Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 149 / Friday, August 6, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 43117 

Regulation Promulgation 

Accordingly, we amend part 17, 

subchapter B of chapter I, title 50 of the 

Code of Federal Regulations, as follows: 

PART 17—ENDANGERED AND 

THREATENED WILDLIFE AND PLANTS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 17 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1361–1407; 1531– 

1544; and 4201–4245, unless otherwise 

noted. 

§ 17.12 [Amended] 

■ 2. Amend § 17.12 in paragraph (h) by 

removing the entry for ‘‘Trifolium 

stoloniferum’’ under FLOWERING 

PLANTS from the List of Endangered 

and Threatened Plants. 

Madonna Baucum, 

Regulations and Policy Chief, Division of 

Policy, Economics, Risk Management, and 

Analytics, Joint Administrative Operations, 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16818 Filed 8–5–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4333–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[Docket No. 200124–0029; RTID 0648– 

XB279] 

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of 

Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish 

Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; 2021 

Red Snapper Private Angling 

Component Closure in Federal Waters 

Off Texas 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces a closure 

for the 2021 fishing season for the red 

snapper private angling component in 

the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off 

Texas in the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) 

through this temporary rule. The red 

snapper recreational private angling 

component in the Gulf EEZ off Texas 

closes on August 5, 2021 until 12:01 

a.m., local time, on January 1, 2022. 

This closure is necessary to prevent the 

private angling component from 

exceeding the Texas regional 

management area annual catch limit 

(ACL) and to prevent overfishing of the 

Gulf red snapper resource. 

DATES: This closure is effective on 

August 5, 2021, until 12:01 a.m., local 

time, on January 1, 2022. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Daniel Luers, NMFS Southeast Regional 

Office, telephone: 727–824–5305, email: 

daniel.luers@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Gulf 

reef fish fishery, which includes red 

snapper, is managed under the Fishery 

Management Plan for the Reef Fish 

Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (FMP). 

The FMP was prepared by the Gulf of 

Mexico Fishery Management Council 

and is implemented by NMFS under the 

authority of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Fishery Conservation and Management 

Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) by 

regulations at 50 CFR part 622. 

The final rule implementing 

Amendment 40 to the FMP established 

two components within the recreational 

sector fishing for Gulf red snapper: the 

private angling component, and the 

Federal for-hire component (80 FR 

22422, April 22, 2015). Amendment 40 

also allocated the red snapper 

recreational ACL (recreational quota) 

between the components and 

established separate seasonal closures 

for the two components. On February 6, 

2020, NMFS implemented Amendments 

50 A–F to the FMP, which delegated 

authority to the Gulf states (Louisiana, 

Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, and 

Texas) to establish specific management 

measures for the harvest of red snapper 

in Federal waters of the Gulf by the 

private angling component of the 

recreational sector (85 FR 6819, 

February 6, 2020). These amendments 

allocate a portion of the private angling 

ACL to each state, and each state is 

required to constrain landings to its 

allocation. 

As described at 50 CFR 622.23(c), a 

Gulf state with an active delegation may 

request that NMFS close all, or an area 

of, Federal waters off that state to the 

harvest and possession of red snapper 

by private anglers. The state is required 

to request the closure by letter to NMFS, 

providing dates and geographic 

coordinates for the closure. If the 

request is within the scope of the 

analysis in Amendment 50A, NMFS 

publishes a notice in the Federal 

Register implementing the closure for 

the fishing year. Based on the analysis 

in Amendment 50A, Texas may request 

a closure of all Federal waters off the 

state to allow a year-round fishing 

season in state waters. As described at 

50 CFR 622.2, ‘‘off Texas’’ is defined as 

the waters in the Gulf west of a rhumb 

line from 29°32.1′ N Lat., 93°47.7′ W 

long. to 26°11.4′ N Lat., 92°53′ W long., 

which line is an extension of the 

boundary between Louisiana and Texas. 

On December 7, 2020, NMFS received 

a request from the Texas Parks and 

Wildlife Department (TPWD) to close 

the EEZ off Texas to the red snapper 

private angling component for the first 

part of the 2021 fishing year. Texas 

requested that the closure be effective 

from January 1, 2021, until June 1, 2021. 

