[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 51 (Wednesday, March 16, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 14000-14017]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-05948]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 300

[Docket No. 160203073-6073-01]
RIN 0648-BF75


Pacific Halibut Fisheries; Catch Sharing Plan

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

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), on behalf of the International 
Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC), publishes annual management measures 
governing the Pacific halibut fishery recommended as regulations by the 
IPHC and accepted by the Secretary of State. This action is intended to 
enhance the conservation of Pacific halibut and further the goals and 
objectives of the Pacific Fishery Management Council and the North 
Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC).

DATES: The IPHC's 2016 annual management measures are effective March 
14, 2016. The 2016 management measures are effective until superseded.

ADDRESSES: Additional requests for information regarding this action 
may be obtained by contacting the International Pacific Halibut 
Commission, 2320 W. Commodore Way, Suite 300, Seattle, WA 98199-1287; 
or Sustainable Fisheries Division, NMFS Alaska Region, P.O. Box 21668, 
Juneau, AK 99802, Attn: Ellen Sebastian, Records Officer; or 
Sustainable Fisheries Division, NMFS West Coast Region, 7600 Sand Point 
Way, NE., Seattle, WA 98115. This final rule also is accessible via the 
Internet at the Federal eRulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov, identified by docket number NOAA-NMFS-2016-0015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For waters off Alaska, Glenn Merrill 
or Julie Scheurer, 907-586-7228; or, for waters off the U.S. West 
Coast, Sarah Williams, 206-526-4646.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The IPHC has recommended regulations which would govern the Pacific 
halibut fishery in 2016, pursuant to the Convention between Canada and

[[Page 14001]]

the United States for the Preservation of the Halibut Fishery of the 
North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea (Convention), signed at Ottawa, 
Ontario, on March 2, 1953, as amended by a Protocol Amending the 
Convention (signed at Washington, DC, on March 29, 1979).
    As provided by the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (Halibut 
Act) at 16 U.S.C. 773b, the Secretary of State, with the concurrence of 
the Secretary of Commerce, may accept or reject, on behalf of the 
United States, regulations recommended by the IPHC in accordance with 
the Convention (Halibut Act, Sections 773-773k). The Secretary of 
State, with the concurrence of the Secretary of Commerce, accepted the 
2016 IPHC regulations as provided by the Halibut Act at 16 U.S.C. 773-
773k.
    The Halibut Act provides the Secretary of Commerce with the 
authority and general responsibility to carry out the requirements of 
the Convention and the Halibut Act. The Regional Fishery Management 
Councils may develop, and the Secretary of Commerce may implement, 
regulations governing harvesting privileges among U.S. fishermen in 
U.S. waters that are in addition to, and not in conflict with, approved 
IPHC regulations. The NPFMC has exercised this authority most notably 
in developing halibut management programs for three fisheries that 
harvest halibut in Alaska: the subsistence, sport, and commercial 
fisheries.
    Subsistence and sport halibut fishery regulations are codified at 
50 CFR part 300. Commercial halibut fisheries in Alaska are subject to 
the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) Program and Community Development 
Quota (CDQ) Program (50 CFR part 679) regulations, and the area-
specific catch sharing plans.
    The IPHC apportions catch limits for the Pacific halibut fishery 
among regulatory areas (Figure 1): Area 2A (Oregon, Washington, and 
California), Area 2B (British Columbia), Area 2C (Southeast Alaska), 
Area 3A (Central Gulf of Alaska), Area 3B (Western Gulf of Alaska), and 
Area 4 (subdivided into 5 areas, 4A through 4E, in the Bering Sea and 
Aleutian Islands of Western Alaska).
    The NPFMC implemented a catch sharing plan (CSP) among commercial 
IFQ and CDQ halibut fisheries in IPHC Areas 4C, 4D, and 4E (Area 4, 
Western Alaska) through rulemaking, and the Secretary of Commerce 
approved the plan on March 20, 1996 (61 FR 11337). The Area 4 CSP 
regulations were codified at 50 CFR 300.65, and were amended on March 
17, 1998 (63 FR 13000). New annual regulations pertaining to the Area 4 
CSP also may be implemented through IPHC action, subject to acceptance 
by the Secretary of State.
    The NPFMC recommended and NMFS implemented through rulemaking a CSP 
for guided sport (charter) and commercial IFQ halibut fisheries in IPHC 
Area 2C and Area 3A on January 13, 2014 (78 FR 75844, December 12, 
2013). The Area 2C and 3A CSP regulations are codified at 50 CFR 
300.65. The CSP defines an annual process for allocating halibut 
between the commercial and charter fisheries so that each sector's 
allocation varies in proportion to halibut abundance; specifies a 
public process for setting annual management measures; and authorizes 
limited annual leases of commercial IFQ for use in the charter fishery 
as guided angler fish (GAF).
    The IPHC held its annual meeting in Juneau, Alaska, January 25-29, 
2016, and recommended a number of changes to the previous IPHC 
regulations (80 FR 13771, March 17, 2015). The Secretary of State 
accepted the annual management measures, including the following 
changes to the previous IPHC regulations for 2016:
    1. New commercial halibut fishery opening and closing dates in 
Section 8;
    2. New halibut catch limits in all regulatory areas in Section 11;
    3. New management measures for Area 2C and Area 3A guided sport 
fisheries in Section 28, and in Figures 3 and 4;
    4. Removal of carcass retention requirements for Area 2C and Area 
3A guided sport fisheries (though the requirement remains in 50 CFR 
300.65) in Section 28;
    5. Additional exemptions from daily bag limits, possession limits, 
and catch limits for halibut caught bearing IPHC external tags in 
Section 21;
    6. Approval of longline pot gear, as defined by the NPFMC, as legal 
gear for the commercial halibut fishery in Alaska when NMFS' 
regulations permit the use of this gear in the IFQ sablefish fishery in 
Section 19;
    7. Approval of use of NMFS electronic logbooks in Alaska in Section 
16;
    8. Clarifying the wording of regulations for recording on fish 
tickets in Area 2A treaty Indian fisheries in Section 17;
    9. Clarifying the wording of regulations for required information 
in logbooks for Area 2A treaty Indian fisheries in Section 16; and
    10. Modifying definition of Subarea 2A-1 in Section 22.
    Pursuant to regulations at 50 CFR 300.62, the 2016 IPHC annual 
management measures are published in the Federal Register to provide 
notice of their immediate regulatory effectiveness and to inform 
persons subject to the regulations of their restrictions and 
requirements. Because NMFS publishes the regulations applicable to the 
entire Convention area, these regulations include some provisions 
relating to and affecting Canadian fishing and fisheries. NMFS may 
implement more restrictive regulations for the sport fishery for 
halibut or components of it; therefore, anglers are advised to check 
the current Federal and IPHC regulations prior to fishing.

Catch Limits

    The IPHC recommended to the governments of Canada and the United 
States catch limits for 2016 totaling 29,890,000 lb (13,558 mt). The 
IPHC recommended area-specific catch limits for 2016 that were higher 
than 2015 in most of its management areas except Area 3A, where catch 
limits were reduced, and Areas 4A and 4B where catch limits remained at 
the same level as in 2015. The IPHC is responding to stock challenges 
with a risk-based precautionary approach and a review of the current 
harvest policy to ensure the best possible advice. A description of the 
process the IPHC used to set these catch limits follows.
    Since 2012, the stock assessments have been based on an ensemble of 
models incorporating the uncertainty within each model as well as the 
uncertainty among models. This approach provides a stronger basis for 
risk assessment of specific management measures that may be recommended 
by the IPHC. The 2015 stock assessment used the same suite of models as 
in 2014, and incorporated several new data sources. The stock 
assessment ensemble included short and long time-series models based on 
both the coastwide and the areas-as-fleets (AAF) approaches. The two 
AAF models considered in 2015 assess the halibut population as a 
coastwide stock, while allowing for region-specific variations in the 
selectivity and catchability in the treatment of survey and fishery 
information. This combination of models included uncertainty in natural 
mortality rates, environmental effects on recruitment, and uncertainty 
in other model parameters. New data sources used in 2015 included 
updated mortality estimates, additional survey sampling stations in the 
eastern Bering Sea, calibration of IPHC survey data with NMFS trawl 
survey data, improved weight-at-age estimates by region and for young 
halibut, and age distribution

[[Page 14002]]

information for bycatch, sport, and sublegal discard removals.
    The assessment indicates that the Pacific halibut stock declined 
continuously from the late 1990s to around 2010. That trend is 
estimated to have been a result of decreasing size at age as well as 
smaller recruitments than those observed through the 1980s and 1990s. 
In recent years, the estimated female spawning biomass appears to have 
stabilized near 200 million pounds. Overall, the ensemble models 
project a stable or gradual increase in halibut biomass over the next 3 
years at current harvest rates.
    Since 2013, and as part of an ongoing effort to provide 
Commissioners with greater flexibility when selecting catch limits, in 
January 2016 IPHC staff provided a decision table that estimates the 
consequences to the stock and fishery status and trends from different 
levels of harvest. This decision table accommodates uncertainty in the 
stock status and allowed the Commissioners to weigh the risk and 
benefits of management choices as they set the annual catch limits. 
After considering harvest advice for 2016 from its scientific staff, 
Canadian and U.S. harvesters and processors, and other fishery 
agencies, the IPHC recommended catch limits for 2016 to the U.S. and 
Canadian governments (see Table 1 below).
    The IPHC recommended higher catch limits than 2015 for Areas 2A, 
2B, and 2C because the stock assessment survey and fishery weight per 
unit effort (WPUE) estimates continue to indicate a stable and upward 
trend in exploitable biomass in these areas. The IPHC recommended 
higher catch limits than would result from the application of the 
IPHC's current harvest policy in Areas 2A, 2B, and 2C. The IPHC made 
these catch limit recommendations after considering the low risk of an 
adverse impact on the halibut stock and the favorable survey and 
fishery trends in these areas.
    The IPHC recommended a reduced catch limit for Area 3A compared to 
2015 because the survey showed a third consecutive annual decrease in 
WPUE. The IPHC recommended setting the catch limit for Area 3A at 
halfway between the 2015 catch limit and the limit that would result 
from the application of the IPHC's current harvest policy. This ``half-
down'' approach is intended to minimize negative economic impacts on 
fishery participants while maintaining a conservative harvest rate.
    The IPHC recommended a catch limit consistent with the IPHC's 
current harvest policy for Area 3B. The IPHC noted that the catch limit 
recommendation in Area 3B is precautionary and a catch limit greater 
than the current harvest policy is not warranted. The catch limit in 
Area 3B increased slightly relative to 2015 due to increased survey and 
fishery WPUE and an increased biomass estimate.
    The IPHC recommended catch limits for Areas 4A and 4B that are the 
same as the 2015 limits and slightly above the IPHC's current harvest 
policy for these areas. The IPHC recommended only a slight increase in 
the catch limit amount in Area 4A relative to the current harvest 
policy because the stock trends in this area are highly variable and 
showed a decrease in survey WPUE; therefore, a more precautionary 
approach to management is appropriate. The IPHC recommended a catch 
limit somewhat larger than the current harvest policy for Area 4B 
because this area shows strong signs of stabilization in survey and 
fishery WPUE.
    The IPHC recommended a catch limit for Areas 4CDE that is higher 
than that adopted in 2015, but only slightly above the catch limit that 
would result from application of the IPHC's current harvest policy. The 
IPHC noted the increase in the Area 4CDE survey WPUE and biomass 
estimate and a significant decrease in halibut bycatch by the 
commercial groundfish trawl fleet in the Bering Sea in 2015.
    The IPHC also considered the Catch Sharing Plan for Area 4 
developed by the NPFMC in its catch limit recommendation. When the Area 
4CDE catch limit is greater than 1,657,600 lb (751.9 mt), a direct 
allocation of 80,000 lb (36.3 mt) is made to Area 4E to provide CDQ 
fishermen in that area with additional harvesting opportunity. After 
this 80,000 lb allocation is deducted from the catch limit, the 
remainder is divided among Areas 4C, 4D, and 4E according to the 
percentages specified in the CSP. Those percentages are 46.43% each to 
4C and 4D, and 7.14% to 4E. The IPHC recommended a catch limit for Area 
4CDE of 1,660,000 lb (753.0 mt) for 2016 to provide socioeconomic 
benefits from increased harvest opportunities in Area 4E.
    Overall, the IPHC's catch limit recommendations for 2016 are 
projected to result in a stable or slightly increasing halibut stock in 
the future.

                Table 1--Percent Change in Catch Limits From 2015 to 2016 by IPHC Regulatory Area
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                     2016 IPHC
                                                                    recommended     2015 Catch    Percent change
                         Regulatory area                            catch limit     limit (lb)       from 2015
                                                                       (lb)                          (percent)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2A \1\..........................................................       1,140,000         970,000            17.5
2B \2\..........................................................       7,300,000       7,038,000             3.7
2C \3\..........................................................       4,950,000       4,650,000             6.5
3A \3\..........................................................       9,600,000      10,100,000            -5.0
3B..............................................................       2,710,000       2,650,000             2.3
4A..............................................................       1,390,000       1,390,000             0.0
4B..............................................................       1,140,000       1,140,000             0.0
4CDE............................................................       1,660,000       1,285,000            29.2
Coastwide.......................................................      29,890,000      29,223,000             2.3
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\1\ Area 2A catch limit includes sport, commercial, and tribal catch limits.
\2\ Area 2B catch limit includes sport and commercial catch limits.
\3\ Shown is the combined commercial and charter allocation under the Area 2C and Area 3A CSP. This value
  includes allocations to the charter sector, and an amount for commercial wastage. The commercial catch limits
  after deducting wastage are 3,924,000 lb in Area 2C and 7,336,000 lb in Area 3A.


[[Page 14003]]

Commercial Halibut Fishery Opening and Closing Dates

    Both opening and closing dates take into account advice from the 
IPHC's two advisory boards. The opening date for the tribal commercial 
fishery in Area 2A and for the commercial halibut fisheries in Areas 2B 
through 4E is March 19, 2016. The date takes into account a number of 
factors, including the timing of halibut migration and spawning, tides, 
and having a Saturday season opening to facilitate marketing. The 
closing date for the halibut fisheries is November 7, 2016. This date 
takes into account the anticipated time required to fully harvest the 
commercial halibut catch limits, seasonal holidays, and adequate time 
for IPHC staff to review the complete record of 2016 commercial catch 
data for use in the 2016 stock assessment process.
    In the Area 2A non-treaty directed commercial fishery the IPHC 
recommended eight 10-hour fishing periods. Each fishing period shall 
begin at 0800 hours and terminate at 1800 hours local time on June 22, 
July 6, July 20, August 3, August 17, August 31, September 14, and 
September 28, 2016, unless the IPHC specifies otherwise. These 10-hour 
openings will occur until the quota is taken and the fishery is closed.

Area 2A Catch Sharing Plan

    The NMFS West Coast Region published a proposed rule for changes to 
the Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan for Area 2A off Washington, 
Oregon, and California on February 19, 2016 (81 FR 8466), with public 
comments accepted through March 10, 2016. A separate final rule will be 
published to approve changes to the Area 2A CSP and to implement the 
portions of the CSP and management measures that are not implemented 
through the IPHC annual management measures that are published in this 
final rule. These measures include the sport fishery allocations and 
management measures for Area 2A. Once published, the final rule 
implementing the Area 2A CSP will be available on the NOAA Fisheries 
West Coast Region's Web site at http://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/fisheries/management/pacific_halibut_management.html, and under FDMS Docket Number NOAA-
NMFS-2015-0166 at www.regulations.gov.

Catch Sharing Plan for Area 2C and Area 3A

    In 2014, NMFS implemented a CSP for Area 2C and Area 3A. The CSP 
defines an annual process for allocating halibut between the charter 
and commercial fisheries in Area 2C and Area 3A, and establishes 
allocations for each fishery. To allow flexibility for individual 
commercial and charter fishery participants, the CSP also authorizes 
annual transfers of commercial halibut IFQ as GAF to charter halibut 
permit holders for harvest in the charter fishery. Under the CSP, the 
IPHC recommends combined catch limits (CCLs) for the charter and 
commercial halibut fisheries in Area 2C and Area 3A. Each CCL includes 
estimates of discard mortality (wastage) for each fishery. The CSP was 
implemented to achieve the halibut fishery management goals of the 
NPFMC. More information is provided in the final rule implementing the 
CSP (78 FR 75844, December 12, 2013). Implementing regulations for the 
CSP are at 50 CFR 300.65. The Area 2C and Area 3A CSP allocation tables 
are located in Tables 1 through 4 of subpart E of 50 CFR part 300. The 
IPHC recommended a CCL of 4,950,000 lb (2,245.3 mt) for Area 2C. 
Following the CSP allocations in Tables 1 and 3 of subpart E of 50 CFR 
part 300, the commercial fishery is allocated 81.7 percent or 4,044,000 
lb (1,834.3 mt), and the charter fishery is allocated 18.3 percent or 
906,000 lb (411 mt) of the CCL (rounded to the nearest 1,000 lb). 
Wastage in the amount of 120,000 lb (54.4 mt) was deducted from the 
commercial allocation to obtain the commercial catch limit of 3,924,000 
lb (1,779.9 mt). The charter allocation for 2016 is about 55,000 lb 
(24.9 mt), or 6.5 percent greater than the charter sector allocation of 
851,000 lb (386.0 mt) in 2015.
    The IPHC recommended a CCL of 9,600,000 lb (4,354.5 mt) for Area 
3A. Following the CSP allocations in Tables 2 and 4 of subpart E of 50 
CFR part 300, the commercial fishery is allocated 81.1 percent or 
7,786,000 lb (3,531.7 mt), and the charter fishery is allocated 18.9 
percent or 1,814,000 lb (822.8 mt). Discard mortality in the amount of 
450,000 lb (204.1 mt) was deducted from the commercial allocation to 
obtain the commercial catch limit of 7,336,000 lb (3,327.6 mt). The 
charter allocation decreased by about 76,000 lb (34.5 mt), or 4.0 
percent, from the 2015 allocation of 1,890,000 lb (857.3 mt).

Charter Halibut Management Measures for Area 2C and Area 3A

    Guided (charter) recreational halibut anglers are managed under 
different regulations than unguided recreational halibut anglers in 
Areas 2C and 3A in Alaska. According to Federal definitions at 50 CFR 
300.61, a charter vessel angler, for purposes of Sec. Sec.  300.65, 
300.66, and 300.67, means a person, paying or non-paying, receiving 
sport fishing guide services for halibut. Sport fishing guide services 
means assistance, for compensation or with the intent to receive 
compensation, to a person who is sport fishing, to take or attempt to 
take halibut by accompanying or physically directing the sport 
fisherman in sport fishing activities during any part of a charter 
vessel fishing trip. A charter vessel fishing trip is the time period 
between the first deployment of fishing gear into the water from a 
charter vessel by a charter vessel angler and the offloading of one or 
more charter vessel anglers or any halibut from that vessel. The 
charter fishery regulations described below apply only to charter 
vessel anglers receiving sport fishing guide services during a charter 
vessel fishing trip for halibut in Area 2C or Area 3A. These 
regulations do not apply to unguided recreational anglers in any 
regulatory area in Alaska, or guided anglers in areas other than Areas 
2C and 3A.
    The NPFMC formed the Charter Halibut Management Implementation 
Committee to provide it with recommendations for annual management 
measures intended to limit charter harvest to the charter catch limit 
while minimizing negative economic impacts to the charter fishery 
participants in times of low halibut abundance. The committee is 
composed of representatives from the charter fishing industry in Areas 
2C and 3A. The committee selected management measures for further 
analysis from a suite of alternatives that were presented in October 
2015. After reviewing an analysis of the effects of the alternative 
measures on estimated charter removals, the committee made 
recommendations for preferred management measures to the NPFMC for 
2016. The NPFMC considered the recommendations of the committee, its 
industry advisory body, and public testimony to develop its 
recommendation to the IPHC, and the IPHC took action consistent with 
the NPFMC's recommendations. The NPFMC has used this process to select 
and recommend annual management measures to the IPHC since 2012.
    The IPHC recognizes the role of the NPFMC to develop policy and 
regulations that allocate the Pacific halibut resource among fishermen 
in and off Alaska, and that NMFS has developed numerous regulations to 
support the NPFMC's goals of limiting charter harvests over the past 
several years. The IPHC concluded that new management measures were 
necessary for 2016 to limit the Area 2C and Area 3A charter halibut 
fisheries to their

[[Page 14004]]

charter catch limits under the CSP, to achieve the IPHC's overall 
conservation objective to limit total halibut harvests to established 
catch limits, and to meet the NPFMC's allocation objectives for these 
areas. The IPHC determined that limiting charter harvests by 
implementing the management measures discussed below would meet these 
objectives.

Management Measures for Charter Vessel Fishing in Area 2C

    The preliminary estimate of charter removals in Area 2C was below 
the 2015 charter allocation by about 3,000 lb (1.36 mt) or 0.4 percent, 
indicating that the 2015 management measures were appropriate and 
effective at limiting harvest by charter vessel anglers to the charter 
allocation. While charter halibut harvest in Area 2C is projected to 
increase by 29,000 lb (13.2 mt) in 2016 due to expected increases in 
angler effort, the catch limit increased by 55,000 lb (24.9 mt), 
allowing management measures to be relaxed slightly for 2016.
    The preliminary estimate of charter wastage (release mortality) in 
2015 represented about 5.9 percent of the directed harvest amount. 
Therefore, projected charter harvest for 2016 was inflated by 6 percent 
to account for all charter removals in the selection of annual 
management measures for Area 2C.
    Relaxation of management measures is possible, while managing total 
charter removals, including wastage, in Area 2C to the 2016 allocation 
of 906,000 lb (411.0 mt). This final rule amends the 2015 measures 
applicable to the charter vessel fishery in Area 2C to relax 
restrictions and allow additional harvest relative to 2015.
    For 2016, the IPHC recommended the continuation of a one-fish daily 
bag limit with a reverse slot limit, as was in place in 2015, but 
increasing the lower size limit. The IPHC recommends a reverse slot 
limit that prohibits a person on board a charter vessel referred to in 
50 CFR 300.65 and fishing in Area 2C from taking or possessing any 
halibut, with head on, that is greater than 43 inches (109 cm) and less 
than 80 inches (203 cm), as measured in a straight line, passing over 
the pectoral fin from the tip of the lower jaw with mouth closed, to 
the extreme end of the middle of the tail. The 2015 reverse slot limit 
prohibited retention by charter vessel anglers of halibut that were 
greater than 42 inches (107 cm) and less than 80 inches. Projected 
charter harvest under the 2016 recommended reverse slot limit is 
877,000 lb (397.8 mt), 29,000 lb (13.2 mt) below the charter 
allocation. The recommended reverse slot limit for 2016 will increase 
harvest opportunities for charter vessel anglers, while managing total 
charter removals to the charter allocation.

