4240 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 17 / Tuesday, January 27, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

Number of Petitions Filed: 1. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Marlene H. Dortch, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2015–01345 Filed 1–26–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[Docket No. 150105013–5013–01] 

RIN 0648–BE62 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish 

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Red 

Grouper Recreational Management 

Measures 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS proposes to implement 

management measures described in a 

framework action to the Fishery 

Management Plan for the Reef Fish 

Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (FMP), 

as prepared by the Gulf of Mexico 

Fishery Management Council (Council). 

If implemented, this rule would revise 

the daily bag limit for red grouper in the 

Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) and remove the 

recreational post-season bag-limit 

reduction accountability measure (AM) 

for Gulf red grouper. Additionally, this 

rule would correct an error in the Gulf 

individual fishing quota (IFQ) multi-use 

provisions for the Grouper/Tilefish IFQ 

program. The purpose of this rule is to 

modify the Gulf red grouper recreational 

management measures to improve 

recreational fishing opportunities by 

achieving optimal yield for the red 

grouper resource. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before February 26, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the proposed rule, identified by 

‘‘NOAA–NMFS–2014–0153’’ by any of 

the following methods: 

• Electronic Submission: Submit all 

electronic public comments via the 

Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 

www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=

NOAA-NMFS-2014-0153, click the 

‘‘Comment Now!’’ icon, complete the 

required fields, and enter or attach your 

comments. 

• Mail: Submit written comments to 

Richard Malinowski, Southeast Regional 

Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, 

St. Petersburg, FL 33701. 

Instructions: Comments sent by any 

other method, to any other address or 

individual, or received after the end of 

the comment period, may not be 

considered by NMFS. All comments 

received are a part of the public record 

and will generally be posted for public 

viewing on 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 will 

be publicly accessible. NMFS will 

accept anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/ 

A’’ in the required fields if you wish to 

remain anonymous). Attachments to 

electronic comments will be accepted in 

Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF 

file formats only. 

Electronic copies of the framework 

action, which includes an 

environmental assessment, a regulatory 

impact review, and a Regulatory 

Flexibility Act analysis may be obtained 

from the Southeast Regional Office Web 

site at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/

sustainable_fisheries/gulf_fisheries/

reef_fish/index.html. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Richard Malinowski, Southeast Regional 

Office, NMFS, telephone: 727–824– 

5305, email: rich.malinowski@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Gulf 

reef fish fishery is managed under the 

FMP. The FMP was prepared by the 

Council and is implemented through 

regulations at 50 CFR part 622 under the 

authority of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). 

Background 

In April 2014, NMFS announced that 

the Gulf red grouper recreational annual 

catch limit (ACL) was exceeded in 2013. 

In accordance with recreational AMs 

adopted in Amendment 32 to the FMP 

(77 FR 6988, February 10, 2012), this 

triggered a reduction in the bag limit in 

2014 from four fish to three fish, and a 

recreational closure was implemented 

on October 4, 2014, to ensure that 

landings did not exceed the recreational 

annual catch target (ACT). In response 

to the in-season recreational closure, the 

Council, at its June 2014 meeting, 

directed staff to begin development of a 

framework action to potentially reduce 

the recreational bag limit, and adjust the 

recreational AMs in an effort to extend 

the red grouper recreational fishing 

season. 

Prior to implementation of 

Amendment 32 to the FMP, the red 

grouper recreational allocation had not 

been met in recent years. The red 

grouper recreational allocation of the 

total allowable catch (TAC) was initially 

set at 1.25 million lb (0.567 million kg), 

gutted weight, in 2004, was increased to 

1.82 million lb (0.826 million kg), gutted 

weight, in 2009, and was then reduced 

to 1.36 million lb (0.617 million kg), 

gutted weight, in 2011. In 2012, 

Amendment 32 to the FMP replaced the 

red grouper TAC with an ACL and ACT, 

and management measures intended to 

allow harvest to achieve the ACT. The 

red grouper recreational ACL and ACT 

were set for 2012 and beyond at 1.9 

million lb (0.862 million kg), gutted 

weight, and 1.73 million lb (0.785 

million kg), gutted weight, respectively. 

Also in 2012, the red grouper bag limit 

was increased from two fish to four fish 

per person, under the four-fish aggregate 

grouper bag limit, to allow the 

recreational sector to fully harvest its 

allocation and achieve optimum yield. 

The post-season AM that was 

implemented in 2012, was a reduction 

in the bag limit by one fish, if at the end 

of any season, NMFS determined that 

the recreational sector has exceeded its 

red grouper ACL. Therefore, the bag 

limit would be reduced to three fish in 

the following season, and could be 

reduced to two fish the season after that, 

if the ACL was again exceeded. The bag 

limit would not be reduced below two 

fish. 

Management Measures Contained in 

This Proposed Rule 

This rule would reduce the Gulf red 

grouper recreational bag limit from four 

fish to two fish within the four-fish 

aggregate grouper bag limit, and remove 

the post-season AM that reduces the 

daily bag limit the next fishing season 

when the previous fishing year’s ACL is 

exceeded. The other post-season AMs 

currently codified in the regulations 

would remain in effect without change. 

The first post-season AM currently 

codified in the regulations applies 

regardless of whether red grouper are 

overfished and requires that NMFS will 

publish a notification to reduce the 

length of the recreational red grouper 

fishing season the following fishing year 

by the amount necessary to ensure red 

grouper recreational landings do not 

exceed the recreational ACT. The 

second post-season AM currently 

codified in the regulations applies if red 

grouper are overfished, and requires 

NMFS to reduce the recreational ACL 

and recreational ACT the following 

fishing year by the prior fishing year’s 

recreational ACL overage. 


asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 17 / Tuesday, January 27, 2015 / Proposed Rules 4241 

Additional Proposed Changes to 

Codified Text 

Amendment 32 to the FMP 

established a formula-based method for 

setting gag and red grouper multi-use 

allocations for the Gulf Grouper/Tilefish 

IFQ program to allow for flexibility in 

harvesting practices and address 

potential bycatch associated with cooccurring species (77 FR 6988, February 

2, 2012). At the beginning of each 

fishing year, a percentage of the gag and 

red grouper allocation is designated as 

multi-use allocation valid for harvesting 

either gag or red grouper. However, gag 

multi-use allocation is not available if 

red grouper is under a rebuilding plan 

and red grouper multi-use allocation is 

not available if gag is under a rebuilding 

plan. For example, gag multi-use 

allocation would be set to zero percent 

if red grouper is under a rebuilding 

plan. 

The final rule for Amendment 32 

erroneously stated that if red grouper is 

under a rebuilding plan, then red 

grouper multi-use allocation should be 

set to zero. NMFS corrects this mistake 

and changes ‘‘red grouper multi-use 

allocation’’ to ‘‘gag multi-use allocation’’ 

in this instance. 

Classification 

Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, the Assistant 

Administrator has determined that this 

proposed rule is consistent with the 

framework action, the FMP, the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act and other 

applicable law, subject to further 

consideration after public comment. 

This proposed rule has been 

determined to be not significant for 

purposes of Executive Order 12866. 

The Chief Counsel for Regulation of 

the Department of Commerce certified 

to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

Small Business Administration (SBA) 

that this proposed rule, if implemented, 

would not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. The factual basis for this 

determination is as follows: 

The objective of this proposed rule is 

to change the red grouper recreational 

management measures in the Gulf to 

improve recreational fishing 

opportunities by extending the number 

of days in the fishing season. The 

Magnuson-Stevens Act provides the 

statutory basis for this proposed rule. 

This proposed rule, if implemented, 

would not be expected to directly affect 

any small entities. This proposed rule 

would change the red grouper 

recreational bag limit in the Gulf. Only 

recreational anglers, who may fish from 

private, rental, charter vessels, or 

headboats, are allowed a bag or 

possession limit of red grouper in the 

Gulf. Captains or crew members on 

charter vessels or headboats, cannot 

harvest or possess red grouper under the 

recreational bag limit. Because only 

recreational anglers are allowed a bag or 

possession limit, only recreational 

anglers would be directly affected by the 

proposed changes to the red grouper 

recreational bag limit. Recreational 

anglers, however, are not small entities 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(RFA) and the economic effects of this 

proposed rule on these anglers are 

outside the scope of the RFA. 

Charter vessels and headboats (forhire vessels) sell fishing services to 

recreational anglers. These vessels 

provide a platform for the opportunity 

to fish and not a guarantee to catch or 

harvest any species, though 

expectations of successful fishing, 

however defined, likely factor into the 

decision to purchase these services. Bag 

limit restrictions only define what can 

be kept and do not explicitly prevent 

the continued offer of for-hire fishing 

services. In response to a reduced bag 

limit, including a zero-fish limit, catch 

and release fishing for a target species 

could continue, as could fishing for 

other species. Because the proposed 

change in the red grouper bag limit 

would not directly alter the service sold 

by these vessels, this proposed rule 

would not directly apply to or regulate 

their operations. For-hire vessels would 

continue to be able to offer their core 

service, which is an attempt to ‘‘put 

anglers on fish,’’ provide the 

opportunity for anglers to catch 

whatever their skills enable them to 

catch, and keep those fish that they 

desire to keep and are legal to keep. Any 

change in demand for these fishing 

services, and associated economic 

affects, as a result of changing the bag 

limit would be a consequence of 

behavioral change by anglers, secondary 

to any direct effect on anglers and, 

therefore, an indirect effect of the 

proposed rule. Because the effects on 

for-hire vessels would be indirect, they 

fall outside the scope of the RFA. 

In addition, no small entities would 

be expected to be directly affected by 

the proposed corrections of the multiuse allocation regulatory text because 

the conditions that may have allowed 

inappropriate use of the allocation due 

to the error in the implementation of 

Amendment 32 to the FMP have not 

occurred since the implementation. 

This proposed rule would not require 

any new reporting, record-keeping, or 

other compliance requirements 

associated with reporting or recordkeeping that may require professional 

skills. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 622 

Fisheries, Fishing, Gulf, Recreational, 

Red grouper. 

Dated: January 20, 2015. 

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 proposed 

to be amended as follows: 

PART 622—FISHERIES OF THE 

CARIBBEAN, GULF OF MEXICO, 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 § 622.22, the last sentence in 

paragraph (a)(5)(ii)(B) is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 622.22 Individual fishing quota (IFQ) 

program for Gulf groupers and tilefishes. 

(a) * * * 

(5) * * * 

(ii) * * * 

(B) * * * However, if red grouper is 

under a rebuilding plan, the percentage 

of gag multi-use allocation is equal to 

zero. 

* * * * * 

■ 3. In § 622.38, the first sentence in 

paragraph (b)(2) is revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 622.38 Bag and possession limits. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(2) Groupers, combined, excluding 

goliath grouper—4 per person per day, 

but not to exceed 1 speckled hind or 1 

warsaw grouper per vessel per day, or 

2 gag or 2 red grouper per person per 

day. * * * 

* * * * * 


asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
4242 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 17 / Tuesday, January 27, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

■ 4. In § 622.41, the second sentence in 

paragraph (e)(2)(ii) is revised and the 

third sentence in paragraph (e)(2)(ii) is 

removed to read as follows: 

§ 622.41 Annual catch limits (ACLs), 

annual catch targets (ACTs), and 

accountability measures (AMs). 

* * * * * 

(e) * * * 

(2) * * * 

(ii) * * * In addition, the notification 

will reduce the length of the 

recreational red grouper fishing season 

the following fishing year by the amount 

necessary to ensure red grouper 

recreational landings do not exceed the 

recreational ACT in the following 

fishing year. * * * 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2015–01339 Filed 1–26–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS