[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 201 (Thursday, October 17, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 55507-55508]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-22601]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

[Docket No. 180117042-8884-02]
RIN 0648-XT026


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna 
Fisheries

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.

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SUMMARY: NMFS closes the Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) General category 
fishery for the October through November subquota period until the 
General category reopens on December 1, 2019. The intent of this 
closure is to prevent overharvest of the adjusted October through 
November subquota.

DATES: Effective 11:30 p.m., local time, October 13, 2019, through 
November 30, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah McLaughlin or Nicholas 
Velseboer, 978-281-9260, or Larry Redd, 301-427-8503.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations implemented under the authority 
of the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act (ATCA; 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.) and 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) governing the harvest of BFT by 
persons and vessels subject to U.S. jurisdiction are found at 50 CFR 
part 635. Section 635.27 subdivides the U.S. BFT quota recommended by 
the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas 
(ICCAT) among the various domestic fishing categories, per the 
allocations established in the 2006 Consolidated Highly Migratory 
Species Fishery Management Plan (2006 Consolidated HMS FMP) (71 FR 
58058, October 2, 2006) and amendments.
    NMFS is required, under regulations at Sec.  635.28(a)(1), to file 
a closure notice for publication with the Office of the Federal 
Register when a BFT quota (or subquota) is reached or is projected to 
be reached. On and after the effective date and time of such 
notification, for the remainder of the fishing year or for a specified 
period as indicated in the notification, retaining, possessing, or 
landing BFT under that quota category is prohibited until the opening 
of the subsequent quota period or until such date as specified in the 
notice.
    The current baseline General category quota is 555.7 mt. See Sec.  
635.27(a). Each of the General category time periods (January, June 
through August, September, October through November, and December) is 
allocated a ``subquota'' or portion of the annual General category 
quota. The baseline subquotas for each time period are as follows: 29.5 
mt for January; 277.9 mt for June through August; 147.3 mt for 
September; 72.2 mt for October through November; and 28.9 mt for 
December. Any unused General category quota rolls forward within the 
fishing year, which coincides with the calendar year, from one time 
period to the next, and is available for use in subsequent time 
periods. To date for 2019, NMFS has taken seven actions that resulted 
in adjustments to the Reserve category, leaving 65.3 mt of quota 
currently available (84 FR 3724, February 13, 2019; 84 FR 6701, 
February 28, 2019; 84 FR 35340, July 23, 2019; 84 FR 47440, September 
10, 2019; 84 FR 48566, September 16, 2019; and 84 FR 52806, October 3, 
2019).

Closure of the October Through November 2019 General Category Fishery

    NMFS previously adjusted the subquota for the October through 
November time period to 172.2 mt (84 FR 52806, October 3, 2019). Based 
on the best available bluefin tuna General category landings 
information (i.e., 147.5 mt landed as of October 10, 2019) as well as 
average catch rates and anticipated fishing conditions, NMFS projects 
that the adjusted General category October through November subquota 
will be reached by October 13, 2019, and that the fishery should be 
closed. Through this action, we are closing the General category 
bluefin tuna fishery effective 11:30 p.m., October 13, 2019, through 
November 30, 2019. Therefore, retaining, possessing, or landing large 
medium or giant BFT by persons aboard vessels permitted in the Atlantic 
tunas General and HMS Charter/Headboat categories must cease at 11:30 
p.m. local time on October 13, 2019. The General category will reopen 
automatically on December 1, 2019, for the December 2019 subquota 
period. This action applies to those vessels permitted in the General 
category, as well as to those HMS Charter/Headboat permitted vessels 
with a commercial sale endorsement when fishing commercially for BFT. 
For information regarding the HMS Charter/Headboat commercial sale 
endorsement, see 82 FR 57543, December 6, 2017. The intent of this 
closure is to prevent overharvest of the available General category 
October through November BFT subquota.
    Fishermen may catch and release (or tag and release) BFT of all 
sizes, subject to the requirements of the catch-and-release and tag-
and-release programs at Sec.  635.26. All BFT that are released must be 
handled in a manner that will maximize their survival, and without 
removing the fish from the water, consistent with requirements at Sec.  
635.21(a)(1). For additional information on safe handling, see the 
``Careful Catch and Release'' brochure available at www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/.
    Although NMFS previously adjusted the quota for the December 2019 
subquota period to 9.4 mt in an inseason

[[Page 55508]]

quota transfer to the January 2019 subquota period, NMFS would consider 
a potential quota transfer from the Reserve to the General category for 
the December subquota period, prior to December 1, after reviewing the 
best available 2019 landings information to date.

Monitoring and Reporting

    NMFS will continue to monitor the BFT fishery closely. Dealers are 
required to submit landing reports within 24 hours of a dealer 
receiving BFT. Late reporting by dealers compromises NMFS' ability to 
timely implement actions such as quota and retention limit adjustment, 
as well as closures, and may result in enforcement actions. 
Additionally, and separate from the dealer reporting requirement, 
General and HMS Charter/Headboat category vessel owners are required to 
report the catch of all BFT retained or discarded dead within 24 hours 
of the landing(s) or end of each trip, by accessing 
hmspermits.noaa.gov, using the HMS Catch Reporting app, or calling 
(888) 872-8862 (Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.).
    Depending on the level of fishing effort and catch rates of BFT, 
NMFS may determine that additional action (e.g., quota adjustment, 
daily retention limit adjustment, or closure) is necessary to ensure 
available subquotas are not exceeded or to enhance scientific data 
collection from, and fishing opportunities in, all geographic areas. If 
needed, subsequent adjustments will be published in the Federal 
Register. In addition, fishermen may call the Atlantic Tunas 
Information Line at (978) 281-9260, or access hmspermits.noaa.gov, for 
updates on quota monitoring and inseason adjustments.

Classification

    The Assistant Administrator for NMFS (AA) finds that it is 
impracticable and contrary to the public interest to provide prior 
notice of, and an opportunity for public comment on, this action for 
the following reasons:
    The regulations implementing the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP and 
amendments provide for inseason quota transfers and fishery closures to 
respond to the unpredictable nature of BFT availability on the fishing 
grounds, the migratory nature of this species, and the regional 
variations in the BFT fishery. These fisheries are currently underway 
and the currently available quota for the subcategory is projected to 
be reached shortly. Affording prior notice and opportunity for public 
comment to implement the quota transfer is impracticable and contrary 
to the public interest as such a delay would likely result in 
exceedance of the General category October through November fishery 
subquota or earlier closure of the fishery while fish are available on 
the fishing grounds. Subquota exceedance may result in the need to 
reduce quota for the General category later in the year and thus could 
affect later fishing opportunities. Therefore, the AA finds good cause 
under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive prior notice and the opportunity for 
public comment. For all of the above reasons, there also is good cause 
under 5 U.S.C. 553(d) to waive the 30-day delay in effectiveness.
    This action is being taken under Sec. Sec.  635.27(a)(9) and 
635.28(a)(1), and is exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 1801 et seq.

    Dated: October 10, 2019.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-22601 Filed 10-11-19; 4:15 pm]
 BILLING CODE 3510-22-P