82446 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 244 / Friday, December 18, 2020 / Notices 

Kleinschmidt (kris.kleinschmidt@

noaa.gov) or contact him at (503) 820– 

2280, extension 412 for technical 

assistance. 

Council Address: Pacific Fishery 

Management Council, 7700 NE 

Ambassador Place, Suite 101, Portland, 

OR 97220–1384. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kit 

Dahl, Staff Officer, Pacific Council; 

telephone: (503) 820–2422. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The EWG 

has been tasked with updating the 

Pacific Council’s Fishery Ecosystem 

Plan. The Pacific Council directed the 

EWG to complete a draft of Chapter 3, 

prepare a preliminary draft of Chapter 4, 

and an outline of Chapter 5 for review 

at its March 2021 meeting. The primary 

focus of this work session will be 

reviewing work completed to date and 

planning the tasks necessary to 

complete this assignment. The EWG 

may also discuss other matters on the 

Pacific Council’s March 2021 meeting 

agenda, particularly other ecosystem or 

administrative items. 

Although non-emergency issues not 

contained in the meeting agenda may be 

discussed, those issues may not be the 

subject of formal action during this 

meeting. 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 Mr. Kris 

Kleinschmidt (kris.kleinschmidt@

noaa.gov; (503) 820–2412) at least 10 

days prior to the meeting date. 

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

Dated: December 15, 2020. 

Rey Israel Marquez, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2020–27973 Filed 12–17–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0649–XA703] 

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 

Council; Public Meeting 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of a public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery 

Management Council (Council) will 

hold a 3-day meeting via webinar of its 

Standing, Reef Fish, Mackerel, 

Socioeconomic and Ecosystem 

Scientific and Statistical Committees 

(SSC) 

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

Tuesday, January 5, 2021 to Thursday, 

January 7, 2021. See SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION for specific times. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will take place 

via webinar; you may register by visiting 

www.gulfcouncil.org and clicking on the 

SSC meeting on the calendar. 

Council address: Gulf of Mexico 

Fishery Management Council, 4107 W 

Spruce Street, Suite 200, Tampa, FL 

33607; telephone: (813) 348–1630. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ryan Rindone, Lead Fishery Biologist, 

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 

Council; ryan.rindone@gulfcouncil.org, 

telephone: (813) 348–1630. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Tuesday, January 5, 2021; 9 a.m.–5 

p.m., EST 

The meeting will begin with 

Introductions and Adoption of Agenda, 

Approval of Verbatim Minutes and 

Meeting Summary from September 14– 

15, 2020 webinar meeting and October 

30, 2020 joint webinar meeting with the 

South Atlantic SSC, review Scope of 

Work, selection of SSC Representative 

for the January 25–28, 2021 Gulf 

Council Meeting. 

The Committees will review SEDAR 

70: Gulf of Mexico Greater Amberjack 

Stock Assessment; SEDAR 70 Stock 

Assessment Report, Presentation and 

Projections, Something’s Fishy and 

Stock Assessment Executive Summary. 

The Committees will then discuss the 

Sea Grant/NMFS Greater Amberjack 

Research Program, and adjourn for the 

day. 

Wednesday, January 6, 2021; 9 a.m.–5 

p.m., EST 

The Committees will review and hold 

discussions on Red Grouper 

Recreational Landings Data, followed by 

a Review of Council Proposed Interim 

Analysis Schedule. The Committees 

will then review Red Snapper Supply 

Chains and Markets, followed by the 

Great Red Snapper Count (GRSC), 

including a presentation, the project 

report, and a discussion on SEFSC 

integration of GRSC data into the 

interim analysis process. The 

Committees will then review Testing 

assumptions about sex change and 

spatial management in the protogynous 

gag grouper, Mycteroperca microlepis, 

and then adjourn for the day. 

Thursday, January 7, 2021; 9 a.m.–3 

p.m., EST 

The Committees will review a 

presentation and background materials 

on Gulf of Mexico Habitat Research, and 

will then discuss. The Committees will 

then review a Request for Participants: 

SEDAR 79: Southeastern U.S. Mutton 

Snapper. 

The Committees will consider 

carryover of uncaught commercial quota 

for Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) 

managed species; and, will review a 

presentation on 2020 Commercial 

landings for IFQ species, consider 

updated ABC recommendations for IFQ 

species in 2021 and receive a summary 

presentation on Carryover Provisions 

and Framework Modifications. 

Lastly, the Committee will discuss 

Other Business items and receive public 

comment. 

—Meeting Adjourns 

The meeting will be broadcast via 

webinar. You may register for the 

webinar by visiting www.gulfcouncil.org 

and clicking on the SSC meeting on the 

calendar. 

The Agenda is subject to change, and 

the latest version along with other 

meeting materials will be posted on 

www.gulfcouncil.org as they become 

available. 

Although other non-emergency issues 

not on the agenda may come before the 

Scientific and Statistical Committees for 

discussion, in accordance with the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act, 

those issues may not be the subject of 

formal action during this meeting. 

Actions of the Scientific and Statistical 

Committee will be restricted to those 

issues specifically identified in the 

agenda and any issues arising after 

publication of this notice 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 Council’s intent to take action to 

address the emergency. 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 244 / Friday, December 18, 2020 / Notices 82447 

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

Dated: December 15, 2020. 

Rey Israel Marquez, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2020–27971 Filed 12–17–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

[RTID 0648–XA593] 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone off Alaska; North Pacific 

Observer Program Standard Ex-Vessel 

Prices 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notification of standard exvessel prices. 

