[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 150 (Wednesday, August 5, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 46531-46533]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-19149]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No.: 150626556-5556-01]
RIN 0648-BF20
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Sea Scallop
Fishery; State Waters Exemption
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 regulations to allow an exemption for Northern
Gulf of Maine federally permitted vessels with state-waters permits
issued from the
[[Page 46532]]
State of Maine to continue fishing in the Maine state-waters portion of
the Northern Gulf of Maine management area once NMFS has announced that
the Federal total allowable catch has been fully harvested in a given
year. Maine requested this exemption as part of the Scallop State Water
Exemption Program, which specifies that a state may be eligible for a
state waters exemption to specific Federal regulations if it has a
scallop fishery and a scallop conservation program that does not
jeopardize the biomass and fishing mortality/effort limit objectives of
the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan. The regulations
further state that the Regional Administrator, Greater Atlantic
Regional Fisheries Office, NMFS, shall determine if a state meets that
criteria and shall authorize the exemption for such state by publishing
a rule in the Federal Register. Based on the information that Maine has
submitted, NMFS has preliminarily determined that Maine qualifies for
this exemption and that this exemption would not have an impact on the
effectiveness of Federal management measures for the scallop fishery
overall or within the Northern Gulf of Maine management area.
DATES: Comments must be received by 5 p.m., local time, on September 4,
2015.
ADDRESSES: Documents supporting this action, including the State of
Maine's (Maine) request for the exemption and Framework Adjustment 26
to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan (Scallop FMP) are
available upon request from John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator,
NMFS, Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic
Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930.
You may submit comments on this document, identified by NOAA-NMFS-
2015-0079 by any of the following methods:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2015-0079, click the
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or
attach your comments.
Mail: John K. Bullard, Regional Administrator, NMFS,
Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, 55 Great Republic Drive,
Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope, ``Comments on
Maine State Waters Exemption Program.''
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
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). Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in
Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats only.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Gilbert, Fishery Policy Analyst,
978-281-9244.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Scallop State Waters Exemption Program (Program) has been in
place since 1994. The purpose of the Program is to allow Federal permit
holders to harvest scallops in the state waters fishery on a more
equitable basis where Federal and state laws are inconsistent, while
ensuring they continue to submit catch and effort data to NMFS. The
Program specifies that a state with a scallop fishery may be eligible
for state waters exemptions if it has a scallop conservation program
that does not jeopardize the biomass and fishing mortality/effort limit
objectives of the Scallop FMP. Under the Program, if NMFS determines
that a state is found to be eligible, federally permitted scallop
vessels fishing in state waters may be exempted from the following
Federal scallop regulations: Limited access scallop vessels may fish in
state waters outside of scallop days-at-sea, limited access and limited
access general category (LAGC) individual fishing quota vessels may be
exempt from Federal gear and possession limit restrictions, and vessels
with selected scallop permit types may be exempt from specific
regulations pertaining to the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) management
area.
The exemption from specific regulations pertaining to the NGOM
management area was recently added to the Program via Framework 26 to
the Scallop FMP, implemented on May 1, 2015, which specifically allows
states to apply for a specific exemption that would enable some scallop
vessels to continue to fish in state waters within the NGOM management
area once the Federal NGOM total allowable catch (TAC) is reached. Any
state interested in applying for this exemption must identify the
scallop-permitted vessels that would be subject to the exemption (i.e.,
limited access, LAGC individual fishing quota, LAGC incidental, or LAGC
NGOM). However, vessels would not be able to fish for scallops in the
Federal portion of the NGOM once the TAC is harvested.
Maine currently has the state waters exemptions from gear and
effort control restrictions for vessels issued Federal scallop permits
and Maine commercial scallop licenses that are fishing exclusively in
Maine waters (74 FR 37952; July 30, 2009). Following the implementation
of Framework 26, NMFS received a request from the state to expand its
current exemptions to allow federally NGOM-permitted vessels with Maine
state-waters permits to fish in the Maine state-waters portion of the
NGOM management area once we project the Federal NGOM TAC to be fully
harvested. This provision would allow those vessels to continue to fish
in state waters along with state permitted vessels without Federal
permits. Although the 70,000-lb (31,751-kg) NGOM Federal TAC has never
been exceeded since the NGOM management area was created in 2008, there
is now a higher potential that the TAC will be reached because scallop
effort has increased in the NGOM in recent years as the stock has
improved, particularly in state waters. Without this exemption, these
federally permitted vessels would be prevented from participating in
Maine's state water fishery if the Federal NGOM TAC is reached. State-
only permitted scallop vessels are able to continue to fish in state
waters after the Federal closure.
Based on the information Maine submitted regarding its scallop
conservation program, NMFS has preliminarily determined that the state
qualifies for the NGOM state waters exemption under the Scallop FMP. As
required by the scallop fishery regulations, exemptions can only be
granted if the state's scallop fishery would not jeopardize the biomass
and fishing mortality/effort limit objectives of the FMP. Maine's
scallop fishery restrictions are as restrictive as Federal scallop
fishing regulations. Maine's scallop fishery became limited access in
2008. Fishing time and effort on scallop trips are limited by
possession limits and a short season. The fishery is open only 70 days
of the year, between December and March. Maine manages the fishery in
its waters by a rotational management plan and employs a trigger
mechanism that closes a given area if 30 to 40 percent of the
harvestable biomass has been removed. Maine has issued 545 commercial
dragger scallop
[[Page 46533]]
licenses, in addition to 82 commercial dive licenses. In 2014, 438 of
these licenses were active (i.e., landed scallops at least once). There
are currently 40 federally NGOM-permitted vessels also issued Maine
commercial scallop licenses, and 12 of them are currently active in the
state fishery. If these federally permitted vessels were allowed to
continue fishing for scallops in Maine state waters after the NGOM TAC
is harvested, Maines's restrictive scallop fishery regulations would
still limit mortality and effort. Allowing for this NGOM exemption
would have no impact on the effectiveness of Federal management
measures for the scallop fishery overall or within the NGOM management
area because the NGOM Federal TAC is set based only on the portion of
the resource in Federal waters.
Maine is the only state that has requested a NGOM closure
exemption. Maine requested that this exemption apply only to vessels
with Federal NGOM permits. As such, all other federally permitted
scallop vessel categories would be prohibited from retaining,
possessing, and landing scallops from within the NGOM management area,
in both Federal and state waters, once the NGOM hard TAC is fully
harvested.
Classification
Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the
NMFS Assistant Administrator has determined that this proposed rule is
consistent with the FMP, other provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act,
and other applicable law, subject to further consideration after public
comment.
This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
The Chief Council for Regulation of the Department of Commerce
certified to the Chief Council 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 ability for states with territorial waters located within the NGOM
management area to apply for this specific exemption was included into
the Scallop FMP through Framework 26, which was implemented in May
2015. That action included a Final Regulatory Flexibility Analyses
(FRFA) that analyzed the economic impacts of this NGOM exemption on
small entities.
This action would impact up to 40 NGOM-permitted vessels home
ported in Maine. Although only 12 of these vessels are currently
active, more vessels could enter the fishery at any time and benefit
from the exemption. Based on available information, NMFS has determined
that all 40 NGOM-permitted vessels that would be impacted by this rule
are small entities under the Small Business Administration's size
standards because they are all engaged in the business of fish
harvesting, are independently owned or operated, are not dominant in
their field of operation, and have annual gross receipts not in excess
of $5.5 million if fishing for shellfish (NAICS code: 114112).
This exemption is expected to have positive impacts on the revenues
of applicable scallop vessels and positive impacts on the overall
economic benefits from the scallop resource in state waters. Should the
Federal NGOM fishery close, this exemption will result in moderate to
high positive impacts on scallop revenue in Maine because NGOM
scallopers will be able to continue fishing for scallops in state
waters. This proposed action would not have any additional impacts on
federally permitted vessels beyond what was analyzed in Framework 26
and would not create any additional economic impacts that were not
considered in that action's FRFA.
List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 648
Fisheries, Fishing, Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.
Dated: July 30, 2015.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 648 is
proposed to be amended as follows:
PART 648--FISHERIES OF THE NORTHEASTERN UNITED STATES
0
1. The authority citation for part 648 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
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2. In Sec. 648.54, paragraph (a)(4) is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 648.54 State waters exemption.
(a) * * *
(4) The Regional Administrator has determined that the State of
Maine has a scallop fishery conservation program for its scallop
fishery that does not jeopardize the biomass and fishing mortality/
effort limit objectives of the Scallop FMP. A vessel fishing in State
of Maine waters may fish under the State of Maine state waters
exemption, subject to the exemptions specified in paragraphs (b) and
(c) of this section, provided the vessel is in compliance with
paragraphs (e) through (g) of this section. In addition, a vessel
issued a Federal Northern Gulf of Maine permit fishing in State of
Maine waters may fish under the State of Maine state waters exemption
specified in paragraph (d) of this section, provided the vessel is in
compliance with paragraphs (e) through (g) of this section.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2015-19149 Filed 8-4-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P