[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 181 (Monday, September 20, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 50772-50773]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-24315]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Parts 622 and 648

[Docket No. 981014259-8312-02; I.D. 091499B]


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Black Sea Bass 
Fishery; Commercial Quota Harvested for Quarter 3 Period; Fisheries of 
the Caribbean, Gulf and South Atlantic

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

ACTION: Commercial quota harvest for Quarter 3 period.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the black sea bass commercial quota 
available in the Quarter 3 period to the coastal states from Maine 
through North Carolina will have been harvested as of September 25, 
1999. Commercial vessels may not land black sea bass in the Northeast 
Region for the remainder of the 1999 Quarter 3 quota period (through 
September 30, 1999). Regulations governing the black sea bass fishery 
require publication of this notification to advise the coastal states 
from Maine through North Carolina that the quota has been harvested and 
to advise vessel permit holders and dealer permit holders that no 
commercial

[[Page 50773]]

quota is available for landing black sea bass in these states north of 
35 deg.15.3' N. lat.

DATES: Effective 0001 hours, September 25, 1999, through 2400 hrs 
September 30, 1999 (local time).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Walter J. Gardiner, Fishery Management 
Specialist, (978) 281-9326.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations governing the black sea bass 
fishery north of 35 deg.15.3' N. lat. are found at 50 CFR part 648. 
Regulations governing the black sea bass fishery south of 35 deg.15.3' 
N. lat. as part of the South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery (also 
known as the NMFS Southeast Region snapper-grouper fisheries) are found 
at 50 CFR part 622. The regulations for black sea bass at 50 CFR part 
648 require annual specification of a commercial quota that is 
allocated into four quota periods, based upon percentages of the annual 
quota. The Quarter 3 commercial quota (July through September) is 
distributed to the coastal states from Maine through North Carolina. 
The process to set the total annual commercial quota and the percent 
allocated to each state is described in Sec. 648.140.
    The initial total commercial quota for black sea bass for the 1999 
calendar year was set equal to 3,025,000 lb (1,372,117 kg) (63 FR 
72203, December 31, 1998). The Quarter 3 period quota, which is equal 
to 12.33 percent of the annual commercial quota, was set at 372,983 lb 
(169,182 kg).
    Section 648.141 requires the Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS 
(Regional Administrator) to monitor the commercial black sea bass quota 
for each quota period and, based upon dealer reports, state data, and 
other available information, to determine when the commercial quota has 
been harvested. The Regional Administrator is further required to 
publish notification in the Federal Register advising and notifying 
commercial vessels and dealer permit holders that, effective upon a 
specific date, the black sea bass commercial quota has been harvested 
and no commercial quota is available for landing black sea bass for the 
remainder of the Quarter 3 period north of 35 deg.15.3' N. lat. The 
Regional Administrator has determined, based upon dealer reports and 
other available information, that the black sea bass commercial quota 
for the 1999 Quarter 3 period will have been harvested as of September 
25, 1999.
    The regulations at Sec. 648.4(b) provide that, if the commercial 
black sea bass quota for a period is harvested and the coastal states 
are closed to the landing of black sea bass north of 35 deg.15.3' N. 
lat., any vessel owner that holds valid commercial permits for both the 
black sea bass and the NMFS Southeast Region Snapper-Grouper fisheries 
may surrender their moratorium black sea bass permit by certified mail 
addressed to the Regional Administrator (See Table 1 to Sec. 600.502) 
and fish pursuant to their Snapper-Grouper permit, as long as fishing 
is conducted exclusively in waters, and landings are made, south of 
35 deg.15.3' N. lat. A moratorium permit for the black sea bass fishery 
that is voluntarily relinquished or surrendered will be reissued upon 
the receipt of the vessel owner's written request after a minimum 
period of 6 months from the date of cancellation.

Classification

    This action is required by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from 
review under E.O. 12866.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

    Dated: September 14, 1999.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-24315 Filed 9-17-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F