Proposed Rule2026-05800
Pacific Halibut Fisheries of the West Coast; Annual Management Measures for the 2026 Area 2A Pacific Halibut Directed Commercial Fishery
Primary source
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Published
March 25, 2026
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS is proposing annual management measures for the 2026 non- Tribal directed commercial Pacific halibut fishery that operates south of Point Chehalis, WA, (lat. 46[deg]53.30' N) in the International Pacific Halibut Commission's (IPHC) Regulatory Area 2A off Washington, Oregon, and California. Annual management measures include fishing periods and fishing period limits. This action is intended to conserve Pacific halibut and provide fishing opportunity where available.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 57 (Wednesday, March 25, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 57 (Wednesday, March 25, 2026)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14516-14518]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-05800]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 300
[RTID 0648-XF466; Docket No. 260319-0085]
Pacific Halibut Fisheries of the West Coast; Annual Management
Measures for the 2026 Area 2A Pacific Halibut Directed Commercial
Fishery
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: NMFS is proposing annual management measures for the 2026 non-
Tribal directed commercial Pacific halibut fishery that operates south
of Point Chehalis, WA, (lat. 46[deg]53.30' N) in the International
Pacific Halibut Commission's (IPHC) Regulatory Area 2A off Washington,
Oregon, and California. Annual management measures include fishing
periods and fishing period limits. This action is intended to conserve
Pacific halibut and provide fishing opportunity where available.
DATES: Comments must be received by April 24, 2026.
ADDRESSES: A plain language summary of this proposed rule is available
at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAA-NMFS-2026-0100">https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NOAA-NMFS-2026-0100</a>. You may
submit comments on this document, identified by NOAA-NMFS-2026-0100, by
any of the following methods:
<bullet> Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and type NOAA-NMFS-2026-0100 in the Search box.
Click on the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter
or attach your comments.
Instructions: Comments sent by any other method or received after
the end of the comment period may not be considered by NMFS. All
comments received are a part of the public record and will generally be
posted for public viewing on <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> without
change. All personal identifying information (e.g., name, address),
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).
Docket: This proposed rule is accessible at the Office of the
Federal Register website at <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov">https://www.federalregister.gov</a>. Background
information and documents are available at the NMFS West Coast Region
Pacific Halibut Directed Commercial Fishery website at <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/2025-pacific-halibut-directed-commercial-fishery">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/2025-pacific-halibut-directed-commercial-fishery</a> and at the Council's website at <a href="https://www.pcouncil.org">https://www.pcouncil.org</a>. Other
comments received may be accessed through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melissa Mandrup, West Coast Region,
NMFS, (562) 980-3231, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5f323a33362c2c3e71323e313b2d2a2f1f31303e3e71383029"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="bbd6ded7d2c8c8da95d6dad5dfc9cecbfbd5d4dada95dcd4cd">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 (16 U.S.C. 773-773k;
Halibut Act) gives the Secretary of Commerce the responsibility of
implementing the provisions of the Convention between Canada and the
United States for the Preservation of the Halibut Fishery of the North
Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea (Convention), signed at Ottawa, Ontario,
on March 2, 1953, as amended by a Protocol Amending the Convention
(March 29, 1979).
As provided in the Halibut Act at 16 U.S.C. 773b, the Secretary of
State, with the concurrence of the Secretary of Commerce, may accept or
reject, on behalf of the United States, regulations recommended by the
IPHC in accordance with the Convention. Following acceptance by the
Secretary of State, the annual management measures recommended by the
IPHC are published in the Federal Register through a NMFS rulemaking to
provide notice of their immediate regulatory effectiveness and to
inform persons subject to the regulations of their restrictions and
requirements (50 CFR 300.62).
