[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 151 (Thursday, August 6, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 46848-46852]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-19269]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 150126074-5655-02]
RIN 0648-XD742


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Bluefish 
Fishery; 2015 Atlantic Bluefish Specifications

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

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: NMFS is implementing final specifications for the 2015 
Atlantic bluefish fishery, including catch restrictions for commercial 
and recreational fisheries. This action is necessary to establish the 
2015 harvest limits and management measures to prevent overfishing. The 
intent of the action is to inform the public of the 2015 catch limits 
and state-to-state commercial quota transfers consistent with the 
Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan and the recommendations of 
the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council. NMFS is also approving 
transfers of commercial bluefish quota from the Commonwealth of 
Virginia and the State of Florida to the State of New York to ensure 
New York quota would not be exceeded.

DATES: The final specifications and state-to-state commercial quota 
transfers for the 2015 bluefish fishery are effective August 5, 2015, 
through December 31, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the specifications document, including the 
Environmental Assessment and Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 
(EA/IRFA) and other supporting documents for the specifications, are 
available from Dr. Christopher M. Moore, Executive Director, Mid-
Atlantic Fishery Management Council, Suite 201, 800 N. State Street, 
Dover, DE 19901. The specifications document is also accessible via the 
Internet at: http://www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Reid Lichwell, Fishery Management 
Specialist, (978) 281-9112.

[[Page 46849]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Atlantic bluefish fishery is jointly managed by the Mid-
Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine 
Fisheries Commission. The management unit for bluefish specified in the 
Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan is U.S. waters of the western 
Atlantic Ocean. Regulations implementing the FMP appear at 50 CFR part 
648, subparts A and J. The regulations requiring annual specifications 
are found at Sec.  648.162, and are described in the proposed rule. The 
proposed rule for this action published in the Federal Register on 
April 27, 2015 (80 FR 23249), and comments were accepted through May 
12, 2015.

Final Specifications

    A description of the process used to estimate bluefish stock status 
and fishing mortality, as well as the process for deriving the annual 
catch limit (ACL) and associated quotas and harvest limits, is provided 
in the proposed rule and in the bluefish regulations at Sec. Sec.  
648.160 through 648.162. The stock is not overfished or experiencing 
overfishing, and the catch limits described below reflect the best 
available scientific information for bluefish. The final 2015 bluefish 
acceptable biological catch (ABC), ACL, and Annual Catch Target (ACT) 
are specified at 21.544 million lb (9,772 mt).
    The ACT is initially allocated between the recreational fishery (83 
percent) and the commercial fishery (17 percent). After deducting 3.351 
million lb (1,520 mt) to adjust for recreational discards (commercial 
discards are considered negligible), the recreational Total Allowable 
Landings (TAL) is 14.530 million lb (6,591 mt) and the commercial TAL 
is 3.662 million lb (1,661 mt).
    A transfer of quota from the recreational to the commercial sector 
is permitted under the FMP because the initial commercial fishery ACT 
is less than 10.50 million lb (4,763 mt) and the recreational fishery 
is not projected to land its harvest limit in 2015.
    The recreational landings for 2015 are projected to be 12.951 
million lb (5,875 mt). This projection was based on the average 
recreational landings from 2012 through 2014, including final 2014 
Marine Recreational Information Program data that became available 
after the publication of the proposed rule. With the addition of 
updated and final recreational landings data, the projected 2015 
recreational landings (12.951 million lb; 5,875 mt) are lower than what 
was published in the proposed rule (13.073 million lb; 5,930 mt). We 
are implementing a revised transfer of 1.579 million lb (716 mt) from 
the recreational to the commercial sector in the final rule. This 
updated final transfer results in an adjusted 2015 commercial quota of 
5.241 million lb (2,377 mt), a 35-percent decrease from 2014 (7.458 
million lb; 3,383 mt), and an adjusted 2015 RHL of 12.951 million lb 
(5,875 mt), a 4.3-percent decrease from the 2014 RHL (13.523 million 
lb; 6,133 mt). Consistent with Council recommendations, these final 
specifications do not allocate research set-aside quota for 2015; 
therefore, no additional adjustments to commercial or recreational 
allocations are needed.
    The final rule implementing Amendment 1 to the Bluefish Fishery 
Management Plan, which was published in the Federal Register on July 
26, 2000 (65 FR 45844), provided a mechanism for bluefish quota to be 
transferred from one state to another. Two or more states, under mutual 
agreement and with the concurrence of the Administrator, Greater 
Atlantic Region, NMFS (Regional Administrator), can transfer or combine 
bluefish commercial quota under Sec.  648.162(e). The Regional 
Administrator is required to consider the criteria in Sec.  
648.162(e)(1) in the evaluation of requests for quota transfers or 
combinations.
    During the processing of this final rule, the Commonwealth of 
Virginia and the State of Florida each requested we transfer 150,000 lb 
(68,039 kg) to the State of New York to help ensure the NY state quota 
would not be exceeded. The state commercial transfers will not preclude 
the overall annual quota from being fully harvested, and will also 
address contingencies in the fishery. In addition, the transfer is 
consistent with the objectives of the FMP and the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act. These transfers have been 
approved and are incorporated within this final rule and the individual 
state quota allocations have been adjusted to reflect the transfers. 
The final bluefish quotas are shown in Table 1.

