70196 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 232 / Friday, December 3, 2004 / Rules and Regulations 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

No. 83.100, ‘‘Flood Insurance.’’)

Dated: November 17, 2004. 

David I. Maurstad, 

Acting Director, Mitigation Division, 

Emergency Preparedness and Response 

Directorate.

[FR Doc. 04–26600 Filed 12–2–04; 8:45 am] 

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[I.D. 112604A]

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish 

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Closure 

of the Fall Commercial Red Snapper 

Component

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce.

ACTION: Closure.

SUMMARY: NMFS closes the commercial 

fishery for red snapper in the exclusive 

economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf of 

Mexico. NMFS has determined that the 

fall portion of the annual commercial 

quota for red snapper will be reached on 

December 15, 2004. This closure is 

necessary to protect the red snapper 

resource.

DATES: Closure is effective noon, local 

time, December 15, 2004, until noon, 

local time, on February 1, 2005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Phil 

Steele, telephone 727–570–5305, fax 

727–570–5583, e-mail 

Phil.Steele@noaa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The reef 

fish fishery of the Gulf of Mexico is 

managed under the Fishery 

Management Plan for the Reef Fish 

Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (FMP). 

The FMP was prepared by the Gulf of 

Mexico Fishery Management Council 

and is implemented under the authority 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act) by regulations 

at 50 CFR part 622. Those regulations 

set the commercial quota for red 

snapper in the Gulf of Mexico at 4.65 

million lb (2.11 million kg) for the 

current fishing year, January 1 through 

December 31, 2004. The red snapper 

commercial fishing season is split into 

two time periods, the first commencing 

at noon on February 1 with two-thirds 

of the annual quota (3.10 million lb 

(1.41 million kg)) available, and the 

second commencing at noon on October 

1 with the remainder of the annual 

quota available. During the commercial 

season, the red snapper commercial 

fishery opens at noon on the first of 

each month and closes at noon on the 

10th of each month, until the applicable 

commercial quotas are reached.

Under 50 CFR 622.43(a), NMFS is 

required to close the commercial fishery 

for a species or species group when the 

quota for that species or species group 

is reached, or is projected to be reached, 

by filing a notification to that effect in 

the Federal Register. Based on current 

statistics, NMFS has determined that the 

available fall commercial quota of 1.60 

million lb (0.73 million kg) for red 

snapper will be reached when the 

fishery closes at noon on December 15, 

2004. Accordingly, the commercial 

fishery in the EEZ in the Gulf of Mexico 

for red snapper will remain closed until 

noon, local time, on February 1, 2005. 

The operator of a vessel with a valid reef 

fish permit having red snapper aboard 

must have landed and bartered, traded, 

or sold such red snapper prior to noon, 

local time, December 15, 2004.

During the closure, a person aboard a 

vessel for which a commercial permit 

for Gulf reef fish has been issued may 

not harvest or possess red snapper from 

the Gulf of Mexico, and the sale or 

purchase of red snapper taken from the 

EEZ is prohibited. The prohibition on 

sale or purchase does not apply to sale 

or purchase of red snapper that were 

harvested, landed ashore, and sold prior 

to noon, local time, December 15, 2004, 

and were held in cold storage by a 

dealer or processor.

Classification

This action is required by 50 CFR 

622.43(a) and is exempt from review 

under Executive Order 12866. This 

action responds to the best available 

information recently obtained from the 

fishery. The Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries, NOAA, finds the need to 

immediately implement this action to 

close the fishery 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)(3)(B), as such 

procedures would be 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. 

Allowing prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment is contrary to the 

public interest because it requires time 

during which harvest would likely 

exceed the quota. Similarly, NMFS finds 

good cause that the implementation of 

this action cannot be delayed for 30 

days. Any delay in implementing this 

action would be impractical and 

contrary to the Magnuson-Stevens Act, 

the FMP, and the public interest. Given 

the capacity of the fishing fleet to 

exceed the quota quickly, there is a need 

to implement this measure in a timely 

fashion to prevent an overage of the 

commercial quota of Gulf red snapper. 

Accordingly, under 5 U.S.C. 553(d), a 

delay in the effective date is waived.

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

Dated: November 29, 2004.

Alan D. Risenhoover,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 04–26637 Filed 12–2–04; 8:45 am]

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