toms River,
New Jersey; Berlin, Maryland; Stony Brook, New York; and via webinar.
The Council adopted Amendment 21 on March 6, 2019, and submitted
the amendment to us for review on March 17, 2020.
Proposed State-by-State Allocation Approach
Amendment 21 would modify the state-by-state commercial quota
allocations when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million lb (4,332
mt). When the coastwide quota is 9.55 million lb (4,332 mt) or less the
quota would be distributed according to the current allocations. In
years when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million lb (4,332 mt) any
additional quota, beyond this trigger, would be distributed in equal
shares to all states except Maine, Delaware, and New Hampshire, which
would split 1 percent of the additional quota.
Table 1--Proposed State-by-State Allocations
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Allocation of Allocation of
baseline quota additional quota
State <=9.55 mil lb beyond 9.55 mil
(percent) lb (percent)
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ME................................ 0.04756 0.333
NH................................ 0.00046 0.333
MA................................ 6.82046 12.375
RI................................ 15.68298 12.375
CT................................ 2.25708 12.375
NY................................ 7.64699 12.375
NJ................................ 16.72499 12.375
DE................................ 0.01779 0.333
MD................................ 2.03910 12.375
VA................................ 21.31676 12.375
NC................................ 27.44584 12.375
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Total......................... 100 100
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Revised Summer Flounder FMP Goals and Objectives
The original FMP objectives were adopted via Amendment 2 to the
Summer Flounder FMP in 1993 and have remained unchanged since that
time. Amendment 21 revises the FMP goals and objectives. While the
current FMP contains only management objectives, the proposed revisions
contain three overarching goals linked to more specific objectives. The
revised goals include: (1) Ensuring sustainability, of both the summer
flounder stock and fishery; (2) increasing the effectiveness of
management measures, through partnerships, enforcement, and data
collection; and, (3) optimization of the social and economic benefits
from the summer flounder stock. Additional information on these changes
can be found in the FEIS.
Public Comment Instructions
The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act allows
us to approve, partially approve, or disapprove measures recommended by
the Council in an amendment based on whether the measures are
consistent with the fishery management plan, plan amendment, the
Magnuson-Stevens Act and its National Standards, and other applicable
law. The Council develops policy for its fisheries and we defer to the
Council on policy decisions unless those policies are inconsistent with
the Magnuson-Steven Act or other applicable law. As such, we are
seeking comment on whether measures in
[[Page 45573]]
Amendment 21 are consistent with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black
Sea Bass FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Act and its National Standards, and
other applicable law. Public comments on Amendment 21 and its
incorporated documents may be submitted through the end of the comment
period stated in this notification of availability.
A proposed rule to implement the amendment, including draft
regulatory text, will also be published in the Federal Register for
public comment. Public comments on the proposed rule received before
the end of the comment period provided in this notification of
availability will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on
the amendment. All comments received by September 28, 2020, whether
specifically directed to Amendment 21 or the proposed rule for this
amendment, will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on
the Amendment 21. Comments received after that date will not be
considered in the decision to approve or disapprove the amendment. To
be considered, comments must be received by close of business on the
last day of the comment period.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: July 24, 2020.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-16446 Filed 7-24-20; 4:15 pm]
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