Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 67 / Wednesday, April 8, 2015 / Proposed Rules 18797 

process on this proposed interim policy 

guidance will inform the future 

rulemaking. After reviewing and 

responding to the comments received on 

this proposed guidance, FTA will issue 

a final iteration of the interim guidance, 

and then initiate the rulemaking. 

Therese W. McMillan, 

Acting Federal Transit Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2015–08063 Filed 4–7–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[Docket No. 140611492–5308–01] 

RIN 0648–BE30 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; SnapperGrouper Fishery Off the Southern 

Atlantic States; Regulatory 

Amendment 20 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: NMFS proposes regulations to 

implement Regulatory Amendment 20 

to the Fishery Management Plan for the 

Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South 

Atlantic Region (FMP) (Regulatory 

Amendment 20), as prepared and 

submitted by the South Atlantic Fishery 

Management Council (Council). If 

implemented, this proposed rule would 

revise the snowy grouper annual catch 

limits (ACLs), commercial trip limit, 

and recreational fishing season. The 

purpose of this rule is to help achieve 

optimum yield (OY) and prevent 

overfishing of snowy grouper while 

enhancing socio-economic 

opportunities within the snappergrouper fishery in accordance with the 

requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before May 8, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the proposed rule, identified by 

‘‘NOAA–NMFS–2015–0003’’ by either 

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-2015- 

0003, click the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ icon, 

complete the required fields, and enter 

or attach your comments. 

• Mail: Submit written comments to 

Nikhil Mehta, 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). 

Electronic copies of the regulatory 

amendment, which includes an 

environmental assessment and an initial 

regulatory flexibility analysis (IRFA), 

may be obtained from the Southeast 

Regional Office Web site at http://

sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_

fisheries/s_atl/sg/2015/reg_am20/

index.html. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Nikhil Mehta, telephone: 727–824– 

5305, or email: nikhil.mehta@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Snowy 

grouper is in the snapper-grouper 

fishery of the South Atlantic and 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 Act. 

Background 

The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires 

NMFS and regional fishery management 

councils to achieve on a continuing 

basis the OY from federally-managed 

fish stocks. This mandate is intended to 

ensure that fishery resources are 

managed for the greatest overall benefit 

to the nation, particularly with respect 

to providing food production and 

recreational opportunities, and 

protecting marine ecosystems. 

Management Measures Contained in 

This Proposed Rule 

This proposed rule would revise the 

snowy grouper ACLs for both the 

commercial and recreational sectors, 

revise the commercial trip limits, and 

revise the recreational fishing season. 

All weights described in the preamble of 

this proposed rule are in gutted weight. 

Snowy Grouper Commercial and 

Recreational ACLs 

In 2013, a standard stock assessment 

for snowy grouper was conducted using 

the Southeast Data, Assessment, and 

Review (SEDAR) process (SEDAR 36). 

SEDAR 36 indicates the snowy grouper 

stock is no longer undergoing 

overfishing, remains overfished, and is 

rebuilding. 

Snowy grouper is in a rebuilding plan 

and catch levels are currently being held 

constant as the stock rebuilds. While the 

amendment states that it is changing the 

rebuilding strategy, the effect of the 

action is to adopt the acceptable 

biological catch (ABC) chosen by the 

Council as recommended by the 

Council’s Scientific and Statistical 

Committee (SSC) based upon the stock 

assessment. The Council’s SSC 

recommended an ABC equal to the yield 

at 75 percent of the fishing mortality at 

maximum sustainable yield (FMSY), 

which would allow ABC to increase as 

the stock rebuilds. 

The current ABC is 87,254 lb (39,578 

kg), which equals the total allowable 

catch specified by the rebuilding 

strategy in Amendment 15A to the FMP. 

As described in Regulatory Amendment 

20, the ABC would increase to 139,098 

lb (63,094 kg) in 2015; 151,518 lb 

(68,727 kg) in 2016; 163,109 lb (73,985 

kg) in 2017; 173,873 lb (78,867 kg) in 

2018; and 185,464 lb (84,125 kg) in 2019 

and subsequent fishing years. 