Final Recreational Possession Limit

    Consistent with the recommendation by the Council, this final rule 
maintains the status quo daily recreational possession limit of up to 
15 fish per person for 2015.

Final State Commercial Allocations

    The final state commercial allocations, including the previously 
outlined transfers, for the recommended 2015 commercial quota are shown 
in Table 1. The initial quotas are based on the percentages specified 
in the FMP. There were no states that exceeded their quota in 2014; 
therefore, no accountability measures are being implemented for the 
2015 fishing year.

                     Table 1--Final Bluefish Commercial State-by-State Allocations for 2015
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                                                       2015
                                                    Commercial     2015 Transfer    Final 2015      Final 2015
               State                   Percent      quota (lb)     of commercial    commercial      commercial
                                        share         before       quota (lb) as    quota (lb)      quota (kg)
                                                     transfer      of 7/10/2015
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ME.................................       0.6685          35,037  ..............          35,037          15,893
NH.................................       0.4145          21,725  ..............          21,725           9,854
MA.................................       6.7167         352,036  ..............         352,036         159,682
RI.................................       6.8081         356,826  ..............         356,826         161,855
CT.................................       1.2663          66,369  ..............          66,369          30,105
NY.................................      10.3851         544,304        +300,000         844,304         382,970
NJ.................................      14.8162         776,547  ..............         776,547         352,239
DE.................................       1.8782          98,440  ..............          98,440          44,652
MD.................................       3.0018         157,330  ..............         157,330          71,365
VA.................................      11.8795         622,629        -150,000         472,629         214,380
NC.................................      32.0608       1,680,371  ..............       1,680,371         762,211
SC.................................       0.0352            1845  ..............           1,845             837
GA.................................       0.0095             498  ..............             498             226
FL.................................      10.0597         527,249        -150,000         377,249         171,117
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[[Page 46850]]

 
    Total..........................     100.0001       5,241,202  ..............       5,241,202       2,377,394
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Comments and Responses

