[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 99 (Monday, May 23, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 29717-29718]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-12665]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

RIN 0648-BA23


Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Annual Catch 
Limits and Accountability Measures

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

ACTION: Availability of proposed fishery management plan amendments; 
request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 
Council (Council) has submitted an omnibus amendment containing the 
following amendments to implement annual catch limits (ACLs) and 
accountability measures (AMs) for Council managed resources: Amendment 
13 to the Atlantic Mackerel, Squids, and Butterfish FMP; Amendment 3 to 
the Atlantic Bluefish FMP; Amendment 2 to the Spiny Dogfish FMP; 
Amendment 15 to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass FMP; 
Amendment 16 to the Surfclam and Ocean Quahog FMP, and Amendment 3 to 
the Tilefish FMP. These amendments, hereafter referred to as the 
Omnibus Amendment, have been submitted for review by the Secretary of 
Commerce (Secretary) for conformance with the FMPs, FMP amendments, the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act), and other applicable laws. In turn, as part of the 
Secretarial review process, NMFS is requesting comments on the Omnibus 
Amendment from the public.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 22, 2011.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0648-BA23, by any 
one of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov.
     Fax: (978) 281-9135.
     Mail and hand delivery: Patricia A. Kurkul, Regional 
Administrator, NMFS, Northeast Regional Office, 55 Great Republic 
Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope: Comments 
on Mid-Atlantic ACL/AM Omnibus Amendment.
    Instructions: All comments received are a part of the public record 
and will generally be posted to http://www.regulations.gov without 
change. All Personal Identifying Information (for example, name, 
address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly 
accessible. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or 
otherwise sensitive or protected information.
    NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter N/A in the required 
fields, if you wish to remain anonymous). You may submit attachments to 
electronic comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF 
file formats only.
    Copies of the draft Omnibus Amendment document, including the 
Environmental Assessment and Regulatory Impact Review (EA/RIR) and 
other supporting documents for the Omnibus Amendment are available from 
Dr. Christopher M. Moore, Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery 
Management Council, Suite 201, 800 North State Street, Dover, DE 19901. 
The draft Omnibus Amendment, as submitted to NMFS by the Council, is 
also accessible via the Internet at http://www.nero.noaa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Ruccio, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, (978) 281-9104.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that each 
Regional Fishery Management Council submit any FMP amendment it 
prepares to NMFS for review and approval, disapproval, or partial 
approval. The Magnuson-Stevens Act also requires that NMFS, upon 
receiving an FMP amendment, publish a notice in the Federal Register 
that the amendment is available for public review and comment.

Background

    The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Reauthorization Act of 2006 (MSRA) amended the Magnuson-Stevens Act to 
include new requirements for ACLs and AMs and the formal incorporation 
of scientific advice provided to Regional Fishery Management Councils 
from their respective Scientific and Statistical Committees (SSCs).
    The Council conducted public scoping and development of the Omnibus 
Amendment in 2009 and 2010. The development process included several 
meetings of the full Council, joint meetings with the Council and 
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the Council's SSC and its 
scientific uncertainty subcommittee, the Omnibus Amendment Fishery 
Management Action Team, and public hearings. Now, the Council has 
submitted the Omnibus Amendment for Secretarial review, approval as 
needed, and implementation. The Omnibus Amendment is necessary to bring 
all Council FMPs into compliance with the requirements of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act. The intent is to establish a comprehensive framework for 
all Council FMPs to more formally receive and utilize scientific 
recommendations in the establishment of annual catch levels, to 
establish a system to derive ACLs with AM backstops from that 
scientific advice, and to establish processes for revisiting and 
modifying the measures that would be established by the respective FMP 
amendments so that overfishing is prevented, stocks are rebuilt, and 
Optimum Yield (OY) may be achieved for all managed stocks.

[[Page 29718]]

    If approved by NMFS, this amendment would establish Acceptable 
Biological Catch (ABC) control rules for use by the Council's SSC in 
recommending ABC to the Council; a risk policy for use in conjunction 
with the ABC control rules to inform the SSC of the Council's preferred 
tolerance for the risk of overfishing a stock; ACLs for all Council-
managed stocks except Loligo and Illex squids, which are exempt from 
the ACL/AM requirements due to annual life cycles; comprehensive AMs 
for all established ACLs; descriptions of the process to review ACL and 
AM performance; and establishment of processes to modify the measures 
to be implemented through the Omnibus Amendment.
    Public comments are being solicited on the Council's Omnibus 
Amendment and its incorporated documents through the end of the comment 
period stated in this notice of availability. A proposed rule that 
would implement the Omnibus Amendment's measures if approved, will be 
published in the Federal Register for public comment, following NMFS's 
evaluation of the proposed rule under the procedures of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act. Public comments on the proposed rule must be received by 
the end of the comment period provided in this notice of availability 
of the Omnibus Amendment to be considered in the approval/disapproval 
decision on the amendment. All comments received by July 22, 2011, 
whether specifically directed to the Omnibus Amendment or the proposed 
rule, will be considered by NMFS in the approval/disapproval decision 
on the Omnibus Amendment. In reviewing, approving, and implementing 
Council-recommended amendment actions, NMFS is constrained to approval, 
disapproval, or partial approval only.
    Comments received after the specified date will not be considered 
in the decision to approve, partially approve, or disapprove the 
Omnibus Amendment. To be considered, comments must be received by close 
of business on the last day of the comment period; that does not mean 
postmarked or otherwise transmitted by that date.

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

    Dated: May 17, 2011,
Margo Schulze-Haugen,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-12665 Filed 5-23-11; 8:45 am]
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