NMFS determined that the TPWD 

request was within the scope of analysis 

contained within Amendment 50A, and 

subsequently published a temporary 

rule in the Federal Register 

implementing that closure request (85 

FR 78792; December 7, 2020). In that 

rule, NMFS noted that TPWD would 

monitor private recreational landings, 

and if necessary, request that NMFS 

again close the EEZ in 2021 to ensure 

the Texas regional management area 

ACL is not exceeded. 

On July 28, 2021, NMFS received a 

new request from the TPWD to close the 

EEZ off Texas to the red snapper private 

angling component for the remainder of 

the 2021 fishing year. Texas requested 

that the closure be effective on August 

5, 2021, through the end of the fishing 

year. NMFS has determined that this 

request is within the scope of analysis 

contained within Amendment 50A, 

which analyzed the potential impacts of 

a closure of all Federal waters off Texas 

when a portion of the Texas quota has 

been landed. As explained in 

Amendment 50A, Texas intends to 

maintain a year-round fishing season in 

state waters during which the remaining 

part of Texas’ ACL could be caught. 

Therefore, the red snapper 

recreational private angling component 

in the Gulf EEZ off Texas will close on 

August 5, 2021, until 12:01 a.m., local 

time, on January 1, 2022. This closure 

applies to all private-anglers (those on 

board vessels that have not been issued 

a valid charter vessel/headboat permit 

for Gulf reef fish) regardless of which 

state they are from or where they intend 

to land. 

On and after the effective dates of the 

closure in the EEZ off Texas, the harvest 

and possession red snapper in the EEZ 

off Texas by the private angling 

component is prohibited and the bag 

and possession limits for the red 

snapper private angling component in 

the closed area is zero. 

Classification 

NMFS issues this action pursuant to 

section 305(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act. This action is required by 50 CFR 

622.23(c), which was issued pursuant to 

section 304(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with RULES
43118 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 149 / Friday, August 6, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 

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 are 

unnecessary and contrary to the public 

interest. 

Such procedures are unnecessary 

because the rule implementing the area 

closure authority and the state-specific 

private angling ACLs has already been 

subject to notice and comment, and all 

that remains is to notify the public of 

the closure. Such procedures are 

contrary to the public interest because a 

failure to implement the closure 

immediately would be inconsistent with 

Texas’s state management plan and may 

result in less access to red snapper in 

state waters. 

For the aforementioned reasons, there 

is good cause to waive the 30-day delay 

in the effectiveness of this action under 

5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3). 

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

Dated: August 3, 2021. 

Jennifer M. Wallace, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–16857 Filed 8–3–21; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 635 

[Docket No. 180117042–8884–02; RTID 

0648–XB282] 

Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; 

Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Fisheries 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; closure of the 

General category June through August 

fishery for 2021. 

SUMMARY: NMFS closes the General 

category fishery for large medium and 

giant (i.e., measuring 73 inches (185 cm) 

curved fork length or greater) Atlantic 

bluefin tuna (BFT) for the June through 

August subquota time-period. 

DATES: Effective 11:30 p.m., local time, 

August 4, 2021, through August 31, 

2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Larry Redd, Jr., larry.redd@noaa.gov, 

301–427–8503, Nicholas Velseboer, 

nicholas.velseboer@noaa.gov, 978–675– 

2168, or Lauren Latchford, 

lauren.latchford@noaa.gov, 301–427– 

8503. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Atlantic 

HMS fisheries, including BFT fisheries, 

are managed under the authority of the 

Atlantic Tunas Convention Act (ATCA; 

16 U.S.C. 971 et seq.) and the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C. 1801 

et seq.). The 2006 Consolidated Atlantic 

HMS Fishery Management Plan (FMP) 

and its amendments are implemented 

by regulations at 50 CFR part 635. 

