[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 198 (Tuesday, October 14, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53317-53318]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-27044]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[I.D. 100397E]


Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will convene a 
public meeting of the Mackerel Advisory Panel and Standing and Special 
Mackerel Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC).

DATES: The meetings are scheduled as follows: Mackerel Advisory Panel 
(AP) October 30, 1997, 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon; SSC October 29, 1997, 
8:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon.

ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held at the at the Crowne Plaza Tampa 
Westshore, 700 North Westshore Boulevard, Tampa, Florida 33609; 
telephone 813-289-8200.
    Council address: Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, 3018 
U.S. Highway 301 North, Suite 1000, Tampa, Florida, 33619.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rick Leard, Senior Fishery Biologist, 
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; telephone: 813-228-2815, 
extension 228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The SSC and AP will be convened to review 
Draft Amendment 9 to the Fishery Management Plan for Coastal Migratory 
Pelagic Resources in the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic, Including 
Environmental Assessment, Regulatory Impact Review, and Initial 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis. Draft Amendment 9 includes:
    1. Possible changes to the fishing year for Gulf group king 
mackerel - currently July 1.
    2. Possible prohibitions of sale of mackerel caught under the 
recreational allocation.
    3. Provisions for mandatory reporting requirements for commercial 
and for-hire vessels.
    4. Reallocations of total allowable catch (TAC) for the commercial 
fishery for Gulf group king mackerel in the Eastern Zone (Florida east 
coast and Florida west coast) - currently 50/50 split.
    5. Reallocations of TAC for Gulf group king mackerel between the 
recreational and commercial sectors - currently 68 percent and 32 
percent, respectively.

[[Page 53318]]

    6. Additional subdivisions of the commercial, hook-and-line 
allocation of TAC for Gulf group king mackerel by area and/or season 
for both the Florida west coast and the Western Zone (Alabama through 
Texas).
    7. Possible trip limits for vessels fishing for Gulf group king 
mackerel in the Western Zone.
    8. Further restrictions on the use of net gear to harvest Gulf 
group king mackerel off the Florida west coast.
    9. Possible changes to the minimum size limit for Gulf group king 
mackerel (currently 20-inches fork length) and establishment of a 
maximum size limit or both a minimum and maximum, i.e. a slot limit.
    10. Consideration of re-establishing an annual allocation of Gulf 
group Spanish mackerel for the purse seine fishery.
    A copy of the agenda can be obtained by calling 813-228-2815. 
Although other issues not on the agenda may come before the Council for 
discussion, in accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act, those issues may not be the subject of 
formal Council action during this meeting. Council action will be 
restricted to those issues specifically identified in the agenda listed 
as available by this notice.

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. 
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids 
should be directed to Anne Alford at the Council (see ADDRESSES) by 
October 20, 1997.
    Dated: October 6, 1997.
Gary C. Matlock,
Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 97-27044 Filed 10-10-97; 8:45 am]

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