Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 196 / Thursday, October 12, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 70605 

TABLE 2 TO PARAGRAPH (b)—ADDITIONAL RFG COVERED AREAS UNDER 42 U.S.C. 7545(k)(10)(D) 

Area designation State or 

district Counties Independent cities 

*******

Eastern Kern County .................................. California .......... Kern County 5.

Dallas .......................................................... Texas ................ Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, 

Rockwall, Tarrant, Wise.

Denver-Boulder-Greeley-Ft. CollinsLoveland.Colorado ........... Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, Jefferson, Larimer County,6 Weld County 7.

******* 5That portion of the county (with the exception of that portion in Hydrologic Unit Number 18090205 the Indian Wells Valley) east and south of 

a line described as follows: Beginning at the Kern-Los Angeles County boundary and running north and east along the northwest boundary of the 

Rancho La Liebre Land Grant to the point of intersection with the range line common to Range 16 West and Range 17 West, San Bernardino 

Base and Meridian; north along the range line to the point of intersection with the Rancho El Tejon Land Grant boundary; then southeast, northeast, and northwest along the boundary of the Rancho El Tejon Grant to the northwest corner of Section 3, Township 11 North, Range 17 West; 

then west 1.2 miles; then north to the Rancho El Tejon Land Grant boundary; then northwest along the Rancho El Tejon line to the southeast 

corner of Section 34, Township 32 South, Range 30 East, Mount Diablo Base and Meridian; then north to the northwest corner of Section 35, 

Township 31 South, Range 30 East; then northeast along the boundary of the Rancho El Tejon Land Grant to the southwest corner of Section 

18, Township 31 South, Range 31 East; then east to the southeast corner of Section 13, Township 31 South, Range 31 East; then north along 

the range line common to Range 31 East and Range 32 East, Mount Diablo Base and Meridian, to the northwest corner of Section 6, Township 

29 South, Range 32 East; then east to the southwest corner of Section 31, Township 28 South, Range 32 East; then north along the range line 

common to Range 31 East and Range 32 East to the northwest corner of Section 6, Township 28 South, Range 32 East, then west to the southeast corner of Section 36, Township 27 South, Range 31 East, then north along the range line common to Range 31 East and Range 32 East to 

the Kern-Tulare County boundary. 6That portion of the county that lies south of a line described as follows: Beginning at a point on Larimer County’s eastern boundary and Weld 

County’s western boundary intersected by latitude 40 degrees, 42 minutes, and 47.1 seconds north, proceed west to a point defined by the intersection of latitude 40 degrees, 42 minutes, 47.1 seconds north and longitude 105 degrees, 29 minutes, and 40.0 seconds west, proceeding 

south on longitude 105 degrees, 29 minutes, 40.0 seconds west to the intersection with latitude 40 degrees, 33 minutes and 17.4 seconds north, 

proceeding west on latitude 40 degrees, 33 minutes, 17.4 seconds north until this line intersects Larimer County’s western boundary and Grand 

County’s eastern boundary. 7That portion of the county that lies south of a line described as follows: Beginning at a point on Weld County’s eastern boundary and Logan 

County’s western boundary intersected by latitude 40 degrees, 42 minutes, 47.1 seconds north, proceeding west on latitude 40 degrees, 42 minutes, 47.1 seconds north until this line intersects Weld County’s western boundary and Larimer County’s eastern boundary. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2023–22532 Filed 10–11–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 635 

[Docket No. 220919–0193; RTID 0648– 

XD387] 

Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; 

Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fisheries; 

Closure of the General Category 

October Through November Fishery 

for 2023 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS closes the General 

category fishery for large medium and 

giant (i.e., measuring 73 inches (185 cm) 

curved fork length or greater) Atlantic 

bluefin tuna (BFT) for the remainder of 

the October through November time 

period. This action applies to Atlantic 

Tunas General category (commercial) 

permitted vessels and highly migratory 

species (HMS) Charter/Headboat 

permitted vessels with a commercial 

sale endorsement when fishing 

commercially for BFT. This action also 

waives the previously-scheduled 

restricted-fishing days (RFDs) for the 

remainder of the October through 

November time period. With the RFDs 

waived during the closure, fishermen 

aboard General category permitted 

vessels and HMS Charter/Headboat 

permitted vessels may tag and release 

BFT of all sizes, subject to the 

requirements of the catch-and-release 

and tag-and-release programs. On 

December 1, 2023, the fishery will 

reopen automatically. 

