Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 15617 

Secretary of Transportation or if they 

contain the following statement: 

The General Counsel of the Department of 

Transportation has reviewed this document 

and approved it as consistent with the 

language and intent of 49 CFR part 23. 

■ 5. Revise § 23.33 to read as follows: 

§ 23.33 What size standards do recipients 

use to determine the eligibility of ACDBEs? 

(a) As a recipient, you must, except as 

provided in paragraph (b) of this 

section, treat a firm as a small business 

eligible to be certified as an ACDBE if 

its gross receipts, averaged over the 

firm’s previous three fiscal years, do not 

exceed $47.78 million. 

(b) The following types of businesses 

have size standards that differ from the 

standard set forth in paragraph (a) of 

this section: 

(1) Banks and financial institutions: 

$750 million in assets; 

(2) Car rental companies: $63.71 

million average annual gross receipts 

over the firm’s three previous fiscal 

years; 

(3) Companies providing pay 

telephones: 1,500 employees; 

(4) Automobile dealers: 200 

employees. 

(c) The Department adjusts the 

numbers in paragraphs (a) and (b)(2) of 

this section using the Department of 

Commerce price deflators for purchases 

by state and local governments as the 

basis for this adjustment. These 

adjustments are made every two years 

from May 2, 2007. The Department 

publishes a final rule informing the 

public of each adjustment. 

PART 26—PARTICIPATION BY 

DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS 

ENTERPRISES IN DEPARTMENT OF 

TRANSPORTATION FINANCIAL 

ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 26 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 23 U.S.C. 324; 42 U.S.C. 2000d 

et seq.; 49 U.S.C 1615, 47107, 47113, 47123; 

Sec. 1101(b), Pub. L. 105–178, 112 Stat. 107, 

113. 

■ 2. Revise § 26.9 to read as follows: 

§ 26.9 How does the Department issue 

guidance and interpretations under this 

part? 

(a) Only guidance and interpretations 

(including interpretations set forth in 

certification appeal decisions) 

consistent with this part 26 and issued 

after March 4, 1999 express the official 

positions and views of the Department 

of Transportation or any of its operating 

administrations. 

(b) The Secretary of Transportation, 

Office of the Secretary of 

Transportation, FHWA, FTA, and FAA 

may issue written interpretations of or 

written guidance concerning this part. 

Written interpretations and guidance are 

valid, and express the official positions 

and views of the Department of 

Transportation or any of its operating 

administrations, only if they are issued 

over the signature of the Secretary of 

Transportation or if they contain the 

following statement: 

The General Counsel of the Department of 

Transportation has reviewed this document 

and approved it as consistent with the 

language and intent of 49 CFR part 26. 

■ 3. Revise § 26.65 to read as follows: 

§ 26.65 What rules govern business size 

determinations? 

(a) To be an eligible DBE, a firm 

(including its affiliates) must be an 

existing small business, as defined by 

Small Business Administration (SBA) 

standards. As a recipient, you must 

apply current SBA business size 

standard(s) found in 13 CFR part 121 

appropriate to the type(s) of work the 

firm seeks to perform in DOT-assisted 

contracts. 

(b) Even if it meets the requirements 

of paragraph (a) of this section, a firm 

is not an eligible DBE in any Federal 

fiscal year if the firm (including its 

affiliates) has had average annual gross 

receipts, as defined by SBA regulations 

(see 13 CFR 121.402), over the firm’s 

previous three fiscal years, in excess of 

$20.41 million. 

(c) The Department adjusts the 

number in paragraph (b) of this section 

using the Department of Commerce 

price deflators for purchases by State 

and local governments as the basis for 

this adjustment. The Department issues 

a final rule by August 10 of each year 

making this adjustment. 

Issued this 20 day of March 2007, at 

Washington DC. 

Mary E. Peters, 

Secretary of Transportation. 

[FR Doc. E7–6054 Filed 3–30–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[Docket No. 061121304–7053–02; I.D. 

112006B] 

RIN 0648–AT87 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish 

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Gulf Red 

Snapper Management Measures 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; interim 

measures. 

SUMMARY: This final rule implements 

interim measures to reduce overfishing 

of Gulf red snapper. This final rule 

reduces the commercial and recreational 

quotas for red snapper, reduces the 

commercial minimum size limit for red 

snapper, reduces the recreational bag 

limit for Gulf red snapper, prohibits the 

retention of red snapper under the bag 

limit for captain and crew of a vessel 

operating as a charter vessel or 

headboat, and establishes a target level 

of reduction of shrimp trawl bycatch 

mortality of red snapper. The intended 

effect is to reduce overfishing of red 

snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. 

DATES: This final rule is effective May 2, 

2007 through September 29, 2007, 

except for amendments to § 622.37, 

which are effective April 2, 2007 

through September 29, 2007. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of documents 

supporting this final rule, including a 

final environmental impact statement 

(FEIS), a Record of Decision (ROD), and 

a final regulatory flexibility analysis 

(FRFA), may be obtained from Peter 

Hood, Southeast Regional Office, NMFS, 

263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, 

FL 33701. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Peter Hood, telephone: 727–551–5784, 

fax: 727–824–5308, e-mail: 

peter.hood@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The red 

snapper fishery of the Gulf of Mexico is 

managed under the Fishery 

Management Plan (FMP) for the Reef 

Fish Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico, and 

the shrimp fishery is managed under the 

FMP for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf 

of Mexico. The FMPs were prepared by 

the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 

Council (Council) and are implemented 

under the authority of the MagnusonVerDate Aug<31>2005 15:27 Mar 30, 2007 Jkt 211001 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\02APR1.SGM 02APR1

rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
15618 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens 

Act) by regulations at 50 CFR part 622. 

On October 13, 2006, NMFS 

published a notice of availability of the 

draft environmental impact statement 

(DEIS) for this action (71 FR 60509). The 

notice of availability of the final 

environmental impact statement (FEIS) 

was published on December 29, 2006 

(71 FR 78427). On December 14, 2006, 

NMFS published the proposed rule and 

requested public comment. The 

rationale for these interim measures is 

provided in the FEIS and the preamble 

to the proposed rule and is not repeated 

here. 

Comments and Responses 

The following is a summary of 

comments received on the proposed 

rule and NMFS’ responses. A total of 

6,403 comments were received from 

individuals and organizations. In 

addition to these comments, NMFS 

received two comment letters, with a 

total of 10,280 signatures, that opposed 

various provisions of the proposed rule. 

NMFS’ response to comments on the 

proposed rule including the issues 

presented in the two comment letters is 

provided below. 

Comment 1: Many respondents asked 

NMFS not to implement the interim 

rule, but allow the Council to develop 

an amendment with updated data taking 

into account the effect of recent 

hurricanes on fishing. 

Response: The Magnuson-Stevens Act 

requires NMFS to develop a plan to end 

overfishing once such a determination 

has been made. The Council has 

developed, and the Secretary has 

approved, a red snapper rebuilding plan 

ending overfishing between 2009 and 

2010. The red snapper harvest and 

bycatch reduction measures the Council 

is evaluating to achieve this goal cannot 

be implemented in time to address 

overfishing during 2007. If overfishing 

continues in 2007, then substantially 

more severe harvest reductions will be 

required between 2008 and 2010 to end 

overfishing on schedule. Consequently, 

NMFS has determined interim measures 

are needed to address overfishing of red 

snapper during the 2007–fishing year. 

The interim measures implemented 

through this final rule are designed to 

minimize to the extent practicable the 

unavoidable adverse impacts of ending 

overfishing during a time when Gulf of 

Mexico fisheries are recovering from the 

adverse effects of two particularly 

severe hurricane seasons. Additionally, 

the analyses underlying these measures 

assume effort in the red snapper and 

shrimp fisheries will be slightly below 

average during 2007 as a result of the 

hurricanes. NMFS has determined this 

rule is based on the best scientific 

information available. NMFS continues 

to actively monitor red snapper and 

shrimp effort data so this information 

can be taken into account in developing 

measures to achieve the additional, 

longer-term reductions in red snapper 

harvest and bycatch needed to end 

overfishing of red snapper. 