SEDAR 36 updated the historical 

landings data for snowy grouper from 

the Marine Recreational Fisheries 

Statistical Survey (MRFSS) to the 

Marine Recreational Information 

Program (MRIP). Additionally, 

recreational landings from Monroe 

County, Florida, which encompasses the 

islands of the Florida Keys, were 

included in the SEDAR 36 stock 

assessment. The recreational landings 

data from Monroe County were not 

included in the first stock assessment 

conducted for snowy grouper in 2004 

(SEDAR 4) because it was not possible 

at that time to separate out the data from 

Monroe County from the landings data 

for the rest of the west coast of Florida. 

However, in 2013, a method was 

developed for extracting and separating 

the recreational landings from Monroe 

County from the rest of the west coast 

of Florida and therefore, the Monroe 

County recreational data were included 

in SEDAR 36. When applying the 

existing allocation formula for snowy 

grouper to the change in landings from 

the SEDAR 36 assessment, a shift results 

in the sector ACLs from 95 percent 

commercial and 5 percent recreational 


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to 83 percent commercial and 17 

percent recreational. 

The proposed rule would increase the 

ACLs for snowy grouper based on the 

ABC chosen by the Council, as 

recommended by their SSC based on the 

results of SEDAR 36. The current snowy 

grouper commercial ACL is 82,900 lb 

(37,603 kg). This proposed rule would 

revise the commercial ACL to 115,451 lb 

(52,368 kg) in 2015; 125,760 lb (57,044 

kg) in 2016; 135,380 lb (61,407 kg) in 

2017; 144,315 lb (65,460 kg) in 2018; 

and 153,935 lb (69,824 kg) in 2019, and 

subsequent fishing years. The current 

snowy grouper recreational ACL is 523 

fish. This proposed rule would revise 

the snowy grouper recreational ACL to 

4,152 fish in 2015; 4,483 fish in 2016; 

4,819 fish in 2017, 4,983 fish in 2018; 

and 5,315 fish in 2019, and subsequent 

fishing years. 

Snowy Grouper Commercial Trip Limit 

This proposed rule would revise the 

snowy grouper commercial trip limit 

from the current 100 lb (45 kg) to 200 

lb (91 kg). With an increased trip limit, 

the expected length of the fishing season 

may decrease. However, the Council 

determined that since the commercial 

ACL would be increasing yearly from 

2015 to 2019, a relatively small increase 

in the commercial trip limit to 200 lb 

(91 kg) would help to maintain a longer 

fishing season when combined with the 

commercial ACL increase. Furthermore, 

because the fishing year for snowy 

grouper begins on January 1, the 

Council felt that a higher trip limit for 

snowy grouper at the beginning of the 

year could enhance profits for 

commercial snapper-grouper fishermen 

because shallow-water grouper species 

are closed during January–April, leaving 

snowy grouper as one of few options for 

purchase by dealers and fish houses. 

Additionally, with a May harvest 

opening for many snapper-grouper 

species, other fish would be available to 

target if snowy grouper closes in the 

summer. 

Snowy Grouper Recreational Fishing 

Season 

The current snowy grouper fishing 

season is year-round with a recreational 

bag limit of one snowy grouper per 

vessel per day. This proposed rule 

would revise the recreational fishing 

season to one snowy grouper per vessel 

per day from May through August, with 

no retention of snowy grouper during 

the rest of the year. Snowy grouper 

recreational landings exceeded the 

recreational ACL by approximately 400 

percent in both 2012 and 2013, and as 

a result of the accountability measures, 

the recreational sector closed on May 31 

in 2013, and on June 7 in 2014. The 

Council determined that reducing the 

current year-round recreational fishing 

season to a 4-month season would help 

minimize the risk of exceeding the 

recreational ACL. The months of May 

through August are when recreational 

fishermen throughout the South 

Atlantic generally have equal access to 

the resource due to good weather 

conditions. The fishing season dates and 

bag limit for the snowy grouper 

recreational sector would match those 

proposed for a co-occurring species, 

blueline tilefish, through Amendment 

32 to the FMP. Thus, this approach 

could help reduce discard mortality for 

snowy grouper, which can be targeted 

along with blueline tilefish, another cooccurring deep-water species. The 

Council determined that similar 

recreational management measures and 

fishing seasons for snowy grouper and 

blueline tilefish would be beneficial to 

both fish stocks as they are caught at the 

same depths and have similar high 

release mortality rates. 