DATES: Effective 11:30 p.m., local time, 

October 9, 2023, through November 30, 

2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa 

Crawford, lisa.crawford@noaa.gov, 301– 

427–8503; or Larry Redd, Jr., 

larry.redd@noaa.gov, 301–427–8503. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Atlantic 

HMS fisheries, including BFT fisheries, 

are managed under the authority of the 

Atlantic Tunas Convention Act (ATCA; 

16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.) and the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C. 1801 

et seq.). The 2006 Consolidated Atlantic 

HMS Fishery Management Plan (FMP) 

and its amendments are implemented 

by regulations at 50 CFR part 635. 

Section 635.27 divides the U.S. BFT 

quota recommended by the 

International Commission for the 

Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) 

and as implemented by the United 

States among the various domestic 

fishing categories, per the allocations 

established in the 2006 Consolidated 

HMS FMP and its amendments. NMFS 

is required under the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act to provide U.S. fishing vessels with 

a reasonable opportunity to harvest 

quotas under relevant international 

fishery agreements such as the ICCAT 

Convention, which is implemented 

domestically pursuant to ATCA. 

As described in § 635.27(a), the 

current baseline U.S. BFT quota is 

1,316.14 metric tons (mt) (not including 

the 25 mt ICCAT allocated to the United 

States to account for bycatch of BFT in 

pelagic longline fisheries in the 

Northeast Distant Gear Restricted Area). 

The current baseline quota for the 

General category is 710.7 mt. The 

General category baseline quota is 

suballocated to different time periods. 

Relevant to this action, the baseline 

subquota for the October through 

November time period is 92.4 mt. 

Effective September 28, 2023, NMFS 

transferred 25 mt from the Reserve 

category to the General category, 

resulting in an adjusted October through 

November time period subquota of 

117.4 and 87.2 mt for the Reserve 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1
70606 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 196 / Thursday, October 12, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 

category (88 FR 67654, September 28, 

2023). 

Under § 635.28(a)(1), NMFS files a 

closure action with the Office of the 

Federal Register for publication when a 

BFT quota (or subquota) is reached or is 

projected to be reached. Retaining, 

possessing, or landing BFT under that 

quota category is prohibited on or after 

the effective date and time of a closure 

notice for that category until the 

opening of the relevant subsequent 

quota period or until such date as 

specified. 

Closure of the October Through 

November 2023 General Category 

Fishery 

To date, reported landings for the 

General category October through 

November time period total 

approximately 60.1 mt. Based on these 

landings, NMFS has determined that the 

adjusted October through November 

time period subquota of 117.4 mt is 

projected to be reached and exceeded 

shortly. Therefore, retaining, possessing, 

or landing large medium or giant (i.e., 

measuring 73 inches (185 cm) curved 

fork length or greater) BFT by persons 

aboard vessels permitted in the Atlantic 

Tunas General category and HMS 

Charter/Headboat permitted vessels 

(while fishing commercially) must cease 

at 11:30 p.m. local time on October 9, 

2023. This action applies to Atlantic 

Tunas General category (commercial) 

permitted vessels and HMS Charter/ 

Headboat permitted vessels with a 

commercial sale endorsement when 

fishing commercially for BFT and is 

taken consistent with the regulations at 

§ 635.28(a)(1). The General category will 

automatically reopen December 1, 2023, 

for the December 2023 time period with 

a retention limit of one large medium or 

giant BFT per vessel per day/trip. 

Adjustment of Daily Retention Limit for 

Selected Dates 

On May 25, 2023 (88 FR 33839), 

NMFS published a final rule 

implementing RFDs every Tuesday, 

Friday, and Saturday from July 1 

through November 30, 2023. Since the 

fishery will be closed for the remainder 

of the October through November time 

period, NMFS waives the previouslyscheduled RFDs for the remainder of 

that time period. 