Comment 2: Many respondents 

suggested the rule violated national 

standard 2 of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. One respondent also suggested the 

rule violated national standards 4, 7, 

and 8. These national standards require 

fishery conservation and management 

measures be based upon the best 

scientific information available 

(national standard 2); be fair and 

equitable, promote conservation, and 

allow no one to have excessive shares in 

a fishery (national standard 4); 

minimize costs and avoid unnecessary 

duplication, where practicable (national 

standard 7); and, in achieving the 

conservation requirements of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, sustain the 

participation of and minimize adverse 

economic impacts to fishing 

communities to the extent practicable 

(national standard 8). 

Response: NMFS has determined 

these interim measures and associated 

analytical documents comply with all 

Magnuson-Stevens Act national 

standards, as well as with all other 

applicable laws and regulations. The 

scientific data and information 

underlying the need for action was 

independently peer reviewed through 

the Southeast Data and Assessment 

Review (SEDAR) process, and certified 

by NMFS Southeast Fisheries Science 

Center (SEFSC) and the Council’s 

Scientific and Statistical Committee as 

the best scientific information available. 

The interim measures promote 

conservation by addressing overfishing 

for the 2007 fishing season, and are fair 

and equitable because they apply to 

fishery participants in all coastal states 

of the Gulf of Mexico. Differences in the 

measures applicable to the commercial 

and recreational sectors of the directed 

red snapper fishery, and the bases for 

the measures applicable to the shrimp 

fishery, are discussed in further detail 

below. (See, e.g., responses to 

Comments 14 and 17–19.) These interim 

measures also minimize costs to 

fisheries participants to the extent 

practicable while meeting national 

standard 1 requirements to reduce 

overfishing, and minimize to the extent 

practicable the unavoidable costs and 

adverse economic impacts associated 

with reducing red snapper mortality in 

the Gulf of Mexico. Addressing 

overfishing in the 2007 season will help 

to avoid more severe harvest reductions 

to end overfishing between 2008 and 

2010. 

Comment 3: Many respondents 

disagreed with the conclusions of the 

red snapper stock assessment on which 

the interim measures are based, stating 

red snapper fishing is improving and 

the stock appears healthy, particularly 

in the northeastern Gulf. Specific 

criticisms of the assessment stated the 

assessment does not take into account 

the full contribution of artificial reefs to 

stock productivity; overestimates 

bycatch in the recreational fishery; and 

does not account for post-settlement, 

density-dependent mortality. 

Response: The 2005 red snapper stock 

assessment was conducted and 

reviewed using the SEDAR process, 

which is a cooperative fishery 

management council process initiated in 

2002 to improve the quality and 

reliability of fishery stock assessments 

in the Gulf of Mexico and other 

Southeast fishery management council 

regions. SEDAR emphasizes constituent 

and stakeholder participation in 

assessment development, transparency 

in the assessment process, and a 

rigorous and independent scientific 

review of completed stock assessments. 

Council, NMFS, and state agency 

representatives, as well as affected 

fishermen, academics, and 

environmental non-governmental 

organizations participated in the 2005 

red snapper SEDAR process, and all 

decisions were reached by consensus. 

Each SEDAR involves a series of three 

workshops--data, assessment, and 

review. Each workshop is open to the 

public and noticed in advance through 

the Federal Register. 

The reports produced during the 

SEDAR workshops document in detail 

key findings regarding data usage and 

assessment methodology and were 

formally peer reviewed during the 

SEDAR Review Workshop in April 

2005. The SEDAR Review panel 

identified the results of the red snapper 

stock assessment as the best scientific 

information available. Additionally, the 

SEDAR Review panel provided a series 

of recommendations including 

additional data needs to improve future 

assessments. An additional 

endorsement of the stock assessment 

came from the Gulf Council’s Joint 

Standing and Special Reef Fish/ 

Mackerel/Spiny Lobster Scientific and 

Statistical Committee who recognized 

the assessment as the best available 

science during their July 5–6, 2005, 

meeting. 

The 2005 red snapper SEDAR 

assessment supports the observation 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 15619 

made by fishermen that stock biomass is 

increasing in the eastern Gulf. However, 

stock biomass remains far below the 

minimum threshold (i.e., overfished) 

and fishing mortality continues to 

exceed the maximum sustainable level 

defined in the red snapper rebuilding 

plan (i.e., overfishing). The assessment 

examined differences in the eastern and 

western components of the fishery, 

which are divided by the Mississippi 

River delta, and found that, although the 

eastern portion of the stock is in slightly 

better condition than is the western 

portion, red snapper is still significantly 

overfished in both regions. 

SEDAR participants discussed and 

addressed, to the extent possible, the 

potential impacts of artificial reefs on 

stock productivity and recruitment, as 

well as issues related to each of the 

other criticisms described above. The 

rationale for their decisions on each of 

these issues is provided in the SEDAR 

07 working papers and reports, which 

can be accessed online at: http:// 

www.sefsc.noaa.gov/sedar/ 

SedarlWorkshops.jsp?

WorkshopNum=07. 

Comment 4: Several respondents 

suggested either the ‘‘linked’’ or 

‘‘delinked’’ bycatch reduction scenarios 

be used in determining the rebuilding 

strategy. Others indicated estimates of 

bycatch from the recreational fishery 

were overestimated by the stock 

assessment. 

Response: Estimates of maximum 

sustainable yield (MSY) and stock size 

that allows harvest at MSY, are 

contingent on mortality (including 

bycatch mortality) from the directed red 

snapper and shrimp trawl fisheries. The 

‘‘linked’’ scenario requires an equal 

reduction in fishing mortality across all 

sources of mortality (i.e., directed 

fishery, closed season bycatch, and 

shrimp trawl bycatch), while the ‘‘delinked’’ scenario does not require an 

equal reduction and allows fishery 

managers to establish individual 

mortality reduction goals for one or 

more sources of mortality. These 

decisions then define how much of a 

reduction of mortality is required in the 

remaining sectors, and enable fishery 

managers to hold each sector 

accountable for achieving its specific 

mortality reduction objective. NMFS is 

encouraging the Council to explore the 

pros and cons of ‘‘linking’’ and ‘‘delinking’’ the various sources of red 

snapper mortality. However, such a 

decision is beyond the scope of this 

temporary rule, the objective of which is 

to address overfishing on a temporary 

basis while the Council develops a 

strategy to end overfishing of the stock 

in compliance with the red snapper 

rebuilding plan and the MagnusonStevens Act. 

Estimates of red snapper recreational 

fishery discards were reviewed through 

the SEDAR process and have been 

determined to be the best available 

science (see response to Comment 3). 

During the SEDAR data workshop, 

discard estimates based on the Marine 

Recreational Fishery Statistics Survey 

(MRFSS) were reviewed and considered 

to underestimate total recreational 

discards. Additionally, there were 

concerns about estimating discards for 

headboats and from Texas waters using 

MRFSS discard estimates or other 

studies. Therefore, the red snapper stock 

assessment estimated recreational and 

commercial discards using predicted 

length composition of the catch, and 

discards were primarily attributed to the 

minimum size limit. 

Comment 5: Many comments 

suggested the interim measures should 

reduce the total allowable catch (TAC) 

of red snapper to 6 million lb (2.72 

million kg) or less to end overfishing as 

soon as possible. 

Response: The 6.5–million lb (2.95–

million kg) TAC implemented through 

this final rule is intended to reduce 

overfishing of the red snapper stock on 

a temporary basis, specifically for the 

2007 fishing season, while the Council 

develops a strategy to end overfishing of 

the stock in compliance with the red 

snapper rebuilding plan and the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act. The chosen 

TAC is designed to minimize to the 

extent practicable the unavoidable 

adverse impacts of reducing red snapper 

mortality during a time when Gulf 

fisheries are recovering from the adverse 

effects of two particularly severe 

hurricane seasons. While a lower TAC 

and more restrictive management 

measures will be required in the future 

to end overfishing on schedule, NMFS 

believes that a 6.0 million-lb (2.7 

million-kg) TAC is not necessary for 

purposes of this final rule and that 

longer-term management measures 

should, as appropriate, be developed 

through the Council process, which 

provides additional mechanisms for 

consulting with affected user groups. 

Comment 6: One comment suggested 

red snapper TAC reductions should be 

phased in to the level needed to end 

overfishing. 

