[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 16 (Monday, January 26, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 3693-3699]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-1803]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 300

[Docket No. 980113012-8012-01; 121197B]
RIN 0648-AK57


Pacific Halibut Fisheries; Catch Sharing Plan

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

ACTION: Proposed changes to catch sharing plan and sport fishing 
management; availability of draft environmental assessment and 
regulatory impact review.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: NMFS proposes to approve and implement changes to the Area 2A 
Pacific halibut Catch Sharing Plan (Plan): (1) To adjust the Washington 
sport allocation; (2) to provide for an incidental catch of halibut in 
the commercial sablefish fishery off Washington under certain 
circumstances; and (3) to adjust management of the sport fisheries off 
Oregon and Washington under authority of the Northern Pacific Halibut 
Act of 1982 (Halibut Act). NMFS also proposes

[[Page 3694]]

sport fishery regulations to implement the Plan in 1998. A draft 
environmental assessment and regulatory impact review (EA/RIR) on this 
action also is available for public comment.

DATES: Comments must be received by February 17, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Send comments or requests for a copy of the Plan to William 
Stelle, Jr., Regional Administrator, Northwest Region, NMFS, 7600 Sand 
Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joe Scordino, 206-526-6143.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Halibut Act of 1982 at 16 U.S.C. 773c 
provides that the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) shall have general 
responsibility to carry out the Halibut Convention between the United 
States and Canada and that the Secretary shall adopt such regulations 
as may be necessary to carry out the purposes and objectives of the 
Convention and the Halibut Act. Section 773c(c) also authorizes the 
Regional Fishery Management Council having authority for the geographic 
area concerned to develop regulations governing the Pacific halibut 
catch in U.S. Convention waters that are in addition to, but not in 
conflict with, regulations of the International Pacific Halibut 
Commission (IPHC). Accordingly, catch sharing plans to allocate the 
total allowable catch (TAC) of Pacific halibut between treaty Indian 
and non-Indian harvesters, and among non-Indian commercial and sport 
fisheries in IPHC statistical Area 2A (off Washington, Oregon, and 
California) have been developed each year since 1988 by the Pacific 
Fishery Management Council (Council) in accordance with the Halibut 
Act. In 1995, NMFS implemented a Council-recommended long-term Plan (60 
FR 14651, March 20, 1995) which was revised in 1996 (61 FR 11337, March 
20, 1996) and 1997 (62 FR 12759, March 16, 1997). The Plan allocates 35 
percent of the Area 2A TAC to Washington treaty Indian tribes in 
Subarea 2A-1 and 65 percent to non-Indian fisheries in Area 2A. The 
allocation to non-Indian fisheries is divided into three shares, with 
the Washington sport fishery (north of the Columbia River) receiving 
36.6 percent, the Oregon/California sport fishery receiving 31.7 
percent, and the commercial fishery receiving 31.7 percent. The 
commercial fishery is further divided into two sectors; a directed 
commercial fishery that is allocated 85 percent, and an incidental 
catch in the salmon troll fishery that is allocated 15 percent of the 
commercial allocation. The directed commercial fishery in Area 2A is 
confined to southern Washington (south of 46 deg.53'18'' N. lat.), 
Oregon and California. The Plan also divides the sport fisheries into 
seven geographic areas each with separate allocations, seasons, and bag 
limits.

Council Recommended Changes to the Plan

    At its September 1997 public meeting, the Council adopted proposing 
for public comment, the following changes to the Plan: (1) Modifying 
the Washington sport subarea allocations and seasons at TACs in excess 
of recent years TACs and providing an allocation to an incidental catch 
commercial fishery off Washington at TACs greater than 900,000 lb 
(408.2 mt); and, (2) re-structuring the Oregon sport fisheries to 
framework the opening dates for the May and August all-depth seasons, 
and modifying the management of the south coast subarea to provide a 
fixed season or to combine the central and south coast subareas into 
one subarea.
    At its November 1997 public meeting, the Council considered the 
results of State sponsored workshops on the proposed changes to the 
Plan and public comment, and made final recommendations for eight 
modifications to the Plan as follows:
    (1) Revise the distribution of the Washington sport allocation 
among the Washington sport fishery subareas when the Area 2A TAC is 
above 550,000 lb (249.5 mt) to facilitate expanded season lengths. When 
the Washington sport allocation is between 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) and 
224,110 lb (101.7 mt), 32 percent of the amount between 130,845 lb 
(59.4 mt) and 224,110 lb (101.7 mt) is distributed each to the 
Washington Inside Waters (Puget Sound) subarea, the Washington North 
Coast subarea, and the Washington South Coast subarea. The Columbia 
River subarea receives the remaining 4 percent of the Washington sport 
allocation between 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) and 224,110 lb (101.7 mt). When 
the Washington sport allocation is above 224,110 lb (101.7 mt), 32 
percent of the amount between 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) and 214,110 lb (97.1 
mt) is distributed to each of the 3 Washington sport subareas described 
above and the remaining 4 percent is allocated to the Columbia River 
subarea.
    (2) Revise the distribution of the Washington sport allocation when 
the Area 2A TAC is above 942,040 lb (427.3 mt) to provide for retention 
of incidentally caught halibut in the primary directed sablefish 
fishery north of Point Chehalis, WA. When the Washington sport 
allocation is above 224,110 lb (101.7 mt), any amount of that 
allocation above 214,110 lb (97.1 mt) is allocated to this fishery. The 
area north of Point Chehalis has been closed to the directed commercial 
fishery in recent years and this revision allows commercial sablefish 
fishers operating in this area an opportunity to retain incidentally 
caught halibut in years when the Area 2A TAC is high.
    (3) Revise the sport season structure priorities for the Washington 
north coast subarea to extend the season for 5 days per week through 
June after achieving priorities for a 5 day per week season in May and 
a July 1-4 opening.
    (4) Revise the sport season structure for the Washington south 
coast subarea to have a 5 day per week season with closures on Friday 
and Saturday to extend the season and increase fishing opportunity.
    (5) Establish a framework opening date for the May and August sport 
fisheries in Oregon south of Cape Falcon, OR to allow fishers to know 
in advance what day the fishery will open each year and allow fishers 
to better plan and schedule fishing trips.
    (6) Establish a fixed season for the Oregon south coast subarea 
sport fishery in May (similar to the fixed season in the Oregon central 
coast sport fishery) to allow fishers to better plan and schedule 
fishing trips. Fixed season open dates would be established preseason 
based on projected catch per day and number of days to achievement of 
each subarea season subquota for the May and August fisheries in Oregon 
south of Cape Falcon.
    (7) Revise the structuring of the August sport fishery off Oregon 
(Cape Falcon, OR to the Oregon/California border) to provide for a 
restricted fishery inside 30 fathoms if the remaining quota is 
insufficient to allow for one day of an all-depth fishery.
    (8) Revise the inseason management measures to allow the transfer 
of allocations between sport fishery subareas north of Cape Falcon, OR 
that are projected to be unused as of September 30 of each year. This 
would allow unused allocations to be utilized by Washington sport 
subareas with short seasons.
    NMFS is proposing to implement the eight changes to the Plan 
recommended by the Council as well as one addition to the Plan to 
better implement the Council's intent and several minor corrections to 
the Plan. The implementation provisions for the incidental catch of 
halibut in the salmon troll fishery would be clarified, as proposed 
below, to stipulate that the August season is closed unless notice of 
an opening is provided on the NMFS hotline. The term ``Regional 
Director''

[[Page 3695]]

would be changed to ``Regional Administrator'' in several places in the 
Plan. The word ``approximately'' would be added to references to the 
percentages of the Area 2A TAC in the Plan where the percentage is 
rounded to the nearest tenth.
    In addition, NMFS is proposing several changes to the Plan to 
eliminate reference to IPHC charterboat licenses because the IPHC is 
proposing to eliminate its license requirements for charterboats. The 
proposed changes to the Plan on charterboat licenses would not change 
the effect of the Plan of preventing commercial fishers from accessing 
the sport allocation (i.e., operating in the sport fisheries) and 
conversely preventing sport fishers from participating in the 
commercial fishery because the remaining commercial license 
requirements provide an adequate regulatory mechanism.

