Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 88 / Tuesday, May 6, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 24885 

For the aforementioned reasons, the 

AA also finds good cause to waive the 

30-day delay in the effectiveness of this 

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

This action is taken under 50 CFR 

622.43(a) and is exempt from review 

under Executive Order 12866. 

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

Dated: April 30, 2008. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–9878 Filed 5–5–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 010319075–1217–02] 

RIN 0648–XF91 

Fisheries of the Northeastern United 

States; Tilefish Fishery; Quota 

Harvested for Full-time Tier 2 Category 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Temporary rule; tilefish Fulltime Tier 2 permit category closure. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 

percentage of the tilefish annual total 

allowable landings (TAL) available to 

the tilefish Full-time tier 2 permit 

category for the 2008 fishing year will 

be harvested on May 8, 2008. Therefore, 

commercial vessels fishing under the 

tilefish Full-time Tier 2 permit may not 

harvest tilefish from within the Golden 

Tilefish Management Unit for the 

remainder of the 2008 fishing year 

(through October 31, 2008) as of May 8, 

2008. Regulations governing the tilefish 

fishery require publication of this 

notification to advise the public of this 

closure. 

DATES: Effective 0001 hrs local time, 

May 8, 2008, through 2400 hrs local 

time, October 31, 2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Timothy A. Cardiasmenos, Fishery 

Policy Analyst, at (978) 281–9204. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Regulations governing the tilefish 

fishery are found at 50 CFR part 648. 

The regulations require annual 

specification of a TAL for federally 

permitted tilefish vessels harvesting 

tilefish from within the Golden Tilefish 

Management Unit. The Golden Tilefish 

Management Unit is defined as an area 

of the Atlantic Ocean from the latitude 

of the VA and NC border (36°33.36′ N. 

lat.), extending eastward from the shore 

to the outer boundary of the exclusive 

economic zone, and northward to the 

U.S.-Canada border. After 5 percent of 

the TAL is deducted to reflect landings 

by vessels issued an open-access 

Incidental permit category, and after up 

to 3 percent of the TAL is set aside for 

research purposes, should research TAL 

be set aside, the remaining TAL is 

distributed among three tilefish limited 

access permit categories: Full-time tier 1 

category (66 percent), Full-time tier 2 

category (15 percent), and the Part-time 

category (19 percent). 

The TAL for tilefish for the 2008 

fishing year was set at 1.995 million lb 

(905,172 kg) and then adjusted 

downward by 5 percent to 1,895,250 lb 

(859,671 kg) to account for incidental 

catch. There was no research set-aside 

for the 2007 fishing year. Thus, the Fulltime Tier 2 permit quota for the 2008 

fishing year, which is equal to 15 

percent of the TAL, was specified at 

284,288 lb (106,108 kg). Notification of 

the 2008 Full-time Tier 2 category quota 

for the 2008 fishing year was sent in a 

Permit Holder Letter to all tilefish 

limited access permit holders on 

October 18, 2007. 

The Administrator, Northeast Region, 

NMFS (Regional Administrator) 

monitors the commercial tilefish quota 

for each fishing year using dealer 

reports, vessel catch reports, and other 

available information to determine 

when the quota for each limited access 

permit category is projected to have 

been harvested. NMFS is required to 

publish notification in the Federal 

Register notifying commercial vessels 

and dealer permit holders that, effective 

upon a specific date, the tilefish TAL for 

the specific limited access category has 

been harvested and no commercial 

quota is available for harvesting tilefish 

by that category for the remainder of the 

fishing year, from within the Golden 

Tilefish Management Unit. 

The Regional Administrator has 

determined, based upon dealer reports 

and other available information, that the 

2008 tilefish TAL for the Full-time Tier 

2 category will be harvested as of May 

8, 2008. Therefore, effective 0001 hr 

local time, May 8, 2008, further landings 

of tilefish harvested from within the 

Golden Tilefish Management Unit by 

tilefish vessels holding Full-time Tier 2 

category Federal fisheries permits are 

prohibited through October 31, 2008. 

The 2009 fishing year for commercial 

tilefish harvest will open on November 

1, 2008. Federally permitted dealers are 

also advised that, effective May 8, 2008, 

they may not purchase tilefish from 

Full-time Tier 2 category federally 

permitted tilefish vessels who land 

tilefish harvested from within the 

Golden Tilefish Management Unit for 

the remainder of the 2008 fishing year 

(through October 31, 2008). 

Classification 

The Assistant Administrator for 

Fisheries, NOAA (AA), finds good cause 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) to waive 

prior notice and the opportunity for 

public comment because it would be 

contrary to the public interest. If 

implementation of this closure were 

delayed to solicit prior public comment, 

the quota for this category would be 

exceeded, given the rate of harvest of 

tilefish for vessels in this category. This 

would conflict with the agency’s legal 

obligation under section 304(e) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act to prevent 

overfishing and to rebuild this fishery as 

soon as possible. Overage of the Fulltime tier 2 category quota that occurs in 

a given fishing year is subtracted from 

the quota for this category in the 

following fishing year. Thus, allowing 

an overage would have a negative 

economic impact on owners of vessels 

permitted in the Full-time tier 2 

category, who did not contribute to the 

overage this year, and who would fish 

during the next fishing year. The AA 

further finds, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 

553(d)(3), good cause to waive the 30- 

day delayed effectiveness period for the 

reasons stated above. 

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

Dated: April 30, 2008. 

Emily H. Menashes, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 08–1218 Filed 5–1–08; 1:59 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 


PWALKER on PROD1PC71 with RULES