Classification 

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

Magnuson-Stevens Act, the NMFS 

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries 

has determined that this proposed rule 

is consistent with Regulatory 

Amendment 20, the FMP, other 

provisions of 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. 

NMFS prepared an IRFA, as required 

by section 603 of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, for this proposed rule. 

The IRFA describes the economic 

impact this rule, if adopted, would have 

on small entities. A description of the 

action, why it is being considered, the 

objectives of, and legal basis for this 

action are contained at the beginning of 

this section in the preamble and in the 

SUMMARY section of the preamble. A 

copy of the full analysis is available 

from NMFS (see ADDRESSES). A 

summary of the IRFA follows. 

The Magnuson-Stevens Act provides 

the statutory basis for this rule. No 

duplicative, overlapping, or conflicting 

Federal rules have been identified. In 

addition, no new reporting, recordkeeping, or other compliance 

requirements are introduced by this 

rule. Accordingly, this rule does not 

implicate the Paperwork Reduction Act. 

This rule, if implemented, would be 

expected to directly affect federally 

permitted commercial fishers harvesting 

for snowy grouper in the South Atlantic. 

The Small Business Administration 

established size criteria for all major 

industry sectors in the U.S., including 

fish harvesters and for-hire operations. 

A business involved in fish harvesting 

is classified as a small business if it is 

independently owned and operated, is 

not dominant in its field of operation 

(including its affiliates), and its 

combined annual receipts are not in 

excess of $20.5 million (NAICS code 

114111, finfish fishing) for all of its 

affiliated operations worldwide. 

Charter vessels and headboats (forhire vessels) sell fishing services, which 

include the harvest of any species 

considered in this proposed rule, 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. 

Changing the allowable harvest of a 

species, including a fishery closure, 

only defines what species may be kept 

and does not explicitly prevent the 

continued offer of for-hire fishing 

services. In response to a change in the 

allowable harvest of a species, including 

a zero-fish possession limit or fishery 

closure, catch and release fishing for a 

target species could continue, as could 

fishing for other species. Because the 

proposed changes to management 

measures for species considered in this 

proposed rule would not directly alter 

the services 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 primary product, 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 

changes in demand for these fishing 

services, and associated economic 

affects as a result of changing an ACL or 

establishing fishery closures, would be 

a consequence of behavioral change by 

anglers, secondary to any direct effect 

on anglers, and, therefore, an indirect 

effect of the proposed regulatory action. 

Because the effects on for-hire vessels 

would be indirect, they fall outside the 

scope of the Regulatory Flexibility 

Analysis (RFA). Recreational anglers, 

who may be directly affected by the 

changes in this proposed rule, are not 

small entities under the RFA. 

NMFS has not identified any other 

small entities that would be expected to 

be directly affected by this proposed 

rule. 

The snapper-grouper fishery is a 

multi-species fishery and vessels 


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generally land many species on the 

same trips. From 2009 through 2013, an 

annual average of 138 vessels with valid 

Federal permits to operate in the 

commercial sector of the snappergrouper fishery landed at least 1 lb (0.45 

kg) of snowy grouper. Each vessel 

generated annual average dockside 

revenues of approximately $78,000 

(2013 dollars), of which $2,000 were 

from snowy grouper, $21,000 from other 

species jointly landed with snowy 

grouper, and $55,000 from other species 

on trips without snowy grouper. Vessels 

that caught and landed snowy grouper 

may also operate in other fisheries 

outside the snapper-grouper fishery, the 

revenues of which are not known and 

are not reflected in these totals. Based 

on revenue information, all commercial 

vessels directly affected by the rule may 

be considered small entities. 

Because all entities expected to be 

affected by this rule are small entities, 

NMFS has determined that this rule 

would affect a substantial number of 

small entities. Moreover, the issue of 

disproportionate effects on small versus 

large entities does not arise in the 

present case. 

The effect of the action to modify the 

rebuilding strategy for snowy grouper is 

to adopt the ABC chosen by the Council, 

as recommended by their SSC based 

upon the recent stock assessment. 

Modifying the rebuilding strategy for 

snowy grouper would have no direct 

economic effects on small entities, 

because it would not alter the current 

use or access to the snowy grouper 

resource. NMFS notes that the ABC 

resulting from the modification of the 

rebuilding strategy would be higher 

than the status quo ABC for snowy 

grouper. 

