Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 183 / Friday, September 20, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 77033 

reasonable opportunity to harvest highly 

migratory species allocations and quotas 

under relevant international fishery 

agreements such as the International 

Convention for the Conservation of 

Atlantic Tunas. 

This action does not contain a 

collection-of-information requirement 

for purposes of the Paperwork 

Reduction Act. 

Because prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment are not required for 

this rule by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other 

law, the analytical requirements of the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601 

et seq., are inapplicable. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 971 et seq. and 1801 

et seq. 

Dated: September 16, 2024. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, NMFS amends 50 CFR part 

635 as follows: 

PART 635—ATLANTIC HIGHLY 

MIGRATORY SPECIES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 635 

continues to read as follows: 

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

1801 et seq. 

■ 2. In § 635.27, revise paragraph (e)(1) 

to read as follows: 

§ 635.27 Quotas. 

* * * * * 

(e) * * * 

(1) Annual quota. Consistent with 

ICCAT recommendations, the ICCAT 

northern albacore management 

procedure, and domestic management 

objectives, the baseline annual quota, 

before any adjustments, is 889.4 mt. The 

total quota, after any adjustments made 

per paragraph (e)(2) of this section, is 

the fishing year’s total amount of 

northern albacore tuna that may be 

landed by persons and vessels subject to 

U.S. jurisdiction. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2024–21507 Filed 9–19–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 660 

[Docket No. 240327–0090; RTID 0648– 

XE271] 

Pacific Halibut Fisheries of the West 

Coast; 2024 Catch Sharing Plan; 

Inseason Action 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; inseason 

adjustment; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces inseason 

action for the Pacific halibut 

recreational fishery in the International 

Pacific Halibut Commission’s (IPHC) 

regulatory Area 2A off Washington, 

Oregon, and California. Specifically, 

this action transfers 12,000 pounds (lb; 

5.4 metric tons (mt)) of the Area 2A 

Pacific halibut recreational allocation, 

in net pounds, from the Oregon 

recreational fishery to the Washington 

recreational fishery. This action is 

intended to provide opportunity for 

anglers to achieve the total Area 2A 

recreational fishery allocation. 

DATES: 

Effective: September 20, 2024, 

through December 31, 2024. 

Comments due date: Comments will 

be accepted on or before October 7, 

2024. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by NOAA–NMFS–2024–0014, 

by either of the following methods: 

• Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov and enter 

NOAA–NMFS–2024–0014 in the Search 

box. Click on the ‘‘Comment’’ icon, 

complete the required fields, and enter 

or attach your comments. 

• Mail: Submit written comments to 

Jennifer Quan, Regional Administrator, 

c/o Melissa Mandrup, West Coast 

Region, NMFS, 501 W Ocean Blvd., 

Long Beach, CA 90802. 

Instructions: NMFS may not consider 

comments if they are sent by any other 

method, to any other address or 

individual, or received after the 

comment period ends. All comments 

received are a part of the public record 

and NMFS will post them for public 

viewing on https://www.regulations.gov 

without change. All personal identifying 

information (e.g., name, address, etc.), 

confidential business information, or 

otherwise sensitive information 

submitted voluntarily by the sender is 

publicly accessible. NMFS will accept 

anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/A’’ in 

the required fields if you wish to remain 

anonymous). 

Docket: This rule is accessible via the 

internet at the Office of the Federal 

Register website at https://

www.federalregister.gov/. Background 

information and documents are 

available at the NOAA Fisheries website 

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

action/2024-pacific-halibutrecreational-fishery and at the Pacific 

Fishery Management Council’s website 

at https://www.pcouncil.org. Other 

comments received may be accessed 

through https://www.regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Melissa Mandrup, phone: 562–980– 

