59758 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 195 / Friday, October 6, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

would be impracticable because the

current 2-month cumulative limit

period began on September 1, 2000, and

affording additional advance notice and

opportunity for public comment would

drastically reduce the amount of time

the fishers have to take the increased

September to October limit. The

increases to trip limits relieve burdens

on the public as the trip limits provide

for an increase in fishing opportunities.

In addition, the affected public had the

opportunity to comment on these

actions at the September 11-15, 2000,

Council meeting. This action should be

implemented as soon as possible to

provide fishers the opportunity to

achieve the increased trip limits.

Since this action increases trip limits,

it relieves a restriction and therefore, the

AA find, under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1), it is

unnecessary to delay for 30 days the

effective date of this action.

These actions are taken under the

authority of 50 CFR 660.323(b)(1), and

are exempt from review under Executive

Order 12866.

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

Dated: October 2, 2000.

Clarence Pautzke,

Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries,

National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 00–25631 Filed 10–2–00; 4:30 pm]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 000119014–0137–02; I.D.

100200C]

Fisheries of the Northeastern United

States; Summer Flounder Fishery;

Commercial Quota Harvested for New

Jersey

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: Commercial quota harvest.

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the

summer flounder commercial quota

available to the State of New Jersey has

been harvested. Vessels issued a

commercial Federal fisheries permit for

the summer flounder fishery may not

land summer flounder in New Jersey for

the remainder of calendar year 2000,

unless additional quota becomes

available through a transfer. Regulations

governing the summer flounder fishery

require publication of this notification

to advise the State of New Jersey that

the quota has been harvested and to

advise vessel permit holders and dealer

permit holders that no commercial

quota is available for landing summer

flounder in New Jersey.

DATES: Effective 0001 hours, October 10,

2000, through 2400 hours, December 31,

2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul

H. Jones, Fishery Policy Analyst, (978)

281–9273.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Regulations governing the summer

flounder fishery are found at 50 CFR

part 648. The regulations require annual

specification of a commercial quota that

is apportioned on a percentage basis

among the coastal states from North

Carolina through Maine. The process to

set the annual commercial quota and the

percent allocated to each state is

described in § 648.100.

The initial total commercial quota for

summer flounder for the 2000 calendar

year was set equal to 11,109,214 lb

(5,039,055 kg)(65 FR 33486, May 24,

2000). The percent allocated to vessels

landing summer flounder in New Jersey

is 16.72499 percent, or 1,858,346 lb

(842,931 kg).

Section 648.100(e)(4) stipulates that

any overages of commercial quota

landed in any state be deducted from

that state’s annual quota for the

following year. In the calendar year

1999, a total of 1,897,952 lb (860,897 kg)

were landed in New Jersey, creating a

44,026 lb (19,970 kg) overage that was

deducted from the amount allocated for

landings in the State during 2000 (65 FR

33486, May 24, 2000). The resulting

2000 quota for New Jersey is 1,814,320

lb (822,962 kg).

Section 648.101(b) requires the

Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS

(Regional Administrator) to monitor

state commercial quotas and to

determine when a state’s commercial

quota is harvested. The Regional

Administrator is further required to

publish a notification in the Federal

Register advising a state and notifying

Federal vessel and dealer permit holders

that, effective upon a specific date, the

state’s commercial quota has been

harvested and no commercial quota is

available for landing summer flounder

in that state. The Regional

Administrator has determined, based

upon dealer reports and other available

information, that the State of New Jersey

has attained its quota for 2000.

The regulations at § 648.4(b) provide

that Federal permit holders agree as a

condition of the permit not to land

summer flounder in any state that the

Regional Administrator has determined

no longer has commercial quota

available. Therefore, effective 0001

hours, October 10, 2000, further

landings of summer flounder in New

Jersey by vessels holding summer

flounder commercial Federal fisheries

permits are prohibited for the remainder

of the 2000 calendar year, unless

additional quota becomes available

through a transfer and is announced in

the Federal Register. Effective 0001

hours, October 10, 2000, federally

permitted dealers are also advised that

they may not purchase summer flounder

from federally permitted vessels that

land in New Jersey for the remainder of

the calendar year, or until additional

quota becomes available through a

transfer.

Classification

This action is required by 50 CFR part

648 and is exempt from review under

Executive Order 12866.

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

Dated: October 2, 2000.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 00–25776 Filed 10–5–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3210–22–F