[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 146 (Wednesday, July 29, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 45571-45573]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16446]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

RIN 0648-BJ18


Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
Provisions; Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Amendment 21 
to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management 
Plan

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

ACTION: Notice of Availability of proposed fishery management plan 
amendment; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council has submitted 
Amendment 21 to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery 
Management Plan to NMFS. Amendment 21 proposes revisions to the summer 
flounder commercial state quota allocation percentages and the fishery 
management plan goals and objectives. Amendment 21 is intended to 
increase equity in state allocations when annual coastwide commercial 
quotas are at or above historical averages, while recognizing the 
economic reliance coastal communities have on the state allocation 
percentages currently in place.

DATES: Public comments must be received on or before September 28, 
2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by 
NOAA-NMFS-2020-0107, by the following method:
     Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking Portal.
    1. Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2020-0107;
    2. Click the ``Comment Now!'' icon and complete the required 
fields; and
    3. Enter or attach your comments.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by us. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender will be publicly accessible. We will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).
    Copies of Amendment 21, including the Environmental Impact 
Statement, the Regulatory Impact Review, and the Initial Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis (EIS/RIR/IRFA) prepared in support of this action 
are available from Dr. Christopher M. Moore, Executive Director, Mid-
Atlantic Fishery Management Council, Suite 201, 800 North State Street, 
Dover, DE 19901. The supporting documents are also accessible via the 
internet at: http://www.mafmc.org.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Keiley, Fishery Policy Analyst, 
(978) 281-9116, or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    The summer flounder fishery is managed cooperatively under the 
provisions of the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery 
Management Plan (FMP) developed by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 
Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, in 
consultation with the New England Fishery Management Council. The 
management unit specified in the FMP includes summer flounder 
(Paralichthys dentatus) in U.S. waters of the Atlantic Ocean from the 
southern border of North Carolina northward to the U.S./

[[Page 45572]]

Canada border. States manage summer flounder within 3 nautical miles 
(4.83 km) of their coasts, under the Commission's plan for summer 
flounder. The Federal summer flounder regulations govern fishing in 
Federal waters of the Exclusive Economic Zone (3 to 200 nautical miles, 
4.83 km to 160.93 km offshore), as well as vessels possessing a summer 
flounder moratorium permit, regardless of where they fish.
    On September 16, 2014 (79 FR 55432), the Council published a notice 
of intent (NOI) to prepare an EIS for Amendment 21 to consider, in 
coordination with the Commission: (1) Performing a comprehensive review 
of all aspects of the FMP related to summer flounder; (2) updating the 
FMP goals and objectives for summer flounder management; and (3) 
modifying management strategies and measures as necessary to achieve 
those goals and objectives. The Council and Commission held scoping 
meetings during September and October of 2014 to solicit comments from 
the public regarding the range of commercial and recreational summer 
flounder management issues should be considered in the amendment.
    On March 29, 2018 (83 FR 13478), the Council published a 
supplemental NOI announcing that the scope of the amendment would be 
narrowed to include only commercial summer flounder management 
considerations. Due to ongoing revisions to the recreational data by 
the Marine Recreational Information Program, the Council and Commission 
chose to delay development of any issues that would rely heavily on 
recreational data. This includes quota allocation between the 
commercial and recreational sectors as well as recreational management 
measures and strategies. The supplemental NOI identified that the 
commercial fishery-focused amendment would consider revisions to:
     Current qualification criteria for Federal moratorium 
permit holders;
     Current state-by-state allocation of commercial quota;
     List of frameworkable items in the FMP; and
     FMP goals and objectives for summer flounder.
    On August 17, 2018 (83 FR 41072), the Environmental Protection 
Agency announced the public comment period for the Amendment 21 draft 
environmental impact statement (DEIS). The public comment period 
extended until October 12, 2018. During that time, the Council and 
Commission held public hearings on the DEIS in Old Lyme, Connecticut; 
Washington, North Carolina; Dover, Delaware; Newport News, Virginia; 
Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts; Narragansett, Rhode Island; Toms River, 
New Jersey; Berlin, Maryland; Stony Brook, New York; and via webinar.
    The Council adopted Amendment 21 on March 6, 2019, and submitted 
the amendment to us for review on March 17, 2020.

Proposed State-by-State Allocation Approach

    Amendment 21 would modify the state-by-state commercial quota 
allocations when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million lb (4,332 
mt). When the coastwide quota is 9.55 million lb (4,332 mt) or less the 
quota would be distributed according to the current allocations. In 
years when the coastwide quota exceeds 9.55 million lb (4,332 mt) any 
additional quota, beyond this trigger, would be distributed in equal 
shares to all states except Maine, Delaware, and New Hampshire, which 
would split 1 percent of the additional quota.

              Table 1--Proposed State-by-State Allocations
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                      Allocation of      Allocation of
                                      baseline quota    additional quota
               State                  <=9.55 mil lb     beyond 9.55 mil
                                        (percent)         lb (percent)
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ME................................            0.04756              0.333
NH................................            0.00046              0.333
MA................................            6.82046             12.375
RI................................           15.68298             12.375
CT................................            2.25708             12.375
NY................................            7.64699             12.375
NJ................................           16.72499             12.375
DE................................            0.01779              0.333
MD................................            2.03910             12.375
VA................................           21.31676             12.375
NC................................           27.44584             12.375
                                   -------------------------------------
    Total.........................                100                100
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Revised Summer Flounder FMP Goals and Objectives

    The original FMP objectives were adopted via Amendment 2 to the 
Summer Flounder FMP in 1993 and have remained unchanged since that 
time. Amendment 21 revises the FMP goals and objectives. While the 
current FMP contains only management objectives, the proposed revisions 
contain three overarching goals linked to more specific objectives. The 
revised goals include: (1) Ensuring sustainability, of both the summer 
flounder stock and fishery; (2) increasing the effectiveness of 
management measures, through partnerships, enforcement, and data 
collection; and, (3) optimization of the social and economic benefits 
from the summer flounder stock. Additional information on these changes 
can be found in the FEIS.

Public Comment Instructions

    The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act allows 
us to approve, partially approve, or disapprove measures recommended by 
the Council in an amendment based on whether the measures are 
consistent with the fishery management plan, plan amendment, the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act and its National Standards, and other applicable 
law. The Council develops policy for its fisheries and we defer to the 
Council on policy decisions unless those policies are inconsistent with 
the Magnuson-Steven Act or other applicable law. As such, we are 
seeking comment on whether measures in

[[Page 45573]]

Amendment 21 are consistent with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black 
Sea Bass FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Act and its National Standards, and 
other applicable law. Public comments on Amendment 21 and its 
incorporated documents may be submitted through the end of the comment 
period stated in this notification of availability.
    A proposed rule to implement the amendment, including draft 
regulatory text, will also be published in the Federal Register for 
public comment. Public comments on the proposed rule received before 
the end of the comment period provided in this notification of 
availability will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on 
the amendment. All comments received by September 28, 2020, whether 
specifically directed to Amendment 21 or the proposed rule for this 
amendment, will be considered in the approval/disapproval decision on 
the Amendment 21. Comments received after that date will not be 
considered in the decision to approve or disapprove the amendment. To 
be considered, comments must be received by close of business on the 
last day of the comment period.

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

    Dated: July 24, 2020.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-16446 Filed 7-24-20; 4:15 pm]
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