    The public comment period for the proposed rule ended on May 12, 
2015. There were 19 comments that resulted in 9 groups of substantive 
comments received from the public, including recreational and 
commercial fishermen, in regards to the proposed rule. Three comments 
were non-substantive and did not address this rule or the subject 
matter related to the rule.
    Comment 1: One commenter generally criticized NMFS and the data 
used to set catch limits. The commenter did not suggest other data or 
approaches that might be better suited for establishing specifications.
    Response: Consistent with National Standard 2 of the MSA, NMFS used 
the best scientific information available and is approving 
specifications for the bluefish fishery. The most up-to-date stock 
assessment and recreational and commercial catch data were used. The 
final specifications in this rule are consistent with the FMP and 
recommendations of the Council.
    Comment 2: One commenter expressed concern regarding the economic 
effects that this rule would have on the recreational sector, 
specifically party and charter/head boat businesses. The commenter 
suggested there should be an increase in quota specifically for 
charter/head boats.
    Response: NMFS disagrees that a quota increase for charter and 
party vessels is needed. The 2015 specifications have been established 
following the procedures set forth in the FMP, which does not allocate 
bluefish harvest between sectors of the recreational fishery. Marine 
Recreational Information Program (MRIP) catch data by mode for 2013 
indicate that approximately 59 percent of bluefish were caught from 
shore, 34 percent of bluefish were caught from private and rental 
boats, and 7 percent from party and charter boats. The 2015 RHL 
represents approximately 71 percent of the coastwide total allowable 
landings for bluefish when accounting for transfers, which are expected 
to be equivalent to recent observed recreational harvest across all 
sectors (shore, private, charter, etc.). As such, the 2015 RHL is not 
likely to constrain party or charter fishing opportunity or catch. 
According to the analyses in the EA supporting this action (see 
ADDRESSES), the economic impacts of these specifications have neutral 
to slightly negative impacts that are not expected to be significant to 
any component of the recreational fishery.
    Comment 3: One commenter suggested that with the decrease in 
private angler and for-hire effort, there should be no reduction in the 
bluefish recreational quota.
    Response: NMFS disagrees. The RHL is set to equal the expected 
recreational catch for 2015. NMFS calculates the expected catch by 
averaging the yearly recreational landing over a three-year period 
(2012-2014) using MRIP data. Although the 2014 RHL is less than the 
2015 RHL, the fishery is projected to catch less bluefish 
recreationally during 2015. Therefore, the RHL is not likely to 
constrain or limit recreational fishing opportunity in 2015.
    Comment 4: Three commenters requested clarification for the 
decision to reduce the ACL, given that the bluefish stock is not 
currently being overfished.
    Response: Although the bluefish stock is not currently overfished 
or experiencing overfishing, estimated biomass has declined slightly in 
recent years. Based upon the results of the 2014 assessment update for 
bluefish, the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) 
recommended a reduction in the ABC for 2015. This reduction is 
necessary to reduce the risk of overfishing the stock.
    Comment 5: Three commenters, including an operator of a party boat 
that targets bluefish, agreed with NMFS that the current recreational 
bag limit of 15 bluefish per person per day should remain unchanged for 
the 2015 fishing year.
    Response: NMFS agrees and has retained the Council's recommendation 
that the status quo recreational bag limit of 15 bluefish per person, 
per day remain in place for the 2015 fishing year.
    Comment 6: Five commenters stated that the bluefish specifications 
should remain unchanged from the 2014 fishing year. The comments 
offered no suggestions on why specifications should remain unchanged.
    Response: NMFS disagrees that the status quo bluefish 
specifications would be appropriate for 2015. As outlined in the 
response to comment number 3, the bluefish biomass has declined. The 
specifications in place for 2014 would be expected to result in 
negative biological impacts to the bluefish stock. If the 2014 catch 
limits remain in place for 2015 and were fully achieved, it would 
result in catches above the ABC recommended by the SSC, and could 
result in overfishing. Under National Standard 1 guidelines, the 
Council cannot recommend catch limits higher than the ABC recommended 
by its SSC.
    Comment 7: Two commenters expressed concern that the 2015 
specifications imposed regulations that were too severe and would have 
an adverse effect on small businesses in the commercial sector.
    Response: According to the economic analyses in the EA (see 
ADDRESSES), the impacts of the 2015 specifications are not expected to 
be significant. Although there are 1,009 affiliate firms that caught 
bluefish from 2011 to 2013, of those, 1,001 were considered small 
business entities and bluefish comprised a very small amount of their 
annual gross revenues, averaging 0.63 percent.
    The 2015 commercial bluefish quota is lower than the commercial 
quota implemented in 2014. However, the 2015 quota is higher than the 
realized commercial landings for 2014. Under the 2015 commercial quota, 
it is expected that commercial bluefish fishermen would likely land 
bluefish similarly to 2014 landings. Furthermore, the Bluefish FMP 
permits states to transfer bluefish quota to each other as a tool to 
mitigate the potential adverse economic impacts of a fishery closure in 
a particular state.
    Comment 8: One commenter expressed concern that offshore fleets 
outside of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) are having an adverse 
impact on bluefish abundance. The commenter suggested that the EEZ 
border be expanded to improve U.S. fish stocks.
    Response: NMFS recognizes that a small amount of bluefish are 
caught outside the U.S. EEZ. Bluefish stock assessments are based on 
data collected from within EEZ and changes in stock biomass from a 
variety of sources,