Response: The red snapper TAC 

implemented through this final rule will 

reduce, rather than end, overfishing. 

The TAC will need to be reduced below 

6.5 million lb (2.95 million kg) in the 

coming years to end overfishing on 

schedule. 

Comment 7: Some respondents 

suggested closing the directed red 

snapper (commercial and recreational) 

and shrimp fisheries to allow the red 

snapper stock to recover. 

Response: Closing the red snapper 

and shrimp fisheries would be 

inconsistent with the national standard 

1 mandate to achieve the optimum yield 

from each U.S. fishery and the national 

standard 8 mandate to minimize to the 

extent practicable adverse economic 

impacts on fishing communities because 

such action would exceed that required 

to meet the red snapper conservation 

objective. 

Comment 8: Some respondents 

questioned why TAC was being reduced 

in the final rule rather than creating 

seasonal or area closures to protect 

spawning aggregations. They indicated 

fishing for red snapper should be closed 

in areas and at those times when red 

snapper are known to spawn. 

Response: Area closures were 

considered but rejected by the Council 

as a management tool for Amendment 

14/27 (a joint amendment to the Shrimp 

and Reef Fish FMPs). Using this 

management technique in this final rule 

would be limited to the 2007 fishing 

season and would therefore result in 

marginal gains for the stock should the 

Council not adopt these measures in 

future actions. The Council is 

considering reductions in length of the 

recreational fishing season in 

Amendment 14/27. The final rule does 

not reduce the length of the fishing 

season because other management 

measures accomplish the necessary 

reductions in harvest. However, the 

Council may choose to reconsider 

seasonal and area closures if public 

comment or other information suggests 

these are the preferred management 

strategies. 

Comment 9: Several respondents 

suggested fishing seasons should be 

modified to one of the following: 1) a 

short time period for commercial and 

recreational fishermen that avoids the 

red snapper breeding season, 2) 

alternating months or opening portions 

of months for the recreational fishery, 3) 

a shorter commercial season concurrent 

with the recreational season, or 4) 

different seasons between the eastern 

and western Gulf. 

Response: NMFS evaluated numerous 

alternatives, including various seasonal 

closures, to constrain the recreational 

red snapper fishery to the 2007 

allocation implemented through this 

final rule. The range of alternative 

seasons considered was intended to 

preserve, if possible, a core season of 

May 15 to August 15. Many comments 

received on this rule during public 

testimony suggested that recreational 

fishermen would prefer methods other 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
15620 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

than changing the current fishing season 

to reduce fishing effort. 

The Council will examine recreational 

fishing regulations in Amendment 14/ 

27. Consequently, if the core season can 

no longer be preserved, or if public 

comments request the Council to 

preserve different core seasons in the 

eastern and western Gulf, then the 

Council could re-examine these and 

other seasonal closure alternatives in 

developing a plan to end overfishing of 

red snapper in compliance with the red 

snapper rebuilding plan and the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act. 

NMFS did not evaluate seasonal 

closure alternatives for the commercial 

red snapper fishery because the 

mortality rate of that fishery is managed 

in season through an individual fishing 

quota (IFQ) program. This program was 

implemented in part to eliminate the 

derby fishery conditions that had 

developed in response to short fishing 

seasons. IFQ programs intend to control 

total annual harvest by enabling fishery 

managers to track and limit the landings 

of each individual program participant. 

Comment 10: Two respondents 

suggested that because red snapper have 

been successfully raised in captivity, 

aquaculture should be used to augment 

red snapper stocks, instead of 

implementing further harvest 

restrictions. 

Response: Because stock 

enhancement through aquaculture is a 

longer-term alternative to address 

overfishing, it is beyond the scope of 

this rule to reduce overfishing of the red 

snapper stock on a temporary basis, for 

the 2007 fishing season. However, 

NOAA supports creation of 

environmentally sound and 

economically sustainable aquaculture 

opportunities. The Generic Amendment 

for Offshore Aquaculture, currently 

under development by the Council, in 

collaboration with NMFS, would 

provide a similar framework for 

regulating offshore aquaculture of 

federally managed species, including 

red snapper, in Federal waters of the 

Gulf of Mexico. Additionally, a multiyear grant awarded to the Gulf of 

Mexico Marine Stock Enhancement 

Program by NMFS in 2003 is funding 

research for red snapper stock 

enhancement possibilities. 

Comment 11: Some respondents 

suggested the economic and social value 

of both the recreational and commercial 

sectors should be considered in setting 

TAC. Some comments indicated current 

allocation of TAC should be changed so 

the recreational fishery receives a higher 

percentage. Several respondents were 

concerned TAC reductions will have an 

adverse economic effect on charter 

fishermen and businesses dependent on 

offshore fishing. 

Response: Changes to the current 

methodology for allocating red snapper 

TAC between the commercial and 

recreational sectors are outside the 

scope of this rule, which is intended 

only to reduce overfishing of the red 

snapper stock on a temporary basis, for 

the 2007 fishing season. However, the 

Council is developing an amendment to 

address the allocation of different reef 

fish species and may include red 

snapper. The Council has established a 

working group with the SEFSC to 

examine harvest allocation between 

fishing sectors. 

Best available survey and modeling 

results indicate relatively few trip 

cancellations are expected to occur as a 

result of this action. Most survey 

respondents indicated when faced with 

a reduced red snapper bag limit, they 

would either continue fishing for red 

snapper or fish for another species. This 

change in fishing behavior may generate 

distributional effects (i.e., the 

substituted trip may occur from a 

different port, different mode, or in a 

different season, resulting in one port/ 

season losing while another gains). 

These distributional effects, however, 

cannot be predicted with current data. 

Comment 12: Many respondents 

suggested the current four-fish bag limit 

should not be reduced because high fuel 

prices have reduced recreational fishing 

effort, and, therefore, no further actions 

need to be taken to constrain red 

snapper harvest. Other respondents 

suggested other alternatives to the twofish bag limit should be considered to 

reduce bycatch and minimize adverse 

economic harm to the recreational 

fishery. Suggested measures included a 

bag limit of the first four or five red 

snapper of any size caught per day, a 

recreational IFQ program, eliminating 

fishing tournaments other than catch 

and release, developing a size-based 

daily points system, setting a red 

snapper slot limit, restricting the 

number of trips an angler may take, and 

establishing more artificial reefs. 

Response: In managing the 

recreational fishery so harvest is 

constrained to the recreational quota, 

NMFS has employed bag limits, size 

limits, and seasonal closures. Assuming 

some reduction in recreational effort 

due to hurricanes and increased fuel 

prices, the combined effect of reducing 

the recreational bag limit from four to 

two fish and prohibiting a captain and 

crew bag limit for for-hire vessels 

should control effort sufficiently to 

ensure the recreational fishery remains 

within the 2007 quota of 3.185 million 

lb (1.445 million kg). When combining 

these two measures, the recreational 

fishery would be allowed to maintain its 

current 194-day recreational fishing 

season (April 21 - October 31). To 

maintain a four-fish bag limit, the 

fishing season would need to be 

reduced. Testimony from many 

fishermen suggested they would prefer 

a reduction to the bag limit than a 

reduction in season length. 

Alternative management strategies 

suggested above other than bag limits 

could create confusion for anglers 

should the Council adopt different 

measures in Amendment 14/27, which 

considers red snapper management 

beyond 2007. Other measures suggested 

above, such as retaining the first four or 

five fish caught, were considered but 

rejected because preliminary analyses 

indicated these regulations would 

increase total recreational fishing 

mortality Gulf-wide and across all 

modes, thus slowing recovery. Measures 

that slow recovery also have negative 

long-term economic consequences. 

However, the Council may choose to 

consider these alternatives in 

Amendment 14/27 to assist in ending 

overfishing and continue the recovery of 

the red snapper stock. 

Comment 13: Many respondents 

suggested that prohibiting the captain 

and crew of for-hire vessels from 

retaining the recreational bag limit 

contributes little to reductions in 

recreational fishing mortality, and the 

captain and crew should be able to keep 

a bag limit. One respondent suggested 

captain and crew bag limit reductions 

were already factored into the current 

fishing regulations when the season was 

reduced by six days to account for the 

cancellation of a zero-bag limit for 

captain and crew in 2000. 

