[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 64 (Wednesday, April 4, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 16318-16324]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-6259]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

[Docket No. 070330073-7073-01; I.D. 030507A]
RIN 0648-AU87


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Quota 
Specifications and Effort Controls

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments; notice of public hearings.

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SUMMARY: NMFS proposes initial 2007 fishing year specifications for the 
Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) fishery to set BFT quotas for each of the 
established domestic fishing categories and to set effort controls for 
the General category and Angling category. This action is necessary to 
implement recommendations of the International Commission for the 
Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), as required by the Atlantic 
Tunas Convention Act (ATCA), and to achieve domestic management 
objectives under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). A minor administrative change to 
the permit regulations is also proposed. NMFS solicits written comments 
and will hold public hearings in April 2007 to receive oral comments on 
these proposed actions.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before May 4, 2007.
    The public hearings dates are:
    1. April 24, 2007, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Morehead City, NC.
    2. April 26, 2007, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., West Islip, NY.
    3. April 27, 2007, 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., Gloucester, MA.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted through any of the following 
methods:
     E-mail: [email protected]. Include in the subject line 
the following identifier: ``Comments on 2007 Atlantic bluefin tuna 
specifications.''
     Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
     Mail: Sarah McLaughlin, Highly Migratory Species 
Management Division, Office of Sustainable Fisheries (F/SF1), NMFS, One 
Blackburn Dr., Gloucester, MA 01930.
     Fax: (978) 281-9340.
    The hearing locations are:
    1. Morehead City -- Carteret Community College (Joselyn Hall, H.J. 
McGee, Jr. Building), 3505 Arendell Street, Morehead City, NC 28557.
    2. West Islip -- West Islip Public Library, 3 Higbie Lane, West 
Islip, NY 11795.
    3. Gloucester -- NMFS, One Blackburn Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
    Supporting documents including the Environmental Assessment, 
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis, and Regulatory Impact Review 
are available by sending your request to Sarah McLaughlin at the 
mailing address specified above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah McLaughlin, 978-281-9260.



[[Page 16319]]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Atlantic tunas are managed under the dual authority of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act and the ATCA. The ATCA authorizes the Secretary of 
Commerce (Secretary) to promulgate regulations, as may be necessary and 
appropriate, to implement ICCAT recommendations. The authority to issue 
regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Act and the ATCA has been 
delegated from the Secretary to the Assistant Administrator for 
Fisheries, NOAA (AA).

Background

    On May 28, 1998, NMFS published in the Federal Register (64 FR 
29090) final regulations, effective July 1, 1999, implementing the 
Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Tunas, Swordfish, and Sharks (1999 
FMP). On October 2, 2006, NMFS published in the Federal Register (71 FR 
58058) final regulations, effective November 1, 2006, implementing the 
Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan 
(Consolidated HMS FMP), which consolidates the management of all 
Atlantic HMS (i.e., sharks, swordfish, tunas, and billfish) into one 
comprehensive FMP.
    The initial specifications within this proposed rule are published 
in accordance with the Consolidated HMS FMP and are necessary to 
implement the 2006 ICCAT quota recommendation, as required by the ATCA, 
and to achieve domestic management objectives under the Magnuson-
Stevens Act. This proposed rule would: (1) Establish initial quota 
specifications consistent with the BFT rebuilding program by allocating 
the 2006 ICCAT-recommended quota for the 2007 fishing year (June 1, 
2007 - December 31, 2007, pursuant to the change in fishing year to a 
calendar year as of January 2008 per the Consolidated HMS FMP); (2) 
establish General category effort controls, including time-period 
subquotas, restricted fishing days (RFDs), and the initial retention 
limit; and (3) establish Angling category retention limits for the 2007 
fishing season. A minor administrative change to the permit regulations 
is also proposed to allow additional flexibility during conversion back 
from a fishing year to a calendar year.
    Overall U.S. landings figures for the 2006 fishing year are still 
preliminary and may be updated before these 2007 fishing year 
specifications are finalized. The specifications and effort controls 
may subsequently be adjusted during the course of the fishing year, 
consistent with the provisions of the Consolidated HMS FMP, and, as 
appropriate, would be published in the Federal Register.
    NMFS has prepared a draft Environmental Assessment (EA), Regulatory 
Impact Review (RIR), and an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 
(IRFA) which present and analyze anticipated environmental, social, and 
economic impacts of several alternatives for each of the major issues 
contained in this proposed rule. The complete list of alternatives and 
their analysis is provided in the draft EA/RIR/IRFA, and is not 
repeated here in its entirety. A copy of the draft EA/RIR/IRFA prepared 
for this proposed rule is available from NMFS (see ADDRESSES).

