[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 140 (Monday, July 22, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 59034-59036]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-16002]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 240716-0197; RTID 0648-XD769]


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Northeast 
Multispecies Fishery; 2024-2026 Small-Mesh Multispecies Specifications

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

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS proposes small-mesh multispecies specifications for the 
2024 fishing year, and projected specifications for fishing years 2025 
and 2026, as recommended by the New England Fishery Management Council. 
This action also further reduces the recommended acceptable biological 
catch for southern red in order to comply with the requirements 
outlined in Framework Adjustment 62 to the Northeast Multispecies 
Fishery Management Plan. This action is necessary to establish 
allowable harvest levels and other management measures

[[Page 59035]]

consistent with the most recent scientific information. This rule also 
informs the public of the proposed fishery specifications and provides 
an opportunity for comment.

DATES: Comments must be received by August 6, 2024.

ADDRESSES: The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) has 
prepared a draft environmental assessment (EA) for this action that 
describes the proposed measures and other considered alternatives and 
analyzes the impacts of the proposed measures and alternatives. The 
Council submitted a draft of the specifications to NMFS that includes 
the draft EA, a description of the Council's preferred alternatives, 
the Council's rationale for selecting each alternative, and a 
Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) analysis. Copies of the draft of the 
specifications, the draft EA, RFA analysis, and information on the 
economic impacts of this proposed rulemaking are available upon request 
from: Dr. Cate O'Keefe, Executive Director; New England Fishery 
Management Council; 50 Water Street; Newburyport, MA 01950; and 
accessible via the internet in documents available at: https://www.nefmc.org/library/2024-2026-small-mesh-multispecies-whiting-specifications.
    A plain language summary of this proposed rule is available at 
https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAA-NMFS-2024-0077. You may submit 
comments on this document, identified by NOAA-NMFS-2024-0077, 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 
enter NOAA-NMFS-2024-0077 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.
    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: Shannah Jaburek, Fishery Policy 
Analyst, (978) 282-8456.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    The small-mesh multispecies fishery comprises three species of 
hakes that are managed as five stocks: Northern and southern silver 
hake; northern and southern red hake; and offshore hake. Southern 
silver hake and offshore hake are often grouped together for management 
purposes and collectively referred to as ``southern whiting.'' The New 
England Fishery Management Council manages the small-mesh multispecies 
fishery within the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan 
(FMP). This action proposes catch limit specifications for the 2024 
small-mesh multispecies fishery, and projects specifications for 
fishing years 2025 and 2026, based on the Council's recommendations.
    This rule proposes to implement the Council's recommended catch 
limits for northern silver hake, southern whiting, and northern red 
hake. Pursuant to section 305(d), this rule proposes to reduce the 
recommended acceptable biological catch (ABC) for southern red hake by 
25 percent in order to comply with the requirements established in 
Framework Adjustment 62 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP (87 FR 3694, 
January 25, 2022). Framework 62 established a rebuilding plan for 
southern red hake that requires the ABC be set to 75 percent of the 
fishing mortality rate at maximum sustainable yield (FMSY). 
However, the overfishing limit (OFL) for red hake has been unknown 
since the spring of 2020, when a peer review of the management track 
assessment rejected a new empirical approach that would have updated 
the reference points for the stock. The peer review further stated that 
the current index-based method was inappropriate moving forward. Based 
on this, the Council set the 2021-2023 specifications to reduce the ABC 
to equal 75 percent of FMSY. At its October 27, 2023, 
meeting, the Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) met 
to discuss the specifications for small-mesh multispecies stocks. When 
setting the ABC for southern red hake, the SSC did not reduce the 
recommended ABC as required by Framework 62. The SSC's rationale for 
that decision was that, although exploitation is low, the low stock 
biomass may be a result of reduced stock productivity producing weak 
year classes and that the recommended ABC is not likely to result in 
overfishing and will support rebuilding goals for the stock. Based on 
the SSC's rationale, the Council submitted recommended specifications 
without the required reduction. This rule proposes to reduce the 
recommended ABCs in order to comply with the rebuilding plan for 
southern red hake. The fishery has not landed more than 76 percent of 
the proposed total allowable landings; therefore, we do not anticipate 
that this additional reduction to the annual catch limit (ACL) would 
impact the fishery as a whole.

Proposed Specifications

    This action proposes the Council's recommended 2024 and projected 
2025-2026 small-mesh multispecies catch specifications, with southern 
red hake adjusted as required by the rebuilding plan. The proposed 
catch limits would increase annual quotas for northern silver hake and 
decrease the quota for southern whiting and both red hake stocks (table 
1). Specifications for fishing years 2025 and 2026 are projected to be 
the same as the proposed 2024 limits. These specifications are based on 
the most recent assessment update using the best scientific information 
available.

