[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 27 (Thursday, February 8, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 8639-8640]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-02509]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[Docket No. 240202-0034]
RIN 0648-BM80


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Atlantic Coastal Migratory Pelagic Fishery; Atlantic Dolphin and Wahoo 
Fishery; and South Atlantic Snapper-Grouper Fishery; Control Date

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

ACTION: Advanced notice of proposed rulemaking; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This advance notice of proposed rulemaking seeks comment on 
the benefits or disadvantages of the South Atlantic Fishery Management 
Council (Council) potentially setting future restrictions, resulting in 
subsequent rulemakings from NMFS, in the Atlantic the coastal migratory 
pelagics fishery and the dolphin and wahoo fishery, and the snapper-
grouper fishery in the South Atlantic. The Council recently set a 
control date of December 8, 2023. That control date, and an existing 
control date of June 15, 2016, may both be used to create restrictions 
limiting participation in the exclusive economic zone for the Federal 
charter vessel/headboat (for-hire) components of the recreational 
sectors of the coastal migratory pelagics fishery in the Atlantic, 
dolphin and wahoo fishery in the Atlantic, and snapper-grouper fishery 
in the South Atlantic. The Council is considering a future action that 
may affect or limit the number of participants in the fishery, and 
stresses that participants should locate and preserve all relevant, 
fishing-related documents. If such an action is developed, approved, 
and implemented through a Council decision and a subsequent rulemaking 
by NMFS, future access to the fishery after the control date would not 
be assured. NMFS is informing the public of the new control date, in 
part, to promote awareness of the potential changes to eligibility 
criteria for future access so as to discourage speculative entry into 
the Federal for-hire components of the Atlantic coastal migratory 
pelagics, Atlantic dolphin and wahoo, or the South Atlantic snapper-
grouper fisheries, while the Council and NMFS consider whether and how 
access to these for-hire components should be managed.

DATES: Written comments must be received no later than March 11, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by ``NOAA-NMFS-2023-
0157'' by either of the following methods:
     Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to https://www.regulations.gov and type ``NOAA-NMFS-2023-0157'' in the Search box 
(note: copying and pasting the FDMS Docket Number directly from this 
document may not yield search results). Click on the ``Comment'' icon, 
complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Nikhil Mehta, NMFS 
Southeast Regional Office, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 
33701.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on 
https://www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The coastal migratory pelagics fishery in 
the Atlantic is managed under the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for 
Coastal Migratory Pelagic Resources (CMP FMP). The dolphin and wahoo 
fishery in the Atlantic is managed under the FMP for the Dolphin and 
Wahoo Fishery of the Atlantic (Dolphin and Wahoo FMP). The snapper-
grouper fishery in the South Atlantic is managed under the FMP for the 
Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (Snapper-Grouper 
FMP). The CMP FMP was prepared jointly by the Gulf of Mexico and South 
Atlantic Fishery Management Councils. The Dolphin and Wahoo and 
Snapper-Grouper FMPs were prepared by the Council. Under the authority 
of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
(Magnuson-Stevens Act), NMFS approved the FMPs and implements them 
through regulations at 50 CFR part 622.
    The purpose of a control date is to enable the Council to inform 
current and potential participants that it is considering whether to 
create restrictions that limit participation in a fishery. NMFS 
previously published a control date of June 15, 2016, for the coastal 
migratory pelagics, dolphin and wahoo, and snapper-grouper for-hire 
components of the recreational sector on September 27, 2016 (81 FR 
66244). At its December 2023 meeting, the Council again discussed 
access options for these fisheries and requested that NMFS publish 
another control date of December 8, 2023, for the Federal for-hire 
component of the recreational sectors of the Atlantic coastal migratory 
pelagics, Atlantic dolphin and wahoo, and South Atlantic snapper-
grouper fisheries as a possible future eligibility criteria for these 
fisheries. The Federal charter vessel/headboat permits for these for-
hire components are currently open access, available to be applied for 
by anyone with a valid vessel registration. The new control date of 
December 8, 2023, and the existing control date of June 15, 2016, could 
both be considered as possible options for use by the Council to 
determine future access to these fisheries. The purpose of these 
control dates is to inform current and potential participants that the 
Council is considering whether to propose future restrictions that 
limit fishery participation in the for-hire components of these 
fisheries. Should the Council decide to implement further restrictions 
on the fishery, those restrictions would be codified into the 
regulations through a NMFS rulemaking.
    As a condition of the for-hire, December 8, 2023, control date, the 
Council specified at their December 2023 meeting that Federal permit 
holders that had not reported catch from the for-hire components of 
these fisheries to the Southeast For-Hire Integrated Electronic 
Reporting (SEFHIER) program in the Atlantic on, or prior to, December 
5, 2023, would not be assured of future access should a management 
regime that limits participation in the for-hire components of these 
fisheries be prepared and implemented. The Atlantic SEFHIER program was 
implemented on January 4, 2021 (85 FR 47917, August 7, 2020). That 
final rule established weekly electronic reporting requirements for 
owners or operators of federally permitted coastal migratory pelagics, 
dolphin and wahoo, and snapper-

[[Page 8640]]

grouper charter vessels and changed the electronic reporting deadline 
for owners and operators of federally permitted headboats. The purpose 
of that final rule and the Atlantic SEFHIER program was to improve 
recreational fisheries management of the for-hire components in the 
Atlantic. NMFS notes that as of October 2023, 54 percent of vessels in 
the Atlantic SEFHIER program were missing required reports since the 
implementation of the program (https://safmc.net/documents/fc1_a2_sefhier-program-analysis_202312-revised-pdf/). The Council chose 
Tuesday, December 5, 2023, because Atlantic SEFHIER participants are 
required to report their catch weekly on Tuesdays and in order to avoid 
a possible influx of late reports occurring prior to December 8, 2023, 
by permit holders in reaction to the announcement of the control date. 
Late reporting by SEFHIER participants can negatively impact reliable 
and timely catch and effort data, decrease accuracy of reports, and 
increase recall bias of participants.
    In addition to selecting a control date, at their December 2023 
meeting, the Council also approved a motion to initiate an amendment to 
the CMP FMP, the dolphin and wahoo FMP, and the snapper-grouper FMP to 
consider establishing limited entry for the for-hire components of the 
recreational sectors of Atlantic coastal migratory pelagics, Atlantic 
dolphin and wahoo, and South Atlantic snapper-grouper fisheries.
    NMFS is therefore, informing current and potential fishery 
participants in the Federal for-hire components of the recreational 
sectors for Atlantic coastal migratory pelagics, Atlantic dolphin and 
wahoo, and South Atlantic snapper-grouper fisheries that began 
participating after December 8, 2023, that they may not be ensured 
participation under future management of these fisheries, should the 
Council elect to implement, and NMFS subsequently codify, further 
restrictions. Additionally, Federal permit holders that have not 
reported catch from these fisheries to the Atlantic SEFHIER Program on, 
or prior to, December 5, 2023, will not be assured of future access 
should a management regime that limits participation in the Federal 
charter vessel/headboat (for-hire) component of the recreational 
sectors is implemented. If the Council decides to amend the FMPs to 
restrict participation in the Federal for-hire components of the 
recreational sectors of the Atlantic coastal migratory pelagics, 
Atlantic dolphin and wahoo, or South Atlantic snapper-grouper fisheries 
in relation to this control date, an analysis of the specific 
administrative, biological, economic, and social effects will be 
prepared at that time. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council 
will also need to approve any such action taken toward the management 
of any species within the CMP FMP.
    Participants, and other persons, interested in obtaining a Federal 
for-hire permit for the Atlantic coastal migratory pelagics, Atlantic 
dolphin and wahoo, or South Atlantic snapper-grouper fisheries after 
the control date are not assured of future access to these for-hire 
components should management changes be implemented that would restrict 
participation. Such management changes would require preparation of 
amendments to the respective FMPs, NMFS publication of a notice of 
availability and proposed rule in the Federal Register with public 
comment periods, and NMFS approval of the FMP amendments and issuance 
of a final rule.
    Fishermen are not guaranteed future participation in a fishery, 
sector, or component within a sector regardless of when they obtained 
their permits or of their level of participation in the fishery, 
sector, or component within a sector before or after the control date 
under consideration. The Council subsequently may choose a different 
control date, or they may propose different management approaches 
without using a control date. The Council also may choose to take no 
further action to propose measures to control entry or access to the 
Federal for-hire components of the recreational sectors of the Atlantic 
coastal migratory pelagics, Atlantic dolphin and wahoo, or South 
Atlantic snapper-grouper fisheries.
    Interested participants should locate and preserve records that 
substantiate and verify their participation in the Federal for-hire 
components of the recreational sectors of the Atlantic coastal 
migratory pelagics, Atlantic dolphin and wahoo, or South Atlantic 
snapper-grouper fisheries.

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

    Dated: February 2, 2024.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-02509 Filed 2-7-24; 8:45 am]
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