3231 or email: melissa.mandrup@

noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 

3, 2024, NMFS published a final rule 

approving changes to the Pacific halibut 

Area 2A Catch Sharing Plan (CSP) and 

implementing recreational (sport) 

management measures for the 2024 Area 

2A recreational fisheries (89 FR 22966), 

as authorized by the Northern Pacific 

Halibut Act of 1982 (16 U.S.C. 773– 

773(k)). The Pacific Fishery 

Management Council’s (Council) 2024 

CSP provides a recommended 

framework for NMFS’ annual 

management measures and subarea 

allocations based on the 2024 Area 2A 

Pacific halibut catch limit also known as 

the fishery constant exploitation yield 

(FCEY) of 1.47 million lb (666.8 mt) set 

by the IPHC. The Area 2A catch limit 

and recreational fishery allocations were 

adopted by the IPHC and were 

published in the Federal Register on 

March 18, 2024 (89 FR 19275), after 

acceptance by the Secretary of State, 

with concurrence from the Secretary of 

Commerce, in accordance with 50 CFR 

300.62. The final rule published on 

April 3, 2024 (89 FR 22966), established 

50 CFR 300.63(c)(6)(i)(F), which allows 

NMFS to transfer portions of state 

recreation allocations inseason to 

another state under certain 

circumstances (e.g., if a state is 

projected to not utilize its respective 

recreational allocation by the end of the 

fishing season and another state could 

utilize additional pounds to avoid 

closing a fishing season early). 

NMFS has determined that, due to 

lower than expected landings through 

September 5, 2024, and projected 

catches for the remainder of the season 

off Oregon (October 31), Oregon is 

projected to not utilize its full 

recreational allocation by the end of the 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1
77034 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 183 / Friday, September 20, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

fishing season. Therefore, inseason 

action to transfer a portion of the 

Oregon recreational fishery allocation to 

another state is warranted at this time to 

provide additional opportunity for 

fishery participants to achieve the total 

Area 2A fishery allocations. As stated 

above, inseason transfers of a portion of 

state recreational allocations to another 

state are authorized by Federal 

regulations at 50 CFR 300.63(c)(6)(i)(F) 

and the final rule (89 FR 22966, April 

3, 2024). 

Catch projections as of September 5, 

2024, indicate that Washington is likely 

to reach their statewide recreational 

fishery allocation before their season 

closure date (September 30), and 

California is projected to stay within 

their State recreation allocation through 

their season closure dates (November 15 

for the Northern California subarea and 

December 31 for the South of Point 

Arena subarea). After consulting with 

Council staff, the Washington 

Department of Fish and Wildlife 

(WDFW), the Oregon Department of 

Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), and the 

California Department of Fish and 

Wildlife, it was determined that 

inseason action transferring a portion of 

Oregon’s recreational allocation to 

Washington is necessary in order to 

allow the Area 2A allocation objectives 

to be met, by providing anglers 

additional opportunity to achieve the 

coastwide recreational allocation, with 

little risk of that allocation being 

exceeded. Additionally, this action is 

necessary to meet the management 

objectives of the 2024 CSP and is 

consistent with the inseason 

management provisions allowing the 

transfer of portions of a state’s 

recreational allocations to another state. 

California is, at this time, unlikely to 

use any additional net pounds in 

recreational Pacific halibut allocation. 

Catch monitoring reports for the 

recreational fisheries in Washington, 

Oregon, and California are available on 

their respective State Fish and Wildlife 

agency websites. NMFS will continue to 

monitor recreational catch obtained via 

state sampling procedures. The 

recreational fisheries will close on 

September 30 in Washington, October 

31 in Oregon, and November 15 or 

December 31 in California, or when 

there is not sufficient allocation for 

another full day of fishing in each State 

(or relevant area within California). 

Should future catch projections indicate 

that there are additional unused pounds 

in the Area 2A recreational allocation 

available to transfer from one state to 

another, and that there is a need for 

such a transfer to allow an area to 

remain open for its full fishing season, 

then NMFS may take future inseason 

action to reallocate that unused 

allocation. Any inseason action, 

including closures, will be announced 

in accordance with Federal regulations 

at 50 CFR 300.63(c) and on the NMFS 

hotline at (206) 526–6667 or (800) 662– 

9825. 

Pacific Halibut Reallocation 

For 2024, the Area 2A Pacific halibut 

CSP allocated 290,158 lb (131.6 mt) to 

the Washington recreational fishery, 

283,784 lb (128.7 mt) to the Oregon 

recreational fishery, and 38,220 lb (17.3 

mt) to the California recreational 

fishery. The best available information 

on September 5, 2024, indicated that the 

Oregon recreational fishery would not 

harvest their full allocation by the end 

of their season (October 31); the 

Washington recreational fishery is 

projected to reach their allocation prior 

to the end of their season (September 

30) and would need 12,000 lb (5.4 mt) 

to remain open until September 30; and 

the California recreational fishery is 

projected to stay within their allocation 

through the end of their respective 

seasons (November 15 and December 

31). 

To allow for increased utilization of 

the resource, with this inseason action, 

NMFS will transfer 12,000 lb (net 

weight, [5.4 mt]) of Pacific halibut from 

the Oregon recreational fishery 

allocation to the Washington 

recreational fishery allocation to allow 

the fishery to remain open through 

September 30. At this time, NMFS has 

determined that the California 

recreational subarea will not receive 

additional pounds through this action as 

the fishery is not projected to exceed 

their allocation before or by the end of 

their seasons on November 15 and 

December 31. Reallocating 12,000 lb (5.4 

mt) to the Washington recreational 

fishery is expected to allow for greater 

attainment of the total Area 2A 

recreational allocation while not 

limiting recreational harvest 

opportunities off Oregon for the 

remainder of the season. Should future 

catch projections indicate there are 

additional pounds available to transfer 

from one state to another, NMFS may 

take future inseason action to reallocate 

that unused allocation. 

Classification 

NMFS issues this action pursuant to 

the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 

1982. This action is taken under the 

regulatory authority at 50 CFR 

300.63(c)(6), and is exempt from review 

under Executive Order 12866. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(3)(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. WDFW provided 

updated landings data to NMFS on 

September 6, 2024, showing that 

through September 2, approximately 93 

percent of the State fishery allocation 

has been attained and the fishery is 

projected to need 12,000 lb (5.4 mt) to 

remain open through the end of their 

season (September 30). Also, on 

September 6, 2024, ODFW provided 

updated landings data to NMFS, 

showing that through September 2, 

approximately 70 percent of the state 

fishery allocation has been attained and 

the fishery is projected to end their 

season (October 31) without fully 

attaining their state fishery allocation. 

NMFS uses fishing rates from previous 

years to project attainment through the 

end of current fishing seasons. With the 

lower than expected catch rates in the 

Oregon recreational fishery, the transfer 

of a portion of the Oregon State 

allocation to the Washington State 

allocation allows for the Area 2A 

management objectives to be met by 

providing anglers additional 

opportunity to achieve the coastwide 

recreational allocation with little risk of 

that allocation being exceeded. It is 

necessary that this rule be implemented 

in a timely manner both to allow the 

Washington State fishery access to the 

additional unused allocation without 

delay in order to remain open through 

the end of the season (September 30), 

and to allow for business and personal 

decision making by the regulated public 

impacted by this action, which includes 

recreational charter fishing operations, 

associated port businesses, and private 

anglers who do not live near the coastal 

access points for this fishery, among 

others. Without an allocation transfer to 

the Washington recreational fishery, 

coastwide allocations in Area 2A are 

unlikely to be harvested, thus limiting 

the economic benefits to the fishery 

participants and obstructing the goals of 

the 2024 CSP. Additionally, this action 

does not alter public expectations in 

that recreational Pacific halibut fishing 

in Oregon and Washington is projected 

to continue until the last prescribed 

fishing date for each State. To ensure 

the regulated public is fully aware of 

this action, notice of this regulatory 

action will be provided to anglers 

through a telephone hotline, news 

release, and by the relevant State Fish 

and Wildlife agencies. NMFS will 

receive public comments for 15 days 

after publication of this action, in 

accordance with 50 CFR 

300.63(c)(6)(iv). No aspect of this action 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 183 / Friday, September 20, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 77035 

is controversial, and changes of this 

nature were anticipated in the process 

described in regulations at 50 CFR 

300.63(c). 

For the reasons discussed above, there 

is also good cause under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3) to waive the 30-day delay in 

effective date and make this action 

effective immediately upon filing for 

public inspection, as a delay in 

effectiveness of this action would 

constrain fishing opportunity and be 

inconsistent with the goals of the CSP, 

as well as potentially limit the economic 

opportunity intended by this rule to the 

associated fishing communities. This 

inseason action is not expected to result 

in exceeding the total Area 2A 

recreational fishery allocation. NMFS 

regulations allow the Regional 

Administrator to modify state 

recreational allocations, including a 

transfer in recreational allocation from 

one state to another; provided that the 

action allows allocation objectives to be 

met and will not result in exceeding the 

catch limit for Area 2A. NMFS received 

information on the progress of landings 

in the recreational fisheries in Area 2A 

on September 6, 2024, indicating that 

modifying the State recreational fishery 

allocations for Oregon and Washington 

should be implemented to ensure 

optimal harvest in the recreational 

fisheries in Area 2A. As stated above, it 

is in the public interest that this action 

is not delayed, because a delay in the 

effectiveness would obstruct the ability 

for the allocation objectives of the 

recreational Pacific halibut fishery to be 

met. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773–773k. 

Dated: September 12, 2024. 

Karen H. Abrams, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–21517 Filed 9–17–24; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket Number: 240916–0239] 

RIN 0648–BN21 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Amendment 80 

Sector Annual BSAI Pacific Halibut 

PSC Limits; Correction 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Correcting amendment. 

SUMMARY: On November 24, 2023, 

NMFS published a final rule to 

implement amendment 123 to the 

Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for 

Groundfish of the Bering Sea and 

Aleutian Islands (BSAI) Management 

Area (BSAI FMP). The final rule 

included a formatting error in table 58 

that caused the column headings to be 

incorrectly aligned with the column 

contents in the table. This correction 

fixes the error. 

DATES: Effective on September 20, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Alicia M. Miller, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

November 24, 2023, NMFS published a 

final rule to implement amendment 123 

to the BSAI FMP (88 FR 82740). That 

final rule added table 58 to part 679 

(Amendment 80 Sector Annual BSAI 

Pacific Halibut Prohibited Species Catch 

(PSC) Limits) to establish the 

International Pacific Halibut 

Commission (IPHC) index and the 

NMFS Eastern Bering Sea (EBS) index 

ranges in a table with the corresponding 

PSC limit at the intercepts of each index 

range. The final rule included an error 

in the formatting of table 58 to part 679 

that caused the column headings to be 

incorrectly aligned with the column 

contents. This correction fixes the error. 

Classification 

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

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 

NOAA, finds good cause to waive prior 

notice and opportunity for additional 

public comment because it would be 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest. This correcting amendment 

corrects the formatting of table 58 to 

part 679 as depicted in the Federal 

Register and does not substantively 

change the contents of the table. The 

public was provided prior notice and 

comment on the proposed table as well 

as all supporting documents, which 

included the correctly formatted table 

with the column headings properly 

aligning with the column contents in 

table 58 to part 679. Therefore, 

providing prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment on this correction is 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest because this is a nonsubstantive change and retaining the 

incorrect formatted table may cause 

confusion. 

For the reasons stated above, the 

Assistant Administrator also finds good 

cause, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d), to 

waive the 30-day delay in effective date 

for this correcting amendment (i.e., it is 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest since it is a non-substantive 

change, the public was provided prior 

notice and comment on the correctly 

formatted proposed table 58 to part 

679). 

Because prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment are not required for 

this rule by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other 

law, the analytical requirements of the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601 

et seq., are inapplicable. 

This final rule has been found to be 

not significant pursuant to E.O. 12866. 

List of Subjects for 50 CFR Part 679 

Alaska, Fisheries, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

Dated: September 16, 2024. 

Samuel D. Rauch, III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, NMFS corrects 50 CFR part 

679 by making the following correcting 

amendment: 

PART 679—FISHERIES OF THE 

EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC ZONE OFF 

ALASKA 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 679 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 773 et seq.; 1801 et 

seq.; 3631 et seq.; Pub. L. 108–447; Pub. L. 

111–281. 

■ 2. Revise table 58 to part 679 to read 

as follows: 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1