2006 ICCAT Recommendation, BFT Underharvests, and Transfers to Other 
ICCAT Contracting Parties

    At its 2006 meeting, ICCAT recommended a western Atlantic BFT Total 
Allowable Catch (TAC) of 2,100 mt, to allow for continued rebuilding of 
BFT through 2018. The TAC is inclusive of dead discards and will be 
effective annually for 2007 through 2008, and thereafter until changed. 
The following deductions are made from the TAC prior to applying the 
U.S. share percentage: 4 mt for the United Kingdom (in respect of 
Bermuda), 4 mt for France (in respect of St. Pierre and Miquelon), 25 
mt for Mexico (to allow incidental catch in the longline fishery in the 
Gulf of Mexico), and 15 mt for Canada and 25 mt for the United States 
(for bycatch related to directed longline fisheries in the ``in the 
vicinity of the management boundary area,'' i.e., the Northeast Distant 
gear restricted area (NED), which was defined in the 2003 BFT annual 
specification rulemaking process as the Northeast Distant statistical 
area (68 FR 56783, October 2, 2003). The U.S. share of the adjusted TAC 
is 57.48 percent, or 1,165.12 mt. Accounting for the 25 mt NED set-
aside, the total U.S. allocation is 1,190.12 mt. The previous (2002) 
ICCAT recommendation for a western Atlantic BFT TAC of 2,700 mt 
included a U.S. quota of 1,464.6 mt, which was effective from 2003 
through the end of the 2006 fishing year, i.e., May 31, 2007, and also 
included a 25-mt NED set-aside, for a total of 1,489.6 mt.
    The 2006 ICCAT recommendation also includes provisions to: (1) 
limit carryover of underharvest to no more than 50 percent of a 
contracting party's initial TAC; (2) limit mortality of school BFT to 
an average of 10 percent of the initial TAC, calculated on a four-year 
basis; and (3) allow a contracting party with a TAC allocation to make 
a one-time transfer within a fishing year of up to 15 percent of its 
TAC allocation to other contracting parties with TAC allocations, 
consistent with domestic obligations and conservation considerations. 
Regarding the third provision, the ICCAT recommendation stipulates that 
the quota transfer may not be used to cover overharvests, and that a 
contracting party that receives a one-time quota transfer may not 
retransfer that quota. For the United States, the 15-percent limit on 
quota transfer equates to 178.5 mt. In considering whether the United 
States could enter into an arrangement with another ICCAT contracting 
party, several factors would need to be taken into account, including, 
but not limited to, the amount of quota to be transferred, the 
projected ability of U.S. vessels to harvest the U.S. TAC before the 
end of the fishing year, the potential benefits of the transfer to U.S. 
fishing participants (such as access to the EEZ of the receiving 
contracting party for the harvest of a designated amount of BFT), 
potential ecological impacts, and the contracting party's ICCAT 
compliance status. NMFS intends to undertake any transfer of U.S. quota 
to another ICCAT contracting party via a separate action proposed in 
the Federal Register, if the situation arises.
    Initial landings estimates (as of January 15, 2007) per category 
are as follows: General category -- 159.8 mt; Harpoon category -- 22.2 
mt; Longline category -- 31.4 mt; Angling category -- 186.8 mt; Trap 
category -- 0 mt; and Purse Seine category -- 3.6 mt. These preliminary 
landings estimates, totaling 403.8 mt, indicate that the total 2006 
underharvest is 2,435.4 mt. Underharvests per category are 
preliminarily determined to be as follows: General category -- 1,003.5 
mt; Harpoon category -- 101.8 mt; Longline category -- 236.6 mt; 
Angling category -- 195.2 mt; Trap category -- 5.3 mt; and Purse Seine 
category -- 620.5 mt. Based on the estimated amount of Reserve that 
NMFS maintains for the landing of BFT taken during ongoing scientific 
research projects and/or potential overharvests in certain categories, 
NMFS estimates that 282.3 mt of Reserve remains from the 2006 fishing 
year.
    In anticipation of a cap on carryover for the 2007 fishing year, 
i.e., 595.1 mt, or one half of the initial U.S. TAC of 1,190.12 mt, and 
in anticipation of a substantial underharvest of the 2006 fishing year 
domestic quota, the United States agreed at the 2006 ICCAT meeting to 
transfer a total of 275 mt of current U.S. underharvest (i.e., 
underharvest of the 2006 fishing year quota) as follows: 75 mt and 100 
mt for 2007 and 2008, respectively, to Mexico, and 50 mt for each of 
the years 2007 and 2008 to Canada. Based on these transfers, the 
remaining amount of underharvest (as of

[[Page 16320]]

January 15, 2007) is 2,160.4 mt. However, the ICCAT-recommended cap 
limits the amount the United States may carry over for 2007 to 595.1 
mt.

