Rule2023-28892
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder Fishery; Quota Transfer From NC to NY
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
January 2, 2024
Effective
December 28, 2023
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS announces that the State of North Carolina is transferring a portion of its 2023 commercial summer flounder quota to the State of New York. This adjustment to the 2023 fishing year quota is necessary to comply with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP) quota transfer provisions. This announcement informs the public of the revised 2023 commercial quotas for North Carolina and New York.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 1 (Tuesday, January 2, 2024)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 2, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 34]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28892]
[[Page 34]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 221223-0282; RTID 0648-XD616]
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder
Fishery; Quota Transfer From NC to NY
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Temporary rule; quota transfer.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the State of North Carolina is
transferring a portion of its 2023 commercial summer flounder quota to
the State of New York. This adjustment to the 2023 fishing year quota
is necessary to comply with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea
Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP) quota transfer provisions. This
announcement informs the public of the revised 2023 commercial quotas
for North Carolina and New York.
DATES: Effective December 28, 2023, through December 31, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Deighan, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9184.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations governing the summer flounder
fishery are found in 50 CFR 648.100 through 648.111. These regulations
require annual specification of a commercial quota that is apportioned
among the coastal states from Maine through North Carolina. The process
to set the annual commercial quota and the percent allocated to each
state is described in Sec. 648.102 and final 2023 allocations were
published on January 3, 2023 (88 FR 11).
The final rule implementing Amendment 5 to the Summer Flounder FMP,
as published in the Federal Register on December 17, 1993 (58 FR
65936), provided a mechanism for transferring summer flounder
commercial quota from one state to another. Two or more states, under
mutual agreement and with the concurrence of the NMFS Greater Atlantic
Regional Administrator, can transfer or combine summer flounder
commercial quota under Sec. 648.102(c)(2). The Regional Administrator
is required to consider three criteria in the evaluation of requests
for quota transfers or combinations: (1) the transfer or combinations
would not preclude the overall annual quota from being fully harvested;
(2) the transfer addresses an unforeseen variation or contingency in
the fishery; and (3) the transfer is consistent with the objectives of
the FMP and the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management
Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). The Regional Administrator has determined
these three criteria have been met for the transfer approved in this
notification.
North Carolina is transferring 100,000 pounds (lb; 43,359 kilograms
(kg)) to New York through a mutual agreement between the states. This
transfer was requested to ensure New York would not exceed its 2023
quota. The revised summer flounder quotas for 2023 are North Carolina,
3,031,074 lb (1,374,872 kg), and New York, 1,537,768 lb (697,520 kg).
Classification
NMFS issues this action pursuant to section 305(d) of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act. This action is required by 50 CFR 648.102(c)(2)(i) through
(iv), which was issued pursuant to section 304(b), and is exempted from
review under Executive Order 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: December 28, 2023.
Jon William Bell,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-28892 Filed 12-28-23; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
</pre></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on January 2, 2024.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.