SUMMARY: NMFS publishes standard exvessel prices for groundfish and halibut 

for the calculation of the observer fee 

under the North Pacific Observer 

Program (Observer Program). This 

notice is intended to provide 

information to vessel owners, 

processors, registered buyers, and other 

Observer Program participants about the 

standard ex-vessel prices that will be 

used to calculate the observer fee for 

landings of groundfish and halibut 

made in 2021. NMFS will send invoices 

to processors and registered buyers 

subject to the fee by January 15, 2022. 

Fees are due to NMFS on or before 

February 15, 2022. 

DATES: The standard prices are valid on 

January 1, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

general questions about the observer fee 

and standard ex-vessel prices, contact 

Abby Jahn at (907)586–7445. For 

questions about the fee billing process, 

contact Charmaine Weeks at (907)586– 

7231. Additional information about the 

Observer Program is available on NMFS 

Alaska Region’s website at https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/ 

fisheries-observers/north-pacificobserver-program. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Regulations at 50 CFR part 679, 

subpart E, governing the Observer 

Program, require the deployment of 

NMFS-certified observers (observers) 

and electronic monitoring (EM) systems 

to collect information necessary for the 

conservation and management of the 

Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) 

and Gulf of Alaska (GOA) groundfish 

and halibut fisheries. Fishery managers 

use information collected by observers 

to monitor quotas, manage groundfish 

and prohibited species catch, and 

document and reduce fishery 

interactions with protected resources. 

Scientists use observer-collected 

information for stock assessments and 

marine ecosystem research. 

The Observer Program includes two 

observer coverage categories: the partial 

coverage category and the full coverage 

category. All groundfish and halibut 

vessels and processors subject to 

observer coverage are included in one of 

these two categories. Defined at 50 CFR 

679.51, the partial coverage category 

includes vessels and processors that are 

not required to have an observer or EM 

at all times, and the full coverage 

category includes vessels and processors 

required to have all of their fishing and 

processing activity observed. Vessels 

and processors in the full coverage 

category arrange and pay for observer 

services from a permitted observer 

provider. Observer coverage and EM for 

the partial coverage category is funded 

through a system of fees based on the 

ex-vessel value of groundfish and 

halibut. Throughout this notice, the 

term ‘‘processor’’ refers to shoreside 

processors, stationary floating 

processors, and catcher/processors in 

the partial coverage category. 

Landings Subject to Observer Coverage 

Fee 

Pursuant to section 313 of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS is 

authorized to assess a fee on all landings 

accruing against a Federal total 

allowable catch (TAC) for groundfish or 

a commercial halibut quota made by 

vessels that are subject to Federal 

regulations and not included in the full 

coverage category. A fee is only assessed 

on landings of groundfish from vessels 

designated on a Federal Fisheries Permit 

or from vessels landing individual 

fishing quota (IFQ) or community 

development quota (CDQ) halibut or 

IFQ sablefish. Within the subset of 

vessels subject to the observer fee, only 

landings accruing against an IFQ 

allocation or a Federal TAC for 

groundfish are included in the fee 

assessment. A table with additional 

information about which landings are 

subject to the observer fee is at 

§ 679.55(c) and on page 2 of an 

informational bulletin titled ‘‘Observer 

Fee Collection’’ that can be downloaded 

from the NMFS Alaska Region website 

at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/ 

resource/document/observer-feecollection-north-pacific-groundfish-andhalibut-fisheries-observer. 

Fee Determination 

A fee equal to 1.65 percent of the exvessel value will be assessed on the 

landings of groundfish and halibut 

subject to the fee beginning on January 

1, 2021. The fee is increased from 1.25 

percent to 1.65 percent to support 

observer and electronic monitoring 

deployment at rates more likely to meet 

the Council’s and NMFS’ monitoring 

objectives (85 FR 41424, July 10, 2020). 

Ex-vessel value is determined by 

multiplying the standard price for 

groundfish by the round weight 

equivalent for each species, gear, and 

port combination, and the standard 

price for halibut by the headed and 

gutted weight equivalent. Standard 

prices are determined by aggregating 

prices by species, gear, and area 

grouping to arrive at an average price 

per pound for each grouping. NMFS 

reviews each vessel landing report and 

determines whether the reported 

landing is subject to the observer fee 

and, if so, which groundfish species in 

the landing are subject to the observer 

fee. All IFQ or CDQ halibut in a landing 

subject to the observer fee will be 

included in the observer fee calculation. 

For any landed groundfish or halibut 

subject to the observer fee, NMFS will 

apply the appropriate standard ex-vessel 

prices for the species, gear type, and 

port, and calculate the observer fee 

associated with the landing. 

Processors and registered buyers can 

access the landing-specific, observer fee 

information through NMFS Web 

Application (https://

alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/webapps/efish/ 

login) or eLandings (https://

elandings.alaska.gov/). Observer fee 

information is either available 

immediately or within 24 hours after a 

landing report is submitted 

electronically. A time lag occurs for 

some landings because NMFS must 

process each landing report through the 

catch accounting system to determine 

which groundfish in a landing accrues 

against a Federal TAC and are subject to 

the observer fee. 

Under the fee system, catcher vessel 

owners split the fee with the registered 

buyers or owners of shoreside or 

stationary floating processors. While the 

owners of catcher vessels and 

processors in the partial coverage 

category are each responsible for paying 

their portion of the fee, the owners of 

shoreside or stationary floating 

processors and registered buyers are 

responsible for collecting the fees from 

catcher vessels, and remitting the full 

fee to NMFS. Owners of catcher/ 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES