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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 174 / Monday, September 13, 2021 / Proposed Rules
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 648
Docket No. 2109070178
RIN 0648BK64

Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Amendment 7 to the Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan National Marine Fisheries Service NMFS, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOAA, Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.
AGENCY:

NMFS proposes to approve and implement measures included in Amendment 7 to the Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan, as submitted by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council. This amendment would revise the goals and objectives of the fishery management plan, reallocate quota between the commercial and recreational fisheries, reallocate commercial quota among the states, implement a rebuilding plan using a constant fishing mortality strategy, revise the sector quota transfer, and revise how management uncertainty is applied during the specifications process. Amendment 7 is intended to use the best information available to update the Bluefish Fishery Management Plan, by responding to changes in stock health and distribution, while recognizing economic need and reliance throughout the management area.
DATES: Comments must be received by October 13, 2021.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by NOAA
NMFS20210071, by the following method:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.
1. Go to https www.regulations.gov, and enter NOAANMFS20210071
in the Search box;
2. Click the Comment icon, complete the required fields; and 3. Enter or attach your comments.
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 part of the public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
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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.
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council prepared an environmental assessment EA for this action that describes the proposed measures and other considered alternatives. The EA also provides a thorough analysis of the biological, economic, and social impacts of the proposed measures and other considered alternatives. Copies of Amendment 7, including the EA, the Regulatory Impact Review, and the Regulatory Flexibility Act analysis prepared in support of this action, are available upon request from: Dr.
Christopher M. Moore, Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, Suite 201, 800
North State Street, Dover, DE 19901.
These documents are also accessible via the internet at https www.mafmc.org/
supporting-documents.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Cynthia Ferrio, Fishery Policy Analyst, 978 2819180.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Commission cooperatively manage bluefish from Maine to Florida under the Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan FMP. This joint Bluefish FMP was adopted over 30 years ago in 1990.
Since that time, the only substantial changes to management measures were made through Amendment 1 to the FMP
in 2000, which established most measures and regulations still managing the fishery today, based on fishery data from 19811989. The Council and Commission initiated Amendment 7 to the FMP as a joint action in December 2017 to respond to changes in the bluefish fishery that have occurred over the past 3040 years, while the FMP has remained largely unaltered. When first initiated, Amendment 7 was intended to address a comprehensive range of management issues, from the goals and objectives of the FMP to the allocation and transfer of quota between the commercial and recreational sectors.
In August 2019, an operational stock assessment determined that bluefish is overfished but not subject to overfishing. Following this
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determination, the Council and Commissions Bluefish Management Board added development of a rebuilding plan to Amendment 7. The Council was notified of the overfished stock status determination in November 2019; therefore, this amendment must be implemented by the end of November 2021 to ensure that the rebuilding plan is compliant with the timing requirements of section 304e3
of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act Magnuson-Stevens Act. This timing will also allow the other changes proposed in Amendment 7 to be effective for the 2022 fishing year, beginning on January 1, 2022. Final alternatives for Amendment 7 set forth in a Public Hearing Document were approved at the joint meeting of the Council and Commissions Bluefish Management Board in February 2021, and public hearings on those alternatives were held throughout the spring. On June 8, 2021, the Council and Board took final action to approve Amendment 7, with the intent that the measures would be effective for the 2022 fishing year in January.
A Notification of Availability NOA
for Amendment 7 was published in the Federal Register on September 1, 2021
86 FR 48968. The Magnuson-Stevens Act allows NMFS as the implementing agency to approve, partially approve, or disapprove measures recommended by the Council in a regulatory amendment based on whether the measures are consistent with the FMP, the MagnusonStevens Act and its National Standards, and other applicable law. As such, NMFS is soliciting public comments in response to the NOA, and the proposed measures described below, on whether they are consistent with the Bluefish FMP, the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law. The comment period on the NOA ends on November 1, 2021. All public comments submitted by this date, whether specifically directed to the NOA or this proposed rule, will be considered in our decision to approve, partially approve, or disapprove Amendment 7. Comments on this proposed rule that are received before the end of this rules comment period see DATES will be considered in the decision to implement measures proposed by the Council. Comments received after the end of the NOA
comment period will not be considered for this action.
Proposed Measures This action proposes to implement Amendment 7 to the Bluefish FMP, as approved by the Council and Commission. The purpose of this action
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