Domestic Quota Allocation

    The 1999 FMP and its implementing regulations established baseline 
percentage quota shares for the domestic fishing categories. These 
percentage shares were based on allocation procedures that NMFS 
developed over several years. The baseline percentage quota shares 
established in the 1999 FMP and contained in the Consolidated HMS FMP 
for fishing years beginning June 1, 1999, and continuing to the present 
are as follows: General category -- 47.1 percent; Harpoon category -- 
3.9 percent; Purse Seine category -- 18.6 percent; Angling category -- 
19.7 percent; Longline category -- 8.1 percent; Trap category -- 0.1 
percent; and Reserve category -- 2.5 percent.
    These proposed initial 2007 fishing year specifications, consistent 
with the BFT rebuilding program, would allocate the 2006 ICCAT-
recommended quota for the 2007 fishing year among the several 
established domestic fishing categories based on the current BFT quota 
allocation percentages per the Consolidated HMS FMP, and would allocate 
25 mt to the longline north NED subquota.
    As described further below, these specifications also would apply 
595.1 mt of the underharvest of BFT quota from the 2006 fishing year, 
consistent with the ICCAT-recommended 50-percent cap on quota carryover 
to the 2007 fishing year quota, and distribute that underharvest in 
such a manner to: (1) Allow for potential transfer of a portion (up to 
15 percent) of the 2007 U.S. quota to other ICCAT Contracting Parties, 
if warranted; (2) ensure that the Longline category has sufficient 
quota to operate during the 2007 fishing year while also considering 
accounting for BFT discards; and (3) provide the non-Longline quota 
categories a share of the remainder of the underharvest consistent with 
the allocation scheme established in the Consolidated HMS FMP.
    Beginning with its 1998 recommendation, ICCAT has historically 
recommended a deduction of 79 mt from the TAC as an allowance for dead 
discards, and the U.S. portion of this allowance has been 68 mt. The 
2006 ICCAT recommendation included neither a recommended dead discard 
allowance, nor specified dead discard reporting methodology for 
compliance purposes. Nevertheless, the United States must report dead 
discard estimates annually. Accordingly, NMFS must account for BFT dead 
discards in setting the 2007 fishing year quota.
    In the past, for compliance purposes, the United States has 
reported dead discards to ICCAT as an estimate based on pelagic 
longline vessel logbook tallies, adjusted as warranted by observer 
data. For 2005, the most recent year for which complete information is 
available, the estimate is approximately 46 mt. However, based on 
revised methodology, the SCRS now reports dead discard estimates 
generated via extrapolation of logbook tallies by pooled observer data; 
for 2005, the estimate is approximately 131 mt. These specifications 
also use this revised estimate. Estimates of dead discards from other 
gear types and fishing sectors that do not use the pelagic longline 
vessel logbook are unavailable at this time and thus are not included 
in this calculation. Per the ICCAT recommendation, which specifies a 
U.S. quota that is inclusive of dead discards, and consistent with how 
NMFS has handled past incidents of dead discards exceeding the 
allowance, NMFS would deduct the 131 mt of estimated dead discards from 
the amount of quota available for the Longline category for the 2007 
fishing year. In addition, NMFS proposes to modify the BFT quota and 
annual adjustment regulations at Sec.  635.27(a) to indicate that NMFS 
will account for dead discards annually as part of the specifications 
process, and to indicate its intent to subtract that amount from the 
quota of the category accounting for the dead discards.
    As described above, the United States may choose, pursuant to the 
2006 ICCAT recommendation, to transfer up to 15 percent of the U.S. TAC 
to another ICCAT Contracting Party with a TAC allocation, consistent 
with U.S. obligations and conservation considerations. NMFS proposes to 
divide the 595.1 mt of quota carryover such that 178.5 mt (i.e., 15 
percent of 1,190.12 mt) is placed in the Reserve for potential ICCAT 
transfer purposes.
    NMFS also proposes to assign a sufficient amount of the quota 
carryover (236.6 mt) to the Longline category, due to the revised dead 
discard accounting methodology, so that after accounting for the 131 mt 
of dead discards, sufficient quota is available to cover the 
anticipated landings and dead discards of the pelagic longline fishery 
during the 2007 fishing year, i.e., potentially 200 mt. NMFS seeks to 
avoid a zero or negative quota for the Longline category, which could 
result in increased BFT discards, given that NMFS must subtract the 
best available dead discard estimate from the TAC on an annual basis. 
The Longline category baseline quota allocation (currently 8.1 percent 
of the TAC) may need to be revisited in the near future. Any change to 
the baseline allocation would require an amendment to the Consolidated 
HMS FMP. NMFS proposes to distribute the remainder of the quota 
carryover (180 mt) to the Angling, General, Harpoon, Purse Seine, and 
Trap categories consistent with their FMP allocations.
    Consistent with the 2006 ICCAT recommendation, the proposed rule 
also would increase the limit on the take of school BFT (measuring 27 
inches (68.6 cm) to less than 47 inches (119.4 cm)) over each 4-
consecutive-year period from 8 percent of the total U.S. TAC (per the 
2002 ICCAT recommendation) to 10 percent. Because the total U.S. quota 
is reduced by 22 percent, there will be only a minor effective increase 
in the base school BFT quota, in weight.

2007 Proposed Initial Quota Specifications

    In accordance with the 2006 ICCAT quota recommendation, the 
Consolidated HMS FMP percentage shares for each of the domestic 
categories, and regulations regarding annual adjustments at Sec.  
635.27(a)(10)(ii), NMFS proposes initial quota specifications for the 
2007 fishing year as follows: General category -- 643.6 mt; Harpoon 
category -- 53.3 mt; Purse Seine category -- 254.1 mt; Angling category 
-- 269.2 mt; Longline category -- 200 mt; and Trap category -- 1.4 mt. 
Additionally, 207.6 mt would be allocated to the Reserve category for 
inseason adjustments, scientific research collection, potential 
overharvest in any category except the Purse Seine category, and 
potential quota transfers.
    Based on the above proposed initial specifications and 
considerations regarding the school BFT fishery, the Angling category 
quota of 269.2 mt would be further subdivided as follows: School BFT -- 
119 mt, with 45.8 mt to the northern area (north of 39[deg]18' N. 
latitude), 51.2 mt to the southern area (south of 39[deg]18' N. 
latitude), plus 22 mt held in reserve; large school/small medium BFT -- 
144 mt, with 68 mt to the northern area and 76 mt to the southern area; 
and large medium/giant BFT -- 6.2 mt, with 2.1 mt to the northern area 
and 4.2 mt to the southern area.
    The 25-mt NED set-aside quota is in addition to the overall 
incidental longline quota to be subdivided in accordance with the 
North/South allocation percentages (i.e., no more than 60 percent to 
the south of 31[deg] N. latitude). Thus, the proposed Longline