Response: Analyses indicated that 

prohibiting captain and crew of for-hire 

vessels from retaining the recreational 

bag limit would reduce red snapper 

landings by approximately 2 percent. 

This action, coupled with the reduction 

in the recreational bag limit to two fish 

allows the fishing season to remain at its 

current length of 194 days (from April 

21–October 31). Many for-hire 

fishermen indicated they would be 

willing to give up their bag limit if the 

current season was maintained. 

Additionally, this measure would also 

increase consistency among regulations 

and make them more equitable. Within 

the reef fish fishery, captain and crew of 

for-hire vessels are not allowed to keep 

bag limits of grouper and captain and 

crew of commercial vessels are not 

allowed to keep reef fish bag limits if 

commercial quantities of reef fish are 

onboard. 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 15621 

While NMFS did reduce the 

recreational fishing season by six days 

in 2000 to allow the captain and crew 

of for-hire vessels to maintain their bag 

limits, these measures were put in place 

based on a 1999 stock assessment. The 

measures considered in this final rule 

are based on the 2005 stock assessment 

using new and updated data. Thus the 

condition of the stock has been 

reevaluated, and the measures in this 

final rule are based on this updated 

assessment. 

Comment 14: Many respondents 

indicated reducing the minimum size 

limit should also be applied to the 

recreational fishery. They suggested not 

doing so will adversely affect stock 

recovery, enhance user conflict, and 

would not be fair and equitable. Some 

suggested commercial fishermen should 

be restricted to fishing in deeper water 

to reduce conflict between fisheries. 

One respondent suggested data used to 

assess the potential commercial discard 

reductions was based on only one study 

having a limited sample size and 

geographic location, while others 

indicated more research on reduced 

minimum size limits is needed for the 

commercial and recreational fisheries to 

determine if in fact this type of measure 

decreases bycatch. Further, one 

respondent suggested reductions in 

bycatch resulting from lowering of the 

commercial minimum size to 13 inches 

(33 cm) will not work because 

commercial fishermen will not change 

their current fishing practices. 

Response: This final rule is 

implemented under the provision of 

section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act that provides for interim measures 

needed to reduce overfishing. Reducing 

the commercial minimum size limit 

from 15 to 13 inches (38 to 33 cm) 

reduces overfishing because 71–82 

percent of the fish discarded by 

commercial fishermen do not survive. 

However, while reducing the 

recreational minimum size limit would 

reduce bycatch, it would not reduce 

overfishing, because the discard 

mortality rate in the recreational fishery 

is relatively low (15–40 percent); 

therefore, a greater proportion of the fish 

discarded by recreational fishermen 

survive. Thus, reductions in the 

recreational minimum size limit were 

not adopted in this rule. The Council is 

currently considering a reduction in the 

recreational size limit and other 

strategies to reduce bycatch in the 

recreational red snapper fishery while 

developing long-term measures to end 

overfishing of red snapper in 

compliance with the red snapper 

rebuilding plan and Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. 

Differences in minimum size limits 

may potentially result in user conflicts. 

Recreational fishermen have expressed 

concern commercial fishermen could 

reduce the number of fish available to 

anglers at known fishing areas. 

However, the interim measures in this 

rule are designed to reduce overfishing 

for the 2007 season. If the Council 

determines the difference in the 

commercial and recreational minimum 

size limit results in a conflict between 

the sectors, then the Council could 

explore alternatives, such as restrictions 

on depth fished, to minimize or 

eliminate that conflict. With respect to 

measures in this final rule not being fair 

and equitable between the recreational 

and commercial sectors, percent 

reductions in quota are equivalent. 

However, because the fisheries are 

prosecuted differently, alternative 

measures are needed to constrain 

harvest to each fishery’s respective 

quota. 

For the commercial fishery, data used 

to assess the potential discard 

reductions was based on two studies. 

One was empirical sampling of 16 

commercial vessels off Louisiana. The 

other used data from the 2005 stock 

assessment, which was Gulf-wide. The 

trends from both studies were similar, 

with the results from the empirical 

study showing a slightly higher discard 

rate than the Gulf-wide study. However, 

in describing discard rates of undersized 

fish, results from both studies provided 

a potential range in discard reductions 

relative to different minimum size 

limits. 

More research is needed to evaluate 

discard mortality in both the 

commercial and recreational fisheries. 

Discussion in the SEDAR data workshop 

recognized the limitation of information 

on the fate of discarded red snapper. 

Rather than using direct estimates from 

the fishery, the SEDAR assessment 

panel chose to estimate recreational 

discards internally by the assessment 

model. Further, discard mortality 

research was identified in the SEDAR 

process as an important component for 

the next assessment. 

With regards to reducing discard 

mortality in the commercial fishery by 

changing fishing practices, reductions in 

minimum size do not affect discard 

mortality rates once fish have been 

released. However, reducing the 

commercial minimum size limit does 

reduce the overall number of discards 

by the fishery because a greater number 

of fish, which would have been 

discarded under the current 15–inch 

(38–cm) size limit, will be retained 

under the 13–inch (33–cm) size limit 

and counted against the commercial 

quota. If the Council determines further 

reductions in discard mortality may be 

achieved through changing fishing 

practices, the Council may evaluate 

alternatives in future actions. 

Comment 15: Several comments 

indicated NMFS should include in the 

temporary rule requirements for gear 

that would decrease reef fish fishery 

bycatch and mortality such as circle 

hooks, larger hooks, less hooks, venting 

tools, and de-hookers. Two respondents 

suggested mandatory classes should be 

taught to charter vessel captains and 

crew on how to properly de-hook, vent, 

and release fish to reduce bycatch 

mortality. 

Response: The rule addresses bycatch 

of red snapper to the extent practicable 

given the temporary duration of this 

final rule. NMFS evaluated alternative 

gear restrictions that could achieve 

additional bycatch reduction in the 

directed red snapper fisheries, but 

determined it is not practicable to 

implement, on an interim basis, 

measures that would require fishermen 

to invest in new gear or equipment, 

such as circle hooks and de-hooking 

devices. If such measures are adopted as 

part of the Council’s longer-term 

strategy for ending overfishing, then 

NMFS will consider alternative 

strategies for educating fishermen about 

how to comply with these requirements, 

including public workshops. 

Comment 16: Two comments 

questioned economic analyses of the 

charter fishery in the EIS for the 

temporary rule. Specifically, these 

responders asked why there exists a 

wide variance of economic conditions 

between west Florida and other Gulf 

states (in particular Alabama), and why 

the analyses examine excess capacity 

when in all likelihood the fishery will 

never reach overcapacity. 

Response: There are several market 

characteristics that separate the charter 

fisheries in these two states. On average, 

Florida vessels are smaller, have smaller 

horsepower, have lower maximum 

passenger capacity, and take fewer 

passengers per trip than Alabama 

vessels. Additionally, increased 

competition created by the larger 

number of vessels in Florida may reduce 

profits. Because of the size and location 

of Alabama, in the event of closure of 

Federal waters off Alabama, anglers can 

easily relocate their fishing to another 

location (e.g., Florida or Mississippi). 

Relocation from Florida, however, 

would be much more costly for the 

average angler, other than those fishing 

from the Florida Panhandle near 

Alabama, because of the extensive 

coastline and distance required to fish 

an alternative site. Additionally, the 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
15622 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

wider variety of species available to a 

Florida angler would be expected to 

make fishing in Florida more attractive 

than fishing in Alabama. 

The fact that bag limit reductions and 

seasonal restrictions are necessary to 

constrain the recreational sector to 

allowable harvest levels demonstrates 

that the recreational sector has the 

capacity to harvest more than the target 

threshold for this fishery. 

Comment 17: Many comments 

specified shrimp trawl bycatch must be 

minimized by 50 to 80 percent to allow 

red snapper stocks to recover. 