Section 635.27 divides the U.S. BFT 

quota recommended by the 

International Commission for the 

Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) 

and as implemented by the United 

States among the various domestic 

fishing categories, per the allocations 

established in the 2006 Consolidated 

HMS FMP and its amendments. NMFS 

is required under the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act to provide U.S. fishing vessels with 

a reasonable opportunity to harvest 

quotas under relevant international 

fishery agreements such as the ICCAT 

Convention, which is implemented 

domestically pursuant to ATCA. 

Under § 635.28(a)(1), NMFS files a 

closure action with the Federal Register 

for publication when a BFT quota (or 

subquota) is reached or is projected to 

be reached. Retaining, possessing, or 

landing BFT under that quota category 

is prohibited on or after the effective 

date and time of a closure notice for that 

category until the opening of the 

relevant subsequent quota period or 

until such date as specified. 

As described in § 635.27(a), the 

current baseline U.S. quota continues to 

be 1,247.86 metric tons (mt) (not 

including the 25 mt ICCAT allocated to 

the United States to account for bycatch 

of BFT in pelagic longline fisheries in 

the Northeast Distant Gear Restricted 

Area). The baseline quota for the 

General category is 555.7 mt. Each of the 

General category time periods (January, 

June through August, September, 

October through November, and 

December) is allocated a portion of the 

annual General category quota. The June 

through August subquota is 277.9 mt. 

Closure of the June Through August 

2021 General Category Fishery 

As of August 2, 2021, reported 

landings total approximately 252.5 mt. 

Based on these landings data, as well as 

average catch rates and anticipated 

fishing conditions, we project that the 

General category June through August 

subquota will be reached and exceeded 

shortly. Therefore, retaining, possessing, 

or landing large medium or giant BFT 

(i.e., measuring 73 inches (185 cm) 

curved fork length or greater) by persons 

aboard vessels permitted in the Atlantic 

tunas General category and HMS 

Charter/Headboat category (while 

fishing commercially) must cease at 

11:30 p.m. local time on August 4, 2021. 

The General category will automatically 

reopen September 1, 2021, for the 

September 2021 subquota time period. 

This action applies to Atlantic tunas 

General category (commercial) 

permitted vessels and HMS Charter/ 

Headboat category permitted vessels 

with a commercial sale endorsement 

when fishing commercially for BFT, and 

is taken consistent with the regulations 

at § 635.28(a)(1). 

Fishermen may catch and release (or 

tag and release) BFT of all sizes, subject 

to the requirements of the catch-andrelease and tag-and-release programs at 

§ 635.26. All BFT that are released must 

be handled in a manner that will 

maximize their survival, and without 

removing the fish from the water, 

consistent with requirements at 

§ 635.21(a)(1). For additional 

information on safe handling, see the 

‘‘Careful Catch and Release’’ brochure 

available at https://

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/resource/ 

outreach-and-education/careful-catchand-release-brochure/. 

Monitoring and Reporting 

NMFS will actively monitor the BFT 

fishery closely. Dealers are required to 

submit landing reports within 24 hours 

of a dealer receiving BFT. Late reporting 

by dealers compromises NMFS’ ability 

to timely implement actions such as 

quota and retention limit adjustments, 

as well as closures, and may result in 

enforcement actions. Additionally, and 

separate from the dealer reporting 

requirement, General and HMS Charter/ 

Headboat category vessel owners are 

required to report the catch of all BFT 

retained or discarded dead within 24 

hours of the landing(s) or end of each 

trip, by accessing hmspermits.noaa.gov, 

using the HMS Catch Reporting app, or 

calling (888) 872–8862 (Monday 

through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 

p.m.). 

After the fishery reopens on 

September 1, depending on the level of 

fishing effort and catch rates of BFT, 

NMFS may determine that additional 

adjustments are necessary to ensure 

available subquotas are not exceeded or 

to enhance scientific data collection 

from, and fishing opportunities in, all 

geographic areas. If needed, subsequent 

adjustments will be published in the 

Federal Register. In addition, fishermen 

may call the Atlantic Tunas Information 

Line at (978) 281–9260, or access 

hmspermits.noaa.gov, for updates on 

quota monitoring and inseason 

adjustments. 


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