[[Page 46851]]

including international fishing pressures, are part of the assessment. 
Changes to the EEZ boundaries would be beyond the scope of this rule.
    Comment 9: One commenter inquired about the reduction in the 
commercial quota compared to a smaller reduction in the recreational 
TAL. The commenter asked if there could be a more equitable split in 
quota reduction to accomplish the same conservation goals.
    Response: Bluefish catch is allocated between the recreational and 
commercial fisheries according to specific requirements in the Bluefish 
FMP, as described in the EA (see ADDRESSES). Allocation changes can be 
addressed by the Council through an FMP amendment. Apart from the 
previously described transfer, NMFS has no authority to alter 
allocations between the commercial and recreational sector. How the 
2015 specifications were derived is explained in detail in the preamble 
of this rule and the proposed rule (80 FR 23249).

Classification

    Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the 
NMFS Assistant Administrator has determined that this final rule is 
consistent with the Atlantic Bluefish FMP, other provisions of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law.
    This final rule is exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.
    This final rule does not duplicate, conflict, or overlap with any 
existing Federal rules.
    The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries finds there is a need to 
implement these measures in an timely manner in order to help achieve 
conservation objectives for the bluefish fishery which constitutes good 
cause, under authority contained in 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3), to waive the 
30-day delay in effectiveness and to make the 2015 Atlantic bluefish 
specifications effective immediately upon filing with the Office of the 
Federal Register.
    The bluefish fishing year began on January 1, 2015, and has been 
operating without an established bluefish quota. Until this final rule 
becomes effective, there will be no established bluefish quota for 2015 
and therefore no authority to close a fishery approaching a quota 
limit. A 30-day delay in implementing this final rule would delay the 
setting of quota used to properly manage and monitor bluefish stocks at 
the state and federal level. Development of this final rule was 
undertaken as quickly as possible; however, incorporating the most up-
to-date MRIP data necessarily created a delay while analysis occurred.
    This final rule also implements two quota transfers of commercial 
bluefish quota from the Commonwealth of Virginia and the State of 
Florida to the State of New York to ensure New York does not exceed its 
2015 commercial quota.
    The FRFA included in this final rule was prepared pursuant to 5 
U.S.C. 604(a), and incorporates the IRFA and a summary of analyses 
completed to support the action. A public copy of the EA/IRFA is 
available from the Council (see ADDRESSES).
    The preamble to the proposed rule included a detailed summary of 
the analyses contained in the IRFA, and that discussion is not repeated 
here.

Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

A Summary of the Significant Issues Raised by the Public in Response to 
the IRFA, a Summary of the Agency's Assessment of Such Issues, and a 
Statement of Any Changes Made in the Final Rule as a Result of Such 
Comments

    The comments NMFS received did not raise specific issues, but 
commented generally on the economic analyses summarized in the IRFA. 
Refer to the ``Comments and Responses'' section of this preamble for 
more detail. No changes to the proposed rule were required to be made 
as a result of public comment.