[[Page 16321]]

category quota of 200 mt would be subdivided as follows: 80 mt to 
pelagic longline vessels landing BFT north of 31[deg] N. latitude and 
120 mt to pelagic longline vessels landing BFT south of 31[deg] N. 
latitude, with 25 mt set-aside for bycatch of BFT related to directed 
pelagic longline fisheries in the NED. NMFS would account for landings 
under this additional quota separately from other landings under the 
Longline north subcategory.

General Category Effort Controls

    For the last several years, NMFS has implemented General category 
time-period subquotas to increase the likelihood that fishing would 
continue throughout the entire General category season. The subquotas 
are consistent with the objectives of the Consolidated HMS FMP and are 
designed to address concerns regarding the allocation of fishing 
opportunities, to assist with distribution and achievement of optimum 
yield, to allow for a late season fishery, and to improve market 
conditions and scientific monitoring.
    The regulations implementing the Consolidated HMS FMP divide the 
annual General category quota into five time-period subquotas as 
follows: 50 percent for June-August, 26.5 percent for September, 13 
percent for October-November, 5.2 percent for December, and 5.3 percent 
for January. Because the fishing year is changing back to a calendar 
year effective January 1, 2008, NMFS proposes, for the 2007 fishing 
year only, to distribute the 5.3 percent of the General category quota 
that would be assigned to the January time period to the four time 
periods that will occur during the 2007 fishing year. Therefore, of the 
available 643.6-mt coastwide quota, 339.8 mt would be available in the 
period beginning June 1 and ending August 31, 2007; 180.1 mt would be 
available in the period beginning September 1 and ending September 30, 
2007; 88.4 mt would be available in the period beginning October 1 and 
ending November 30, 2007; and 35.3 mt would be available in the period 
beginning December 1 and ending December 31, 2007. The January 2007 BFT 
fishery was prosecuted using 2006 fishing year quota. The January 2008 
subquota will be included in the 2008 specifications, which NMFS plans 
to publish prior to the start of the fishery on January 1, 2008. As 
discussed in the Consolidated HMS FMP, NMFS plans to work with the 
affected constituents through the 2008 specifications process to 
determine the most appropriate disposition of any under- or overharvest 
that has accrued in the General category by the end of December 2007.
    In addition to time-period subquotas, NMFS also implements General 
category RFDs to extend the General category fishing season. The RFDs 
are designed to address the same issues addressed by time-period 
subquotas and provide additional fine scale inseason flexibility. For 
the 2007 fishing year, NMFS proposes a series of solid blocks of RFDs 
to extend the General category for as long as possible through the end 
of the 2007 fishing year.
    Therefore, NMFS proposes that persons aboard vessels permitted in 
the General category would be prohibited from fishing, including catch-
and-release and tag-and-release, for BFT of all sizes on the following 
days: all Saturdays and Sundays from November 17, 2007, through 
December 31, 2007, plus November 22 and December 25, 2007, while the 
fishery is open. These proposed RFDs would distribute fishing 
opportunities during the late season without increasing BFT mortality. 
NMFS' intention is to propose RFDs for January 2008 as part of the 2008 
quota specifications and effort controls, scheduled to be published 
before January 1, 2008.
    Finally, NMFS proposes to adjust the General category retention 
limit to three BFT (73 inches (185.4 cm) or greater per vessel per day/
trip). This action is intended to allow increased opportunities to 
harvest the General category quota during the period when catch rates 
have historically been slow, and to avoid accumulation of unused quota. 
This retention limit would be effective from June 1, 2007, until August 
31, 2007, unless adjusted with an inseason action, if necessary. NMFS 
may consider further retention limit adjustments after August 31, 2007, 
depending on several factors, including but not limited to catch rates 
and availablility of quota.

Angling Category Effort Controls

    NMFS proposes to adjust the Angling category retention limit to one 
school BFT (27 inches (68.6 cm) to less than 47 inches (119.4 cm)), and 
two large school/small medium BFT (i.e., two BFT measuring 47 inches 
(119.4 cm) to less than 73 inches (185.4 cm)) per vessel per day/trip. 
This limit is expected to maximize use of the Angling category quota 
while avoiding overharvest of each of the Angling catgeory subquotas. 
The alternative also would provide the same retention limit for both 
private and charter/headboat vessels.

Permit Category Changes

    Because of the scheduled change to a calendar year fishery 
beginning January 1, 2008, and because NMFS plans to administer the 
permit program such that Atlantic Tunas, HMS Charter/Headboat, and HMS 
Angling category permits issued for the 2007 fishing year will be 
effective through December 31, 2008, NMFS also proposes to extend the 
window of opportunity to change permit categories for the 2008 fishing 
year, i.e., once during the period of January 1, 2008, through May 31, 
2008.

