Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 27, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 89319 

■ 4. In § 660.140, revise table 1 to 

paragraph (d)(1)(ii)(D) to read as 

follows: 

§ 660.140 Shorebased IFQ Program. 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(ii) * * * 

(D) * * * 

TABLE 1 TO PARAGRAPH (d)(1)(ii)(D)—SHOREBASED TRAWL ALLOCATIONS FOR 2023 AND 2024 

IFQ species Area 

2023 Shorebased 

trawl allocation 

(mt) 

2024 Shorebased 

trawl allocation 

(mt) 

YELLOWEYE ROCKFISH .................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 4.42 3.41 

Arrowtooth flounder .............................................. Coastwide ............................................................. 15,640.17 11,408.87 

Bocaccio ............................................................... S of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 700.33 694.87 

Canary rockfish ..................................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 842.50 851.42 

Chilipepper ............................................................ S of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 1,563.80 1517.60 

Cowcod ................................................................. S of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 24.80 24.42 

Darkblotched rockfish ........................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 646.78 644.34 

Dover sole ............................................................ Coastwide ............................................................. 45,972.75 45,972.75 

English sole .......................................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 8,320.56 8,265.46 

Lingcod ................................................................. N of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 1,829.27 1,593.47 

Lingcod ................................................................. S of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 284.20 282.60 

Longspine thornyhead .......................................... N of 34°27′ N lat ................................................... 2,129.23 2,002.88 

Pacific cod ............................................................ Coastwide ............................................................. 1,039.30 1,039.30 

Pacific halibut (IBQ) a ............................................ N of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... TBD TBD 

Pacific ocean perch .............................................. N of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 2,956.14 2,832.64 

Pacific whiting b ..................................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 159,681.38 TBD 

Petrale sole ........................................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 3,063.76 2,863.76 

Sablefish ............................................................... N of 36° N lat ....................................................... 3,893.50 3,535.91 

Sablefish ............................................................... S of 36° N lat ........................................................ 970.00 909.55 

Shortspine thornyhead ......................................... N of 34°27′ N lat ................................................... 1,146.67 1,117.22 

Shortspine thornyhead ......................................... S of 34°27′ N lat ................................................... 50 50 

Splitnose rockfish ................................................. S of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 1,494.70 1,457.60 

Starry flounder ...................................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 171.86 171.86 

Widow rockfish ..................................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 11,509.68 10,367.68 

Yellowtail rockfish ................................................. N of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 3,761.84 3,431.69 

Other Flatfish complex ......................................... Coastwide ............................................................. 4,142.09 4,152.89 

Shelf Rockfish complex ........................................ N of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 694.70 691.65 

Shelf Rockfish complex ........................................ S of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 163.02 162.43 

Slope Rockfish complex ....................................... N of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 894.43 874.99 

Slope Rockfish complex ....................................... S of 40°10′ N lat ................................................... 417.1 414.58 

aPacific halibut IBQ is set according to 50 CFR 660.55(m). 

b Managed through an international process. This allocation will be updated when announced. 

* * * * * 

■ 5. In § 660.231, revise paragraph 

(b)(3)(i) to read as follows: 

§ 660.231 Limited entry fixed gear 

sablefish primary fishery. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(3) * * * 

(i) A vessel participating in the 

primary season will be constrained by 

the sablefish cumulative limit 

associated with each of the permits 

registered for use with that vessel. 

During the primary season, each vessel 

authorized to fish in that season under 

paragraph (a) of this section may take, 

retain, possess, and land sablefish, up to 

the cumulative limits for each of the 

permits registered for use with that 

vessel (i.e., stacked permits). If multiple 

limited entry permits with sablefish 

endorsements are registered for use with 

a single vessel, that vessel may land up 

to the total of all cumulative limits 

announced in this paragraph for the 

tiers for those permits, except as limited 

by paragraph (b)(3)(ii) of this section. 

Up to 3 permits may be registered for 

use with a single vessel during the 

primary season; thus, a single vessel 

may not take and retain, possess or land 

more than 3 primary season sablefish 

cumulative limits in any one year. A 

vessel registered for use with multiple 

limited entry permits is subject to per 

vessel limits for species other than 

sablefish, and to per vessel limits when 

participating in the daily trip limit 

fishery for sablefish under § 660.232. In 

2023, the following annual limits are in 

effect: Tier 1 at 72,904 lb (33,069 kg), 

Tier 2 at 33,138 lb (15,031 kg), and Tier 

3 at 18,936 lb (8,589 kg). In 2024 and 

beyond, the following annual limits are 

in effect: Tier 1 at 66,377lb (30,108 kg), 

Tier 2 at 30,171 lb (13,685 kg), and Tier 

3 at 17,241lb (7,820 kg). 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2023–28339 Filed 12–26–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 230224–0053; RTID 0648– 

