[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 174 (Thursday, September 10, 2009)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 46509-46510]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-21823]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[Docket No. 040205043-4043-01]
RIN 0648-XR06


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Snapper-grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic; Closure of the July-
December 2009 Commercial Fishery for Vermilion Snapper in the South 
Atlantic

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

ACTION:  Temporary rule; closure.

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SUMMARY:  NMFS closes the commercial fishery for vermilion snapper in 
the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the South Atlantic. NMFS has 
determined that the quota for the commercial fishery for vermilion 
snapper will have been reached by September 18, 2009. This closure is 
necessary to protect the vermilion snapper resource.

DATES:  Closure is effective 12:01 a.m., local time, September 18, 
2009, through 11:59 p.m., local time, on December 31, 2009.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Catherine Bruger, telephone 727-824-
5305, fax 727-824-5308, e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The snapper-grouper fishery of the South 
Atlantic is managed under the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-
Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (FMP). The FMP was 
prepared by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council and is 
implemented under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) by regulations 
at 50 CFR part 622. Those regulations set the commercial quota for 
vermilion snapper in the South Atlantic at 302,523 lb (137,222 kg) for 
the current fishing period, July 1 through December 31, 2009, as 
specified in 50 CFR 622.42(e)(4)(ii).
    Under 50 CFR 622.43(a), NMFS is required to close the commercial 
fishery for a species or species group when the quota for that species 
or species group is reached, or is projected to be reached, by filing a 
notification to that effect with the Office of the Federal Register. 
Based on current statistics, NMFS has determined that the available 
commercial quota of 302,523 lb (137,222 kg) for vermilion snapper will 
be reached on or before September 18, 2009. Accordingly, NMFS is 
closing the commercial fishery for vermilion snapper in the South 
Atlantic EEZ from 12:01 a.m., local time, on September 18, 2009, 
through 11:59 p.m., local time, on December 31, 2009. The operator of a 
vessel with a valid commercial vessel permit for snapper-grouper having 
vermilion snapper onboard must have landed and bartered, traded, or 
sold such vermilion snapper prior to 12:01 a.m., local time, September 
18, 2009.
    During the closure, the bag limit and possession limits specified 
in 50 CFR 622.39(d)(1)(v) and (d)(2), respectively, apply to all 
harvest or possession of vermilion snapper in or from the South 
Atlantic EEZ, and the sale or purchase of vermilion snapper taken from 
the EEZ is prohibited. The prohibition on sale or purchase does not 
apply to sale or purchase of vermilion snapper that were harvested, 
landed ashore, and sold prior to 12:01 a.m., local time,

[[Page 46510]]

September 18, 2009, and were held in cold storage by a dealer or 
processor. For a person on board a vessel for which a Federal 
commercial or charter vessel/headboat permit for the South Atlantic 
snapper-grouper fishery has been issued, the sale and purchase 
provisions of the commercial closure for vermilion snapper would apply 
regardless of whether the fish are harvested in state or Federal 
waters, as specified in 50 CFR 622.43(a)(5)(ii).

Classification

    This action responds to the best available information recently 
obtained from the fishery. The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 
NOAA, (AA), finds good cause to waive the requirement to provide prior 
notice and opportunity for public comment pursuant to the authority set 
forth at 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) as such prior notice and opportunity for 
public comment is unnecessary and contrary to the public interest. Such 
procedures would be unnecessary because the rule itself has already 
been subject to notice and comment, and all that remains is to notify 
the public of the closure. Allowing prior notice and opportunity for 
public comment is contrary to the public interest because of the need 
to immediately implement this action to protect the fishery since the 
capacity of the fishing fleet allows for rapid harvest of the quota. 
Prior notice and opportunity for public comment would require time and 
would potentially result in a harvest well in excess of the established 
quota.
    For the aforementioned reasons, the AA also finds good cause to 
waive the 30-day delay in the effectiveness of this action under 5 
U.S.C. 553(d)(3).
    This action is taken under 50 CFR 622.43(a) and is exempt from 
review under Executive Order 12866.

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

    Dated: September 4, 2009.
Alan D. Risenhoover,
Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.
[FR Doc. E9-21823 Filed 9-4-09; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S