Proposed Changes to the Catch Sharing Plan

    Accordingly, NMFS is proposing to approve the Council 
recommendations and proposes the following changes to the Plan:
    Section (b) of the Plan would be modified to read as follows:
    This Plan allocates 35 percent of the Area 2A TAC to U.S. treaty 
Indian tribes in the State of Washington in subarea 2A-1, and 65 
percent to non-Indian fisheries in Area 2A. The allocation to non-
Indian fisheries is divided into three shares, with the Washington 
sport fishery (north of the Columbia River) receiving 36.6 percent, the 
Oregon/California sport fishery receiving 31.7 percent, and the 
commercial fishery receiving 31.7 percent. Allocations within the non-
Indian commercial and sport fisheries are described in sections (e) and 
(f) of this Plan. These allocations may be changed if new information 
becomes available that indicates a change is necessary and/or the 
Pacific Fishery Management Council takes action to reconsider its 
allocation recommendations. Such changes will be made after appropriate 
rulemaking is completed and published in the Federal Register.
    In section (e) Non-Indian Commercial Fisheries, the first paragraph 
would be revised to read as follows:
    The non-Indian commercial fishery is allocated 31.7 percent of the 
non-Indian allocation for a directed halibut fishery and an incidental 
catch fishery during the salmon troll fishery. The non-Indian 
commercial allocation is approximately 20.6 percent of the Area 2A TAC. 
Incidental catch of halibut in the primary directed sablefish fishery 
north of Point Chehalis, WA will be authorized if the Washington sport 
allocation exceeds 224,110 lb (101.7 mt) as described in section (e)(3) 
of this Plan. The structuring and management of these three fisheries 
is as follows.''
    In section (e) Non-Indian Commercial Fisheries, paragraph (3) would 
be renumbered (4), and would be revised to read as follows:
    Commercial license restrictions/declarations. Commercial fishers 
must choose either (1) to operate in the directed halibut commercial 
fishery in Area 2A and/or retain halibut caught incidentally in the 
primary directed sablefish fishery north of Point Chehalis, WA or (2) 
to retain halibut caught incidentally during the salmon troll fishery. 
Commercial fishers operating in the directed halibut fishery and/or 
retaining halibut incidentally caught in the primary directed sablefish 
fishery must send their license application to the IPHC postmarked no 
later than April 30, or the first weekday in May, if April 30 falls on 
a weekend, in order to obtain a license to fish for halibut in Area 2A. 
Commercial fishers operating in the salmon troll fishery who seek to 
retain incidentally caught halibut must send their application for a 
license to the IPHC for the incidental catch of halibut in Area 2A 
postmarked no later than March 31, or the first weekday in April, if 
March 31 falls on a weekend. Fishing vessels licensed by IPHC to fish 
commercially in Area 2A are prohibited from operating in the sport 
fisheries in Area 2A.
    In section (e) Non-Indian Commercial Fisheries, a new paragraph (3) 
would be added to read as follows:
    Incidental catch in the sablefish fishery north of Point Chehalis. 
If the Area 2A TAC is greater than 900,000 lb (408.2 mt), the primary 
directed sablefish fishery north of Point Chehalis will be allocated 
the Washington sport allocation that is in excess of 214,110 lb (97.1 
mt), provided a minimum of 10,000 lb (4.5 mt) is available (i.e., the 
Washington sport allocation is 224,110 lb (101.7 mt) or greater). If 
the amount above 214,110 lb (97.1 mt) is less than 10,000 lb (4.5 mt), 
then the excess will be allocated to the Washington sport subareas 
according to section (f) of this Plan. The Council will recommend 
landing restrictions at its spring public meeting each year to control 
the amount of halibut caught incidentally in this fishery. The landing 
restrictions will be based on the amount of the allocation and other 
pertinent factors, and may include catch or landing ratios, landing 
limits, or other means to control the rate of halibut landings. NMFS 
will publish the landing restrictions annually in the Federal Register.
    In section (f) Sport Fisheries, the first paragraph would be 
revised to read as follows:
    The non-Indian sport fisheries are allocated 68.3 percent of the 
non-Indian share, which is approximately 44.4 percent of the Area 2A 
TAC. The allocation is further divided as subquotas among seven 
geographic subareas.
    In section (f) Sport Fisheries, paragraphs (1)(i) through (vi) for 
each sport fishery subarea would be revised as follows:
    The first sentence of paragraph (i) would be revised to read as 
follows:
    Washington inside waters (Puget Sound) subarea. This sport fishery 
subarea is allocated 28.0 percent of the first 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) 
allocated to the Washington sport fishery, and 32 percent of the 
Washington sport allocation between 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) and 224,110 lb 
(101.7 mt) (except as provided in section (e)(3) of this Plan).
    The first sentence of paragraph (ii) would be revised to read as 
follows:
    Washington north coast subarea. This sport fishery subarea is 
allocated 57.7 percent of the first 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) allocated to 
the Washington sport fishery, and 32 percent of the Washington sport 
allocation between 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) and 224,110 lb (101.7 mt) 
(except as provided in section (e)(3) of this Plan).'' Also, the third 
priority for the structuring of the season would be revised to read as 
follows:
    If the preseason prediction indicates that these two goals can be 
met without utilizing the quota for this subarea, then the next 
priority is to extend the fishery into June and continue for 5 days per 
week (Tuesday through Saturday) for as long a period as possible.
    The first sentence of paragraph (iii) would be revised to read as 
follows:
    Washington south coast subarea. This sport fishery is allocated 
12.3 percent of the first 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) allocated to the 
Washington sport fishery, and 32 percent of the Washington sport 
allocation between 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) and 224,110 lb (101.7 mt) 
(except as provided in section (e)(3) of this Plan).'' Also, the 
opening of the fishery would be revised to read as follows: ``The 
fishery will open on May 1 and continue five days per week (Sunday 
through Thursday) until 1,000 lb (0.45 mt) are projected to remain in 
the subarea quota. If May 1 falls on a Friday or Saturday, the fishery 
will open on the following Sunday.
    The first sentence of paragraph (iv) would be revised to read as 
follows:
    Columbia River subarea. This sport fishery subarea is allocated 2.0 
percent