Setting the snowy grouper ACL equal 

to ABC implies that the ACL would 

increase as a result of the proposed ABC 

increase. The method for allocating the 

ACL between the commercial and 

recreational sectors would remain the 

same. The change in the commercial 

and recreational percentage allocation 

results from the use of the updated 

landings of snowy grouper from SEDAR 

36. Relative to the 2014 ACL, the 

proposed commercial ACLs will 

increase by 39 percent in 2015 and 

continue to increase annually through 

2019 to a point where the proposed ACL 

in 2019 will be 86 percent greater than 

it was in 2014. Compared to the 2014 

ACL, the proposed recreational ACL 

will increase by 442 percent in 2015 and 

continue to increase annually through 

2019 to a point where the proposed ACL 

in 2019 will be 623 percent greater than 

it was in 2014. In principle, the 

increases in the snowy grouper sector 

ACLs would be expected to result in 

revenue and profit increases to 

commercial vessels. The actual results 

would partly depend on the relationship 

to the management measures proposed 

for the commercial sector, as discussed 

below. As noted, for-hire vessels would 

only be indirectly affected by this 

action. 

Increasing the snowy grouper 

commercial trip limit from 100 lb (45 

kg), to 200 lb (90 kg), would tend to 

increase the profit per trip of 

commercial vessels. This higher trip 

limit would complement the proposed 

commercial ACL increase in potentially 

increasing the annual profits of 

commercial vessels. Given the proposed 

ACL increase, the commercial fishing 

season is expected to extend from 

January 1 through July 19 under the 

higher trip limit, or January 1 through 

December 26 under the status quo (No 

Action) trip limit. Therefore, the 

proposed commercial trip limit increase 

would result in a higher profit per trip 

but shorter commercial fishing season; 

whereas the status quo trip limit would 

be associated with lower profit per trip 

but a longer fishing season. Which of 

these two scenarios would result in 

higher annual profit for commercial 

vessels cannot be ascertained. What is 

less uncertain, however, is that the 

proposed commercial ACL increase 

would result in higher annual revenues 

and profits. As noted, the commercial 

fishing season is projected to last until 

July 19 under the proposed trip limit 

and ACL increases. Without the ACL 

increase, the commercial fishing season 

is projected to last until June 6 under 

the proposed trip limit increase. Thus, 

the commercial ACL increase would 

allow for about 6 extra weeks of 

commercial fishing for snowy grouper 

under the proposed trip limit increase. 

Given a longer fishing season and higher 

profit per trip, revenues and profits of 

commercial vessels that target snowy 

grouper are likely to increase. 

The following discussion analyzes the 

alternatives that were not selected as 

preferred by the Council. Only actions 

that would have direct economic effects 

on small entities merit inclusion in the 

following discussion. 

Three alternatives, including the 

preferred alternative (as fully described 

in the preamble), were considered for 

adjusting the ACLs. The first alternative, 

the no action alternative, would 

maintain the current (lower) commercial 

and recreational ACLs. This alternative 

would maintain the same economic 

benefits for commercial vessels but at 

levels lower than those afforded by the 

preferred alternative. The second 

alternative, which has three subalternatives, would set ACLs as some 

percentage of the ABC. The three subalternatives are setting the ACL at 95 

percent, 90 percent, and 85 percent of 

the ABC. All three sub-alternatives 

would have lower positive effects on the 

profits of commercial vessels than the 

preferred alternative. 

Five alternatives, including the 

preferred alternative (as fully described 

in the preamble), were considered for 

modifying the management measures for 

the snowy grouper commercial sector. 

The first alternative, the no action 

alternative, would maintain the 

commercial trip limit of 100 lb (45 kg). 

Compared to the preferred alternative, 

the no action alternative would have a 

lower profit per trip but would also 

leave the commercial fishing season 

open almost year-round. Which of these 

two alternatives would result in higher 

annual vessel profits for commercial 

vessels cannot be ascertained. NMFS 

notes that, if the trip limit is maintained 

at 100 lb (45 kg), commercial vessels 

may not take full advantage of the 

proposed ACL that would annually 

increase until at least 2019. 