Management Measures for Charter Vessel Fishing in Area 3A

    The preliminary estimate of charter removals in Area 3A in 2015 
exceeded the charter allocation by 173,000 lb (78.5 mt), or 9.2 
percent, primarily because the halibut that were caught and retained by 
charter vessel anglers were 9 percent heavier, on average, than 
predicted for the size and bag limits in place. In 2015, charter vessel 
anglers in Area 3A were limited to a two-fish daily bag limit with a 
maximum size limit on one fish. One effect of the maximum size limit 
was that the number of fish harvested per angler decreased compared to 
2014, but the average weight of harvested fish increased as many 
anglers opted to maximize the size of retained fish. The estimation 
error for average weight was factored into the analysis of potential 
management measures for 2016. Trends in effort are projected to remain 
fairly flat in 2016 in Area 3A.
    The preliminary estimate of charter wastage in 2015 represented 
less than 2 percent of the directed harvest amount. The projected 
charter harvest for 2016 was increased by 1.5 percent to account for 
total charter removals in the selection of appropriate annual 
management measures for Area 3A for 2016.
    This final rule amends the 2015 management measures applicable to 
the charter halibut fishery in Area 3A. The NPFMC and IPHC considered 
2015 information on charter removals and the projections of charter 
harvest for 2016. The NPFMC and IPHC determined that changes to the 
2015 Area 3A management measures are necessary to manage total charter 
removals, including wastage, within the 2016 allocation.
    For 2016, the IPHC recommended the following management measures 
for Area 3A: (1) A two-fish bag limit with a 28-inch size limit on one 
of the halibut; (2) a one-trip per day limit; (3) a day-of-week 
closure; and (4) an annual limit, with a new reporting requirement. The 
projected charter harvest for 2016 under this combination of 
recommended measures is 1,799,000 lb (816.0 mt), 15,000 lb (6.8 mt) 
below the charter allocation. Each of these management measures is 
described in more detail below.

Size Limit for Halibut Retained on a Charter Vessel in Area 3A

    The 2016 charter halibut fishery in Area 3A will be managed under a 
two-fish daily bag limit in which one of the retained halibut may be of 
any size and one of the retained halibut must be 28 inches (71 cm) 
total length or less. This is a 1-inch (2.5-cm) reduction in the 
maximum size limit from 2015. The NPFMC and the IPHC recommended the 
2015 daily bag limit with a reduced size limit in Area 3A for 2016 to 
maintain similar angling opportunities to previous years. This daily 
bag and size limit will be combined with additional restrictions to 
limit charter halibut removals to the 2016 allocation.

Trip Limit for Charter Vessels Harvesting Halibut in Area 3A

    In 2014, charter vessels were limited to one charter halibut 
fishing trip in which halibut were retained per calendar day in Area 
3A. The one-trip per day limit remained in place in Area 3A for 2015. 
If no halibut were retained during a charter vessel fishing trip, the 
vessel could take an additional trip to catch and retain halibut that 
day. The trip limit applied to vessels only, not to charter halibut 
permits. A charter operator could use more than one vessel to take more 
than one charter vessel fishing trip using the same charter halibut 
permit per day. Trip limits affect only a small number of charter 
operators and allow the size of the size-restricted fish in the daily 
bag limit to be maximized for the entire charter fleet in Area 3A. 
Without a trip limit, a more restrictive size or bag limit might have 
been necessary to achieve harvest targets.
    For 2016, the NPFMC and IPHC recommended that the trip limit be 
applied to charter halibut permits and charter vessels to further 
reduce harvest in Area 3A. That is, a charter halibut permit will only 
be authorized for use to catch and retain halibut on one charter 
halibut fishing trip per day. Additionally, a charter vessel will only 
be authorized for use on one charter halibut fishing trip per day. If 
no halibut are retained during a charter vessel fishing trip, the 
charter halibut permit and vessel may be used to take an additional 
trip to catch and retain halibut that day. This new regulation will 
make the daily trip limit more restrictive because charter halibut 
permits will no longer be allowed for use on multiple charter vessels 
for multiple charter vessel fishing trips in a day.
    For purposes of the trip limit in Area 3A in 2016, a charter vessel 
fishing trip

[[Page 14005]]

will end when anglers or halibut are offloaded, or at the end of the 
calendar day, whichever occurs first. Charter operators are still able 
to conduct overnight trips and anglers may retain a bag limit of 
halibut on each calendar day, but operators are not allowed to begin 
another overnight trip until the day after the trip ends. For example, 
if an overnight trip started on a Monday and ended on a Tuesday, and 
charter vessel anglers harvested halibut on Monday and Tuesday, the 
charter operator is not able to start another charter vessel fishing 
trip on that vessel until Wednesday. Alternatively, charter vessel 
anglers could harvest halibut on the first calendar day of an overnight 
trip, but not the second, allowing the guide to embark on another 
overnight trip on the second day. GAF halibut are exempt from the trip 
limit; therefore, GAF could be used to harvest halibut on a second trip 
in a day, but only if exclusively GAF halibut were harvested on that 
trip. For example, if an overnight trip started on a Monday and anglers 
harvested halibut on Monday, they could harvest GAF on Tuesday, 
allowing the charter operator to start another charter vessel fishing 
trip on Tuesday on the same charter vessel and charter vessel anglers 
to harvest halibut on Tuesday.

Day-of-Week Closure in Area 3A

    The NPFMC and the IPHC recommended continuing a day-of-week closure 
for Area 3A in 2016. No retention of halibut by charter vessel anglers 
will be allowed in Area 3A on Wednesdays. In 2015, there was a day-of-
week closure on Thursdays between June 15 and August 31. The day of 
closure is recommended to be changed to Wednesdays because more halibut 
were estimated to have been harvested on Wednesdays than Thursdays in 
2014, the year prior to implementation of the day-of-week closure. To 
further reduce harvest, the day-of-week closure will be extended in 
2016 for the entire season. Retention of only GAF halibut will be 
allowed on charter vessels on Wednesdays; all other halibut that are 
caught while fishing on a charter vessel must be released.

Annual Limit of Four Fish for Charter Vessels Anglers in Area 3A

    Charter vessel anglers will be limited to harvesting no more than 
four halibut on charter vessel fishing trips in Area 3A during a 
calendar year. A decrease from the 2015 annual limit of five fish is 
needed to reduce charter harvest to the 2016 allocation. This limit 
applies only to halibut caught and retained during charter vessel 
fishing trips in Area 3A. Halibut harvested while unguided fishing, 
fishing in other IPHC regulatory areas, or harvested as GAF will not 
accrue toward the annual limit.
    The 2015 regulations, including a 5-fish annual limit for charter 
vessel anglers in Area 3A, are effective until superseded. It is 
possible that some charter vessel anglers will have caught and retained 
halibut in 2016 prior to the publication of these annual management 
measures. A charter vessel angler in Area 3A would be able to retain 
five halibut, only if all five halibut were caught before the 
publication of these annual management measures. If fewer than five 
halibut were harvested prior to the effective date of this rule, the 4-
fish annual limit will apply.

Reporting Requirement for Annual Limit in Area 3A Guided Sport 
Fisheries

    In 2015, compliance with the annual limit in Area 3A was determined 
post-season through landings reported in the Alaska Department of Fish 
and Game (ADF&G) Saltwater Charter Logbook. Based on monitoring and 
enforcement activities for the annual limit in 2015, the NPFMC 
determined that the ability of enforcement agents to monitor and 
enforce the annual limit could be improved by implementation of a 
requirement for anglers to provide a cumulative halibut harvest record.
    The IPHC approved a reporting requirement for 2016 that was 
recommended by the NPFMC to complement the annual limit in Area 3A. 
This reporting requirement will improve compliance and enforceability 
of the 4-fish annual limit. In 2016, each charter vessel angler who is 
required to have a State of Alaska sport fishing license and who 
harvests halibut will be required to record those halibut on the back 
of the fishing license. For those anglers who are not required to have 
a sport fishing license (e.g., youth and senior anglers), a 
nontransferable Sport Harvest Record Card must be obtained from an 
ADF&G office, the ADF&G Web site, or a fishing license vendor, on which 
to record halibut harvested aboard a charter vessel. Immediately upon 
retention of a halibut for which an annual limit has been established, 
the charter vessel angler must record the date, location (Area 3A), and 
species of the catch (halibut), in ink, on the harvest record card or 
back of the sport fishing license.
    If the original sport fishing license or harvest record is lost, a 
duplicate or additional sport fishing license or harvest record card 
must be obtained and completed for all halibut previously retained 
during that year that were subject to the annual limit.
    Only halibut caught during a charter vessel fishing trip in Area 3A 
accrue toward the 4-fish annual limit and must be recorded on the 
license or harvest record card. Halibut that are harvested while 
charter fishing in regulatory areas other than Area 3A will not accrue 
toward the annual limit and are not subject to the reporting 
requirement. Likewise, halibut harvested while sport fishing without a 
guide in Area 3A, harvested while subsistence fishing, or harvested as 
GAF do not accrue toward the annual limit and should not be recorded on 
the license or harvest record. Finally, halibut that are caught during 
a charter vessel fishing trip that bear IPHC external tags are exempt 
from the annual limit and reporting requirements (see description 
below).

Areas 2C and 3A Carcass Retention Requirement

    NMFS published a final rule on June 19, 2015 (80 FR 35195), that 
revised Federal regulations for charter halibut fishing in Areas 2C and 
3A. That rule revised several Federal regulations and definitions 
pertaining to charter fishing for halibut, including changing the 
definition of ``sport fishing guide services.'' Some revisions to the 
2015 IPHC annual management measures were also necessary to facilitate 
compliance and enforcement. The guide definition rule implemented a 
Federal regulation requiring carcass retention at Sec.  300.65(d)(5) 
that duplicated 2015 annual management measures at sections 28(2)(d) 
and 28(3)(d). These regulations require that carcasses of size-
restricted halibut be retained on board the vessel until offloading. 
The carcass-retention requirements were implemented to improve 
compliance and enforceability of size limits. The IPHC recommended 
removing the carcass-retention requirements from the IPHC annual 
management measures after the carcass-retention requirement became 
effective in Federal regulations. The carcass-retention requirement 
became effective in Federal regulations on July 20, 2015. The carcass-
retention requirements formerly in the IPHC annual management measures 
at sections 28(2)(b) and 28(3)(b) have been removed for 2016.

Tagged Halibut Exemption

    IPHC regulations at Section 21 allow any vessel at any time to 
retain and land a halibut that bears an IPHC external tag at time of 
capture, if the halibut with the tag still attached is reported at the 
time of landing and made available for examination by the 
representative of the IPHC or by an authorized officer. However, these 
retained tagged halibut

[[Page 14006]]

were required to count against commercial individual vessel quotas, 
community development quotas, individual fishing quotas, and daily bag 
and possession limits unless otherwise exempted by State, Provincial, 
or Federal regulations. One such exemption exists at Sec.  679.40(g)(2) 
for the IPHC regulatory areas in Alaska, which states that halibut 
bearing an external research tag from any state, Federal, or 
international agency shall be excluded from IFQ or CDQ deductions. For 
2016, the IPHC recommends that halibut with an external IPHC tag will 
not count against sport daily bag limits or possession limits, can be 
retained outside of sport fishing seasons, and are not limited to size 
restrictions in any regulatory area. Likewise, halibut with an external 
IPHC tag will not count against daily bag limits in the customary and 
traditional (subsistence) fisheries in Alaska. These changes are 
intended to encourage sport and subsistence anglers to retain and 
report externally tagged halibut to the IPHC, as it is important that 
the IPHC receive the scientific information from these tagged halibut.

Retention of Incidentally Caught Halibut in Sablefish Pots in Alaska

    IPHC regulations currently authorize only hook-and-line gear for 
retention of halibut in Alaska. In April 2015, the NPFMC recommended 
regulatory revisions to authorize the use of longline pot gear in the 
Gulf of Alaska sablefish IFQ fisheries. These fisheries take place in a 
portion of IPHC Regulatory Area 2C (not including the inside waters), 
Regulatory Areas 3A and, 3B, and that portion of Area 4A in the Gulf of 
Alaska west of Area 3B and east of 170[deg]00' W. long.. As part of its 
action, the NPFMC recommended that vessels be able to retain legal-size 
halibut that are caught incidentally in pots in the sablefish IFQ 
fisheries if the person(s) on the vessel holds sufficient area-specific 
halibut IFQ to cover the incidental catch. Because the IPHC has 
authority to establish legal gear for the retention of the halibut, the 
NPFMC's recommendation included a request to the IPHC to consider 
amending the annual management measures to authorize retention of 
incidentally caught halibut in longline pot gear in the Gulf of Alaska 
sablefish IFQ fisheries.
    The NPFMC's intent is to authorize retention of halibut caught 
incidentally in longline pot gear subject to current retention 
requirements for the halibut IFQ Program (i.e., only if the halibut are 
of legal size and a person(s) on the vessel holds sufficient halibut 
IFQ). This recommendation is intended to avoid discard mortality of 
legal-size halibut caught incidentally in longline pots in the 
sablefish IFQ fishery, similar to current regulations that authorize 
sablefish and halibut IFQ holders using hook-and-line gear to retain 
legal-size halibut caught incidentally during the sablefish IFQ 
fishery.
    At its 2016 annual meeting, the IPHC approved longline pot gear, as 
defined by the NPFMC, as legal gear for the commercial halibut fishery 
in Alaska when NMFS regulations permit the use of this gear in the IFQ 
sablefish fishery. The IPHC anticipates that NMFS will implement 
regulations to allow the use of pot gear in the Gulf of Alaska 
sablefish IFQ fishery in late 2016 or at the beginning of 2017. The 
IPHC noted that it intends to review the use of longline pot gear as a 
legal gear for halibut in this fishery in order to monitor the amount 
of halibut incidentally caught in longline pot gear in the sablefish 
IFQ fishery.

Other Regulatory Amendments

    The IPHC approved several additional amendments to the 2016 annual 
management measures. First, the IPHC approved the explicit addition of 
the electronic version of the NMFS Groundfish/IFQ Longline and Pot Gear 
Daily Fishing Logbook to the list of acceptable logbooks for use in the 
Alaskan commercial halibut fishery in Section 16, paragraph 1. Second, 
the IPHC approved revisions to regulations to clarify that the Tribal 
Identification Number and not the Vessel Identification Number should 
be recorded in logbooks and on fish tickets in Area 2A treaty Indian 
fisheries. Finally, the description of Area 2A-1 in Section 22, 
paragraph 1, was modified to match the description in the Area 2A Catch 
Sharing Plan, which was changed to account for a recent court order 
regarding tribal fishing areas.

Annual Halibut Management Measures

    The following annual management measures for the 2016 Pacific 
halibut fishery are those recommended by the IPHC and accepted by the 
Secretary of State, with the concurrence of the Secretary of Commerce.

1. Short Title

    These Regulations may be cited as the Pacific Halibut Fishery 
Regulations.

2. Application

    (1) These Regulations apply to persons and vessels fishing for 
halibut in, or possessing halibut taken from, the maritime area as 
defined in Section 3.
    (2) Sections 3 to 6 apply generally to all halibut fishing.
    (3) Sections 7 to 20 apply to commercial fishing for halibut.
    (4) Section 21 applies to tagged halibut caught by any vessel.
    (5) Section 22 applies to the United States treaty Indian fishery 
in Subarea 2A-1.
    (6) Section 23 applies to customary and traditional fishing in 
Alaska.
    (7) Section 24 applies to Aboriginal groups fishing for food, 
social and ceremonial purposes in British Columbia.
    (8) Sections 25 to 28 apply to sport fishing for halibut.
    (9) These Regulations do not apply to fishing operations authorized 
or conducted by the Commission for research purposes.

3. Definitions

    (1) In these Regulations,
    (a) ``authorized officer'' means any State, Federal, or Provincial 
officer authorized to enforce these Regulations including, but not 
limited to, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Canada's 
Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), Alaska Wildlife Troopers 
(AWT), United States Coast Guard (USCG), Washington Department of Fish 
and Wildlife (WDFW), the Oregon State Police (OSP), and California 
Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW);
    (b) ``authorized clearance personnel'' means an authorized officer 
of the United States, a representative of the Commission, or a 
designated fish processor;
    (c) ``charter vessel'' outside of Alaska waters means a vessel used 
for hire in sport fishing for halibut, but not including a vessel 
without a hired operator, and in Alaska waters means a vessel used 
while providing or receiving sport fishing guide services for halibut;
    (d) ``commercial fishing'' means fishing, the resulting catch of 
which is sold or bartered; or is intended to be sold or bartered, other 
than (i) sport fishing, (ii) treaty Indian ceremonial and subsistence 
fishing as referred to in section 22, (iii) customary and traditional 
fishing as referred to in section 23 and defined by and regulated 
pursuant to NMFS regulations published at 50 CFR part 300, and (iv) 
Aboriginal groups fishing in British Columbia as referred to in section 
24;
    (e) ``Commission'' means the International Pacific Halibut 
Commission;
    (f) ``daily bag limit'' means the maximum number of halibut a 
person may take in any calendar day from Convention waters;
    (g) ``fishing'' means the taking, harvesting, or catching of fish, 
or any

[[Page 14007]]

activity that can reasonably be expected to result in the taking, 
harvesting, or catching of fish, including specifically the deployment 
of any amount or component part of gear anywhere in the maritime area;
    (h) ``fishing period limit'' means the maximum amount of halibut 
that may be retained and landed by a vessel during one fishing period;
    (i) ``land'' or ``offload'' with respect to halibut, means the 
removal of halibut from the catching vessel;
    (j) ``license'' means a halibut fishing license issued by the 
Commission pursuant to section 4;
    (k) ``maritime area'', in respect of the fisheries jurisdiction of 
a Contracting Party, includes without distinction areas within and 
seaward of the territorial sea and internal waters of that Party;
    (l) ``net weight'' of a halibut means the weight of halibut that is 
without gills and entrails, head-off, washed, and without ice and 
slime. If a halibut is weighed with the head on or with ice and slime, 
the required conversion factors for calculating net weight are a 2 
percent deduction for ice and slime and a 10 percent deduction for the 
head;
    (m) ``operator'', with respect to any vessel, means the owner and/
or the master or other individual on board and in charge of that 
vessel;
    (n) ``overall length'' of a vessel means the horizontal distance, 
rounded to the nearest foot, between the foremost part of the stem and 
the aftermost part of the stern (excluding bowsprits, rudders, outboard 
motor brackets, and similar fittings or attachments);
    (o) ``person'' includes an individual, corporation, firm, or 
association;
    (p) ``regulatory area'' means an area referred to in section 6;
    (q) ``setline gear'' means one or more stationary, buoyed, and 
anchored lines with hooks attached;
    (r) ``sport fishing'' means all fishing other than (i) commercial 
fishing, (ii) treaty Indian ceremonial and subsistence fishing as 
referred to in section 22, (iii) customary and traditional fishing as 
referred to in section 23 and defined in and regulated pursuant to NMFS 
regulations published in 50 CFR part 300, and (iv) Aboriginal groups 
fishing in British Columbia as referred to in section 24;
    (s) ``tender'' means any vessel that buys or obtains fish directly 
from a catching vessel and transports it to a port of landing or fish 
processor;
    (t) ``VMS transmitter'' means a NMFS-approved vessel monitoring 
system transmitter that automatically determines a vessel's position 
and transmits it to a NMFS-approved communications service provider.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ Call NOAA Enforcement Division, Alaska Region, at 907-586-
7225 between the hours of 0800 and 1600 local time for a list of 
NMFS-approved VMS transmitters and communications service providers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (2) In these Regulations, all bearings are true and all positions 
are determined by the most recent charts issued by the United States 
National Ocean Service or the Canadian Hydrographic Service.

4. Licensing Vessels for Area 2A

    (1) No person shall fish for halibut from a vessel, nor possess 
halibut on board a vessel, used either for commercial fishing or as a 
charter vessel in Area 2A, unless the Commission has issued a license 
valid for fishing in Area 2A in respect of that vessel.
    (2) A license issued for a vessel operating in Area 2A shall be 
valid only for operating either as a charter vessel or a commercial 
vessel, but not both.
    (3) A vessel with a valid Area 2A commercial license cannot be used 
to sport fish for Pacific halibut in Area 2A.
    (4) A license issued for a vessel operating in the commercial 
fishery in Area 2A shall be valid for one of the following:
    (a) The directed commercial fishery during the fishing periods 
specified in paragraph (2) of section 8;
    (b) the incidental catch fishery during the sablefish fishery 
specified in paragraph (3) of section 8; or
    (c) the incidental catch fishery during the salmon troll fishery 
specified in paragraph (4) of section 8.
    (5) No person may apply for or be issued a license for a vessel 
operating in the incidental catch fishery during the salmon troll 
fishery in paragraph (4)(c), if that vessel was previously issued a 
license for either the directed commercial fishery in paragraph (4)(a) 
or the incidental catch fishery during the sablefish fishery in 
paragraph (4)(b).
    (6) A license issued in respect to a vessel referred to in 
paragraph (1) of this section must be carried on board that vessel at 
all times and the vessel operator shall permit its inspection by any 
authorized officer.
    (7) The Commission shall issue a license in respect to a vessel, 
without fee, from its office in Seattle, Washington, upon receipt of a 
completed, written, and signed ``Application for Vessel License for the 
Halibut Fishery'' form.
    (8) A vessel operating in the directed commercial fishery in Area 
2A must have its ``Application for Vessel License for the Halibut 
Fishery'' form postmarked no later than 11:59 p.m. on April 30, or on 
the first weekday in May if April 30 is a Saturday or Sunday.
    (9) A vessel operating in the incidental catch fishery during the 
sablefish fishery in Area 2A must have its ``Application for Vessel 
License for the Halibut Fishery'' form postmarked no later than 11:59 
p.m. on March 15, or the next weekday in March if March 15 is a 
Saturday or Sunday.
    (10) A vessel operating in the incidental catch fishery during the 
salmon troll fishery in Area 2A must have its ``Application for Vessel 
License for the Halibut Fishery'' form postmarked no later than 11:59 
p.m. on March 15, or the next weekday in March if March 15 is a 
Saturday or Sunday.
    (11) Application forms may be obtained from any authorized officer 
or from the Commission.
    (12) Information on ``Application for Vessel License for the 
Halibut Fishery'' form must be accurate.
    (13) The ``Application for Vessel License for the Halibut Fishery'' 
form shall be completed and signed by the vessel owner.
    (14) Licenses issued under this section shall be valid only during 
the year in which they are issued.
    (15) A new license is required for a vessel that is sold, 
transferred, renamed, or the documentation is changed.
    (16) The license required under this section is in addition to any 
license, however designated, that is required under the laws of the 
United States or any of its States.
    (17) The United States may suspend, revoke, or modify any license 
issued under this section under policies and procedures in Title 15, 
CFR part 904.

5. In-Season Actions

    (1) The Commission is authorized to establish or modify regulations 
during the season after determining that such action:
    (a) Will not result in exceeding the catch limit established 
preseason for each regulatory area;
    (b) is consistent with the Convention between Canada and the United 
States of America for the Preservation of the Halibut Fishery of the 
Northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, and applicable domestic law of 
either Canada or the United States; and
    (c) is consistent, to the maximum extent practicable, with any 
domestic catch sharing plans or other domestic allocation programs 
developed by the United States or Canadian governments.
    (2) In-season actions may include, but are not limited to, 
establishment or modification of the following:
    (a) Closed areas;
    (b) fishing periods;

[[Page 14008]]

    (c) fishing period limits;
    (d) gear restrictions;
    (e) recreational bag limits;
    (f) size limits; or
    (g) vessel clearances.
    (3) In-season changes will be effective at the time and date 
specified by the Commission.
    (4) The Commission will announce in-season actions under this 
section by providing notice to major halibut processors; Federal, 
State, United States treaty Indian, and Provincial fishery officials; 
and the media.

