[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 238 (Monday, December 15, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57958-57959]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-22779]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XF388]
Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of public meetings.
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SUMMARY: The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Pacific Council)
Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) will hold a virtual meeting
to review additional analyses of the 2025 widow rockfish stock
assessment and other requests from the November 2025 Pacific Council
meeting. The Pacific Council's SSC Groundfish Subcommittee (GFSC) will
hold a virtual meeting to review the 2025 groundfish stock assessment
process and discuss process improvements for the next stock assessment
cycle, to inform future revisions to the Terms of Reference for the
Groundfish Stock Assessment Review Process, the Terms of Reference for
Groundfish Rebuilding Analysis, and the Accepted Practices Guidelines
for Groundfish Stock Assessments. The Pacific Council's Groundfish
Management Team (GMT) will hold a hybrid in-person/webinar work session
to consider and develop items on the Pacific Council's 2026 Year-at-a-
Glance calendar. These meetings are open to the public.
DATES: The SSC supplemental review meeting will be held Tuesday,
January 20, 2026, from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. (Pacific Standard Time) or
until business for the day has been completed, and will continue on
Thursday, January 22, 2026, from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. or until business
for the day has been completed.
The SSC GFSC process review meeting will be held Wednesday, January
21, 2026, from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. (Pacific Standard Time) or until
business for the day has been completed, and will continue on Friday,
January 23, 2026, from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. or until business for the
day has been completed.
The GMT meeting will be held Monday, February 2, 2026, from 12:30
p.m. (Pacific Standard Time) until business for the day has been
completed. The GMT will reconvene Tuesday, February 3 through Friday,
February 6, 2026, from 8:30 a.m. until business for each day has been
completed.
ADDRESSES: The SSC and SSC GFSC meetings will be conducted online.
Specific meeting information, materials, and instructions for how to
connect to the meeting remotely will be provided in the meeting
announcement on the Pacific Council's website (see www.pcouncil.org).
The GMT meeting will be held at the Pacific Fishery Management
Council Office, Large Conference Room, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite
101, Portland, Oregon 97220-1384. This work session is being conducted
in person with a web broadcast that provides the opportunity for remote
public comment. Specific meeting information, including directions on
how to join the meeting and system requirements will be provided in the
meeting announcement on the Pacific Council's website (see
www.pcouncil.org). Please contact Kris Kleinschmidt
([email protected]) or (503) 820-2412 for technical
assistance.
Council address: Pacific Fishery Management Council, 7700 NE
Ambassador Place, Suite 101, Portland, Oregon 97220.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Todd Phillips, Staff Officer, Pacific
Council; telephone: (503) 820-2426, email: [email protected].
[[Page 57959]]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The full SSC supplemental review meeting
will focus on any additional analyses for the 2025 widow rockfish stock
assessment as requested by the Pacific Council at their November 2025
meeting. The SSC will prepare their recommendations for the Pacific
Council consideration at their March 2026 meeting. No management
actions will be decided by the SSC.
The SSC GFSC's meeting will include, (a.) evaluation of the 2025
groundfish stock assessment review process to solicit process
improvements for future reviews, (b.) discuss potential changes to the
Terms of Reference for the Groundfish Stock Assessment Review Process
for 2027 and 2028, and Terms of Reference for the Groundfish Rebuilding
Analysis for 2027 and 2028, that will inform the process for conducting
and reviewing groundfish assessments and rebuilding analyses in the
next cycle, and (c.) discuss potential changes to the Accepted
Practices Guidelines for Stock Assessments in 2027 and 2028, which is a
compilation of guidelines for groundfish stock assessment scientists.
Stock assessment teams and review participants are encouraged to
attend, as well as members of the Pacific Council's groundfish advisory
bodies in order to prepare their recommendations to the Pacific
Council.
No management actions will be decided by the SSC GFSC. Process
improvement recommendations and proposed changes to the Terms of
Reference and Accepted Practices Guidelines documents will first be
considered during this online meeting, with a GFSC post-meeting report
to the full SSC at their March 2026 meeting. The Pacific Council is
scheduled to conduct scoping of the Terms of Reference for the 2027-
2028 stock assessment cycle at their March 2026 meeting in Sacramento,
California. The Pacific Council is scheduled to adopt preliminary Terms
of Reference for the 2027-2028 stock assessment cycle for public review
at their June 2026 meeting and adopt final at their November 2026
meeting.
The primary purpose of the GMT work session is to prepare for 2026
Pacific Council meetings. Specific agenda items will include: 2027-28
harvest specifications and management measure process and workload and
new management measure prioritization. The GMT may also address
groundfish management actions the Pacific Council has indicated on
their Year-at-a-Glance calendar, such as the 2026 Pacific whiting
fishery, specifications flexibility, and stock assessment terms of
reference. A detailed agenda will be available on the Pacific Council's
website prior to the meeting.
Although non-emergency issues not contained in the meeting agendas
may be discussed, those issues may not be the subject of formal action
during these meetings. Action will be restricted to those issues
specifically listed in this document and any issues arising after
publication of this document that require emergency action under
section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the intent to
take final action to address the emergency.
Special Accommodations
Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids
should be directed to Kris Kleinschmidt
([email protected]; (503) 820-2412) at least 10 days prior
to the meeting date.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: December 11, 2025.
Rey Israel Marquez,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2025-22779 Filed 12-12-25; 8:45 am]
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