[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 183 (Friday, September 20, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 77033-77035]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-21517]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 660

[Docket No. 240327-0090; RTID 0648-XE271]


Pacific Halibut Fisheries of the West Coast; 2024 Catch Sharing 
Plan; Inseason Action

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

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason adjustment; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces inseason action for the Pacific halibut 
recreational fishery in the International Pacific Halibut Commission's 
(IPHC) regulatory Area 2A off Washington, Oregon, and California. 
Specifically, this action transfers 12,000 pounds (lb; 5.4 metric tons 
(mt)) of the Area 2A Pacific halibut recreational allocation, in net 
pounds, from the Oregon recreational fishery to the Washington 
recreational fishery. This action is intended to provide opportunity 
for anglers to achieve the total Area 2A recreational fishery 
allocation.

DATES: 
    Effective: September 20, 2024, through December 31, 2024.
    Comments due date: Comments will be accepted on or before October 
7, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by NOAA-NMFS-2024-0014, 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-2024-0014 in the Search box. 
Click on the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter 
or attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Jennifer Quan, Regional 
Administrator, c/o Melissa Mandrup, West Coast Region, NMFS, 501 W 
Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802.
    Instructions: NMFS may not consider comments if they are sent by 
any other method, to any other address or individual, or received after 
the comment period ends. All comments received are a part of the public 
record and NMFS will post them 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 is publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).
    Docket: This rule is accessible via the internet at the Office of 
the Federal Register website at https://www.federalregister.gov/. 
Background information and documents are available at the NOAA 
Fisheries website at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/2024-pacific-halibut-recreational-fishery and at the Pacific Fishery 
Management Council's website at https://www.pcouncil.org. Other 
comments received may be accessed through https://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melissa Mandrup, phone: 562-980-3231 
or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 3, 2024, NMFS published a final 
rule approving changes to the Pacific halibut Area 2A Catch Sharing 
Plan (CSP) and implementing recreational (sport) management measures 
for the 2024 Area 2A recreational fisheries (89 FR 22966), as 
authorized by the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (16 U.S.C. 773-
773(k)). The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) 2024 CSP 
provides a recommended framework for NMFS' annual management measures 
and subarea allocations based on the 2024 Area 2A Pacific halibut catch 
limit also known as the fishery constant exploitation yield (FCEY) of 
1.47 million lb (666.8 mt) set by the IPHC. The Area 2A catch limit and 
recreational fishery allocations were adopted by the IPHC and were 
published in the Federal Register on March 18, 2024 (89 FR 19275), 
after acceptance by the Secretary of State, with concurrence from the 
Secretary of Commerce, in accordance with 50 CFR 300.62. The final rule 
published on April 3, 2024 (89 FR 22966), established 50 CFR 
300.63(c)(6)(i)(F), which allows NMFS to transfer portions of state 
recreation allocations inseason to another state under certain 
circumstances (e.g., if a state is projected to not utilize its 
respective recreational allocation by the end of the fishing season and 
another state could utilize additional pounds to avoid closing a 
fishing season early).
    NMFS has determined that, due to lower than expected landings 
through September 5, 2024, and projected catches for the remainder of 
the season off Oregon (October 31), Oregon is projected to not utilize 
its full recreational allocation by the end of the

[[Page 77034]]

fishing season. Therefore, inseason action to transfer a portion of the 
Oregon recreational fishery allocation to another state is warranted at 
this time to provide additional opportunity for fishery participants to 
achieve the total Area 2A fishery allocations. As stated above, 
inseason transfers of a portion of state recreational allocations to 
another state are authorized by Federal regulations at 50 CFR 
300.63(c)(6)(i)(F) and the final rule (89 FR 22966, April 3, 2024).
    Catch projections as of September 5, 2024, indicate that Washington 
is likely to reach their statewide recreational fishery allocation 
before their season closure date (September 30), and California is 
projected to stay within their State recreation allocation through 
their season closure dates (November 15 for the Northern California 
subarea and December 31 for the South of Point Arena subarea). After 
consulting with Council staff, the Washington Department of Fish and 
Wildlife (WDFW), the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), and 
the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, it was determined that 
inseason action transferring a portion of Oregon's recreational 
allocation to Washington is necessary in order to allow the Area 2A 
allocation objectives to be met, by providing anglers additional 
opportunity to achieve the coastwide recreational allocation, with 
little risk of that allocation being exceeded. Additionally, this 
action is necessary to meet the management objectives of the 2024 CSP 
and is consistent with the inseason management provisions allowing the 
transfer of portions of a state's recreational allocations to another 
state. California is, at this time, unlikely to use any additional net 
pounds in recreational Pacific halibut allocation.
    Catch monitoring reports for the recreational fisheries in 
Washington, Oregon, and California are available on their respective 
State Fish and Wildlife agency websites. NMFS will continue to monitor 
recreational catch obtained via state sampling procedures. The 
recreational fisheries will close on September 30 in Washington, 
October 31 in Oregon, and November 15 or December 31 in California, or 
when there is not sufficient allocation for another full day of fishing 
in each State (or relevant area within California). Should future catch 
projections indicate that there are additional unused pounds in the 
Area 2A recreational allocation available to transfer from one state to 
another, and that there is a need for such a transfer to allow an area 
to remain open for its full fishing season, then NMFS may take future 
inseason action to reallocate that unused allocation. Any inseason 
action, including closures, will be announced in accordance with 
Federal regulations at 50 CFR 300.63(c) and on the NMFS hotline at 
(206) 526-6667 or (800) 662-9825.

Pacific Halibut Reallocation

    For 2024, the Area 2A Pacific halibut CSP allocated 290,158 lb 
(131.6 mt) to the Washington recreational fishery, 283,784 lb (128.7 
mt) to the Oregon recreational fishery, and 38,220 lb (17.3 mt) to the 
California recreational fishery. The best available information on 
September 5, 2024, indicated that the Oregon recreational fishery would 
not harvest their full allocation by the end of their season (October 
31); the Washington recreational fishery is projected to reach their 
allocation prior to the end of their season (September 30) and would 
need 12,000 lb (5.4 mt) to remain open until September 30; and the 
California recreational fishery is projected to stay within their 
allocation through the end of their respective seasons (November 15 and 
December 31).
    To allow for increased utilization of the resource, with this 
inseason action, NMFS will transfer 12,000 lb (net weight, [5.4 mt]) of 
Pacific halibut from the Oregon recreational fishery allocation to the 
Washington recreational fishery allocation to allow the fishery to 
remain open through September 30. At this time, NMFS has determined 
that the California recreational subarea will not receive additional 
pounds through this action as the fishery is not projected to exceed 
their allocation before or by the end of their seasons on November 15 
and December 31. Reallocating 12,000 lb (5.4 mt) to the Washington 
recreational fishery is expected to allow for greater attainment of the 
total Area 2A recreational allocation while not limiting recreational 
harvest opportunities off Oregon for the remainder of the season. 
Should future catch projections indicate there are additional pounds 
available to transfer from one state to another, NMFS may take future 
inseason action to reallocate that unused allocation.

Classification

    NMFS issues this action pursuant to the Northern Pacific Halibut 
Act of 1982. This action is taken under the regulatory authority at 50 
CFR 300.63(c)(6), and is exempt from review under Executive Order 
12866.
    Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(B), there is good cause to waive 
prior notice and an opportunity for public comment on this action, as 
notice and comment would be impracticable and contrary to the public 
interest. WDFW provided updated landings data to NMFS on September 6, 
2024, showing that through September 2, approximately 93 percent of the 
State fishery allocation has been attained and the fishery is projected 
to need 12,000 lb (5.4 mt) to remain open through the end of their 
season (September 30). Also, on September 6, 2024, ODFW provided 
updated landings data to NMFS, showing that through September 2, 
approximately 70 percent of the state fishery allocation has been 
attained and the fishery is projected to end their season (October 31) 
without fully attaining their state fishery allocation. NMFS uses 
fishing rates from previous years to project attainment through the end 
of current fishing seasons. With the lower than expected catch rates in 
the Oregon recreational fishery, the transfer of a portion of the 
Oregon State allocation to the Washington State allocation allows for 
the Area 2A management objectives to be met by providing anglers 
additional opportunity to achieve the coastwide recreational allocation 
with little risk of that allocation being exceeded. It is necessary 
that this rule be implemented in a timely manner both to allow the 
Washington State fishery access to the additional unused allocation 
without delay in order to remain open through the end of the season 
(September 30), and to allow for business and personal decision making 
by the regulated public impacted by this action, which includes 
recreational charter fishing operations, associated port businesses, 
and private anglers who do not live near the coastal access points for 
this fishery, among others. Without an allocation transfer to the 
Washington recreational fishery, coastwide allocations in Area 2A are 
unlikely to be harvested, thus limiting the economic benefits to the 
fishery participants and obstructing the goals of the 2024 CSP. 
Additionally, this action does not alter public expectations in that 
recreational Pacific halibut fishing in Oregon and Washington is 
projected to continue until the last prescribed fishing date for each 
State. To ensure the regulated public is fully aware of this action, 
notice of this regulatory action will be provided to anglers through a 
telephone hotline, news release, and by the relevant State Fish and 
Wildlife agencies. NMFS will receive public comments for 15 days after 
publication of this action, in accordance with 50 CFR 300.63(c)(6)(iv). 
No aspect of this action

[[Page 77035]]

is controversial, and changes of this nature were anticipated in the 
process described in regulations at 50 CFR 300.63(c).
    For the reasons discussed above, there is also good cause under 5 
U.S.C. 553(d)(3) to waive the 30-day delay in effective date and make 
this action effective immediately upon filing for public inspection, as 
a delay in effectiveness of this action would constrain fishing 
opportunity and be inconsistent with the goals of the CSP, as well as 
potentially limit the economic opportunity intended by this rule to the 
associated fishing communities. This inseason action is not expected to 
result in exceeding the total Area 2A recreational fishery allocation. 
NMFS regulations allow the Regional Administrator to modify state 
recreational allocations, including a transfer in recreational 
allocation from one state to another; provided that the action allows 
allocation objectives to be met and will not result in exceeding the 
catch limit for Area 2A. NMFS received information on the progress of 
landings in the recreational fisheries in Area 2A on September 6, 2024, 
indicating that modifying the State recreational fishery allocations 
for Oregon and Washington should be implemented to ensure optimal 
harvest in the recreational fisheries in Area 2A. As stated above, it 
is in the public interest that this action is not delayed, because a 
delay in the effectiveness would obstruct the ability for the 
allocation objectives of the recreational Pacific halibut fishery to be 
met.

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773-773k.

    Dated: September 12, 2024.
Karen H. Abrams,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2024-21517 Filed 9-17-24; 4:15 pm]
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