[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 217 (Monday, November 9, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 71270-71272]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-24848]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

[Docket No. 180117042-8884-02; RTID 0648-XA627]


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Atlantic Bluefin Tuna 
Fisheries

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; fishery reopening.

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SUMMARY: NMFS reopens the General category fishery for two days within 
the October through November 2020 General category subquota period. 
This action is intended to provide a reasonable opportunity to harvest 
the full annual U.S. bluefin tuna (BFT) quota without exceeding it, 
while maintaining an equitable distribution of fishing opportunities 
across time periods. This action applies to Atlantic tunas General 
category (commercial) permitted vessels and Atlantic Highly

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Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/Headboat category permitted vessels 
with a commercial sale endorsement when fishing commercially for BFT.

DATES: Effective 12:30 a.m., local time, November 7, 2020, through 
11:30 p.m., local time, November 8, 2020.

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) and as implemented by the United States 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 ATCA and the Magnuson-Stevens Act to 
provide U.S. fishing vessels with a reasonable opportunity to harvest 
the ICCAT-recommended quota.
    The current baseline General and Reserve category quotas are 555.7 
mt and 29.5 mt, respectively. 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 from one time period to the next, and is available for 
use in subsequent time periods. To date, NMFS has taken several actions 
that resulted in adjustments to the General and Reserve category quotas 
(85 FR 17, January 2, 2020; 85 FR 6828, February 6, 2020; 85 FR 43148, 
July 16, 2020; 85 FR 59445, September 22, 2020; 85 FR 61872, October 1, 
2020; 85 FR 64411, October 13, 2020; and 85 FR 68798, October 30, 
2020). In the most recent action (85 FR 68798), NMFS reopened the 
General category fishery for two days, October 28 and 29, 2020.

General Category Reopening

    As of November 4, 2020, preliminary landings data indicate that the 
General category landed 103.5 mt before closing. This represents 81 
percent of the adjusted October through November subquota of 127.7 mt. 
Under regulations at Sec.  635.28(a)(2), NMFS may reopen the fishery if 
NMFS determines that reasonable fishing opportunities are available. 
Based on average October landings rates, NMFS has determined that 
reopening the General category fishery for two days is appropriate 
given the amount of unused October through November subquota (i.e., 
24.2 mt); depending on weather conditions and fish availability, a 
longer reopening could risk exceeding the unused quota available for 
the October through November subquota period. NMFS will need to account 
for 2020 landings and dead discards within the adjusted U.S. quota, 
consistent with ICCAT recommendations, and anticipates having 
sufficient quota to do that. NMFS anticipates that General category 
participants in all areas and time periods will have opportunities to 
harvest the General category quota in 2020, through active inseason 
management such as the timing of quota transfers, as practicable. Thus, 
this action would allow fishermen to take advantage of the availability 
of fish on the fishing grounds to the extent consistent with the 
available amount of quota and other management objectives, while 
avoiding quota exceedance.
    Therefore, the General category fishery will reopen at 12:30 a.m., 
November 7, 2020, and close at 11:30 p.m., November 8, 2020. The 
General category daily retention limit during this reopening remains 
the same as prior to closing: one large medium or giant (i.e., 
measuring 73 inches (185 cm) curved fork length or greater) bluefin 
tuna per vessel per day/trip. This action applies to Atlantic tunas 
General category (commercial) permitted vessels and HMS Charter/
Headboat category permitted vessels with a commercial sale endorsement 
when fishing commercially for BFT. Retaining, possessing, or landing 
large medium or giant BFT by persons aboard vessels permitted in the 
General and HMS Charter/Headboat categories must cease at 11:30 p.m. 
local time on November 8, 2020.
    The General category will automatically reopen December 1, 2020, 
for the December 2020 subquota time period (consistent with regulations 
at Sec.  635.27(a)(1)) at the default one-fish level. In January 2020, 
NMFS adjusted the General category base subquota for the December 2020 
period to 9.4 mt (85 FR 17, January 2, 2020). Based on quota 
availability in the Reserve, NMFS may consider transferring additional 
quota to the December subquota period, as appropriate.
    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 https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/outreach-and-education/careful-catch-and-release-brochure/.

Monitoring and Reporting

    NMFS will continue to monitor the BFT fisheries 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 adjustments are 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

    NMFS issues this action pursuant to section 305(d) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act. This action is authorized by 50 CFR 635.28(a)(2), which 
was issued pursuant to section 304(c), and is exempt from review under 
Executive Order 12866.
    The Assistant Administrator for NMFS finds that pursuant to 5 
U.S.C.

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553(b)(B), there is good cause to waive 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 retention limit adjustments 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. Affording prior notice and opportunity for public 
comment to reopen the fishery is impracticable and contrary to the 
public interest. The General category recently closed, but based on 
available BFT quotas, fishery performance in recent weeks, and the 
availability of BFT on the fishing grounds, responsive reopening of the 
fishery is warranted to allow fishermen to take advantage of 
availability of fish and of quota. NMFS could not have proposed this 
action earlier, as it needed to consider and respond to updated data 
and information about fishery conditions and this year's landings. If 
NMFS was to offer a public comment period now, after having 
appropriately considered that data, it would preclude fishermen from 
harvesting BFT that are legally available. This action does not raise 
conservation and management concerns. For all of the above reasons, 
there is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553(d) to waive the 30-day delay in 
effectiveness.

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

    Dated: November 4, 2020.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-24848 Filed 11-4-20; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P