6. Regulatory Areas

    The following areas shall be regulatory areas (see Figure 1) for 
the purposes of the Convention:
    (1) Area 2A includes all waters off the states of California, 
Oregon, and Washington;
    (2) Area 2B includes all waters off British Columbia;
    (3) Area 2C includes all waters off Alaska that are east of a line 
running 340[deg] true from Cape Spencer Light (58[deg]11'56'' N. 
latitude, 136[deg]38'26'' W. longitude) and south and east of a line 
running 205[deg] true from said light;
    (4) Area 3A includes all waters between Area 2C and a line 
extending from the most northerly point on Cape Aklek (57[deg]41'15'' 
N. latitude, 155[deg]35'00'' W. longitude) to Cape Ikolik 
(57[deg]17'17'' N. latitude, 154[deg]47'18'' W. longitude), then along 
the Kodiak Island coastline to Cape Trinity (56[deg]44'50'' N. 
latitude, 154[deg]08'44'' W. longitude), then 140[deg] true;
    (5) Area 3B includes all waters between Area 3A and a line 
extending 150[deg] true from Cape Lutke (54[deg]29'00'' N. latitude, 
164[deg]20'00'' W. longitude) and south of 54[deg]49'00'' N. latitude 
in Isanotski Strait;
    (6) Area 4A includes all waters in the Gulf of Alaska west of Area 
3B and in the Bering Sea west of the closed area defined in section 10 
that are east of 172[deg]00'00'' W. longitude and south of 
56[deg]20'00'' N. latitude;
    (7) Area 4B includes all waters in the Bering Sea and the Gulf of 
Alaska west of Area 4A and south of 56[deg]20'00'' N. latitude;
    (8) Area 4C includes all waters in the Bering Sea north of Area 4A 
and north of the closed area defined in section 10 which are east of 
171[deg]00'00'' W. longitude, south of 58[deg]00'00'' N. latitude, and 
west of 168[deg]00'00'' W. longitude;
    (9) Area 4D includes all waters in the Bering Sea north of Areas 4A 
and 4B, north and west of Area 4C, and west of 168[deg]00'00'' W. 
longitude; and
    (10) Area 4E includes all waters in the Bering Sea north and east 
of the closed area defined in section 10, east of 168[deg]00'00'' W. 
longitude, and south of 65[deg]34'00'' N. latitude.

7. Fishing in Regulatory Area 4E and 4D

    (1) Section 7 applies only to any person fishing, or vessel that is 
used to fish for, Area 4E Community Development Quota (CDQ) or Area 4D 
CDQ halibut, provided that the total annual halibut catch of that 
person or vessel is landed at a port within Area 4E or 4D.
    (2) A person may retain halibut taken with setline gear in Area 4E 
CDQ and 4D CDQ fishery that are smaller than the size limit specified 
in section 13, provided that no person may sell or barter such halibut.
    (3) The manager of a CDQ organization that authorizes persons to 
harvest halibut in the Area 4E or 4D CDQ fisheries must report to the 
Commission the total number and weight of undersized halibut taken and 
retained by such persons pursuant to section 7, paragraph (2). This 
report, which shall include data and methodology used to collect the 
data, must be received by the Commission prior to November 1 of the 
year in which such halibut were harvested.

8. Fishing Periods

    (1) The fishing periods for each regulatory area apply where the 
catch limits specified in section 11 have not been taken.
    (2) Each fishing period in the Area 2A directed commercial fishery 
\2\ shall begin at 0800 hours and terminate at 1800 hours local time on 
June 22, July 6, July 20, August 3, August 17, August 31, September 14, 
and September 28, 2016, unless the Commission specifies otherwise.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ The directed fishery is restricted to waters that are south 
of Point Chehalis, Washington (46[deg]53'30'' N. latitude) under 
regulations promulgated by NMFS and published in the Federal 
Register.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (3) Notwithstanding paragraph (7) of section 11, an incidental 
catch fishery \3\ is authorized during the sablefish seasons in Area 2A 
in accordance with regulations promulgated by NMFS. This fishery will 
occur between 1200 hours local time on March 19 and 1200 hours local 
time on November 7.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ The incidental fishery during the directed, fixed gear 
sablefish season is restricted to waters that are north of Point 
Chehalis, Washington (46[deg]53'30'' N. latitude) under regulations 
promulgated by NMFS at 50 CFR 300.63. Landing restrictions for 
halibut retention in the fixed gear sablefish fishery can be found 
at 50 CFR 660.231.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (4) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), and paragraph (7) of section 11, 
an incidental catch fishery is authorized during salmon troll seasons 
in Area 2A in accordance with regulations promulgated by NMFS. This 
fishery will occur between 1200 hours local time on March 19 and 1200 
hours local time on November 7.
    (5) The fishing period in Areas 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, and 
4E shall begin at 1200 hours local time on March 19 and terminate at 
1200 hours local time on November 7, unless the Commission specifies 
otherwise.
    (6) All commercial fishing for halibut in Areas 2A, 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 
4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, and 4E shall cease at 1200 hours local time on November 
7.

9. Closed Periods

    (1) No person shall engage in fishing for halibut in any regulatory 
area other than during the fishing periods set out in section 8 in 
respect of that area.
    (2) No person shall land or otherwise retain halibut caught outside 
a fishing period applicable to the regulatory area where the halibut 
was taken.
    (3) Subject to paragraphs (7), (8), (9), and (10) of section 19, 
these Regulations do not prohibit fishing for any species of fish other 
than halibut during the closed periods.
    (4) Notwithstanding paragraph (3), no person shall have halibut in 
his/her possession while fishing for any other species of fish during 
the closed periods.
    (5) No vessel shall retrieve any halibut fishing gear during a 
closed period if the vessel has any halibut on board.
    (6) A vessel that has no halibut on board may retrieve any halibut 
fishing gear during the closed period after the operator notifies an 
authorized officer or representative of the Commission prior to that 
retrieval.
    (7) After retrieval of halibut gear in accordance with paragraph 
(6), the vessel shall submit to a hold inspection at the discretion of 
the authorized officer or representative of the Commission.
    (8) No person shall retain any halibut caught on gear retrieved in 
accordance with paragraph (6).
    (9) No person shall possess halibut on board a vessel in a 
regulatory area during a closed period unless that vessel is in 
continuous transit to or within a port in which that halibut may be 
lawfully sold.

10. Closed Area

    All waters in the Bering Sea north of 55[deg]00'00'' N. latitude in 
Isanotski Strait that are enclosed by a line from Cape Sarichef Light 
(54[deg]36'00'' N. latitude, 164[deg]55'42'' W. longitude) to a point 
at 56[deg]20'00'' N. latitude, 168[deg]30'00'' W. longitude; thence to 
a point at 58[deg]21'25'' N. latitude, 163[deg]00'00'' W. longitude; 
thence to Strogonof Point (56[deg]53'18'' N.

[[Page 14009]]

latitude, 158[deg]50'37'' W. longitude); and then along the northern 
coasts of the Alaska Peninsula and Unimak Island to the point of origin 
at Cape Sarichef Light are closed to halibut fishing and no person 
shall fish for halibut therein or have halibut in his/her possession 
while in those waters, except in the course of a continuous transit 
across those waters. All waters in Isanotski Strait between 
55[deg]00'00'' N. latitude and 54[deg]49'00'' N. latitude are closed to 
halibut fishing.

11. Catch Limits

    (1) The total allowable catch of halibut to be taken during the 
halibut fishing periods specified in section 8 shall be limited to the 
net weights expressed in pounds or metric tons shown in the following 
table:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                              Catch limit--net weight
             Regulatory area             -------------------------------
                                              Pounds        Metric tons
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2A: directed commercial, and incidental          227,487           103.2
 commercial catch during salmon troll
 fishery................................
2A: incidental commercial during                  49,686            22.4
 sablefish fishery......................
2B \4\..................................       7,300,000         3,311.3
2C \5\..................................       3,924,000         1,779.9
3A \6\..................................       7,336,000         3,327.6
3B......................................       2,710,000         1,229.2
4A......................................       1,390,000           630.5
4B......................................       1,140,000           517.1
4C......................................         733,600           332.8
4D......................................         733,600           332.8
4E......................................         192,800            87.5
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (2) Notwithstanding  paragraph (1), regulations pertaining to the 
division of the Area 2A catch limit between the directed commercial 
fishery and the incidental catch fishery as described in paragraph (4) 
of section 8 will be promulgated by NMFS and published in the Federal 
Register.
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    \4\ Area 2B includes combined commercial and sport catch limits 
which will be allocated by DFO. See section 27 for sport fishing 
regulations.
    \5\ For the commercial fishery in Area 2C, in addition to the 
catch limit, the estimate of incidental mortality from the 
commercial fishery is 120,000 pounds. This amount is included in the 
combined commercial and guided sport sector catch limit set by IPHC 
and allocated by NMFS by a catch sharing plan.
    \6\ For the commercial fishery in Area 3A, in addition to the 
catch limit, the estimate of incidental mortality from the 
commercial fishery is 450,000 pounds. This amount is included in the 
combined commercial and guided sport sector catch limit set by IPHC 
and allocated by NMFS by a catch sharing plan.
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    (3) The Commission shall determine and announce to the public the 
date on which the catch limit for Area 2A will be taken.
    (4) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the commercial fishing in Area 
2B will close only when all Individual Vessel Quotas (IVQs) assigned by 
DFO are taken, or November 7, whichever is earlier.
    (5) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), Areas 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 
4D, and 4E will each close only when all Individual Fishing Quotas 
(IFQ) and all CDQs issued by NMFS have been taken, or November 7, 
whichever is earlier.
    (6) If the Commission determines that the catch limit specified for 
Area 2A in paragraph (1) would be exceeded in an unrestricted 10-hour 
fishing period as specified in paragraph (2) of section 8, the catch 
limit for that area shall be considered to have been taken unless 
fishing period limits are implemented.
    (7) When under paragraphs (2), (3), and (6) the Commission has 
announced a date on which the catch limit for Area 2A will be taken, no 
person shall fish for halibut in that area after that date for the rest 
of the year, unless the Commission has announced the reopening of that 
area for halibut fishing.
    (8) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the total allowable catch of 
halibut that may be taken in the Area 4E directed commercial fishery is 
equal to the combined annual catch limits specified for the Area 4D and 
Area 4E CDQ fisheries. The annual Area 4D CDQ catch limit will decrease 
by the equivalent amount of halibut CDQ taken in Area 4E in excess of 
the annual Area 4E CDQ catch limit.
    (9) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the total allowable catch of 
halibut that may be taken in the Area 4D directed commercial fishery is 
equal to the combined annual catch limits specified for Area 4C and 
Area 4D. The annual Area 4C catch limit will decrease by the equivalent 
amount of halibut taken in Area 4D in excess of the annual Area 4D 
catch limit.

12. Fishing Period Limits

    (1) It shall be unlawful for any vessel to retain more halibut than 
authorized by that vessel's license in any fishing period for which the 
Commission has announced a fishing period limit.
    (2) The operator of any vessel that fishes for halibut during a 
fishing period when fishing period limits are in effect must, upon 
commencing an offload of halibut to a commercial fish processor, 
completely offload all halibut on board said vessel to that processor 
and ensure that all halibut is weighed and reported on State fish 
tickets.
    (3) The operator of any vessel that fishes for halibut during a 
fishing period when fishing period limits are in effect must, upon 
commencing an offload of halibut other than to a commercial fish 
processor, completely offload all halibut on board said vessel and 
ensure that all halibut are weighed and reported on State fish tickets.
    (4) The provisions of paragraph (3) are not intended to prevent 
retail over-the-side sales to individual purchasers so long as all the 
halibut on board is ultimately offloaded and reported.
    (5) When fishing period limits are in effect, a vessel's maximum 
retainable catch will be determined by the Commission based on:
    (a) The vessel's overall length in feet and associated length 
class;
    (b) the average performance of all vessels within that class; and
    (c) the remaining catch limit.
    (6) Length classes are shown in the following table:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                Vessel
                  Overall length (in feet)                      class
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1-25.......................................................            A
26-30......................................................            B
31-35......................................................            C
36-40......................................................            D
41-45......................................................            E
46-50......................................................            F
51-55......................................................            G
56+........................................................            H
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (7) Fishing period limits in Area 2A apply only to the directed 
halibut fishery referred to in paragraph (2) of section 8.