Response: This final rule will 

establish a target reduction goal for 

shrimp trawl bycatch mortality on red 

snapper that is 50 percent less than the 

benchmark years of 2001–2003. This 

target reflects the level of effort 

documented in 2005 in areas where red 

snapper are abundant in the western 

Gulf, compared to the level of effort 

during the benchmark years. It does not 

meet the 74–percent target mortality 

reduction level necessary to rebuild the 

red snapper stock to a spawning 

potential ratio of 26 percent. However, 

preliminary information for 2006 

suggests shrimp trawl effort has 

continued to decline in offshore waters 

of the western Gulf. Therefore, similar 

to the directed red snapper fishery, 

shrimp trawl effort for 2006 and 2007 is 

likely to be less than the level of effort 

documented during 2005 in areas where 

red snapper are commonly taken. 

Additional bycatch mortality reduction 

is expected from the introduction of 

new bycatch reduction devices (BRDs) 

under a pending revision to the 

certification criterion for BRDs. In 

combination, NMFS estimates red 

snapper bycatch mortality attributable 

to the shrimp fishery over the next few 

years may closely approximate the 

needed percent reductions in shrimp 

bycatch mortality from the benchmark 

years of 2001–2003. 

Comment 18: Several comments 

indicated that seasonal and area 

closures should be established for 

shrimp trawls to reduce juvenile red 

snapper bycatch in the shrimp fishery, 

particularly in the 10–30 fathom depth 

range. Several commenters desired the 

establishment of a red snapper 

conservation zone consisting of waters 

at 10–30 fathoms west of Cape San Blas, 

Florida, in which effort in the shrimp 

fishery would be capped at an 

appropriate level to reduce red snapper 

bycatch. 

Response: In addressing long-term 

management strategies to control shrimp 

trawl bycatch mortality of red snapper, 

the Council may choose seasonal or area 

closures in Amendment 14/27. 

However, the reduction target in the 

temporary rule discussed above will 

provide NMFS with interim means to 

immediately address shrimp trawl 

bycatch in 2007. NMFS intends to 

provide the Council with 2006 shrimp 

trawl effort information in 2007. If 

shrimp effort for 2006 is above the 

target, the Council could take further 

action in 2007, if necessary, to maintain 

the proposed reductions in shrimp effort 

in areas of the western Gulf where red 

snapper are most abundant. 

The EIS for this temporary rule 

evaluated a number of seasonal closure 

alternatives designed to reduce red 

snapper bycatch in the shrimp trawl 

fishery, but shrimp effort levels are such 

that they are unlikely to exceed the 

target reduction goal for 2007 set in this 

temporary rule. Therefore, they were not 

considered practicable for the temporary 

rule. The Council is currently evaluating 

the potential benefits of additional 

alternatives in Shrimp Amendment 15 

that would establish seasonal or fixed 

closures in areas identified through a 

review of recent literature and ongoing 

research programs. Three of these areas 

are located off the coast of Texas, one 

is located south of Mobile, and one is 

located west of the Mississippi Delta. 

Comment 19: One comment suggested 

long-term measures to restrict shrimp 

bycatch should not be considered in the 

temporary rule, and long-term measures 

incorporating recommendations of the 

Council’s Ad Hoc Shrimp Effort 

Advisory Panel should be followed and 

implemented through Joint 

Amendments 14/27 and 15/31. 

Response: Long-term measures to 

manage shrimp fishing effort in relation 

to the target red snapper bycatch 

mortality reduction goal are needed. For 

2007, anticipated declines in effort from 

external factors are expected to meet or 

exceed the 50–percent reduction target 

level. However, should effort increase 

and exceed the 50–percent threshold, 

NMFS can implement, through future 

action, time or area closures or both. In 

developing Amendment 14/27, the 

Council will evaluate long-term 

measures to restrict shrimp bycatch. The 

Council will take into consideration 

recommendations of the Council’s Ad 

Hoc Shrimp Effort Advisory Panel. 

Comment 20: Several comments were 

received that were beyond the scope of 

the temporary rule, and, therefore, 

NMFS did not provide responses. 

However, NMFS will consider these 

comments, as appropriate, in evaluating 

the need for future rulemaking. The 

purpose of this temporary rule is to 

reduce overfishing of the red snapper 

stock on a temporary basis, for the 2007 

fishing season, while the Council 

develops a strategy to end overfishing of 

the stock in compliance with the red 

snapper rebuilding plan and the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act. Comments 

outside the scope of the rule included 

the following suggestions for longerterm fisheries management: (1) create a 

voluntary buyout program to reduce 

overcapitalization in the commercial red 

snapper fishery; (2) increase 

enforcement in the commercial and 

recreational red snapper fisheries; (3) 

redistribute IFQ shares among 

commercial and recreational red 

snapper fishermen; (4) change fishing 

practices in the IFQ program; (5) create 

a buyout program for the shrimp fleet; 

(6) implement a moratorium on shrimp 

permits; and (7) close large areas of the 

Gulf to shrimp fishing. 

Recent Court Ruling 

On March 12, 2007, the United States 

District Court for the Southern District 

of Texas, Houston Division, issued a 

ruling on legal challenges to the current 

red snapper rebuilding plan contained 

in Amendment 22 to the FMP for the 

Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of 

Mexico (Coastal Conservation 

Association v. Gutierrez et al., Case No. 

H–05–1214, consolidated with Gulf 

Restoration Network et al., v. Gutierrez 

et al., Case No. H–05–2998). The Court 

required a new rebuilding plan within 

the next 9 months. However, the Court 

also ordered that status quo, i.e., 

implementation of Amendment 22, be 

maintained during the pendancy of the 

remand. Amendment 22 explicitly 

stated that additional measures would 

likely be necessary to end overfishing of 

red snapper consistent with the then 

upcoming stock assessment. This rule 

implementing interim measures 

necessary to reduce overfishing as 

provided under section 305(c) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act would reduce 

overfishing for 2007 and increase the 

likelihood of achieving Amendment 

22’s target for ending overfishing. 

Future Action 

NMFS finds that this temporary rule 

is necessary to reduce overfishing of red 

snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. NMFS 

issues this temporary rule, effective for 

not more than 180 days, as authorized 

by section 305(c) of the MagnusonStevens Act. This temporary rule may 

be extended for an additional 186 days, 

as authorized by section 305(c) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization Act, 

provided the public has had an 

opportunity to comment on the rule and 

provided that the Council is actively 

preparing proposed regulations to 

address overfishing of Gulf red snapper 

on a permanent basis. Public comments 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 15623 

requested on the proposed temporary 

rule (71 FR 75220) will be considered in 

determining whether to maintain or 

extend this rule to address overfishing 

of red snapper. The Council is preparing 

an amendment to address, on a 

permanent basis, red snapper 

overfishing issues that are the subject of 

this rule. 

Classification 

The Administrator, Southeast Region, 

NMFS, (RA) has determined that the 

interim measures this final rule will 

implement are necessary for the 

conservation and management of the 

Gulf red snapper fishery. The RA has 

also determined that this rule is 

consistent with the national standards 

of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and other 

applicable laws. 

This final rule has been determined to 

be significant for purposes of Executive 

Order 12866. 

NMFS prepared an FEIS for this 

action. The FEIS was filed with the 

Environmental Protection Agency on 

December 22, 3006. A notice of 

availability was published on December 

29, 2006 (71 FR 78427). NMFS issued a 

ROD on March 5, 2007. A copy of the 

ROD is available from NMFS (see 

ADDRESSES). 

NMFS prepared a FRFA, as required 

by section 604 of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, for this final rule. The 

FRFA describes the economic impact 

this final rule is expected to have on 

small entities and incorporates the 

IRFA, comments received on the IRFA 

and the economic impact of the rule, 

and NMFS’ responses to those 

comments. A succinct statement of the 

need for and objectives of the action are 

contained in the SUMMARY section of 

the preamble. A copy of the full analysis 

is available from NMFS (see 

ADDRESSES). A summary of the FRFA 

follows. 

This final rule will reduce total 

allowable catch (TAC) and the resultant 

commercial and recreational quotas in 

the red snapper fishery, lower the 

recreational red snapper bag limit to 2 

fish, lower the red snapper bag limit for 

captain and crew of a vessel operating 

as a charter vessel or headboat to 0 fish, 

reduce the red snapper minimum size 

limit in the commercial fishery to 13 

inches (33 cm), and establish a 

reduction goal for red snapper bycatch 

mortality in the commercial shrimp 

fishery. The purpose of this action is to 

reduce overfishing of the red snapper 

stock on a temporary basis, for the 2007 

fishing season, while the Council 

develops a comprehensive plan to 

reduce directed and incidental red 

snapper fishing mortality rates in the 

red snapper and shrimp fisheries. The 

Magnuson-Stevens Act provides the 

statutory basis for the final temporary 

rule. 

Several comments on the economic 

impact of the rule were received from 

the public in response to the proposed 

rule. For the reasons described in the 

responses to these comments above, no 

changes were made in the final rule as 

a result of these comments. These 

comments raised issues regarding the 

economic impacts of the proposed TAC 

reduction on the charter fishermen and 

businesses dependent on offshore 

fishing. Best available survey and 

modeling results indicate that relatively 

few trip cancellations are expected to 

occur as a result of this action. Most 

survey respondents indicated that when 

faced with a reduced red snapper bag 

limit, they would either continue 

fishing for red snapper or fish for 

another species. Fishing for other 

species may generate distributional 

effects (i.e., the trips may occur from 

different ports, modes, or seasons, 

resulting in one port/entity/season 

losing business while another gains). 

These distributional effects, however, 

cannot be predicted with current data. 

This final rule is expected to impact 

red snapper commercial fishers and forhire operators, and reef fish dealers and 

processors participating in the red 

snapper trade. This final rule also 

contains actions that apply to the 

commercial shrimp fishery. However, 

the shrimp fishery actions either 

maintain the status quo or otherwise 

accommodate current fishery 

conditions, such that no direct impacts 

are expected to accrue at this time. 

Nevertheless, a description of the 

entities in the shrimp fishery is 

included in the following discussion. 

The Small Business Administration 

(SBA) has established size criteria for all 

major industry sectors in the U.S. 

including fish harvesters, for-hire 

operations, fish processors, and fish 

dealers. A business involved in fish 

harvesting is classified as a small 

business if it is independently owned 

and operated, is not dominant in its 

field of operation (including its 

affiliates), and has combined average 

annual receipts not in excess of $4.0 

million (NAICS code 114111, finfish 

fishing) for all affiliated operations 

worldwide. For for-hire operations, the 

other qualifiers apply and the annual 

receipts threshold is $6.5 million 

(NAICS code 713990, recreational 

industries). For seafood processor and 

dealers, rather than a receipts threshold, 

the SBA uses an employee threshold of 

500 or fewer persons on a full-time, 

part-time, temporary, or other basis, at 

all affiliated operations for a seafood 

processor and 100 or fewer persons for 

a seafood dealer. 

Just prior to the implementation of the 

red snapper individual fishing quota 

(IFQ) program on January 1, 2007, 136 

entities held Class 1 licenses that 

allowed a commercial vessel trip limit 

of up to 2,000 lb (907 kg) of red snapper 

and 628 entities held Class 2 licenses 

that allowed a trip limit of up to 200 lb 

(91 kg) of red snapper. Between 2002 

and 2004, the top 50 red snapper vessels 

harvested a total of 2.77 million lb (1.26 

million kg) of red snapper, on average, 

or 64 percent of the industry total. 

Vessels ranked 51 to 131 harvested 1.29 

million lb (0.58 million kg), on average, 

or 30 percent of the industry total for 

the same period. In total, the top 131 

vessels accounted for approximately 94 

percent of the total red snapper 

commercial landings. Red snapper are 

mainly harvested by vertical line 

fishermen, who accounted for 

approximately 90 percent of commercial 

red snapper Gulf harvests, on average, 

between 2002 and 2004. 

Reported average annual gross 

receipts (2004 dollars) of commercial 

reef fish vessels in the Gulf range from 

$24,095 for low-volume vertical line 

vessels to $116,989 for high-volume 

longline vessels. Annual net incomes 

range from $4,479 for low-volume 

vertical line vessels to $28,466 for highvolume vertical line vessels. Some fleet 

activity is known to exist in the 

commercial red snapper fishery, but the 

extent of such activity is unknown. The 

maximum number of reef fish permits 

reported owned by the same person/ 

entity is six permits. Additional permits 

(and the revenues associated with those 

permits) may be linked to an entity 

through affiliation rules, but such 

affiliation links cannot be made using 

existing data. A definitive determination 

of whether any commercial entities 

would be considered large entities 

cannot be made using average income 

information. However, based on the size 

and value of the commercial red 

snapper fishery (an average of 4.336 

million lb (1.967 million kg) and 

$11.652 million ex-vessel revenue per 

year, 2002–2004), the number of 

participants in the fishery, the summary 

statistics provided above, and the 

maximum number of permits owned by 

a single entity, NMFS determined, for 

the purpose of this assessment, that all 

commercial reef fish harvest entities 

that would be affected by this final rule 

are small entities. 

Currently, 1,625 vessels are estimated 

to possess the required Federal permit 

to operate in the Gulf reef fish for-hire 

fishery. Fleet behavior also exists in this 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
15624 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

sector, with at least one entity reported 

to hold 12 permits. The bulk of the 

fishery, however, consists of singlepermit operations. 

The for-hire fleet is comprised of 

charterboats, which charge a fee on a 

vessel basis, and headboats, which 

charge a fee on an individual angler 

(head) basis. The average charterboat is 

estimated to generate $76,960 in annual 

revenues and $36,758 in annual profits, 

whereas the appropriate values for the 

average headboat are $404,172 and 

$338,209, respectively. The calculation 

of profits does not include fixed and 

other non-operating expenses, which 

tend to be higher for headboats. 

Based on the average revenue figures, 

it is determined, for the purpose of this 

assessment, that all for-hire operations 

that will be affected by this final rule are 

small entities. 

The measures in this final rule are 

also expected to affect fish dealers that 

handle red snapper. Two hundred and 

twenty-seven dealers currently have the 

required Federal permit to buy and sell 

commercial reef fish species. All 

processors would be included in this 

total since all processors must be 

dealers. From 1997–2002, an average of 

154 dealers purchased red snapper from 

commercial vessels. Average 

employment information per reef fish 

dealer is unknown. Although dealers 

and processors are not synonymous 

entities, reported total employment for 

reef fish processors in the Southeast is 

estimated to be approximately 700 

individuals, both part and full time. 

While all processors must be dealers, a 

dealer need not be a processor. Further, 

processing is a much more laborintensive exercise than dealing. 

Therefore, given the total employment 

estimate for the processing sector (700 

persons), the total number of dealers 

recently operating in the red snapper 

fishery (154), and the total number of 

permitted reef fish dealers, NMFS 

concludes that the average number of 

employees per dealer and the average 

number of employees per processor 

would be unlikely to surpass the SBA 

employment benchmark and, for the 

purpose of this analysis, NMFS 

determined that all red snapper dealers 

and processors that will be affected by 

this final rule are small entities. 

Beginning on March 26, 2007, a 

moratorium permit will be required to 

shrimp in Federal waters of the Gulf. 

Although it is unknown how many 

eligible applicants will apply for a 

moratorium permit, 2,666 vessels could 

qualify for the shrimp permit and are 

assumed to constitute the potential 

affected universe of shrimp vessels. The 

average annual gross revenue (from all 

fishing activity) per qualifying vessel in 

2005 was approximately $116,000, 

while the comparable figure for active 

qualifying vessels (vessels with 

recorded shrimp harvests) is 

approximately $152,000. In the same 

year, the maximum annual gross 

revenue from shrimp by a vessel was 

approximately $757,000 for both all 

qualifying and active qualifying vessels, 

whereas the maximum annual gross 

revenue from all harvest activities was 

approximately $1.89 million by an 

inactive qualifier and $757,000 for an 

active qualifier. This indicates that the 

inactive qualifier found activity in other 

fisheries more lucrative than 

participation in the shrimp fishery, 

whereas the most active qualifier 

operated exclusively in the shrimp 

fishery. Fleet activity is also known to 

exist in the commercial shrimp fishery, 

but the magnitude of such activity 

cannot be determined with available 

data. Given these findings, for the 

purpose of this analysis, NMFS 

determined that all Gulf shrimp vessels 

are small entities. 

In 2005, 609 dealers were identified 

operating in the commercial shrimp 

fishery. Employment information for 

this sector is not available. In 2004, 61 

shrimp processors were identified, 

employing approximately 3,700 

persons, or an average of 61 employees 

per entity. Similar to the finfish sector, 

shrimp processing is more labor 

intensive than dealing, so average 

employment in the shrimp dealer sector 

is assumed to be less than that in the 

processing sector. Since the average 

employment per entity does not exceed 

the SBA threshold, NMFS determined, 

for this analysis, that all Gulf shrimp 

dealers and processors are small 

entities. 

This final rule does not change 

current reporting, recordkeeping, or 

other compliance requirements under 

either the Reef Fish or Shrimp FMPs. 

Preexisting requirements include 

qualification criteria for vessel permits 

and participation in data collection 

programs if selected by NMFS. All of 

the information elements required for 

these processes are standard elements 

essential to the successful operation of 

a fishing business and should, therefore, 

already be collected and maintained as 

standard operating practice by the 

business. The requirements do not 

require professional skills that fishery 

participants do not already possess. 

This final rule is expected to affect all 

vessels that operate in the commercial 

Gulf red snapper fishery, all vessels that 

have a Federal reef fish for-hire permit, 

and all reef fish dealers and processors. 

All such entities have been determined, 

for the purpose of this analysis, to be 

small entities. Therefore, NMFS 

determined that the final rule will affect 

a substantial number of small entities. 

Commercial red snapper fishing 

vessels, for-hire operations, and red 

snapper dealers are expected to bear the 

primary burden of the actions in the 

final rule that pertain to red snapper, 

though spill-over impacts would be 

expected in associated industries, such 

as marinas and fishery suppliers. The 

net result of the combined TAC 

reduction and commercial minimum 

size limit decrease for the commercial 

red snapper fishery is expected to be an 

approximate 28–percent decline in net 

revenues, or approximately $7.0 

million. Although over 750 entities were 

recently permitted to operate in the 

commercial red snapper fishery, 131 

vessels accounted for approximately 94 

percent of the red snapper harvests from 

2002–2005, which had an average exvessel value of approximately $11.18 

million out of total average annual exvessel revenues for all fishing activity 

by these entities of approximately 

$17.34 million. Since most commercial 

red snapper fishing entities operate in 

multiple fisheries, the projected $7.0 

million reduction in net revenues 

captures lost revenue for all species. 

During 2002–2005, the top 50 

harvesters in the commercial red 

snapper fishery averaged approximately 

$144,000 in ex-vessel revenue per year 

out of total finfish revenues of 

approximately $211,000, indicating 

approximately 68 percent of the total 

revenues came from red snapper. The 

second tier vessels averaged 

approximately $40,000 in red snapper 

revenues and approximately $84,000 

total revenues, or 48 percent of total 

revenues coming from red snapper. 

Combined, the top 131 vessels averaged 

approximately $80,000 per year from 

red snapper, $132,000 total revenues, 

and 60 percent of total revenues coming 

from red snapper. The remaining vessels 

that landed red snapper accounted for 

only approximately $700 per vessel per 

year from red snapper, out of total 

average revenues of $14,000, or 

approximately 5 percent from red 

snapper. Red snapper is most likely not 

the primary species this third-tier group 

is targeting for harvest. 

The TAC reduction is expected to 

primarily impact operations that target 

red snapper rather than those that 

incidentally harvest red snapper. If the 

entire quota reduction is assumed borne 

by the top 50 and 131 vessels, 

respectively, the reduction in net 

revenues would equate to 

approximately $140,000 and $53,000 

per vessel for the two groups, 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 15625 

respectively. Relating these figures to 

the averages provided in the previous 

paragraph is difficult because the 

annual averages represent gross exvessel values, whereas the losses 

represent net values, and the expected 

losses incorporate an expected increase 

of approximately $1.14 in the price per 

pound of red snapper expected to 

develop as a result of the IFQ program. 

This price increase equates to a 47.5–

percent increase in the average price per 

pound over 2002–2005 ($11.18 million 

per year/4.66 million lb (2.11 million 

kg) = $2.40 per pound; $1.14/$2.40 = 

47.5 percent). If the annual average red 

snapper revenues presented above are 

inflated by this 47.5–percent factor, the 

resultant values per vessel are $212,400 

in red snapper revenues and $279,400 

total revenues for the top 50 vessels, and 

$118,000 and $170,000 in red snapper 

and total revenues, respectively, for the 

top 131 vessels. Because the projected 

losses include all species harvested, the 

projected losses ($140,000 and $53,000) 

equate to approximately 50 percent of 

total revenues ($140,000/$279,400) for 

the top 50 vessels and approximately 31 

percent of total revenues ($53,000/ 

$170,000) for the top 131 vessels. 

An alternative perspective is to 

consider the number of vessels 

projected to operate under the IFQ 

program. Under the IFQ program, the 

commercial red snapper fleet is 

expected to consolidate to 39–95 

vessels, the range determined by 

whether the fleet gravitates to 

exclusively larger vessels (39 65–ft 

(19.8–m) vessels) or small vessels (95 

35–ft (10.7–m) vessels). The period of 

time required to achieve this 

consolidation is not known, but TAC 

reduction may accelerate the 

consolidation. It is noted that any IFQrelated consolidation is voluntary, 

vessels are compensated for their exit 

(through sale of their quota shares), and 

exiting vessels may continue to operate 

in other fisheries. Under this final rule 

(i.e., during the 2007 season), the 

commercial red snapper fleet is 

projected to consolidate to 28–68 

vessels, or 11–27 fewer vessels than the 

status quo (IFQ final rule), with the 

range again determined by whether the 

resultant fleet is primarily large vessels 

(28 vessels), or small vessels (68 

vessels). Average performance of the 

fleet under the status quo (IFQ final 

rule) (39–95 vessels) is estimated at 

approximately $274,000 ($26.0 million 

over 95 vessels, revenues from all 

fishing activity) to $667,000 ($26.0 

million over 39 vessels) in net revenues. 

The projected loss of $7.0 million in net 

revenues under the TAC reduction is 

expected to reduce these values to 

approximately $200,000 and $487,000, 

respectively, or reductions of 27 

percent. 

The for-hire sector is expected to lose 

approximately 2,000 trips in the charter 

vessel sector, 643 angler days in the 

headboat sector, and $43,000 overall for 

the entire for-hire sector in producer 

surplus as a result of the final temporary 

rule. These reductions are not expected 

to occur uniformly across all operations 

because some vessels are more active in 

the red snapper fishery than others. The 

extent of individual vessel activity, 

however, cannot be determined with 

available data. If averaged over the 1,625 

vessels active in the for-hire fleet, these 

reductions amount to fewer than 2 trips 

and less than $30 per permitted vessel. 

Related businesses are also expected 

to lose income from the expenditures 

associated with the trip losses in the forhire and private angler sectors as a 

result of this final rule. These trips, 

however, represent less than 1 percent 

of the total effort directed at the species 

encompassed in the assessment (red 

snapper as the focus species, and 

grouper, dolphin, and king mackerel as 

potential substitute target species). 

The target bycatch reduction goal for 

the commercial shrimp fishery is 

administrative in nature and is not 

expected to have a direct economic 

impact on any entities in the shrimp 

fishery or associated sectors. 

Five alternatives, including the 

preferred alternative and the status quo, 

were considered for the action to set 

TAC in the red snapper fishery. Three 

of the alternatives contained multiple 

options and sub-options to manage the 

recreational fishery under the respective 

TAC. The first alternative, the status 

quo, would not have achieved progress 

towards eliminating overfishing, and 

would increase the necessary reduction 

in subsequent years to allow the 

resource to continue on the designated 

recovery path, thereby increasing the 

subsequent year short-term adverse 

economic impacts relative to the final 

temporary rule, and would not meet 

NMFS objectives. 

The second alternative would have 

reduced the red snapper TAC to 7.0 

million lb (3.2 million kg). Although 

this alternative has the potential of 

generating, depending upon the suboption selected, lower first-year adverse 

economic impacts than the 6.5 million 

lb (3.0 million kg) TAC, this TAC would 

require greater TAC reduction in 

subsequent years, with greater adverse 

economic impacts in subsequent years 

than the final temporary rule. 