[[Page 3696]]

of the first 130,845 lb (59.4 mt) allocated to the Washington sport 
fishery, and 4 percent of the Washington sport allocation between 
130,845 lb (59.4 mt) and 224,110 lb (101.7 mt) (except as provided in 
section (e)(3) of this Plan). This subarea also is allocated 2.0 
percent of the Oregon/California sport allocation.
    Paragraphs (v), (v)(A), (v)(B) and (v)(C) of the Plan for the 
Oregon central coast subarea are revised to read as follows:
    Oregon central coast subarea. If the Area 2A TAC is 388,350 lb 
(176.2 mt) and above, this subarea extends from Cape Falcon to the 
Siuslaw River at the Florence north jetty (44 deg.01'08'' N. lat.) and 
is allocated 88.4 percent of the Oregon/California sport allocation, 
which is approximately 18.21 percent of the Area 2A TAC. If the Area 2A 
TAC is less than 388,350 lb (176.2 mt), this subarea extends from Cape 
Falcon to the California border and is allocated 95.4 percent of the 
Oregon/California sport allocation. The structuring objectives for this 
subarea are to provide two periods of fishing opportunity in May and in 
August in productive deeper water areas along the coast, principally 
for charterboat and larger private boat anglers, and provide a period 
of fishing opportunity in the summer for nearshore waters for small 
boat anglers. Fixed season dates will be established preseason for the 
May and August openings and will not be modified inseason except that 
the August openings may be modified inseason if the combined Oregon 
subarea quota is estimated to be achieved. Recent year catch rates will 
be used as a guideline for estimating the catch rate for the May and 
August fishery each year. The number of fixed season days established 
will be based on the projected catch per day with the intent of not 
exceeding the subarea season subquotas. ODFW will monitor landings and 
provide a post-season estimate of catch within 2 weeks of the end of 
the fixed season. If sufficient catch remains for an additional day of 
fishing after the May season or the August season, openings will be 
provided if possible in May and August respectively. Potential 
additional open dates for both the May and August seasons will be 
announced preseason. If a decision is made inseason to allow fishing on 
one or more of these additional dates, notice of the opening will be 
announced on the NMFS hotline (206) 526-6667 or (800) 662-9825. No all-
depth halibut fishing will be allowed on the additional dates unless 
the opening date has been announced on the NMFS hotline. Any poundage 
remaining unharvested in the subquotas from earlier seasons will be 
added to the next season. The daily bag limit for all seasons is two 
halibut per person, one with a minimum 32-inch (81.3-cm) size limit and 
the second with a minimum 50-inch (127.0 cm) size limit. ODFW will 
sponsor a public workshop shortly after the IPHC annual meeting to 
develop recommendations to NMFS on the open dates for each season each 
year. The three seasons for this subarea are as follows.
    (A) The first season is an all-depth fishery that begins on the 
second Thursday in May and is allocated 68 percent of the subarea 
quota. Fixed season dates will be established preseason based on 
projected catch per day and number of days to achievement of the 
subquota for this first season. No inseason adjustments will be made, 
except that additional opening days (established preseason) may be 
allowed if any quota for this season remains unharvested. The fishery 
will be structured for 2 days per week (Friday and Saturday) if the 
season is for 4 or fewer fishing days. The fishery will be structured 
for 3 days per week (Thursday through Saturday) if the season is for 5 
or more fishing days.
    (B) The second season opens the day following closure of the first 
season, only in waters inside the 30-fathom (55 m) curve, and continues 
daily until 7 percent of the subarea quota is taken, or until the day 
before the first Friday in August, whichever is earlier.
    (C) The last season is a coastwide (Cape Falcon, OR to Oregon/
California border) all-depth fishery that begins on the first Friday in 
August and is allocated 25 percent of the subarea quota. Fixed season 
dates will be established preseason based on projected catch per day 
and number of days to achievement of the combined Oregon subarea quotas 
south of Cape Falcon, OR. The all-depth fishery will be structured for 
2 days per week (Friday and Saturday). No inseason adjustments will be 
made unless the combined Oregon subarea quota is estimated to be 
achieved. Additional openings of the all-depth fishery (established 
preseason) may be allowed if quota remains unharvested. If quota 
remains unharvested, but is insufficient for one day of an all-depth 
fishery, the sport fishery from Cape Falcon, OR to the Oregon/
California border will be reopened in the area inside the 30-fathom (55 
m) curve and will continue each day until the combined Oregon subarea 
quotas (south of Cape Falcon) are estimated to have been taken, or 
September 30, whichever is earlier.
    Paragraphs (vi), (vi)(A), (vi)(B) and (vi)(C) of the Plan for the 
Oregon south coast subarea would be revised to read as follows:
    Oregon south coast subarea. If the Area 2A TAC is 388,350 lb (176.2 
mt) and greater, this subarea extends from the Siuslaw River at the 
Florence north jetty (44 deg.01'08'' N. lat.) to the California border 
(42 deg.00'00'' N. lat.) and is allocated 7.0 percent of the Oregon/
California sport allocation, which is approximately 1.44 percent of the 
Area 2A TAC. If the Area 2A TAC is less than 388,350 lb (176.2 mt), 
this subarea will be included in the Oregon central coast subarea. The 
structuring objective for this subarea is to create a south coast 
management zone that has the same objectives as the Oregon central 
coast subarea and is designed to accommodate the needs of both 
charterboat and private boat anglers in the south coast subarea where 
weather and bar crossing conditions very often do not allow scheduled 
fishing trips. Fixed season dates will be established preseason for the 
May and August openings and will not be modified inseason except that 
the August openings may be modified inseason if the combined Oregon 
subarea quota is estimated to be achieved. Recent year catch rates will 
be used as a guideline for estimating the catch rate for the May and 
August fishery each year. The number of fixed season days established 
will be based on the projected catch per day with the intent of not 
exceeding the subarea season subquotas. ODFW will monitor landings and 
provide a post-season estimate of catch within 2 weeks of the end of 
the fixed season. If sufficient quota remains for an additional day of 
fishing after the May season or the August season, openings will be 
provided in May and August respectively. Potential additional open 
dates for both the May and August seasons will be announced preseason. 
If a decision is made inseason to allow fishing on one or more of these 
additional dates, notice of the opening will be announced on the NMFS 
hotline (206) 526-6667 or (800) 662-9825. No all-depth halibut fishing 
will be allowed on the additional dates unless the opening date has 
been announced on the NMFS hotline. Any poundage remaining unharvested 
in the subquotas from earlier seasons will be added to the next season. 
The daily bag limit for all seasons is two halibut per person, one with 
a minimum 32-inch (81.3-cm) size limit and the second with a minimum 
50-inch (127.0 cm) size limit. ODFW will sponsor a public workshop 
shortly after the IPHC annual meeting to develop recommendations to 
NMFS on the open dates for each season each

[[Page 3697]]

year. The three seasons for this subarea are as follows.
    (A) The first season is an all-depth fishery that begins on the 
second Thursday in May and is allocated 80 percent of the subarea 
quota. Fixed season dates will be established preseason based on 
projected catch per day and number of days to achievement of the 
subquota for this first season. No inseason adjustments will be made, 
except that additional opening days (established preseason) may be 
allowed if any quota for this season remains unharvested. The fishery 
will be structured for 2 days per week (Friday and Saturday) if the 
season is for 4 or fewer fishing days. The fishery will be structured 
for 3 days per week (Thursday through Saturday) if the season is for 5 
or more fishing days.
    (B) The second season is a restricted area fishery that is 
allocated 20 percent of the subarea quota. The restricted season opens 
the day following closure of the first season, only in waters inside 
the 30-fathom (55 m) curve, and continues daily until the subarea quota 
is estimated to have been taken, or until the day before the first 
Friday in August, whichever is earlier.
    (C) The last season is a coastwide (Cape Falcon, OR to Oregon/
California border) all-depth fishery that begins on the first Friday in 
August. Fixed season dates will be established preseason based on 
projected catch per day and number of days to achievement of the 
combined Oregon subarea quotas south of Cape Falcon, OR. The all-depth 
fishery will be structured for 2 days per week (Friday and Saturday). 
No inseason adjustments will be made unless the combined Oregon subarea 
quota is estimated to be achieved. Additional openings of the all-depth 
fishery (established preseason) may be allowed if quota remains 
unharvested. If quota remains unharvested, but is insufficient for one 
day of an all-depth fishery, the sport fishery from Cape Falcon, OR to 
the Oregon/California border will be reopened in the area inside the 
30-fathom (55 m) curve and will continue each day until the combined 
Oregon subarea quotas is estimated to have been taken, or September 30, 
whichever is earlier.
    Paragraph (f)(5)(i) on flexible inseason management provisions 
would be revised to read as follows:
    The Regional Administrator, NMFS Northwest Region, after 
consultation with the Chairman of the Pacific Fishery Management 
Council, the IPHC Executive Director, and the Fisheries Director(s) of 
the affected state(s), is authorized to modify regulations during the 
season after making the following determinations: (A) The action is 
necessary to allow allocation objectives to be met. (B) The action will 
not result in exceeding the catch limit for the area. (C) If any of the 
sport fishery subareas north of Cape Falcon, OR are not projected to 
utilize their respective quotas by September 30, NMFS may take inseason 
action to transfer any projected unused quota to a Washington sport 
subarea projected to have the fewest number of sport fishing days in 
the calendar year.
    In section (f)(5)(ii) on flexible inseason management, a new 
paragraph (E) is added to read as follows:
    Modification of subarea quotas north of Cape Falcon, OR consistent 
with the standards in section (f)(5)(i)(C) of this Plan.