The second alternative would split 

the snowy grouper commercial ACL into 

two quotas: 50 percent to the first period 

(January 1–April 30) and 50 percent to 

the second period (May 1–December 

31). Any remaining commercial quota 

from the first period would carry over 

into the second period; any remaining 

commercial quota from the second 

period would not carry over into the 

next fishing year. The following three 

sub-alternatives on trip limits would 

apply to each period: 100 lb (45 kg), 150 

lb (47.5 kg), or 200 lb (90 kg). Given the 

proposed commercial ACL increase, the 

first period would likely remain open 

under any of the alternative trip limits, 

but the second period would close early 

with the highest trip limit resulting in 

the shortest fishing season. This 

alternative, with the trip limit of 200 lb 

(90 kg), would have the same effects on 

commercial vessel profits as the 

preferred alternative, because both 

alternatives would have the same trip 

limits and the same fishing season 

length. At lower trip limits, this 

alternative would allow a longer fishing 

season but also lower profit per trip 

than the preferred alternative. It cannot 

be determined if this alternative, with 

lower trip limits and a longer fishing 

season, would result in higher annual 

profits than the preferred alternative. In 

an effort to address the accessibility to 

the snowy grouper resource, the Council 

considered implementing a commercial 

split season that would essentially 

spread out effort over time and allow for 

more equitable access to snowy grouper 


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throughout the Council’s area of 

jurisdiction. The Council decided to 

retain the current commercial fishing 

year as the calendar year because snowy 

grouper are an important commercial 

species in the early part of the calendar 

year, when shallow-water groupers are 

closed to commercial harvest. In 

addition, snowy grouper earn higher 

prices during the early months of the 

year. 

The third alternative would split the 

snowy grouper commercial ACL into 

two quotas: 40 percent to the first period 

(January 1–April 30) and 60 percent to 

the second period (May 1–December 

31). Any remaining commercial quota 

from the first period would carry over 

into the second period; any remaining 

commercial quota from the second 

period would not carry over into the 

next fishing year. This alternative would 

maintain the current commercial trip 

limit of 100 lb (45 kg), for the first 

period and establish one of the 

following trip limits for the second 

period: 100 lb (45 kg), 150 lb (47.5 kg), 

200 lb (90 kg), 250 lb (112.5 kg), or 300 

lb (135 kg). Under this alternative and 

given the proposed ACL increases, 

commercial fishing would likely remain 

open throughout the first period but 

would close early in the second period, 

with the highest trip limit resulting in 

the shortest fishing season. As with the 

second alternative, this alternative, 

when combined with lower trip limits 

would provide longer fishing seasons 

but lower profit per trip than the 

preferred alternative. Similarly, this 

alternative, when combined with higher 

trip limits, would allow for a higher 

profit per trip but result in shorter 

fishing seasons. It cannot be determined 

if this alternative, with either lower or 

higher trip limits, would result in 

greater annual profits than the preferred 

alternative. Similar to the second 

alternative, the Council considered a 

split season to address the accessibility 

to the resource. For similar reasons 

mentioned above, this third alternative 

was not selected as the preferred 

alternative by the Council. 

The fourth alternative is similar to the 

preferred alternative but would 

establish a trip limit of either 300 lb 

(135 kg), or 150 lb (47.5 kg). This 

alternative would result in a longer 

fishing season but a lower profit per trip 

under a trip limit of 150 lb (47.5 kg), or 

a shorter fishing season and a higher 

profit per trip under a trip limit of 300 

lb (135 kg), than the preferred 

alternative. The differential impacts on 

the annual profits of commercial vessels 

between this alternative and the 

preferred alternative cannot be 

determined. However, the preferred 

alternative appears to provide a better 

balance between season length and 

profit per trip than this alternative with 

trip limits of either 150 lb (47.5 kg), or 

300 lb (135 kg). 

The fifth alternative would modify the 

snowy grouper commercial trip limit to 

150 lb (47.5 kg), all year or until the 

commercial ACL is met or projected to 

be met, except for the period of May 

through August from Florida’s Brevard/ 

Indian River County line northward 

when the trip limit will be one of the 

following: 200 lb (90 kg), 250 lb (112.5 

kg), or 300 lb (135 kg). This alternative 

would provide for a lower trip limit 

than the preferred alternative, except in 

May through August when an equal or 

higher trip limit would be allowed in 

certain areas. This alternative would 

likely benefit commercial vessels in 

areas north of Indian River County, 

Florida, more than vessels in other 

areas, at least during the period when 

vessels in the northern areas are allowed 

higher trip limits. Whether total profits 

from all vessels would be higher under 

this alternative than under the preferred 

alternative cannot be determined. 

Although this alternative was not 

chosen as the preferred alternative, the 

Council acknowledged that fishermen in 

North Carolina have historically had 

limited access to snowy grouper at the 

beginning of the fishing year due to poor 

winter weather conditions. However, 

some milder winters in recent years 

have benefitted fishermen through some 

increased access to snowy grouper. 

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 622 

Fisheries, Fishing, South Atlantic, 

Snapper-Grouper, Snowy grouper. 

Dated: April 2, 2015. 

Eileen Sobeck, 

Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, 

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 § 622.183, paragraph (b)(8) is 

added to read as follows: 

§ 622.183 Area and seasonal closures. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(8) Snowy grouper recreational sector 

closure. The recreational sector for 

snowy grouper in or from the South 

Atlantic EEZ is closed from January 1 

through April 30, and September 1 

through December 31, each year. During 

a closure, the bag and possession limit 

for snowy grouper in or from the South 

Atlantic EEZ is zero. 

■ 3. In § 622.190, the last sentence in 

paragraph (a) introductory text, and 

paragraph (a)(1) are revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 622.190 Quotas. 

* * * * * 

(a) * * * The quotas are in gutted 

weight, that is eviscerated but otherwise 

whole, except for the quotas in 

paragraphs (a)(1), (4), (5), and (6) of this 

section which are in both gutted weight 

and round weight. 

(1) Snowy grouper—(i) For the 2015 

fishing year—115,451 lb (52,368 kg), 

gutted weight; 136,233 lb (61,794 kg), 

round weight. 

(ii) For the 2016 fishing year—125,760 

lb (57,044 kg), gutted weight; 148,397 lb 

(67,312 kg), round weight. 

(iii) For the 2017 fishing year— 

135,380 lb (61,407 kg), gutted weight; 

159,749 lb (72,461 kg), round weight. 

(iv) For the 2018 fishing year— 

144,315 lb (65,460 kg), gutted weight; 

170,291 lb (77,243 kg), round weight. 

(v) For the 2019 and subsequent 

fishing years—153,935 lb (69,824 kg), 

gutted weight; 181,644 lb (82,392 kg), 

round weight. 

* * * * * 

■ 4. In § 622.191, the first sentence in 

paragraph (a)(3) is revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 622.191 Commercial trip limits. 

* * * * * 

(a) * * * 

(3) Snowy grouper. Until the quota 

specified in § 622.190(a)(1) is reached— 

200 lb (91 kg), gutted weight; 236 lb 

(107 kg), round weight. * * * 

* * * * * 

■ 5. In § 622.193, paragraph (b)(2) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 622.193 Annual catch limits (ACLs), 

annual catch targets (ACTs), and 

accountability measures (AMs). 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(2) Recreational sector. (i) If 

recreational landings, as estimated by 

the SRD, exceed the recreational ACL 

specified in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this 

section, the AA will file a notification 

with the Office of the Federal Register, 

at or near the beginning of the following 

fishing year, to reduce the length of the 

following recreational fishing season by 

the amount necessary to ensure 

recreational landings do not exceed the 

recreational ACL in the following 

fishing year. When NMFS reduces the 


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length of the following recreational 

fishing season, the following closure 

provisions apply: The bag and 

possession limits for snowy grouper in 

or from the South Atlantic EEZ are zero. 

These bag and possession limits also 

apply in the South Atlantic on board a 

vessel for which a valid Federal 

commercial or charter vessel/headboat 

permit for South Atlantic snappergrouper has been issued, without regard 

to where such species were harvested, 

i.e., in state or Federal waters. 

Recreational landings will be evaluated 

relative to the ACL based on a moving 

multi-year average of landings, as 

described in the FMP. 

