Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits

Issuing agencies

Abstract

The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) application contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. The EFP would allow federally permitted fishing vessels to fish outside fishery regulations in support of exempted fishing activities proposed by the Maine Department of Marine Resources (ME DMR). Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed EFPs.

Full Text

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 161 (Friday, August 21, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 161 (Friday, August 21, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54309-54311]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-17126]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XF961]


Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic 
Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable 
Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary 
determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) application 
contains all of the required information and warrants further 
consideration. The EFP would allow federally permitted fishing vessels 
to fish outside fishery regulations in support of exempted fishing 
activities proposed by the Maine Department of Marine Resources (ME 
DMR). Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act require publication of this notification to provide 
interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for 
proposed EFPs.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 8, 2026.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by email: 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a3cdcec5d08dc4c2d18dc6c5d3e3cdccc2c28dc4ccd5"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="147a7972673a7375663a717264547a7b75753a737b62">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>. Include in the subject line ``ME DMR Dynamic 
Management EFP.'' All comments received are a part of the public record 
and may be posted for public viewing 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 ``anonymous'' as the signature if you wish to remain 
anonymous).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christine Ford, Fishery Management 
Specialist, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5e3d362c372d2a37303b7038312c3a1e30313f3f70393128"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e98a819b809a9d80878cc78f869b8da987868888c78e869f">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>, 978-281-9185.

[[Page 54310]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The applicant submitted a complete 
application for an EFP to conduct commercial fishing activities that 
the regulations would otherwise restrict. This EFP would exempt the 
participating vessels from the following Federal regulations:

                                          Table 1--Requested Exemptions
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
              CFR citation                         Regulation                      Need for exemption
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
50 CFR 697.21(b)(2).....................  Gear marking requirements..  To allow for the use of trap/pot gear
                                                                        with no more than one surface marking on
                                                                        trawls of more than three traps.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                        Table 2--Project Summary
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Project title..............................  Testing the applicability
                                              of dynamic management in
                                              Maine's lobster fishery
                                              during potential future
                                              North Atlantic Right Whale
                                              (NARW) aggregations near
                                              Jeffrey's Ledge.
Project start..............................  11/01/2026.
Project end................................  03/31/2027.
Project objectives.........................  To assess the feasibility
                                              of dynamic management for
                                              the Maine lobster fishery
                                              to allow for continued
                                              access to fishing grounds
                                              while also reducing the
                                              risk associated with
                                              vertical lines in real-
                                              time when endangered NARW
                                              are found to be present in
                                              the Gulf of Maine.
Project location...........................  Lobster Management Area 1:
                                              Maine Lobster Conservation
                                              Zones F, F/G, and G around
                                              Jeffrey's Ledge.
Number of vessels..........................  Up to 50.
Number of trips, duration, total days......  See Project Narrative.
Gear type(s)...............................  Lobster traps.
Number and duration of tows or sets........  See Project Narrative.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Project Narrative

    In January 2025, an aggregation of upwards of 90 individual NARWs 
were spotted on Jeffrey's Ledge and persisted for over 3 weeks. During 
that time, vessels from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts were 
actively fishing lobster gear, creating an area of potentially high 
NARW entanglement risk. Using vessel tracking data and sightings 
information, ME DMR identified the area of greatest overlap between 
recently set lobster gear from Maine vessels and NARW sightings. Maine 
vessels took voluntary action to reduce the entanglement risk by 
removing an endline from gear that was actively being fished in the 
area, delaying the setting of gear into deeper waters, and/or delaying 
setting gear at all. The 2025 NARW aggregation highlighted the 
potential to execute dynamic management, of which ME DMR is interested 
in investigating further.
    This EFP would not allow for any changes to regular commercial 
lobster fishing activities regarding trap limits, soak times, catch, 
etc. This EFP would only allow participating vessels to temporarily 
remove, or drop and secure to the bottom, one endline from their trawls 
upon notification from ME DMR that a NARW aggregation is in the 
Jeffrey's Ledge area. Which endline would be dropped would be decided 
if an aggregation occurred. The dropped endline would be consistent for 
all participants and ME DMR would communicate the information out for 
awareness. The trigger for a dynamic management response would be based 
on the details of the situation (e.g., where/when/how many whales 
aggregate, if they were in an area of dense fishing gear, if a mom/calf 
pair was present).
    If ME DMR triggered a dynamic management response, data would be 
collected on how many whales were present, for how long, and the size 
of the area where participating vessels removed/dropped an endline. For 
each participating vessel, data would also be collected on the time 
between initial whale detections and any removed/dropped endlines, how 
many endlines were removed/dropped, and how long endlines were removed/
dropped. Additional information regarding delaying the setting of gear, 
setting gear in a different area, or trawling up would also be 
collected. Data would help provide feedback to managers on the 
feasibility of implementing a dynamic management program in the future.
    ME DMR has requested to exempt participants from EFP trip reporting 
requirements, stating that this requirement is a barrier to recruiting 
fishermen for this project and is duplicative of the required 
electronic vessel trip reporting. EFP trip reporting requirements 
assist NMFS in monitoring trips taken under an EFP, and to help 
identify vessels that are operating in ways that would otherwise not be 
allowed. There are no sensitivities related to catch that NMFS needs to 
document at the trip level. NOAA's Office of Law Enforcement has 
indicated that there are other means by which it could monitor, perform 
outreach on, and enforce regulations on vessels participating in this 
EFP. For these reasons, NMFS recommends waiving the EFP trip reporting 
requirements for vessels operating under this EFP. This would be 
consistent with other EFP's where NMFS has waived the trip reporting 
requirements. NMFS may reevaluate this waiver should it become evident 
that EFP trip-level reporting is warranted or needed.
    All vessels participating in the EFP would adhere to current 
approach regulations--a 500-yard (457-meter) buffer zone created by a 
surfacing right whale--and must depart immediately at a safe and slow 
speed, in accordance with current regulations. Hauling any lobster gear 
would immediately cease (by removal) to accommodate the regulation and 
be reinitiated only after it was reasonable to assume the whale had 
left the area.
    ME DMR proposed the following best practices and risk reduction 
measures:
    <bullet> All vessels would operate within a 10-knot (18.5 
kilometers per hour) speed limit when whales were observed;
    <bullet> All vessels would report all right whale sightings to NMFS 
via <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#3e505b104c49104d4b4c485b477e50515f5f10595148"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="107e753e62673e636562667569507e7f71713e777f66">[email&#160;protected]</span></a> or NOAA (866-755-6622) or the U.S. Coast 
Guard (Channel 16) and record sightings on data sheets;
    <bullet> All vessels would provide mandatory, weekly gear loss 
reports to ME DMR; and

[[Page 54311]]

    <bullet> Upon aggregation dispersal, ME DMR would work with 
participating vessels to return their gear to its required 
configuration within 30 days.
    If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and 
extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and 
extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed 
essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have 
minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially 
approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope 
of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.

(Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.)

    Dated: August 19, 2026.
Shannon Bettridge,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2026-17126 Filed 8-20-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P


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