Classification

    This proposed rule is published under the authority of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act and the ATCA. The AA has preliminarily determined 
that the regulations contained in this proposed rule are necessary to 
implement the recommendations of ICCAT and to manage the domestic 
Atlantic HMS fisheries.
    This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
    An IRFA was prepared, as required by section 603 of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act. The IRFA describes the economic impact this proposed 
rule, if adopted, would have on small entities. A description of the 
action, why it is being considered, and the legal basis for this action 
are contained in the preamble to this proposed rule. A summary of the 
analysis follows. A copy of this analysis is available from NMFS (see 
ADDRESSES).
    NMFS has prepared this IRFA to analyze the impacts on small 
entities of the alternatives for establishing 2007 fishing year BFT 
quotas for all domestic fishing categories and General and Angling 
category effort controls. The analysis for the IRFA assesses the 
impacts of the various alternatives on the vessels that participate in 
the BFT fisheries, all of which are considered small entities. In order 
to do this, NMFS has estimated the average impact that the alternatives 
to establish the 2007 BFT quota for all domestic fishing categories 
would have on individual categories and the vessels within those 
categories. As mentioned above, the 2006 ICCAT recommendation reduced 
the U.S. BFT TAC to 1,190.12 mt. This quota allocation includes a set-
aside quota of 25 mt to account for incidental catch of BFT related to 
directed longline swordfish and non-BFT tuna fisheries in the NED. This 
action would distribute the adjusted (baseline) TAC of 1,165.1 mt to 
the domestic fishing categories based on the allocation percentages 
established in the Consolidated HMS FMP.
    In 2006, the annual gross revenues from the commercial BFT fishery 
were approximately $3.4 million.

[[Page 16322]]

Approximately 8,751 vessels are permitted to land and sell BFT under 
four commercial BFT quota categories (including charter/headboat 
vessels). The commercial categories and their 2006 gross revenues are 
General ($2.5 million), Harpoon ($265,951), Purse Seine ($33,819), and 
Longline ($558,022). The IRFA assumes that vessels within a category 
will have similar catch and gross revenues in order to consider the 
relative impact of the various preferred alternatives on vessels. Data 
on net revenues of individual fishermen are lacking, so the economic 
impact of the alternatives is averaged across each category. NMFS 
considers this a reasonable approach for BFT fisheries. More 
specifically, available landings data (weight and ex-vessel value of 
the fish in price/pound) allow NMFS to calculate the gross revenue 
earned by a fishery participant on a successful trip. The available 
data do not, however, allow NMFS to calculate the effort and cost 
associated with each successful trip (e.g., the cost of gas, bait, ice, 
etc.) so net revenue for each participant cannot be calculated. NMFS 
cannot determine whether net revenue varies among individual fishery 
participants within each category, and therefore whether the economic 
impact of a regulation would have a varying impact among individual 
participants. As a result, NMFS analyzes the average impact of the 
proposed alternatives among all participants in each category.
    For the allocation of BFT quota among domestic fishing categories, 
NMFS considered three alternatives: A no action alternative (A1); 
Alternative A2 (the preferred alternative), which would implement the 
2006 ICCAT recommendation; and Alternative A3, which would allocate the 
2006 ICCAT recommendation in a manner other than that designated in the 
Consolidated HMS FMP and which could address issues regarding the 
changing nature of the BFT fisheries (e.g., allocate additional quota 
to certain categories and/or certain geographic regions). Alternative 
A3 would result in a de facto quota reallocation among categories, and 
an FMP amendment would be necessary for its implementation. Per the 
Consolidated HMS FMP, NMFS prepares quota specifications annually for 
the upcoming fishing year. Preparation of an FMP amendment would not be 
possible in the brief period of time between receipt of the ICCAT 
recommendation, which occurred in late November 2006, and the start of 
the 2007 fishing year on June 1, 2007. Therefore, analysis of the 
impacts of Alternative A3 is not available. But, if an FMP amendment 
was feasible, positive economic impacts would be expected to result on 
average for vessels in permit categories that would receive a greater 
share than established in the FMP, and negative economic impacts would 
be expected to result on average for vessels in permit categories that 
would receive a lesser share than established in the FMP. Impacts per 
vessel would depend on the temporal and spatial availability of BFT to 
participants.
    As noted above, the preferred alternative (Alternative A2) would 
implement the 2006 ICCAT recommendation in accordance with the 
Consolidated HMS FMP and consistent with the ATCA, under which the 
United States is obligated to implement ICCAT-approved quota 
recommendations. Alternative A2 would have slightly positive impacts 
for fishermen. The no action alternative would keep the quota at pre-
2006 ICCAT recommendation levels (approximately 300 mt more) and would 
not be consistent with the purpose and need for this action and the 
Consolidated HMS FMP. It would maintain economic impacts to the United 
States and to local economies at a distribution and scale similar to 
2006 or recent prior years, and would provide fishermen additional 
fishing opportunities, subject to the availability of BFT to the 
fishery, in the short term.
    The preferred alternative also would implement the provision of the 
2006 ICCAT recommendation that limits tolerance for school BFT landings 
to 10 percent of the U.S. TAC, calculated on a four-year average. This 
is expected to have neutral impacts on fishermen who fish for school 
BFT, particularly those who rely exclusively on the school size class 
for BFT harvest, since the available quota is the same as the level 
when the limit was 8-percent of the U.S. TAC under the 2002 ICCAT 
recommendation.
    Two alternatives were considered for effort control using RFDs in 
the General category. The no action alternative would not implement any 
RFDs with publication of the initial specifications but rather would 
use inseason management authority established in the Consolidated HMS 
FMP to implement RFDs during the season, should catch rates warrant 
taking this approach. This alternative could be most beneficial during 
a season of low catch rates and could have positive economic 
consequences if slow catch rates were to persist during the late season 
fishery. During a slow season, the season could regulate itself and 
fishermen could choose when to fish or not based on their own 
preferences. However, it is impossible to predict in advance whether 
the season will have low or high catch rates.
    The preferred alternative would designate RFDs according to a 
schedule published in the initial BFT specifications. In the past, when 
catch rates have been high, the use of RFDs (preferred alternative) has 
had positive economic consequences by avoiding oversupplying the market 
and extending the season as late as possible. In addition, establishing 
RFDs at the season onset provides better planning opportunities than 
implementing RFDs during the season, since charter/headboat businesses 
could book trips and recreational and commercial fishermen could make 
plans ahead of time rather than waiting until the last minute to see if 
an RFD is going to be implemented. However, implementing RFDs to extend 
the late season may have some negative economic impacts to northern 
area fishermen who choose to travel to the southern area during the 
late season fishery. Travel and lodging costs may be greater if the 
season were extended over a greater period of time as proposed under 
the preferred alternative. Those additional costs could be mitigated if 
the ex-vessel price of BFT stays high, as is intended under this 
alternative. Without RFDs, travel costs may be less because of a 
shorter season; however, the market could be oversupplied and ex-vessel 
prices could fall. Overall, extending the season as late as possible 
and establishing formalized RFDs at the season onset would enhance the 
likelihood of increasing participation by southern area fishermen, 
increase access to the fishery over a greater range of the fish 
migration, provide a reliable mechanism for slowing a fishery that has 
an ability to generate extremely high catch rates, and is expected to 
provide better than average ex-vessel prices with an overall increase 
in gross revenues.
    A retention limit of three BFT (measuring 73 inches (185.4 cm) or 
greater per vessel per day/trip) is the preferred alternative for the 
opening retention limit for the General category, which would be in 
effect through August 31, 2007. This alternative is expected to result 
in the most positive socio-economic impacts by providing the best 
opportunity to harvest the quota while avoiding oversupplying the 
market, thus maximizing gross revenues. Other considered alternatives 
were the no action alternative (one BFT measuring 73 inches or greater 
per vessel per day/trip) and a retention limit of two BFT (73 inches or 
greater per vessel per day/trip). Both of these alternatives are 
expected to be too