[[Page 14010]]

13. Size Limits

    (1) No person shall take or possess any halibut that:
    (a) With the head on, is less than 32 inches (81.3 cm) as measured 
in a straight line, passing over the pectoral fin from the tip of the 
lower jaw with the mouth closed, to the extreme end of the middle of 
the tail, as illustrated in Figure 2; or
    (b) with the head removed, is less than 24 inches (61.0 cm) as 
measured from the base of the pectoral fin at its most anterior point 
to the extreme end of the middle of the tail, as illustrated in Figure 
2.
    (2) No person on board a vessel fishing for, or tendering, halibut 
caught in Area 2A shall possess any halibut that has had its head 
removed.

14. Careful Release of Halibut

    (1) All halibut that are caught and are not retained shall be 
immediately released outboard of the roller and returned to the sea 
with a minimum of injury by:
    (a) Hook straightening;
    (b) cutting the gangion near the hook; or
    (c) carefully removing the hook by twisting it from the halibut 
with a gaff.
    (2) Except that paragraph (1) shall not prohibit the possession of 
halibut on board a vessel that has been brought aboard to be measured 
to determine if the minimum size limit of the halibut is met and, if 
sublegal-sized, is promptly returned to the sea with a minimum of 
injury.

15. Vessel Clearance in Area 4

    (1) The operator of any vessel that fishes for halibut in Areas 4A, 
4B, 4C, or 4D must obtain a vessel clearance before fishing in any of 
these areas, and before the landing of any halibut caught in any of 
these areas, unless specifically exempted in paragraphs (10), (13), 
(14), (15), or (16).
    (2) An operator obtaining a vessel clearance required by paragraph 
(1) must obtain the clearance in person from the authorized clearance 
personnel and sign the IPHC form documenting that a clearance was 
obtained, except that when the clearance is obtained via VHF radio 
referred to in paragraphs (5), (8), and (9), the authorized clearance 
personnel must sign the IPHC form documenting that the clearance was 
obtained.
    (3) The vessel clearance required under paragraph (1) prior to 
fishing in Area 4A may be obtained only at Nazan Bay on Atka Island, 
Dutch Harbor or Akutan, Alaska, from an authorized officer of the 
United States, a representative of the Commission, or a designated fish 
processor.
    (4) The vessel clearance required under paragraph (1) prior to 
fishing in Area 4B may only be obtained at Nazan Bay on Atka Island or 
Adak, Alaska, from an authorized officer of the United States, a 
representative of the Commission, or a designated fish processor.
    (5) The vessel clearance required under paragraph (1) prior to 
fishing in Area 4C or 4D may be obtained only at St. Paul or St. 
George, Alaska, from an authorized officer of the United States, a 
representative of the Commission, or a designated fish processor by VHF 
radio and allowing the person contacted to confirm visually the 
identity of the vessel.
    (6) The vessel operator shall specify the specific regulatory area 
in which fishing will take place.
    (7) Before unloading any halibut caught in Area 4A, a vessel 
operator may obtain the clearance required under paragraph (1) only in 
Dutch Harbor or Akutan, Alaska, by contacting an authorized officer of 
the United States, a representative of the Commission, or a designated 
fish processor.
    (8) Before unloading any halibut caught in Area 4B, a vessel 
operator may obtain the clearance required under paragraph (1) only in 
Nazan Bay on Atka Island or Adak, by contacting an authorized officer 
of the United States, a representative of the Commission, or a 
designated fish processor by VHF radio or in person.
    (9) Before unloading any halibut caught in Area 4C and 4D, a vessel 
operator may obtain the clearance required under paragraph (1) only in 
St. Paul, St. George, Dutch Harbor, or Akutan, Alaska, either in person 
or by contacting an authorized officer of the United States, a 
representative of the Commission, or a designated fish processor. The 
clearances obtained in St. Paul or St. George, Alaska, can be obtained 
by VHF radio and allowing the person contacted to confirm visually the 
identity of the vessel.
    (10) Any vessel operator who complies with the requirements in 
section 18 for possessing halibut on board a vessel that was caught in 
more than one regulatory area in Area 4 is exempt from the clearance 
requirements of paragraph (1) of this section, provided that:
    (a) The operator of the vessel obtains a vessel clearance prior to 
fishing in Area 4 in either Dutch Harbor, Akutan, St. Paul, St. George, 
Adak, or Nazan Bay on Atka Island by contacting an authorized officer 
of the United States, a representative of the Commission, or a 
designated fish processor. The clearance obtained in St. Paul, St. 
George, Adak, or Nazan Bay on Atka Island can be obtained by VHF radio 
and allowing the person contacted to confirm visually the identity of 
the vessel. This clearance will list the areas in which the vessel will 
fish; and
    (b) before unloading any halibut from Area 4, the vessel operator 
obtains a vessel clearance from Dutch Harbor, Akutan, St. Paul, St. 
George, Adak, or Nazan Bay on Atka Island by contacting an authorized 
officer of the United States, a representative of the Commission, or a 
designated fish processor. The clearance obtained in St. Paul or St. 
George can be obtained by VHF radio and allowing the person contacted 
to confirm visually the identity of the vessel. The clearance obtained 
in Adak or Nazan Bay on Atka Island can be obtained by VHF radio.
    (11) Vessel clearances shall be obtained between 0600 and 1800 
hours, local time.
    (12) No halibut shall be on board the vessel at the time of the 
clearances required prior to fishing in Area 4.
    (13) Any vessel that is used to fish for halibut only in Area 4A 
and lands its total annual halibut catch at a port within Area 4A is 
exempt from the clearance requirements of paragraph (1).
    (14) Any vessel that is used to fish for halibut only in Area 4B 
and lands its total annual halibut catch at a port within Area 4B is 
exempt from the clearance requirements of paragraph (1).
    (15) Any vessel that is used to fish for halibut only in Area 4C or 
4D or 4E and lands its total annual halibut catch at a port within Area 
4C, 4D, 4E, or the closed area defined in section 10, is exempt from 
the clearance requirements of paragraph (1).
    (16) Any vessel that carries a transmitting VMS transmitter while 
fishing for halibut in Area 4A, 4B, 4C, or 4D and until all halibut 
caught in any of these areas is landed, is exempt from the clearance 
requirements of paragraph (1) of this section, provided that:
    (a) The operator of the vessel complies with NMFS' vessel 
monitoring system regulations published at 50 CFR 679.28(f)(3), (4) and 
(5); and
    (b) the operator of the vessel notifies NOAA Fisheries Office for 
Law Enforcement at 800-304-4846 (select option 1 to speak to an 
Enforcement Data Clerk) between the hours of 0600 and 0000 (midnight) 
local time within 72 hours before fishing for halibut in Area 4A, 4B, 
4C, or 4D and receives a VMS confirmation number.

[[Page 14011]]

16. Logs

    (1) The operator of any U.S. vessel fishing for halibut that has an 
overall length of 26 feet (7.9 meters) or greater shall maintain an 
accurate log of halibut fishing operations. The operator of a vessel 
fishing in waters in and off Alaska must use one of the following 
logbooks: the Groundfish/IFQ Longline and Pot Gear Daily Fishing 
Logbook, in electronic or paper form, provided by NMFS; the Alaska 
hook-and-line logbook provided by Petersburg Vessel Owners Association 
or Alaska Longline Fisherman's Association; the Alaska Department of 
Fish and Game (ADF&G) longline-pot logbook; or the logbook provided by 
IPHC. The operator of a vessel fishing in Area 2A must use either the 
WDFW Voluntary Sablefish Logbook, Oregon Department of Fish and 
Wildlife (ODFW) Fixed Gear Logbook, or the logbook provided by IPHC.
    (2) The logbook referred to in paragraph (1) must include the 
following information:
    (a) The name of the vessel and the State (ADF&G, WDFW, ODFW, or 
CDFW) or Tribal ID number;
    (b) the date(s) upon which the fishing gear is set or retrieved;
    (c) the latitude and longitude coordinates or a direction and 
distance from a point of land for each set or day;
    (d) the number of skates deployed or retrieved, and number of 
skates lost; and
    (e) the total weight or number of halibut retained for each set or 
day.
    (3) The logbook referred to in paragraph (1) shall be:
    (a) Maintained on board the vessel;
    (b) updated not later than 24 hours after 0000 (midnight) local 
time for each day fished and prior to the offloading or sale of halibut 
taken during that fishing trip;
    (c) retained for a period of two years by the owner or operator of 
the vessel;
    (d) open to inspection by an authorized officer or any authorized 
representative of the Commission upon demand; and
    (e) kept on board the vessel when engaged in halibut fishing, 
during transits to port of landing, and until the offloading of all 
halibut is completed.
    (4) The log referred to in paragraph (1) does not apply to the 
incidental halibut fishery during the salmon troll season in Area 2A 
defined in paragraph (4) of section 8.
    (5) The operator of any Canadian vessel fishing for halibut shall 
maintain an accurate log recorded in the British Columbia Integrated 
Groundfish Fishing Log provided by DFO.
    (6) The logbook referred to in paragraph (5) must include the 
following information:
    (a) The name of the vessel and the DFO vessel registration number;
    (b) the date(s) upon which the fishing gear is set and retrieved;
    (c) the latitude and longitude coordinates for each set;
    (d) the number of skates deployed or retrieved, and number of 
skates lost; and
    (e) the total weight or number of halibut retained for each set.
    (7) The logbook referred to in paragraph (5) shall be:
    (a) Maintained on board the vessel;
    (b) retained for a period of two years by the owner or operator of 
the vessel;
    (c) open to inspection by an authorized officer or any authorized 
representative of the Commission upon demand;
    (d) kept on board the vessel when engaged in halibut fishing, 
during transits to port of landing, and until the offloading of all 
halibut is completed;
    (e) mailed to the DFO (white copy) within seven days of offloading; 
and
    (f) mailed to the Commission (yellow copy) within seven days of the 
final offload if not collected by a Commission employee.
    (8) No person shall make a false entry in a log referred to in this 
section.