The Halibut Act also provides that Regional Fishery Management
Councils may develop and recommend, and the Secretary of Commerce may
implement, regulations governing Pacific halibut fishing in U.S. waters
that are in addition to, and not in conflict with, approved IPHC
regulations (16 U.S.C. 773c(c)). The Pacific Fishery Management Council
(Council) developed a catch sharing plan (CSP) guiding the allocation
of halibut across the various sectors for the IPHC's Regulatory Area
2A. The CSP is available on the Council's website at <a href="https://www.pcouncil.org/managed_fishery/pacific-halibut">https://www.pcouncil.org/managed_fishery/pacific-halibut</a>/.
Fishery Allocation
At its annual meeting held January 19-22, 2026, the IPHC adopted
catch limits for 2026, including the Regulatory Area 2A catch limit,
called a fishery constant exploitation yield (FCEY), of 1.54 million
pounds (lb; 698.5 metric tons (mt)), net weight (i.e., the weight of
Pacific halibut that is without gills and entrails, head-off, washed,
and without ice and slime). Upon acceptance by the Secretary of State,
with concurrence from the Secretary of Commerce, the fishery
allocations adopted by the IPHC will be published in the Federal
Register, in accordance with 50 CFR 300.62. The Regulatory Area 2A FCEY
was derived from the 2026 total constant exploitation yield of 1.65
million lb (748 mt), net weight, for Regulatory Area 2A, which includes
commercial discards and bycatch projections calculated using a formula
developed by the IPHC. Based on this FCEY for Regulatory Area 2A and
the allocation framework in the Council's CSP, the non-Tribal directed
commercial fishing allocation would be 261,211 lb (118.5 mt) net weight
for the 2026 fishing season, which constitutes an increase of 1,696 lb
(0.77 mt) from 2025.
Fishing Periods
Fishing periods, often referred to as fishery openers, are the time
during the IPHC's annual commercial halibut season when non-Tribal
directed commercial Pacific fishing for halibut in Regulatory Area 2A
is allowed. At a December 2025 Council meeting, the Council recommended
that NMFS establish a season structure similar to the previous year.
Specifically, the Council recommended that the Regulatory Area 2A
directed commercial fishery operate as a series of 3-day (58-hour)
openings, with the first fishing period beginning at 8 a.m. (0800)
Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) on the fourth Tuesday in June and ending at
6 p.m. (1800) PDT on Thursday of that week, and the second fishing
period occurring 2 weeks later. The Council also recommended that, if
there is a
[[Page 14517]]
third fishing period, it be 2, or no more than 3 weeks after the second
fishing period and that any subsequent fishing periods would occur as
soon as possible. In addition, the Council requested that all potential
season opening dates be specified at the outset of the fishing season.
Based on the Council's recommendations, NMFS is proposing that the
first 2026 directed commercial fishery fishing period begin on June 23,
2026, at 8 a.m. PDT and close on June 25, 2026, at 6 p.m. PDT. The
second fishing period would occur 2 weeks later, beginning on July 7,
2026, at 8 a.m. PDT and closing on July 9, 2026, at 6 p.m. PDT. If
another fishing period is necessary to attain the allocation, NMFS is
proposing to open, by inseason action, a third fishing period occurring
2 weeks after the second fishing period, beginning on July 23, 2026, at
8 a.m. PDT and closing on July 25, 2025, at 6 p.m. PDT. If subsequent
fishing periods are necessary to reach the allocation, they would
follow the same pattern, occurring 2 weeks after the previous fishing
period, beginning on August 7, August 14, and so forth, as announced by
inseason action. If for any reason a fishing period is not opened as
scheduled, NMFS would skip that fishing period in order to follow the
prescribed schedule.
After each fishing period, NMFS will assess the fishery harvest to
that point and determine if the fishery has attained the allocation. If
harvest estimates indicate the allocation has not been reached, NMFS
may determine that subsequent fishing period(s) are necessary to attain
the allocation and add such fishing period(s) through inseason action,
consistent with 50 CFR 300.63.
Fishing Period Limits
A fishing period limit, also called a vessel catch limit, is the
maximum amount of Pacific halibut that may be retained and landed by a
vessel during one fishing period. Each vessel may retain no more than
the applicable fishing period limit of Pacific halibut for its vessel
size class, which is determined by vessel length. Fishing period limits
are based on the directed fishery allocation, the number of permit
applications received by vessel size class, and participation and catch
rates from prior years, in accordance with 50 CFR 300.63(e)(1)(ii).
