[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 24 (Friday, February 5, 2016)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 6222-6224]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-02271]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

RIN 0648-BE70


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic; 
Snapper-Grouper Fishery off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 35

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

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) has 
submitted Amendment 35 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-
Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (FMP) for review, 
approval, and implementation by NMFS. Amendment 35 would remove black 
snapper, mahogany snapper, dog snapper, and schoolmaster from the FMP; 
and clarify the Council's intent regarding the golden tilefish longline 
endorsement program.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before April 5, 2016.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on Amendment 35 identified by 
``NOAA-NMFS-2015-0076'' by any of the following methods:
     Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-
NMFS-2015-0076, click the ``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required 
fields, and enter or attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Nikhil Mehta, Southeast 
Regional

[[Page 6223]]

Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).
    Electronic copies of Amendment 35 may be obtained from the 
Southeast Regional Office Web site at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov. 
Amendment 35 includes a draft environmental assessment, a Regulatory 
Flexibility Act analysis, a Regulatory Impact Review, and a Fishery 
Impact Statement.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nikhil Mehta, telephone: 727-824-5305; 
email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires each regional 
fishery management council to submit any FMP or amendment to NMFS for 
review and approval, partial approval, or disapproval. The Magnuson-
Stevens Act also requires that NMFS, upon receiving a plan or 
amendment, publish an announcement in the Federal Register notifying 
the public that the plan or amendment is available for review and 
comment.
    The FMP being revised by Amendment 35 was prepared by the Council 
and implemented through regulations at 50 CFR part 622 under the 
authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

Actions Contained in Amendment 35

    Amendment 35 includes actions to remove black snapper, mahogany 
snapper, dog snapper, and schoolmaster from the FMP, and to clarify the 
Council's intent regarding the golden tilefish longline endorsement 
program.

Remove Four Species From the FMP

    Black snapper, mahogany snapper, dog snapper, and schoolmaster are 
currently in the FMP, but have extremely low landings in state and 
Federal waters, and almost all harvest (recreational and commercial) 
occurs in waters off South Florida. Currently, NMFS does not manage 
these species in Federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf); however, 
these species are subject to regulations in Florida state waters. As 
described in Amendment 35, there are currently different regulations 
for recreational bag limits, size limits, and catch levels for these 
species between the Gulf, South Atlantic, and Florida. Inconsistent 
regulations make enforcement difficult and may be confusing to the 
public. Amendment 35 would remove black snapper, mahogany snapper, dog 
snapper, and schoolmaster from NMFS management in Federal waters of the 
South Atlantic to ensure that only species requiring Federal management 
are included in the FMP and to provide consistent regulations for these 
species across state and Federal jurisdictional boundaries.
    Black snapper is part of the deep-water complex within the FMP. The 
deep-water complex currently includes black snapper, yellowedge 
grouper, silk snapper, misty grouper, queen snapper, sand tilefish, and 
blackfin snapper. If black snapper is removed from the FMP, the annual 
catch limit (ACL) for the deep-water complex would be reduced from 
170,279 lb (77,237 kg), round weight, to 169,896 lb (77,063 kg), round 
weight, a difference of 382 lb (173 kg), round weight.
    Dog snapper and mahogany snapper are part of the other snappers 
complex within the FMP. The other snappers complex currently includes 
cubera snapper, gray snapper, lane snapper, dog snapper, and mahogany 
snapper. If dog snapper and mahogany snapper are removed from the FMP, 
the other snappers complex ACL would be reduced from 1,517,716 lb 
(688,424 kg), round weight, to 1,513,883 lb (686,688 kg), round weight, 
a difference of 3,833 lb (1,739 kg), round weight.
    Dog snapper, mahogany snapper, and black snapper are not typically 
targeted by commercial or recreational fishermen; therefore, bycatch 
associated with harvest of these species is extremely low. Schoolmaster 
is currently designated as an ecosystem component (EC) species. The 
Council is not considering retaining dog snapper, mahogany snapper, and 
black snapper in the FMP as Ecosystem Component (EC) species, because 
the objective of the amendment is to establish a consistent regulatory 
environment across the jurisdictional boundaries of Gulf and South 
Atlantic Federal waters and Florida state waters. NMFS does not manage 
these species in Gulf Federal waters; therefore, retaining them as EC 
species would not create consistent regulations across jurisdictional 
boundaries. Additionally, if these species are designated as EC 
species, the state of Florida would not be able to extend management 
authority for them into Federal waters.
    A stock assessment has not been performed for any of these species; 
however, there is no indication these stocks are depleted. Therefore, 
removing these stocks from the FMP is not expected to result in any 
adverse biological effects.