17. Receipt and Possession of Halibut

    (1) No person shall receive halibut caught in Area 2A from a United 
States vessel that does not have on board the license required by 
section 4.
    (2) No person shall possess on board a vessel a halibut other than 
whole or with gills and entrails removed, except that this paragraph 
shall not prohibit the possession on board a vessel of:
    (a) Halibut cheeks cut from halibut caught by persons authorized to 
process the halibut on board in accordance with NMFS regulations 
published at 50 CFR part 679;
    (b) fillets from halibut offloaded in accordance with section 17 
that are possessed on board the harvesting vessel in the port of 
landing up to 1800 hours local time on the calendar day following the 
offload \7\; and
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    \7\ DFO has more restrictive regulations; therefore, section 17 
paragraph (2)(b) does not apply to fish caught in Area 2B or landed 
in British Columbia.
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    (c) halibut with their heads removed in accordance with section 13.
    (3) No person shall offload halibut from a vessel unless the gills 
and entrails have been removed prior to offloading.
    (4) It shall be the responsibility of a vessel operator who lands 
halibut to continuously and completely offload at a single offload site 
all halibut on board the vessel.
    (5) A registered buyer (as that term is defined in regulations 
promulgated by NMFS and codified at 50 CFR part 679) who receives 
halibut harvested in IFQ and CDQ fisheries in Areas 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 
4C, 4D, and 4E, directly from the vessel operator that harvested such 
halibut must weigh all the halibut received and record the following 
information on Federal catch reports: Date of offload; name of vessel; 
vessel number (State, Tribal or Federal, not IPHC vessel number); scale 
weight obtained at the time of offloading, including the scale weight 
(in pounds) of halibut purchased by the registered buyer, the scale 
weight (in pounds) of halibut offloaded in excess of the IFQ or CDQ, 
the scale weight of halibut (in pounds) retained for personal use or 
for future sale, and the scale weight (in pounds) of halibut discarded 
as unfit for human consumption.
    (6) The first recipient, commercial fish processor, or buyer in the 
United States who purchases or receives halibut directly from the 
vessel operator that harvested such halibut must weigh and record all 
halibut received and record the following information on State fish 
tickets: The date of offload; vessel number (State or Federal, not IPHC 
vessel number) or Tribal ID number; total weight obtained at the time 
of offload including the weight (in pounds) of halibut purchased; the 
weight (in pounds) of halibut offloaded in excess of the IFQ, CDQ, or 
fishing period limits; the weight of halibut (in pounds) retained for 
personal use or for future sale; and the weight (in pounds) of halibut 
discarded as unfit for human consumption.
    (7) The individual completing the State fish tickets for the Area 
2A fisheries as referred to in paragraph (6) must additionally record 
whether the halibut weight is of head-on or head-off fish.
    (8) For halibut landings made in Alaska, the requirements as listed 
in paragraphs (5) and (6) can be met by recording the information in 
the Interagency Electronic Reporting Systems, eLandings in accordance 
with NMFS regulation published at 50 CFR part 679.
    (9) The master or operator of a Canadian vessel that was engaged in 
halibut fishing must weigh and record all halibut on board said vessel 
at the time offloading commences and record on Provincial fish tickets 
or Federal catch reports the date; locality; name of vessel; the 
name(s) of the person(s) from whom the halibut was purchased; and the 
scale weight obtained at the time of

[[Page 14012]]

offloading of all halibut on board the vessel including the pounds 
purchased, pounds in excess of IVQs, pounds retained for personal use, 
and pounds discarded as unfit for human consumption.
    (10) No person shall make a false entry on a State or Provincial 
fish ticket or a Federal catch or landing report referred to in 
paragraphs (5), (6), and (9) of section 17.
    (11) A copy of the fish tickets or catch reports referred to in 
paragraphs (5), (6), and (9) shall be:
    (a) Retained by the person making them for a period of three years 
from the date the fish tickets or catch reports are made; and
    (b) open to inspection by an authorized officer or any authorized 
representative of the Commission.
    (12) No person shall possess any halibut taken or retained in 
contravention of these Regulations.
    (13) When halibut are landed to other than a commercial fish 
processor, the records required by paragraph (6) shall be maintained by 
the operator of the vessel from which that halibut was caught, in 
compliance with paragraph (11).
    (14) No person shall tag halibut unless the tagging is authorized 
by IPHC permit or by a Federal or State agency.

18. Fishing Multiple Regulatory Areas

    (1) Except as provided in this section, no person shall possess at 
the same time on board a vessel halibut caught in more than one 
regulatory area.
    (2) Halibut caught in more than one of the Regulatory Areas 2C, 3A, 
or 3B may be possessed on board a vessel at the same time, provided the 
operator of the vessel:
    (a) Has a NMFS-certified observer on board when required by NMFS 
regulations \8\ published at 50 CFR 679.7(f)(4); and
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    \8\ Without an observer, a vessel cannot have on board more 
halibut than the IFQ for the area that is being fished, even if some 
of the catch occurred earlier in a different area.
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    (b) can identify the regulatory area in which each halibut on board 
was caught by separating halibut from different areas in the hold, 
tagging halibut, or by other means.
    (3) Halibut caught in more than one of the Regulatory Areas 4A, 4B, 
4C, or 4D may be possessed on board a vessel at the same time, provided 
the operator of the vessel:
    (a) Has a NMFS-certified observer on board the vessel as required 
by NMFS regulations published at 50 CFR 679.7(f)(4); or has an 
operational VMS on board actively transmitting in all regulatory areas 
fished and does not possess at any time more halibut on board the 
vessel than the IFQ permit holders on board the vessel have 
cumulatively available for any single Area 4 regulatory area fished; 
and
    (b) can identify the regulatory area in which each halibut on board 
was caught by separating halibut from different areas in the hold, 
tagging halibut, or by other means.
    (4) If halibut from Area 4 are on board the vessel, the vessel can 
have halibut caught in Regulatory Areas 2C, 3A, and 3B on board if in 
compliance with paragraph (2).

19. Fishing Gear

    (1) No person shall fish for halibut using any gear other than hook 
and line gear,
    (a) except that vessels licensed to catch sablefish in Area 2B 
using sablefish trap gear as defined in the Condition of Sablefish 
Licence can retain halibut caught as bycatch under regulations 
promulgated by DFO; or
    (b) except that a person may retain halibut taken with longline pot 
gear in the sablefish IFQ fishery if such retention is authorized by 
NMFS regulations published at 50 CFR part 679.
    (2) No person shall possess halibut taken with any gear other than 
hook and line gear,
    (a) except that vessels licensed to catch sablefish in Area 2B 
using sablefish trap gear as defined by the Condition of Sablefish 
Licence can retain halibut caught as bycatch under regulations 
promulgated by DFO; or
    (b) except that a person may possess halibut taken with longline 
pot gear in the sablefish IFQ fishery if such possession is authorized 
by NMFS regulations published at 50 CFR part 679.
    (3) No person shall possess halibut while on board a vessel 
carrying any trawl nets or fishing pots capable of catching halibut,
    (a) except that in Areas 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, or 4E, halibut 
heads, skin, entrails, bones or fins for use as bait may be possessed 
on board a vessel carrying pots capable of catching halibut, provided 
that a receipt documenting purchase or transfer of these halibut parts 
is on board the vessel; or
    (b) except that in Areas 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, or 4E, halibut 
may be possessed on board a vessel carrying pots capable of catching 
halibut, provided such possession is authorized by NMFS regulations 
published at 50 CFR part 679 as referenced in paragraphs (1) and (2) of 
this section; or
    (c) except that in Area 2B, halibut may be possessed on board a 
vessel carrying sablefish trap gear, provided such possession is 
authorized by the Condition of Licence regulations promulgated by DFO 
as referenced in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this section.
    (4) All setline or skate marker buoys carried on board or used by 
any United States vessel used for halibut fishing shall be marked with 
one of the following:
    (a) The vessel's State license number; or
    (b) the vessel's registration number.
    (5) The markings specified in paragraph (4) shall be in characters 
at least four inches in height and one-half inch in width in a 
contrasting color visible above the water and shall be maintained in 
legible condition.
    (6) All setline or skate marker buoys carried on board or used by a 
Canadian vessel used for halibut fishing shall be:
    (a) Floating and visible on the surface of the water; and
    (b) legibly marked with the identification plate number of the 
vessel engaged in commercial fishing from which that setline is being 
operated.
    (7) No person on board a vessel used to fish for any species of 
fish anywhere in Area 2A during the 72-hour period immediately before 
the fishing period for the directed commercial fishery shall catch or 
possess halibut anywhere in those waters during that halibut fishing 
period unless, prior to the start of the halibut fishing period, the 
vessel has removed its gear from the water and has either:
    (a) Made a landing and completely offloaded its catch of other 
fish; or
    (b) submitted to a hold inspection by an authorized officer.
    (8) No vessel used to fish for any species of fish anywhere in Area 
2A during the 72-hour period immediately before the fishing period for 
the directed commercial fishery may be used to catch or possess halibut 
anywhere in those waters during that halibut fishing period unless, 
prior to the start of the halibut fishing period, the vessel has 
removed its gear from the water and has either:
    (a) Made a landing and completely offloaded its catch of other 
fish; or
    (b) submitted to a hold inspection by an authorized officer.
    (9) No person on board a vessel from which setline gear was used to 
fish for any species of fish anywhere in Areas 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 
4C, 4D, or 4E during the 72-hour period immediately before the opening 
of the halibut fishing season shall catch or possess halibut anywhere 
in those areas until the vessel

[[Page 14013]]

has removed all of its setline gear from the water and has either:
    (a) Made a landing and completely offloaded its entire catch of 
other fish; or
    (b) submitted to a hold inspection by an authorized officer.
    (10) No vessel from which setline gear was used to fish for any 
species of fish anywhere in Areas 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, or 4E 
during the 72-hour period immediately before the opening of the halibut 
fishing season may be used to catch or possess halibut anywhere in 
those areas until the vessel has removed all of its setline gear from 
the water and has either:
    (a) Made a landing and completely offloaded its entire catch of 
other fish; or
    (b) submitted to a hold inspection by an authorized officer.
    (11) Notwithstanding any other provision in these Regulations, a 
person may retain, possess and dispose of halibut taken with trawl gear 
only as authorized by Prohibited Species Donation regulations of NMFS.

20. Supervision of Unloading and Weighing

    The unloading and weighing of halibut may be subject to the 
supervision of authorized officers to assure the fulfillment of the 
provisions of these Regulations.

21. Retention of Tagged Halibut

    (1) Nothing contained in these Regulations prohibits any vessel at 
any time from retaining and landing a halibut that bears a Commission 
external tag at the time of capture, if the halibut with the tag still 
attached is reported at the time of landing and made available for 
examination by a representative of the Commission or by an authorized 
officer.
    (2) After examination and removal of the tag by a representative of 
the Commission or an authorized officer, the halibut:
    (a) May be retained for personal use; or
    (b) may be sold only if the halibut is caught during commercial 
halibut fishing and complies with the other commercial fishing 
provisions of these Regulations.
    (3) Any halibut that bears a Commission external tag must count 
against commercial IVQs, CDQs, or IFQs, unless otherwise exempted by 
State, Provincial, or Federal regulations.
    (4) Any halibut that bears a Commission external tag will not count 
against sport daily bag limits or possession limits, may be retained 
outside of sport fishing seasons, and are not subject to size limits in 
these regulations.
    (5) Any halibut that bears a Commission external tag will not count 
against daily bag limits, possession limits, or catch limits in the 
fisheries described in section 22, paragraph (7), section 23, or 
section 24.

22. Fishing by United States Treaty Indian Tribes

    (1) Halibut fishing in Subarea 2A-1 by members of United States 
treaty Indian tribes located in the State of Washington shall be 
regulated under regulations promulgated by NMFS and published in the 
Federal Register.
    (2) Subarea 2A-1 includes all waters off the coast of Washington 
that are north of the Quinault River, WA, (47[deg]21.00' N. lat.) and 
east of 125[deg]44.00' W. long; all waters off the coast of Washington 
that are between the Quinault River, WA (47[deg]21.00' N. lat.) and 
Point Chehalis, WA, (46[deg]53.30' N. lat.) and east of 125[deg]08.50' 
W. long.; and all inland marine waters of Washington.
    (3) Section 13 (size limits), section 14 (careful release of 
halibut), section 16 (logs), section 17 (receipt and possession of 
halibut) and section 19 (fishing gear), except paragraphs (7) and (8) 
of section 19, apply to commercial fishing for halibut in Subarea 2A-1 
by the treaty Indian tribes.
    (4) Regulations in paragraph (3) of this section that apply to 
State fish tickets apply to Tribal tickets that are authorized by WDFW.
    (5) Section 4 (Licensing Vessels for Area 2A) does not apply to 
commercial fishing for halibut in Subarea 2A-1 by treaty Indian tribes.
    (6) Commercial fishing for halibut in Subarea 2A-1 is permitted 
with hook and line gear from March 19 through November 7, or until 
365,100 pounds (165.6 metric tons) net weight is taken, whichever 
occurs first.
    (7) Ceremonial and subsistence fishing for halibut in Subarea 2A-1 
is permitted with hook and line gear from January 1 through December 
31, and is estimated to take 33,900 pounds (15.4 metric tons) net 
weight.

23. Customary and Traditional Fishing in Alaska

    (1) Customary and traditional fishing for halibut in Regulatory 
Areas 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, and 4E shall be governed pursuant to 
regulations promulgated by NMFS and published in 50 CFR part 300.
    (2) Customary and traditional fishing is authorized from January 1 
through December 31.