XD567] 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Reallocation of 

Pacific Cod in the Central Regulatory 

Area of the Gulf of Alaska 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; reallocation. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is reallocating the 

projected unused amount of Pacific cod 

from catcher vessels using trawl gear to 

vessels using jig gear, catcher/processors 

using trawl gear, and catcher vessels 

greater than or equal to 50 feet (15.2 

meters (m)) length overall using hookand-line gear in the Central Regulatory 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1
89320 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 27, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 

Area of the Gulf of Alaska (GOA). This 

action is necessary to allow the 2023 

total allowable catch (TAC) of Pacific 

cod to be harvested. 

DATES: Effective December 21, 2023, 

through 2400 hours, Alaska local time 

(A.l.t.), December 31, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Obren Davis, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

manages the groundfish fishery in the 

GOA according to the Fishery 

Management Plan for Groundfish of the 

Gulf of Alaska (FMP) prepared by the 

North Pacific Fishery Management 

Council under authority of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act. 

Regulations governing fishing by U.S. 

vessels in accordance with the FMP 

appear at subpart H of 50 CFR part 600 

and 50 CFR part 679. 

The 2023 Pacific cod TAC specified 

for catcher vessels using trawl gear in 

the Central Regulatory Area of the GOA 

is 4,579 metric tons (mt), as established 

by the final 2023 and 2024 harvest 

specifications for groundfish in the GOA 

(88 FR 13238, March 2, 2023). 

The 2023 Pacific cod TAC specified 

for vessels using jig gear in the Central 

Regulatory Area of the GOA is 111 mt, 

as established by the final 2023 and 

2024 harvest specifications for 

groundfish in the GOA (88 FR 13238, 

March 2, 2023). 

The 2023 Pacific cod TAC specified 

for catcher/processors using trawl gear 

in the Central Regulatory Area of the 

GOA is 462 mt, as established by the 

final 2023 and 2024 harvest 

specifications for groundfish in the GOA 

(88 FR 13238, March 2, 2023). 

The 2023 Pacific cod TAC specified 

for catcher vessels greater than or equal 

to 50 feet (15.2 m) length overall using 

hook-and-line gear in the Central 

Regulatory Area of the GOA is 738 mt, 

as established by the final 2023 and 

2024 harvest specifications for 

groundfish in the GOA (88 FR 13238, 

March 2, 2023). 

The Administrator, Alaska Region, 

NMFS, (Regional Administrator) has 

determined that catcher vessels using 

trawl gear will not be able to harvest 395 

mt of the 2023 Pacific cod TAC 

allocated to those vessels under 

§ 679.20(a)(12)(i)(B)(4). 

Therefore, in accordance with 

§ 679.20(a)(12)(ii)(B), NMFS apportions 

395 mt of Pacific cod from catcher 

vessels using trawl gear to the annual 

amounts specified for vessels using jig 

gear, catcher/processors using trawl 

gear, and catcher vessels greater than or 

equal to 50 feet (15.2 m) length overall 

using hook-and-line gear. 

The harvest specifications for 2023 

Pacific cod included in the final 2023 

and 2024 harvest specifications for 

groundfish in the Central Regulatory 

Area of the GOA (88 FR 13238, March 

2, 2023) is revised as follows: 4,184 mt 

to catcher vessels using trawl gear, 246 

mt to vessels using jig gear, 597 mt to 

catcher/processors using trawl gear, and 

863 mt to catcher vessels greater than or 

equal to 50 feet (15.2 m) length overall 

using hook-and-line gear. 

Classification 

NMFS issues this action pursuant to 

section 305(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. This action is required by 50 CFR 

part 679, which was issued pursuant to 

section 304(b), and is exempt from 

review under Executive Order 12866. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there 

is good cause to waive prior notice and 

an opportunity for public comment on 

this action, as notice and comment 

would be impracticable and contrary to 

the public interest. This requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest as it would prevent NMFS from 

responding to the most recent fisheries 

data in a timely fashion and would 

allow for harvests that exceed the 

originally specified apportionment of 

the Pacific cod TAC. NMFS was unable 

to publish a notice providing time for 

public comment because the most 

recent, relevant data only became 

available as of December 20, 2023. 

The Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries, NOAA also finds good cause 

to waive the 30-day delay in the 

effective date of this action under 5 

U.S.C. 553(d)(3). This finding is based 

upon the reasons provided above for 

waiver of prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment. 

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

Dated: December 20, 2023. 

Everett Wayne Baxter, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–28486 Filed 12–21–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1