[[Page 16323]]

restrictive given the large amount of quota available for the General 
category during the 2007 fishing year and could result in the negative 
economic impact of lower gross revenues. Although early season landings 
seldom occur at a rate that could oversupply the market, NMFS will 
monitor landings closely to ensure that the increased retention limit 
does not contribute to an oversupply.
    Six alternatives were considered for Angling category retention 
limits for the 2007 fishing year. The preferred alternative (D1b) is a 
three BFT retention limit (two fish measuring 47 inches (119.4 cm) to 
less than 73 inches (185.4 cm) and one fish measuring 27 inches (68.6 
cm) to less than 73 inches) per vessel per day/trip for all sectors of 
the Angling category for the entire 2007 fishing year. The other two 
alternatives providing the same daily retention limits (per vessel) for 
both private recreational and charter/headboats were the no action 
alternative (D1a, i.e., one fish measuring 27 inches to less than 73 
inches) and Alternative D1c (two fish measuring 47 inches to less than 
73 inches and two fish measuring 27 inches to less than 73 inches). 
Alternative D1a was not preferred because it could unnecessarily 
restrict the amount of Angling category landings which could result in 
an underharvest of the quota and a negative economic impact. 
Alternative D1c was not preferred because it could result in an 
overharvest of the quota, with negative economic consequences.
    Three other alternatives were considered that would provide 
different retention limits for the Angling category sectors. The first 
(D2a) would allow a private vessel daily retention limit of three fish 
(two measuring 47 inches to less than 73 inches and one measuring 27 
inches to less than 47 inches) and a charter/headboat daily retention 
limit (per vessel) of five fish (three fish measuring 47 inches to less 
than 73 inches and two fish measuring 27 inches to less than 47 
inches). The second alternative (D2b) would allow three fish (two 
measuring 47 inches to less than 73 inches and one measuring 27 inches 
to less than 47 inches) for each vessel per day/trip for the season, 
with an increase to five fish (three measuring 47 inches to less than 
73 inches and two measuring 27 inches to less than 47 inches) per 
vessel for charter/headboats during June 15, 2007 through July 31, 
2007, and the month of September 2007. The third alternative (D2c) 
would allow two fish (measuring 27 inches to less than 73 inches) less 
than 47 inches) for each vessel per day/trip for the season, with an 
increase to three fish (measuring 27 inches to less than 73 inches) per 
vessel for charter/headboats during June 15, 2007 through July 31, 
2007, and the month of September 2007. Alternatives D2a and D2b were 
considered to be potentially too liberal with a greater potential for 
exceeding the Angling category quota for 2007. Alternative D2c was 
considered to be unnecessarily restrictive with a greater potential for 
negative economic impacts associated with not harvesting the entire 
quota. In addition, the D2 subalternatives were not preferred since 
they could result in perceived inequities between the two sectors of 
the Angling category fishery.
    The preferred alternative (D1b) was selected to balance the intent 
of landing the Angling category quota without overharvesting, providing 
sufficient retention limits to offset costs, reducing any perceived 
inequities between the charter/headboat and private recreational vessel 
sectors of the Angling category fishery, and providing economic 
benefits to all regional sectors of the fishery.
    There are no new reporting or recordkeeping requirements contained 
in any of the alternatives considered for this action. This proposed 
rule has also been determined not to duplicate, overlap, or conflict 
with any other Federal rules.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 635

    Fisheries, Fishing, Fishing vessels, Foreign relations, Management, 
Treaties.

    Dated: March 30, 2007.
Samuel D. Rauch III
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 635 is 
proposed to be amended as follows:

PART 635--ATLANTIC HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES

    1. The authority citation for part 635 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.; 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
    2. In Sec.  635.4, paragraph (j)(3) is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  635.4  Permits and fees.

* * * * *
    (j) * * *
    (3) A vessel owner issued an Atlantic tunas permit in the General, 
Harpoon, or Trap category or an Atlantic HMS permit in the Angling or 
Charter/Headboat category under paragraph (b), (c), or (d) of this 
section may change the category of the vessel permit once within 10 
calendar days of the date of issuance of the permit. After 10 calendar 
days from the date of issuance of the permit, the vessel owner may not 
change the permit category until the following fishing season, except 
during the period of January 1, 2008, through May 31, 2008, when one 
additional change is authorized.
* * * * *
    3. In Sec.  635.27, paragraphs (a) introductory text, (a)(1)(i), 
(a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(4)(i), (a)(5), (a)(6), (a)(7)(i), (a)(7)(ii), 
(a)(10)(iii), and (a)(10)(iv) are revised to read as follows:


Sec.  635.27  Quotas.

    (a) BFT. Consistent with ICCAT recommendations, and with paragraph 
(a)(10)(iv) of this section, NMFS may subtract the most recent, 
complete, and available estimate of dead discards from the annual U.S. 
BFT quota, and make the remainder available to be retained, possessed, 
or landed by persons and vessels subject to U.S. jurisdiction. The 
remaining baseline annual U.S. BFT quota will be allocated among the 
General, Angling, Harpoon, Purse Seine, Longline, Trap, and Reserve 
categories. BFT may be taken by persons aboard vessels issued Atlantic 
Tunas permits, HMS Angling permits, or HMS Charter/Headboat permits. 
The baseline annual U.S. BFT quota is 1,165.1 mt, not including an 
additional annual 25 mt allocation provided in paragraph (a)(3) of this 
section. Allocations of the baseline annual U.S. BFT quota are: General 
- 47.1 percent (548.8 mt); Angling - 19.7 percent (229.5 mt), which 
includes the school BFT held in reserve as described under paragraph 
(a)(7)(ii) of this section; Harpoon - 3.9 percent (45.4 mt); Purse 
Seine - 18.6 percent (216.7 mt); Longline - 8.1 percent (94.4 mt), 
which does not include the additional annual 25 mt allocation provided 
in paragraph (a)(3) of this section; and Trap - 0.1 percent (1.2 mt). 
The remaining 2.5 percent (29.1 mt) of the baseline annual U.S. BFT 
quota will be held in reserve for inseason or annual adjustments based 
on the criteria in paragraph (a)(8) of this section. NMFS may apportion 
a quota allocated to any category to specified fishing periods or to 
geographic areas and will make annual adjustments to quotas, as 
specified in paragraph (a)(10) of this section. BFT quotas are 
specified in whole weight.
    (1) General category quota. * * *
    (i) Catches from vessels for which General category Atlantic Tunas 
permits have been issued and certain catches from vessels for which an 
HMS Charter/Headboat permit has been issued are counted against the 
General category quota in accordance with Sec.  635.23(c)(3).