   Table 1--Small-Mesh Multispecies Specifications for Fishing Years 2024-2026 (Metric Tons), With the Percent
                       Change in the Total Allowable Landings (TAL) From Fishing Year 2020
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                                                                                                   ACL  percent
                                        OFL             ABC        Annual  catch        TAL        change  from
                                                                   limit  (ACL)                        2023
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Northern Red Hake...............         Unknown           3,129            2973             213              -9
Northern Silver Hake............          79,473          40,868          38,825          31,347            +100
Southern Red Hake...............         Unknown        ** 1,370           1,301             234              -9

[[Page 59036]]

 
Southern Whiting *..............          35,419          20,149          19,142          13,881             -51
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* Southern whiting includes both southern silver hake and offshore hake.
** The Council recommended ABC was 1,826 mt, a 21 percent increase from 2023.

    The Council did not recommend changes to any other regulations for 
the small-mesh multispecies fishery. Therefore, all other fishery 
management measures would remain unchanged under the proposed action. 
The Council will review the projected 2025 and 2026 specifications to 
determine if any changes need to be made prior to their final 
implementation. Changes may occur if quota overages trigger 
accountability measures, or if new stock information results in changes 
to the ABC recommendations. We will publish a notice prior to the 2025 
fishing year to confirm the specifications or announce any necessary 
changes.

Classification

    NMFS is issuing this rule pursuant to section 305(d) of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA). The 
reason for using this regulatory authority is that in a previous action 
taken pursuant to section 304(b), the Council designed the FMP to 
authorize NMFS to set specifications pursuant to section 305(d). See 50 
CFR part 648.90(b). Further pursuant to MSA section 305(d), this action 
is necessary to carry out the Northeast Multispecies FMP because the 
Council-recommended specifications for southern red hake are not 
compliant with the rebuilding plan implemented by Framework 62 to the 
FMP. The NMFS Assistant Administrator has determined that this proposed 
rule is consistent with the Northeast Multispecies FMP and other 
applicable law, subject to further consideration after public comment.
    This action is exempt from review under E.O. 12866.
    The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce 
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration that this proposed rule, if adopted, would not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
The factual basis for this determination is as follows.
    The proposed action would impact all permitted vessels or 
affiliated groups that participate in small-mesh multispecies 
fisheries. The Council considered any business with at least one open 
access Northeast multispecies K permit or other Northeast multispecies 
permit that allows possession of hakes in this evaluation, as well as 
any active entities that landed any small-mesh multispecies for 
commercial sale in 2022. To estimate the number of commercial business 
entities that may experience impacts from the proposed action on 
fishery specification (2024-2026), active small-mesh multispecies 
entities landing small-mesh multispecies are defined as those entities 
containing permits that are directly regulated and that landed small-
mesh multispecies as recent as in 2022 for commercial sale. In 2022, 
there were 247 business entities landing small-mesh multispecies 
(southern whiting, silver, and/or red hake), of which 245 (99 percent) 
were small business entities, that could potentially be affected by the 
proposed specification measures for 2024-2026. There were two large 
entities landing small-mesh multispecies, but they only landed small-
mesh multispecies worth about $69,000 in aggregate (or 0.2-percent of 
their total income from fishing). On average, small entities derived 
approximately 5.37 percent of total entity fishing income from small-
mesh multispecies. From 2018-2022, the number of business entities 
engaged in small-mesh species landings has declined but the average 
revenue per entity has increased.
    The purpose of this action was previously outlined in the preamble 
to this proposed rule and is not repeated here. As proposed, this 
action would decrease the available catch limits for southern whiting 
(51 percent from 2023) and both red hake stocks (9 percent from 2023) 
and increase available catch limits for northern silver hake (100-
percent increase from 2023). Although three of the proposed quotas 
would decrease from previous years, they remain higher than landings 
for any of the stocks for at least the last 3 years; therefore, the 
reduction is not expected to be restrictive to the fishery or result in 
reductions in revenue.
    The Council's analyses indicate that the overall economic impact of 
proposed action is expected to be slightly positive, and that the 
proposed specifications are not expected to substantially change 
fishing effort, risk of overfishing, prices/revenues, or fishery 
behavior. Therefore, the Council concluded, and NMFS agrees, that this 
action would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small businesses. As a result, an initial regulatory 
flexibility analysis is not required and none has been prepared.
    This action would not establish any new reporting or record-keeping 
requirements.
    This proposed rule contains no information collection requirements 
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

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

    Dated: July 16, 2024.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-16002 Filed 7-19-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P