[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 229 (Monday, November 30, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 74710-74711]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-30318]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 622
[Docket No. 120404257-3325-02]
RIN 0648-XE215
Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;
2015 Commercial Accountability Measure and Closure for South Atlantic
Golden Tilefish Hook-and-Line Component
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; closure.
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SUMMARY: NMFS implements accountability measures for the commercial
hook-and-line component for golden tilefish in the exclusive economic
zone (EEZ) of the South Atlantic. NMFS projects commercial hook-and-
line landings for golden tilefish will reach the hook-and-line
component's commercial annual catch limit (ACL) on December 8, 2015.
Therefore, NMFS closes the commercial hook-and-line component for
golden tilefish in the South Atlantic EEZ on December 8, 2015, and it
will remain closed until the start of the next fishing year on January
1, 2016. This closure is necessary to protect the golden tilefish
resource.
DATES: This rule is effective 12:01 a.m., local time, December 8, 2015,
until 12:01 a.m., local time, January 1, 2016.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Vara, NMFS Southeast Regional
Office, telephone: 727-824-5305, email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The snapper-grouper fishery of the South
Atlantic includes golden tilefish and is managed under the Fishery
Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic
Region (FMP). The FMP was prepared by the South Atlantic Fishery
Management Council and is implemented by NMFS under the authority of
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-
Stevens Act) by regulations at 50 CFR part 622.
On April 23, 2013, NMFS published a final rule for Amendment 18B to
the FMP (78 FR 23858). Amendment 18B to the FMP established a longline
endorsement program for the commercial golden tilefish component of the
snapper-grouper fishery and allocated the commercial golden tilefish
ACL among two gear types, the longline and hook-and-line components.
The commercial ACL (equivalent to the commercial quota) for the
hook-and-line component for golden tilefish in the South Atlantic is
135,324 lb (61,382 kg), gutted weight, for the current fishing year,
January 1 through December 31, 2015, as specified in 50 CFR
622.190(a)(2)(ii).
Under 50 CFR 622.193(a)(1)(i), NMFS is required to close the
commercial hook-and-line component for golden tilefish when the hook-
and-line component's commercial ACL has been reached, or is projected
to be reached, by filing a notification to that effect with the Office
of the Federal Register. NMFS has determined that the commercial ACL
for the hook-and-line component for golden tilefish in the South
Atlantic will be reached by December 8, 2015. Accordingly, the
commercial hook-and-line component for South Atlantic golden tilefish
is closed effective 12:01 a.m., local time, December 8, 2015, until
12:01 a.m., local time, January 1, 2016.
The commercial longline component for South Atlantic golden
tilefish closed on February 19, 2015, for the remainder of the fishing
year, until 12:01 a.m., local time, January 1, 2016 (80 FR 8559,
February 18, 2015). Furthermore, recreational harvest for golden
tilefish closed on August 11, 2015, for the remainder of the fishing
year, until 12:01 a.m., local time, January 1, 2016 (80 FR 48041,
August 11, 2015). Therefore, because the commercial longline component
and the recreational sector are already closed, and NMFS is closing the
commercial hook-and-line component through this temporary rule, all
fishing for South Atlantic golden tilefish is closed effective 12:01
a.m., local time, December 8, 2015, until 12:01 a.m., local time,
January 1, 2016.
The operator of a vessel with a valid Federal commercial vessel
permit for South Atlantic snapper-grouper having golden tilefish on
board must have landed and bartered, traded, or sold such golden
tilefish prior to 12:01 a.m., local time, December 8, 2015. During the
closure, the sale or purchase of golden tilefish taken from the EEZ is
prohibited. The prohibition on sale or purchase does not apply to the
sale or purchase of golden tilefish that were harvested by hook-and-
line, landed ashore, and sold prior to 12:01 a.m., local time, December
8, 2015, and were held in cold storage by a dealer or processor. For a
person on board a vessel for which a Federal commercial or charter
vessel/headboat permit for the South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery
has been issued, the sale and purchase provisions of the commercial
closure for
[[Page 74711]]
golden tilefish would apply regardless of whether the fish are
harvested in state or Federal waters, as specified in 50 CFR
622.190(c)(1)(ii).
Classification
The Regional Administrator, Southeast Region, NMFS, has determined
this temporary rule is necessary for the conservation and management of
South Atlantic golden tilefish and is consistent with the Magnuson-
Stevens Act and other applicable laws.
This action is taken under 50 CFR 622.193(a)(1) and is exempt from
review under Executive Order 12866.
These measures are exempt from the procedures of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act because the temporary rule is issued without
opportunity for prior notice and comment.
This action responds to the best scientific information available.
The Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA (AA), finds that the
need to immediately implement this action to close the commercial hook-
and-line component for golden tilefish constitutes good cause to waive
the requirements to provide prior notice and opportunity for public
comment pursuant to the authority set forth in 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), as
such procedures are unnecessary and contrary to the public interest.
Such procedures are unnecessary because the rule itself has been
subject to notice and comment, and all that remains is to notify the
public of the closure. Such procedures are contrary to the public
interest because the capacity of the fishing fleet allows for rapid
harvest of the commercial ACL for the hook-and-line component, and
there is a need to immediately implement this action to protect golden
tilefish. Prior notice and opportunity for public comment would require
time and could potentially result in a harvest well in excess of the
established commercial ACL for the hook-and-line component.
For the aforementioned reasons, the AA also finds good cause to
waive the 30-day delay in the effectiveness of this action under 5
U.S.C. 553(d)(3).
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 24, 2015.
Emily H. Menashes,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-30318 Filed 11-27-15; 8:45 am]
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