[[Page 16324]]

The amount of large medium and giant BFT that may be caught, retained, 
possessed, landed, or sold under the General category quota is 47.1 
percent (548.8 mt) of the baseline annual U.S. BFT quota, and is 
apportioned as follows:
    (A) January 1 through January 31 - 5.3 percent (29.1 mt);
    (B) June 1 through August 31 - 50 percent (274.4 mt);
    (C) September 1 through September 30 - 26.5 percent (145.4 mt);
    (D) October 1 through November 30 - 13 percent (71.3 mt); and
    (E) December 1 through December 31 - 5.2 percent (28.5 mt).
* * * * *
    (2) Angling category quota. In accordance with the framework 
procedures of the HMS FMP, prior to each fishing year or as early as 
feasible, NMFS will establish the Angling category daily retention 
limits. The total amount of BFT that may be caught, retained, 
possessed, and landed by anglers aboard vessels for which an HMS 
Angling permit or an HMS Charter/Headboat permit has been issued is 
19.7 percent (229.5 mt) of the baseline annual U.S. BFT quota. No more 
than 2.3 percent (5.3 mt) of the annual Angling category quota may be 
large medium or giant BFT. In addition, over each 4 consecutive-year 
period (starting in 2007, inclusive), no more than 10 percent of the 
annual U.S. BFT quota, inclusive of the allocation specified in 
paragraph (a)(3) of this section, may be school BFT. The Angling 
category quota includes the amount of school BFT held in reserve under 
paragraph (a)(7)(ii) of this section. The size class subquotas for BFT 
are further subdivided as follows:
    (i) After adjustment for the school BFT quota held in reserve 
(under paragraph (a)(7)(ii) of this section), 52.8 percent (51.2 mt) of 
the school BFT Angling category quota may be caught, retained, 
possessed, or landed south of 39[deg]18' N. lat. The remaining school 
BFT Angling category quota (45.8 mt) may be caught, retained, possessed 
or landed north of 39[deg]18' N. lat.
    (ii) An amount equal to 52.8 percent (55.6 mt) of the large school/
small medium BFT Angling category quota may be caught, retained, 
possessed, or landed south of 39[deg]18' N. lat. The remaining large 
school/small medium BFT Angling category quota (49.6 mt) may be caught, 
retained, possessed or landed north of 39[deg]18' N. lat.
    (iii) An amount equal to 66.7 percent (3.5 mt) of the large medium 
and giant BFT Angling category quota may be caught, retained, 
possessed, or landed south of 39[deg]18' N. lat. The remaining large 
medium and giant BFT Angling category quota (1.8 mt) may be caught, 
retained, possessed or landed north of 39[deg]18' N. lat.
    (3) Longline category quota. The total amount of large medium and 
giant BFT that may be caught incidentally and retained, possessed, or 
landed by vessels that possess Longline category Atlantic Tunas permits 
is 8.1 percent (94.4 mt) of the baseline annual U.S. BFT quota. No more 
than 60.0 percent of the Longline category quota may be allocated for 
landing in the area south of 31[deg]00' N. lat. In addition, 25 mt 
shall be allocated for incidental catch by pelagic longline vessels 
fishing in the Northeast Distant gear restricted area as specified at 
Sec.  635.23(f)(3).
    (4) * * *
    (i) The total amount of large medium and giant BFT that may be 
caught, retained, possessed, or landed by vessels that possess Purse 
Seine category Atlantic Tunas permits is 18.6 percent (216.7 mt) of the 
baseline annual U.S. BFT quota. The directed purse seine fishery for 
BFT commences on July 15 of each year unless NMFS takes action to delay 
the season start date. Based on cumulative and projected landings in 
other commercial fishing categories, and the potential for gear 
conflicts on the fishing grounds or market impacts due to oversupply, 
NMFS may delay the BFT purse seine season start date from July 15 to no 
later than August 15 by filing an adjustment with the Office of the 
Federal Register prior to July 1.
* * * * *
    (5) Harpoon category quota. The total amount of large medium and 
giant BFT that may be caught, retained, possessed, landed, or sold by 
vessels that possess Harpoon category Atlantic Tunas permits is 3.9 
percent (45.4 mt) of the baseline annual U.S. BFT quota. The Harpoon 
category fishery closes on November 15 each year.
    (6) Trap category quota. The total amount of large medium and giant 
BFT that may be caught, retained, possessed, or landed by vessels that 
possess Trap category Atlantic Tunas permits is 0.1 percent (1.2 mt) of 
the baseline annual U.S. BFT quota.
    (7) * * *
    (i) The total amount of BFT that is held in reserve for inseason or 
annual adjustments and fishery-independent research using quotas or 
subquotas is 2.5 percent (29.1 mt) of the baseline annual U.S. BFT 
quota. Consistent with paragraph (a)(8) of this section, NMFS may 
allocate any portion of this reserve for inseason or annual adjustments 
to any category quota in the fishery.
    (ii) The total amount of school BFT that is held in reserve for 
inseason or annual adjustments and fishery-independent research is 18.5 
percent (22 mt) of the total school BFT Angling category quota as 
described under paragraph (a)(2) of this section. This is in addition 
to the amounts specified in paragraph (a)(7)(i) of this section. 
Consistent with paragraph (a)(8) of this section, NMFS may allocate any 
portion of the school BFT Angling category quota held in reserve for 
inseason or annual adjustments to the Angling category.
* * * * *
    (10) * * *
    (iii) Regardless of the estimated landings in any year, NMFS may 
adjust the annual school BFT quota to ensure that the average take of 
school BFT over each 4 consecutive-year period beginning in the 2007 
fishing year does not exceed 10 percent by weight of the total annual 
U.S. BFT quota, inclusive of the allocation specified in paragraph 
(a)(3) of this section, for that period.
    (iv) NMFS may subtract the best available estimate of dead discards 
from the amount of BFT that can be landed in the subsequent fishing 
year by those categories accounting for the dead discards.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. E7-6259 Filed 4-3-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S