(ii) The recreational ACL for snowy 

grouper is 4,152 fish for 2015; 4,483 fish 

for 2016; 4,819 fish for 2017, 4,983 fish 

for 2018; 5,315 fish for 2019 and 

subsequent fishing years. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2015–08067 Filed 4–7–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 150205118–5290–01] 

RIN 0648–BE87 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Small-Mesh Multispecies 

Specifications 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The purpose of this action is 

to set the small-mesh multispecies 

specifications for the 2015–2017 fishing 

years, clarify what measures can be 

modified in a specifications package, 

and to correct the northern red hake 

accountability measure trigger rate. This 

action is necessary to implement the 

Council’s recommended measures 

intended to reduce the risk of 

continuing overfishing of northern red 

hake and set catch and possession limits 

for the 2015–2017 fishing years. The 

proposed specifications are designed to 

help achieve sustainable yield and to 

inform the public of these measures. 

DATES: Public comments must be 

received by April 23, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on this document, identified by NOAA– 

NMFS–2012–0170, 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-2012- 

0170, click the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ icon, 

complete the required fields, and enter 

or attach your comments. 

• Mail: Submit written comments to 

John K. Bullard, Regional 

Administrator, National Marine 

Fisheries Service, 55 Great Republic 

Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930–2276. 

Mark the outside of the envelope: 

‘‘Comments on Whiting Specifications.’’ 

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). 

New England Fishery Management 

Council staff prepared an environmental 

assessment (EA) for the small-mesh 

multispecies specifications that 

describes the proposed action and other 

considered alternatives. The EA 

provides a thorough analysis of the 

biological, economic, and social impacts 

of the proposed measures and other 

considered alternatives. An Initial 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) 

was also prepared for this action. The 

IRFA is contained in the EA prepared 

for this action, but also is summarized 

in the Classification section of this 

proposed rule. Copies of the 

specifications EA are available on 

request from Thomas A. Nies, Executive 

Director, New England Fishery 

Management Council, 50 Water Street, 

Newburyport, MA 01950. This 

document is also available from the 

following internet addresses: 

www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/ 

or www.nefmc.org. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jason Berthiaume, Fishery Management 

Specialist, (978) 281–9177. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The New England Fishery 

Management Council manages the 

small-mesh multispecies fishery 

primarily through a series of exemptions 

from the Northeast Multispecies Fishery 

Management Plan (FMP). The smallmesh multispecies fishery is composed 

of five stocks of three species of hakes 

(northern and southern silver hake, 

northern and southern red hake, and 

offshore hake). It is managed separately 

from the other stocks of groundfish such 

as cod, haddock, and flounders, 

primarily because the fishing is 

prosecuted with much smaller mesh 

and does not generally result in the 

catch of these other stocks. Amendment 

19 to the Northeast Multispecies FMP 

(April 4, 2013; 78 FR 20260) established 

a process and framework for setting the 

small-mesh multispecies catch 

specifications, as well as set the 

specifications for the 2012–2014 fishing 

years. 

The purpose of this action is to set the 

specifications for the 2015–2017 fishing 

years, based on the New England 

Fishery Management Council’s 

recommendation. In 2012 and 2013, 

northern red hake catch rates exceeded 

the annual catch limits (ACL) and the 

acceptable biological catch (ABC). As a 

result, northern red hake was 

determined to be experiencing 

overfishing. To reduce the risk of 

continued overfishing of northern red 

hake and constrain catch within the 

proposed ACL, this action proposes to 

adopt the Council’s recommended 

measures to adjust the northern red 

hake possession limits per trip and 

trigger points at which possession limits 

are reduced in-season. 

This proposed rule also includes a 

correction to the small-mesh 

accountability measures and clarifies 

what measures can be modified in a 

small-mesh multispecies specifications 

action. 

Proposed Measures 

1. 2015–2017 Small-Mesh Multispecies 

Specifications 

The Council’s Scientific and 

Statistical Committee (SSC) met on 

August 26, 2014, to discuss the 

specifications and to recommend ABCs 

for the 2015–2017 small-mesh fishery. 

The FMP’s implementing regulations 

require the involvement of an SSC in 

the specification process. Following the 

SSC, the Whiting Oversight Committee 

met on September 9 and October 30, 

2014, to discuss and recommend smallmesh specifications. The Council 

approved the final specifications on 

November 17, 2014. 

This action proposes new 

specifications for the 2015–2017 fishing 

years, derived from a stock assessment 

update for northern and southern red 


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