Description and Estimate of Number of Small Entities to Which the Rule 
Will Apply

    The Small Business Administration (SBA) defines a small business in 
the commercial harvesting sector as a firm with receipts (gross 
revenues) of up to $5.5 million for shellfish and $20.5 million for 
finfish businesses. A small business in the recreational fishery is a 
firm with receipts of up to $7.5 million.
    According to the 2011-2013 Northeast affiliate ownership database, 
1,009 fishing businesses or affiliated firms (vessels grouped together 
by a common owner) landed bluefish during the 2011-2013 period, with 
1,001 of those businesses categorized as small businesses and 8 
categorized as large businesses. South Atlantic Trip Ticket reports 
identified 790 vessels that landed bluefish in North Carolina and 1,338 
vessels that landed bluefish on Florida's east coast in 2013.\1\ 
Bluefish landings in South Carolina and Georgia were near zero in 2013, 
representing a negligible proportion of the total bluefish landings 
along the Atlantic Coast. In recent years, approximately 2,000 party/
charter vessels have been active in the bluefish fishery and/or have 
caught bluefish.
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    \1\ Some of these vessels were also identified in the Northeast 
dealer data; therefore, double counting is possible.
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Description of Projected Reporting, Recordkeeping, and Other Compliance 
Requirements

    No additional reporting, recordkeeping, or other compliance 
requirements are included in this final rule.

Description of the Steps the Agency Has Taken To Minimize the 
Significant Economic Impact on Small Entities Consistent With the 
Stated Objectives of Applicable Statutes

    Specification of commercial quota, recreational harvest levels, and 
possession limits is constrained by the conservation objectives set 
forth in the FMP and implemented at 50 CFR part 648 under the authority 
of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. With the specification options considered, 
the measures in this final rule are the only measures that both satisfy 
these overarching regulatory and statutory requirements while 
minimizing, to the extent possible, impacts on small entities. The 2015 
commercial quota implemented by this final rule is 35 percent lower 
than the 2014 quota, but higher than actual 2014 bluefish landings. All 
affected states will receive decreases in their individual commercial 
quota allocations. The magnitude of the decrease varies depending on 
the state's relative percent share in the total commercial quota, as 
specified in the FMP. The states have the ability to transfer 
commercial quota from one state to another; although the use of this 
management measure cannot be predicted, it is often used to prevent 
quota overages in the commercial sector and can minimize the economic 
impacts associated with a quota allocation.
    The 2015 RHL contained in this final rule is approximately 4.3 
percent lower than the RHL in 2014. The 2015 RHL is greater than the 
total recreational bluefish harvested in 2014, and therefore it does 
not constrain recreational bluefish harvest below a level that the 
fishery is anticipated to achieve. The possession limit for bluefish 
will remain at 15 fish per person, so there should be no impact on 
demand for party/charter vessel fishing and, therefore, no impact on 
revenues earned by party/charter vessels. No negative economic impacts 
on the recreational fishery are anticipated.

Small Entity Compliance Guide

    Section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness 
Act of

[[Page 46852]]

1996 states that, for each rule or group of related rules for which an 
agency is required to prepare a FRFA, the agency shall publish one or 
more guides to assist small entities in complying with the rule, and 
shall designate such publications as ``small entity compliance 
guides.'' The agency shall explain the actions a small entity is 
required to take to comply with a rule or group of rules. As part of 
this rulemaking process, a small entity compliance guide will be sent 
to all holders of Federal permits issued for the Atlantic bluefish 
fishery.
    In addition, copies of this final rule and guide (i.e., permit 
holder letter) are available from NMFS (see ADDRESSES) and at the 
following Web site: www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov.

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

    Dated: July 31, 2015.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-19269 Filed 8-5-15; 8:45 am]
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