24. Aboriginal Groups Fishing for Food, Social and Ceremonial Purposes 
in British Columbia

    (1) Fishing for halibut for food, social and ceremonial purposes by 
Aboriginal groups in Regulatory Area 2B shall be governed by the 
Fisheries Act of Canada and regulations as amended from time to time.

25. Sport Fishing for Halibut--General

    (1) No person shall engage in sport fishing for halibut using gear 
other than a single line with no more than two hooks attached; or a 
spear.
    (2) Any minimum overall size limit promulgated under IPHC or NMFS 
regulations shall be measured in a straight line passing over the 
pectoral fin from the tip of the lower jaw with the mouth closed, to 
the extreme end of the middle of the tail.
    (3) Any halibut brought aboard a vessel and not immediately 
returned to the sea with a minimum of injury will be included in the 
daily bag limit of the person catching the halibut.
    (4) No person may possess halibut on a vessel while fishing in a 
closed area.
    (5) No halibut caught by sport fishing shall be offered for sale, 
sold, traded, or bartered.
    (6) No halibut caught in sport fishing shall be possessed on board 
a vessel when other fish or shellfish aboard said vessel are destined 
for commercial use, sale, trade, or barter.
    (7) The operator of a charter vessel shall be liable for any 
violations of these Regulations committed by an angler on board said 
vessel. In Alaska, the charter vessel guide, as defined in 50 CFR 
300.61 and referred to in 50 CFR 300.65, 300.66, and 300.67, shall be 
liable for any violation of these Regulations committed by an angler on 
board a charter vessel.

26. Sport Fishing for Halibut--Area 2A

    (1) The total allowable catch of halibut shall be limited to:
    (a) 214,110 Pounds (97.1 metric tons) net weight in waters off 
Washington;
    (b) 220,077 pounds (99.8 metric tons) net weight in waters off 
Oregon; and
    (c) 29,640 pounds (13.4 metric tons) net weight in waters off 
California.
    (2) The Commission shall determine and announce closing dates to 
the public for any area in which the catch limits promulgated by NMFS 
are estimated to have been taken.
    (3) When the Commission has determined that a subquota under 
paragraph (8) of this section is estimated to have been taken, and has 
announced a date on which the season will close, no person shall sport 
fish for halibut in

[[Page 14014]]

that area after that date for the rest of the year, unless a reopening 
of that area for sport halibut fishing is scheduled in accordance with 
the Catch Sharing Plan for Area 2A, or announced by the Commission.
    (4) In California, Oregon, or Washington, no person shall fillet, 
mutilate, or otherwise disfigure a halibut in any manner that prevents 
the determination of minimum size or the number of fish caught, 
possessed, or landed.
    (5) The possession limit on a vessel for halibut in the waters off 
the coast of Washington is the same as the daily bag limit. The 
possession limit on land in Washington for halibut caught in U.S. 
waters off the coast of Washington is two halibut.
    (6) The possession limit on a vessel for halibut caught in the 
waters off the coast of Oregon is the same as the daily bag limit. The 
possession limit for halibut on land in Oregon is three daily bag 
limits.
    (7) The possession limit on a vessel for halibut caught in the 
waters off the coast of California is one halibut. The possession limit 
for halibut on land in California is one halibut.
    (8) [The Area 2A CSP will be published under a separate final rule 
that, once published, will be available on the NOAA Fisheries West 
Coast Region's Web site at http://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/fisheries/management/pacific_halibut_management.html, and under FDMS 
Docket Number NOAA-NMFS-2015-0166 at www.regulations.gov.]

27. Sport Fishing for Halibut--Area 2B

    (1) In all waters off British Columbia: 9 10
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \9\ DFO could implement more restrictive regulations for the 
sport fishery; therefore, anglers are advised to check the current 
Federal or Provincial regulations prior to fishing.
    \10\ For regulations on the experimental recreational fishery 
implemented by DFO, check the current Federal or Provincial 
regulations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (a) The sport fishing season will open on February 1 unless more 
restrictive regulations are in place; \9\
    (b) the sport fishing season will close when the sport catch limit 
allocated by DFO, is taken, or December 31, whichever is earlier; and
    (c) the daily bag limit is two halibut of any size per day per 
person.
    (2) In British Columbia, no person shall fillet, mutilate, or 
otherwise disfigure a halibut in any manner that prevents the 
determination of minimum size or the number of fish caught, possessed, 
or landed.
    (3) The possession limit for halibut in the waters off the coast of 
British Columbia is three halibut.9 10

28. Sport Fishing for Halibut--Areas 2C, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E

    (1) In Convention waters in and off Alaska: 11 12
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \11\ NMFS could implement more restrictive regulations for the 
sport fishery or components of it; therefore, anglers are advised to 
check the current Federal or State regulations prior to fishing.
    \12\ Charter vessels are prohibited from harvesting halibut in 
Areas 2C and 3A during one charter vessel fishing trip under 
regulations promulgated by NMFS at 50 CFR 300.66.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (a) The sport fishing season is from February 1 to December 31.
    (b) The daily bag limit is two halibut of any size per day per 
person unless a more restrictive bag limit applies in Commission 
regulations or Federal regulations at 50 CFR 300.65.
    (c) No person may possess more than two daily bag limits.
    (d) No person shall possess on board a vessel, including charter 
vessels and pleasure craft used for fishing, halibut that have been 
filleted, mutilated, or otherwise disfigured in any manner, except that 
each halibut may be cut into no more than 2 ventral pieces, 2 dorsal 
pieces, and 2 cheek pieces, with skin on all pieces.\13\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \13\ Additional regulations governing use of GAF are at 50 CFR 
300.65.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (e) Halibut in excess of the possession limit in paragraph (1)(c) 
of this section may be possessed on a vessel that does not contain 
sport fishing gear, fishing rods, hand lines, or gaffs.
    (f) All halibut harvested on a charter vessel fishing trip in Area 
2C or Area 3A must be retained on board the charter vessel on which the 
halibut was caught until the end of the charter vessel fishing trip as 
defined at 50 CFR 300.61.
    (g) Guided angler fish (GAF), as described at 50 CFR 300.65, may be 
used to allow a charter vessel angler to harvest additional halibut up 
to the limits in place for unguided anglers, and are exempt from the 
requirements in paragraphs 2 and 3 of this section.\13\
    (2) For guided sport fishing (as referred to in 50 CFR 300.65) in 
Regulatory Area 2C:
    (a) The total catch allocation, including an estimate of incidental 
mortality (wastage), is 906,000 pounds (411.0 metric tons).
    (b) No person on board a charter vessel (as referred to in 50 CFR 
300.65) shall catch and retain more than one halibut per calendar day.
    (c) No person on board a charter vessel (as referred to in 50 CFR 
300.65) shall catch and retain any halibut that with head on is greater 
than 43 inches (109 cm) and less than 80 inches (203 cm) as measured in 
a straight line, passing over the pectoral fin from the tip of the 
lower jaw with mouth closed, to the extreme end of the middle of the 
tail, as illustrated in Figure 3.
    (3) For guided sport fishing (as referred to in 50 CFR 300.65) in 
Regulatory Area 3A:
    (a) The total catch allocation, including an estimate of incidental 
mortality (wastage), is 1,814,000 pounds (822.8 metric tons).
    (b) No person on board a charter vessel (as referred to in 50 CFR 
300.65) shall catch and retain more than two halibut per calendar day.
    (c) At least one of the retained halibut must have a head-on length 
of no more than 28 inches (71 cm) as measured in a straight line, 
passing over the pectoral fin from the tip of the lower jaw with mouth 
closed, to the extreme end of the middle of the tail, as illustrated in 
Figure 4. If a person sport fishing on a charter vessel in Area 3A 
retains only one halibut in a calendar day, that halibut may be of any 
length.
    (d) A charter halibut permit may only be used for one charter 
vessel fishing trip in which halibut are caught and retained per 
calendar day. A charter vessel fishing trip is defined at 50 CFR 300.61 
as the time period between the first deployment of fishing gear into 
the water by a charter vessel angler (as defined at 50 CFR 300.61) and 
the offloading of one or more charter vessel anglers or any halibut 
from that vessel. For purposes of this trip limit, a charter vessel 
fishing trip ends at 11:59 p.m. (Alaska local time) on the same 
calendar day that the fishing trip began, or when any anglers or 
halibut are offloaded, whichever comes first.\13\
    (e) A charter vessel on which one or more anglers catch and retain 
halibut may only make one charter vessel fishing trip per calendar day. 
A charter vessel fishing trip is defined at 50 CFR 300.61 as the time 
period between the first deployment of fishing gear into the water by a 
charter vessel angler (as defined at 50 CFR 300.61) and the offloading 
of one or more charter vessel anglers or any halibut from that vessel. 
For purposes of this trip limit, a charter vessel fishing trip ends at 
11:59 p.m. (Alaska local time) on the same calendar day that the 
fishing trip began, or when any anglers or halibut are offloaded, 
whichever comes first.\13\
    (f) No person on board a charter vessel may catch and retain 
halibut on Wednesdays.\13\
    (g) Charter vessel anglers may catch and retain no more than four 
(4) halibut per calendar year on board charter vessels in Area 3A. 
Halibut that are retained as GAF, retained while on a charter vessel 
fishing trip in other Commission regulatory areas, or retained while 
fishing without the

[[Page 14015]]

services of a guide do not accrue toward the 4-fish annual limit. For 
purposes of enforcing the annual limit, each angler must:
    (1) Maintain a nontransferable harvest record in the angler's 
possession if retaining a halibut for which an annual limit has been 
established. Such harvest record must be maintained either on the back 
of the angler's State of Alaska sport fishing license or on a Sport 
Fishing Harvest Record Card obtained, without charge, from ADF&G 
offices, the ADF&G Web site, or fishing license vendors; and
    (2) immediately upon retaining a halibut for which an annual limit 
has been established, record the date, location (Area 3A), and species 
of the catch (halibut), in ink, on the harvest record; and
    (3) record the information required by paragraph 3(g)(2) on any 
duplicate or additional sport fishing license issued to the angler or 
any duplicate or additional Sport Fishing Harvest Record Card obtained 
by the angler for all halibut previously retained during that year that 
were subject to the harvest record reporting requirements of this 
section; and
    (4) carry the harvest record on his or her person while fishing for 
halibut.

29. Previous Regulations Superseded

    These Regulations shall supersede all previous regulations of the 
Commission, and these Regulations shall be effective each succeeding 
year until superseded.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR16MR16.000


[[Page 14016]]


[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR16MR16.001

Classification

IPHC Regulations

    These IPHC annual management measures are a product of an agreement 
between the United States and Canada and are published in the Federal 
Register to provide notice of their effectiveness and content. Pursuant 
to section 4 of the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982, 16 U.S.C. 
773c, the Secretary of State, with the concurrence of the Secretary of 
Commerce, may ``accept or reject'' but not modify these recommendations 
of the IPHC. The notice-and-comment and delay-in-effectiveness date 
provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. 553(c) 
and (d), are inapplicable to IPHC management measures because this 
regulation involves a foreign affairs function of the United States, 5 
U.S.C. 553(a)(1). The additional time necessary to comply with the 
notice-and-comment and delay-in-effectiveness requirements of the APA 
would disrupt coordinated international conservation and management of 
the halibut fishery pursuant to the Convention. Furthermore, no other 
law requires prior

[[Page 14017]]

notice and public comment for this rule. Because prior notice and an 
opportunity for public comment are not required to be provided for 
these portions of this rule by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other law, the 
analytical requirements of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601 
et seq., are not applicable. Accordingly, no Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis is required for this portion of the rule and none has been 
prepared.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq.

    Dated: March 11, 2016.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-05948 Filed 3-14-16; 4:15 pm]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P