Fishing period limits vary based on vessel size class (A-H).
The deadline to apply for this year's Regulatory Area 2A non-Tribal
directed commercial fishery permit was March 15, 2026. NMFS does not
yet have final permit application information for this year. However,
since 2021, there have been an average of 180 permits issued per year
for the directed commercial fishery across 8 vessel size classes (A-H)
with an average of 38 percent (68 vessels) of permitted vessels
participating in the fishery. NMFS currently anticipates a similar
number of permit applications and a similar proportion of vessels
participating in the 2026 fishery. Therefore, NMFS is proposing that
fishing period limits be grouped by vessel size class as was done in
previous years.
Based on the Regulatory Area 2A FCEY adopted by the IPHC, the
directed commercial fishery allocation for 2026 would be similar to the
allocations adopted for the previous 5 years. Over this same timeframe,
average catch per vessel and participation levels in the fishery have
fluctuated for different reasons (e.g., varying markets and ocean
conditions). For example, the average catch per vessel in 2025 was
higher than in 2021 and 2022 when there were similar fishing period
limits; however, the participation level in 2025 was the lowest the
fishery experienced in recent years. Despite this variability, NMFS
proposes to maintain the 2025 fishing period limits for 2026 to provide
stability for the fishery. Table 1 shows the proposed vessel limits for
the first two fishing periods for the 2026 fishing season in accordance
with 50 CFR 300.63(e)(1)(ii). These fishing period catch limits are
intended to ensure that the Regulatory Area 2A non-Tribal directed
commercial fishery can fully obtain, but not exceed, its annual
allocation, while also providing fair and equitable access to an
attainable amount of harvest.
Table 1--Proposed Fishing Period Limits for the Initial Fishing Period Periods in 2026 of the Regulatory Area 2A
Pacific Halibut Non-Tribal Directed Commercial Fishery
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Length range in feet Fishing period limit in lb
Vessel class (meters) (mt)
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A-C..................................................... 1-35 (0.3-10.9) 2,000 (0.907)
D-E..................................................... 36-45 (11.0-13.9) 3,400 (1.542)
F-G..................................................... 46-55 (14.0-16.9) 4,300 (1.950)
H....................................................... 56+ (17.0+) 5,000 (2.268)
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Notes: Fishing period limits are in dressed weight (head-on, with ice and slime). If a vessel's size is between
lengths, its length will be rounded up for the purpose of fishing period limits. Fishing period limits adopted
in the final rule will be based on the number of permit applications received for 2026. Over the past 5 years,
there have been fewer than 200 permit applications received per year.
If NMFS determines that more than two fishing periods are
warranted, NMFS will set the fishing period limits for subsequent
fishing periods equal across all vessel classes through inseason
action. Fishing period limits for the second fishing period may also be
adjusted through inseason action if necessary to avoid exceeding the
allocation.
Fishing period limits may be adjusted inseason consistent with 50
CFR 300.63.
Classification
Regulations governing the U.S. fisheries for Pacific halibut are
developed by the IPHC, the Council, the North Pacific Fishery
Management Council, and the Secretary of Commerce. Section 5 of the
Halibut Act (16 U.S.C. 773c) allows the Regional Council having
authority for a particular geographical area to develop regulations
governing the allocation and catch of halibut in U.S. Convention waters
as long as those regulations are consistent with IPHC regulations and
approved by the Secretary. This proposed rule, if adopted, would
implement management measures for the Pacific halibut non-Tribal
directed commercial fishery in Regulatory Area 2A, specifically the
2026 season dates and catch limits.
This action is exempt from review under E.O. 12866. This rule is
exempt from the requirements of E.O. 14192 because it is a routine
fishing action.
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business
Administration that this proposed rule, if adopted, would not have a
significant economic impact on
[[Page 14518]]
a substantial number of small entities for the following reasons.
For Regulatory Flexibility Act purposes only, NMFS has established
a small business size standard for businesses, including their
affiliates, whose primary industry is commercial fishing (see 50 CFR
200.2). A business primarily engaged in commercial fishing (North
American Industry Classification System code 114111) is classified as a
small business if it is independently owned and operated, is not
dominant in its field of operation (including its affiliates), and has
combined annual receipts not in excess of $11 million for all its
affiliated operations worldwide. The entities that would be affected by
the proposed action are those vessels that harvest Pacific halibut as
part of the non-Tribal directed commercial fishery and are all
considered small businesses under the above size standards.
There are no large entities involved in Pacific halibut fisheries
in Regulatory Area 2A off the West Coast.
In 2025, NMFS issued 171 permits to the commercial fishing fleet
for the Regulatory Area 2A non-Tribal directed commercial fishery. Of
those 171 vessels that obtained licenses, 33 percent (57 vessels)
participated in the fishery. NMFS expects that a similar proportion of
vessels will participate in the fishery this year and may be affected
by these regulations, which would be consistent with other recent years
as well. Since 2021, there have been an average of 180 permits issued
per year for the directed commercial fishery across 8 vessel size
classes (A-H) with an average of 38 percent (76 vessels) participating
in the fishery. Cost data for the harvesting operations of non-Tribal
commercial halibut vessels is limited or unavailable. For 2025, the
non-Tribal directed commercial fishery allocation was 259,515 pounds
(117.7 mt). Approximately 263,597 pounds (119.6 mt) of Pacific halibut
were harvested and resulted in a total fishery ex-vessel value of
approximately $1.56 million. Additionally, from 2021-2025, the non-
Tribal directed commercial fishery allocation ranged from 249,338 lb
(113.1 mt) to 259,515 lb (117.5 mt), harvest ranged from 242,224 lb
(109.9 mt) to 308,636 lb (140 mt), and ex-vessel revenue ranged from
approximately $1.5 million to $2.3 million. Therefore, because the
entire projected fishery value falls below the limit of one vessel
being considered a small business, NMFS considers all vessels affected
by this action to be small entities.
The major effect of Pacific halibut management on small entities
along the West Coast results from the Regulatory Area 2A allocation,
which is decided by the IPHC--a decision independent from this proposed
action. This action proposes changes to the Regulatory Area 2A Pacific
halibut non-Tribal directed commercial fishery consistent with
recommendations from the Council to provide commercial harvest
opportunities under the allocations that result from the Regulatory
Area 2A catch limit determined by the IPHC. Profitability is largely
based on the total Regulatory Area 2A allocation decided by the IPHC,
with subarea allocations determined based on the allocation formula in
the Council's CSP. Therefore, the proposed rule, if adopted, is
unlikely to affect the profitability of the commercial fishery.
The Regulatory Area 2A non-Tribal directed commercial fishery
allocation for 2026 is expected to be similar to 2025 at 261,211 lb
(118.5 mt), net weight. Therefore, this proposed rule, if adopted, is
unlikely to affect overall participation in the directed commercial
fishery, as the allocation is similar to allocations in previous years.
Because profitability is dependent on the total amount of allocation
available and market forces independent of this action, it is highly
unlikely that this proposed action would limit the fleet's potential
profitability from catching halibut as compared to last season or to
recent catch levels. Fishing periods and fishing-period catch limits
for 2026 are set using similar considerations as in previous years.
Accordingly, vessel income from fishing for the small entities
participating in the Regulatory Area 2A non-Tribal directed commercial
fishery is not expected to be altered as a result of this proposed
rule, if adopted, as it compares to recent catches in the fishery,
including under the previous season's regulations.
Based on the analysis above, the proposed action, if adopted, would
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities. As a result, an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis is
not required, and none has been prepared.
This proposed rule contains no new information collection
requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.
Dated: March 20, 2026.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2026-05800 Filed 3-24-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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