Rule2021-20902
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Scup Fishery; Adjustment to the 2021 Winter II Quota
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 24, 2021
Effective
October 1, 2021
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS adjusts the 2021 Winter II commercial scup quota and per- trip Federal landing limit. This action is necessary to comply with Framework Adjustment 3 to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan that established the rollover of unused commercial scup quota from the Winter I to Winter II period. This notification is intended to inform the public of this quota and trip limit change.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 183 (Friday, September 24, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 183 (Friday, September 24, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 53011-53012]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-20902]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 200420-0118; RTID 0648-XB432]
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Scup Fishery;
Adjustment to the 2021 Winter II Quota
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; in-season adjustment.
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SUMMARY: NMFS adjusts the 2021 Winter II commercial scup quota and per-
trip Federal landing limit. This action is necessary to comply with
Framework Adjustment 3 to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass
Fishery Management Plan that established the rollover of unused
commercial scup quota from the Winter I to Winter II period. This
notification is intended to inform the public of this quota and trip
limit change.
DATES: Effective October 1, 2021, through December 31, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Hansen, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9225; or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ffb39e8a8d9ed1b79e918c9a91bf91909e9ed1989089"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6a260b1f180b44220b04190f042a04050b0b440d051c">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS published a final rule for Framework
Adjustment 3 to the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery
Management Plan in the Federal Register on November 3, 2003 (68 FR
62250), implementing a process to roll over unused Winter I commercial
scup quota (January 1 through April 30) to be added to the Winter II
period quota (October 1 through December 31) (50 CFR 648.122(d)). The
framework also allows adjustment of the commercial possession limit for
the Winter II period dependent on the amount of quota rolled over from
the Winter I period. The Winter II period start date was changed from
November 1 to October 1 as part of Framework Adjustment 12 (83 FR
17314; April 19, 2018).
For 2021, the initial Winter II quota is 3,267,825 lb (1,482,260
kg). The best available landings information indicates that 3,415,629
lb (1,549,303 kg) remain of the 9,247,904 lb (4,194,779 kg) Winter I
quota. Consistent with Framework 3, the full amount of unused 2021
Winter I quota is being transferred to Winter II, resulting in a
revised 2021 Winter II quota of 6,683,454 lb (3,031,563 kg). Because
the amount transferred is between 3.0 and 3.5 million lb (1,587,573 and
1,814,369 kg), the Federal per trip possession limit will increase from
12,000 lb (5,443 kg) to 21,000 lb (9,525 kg), as outlined in the final
rule that established the possession limit and quota rollover
procedures for this year, published on December 21, 2020 (85 FR 82946).
The new possession limit would be effective October 1 through December
31, 2021. The possession limit will revert back to 12,000 lb (5,443 kg)
at the start of the next fishing year that begins January 1, 2022.
Classification
NMFS issues this action pursuant to section 305(d) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act. This action is required by 50 CFR 648.122(d), which was
issued pursuant to section 304(b), and is exempted from review under
Executive Order 12866.
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there is good cause to waive prior
notice and
[[Page 53012]]
an opportunity for public comment on this action, as notice and comment
would be contrary to the public interest. This action transfers unused
quota from the Winter I Period to the Winter II Period to make it
accessible to the commercial scup fishery and increase fishing
opportunities. If implementation of this in-season action is delayed to
solicit prior public comment, the objective of the fishery management
plan to achieve the optimum yield from the fishery could be
compromised. Deteriorating weather conditions during the latter part of
the fishing year may reduce fishing effort, and could also prevent the
annual quota from being fully harvested. If this action is delayed, it
would reduce the amount of time vessels have to realize the benefits of
this quota increase, which would result in negative economic impacts on
vessels permitted to fish in this fishery. Moreover, the rollover
process being applied here is routine and formulaic and was the subject
of notice and comment rulemaking, and the range of potential trip limit
changes were outlined in the final 2018 scup specifications that were
published December 22, 2017; which were developed through public notice
and comment. The benefit of soliciting additional public comment on
this formulaic adjustment would not outweigh the benefits of making
this additional quota available to the fishery as quickly as possible.
Based on these considerations, there is good cause under 5 U.S.C.
553(d)(3) to waive the 30-day delayed effectiveness period for the
reasons stated above.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: September 22, 2021.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-20902 Filed 9-23-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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