With the RFDs waived during the 

closure, consistent with § 635.23(a)(4), 

fishermen aboard General category 

permitted vessels and HMS Charter/ 

Headboat permitted vessels may tag and 

release BFT of all sizes, subject to the 

requirements of the catch-and-release 

and tag-and-release programs at 

§ 635.26. All BFT that are released must 

be handled in a manner that will 

maximize their survival, and without 

removing the fish from the water, 

consistent with requirements at 

§ 635.21(a)(1). For additional 

information on safe handling, see the 

‘‘Careful Catch and Release’’ brochure 

available at https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/ 

outreach-and-education/careful-catchand-release-brochure/. 

Monitoring and Reporting 

NMFS will continue to monitor the 

BFT fisheries closely. Dealers are 

required to submit landing reports 

within 24 hours of a dealer receiving 

BFT. Late reporting by dealers 

compromises NMFS’ ability to timely 

implement actions such as quota and 

retention limit adjustments, as well as 

closures, and may result in enforcement 

actions. Additionally, and separate from 

the dealer reporting requirement, 

General and HMS Charter/Headboat 

category vessel owners are required to 

report the catch of all BFT retained or 

discarded dead within 24 hours of the 

landing(s) or end of each trip, by 

accessing https://

www.hmspermits.noaa.gov, using the 

HMS Catch Reporting app, or calling 

888–872–8862 (Monday through Friday 

from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.). 

After the fishery reopens on December 

1, depending on the level of fishing 

effort and catch rates of BFT, NMFS 

may determine that additional 

adjustments are necessary to ensure 

available subquotas are not exceeded or 

to enhance scientific data collection 

from, and fishing opportunities in, all 

geographic areas. If needed, subsequent 

adjustments will be published in the 

Federal Register. In addition, fishermen 

may access https://

www.hmspermits.noaa.gov, for updates 

on quota monitoring and inseason 

adjustments. 

Classification 

NMFS issues this action pursuant to 

section 305(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act and regulations at 50 CFR part 635 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

The Assistant Administrator for 

NMFS (AA) finds that pursuant to 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there is good cause to 

waive prior notice and opportunity to 

provide comment on this action, as 

notice and comment would be 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest for the following reasons. 

Specifically, the regulations 

implementing the 2006 Consolidated 

HMS FMP and amendments provide for 

inseason retention limit adjustments 

and fishery closures to respond to the 

unpredictable nature of BFT availability 

on the fishing grounds, the migratory 

nature of this species, and the regional 

variations in the BFT fishery. Providing 

for prior notice and an opportunity to 

comment is impracticable and contrary 

to the public interest as this fishery is 

currently underway and, based on 

landings information, the available time 

period subquota is projected to be 

reached shortly. Delaying this action 

could result in BFT landings exceeding 

the October through November time 

period subquota. Taking this action does 

not raise conservation or management 

concerns. NMFS notes that the public 

had an opportunity to comment on the 

underlying rulemakings that established 

the U.S. BFT quota and the inseason 

adjustment criteria. 

For all of the above reasons, the AA 

also finds that pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 

553(d), there is good cause to waive the 

30-day delay in effective date. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 

1801 et seq. 

Dated: October 6, 2023. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–22563 Filed 10–6–23; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 230810–0190; RTID 0648– 

XD416] 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Northeast Multispecies 

Fishery; Gulf of Maine Cod Possession 

and Trip Limit Adjustment for the 

Common Pool Fishery 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; in-season 

adjustment. 

SUMMARY: This action decreases the 

possession and trip limits for Gulf of 

Maine (GOM) cod for Northeast 

multispecies common pool vessels for 

the remainder of the 2023 fishing year, 

through April 30, 2024. The National 

Marine Fisheries Service projects that, 

at its current trajectory, the common 

pool will exceed its 2023 sub-Annual 

Catch Limit for GOM cod. This decrease 

in the possession and trip limit for Gulf 

of Maine cod is intended to prevent the 

common pool fishery from exceeding its 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1