Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 227 / Tuesday, November 27, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 66083 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 061020273–7001–03] 

RIN 0648–XE00 

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: Temporary rule; closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 

2007 summer flounder commercial 

quota allocated 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 

2007, unless additional quota becomes 

available through a transfer from 

another state. Regulations governing the 

summer flounder fishery require 

publication of this notification to advise 

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, November 

27, 2007, through 2400 hours, December 

31, 2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Emily Bryant, Fishery Management 

Specialist, (978) 281–9244. 

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 2007 calendar 

year was set equal to 7,789,800 lb (3,533 

mt) (71 FR 75134, December 14, 2006). 

This quota was increased through an 

emergency action to 10,267,098 lb 

(4,658 mt) (72 FR 2458, January 19, 

2007). The percent allocated to vessels 

landing summer flounder in New Jersey 

is 16.72499 percent, resulting in a 

commercial quota of 1,302,843 lb (591 

mt). The 2007 allocation was reduced to 

1,263,758 lb (573 mt) when research setaside was deducted. 

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 has been harvested. NMFS then 

publishes a notification in the Federal 

Register to advise the state and to notify 

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 New Jersey has 

harvested its quota for 2007. 

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, November 27, 2007, further 

landings of summer flounder in New 

Jersey by vessels holding summer 

flounder commercial Federal fisheries 

permits are prohibited for the remainder 

of the 2007 calendar year, unless 

additional quota becomes available 

through a transfer and is announced in 

the Federal Register. Effective 0001 

hours, November 27, 2007, federally 

permitted dealers are also notified 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 from another state. 

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: November 21, 2007. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–23062 Filed 11–26–07; 8:45 am] 

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 679 

[Docket No. 070213032–7032–01] 

RIN 0648–XE05 

Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic 

Zone Off Alaska; Reallocation of 

Halibut in the Gulf of Alaska 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; reallocation. 

SUMMARY: NMFS is reallocating the 

projected unused amount of halibut 

prohibited species catch (PSC) from 

rockfish cooperatives in the Central Gulf 

of Alaska (GOA) Rockfish Pilot Program 

to vessels using trawl gear in the GOA. 

This action is necessary to provide the 

opportunity to vessels using trawl gear 

to harvest available GOA groundfish 

total allowable catch (TAC) under 

existing PSC limits. 

DATES: Effective November 21, 2007, 

until 2400 hours, A.l.t., December 31, 

2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jennifer Hogan, 907–586–7228. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS 

manages the groundfish fishery in the 

GOA according to the Fishery 

Management Plan for Groundfish of the 

Gulf of Alaska Management Area (FMP) 

prepared by the North Pacific Fishery 

Management Council under authority of 

the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act. 

Regulations governing fishing by U.S. 

vessels in accordance with the FMP 

appear at subpart H of 50 CFR part 600 

and 50 CFR part 679. 

The 2007 allocation of halibut PSC to 

vessels using trawl gear in the GOA is 

2,000 metric tons (mt) as established by 

the 2007 and 2008 final harvest 

specifications (72 FR 9676, March 5, 

2007, as corrected by 72 FR 13217, 

March 21, 2007) for groundfish in the 

GOA. Section 679.81(c) allocates 176 mt 

to catcher processor and catcher vessel 

rockfish cooperatives in the Central 

GOA. The website at http:// 

www.fakr.noaa.gov/sustainablefisheries/ 

goarat/07rppallocations.xls lists this 

amount. The remaining 1,824 mt is 

allocated to vessels using trawl gear not 

in a rockfish cooperative. 

As of November 19, 2007, the 

Administrator, Alaska Region, NMFS 

(Regional Administrator), has 


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66084 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 227 / Tuesday, November 27, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

determined that rockfish cooperatives in 

the Central GOA have not used 128 mt 

of the allocation under 

§ 679.21(d)(5)(iii)(B). Therefore, NMFS 

reallocates 128 mt of halibut PSC from 

rockfish cooperatives in the Central 

GOA to the last seasonal apportionment 

for vessels using trawl gear in the GOA. 

The harvest specifications for halibut 

PSC included in the harvest 

specifications for groundfish in the GOA 

(72 FR 9676, March 5, 2007, as corrected 

by 72 FR 13217, March 21, 2007) are 

revised as follows: 48 mt to rockfish 

cooperatives in the Central GOA and 

1,952 mt to vessels using trawl gear. 

Classification 

This action responds to the best 

available information recently obtained 

from the fishery. The Assistant 

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA, 

(AA) finds good cause to waive the 

requirement to provide prior notice and 

opportunity for public comment 

pursuant to the authority set forth at 5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(B) as such a requirement 

is impracticable and contrary to the 

public interest. This requirement is 

impracticable and contrary to the public 

interest as it would prevent NMFS from 

responding to the most recent fisheries 

data in a timely fashion and would 

delay the reallocation of projected 

unused amounts of halibut PSC in the 

GOA. NMFS was unable to publish a 

notice providing time for public 

comment because the most recent, 

relevant data only became available as 

of November 19, 2007. 

The AA also finds good cause to 

waive the 30-day delay in the effective 

date of this action under 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3). This finding is based upon 

the reasons provided above for waiver of 

prior notice and opportunity for public 

comment. 

This action is required by § 679.20 

and is exempt from review under 

Executive Order 12866. 

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

Dated: November 20, 2007. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 07–5844 Filed 11–21–07; 1:45 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


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