The third alternative would have 

reduced the red snapper TAC to 6.0 

million lb (2.7 million kg). This 

alternative would be expected to result 

in greater short-term adverse economic 

impacts, ranging from losses in 

economic value (consumer and 

producer surplus) in the overall 

recreational sector of approximately 

$16.0 million to $27.0 million and a loss 

of approximately $8.5 million in net 

revenues in the commercial sector, than 

the final temporary rule, which is 

expected to result in a reduction of 

consumer and producer surplus of 

approximately $15.0 million in the 

recreational sector and a reduction in 

net revenues of $7.0 million in the 

commercial sector. 

The fourth alternative would have 

reduced the red snapper TAC to 5.0 

million lb (2.3 million kg). This 

alternative would be expected to result 

in greater short-term adverse economic 

impacts, ranging from losses in 

economic value in the recreational 

sector of approximately $23.0 million to 

$25.0 million and a loss of 

approximately $11.5 million in net 

revenues in the commercial sector, than 

the final temporary rule. 

Two alternatives, the preferred 

alternative and the status quo, were 

considered for the action to set the 

captain and crew red snapper bag limit. 

The status quo would be expected to 

decrease the ability of meeting harvest 

reduction targets and would have 

required more restrictive measures on 

recreational anglers, resulting in 

increased adverse economic impacts 

relative to the final rule. 

Three alternatives, including the 

preferred alternative and the status quo, 

were considered for the commercial red 

snapper minimum size limit. The first 

alternative, the status quo alternative, 

would be expected to result in 

continued unnecessary bycatch 

mortality and would not, therefore, meet 

NMFS objectives. 

The second alternative would 

eliminate the commercial minimum size 

limit entirely. Because no commercial 

market is known to exist for red snapper 

smaller than 12 inches (30 cm), the 

expected economic impacts of this 

alternative and the final rule are very 

similar. However, maintaining a 

minimum size limit in the commercial 

sector, as will be accomplished by the 

final rule, is expected to generate 

unquantifiable economic benefits 

accruing to a perception of greater sector 

equity and avoidance of user conflict 

because the final temporary rule will 

decrease the incentive, relative to no 

minimum size limit, for commercial 

operations to move their fishing location 

to areas where smaller fish congregate. 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES
15626 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 62 / Monday, April 2, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

Four alternatives were considered for 

gear requirements in the red snapper 

fishery. The final rule (status quo) will 

not impose any new gear requirements 

on fishermen and will not result in any 

direct adverse economic impacts on 

these entities. Each of the three 

alternatives to the final temporary rule 

would be expected to result in greater 

adverse economic impacts than the final 

temporary rule as a result of either 

increased gear costs or reduced 

operating efficiency. Given the shortterm nature of the final temporary rule, 

these adverse impacts would not be 

expected to be balanced by the 

economic benefits of reduced bycatch 

mortality and improved stock 

conditions. Thus, each alternative 

would be expected to increase costs in 

the fishery without demonstrable 

benefits and, thus, would not meet 

NMFS objectives. 

Three alternatives, including the 

preferred alternative and the status quo, 

were considered for the red snapper 

bycatch mortality reduction target in the 

commercial shrimp fishery. The status 

quo would not have established a 

bycatch reduction target, would not 

ensure consistent reductions in bycatch 

fishing mortality of juvenile red snapper 

in the shrimp fishery, and would not 

meet NMFS objectives. The second 

alternative would establish a higher 

reduction target than the final rule. 

Although the establishment of a bycatch 

reduction target is an administrative 

action with no expected direct adverse 

economic effects, the higher target 

exceeds the level of bycatch reduction 

the fishery has demonstrated to date and 

would, therefore, be expected to require 

effort reductions in the commercial 

shrimp fishery, resulting in greater 

adverse economic impacts than the final 

rule. 

Four alternatives were considered for 

effort reduction in the commercial 

shrimp fishery. The final rule (status 

quo) will not impose any effort controls 

on the fishery and will not result in any 

adverse economic impacts on the 

shrimp fishery or associated businesses. 

Each of the other alternatives would 

have imposed effort limitations in the 

shrimp fishery and would, therefore, be 

expected to result in greater adverse 

economic impacts than the final rule, 

ranging from $7.8 million to $14.8 

million reductions in ex-vessel 

revenues, fishery-wide, and adversely 

impact 394–863 vessels. Although some 

behavioral changes would be expected 

by these vessels to mitigate these losses, 

the nature of these changes and their net 

impact cannot be determined. 

Copies of the FRFA are available from 

NMFS (see ADDRESSES). 

Section 212 of the Small Business 

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 

1996 states that, for each rule or group 

of related rules for which an agency is 

required to prepare an FRFA, the agency 

shall publish one or more guides to 

assist small entities in complying with 

the rule, and shall designate such 

publications as ‘‘small entity 

compliance guides.’’ As part of this 

rulemaking process, NMFS prepared a 

fishery bulletin, which also serves as a 

small entity compliance guide. The 

fishery bulletin will be sent to all vessel 

permit holders and permitted dealers in 

the Gulf red snapper and shrimp 

fisheries. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d), there is 

good cause to waive the 30-day delay in 

effective date for reducing the 

commercial minimum size limit from 15 

inches (38 cm) to 13 inches (33 cm). 

Reducing the minimum size limit for 

commercial Gulf red snapper will result 

in additional legal-sized fish being 

available to fishers and will help 

minimize bycatch and bycatch mortality 

as required by national standard nine of 

the Magnuson-Stevens Act. The current 

15–inch (38 cm) minimum size limit 

results in unnecessarily high levels of 

red snapper bycatch mortality because 

most undersized fish are discarded 

dead. To end overfishing as soon as 

possible, bycatch and bycatch mortality 

of undersized red snapper must be 

curtailed. Prolonging overfishing of the 

red snapper resource would lead to 

more severe harvest reductions and 

associated short-term adverse 

socioeconomic impacts in the future. 

For all of these reasons, the 30-day 

delay of effective date for this measure 

is waived. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 622 

Fisheries, Fishing, Puerto Rico, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Virgin Islands. 

Dated: March 28, 2007. 

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 622 is amended 

as follows: 

PART 622—FISHERIES OF THE 

CARIBBEAN, GULF, AND SOUTH 

ATLANTIC 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 622 

continues to read as follows: 

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

■ 2. In § 622.37, paragraph (d)(1)(iv) is 

suspended and paragraph (d)(1)(vi) is 

added to read as follows: 

§ 622.37 Size limits. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(vi) Red snapper—16 inches (40.6 

cm), TL, for a fish taken by a person 

subject to the bag limit specified in 

§ 622.39(b)(1)(iii) and 13 inches (38.1 

cm), TL, for a fish taken by a person not 

subject to the bag limit. 

* * * * * 

■ 3. In § 622.39, paragraphs (b)(1)(iii) 

and (b)(1)(v) are suspended and 

paragraphs (b)(1)(viii) and (b)(1)(ix) are 

added to read as follows: 

§ 622.39 Bag and possession limits. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(viii) Red snapper—2. However, no 

red snapper may be retained by the 

captain or crew of a vessel operating as 

a charter vessel or headboat. The bag 

limit for such captain and crew is zero. 

(ix) Gulf reef fish, combined, 

excluding those specified in paragraphs 

(b)(1)(i), (ii), (iv), (vi), (vii), and (viii) of 

this section and excluding dwarf sand 

perch and sand perch—20, but not to 

exceed 10 vermilion snapper. 

* * * * * 

■ 4. In § 622.42, paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and 

(a)(2) are suspended and paragraphs 

(a)(1)(v) and (a)(3) are added to read as 

follows: 

§ 622.42 Quotas. 

* * * * * 

(a) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(v) Red snapper—3.315 million lb 

(1.504 million kg), round weight. 

* * * * * 

(3) Recreational quota for red 

snapper. The following quota applies to 

persons who harvest red snapper other 

than under commercial vessel permits 

for Gulf reef fish and the commercial 

quota specified in paragraph (a)(1)(v) of 

this section—3.185 million lb (1.445 

million kg), round weight. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 07–1605 Filed 3–28–07; 1:43 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


rmajette on PROD1PC67 with RULES