Proposed 1998 Sport Fishery Management Measures

    NMFS also proposes sport fishery management measures necessary to 
implement the Plan in 1998. It is unknown at this time what the 1998 
TAC will be, but information available from the IPHC indicates the TAC 
may be similar to 1997. The final TAC will be determined by the IPHC at 
its annual meeting in January 1998. The proposed 1998 sport fishery 
regulations based on the 1997 Area 2A TAC of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt) are 
as follows:

Washington Inside Waters Subarea (Puget Sound and Straits)

    This subarea would be allocated 48,056 lb (21.8 mt) at an Area 2A 
TAC of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt) in accordance with the revised Plan. 
Although the allocation is 3 percent greater than 1997, the season 
length would be reduced from 59 days open in 1997 because of increased 
catch per day open (1,470 lb (0.7 mt) per day in 1997 compared to 844 
lb (0.4 mt) per day in 1996). In accordance with the procedure 
developed with IPHC to project the catch in this subarea based on past 
catch per ``fishing day equivalent'' (FED), where a weekday is equal to 
1 FED and a weekend/holiday is equal to 2.5 FEDs, a total of 76 FEDs 
were calculated (for a subarea quota of 48,056 lb (21.8 mt)) based on 
an average catch of 626 lb (0.3 mt) per FED in the past 3 years. The 
proposed number of open days for 1998 was then based on setting a 
season that opens in May and continues at least through July 4 in 
accordance with the Plan. If the season structuring is similar to 1997, 
then there would be a 47 day season that would open on May 21 
(Thursday) and continue for 5 days per week (Thursday through Monday) 
through July 24 (Friday) when the season would close. The final 
determination of the season dates that will be open would be based on 
the allowable harvest level, projected 1998 catch rates, and 
recommendations developed in a public workshop sponsored by Washington 
Department of Fish and Wildlife after the 1998 TAC is set by the IPHC. 
The daily bag limit would be one halibut of any size per day per 
person.

Washington North Coast Subarea (north of the Queets River)

    This subarea would be allocated 86,917 lb (39.4 mt) at an Area 2A 
TAC of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt) in accordance with the revised Plan. The 
season would open on May 1 and continue for 5 days per week (Tuesday 
through Saturday) until the quota is taken. Based on the 1997 catch of 
1,468 lb (0.7 mt) per day, it is anticipated that the season would 
extend past July 4 thereby achieving the three priorities for this 
subarea in the Plan. The daily bag limit would be one halibut of any 
size per day per person. A portion of this subarea located about 19 nm 
(35 km) southwest of Cape Flattery would be closed to sport fishing for 
halibut. The size of this closed area is described in the Plan, but may 
be modified preseason by NMFS to maximize the season length.

Washington South Coast Subarea

    This subarea would be allocated 27,513 lb (12.5 mt) at an Area 2A 
TAC of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt) in accordance with the revised Plan. The 
fishery would open on May 3 (Sunday) and continue 5 days per week 
(Sunday through Thursday) until 1,000 lb (0.45 mt) remain in the quota, 
and then would reopen as a nearshore fishery for 7 days per week until 
the remaining subarea quota is taken, or September 30, whichever occurs 
first. The daily bag limit would be one halibut of any size per day per 
person. The northern offshore portion of this area west of 
124 deg.40'00'' W. long. and north of 47 deg.10'00'' N. lat. would be 
closed to sport fishing for halibut.

Columbia River Subarea

    This subarea would be allocated 6,929 lb (3.1 mt) at an Area 2A TAC 
of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt) in accordance with the revised Plan. The 
fishery would open on May 1 and continue 7-days per week until the 
quota is reached or September 30, whichever occurs first. The daily bag 
limit would be one halibut with a minimum overall size limit of 32 
inches (81.3 cm).

Oregon Central Coast Subarea

    This subarea would be allocated 127,504 lb (57.8 mt) at an Area 2A 
TAC

[[Page 3698]]

of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt) in accordance with the revised Plan. The May 
all-depth season would be allocated 86,703 lb (39.3 mt) and based on an 
observed increasing catch per day trend in this fishery, an estimated 
15,600 lb to 18,400 lb (7.1 - 8.3 mt) would be caught per day in 1998 
resulting in a 5 day fixed season. In accordance with the Plan, the 
season dates would be May 14, 15, 16, 21, and 22. Additional fishing 
days, if the quota is not taken, would be scheduled for early June. The 
restricted depth fishery inside 30-fathoms would be allocated 8,925 lb 
(4.1 mt) and would open on May 23 and continue until August 6 or 
attainment of quota for this season. The August coastwide all-depth 
fishery (Cape Falcon to Oregon/California border) would be allocated 
31,876 lb (14.5 mt) which is only sufficient for a 1-day opening on 
August 7 based on past catch rates observed in this fishery. If 
sufficient quota remains after this season for additional days fishing, 
the dates for an all-depth fishery would be mid-August. The restricted 
depth fishery inside 30-fathoms would then re-open on August 8 and 
continue until September 30 or attainment of the quota. The final 
determination of the season dates will be based on the allowable 
harvest level, projected catch rates, and recommendations developed in 
a public workshop sponsored by ODFW after the 1998 TAC is set by the 
IPHC. The daily bag limit would be two halibut, one with a minimum 
overall size limit of 32 inches (81.3 cm) and the second with a minimum 
overall size limit of 50 inches (127.0 cm).

Oregon South Coast Subarea

    This subarea would be allocated 10,096 lb (4.6 mt) at an Area 2A 
TAC of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt) in accordance with the revised Plan. The 
May all-depth season would be allocated 8,077 lb (3.7 mt) and based on 
an observed increasing catch per day trend in this fishery, an 
estimated 1,630 lb (0.7 mt) would be caught per day in 1998 resulting 
in a 5 day fixed season. In accordance with the Plan, the season dates 
would be May 14, 15, 16, 21, and 22. Additional fishing days, if the 
quota is not taken, would be scheduled for early June. The restricted 
depth fishery inside 30-fathoms would be allocated 2,019 lb (0.9 mt) 
and would open on May 23 and continue until August 6 or attainment of 
quota for this season. The August coastwide all-depth fishery (Cape 
Falcon to Oregon/California border) would be open for 1-day on August 
7. If sufficient quota remains after this season for additional days 
fishing, the dates for an all-depth fishery would be mid-August. The 
restricted depth fishery inside 30-fathoms would open on August 8 and 
continue until September 30 or attainment of the quota. The final 
determination of the season dates would be based on the allowable 
harvest level, projected catch rates, and recommendations developed in 
a public workshop sponsored by ODFW after the 1998 TAC is set by the 
IPHC. The daily bag limit would be two halibut, one with a minimum 
overall size limit of 32 inches (81.3 cm) and the second with a minimum 
overall size limit of 50 inches (127.0 cm).

California Subarea

    The proposed sport regulations for this subarea are the same as 
1997 with a May 1 opening and continuing 7 days per week until 
September 30. The daily bag limit would be one halibut with a minimum 
overall size limit of 32 inches (81.3 cm).
    NMFS requests public comments on the Council's recommended 
modifications to the Plan and the proposed sport fishing regulations. 
The Area 2A TAC will be set by the IPHC at its annual meeting on 
January 26-29, 1998 in Anchorage, AK. Comments are requested by 
February 17, 1998, after the IPHC annual meeting, so that the public 
will have the opportunity to consider the final Area 2A TAC before 
submitting comments on the proposed sport fishing regulations. The 
States of Washington and Oregon will conduct public workshops shortly 
after the IPHC meeting to obtain input on the sport season dates. After 
the Area 2A TAC is known, and after NMFS reviews public comments and 
comments from the States, NMFS will issue final rules for the Area 2A 
Pacific halibut sport fishery concurrent with the IPHC regulations for 
the 1998 Pacific halibut fisheries.
    NMFS and the Council have prepared a draft environmental assessment 
and regulatory impact review on the proposed changes to the Plan. 
Copies of the ``Draft Environmental Assessment and Regulatory Impact 
Review of Changes to the Catch Sharing Plan for Pacific Halibut in Area 
2A'' are available from NMFS (see ADDRESSES). Comments on the EA/RIR 
are requested by February 17, 1998.
    The Assistant General Counsel for Legislation and Regulation of the 
Department of Commerce certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of 
the Small Business Administration that the changes to the Plan would 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

    In accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, an assessment 
of the economic impacts of proposed changes to the Plan on small 
entities is presented in the EA/RIR. The Regulatory Flexibility Act 
(RFA), 5 U.S.C. 603 et seq., requires agencies to assess impacts of 
proposed regulatory actions on small entities and determine whether 
there will be a significant economic impact on a substantial number 
of small entities. There are various criteria used to determine 
whether a proposed action would have a significant economic impact 
on a substantial number of small entities, the only one that may be 
relevant here is whether the proposed action would result in a 
reduction in annual gross revenues of more than 5 percent, for 20 
percent or more of the affected small entities. For the purposes of 
the RFA, NMFS has adopted a standard that a ``substantial number'' 
of small entities is more than 20 percent of those small entities 
affected by the proposed action. In determining the scope or 
universe of the entities to be considered in making the significance 
determination, the general approach used is to consider only those 
entities that can reasonably be expected to be directly or 
indirectly impacted by the proposed action. For the fishing 
industry, a small entity is a small business with receipts of up to 
$3 million annually. Charterboats operating in Washington sport 
fisheries are viewed as small entities affected by the proposed 
changes to the Plan.
    The proposed action involves three changes to the Plan that 
affect small businesses:
    (1) establishment of fixed opening dates and fixed seasons for 
Oregon sport fisheries;
    (2) a provision that at Area 2A TACs above 942,040 lbs (427.3 
mt), the Washington sport fishery is capped at an allocation of 
214,110 lb (97.1 mt) with the excess allocated to Washington 
commercial sablefish fishers to retain and sell incidentally caught 
halibut; and
    (3) a revision of the distribution of the Washington sport 
allocation among the Washington sport fishery subareas when the Area 
2A TAC is above 550,000 lb (249.5 mt) to facilitate expanded season 
lengths. At TACs below 550,000 lb (249.5 mt), the proposed Plan does 
not differ from the Plan currently in place.
    The first two changes yield, if anything, only positive economic 
impacts; and therefore, they are not a source of significant 
economic impacts on small entities. The establishment of fixed 
opening dates and fixed seasons in the Oregon sport fisheries will 
allow anglers and businesses to better plan for halibut fishery 
seasons with resulting benefits from more orderly fisheries, but 
otherwise does not change the allocations or conduct of the sport 
fishery. The reallocation of Washington sport allocation at high 
Area 2A TAC levels to commercial fishers in the Washington sablefish 
fishery provides direct benefits in allowing incidentally caught 
halibut, which otherwise must be discarded, to be retained and sold 
by commercial fishers. This measure will also have the effect of 
limiting future growth in the sports fishery. However, this impact 
is not considered significant because it will not result in losses 
as compared to the status quo (i.e., sport fishers will not suffer 
any reduction in their annual gross revenue as a result of this 
measure).
    The third change to the Plan, revising the distribution of sport 
allocation among

[[Page 3699]]

subareas when TAC reaches a certain level, may yield negative 
impacts upon some small entities. The proposed changes to the Plan 
on the distribution by subarea of the Washington sport allocation at 
Area 2A TACs at or above 550,000 lb (249.5 mt) will directly affect 
charterboats that operate in Washington and indirectly affect small 
businesses, such as motels, restaurants, and tackle shops in the 
ports and nearby areas utilized by halibut anglers. In regard to 
direct effects of the proposed action, a total of 177 charterboats 
have been licensed by the International Pacific Halibut Commission 
over the past 3 years for halibut fishing, and only 13 to
    15 of them (less than 9 percent) have operated out of ports 
affected by the proposed reduced allocation at higher Area 2A TAC 
levels.
    Data on the actual number and type of small businesses utilized 
by halibut anglers (thereby indirectly affected by the proposed 
action) is not available. However, there are about 15 ports/access 
sites that are used by halibut anglers to access the halibut sport 
fishery subareas in Washington and most, if not all, of the affected 
small businesses are located in the ports from which halibut anglers 
depart for sport fishing trips. Therefore any reduction in halibut 
fishing opportunity in a given ``halibut access'' port, would be 
expected to affect small businesses that provide services to halibut 
anglers in those ports. NMFS considers the effects on ports used by 
halibut anglers as a proxy for determining whether the proposed 
action will have significant economic impacts on a substantial 
number of small entities. Of the 15 ports used by halibut anglers, 
13 (87 percent) will have an increase or no changes in halibut sport 
fishing opportunity as a result of the proposed action. Only 2 ports 
(13 percent of affected ports and small entities supporting sport 
angling) would have a reduced allocation at higher Area 2A TACs. At 
a TAC of 700,000 lb (317.5 mt), the proposed change would result in 
a reduction of halibut fishing opportunity of 6 days (9 percent 
reduction in halibut fishing days), but would not affect sport 
fishing opportunity for bottomfish, salmon and other species that 
account for a much greater proportion of the sport fishing 
opportunity in Washington (for example, bottomfish sport fishing 
opportunity is available year-round from most ports). The proposed 
action has no effect on subarea sport allocations when the Area 2A 
TAC is 550,000 lb (249.5 mt) or less - the average TAC in recent 
past years (i.e., no effect on the status quo through 1996).
    Overall, the net change in the reallocation of halibut quotas 
among the subareas at greater Area 2A TACs results in a small net 
increase in the number of sport halibut fishing days in Washington 
ports. At an Area 2A TAC of 700,000 lb ( 317.5 mt), which is the 
assumed TAC for 1998, the net increase based on 1997 catches would 
be 3 days overall (0.5 percent increase in all Washington subareas) 
with the WA Inside Waters and WA South Coast subareas increasing by 
3 days (5 percent increase) and 6 days (26 percent increase) 
respectively, and the WA North Coast subarea decreasing by 6 days (9 
percent decrease); the number of fishing days in the other subareas 
is not affected. In summary, the proposed changes to the Washington 
sport halibut fishery will provide positive benefits to most 
charterboat operators in Washington and the sport fishery support 
businesses in most of the Washington ports used to access the 
halibut sport fishery, and should not cause a reduction in revenues 
for 20 percent or more of the small entities affected directly 
(charterboats) or indirectly (sport fishery support services in 
halibut access ports) by this action.

    The proposed changes to the Plan will not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because they 
will not result in a reduction in annual gross revenues of more than 5 
percent, for 20 percent or more of the affected small entities. The 
proposed sport management measures for 1998 merely implement the Plan 
at the appropriate level of TAC; their impacts are within the scope of 
the impacts analyzed for the Plan. Therefore, a regulatory flexibility 
analysis was not prepared.
    This action has been determined to be not significant for purposes 
of E.O. 12866.

    Dated: January 20, 1998.
Gary C. Matlock,
Acting Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. 98-1803 Filed 1-23-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F