[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 80 (Wednesday, April 25, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 24669-24670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-9971]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

RIN 0648-XB162


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Public Conference Call 
Regarding Recreational Yellowfin Tuna Fishery Data Collection

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

ACTION: Notice of public conference call.

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SUMMARY: In order to better inform the public and NMFS, a conference 
call that is open to the public will be held to discuss historical and 
future data collection in the U.S. recreational yellowfin tuna fishery 
and the relationship to international yellowfin tuna management (e.g., 
quota establishment or tracking landings).

DATES: An operator-assisted conference call that is open to the public 
will be held on April 27, 2012, from 10 a.m. to noon, EDT (phone number 
888-593-8429; participant pass code 1629891). During this call, members 
of the public may ask questions and provide comments, after a brief 
background presentation.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Randy Blankinship at 727-824-5399 or 
Dianne Stephan at 978-281-9347.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Atlantic tunas are managed under the dual 
authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) and the Atlantic Tuna Conventions Act 
(ATCA), which authorizes the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to 
promulgate regulations as may be necessary and appropriate to implement

[[Page 24670]]

recommendations of the International Commission for the Conservation of 
Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). The authority to issue regulations under the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act and ATCA has been delegated from the Secretary to 
the Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA. On October 2, 2006, 
NMFS published in the Federal Register (71 FR 58058) final regulations, 
effective November 1, 2006, implementing the 2006 Consolidated Highly 
Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan, which details the 
management measures for Atlantic HMS fisheries.
    At its 2011 meeting, the International Commission for the 
Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) actively considered country-
specific yellowfin tuna allocations, as well as the potential landings 
histories that could be the basis for those allocations. While the 
final recommendation did not establish any country-specific 
allocations, some members of the Atlantic Highly Migratory Species 
Advisory Panel and the public have expressed an interest in discussing 
historical and future data collection in the U.S. recreational 
yellowfin tuna fishery, in case the issue comes up at the 2012 ICCAT 
meeting.
    NMFS is facilitating the public discussion of this topic through 
this public conference call. The purpose of this call is to discuss 
historical and future data collection in the U.S. recreational 
yellowfin tuna fishery and the relationship to international yellowfin 
tuna management (e.g., quota establishment or tracking landings). 
During the call, the background of recreational yellowfin tuna data 
collection--as well as recent international management developments--
will be briefly reviewed. The potential for future data collection will 
also be discussed. The public will have the opportunity to ask 
questions and engage in the discussion.

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

    Dated: April 20, 2012.
Galen Tromble,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-9971 Filed 4-20-12; 4:15 pm]
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