Clarify Regulations for Golden Tilefish Endorsement Holders

    The final rule for Amendment 18B to the FMP (78 FR 23858, April 23, 
2013) established a longline endorsement program for the commercial 
golden tilefish component of the snapper-grouper fishery. An 
endorsement is required to fish for golden tilefish with longline gear. 
Amendment 18B also established a golden tilefish hook-and-line quota 
and modified the golden tilefish commercial trip limits. The golden 
tilefish longline endorsement, sector quotas, and trip limits were 
implemented because the commercial ACL was being harvested rapidly with 
longline gear, and fishermen who had historically used hook-and-line 
gear to target golden tilefish were not able to participate in the 
golden tilefish portion of the snapper-grouper fishery. Establishing 
gear specific commercial quotas was intended to help ensure that 
fishermen fishing with each gear type have a fair and equitable 
allocation of the commercial quota.
    At the time the golden tilefish longline endorsement and gear-
specific quotas were established, the Council did not intend for 
longline endorsement holders to fish on the 500-lb (227-kg) gutted 
weight hook-and-line quota, or for non-endorsement holders to fish on 
the longline quota. NMFS and the Council are aware that, since 
Amendment 18B was implemented, some longline endorsement holders are 
transferring their golden tilefish longline endorsement to another 
vessel to then fish for golden tilefish using hook-and-line gear. Other 
longline endorsement holders are renewing their Federal commercial 
snapper-grouper vessel permit but waiting to renew their golden 
tilefish longline endorsement so that they are able to fish for golden 
tilefish using hook-and-line gear while their longline endorsement is 
not valid. Neither scenario is consistent with the intent of the 
Council in Amendment 18B. Therefore, the Council determined that they 
should clarify their intent and request NMFS modify the regulations for 
golden tilefish endorsement holders. Currently, the regulations state, 
``vessels with a golden tilefish longline endorsement are not eligible 
to fish for golden tilefish using hook-and-line gear

[[Page 6224]]

under this 500-lb (227-kg), gutted weight, trip limit.'' (50 CFR 
622.191(a)(2)(ii)). Amendment 35 and implementing regulations would 
clarify that ``vessels that have valid or renewable golden tilefish 
longline endorsements anytime during the fishing year, are not eligible 
to fish for golden tilefish using hook-and-line gear under this 500-lb 
(227-kg) trip limit.'' Thus, a fisherman who owns a vessel with a valid 
or renewable golden tilefish longline endorsement would not be eligible 
to fish for golden tilefish using hook-and-line gear under the 500-lb 
(227-kg), gutted weight, hook-and-line trip limit, during that fishing 
year.
    A proposed rule that would implement measures outlined in Amendment 
35 has been drafted. In accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS 
is evaluating the proposed rule to determine whether it is consistent 
with the FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law. If 
that determination is affirmative, NMFS will publish the proposed rule 
in the Federal Register for public review and comment.

Consideration of Public Comments

    The Council has submitted Amendment 35 for Secretarial review, 
approval, and implementation. Comments received by April 5, 2016, 
whether specifically directed to the amendment or the proposed rule, 
will be considered by NMFS in its decision to approve, disapprove, or 
partially approve the amendment. Comments received after that date will 
not be considered by NMFS in this decision. All comments received by 
NMFS on the amendment or the proposed rule during their respective 
comment periods will be addressed in the final rule.

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

    Dated: February 2, 2016.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-02271 Filed 2-4-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P