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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 22 / Thursday, February 4, 2021 / Notices FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Charmaine Weeks, 9075867231.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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Background The rockfish fisheries are conducted in Federal waters near Kodiak, AK, by trawl and longline vessels. Regulations implementing the Rockfish Program are set forth at 50 CFR part 679. Exclusive harvesting privileges are allocated as quota share under the Rockfish Program for rockfish primary and secondary species. Each year, NMFS issues rockfish primary and secondary species cooperative quota CQ to rockfish quota shareholders to authorize harvest of these species. The rockfish primary species are northern rockfish, Pacific ocean perch, and dusky rockfish. In 2012, dusky rockfish replaced the pelagic shelf rockfish species group in the GOA Groundfish Harvest Specifications 77 FR 15194, March 14, 2012. The rockfish secondary species include Pacific cod, rougheye rockfish, shortraker rockfish, sablefish, and thornyhead rockfish. Rockfish cooperatives began fishing under the Rockfish Program on May 1, 2012.
The Rockfish Program is a limited access privilege program established under the provisions of section 303A of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act Magnuson-Stevens Act. Sections 303A
and 304d of the Magnuson-Stevens Act require NMFS to collect fees to recover the actual costs directly related to the management, data collection and analysis, and enforcement of any limited access privilege program.
Therefore, NMFS is required to collect fees for the Rockfish Program under sections 303A and 304d2 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Section 304d2 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act also limits the cost recovery fee so that it may not exceed 3 percent of the exvessel value of the fish harvested under the Rockfish Program.
Standard Prices NMFS calculates cost recovery fees based on standard ex-vessel value prices, rather than actual price data provided by each rockfish CQ holder.
Use of standard ex-vessel prices is allowed under sections 303A and 304d2 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
NMFS generates a standard ex-vessel price for each rockfish primary and secondary species on a monthly basis to determine the average price paid per pound for all shoreside processors receiving rockfish primary and secondary species CQ.
Regulations at 50 CFR 679.85b2
require the Regional Administrator to
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publish rockfish standard ex-vessel values during the first quarter of each calendar year. The standard prices are described in U.S. dollars per pound for rockfish primary and secondary species CQ landings made during the previous year.
Fee Percentage NMFS assesses a fee on the standard ex-vessel value of rockfish primary species and rockfish secondary species CQ harvested by rockfish cooperatives in the Central GOA and waters adjacent to the Central GOA when rockfish primary species caught by a cooperative are deducted from the Federal total allowable catch. The rockfish entry level longline fishery and trawl vessels that opt out of joining a cooperative are not subject to cost recovery fees because those participants do not receive rockfish CQ. Specific details on the Rockfish Programs cost recovery provision may be found in the implementing regulations set forth at 679.85.
NMFS informsby lettereach rockfish cooperative of the fee percentage applied to the previous years landings and the total amount due. Fees are due on or before February 15 of each year. Failure to pay on time will result in the permit holders rockfish quota share becoming nontransferable, and the person will be ineligible to receive any additional rockfish quota share by transfer. In addition, cooperative members will not receive any rockfish CQ the following year until full payment of the fee is received by NMFS.
NMFS calculates and publishes in the Federal Register the fee percentage in the first quarter of each year according to the factors and methods described in Federal regulations at 679.85c2.
NMFS determines the fee percentage that applies to landings made in the previous year by dividing the total Rockfish Program management, data collection and analysis, and enforcement costs direct program costs during the previous year by the total standard ex-vessel value of the rockfish primary species and rockfish secondary species for all rockfish CQ landings made during the previous year fishery value. NMFS captures the direct program costs through an established accounting system that allows staff to track labor, travel, contracts, rent, and procurement. Fee collections in any given year may be less than or greater than the direct program costs and fishery value for that year, as the fee percentage is established by regulation in the first quarter of the calendar year based on the program costs and the
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fishery value of the previous calendar year.
Using the fee percentage formula described above, the estimated percentage of program costs to value for the 2020 calendar year is 3.66 percent of the standard ex-vessel value;
however, the fee percentage amount must not exceed 3 percent pursuant to section 304d2B of the MagnusonStevens Act. Therefore, the 2020 fee percentage is adjusted to 3.00 percent.
The fee percentage for 2020 is equivalent to the 2019 fee percentage of 3.00 percent 85 FR 3647, January 22, 2020. Program costs for 2020 decreased in comparison to 2019 costs, however, the value of the fishery decreased by 26.2 percent resulting in a higher fee percentage prior to adjustments. The majority of the 2020 costs were a result of direct personnel and contract costs.

TABLE 1STANDARD EX-VESSEL
PRICES BY SPECIES FOR THE 2020
ROCKFISH PROGRAM SEASON IN KODIAK, ALASKA
Species
Period ending
Dusky rockfish

May 31
June 30
July 31
August 31
September 30
October 31
November 30
May 31
June 30
July 31
August 31
September 30
October 31
November 30
May 31
June 30
July 31
August 31
September 30
October 31
November 30
May 31
June 30
July 31
August 31
September 30
October 31
November 30
May 31
June 30
July 31
August 31
September 30
October 31
November 30
May 31
June 30
July 31
August 31
September 30
October 31
November 30
May 31
June 30
July 31
August 31

Northern rockfish

Pacific cod

Pacific ocean perch ..

Rougheye rockfish

Sablefish

Shortraker rockfish

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Standard ex-vessel price per pound $0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.35
0.35
0.35
0.35
0.35
0.35
0.35
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.13
0.12
0.12
0.20
0.20
0.20
0.20
0.20
0.20
0.21
0.55
0.56
0.57
0.57
0.57
0.67
0.51
0.24
0.25
0.25
0.25