Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (Amendment 92) and Gulf of Alaska License (Amendment 82) Limitation Program, 41080-41092 [E9-19568]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 156 (Friday, August 14, 2009)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 41080-41092]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-19568]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 679

[Docket No. 0808011016-91210-04]
RIN 0648-AX14


Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Bering Sea 
and Aleutian Islands (Amendment 92) and Gulf of Alaska License 
(Amendment 82) Limitation Program

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

ACTION:  Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: NMFS issues regulations to implement Amendment 92 to the 
Fishery Management Plan for Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian 
Islands Management Area and Amendment 82 to the Fishery Management Plan 
for Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska. This action removes trawl gear 
endorsements on licenses issued under the license limitation program in 
specific management areas if those licenses have not been used on 
vessels that met minimum recent landing requirements using trawl gear. 
This action provides exemptions to this requirement for licenses that 
are used in trawl fisheries subject to certain limited access privilege 
programs. This action issues new area endorsements for trawl catcher 
vessel licenses in the Aleutian Islands if minimum recent landing 
requirements in the Aleutian Islands were met. This action is intended 
to promote the goals and objectives of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act, the Fishery Management Plans, and 
other applicable law.

DATES:  Effective September 14, 2009.

ADDRESSES:  Amendments 92 and 82, the Environmental Assessment (EA), 
Regulatory Impact Review (RIR), and the Final Regulatory Flexibility 
Analysis (FRFA) for this action are available from the NMFS Alaska 
Region website at https://www.alaskafisheries.noaa.gov.
    Written comments regarding the burden-hour estimates or other 
aspects of the collection-of-information requirements contained in this 
final rule may be submitted to NMFS Alaska Region and by e-mail to 
David_Rostker@omb.eop.gov, or fax to 202-395-7285.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Glenn Merrill, 907-586-7228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background on the License Limitation Program

    NMFS manages the groundfish fisheries in the exclusive economic 
zone (EEZ) of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area 
(BSAI) and the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) under the fishery management plans 
(FMPs) for groundfish in the respective areas. The North Pacific 
Fishery Management Council (Council) prepared, and NMFS approved, the 
FMPs under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act; 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). 
Regulations implementing the FMPs appear at 50 CFR part 679. General 
regulations governing U.S. fisheries also appear at 50 CFR part 600.
    The Council and NMFS have long sought to control the amount of 
fishing in the North Pacific Ocean to ensure that fisheries are 
conservatively managed and do not exceed established biological 
thresholds. One of the measures used by the Council and NMFS is the 
license limitation program (LLP) which limits access to the groundfish, 
crab, and scallop fisheries in the BSAI and GOA. The LLP is intended to 
limit entry into federally managed fisheries. For groundfish, the LLP 
requires that persons hold and assign a license to each vessel that is 
used to fish in federally managed fisheries, with some limited 
exemptions. The Council initially envisioned the LLP as an early step 
in a long-term plan to establish a comprehensive rationalization 
program for groundfish in the North Pacific that would ultimately 
assign tradable quotas to fishery participants that would provide them 
an exclusive access privilege to groundfish resources. These exclusive 
access programs are more commonly known as limited access privilege 
programs (LAPPs).
    The LLP for groundfish fisheries was recommended by the Council as 
Amendments 39 and 41 to the BSAI and GOA groundfish FMPs, respectively. 
The Council adopted the LLP for groundfish in June 1995, and NMFS 
approved Amendments 39 and 41 on September 12, 1997. NMFS published a 
final rule to implement the LLP on October 1, 1998 (63 FR 52642); and 
LLP licenses were required for federal groundfish fisheries beginning 
on January 1, 2000. The preamble to the final rule implementing the 
groundfish LLP and the EA/RIR/FRFA prepared for this rule describe the 
rationale and specific provisions of the LLP in greater detail (see 
ADDRESSES) and are not repeated here. The key components of the LLP are 
briefly summarized below.
    The LLP for groundfish established specific criteria that must be 
met to allow a person to use a vessel to directed fish in most 
federally managed groundfish fisheries. An LLP license must be assigned 
to each vessel that is used to participate in directed fishing for most 
federally managed groundfish species. The term directed fishing and the 
specific groundfish species for which an LLP license is required are 
defined in regulations at Sec.  679.2. An exception to the requirement 
that an LLP license must be assigned to a vessel applies if the vessel 
is: less than 26 feet length overall (LOA) and fishing in the GOA; less 
than 32 feet LOA and fishing in the BSAI; using jig gear in the BSAI if 
the vessel is less than 60 feet LOA and deploys no more than five 
jigging machines; or specifically constructed for and used exclusively 
in Community Development Quota fisheries, and designed and equipped to 
meet specific needs that are described in regulations at Sec.  
679.4(k).
    Under the LLP, NMFS issued licenses that (1) endorse fishing 
activities in specific regulatory areas in the BSAI and GOA; (2) 
restrict the length of the vessel on which the LLP license may be used; 
(3) designate the fishing gear that may be used on the vessel (i.e., 
trawl or non-trawl gear designations); (4) designate the type of vessel 
operation permitted (i.e., LLP licenses designate whether the vessel to 
which the LLP is assigned may operate as a catcher vessel or as a 
catcher/processor); and (5) are issued so that the endorsements for 
specific regulatory areas, gear designations, or vessel operational 
types are non-severable from the LLP license (i.e., once an LLP license 
is issued, the components of the LLP license cannot be transferred 
independently). By creating LLP licenses with these characteristics, 
the Council and NMFS limited the ability of a person to assign an LLP 
license that was derived from the historic landing activity of a vessel 
in one area, using a specific fishing gear or operational type to be 
used in other areas, with different gears or operational types, in a 
manner that could expand fishing capacity. The preamble to the final 
rule implementing the groundfish LLP provides a more detailed 
explanation of the rationale for specific

[[Page 41081]]

provisions in the LLP (October 1, 1998; 63 FR 52642).
    The regulatory areas for which LLP licenses were issued included 
the Bering Sea subarea (BS), Aleutian Islands subarea (AI), Southeast 
Outside District (SEO), Central Gulf of Alaska (CG), which includes the 
West Yakutat District, and Western Gulf of Alaska (WG). The documented 
harvest requirements necessary to receive an LLP license endorsed for a 
specific area differed depending on the size and the operational type 
of the vessel. For example, for a vessel owner to receive an 
endorsement for trawl gear in the CG with a catcher/processor 
designation, a vessel must have met the minimum documented harvest 
requirements in the CG using trawl gear and must have caught and 
processed those documented harvests onboard the vessel. NMFS did not 
issue any LLP licenses with a trawl endorsement in SEO because trawl 
gear is prohibited in SEO. Therefore, this action does not apply to the 
SEO management area.
    In 1999, NMFS issued groundfish LLP licenses with the appropriate 
regulatory area endorsements, gear, vessel length, and vessel 
operational type designations based on the documented harvests of 
vessels. LLP licenses were required for vessels participating in 
directed fishing for LLP groundfish species as of January 1, 2000. NMFS 
issued over 300 LLP licenses endorsed for trawl gear for use in the 
BSAI and GOA. In many cases, trawl LLP licenses were endorsed for 
multiple regulatory areas (e.g., WG, CG, and BS) if a vessel met the 
minimum number of documented harvests in more than one area. 
Additionally, a number of trawl LLP licenses were designated for both 
trawl and non-trawl gear (i.e., hook-and-line, pot, or jig gear) if the 
vessel met the documented harvest requirements using both trawl and 
non-trawl gear.
     After LLP licenses were initially issued, NMFS became aware from 
public testimony and a review of landings data that a substantial 
number of trawl-endorsed LLP licenses were not being used for fishing 
in some, or all, of the regulatory areas for which they were endorsed. 
Changes in the economic viability of some fishing operations, changes 
in fishery management regulations, or consolidation of fishery 
operations were likely factors that affected the number of LLP licenses 
actively used by vessels. LLP licenses that are valid but are not 
currently being used on a vessel are commonly known as ``latent'' LLP 
licenses.
    In early 2007, the Council began reviewing the use of trawl-
endorsed LLP licenses. This review was initiated primarily at the 
request of active trawl fishery participants who were concerned that 
latent trawl-endorsed LLP licenses could become active in the future 
and adversely affect their fishing operations. If the total allowable 
catch (TAC) or exvessel value of a fishery resource increased these 
factors could attract additional effort by trawl vessels. This 
increased effort could result in overcapacity in the fishery and make 
it more difficult for NMFS to close fisheries in a timely manner, 
potentially resulting in the TAC being exceeded for a fishery. During 
the process of this review, the Council also received input from the 
public requesting modification to the LLP to meet unique conditions in 
the AI area that limit the ability of catcher vessels to harvest, and 
specific AI area communities to process, federally managed groundfish. 
In April 2008, after more than a year of review and extensive public 
comment, the Council recommended modifications to the LLP to revise 
eligibility criteria for trawl endorsements on LLP licenses.

Notice of Availability and Proposed Rule

    NMFS published the notice of availability for Amendments 92 and 82 
on December 12, 2008 (73 FR 75659), with a public comment period that 
closed on February 10, 2009. NMFS published the proposed rule for this 
action on December 30, 2008 (73 FR 79773), with a public comment period 
that closed on February 13, 2009. Amendments 92 and 82 were approved by 
NMFS on March 16, 2009. NMFS received eight public comments from three 
unique persons on Amendments 92 and 82 and the proposed rule; these are 
summarized and responded to below.

Changes to the LLP Program

    This rule implements two different actions. First, this rule 
removes certain latent trawl regulatory area endorsements on LLP 
licenses. With two exceptions, a trawl endorsement for a specific 
regulatory area is removed from an LLP license that has been assigned 
to a vessel that has not made a minimum of two landings using trawl 
gear in a specific regulatory area during the period 2000 through 2006.
    One exemption allows a person to retain a trawl endorsement on an 
LLP license for both the CG and the WG if the LLP license had been used 
on a vessel that made at least 20 landings using trawl gear in either 
the CG or WG from 2005 through 2007. The second exemption allows a 
person to retain a trawl endorsement in a specific regulatory area if 
that area endorsement is required for continued participation in one of 
three limited access privilege programs (LAPPs): the American Fisheries 
Act (AFA); the Amendment 80 Program; or the CG Rockfish Program. Under 
this exemption, NMFS will not remove trawl endorsements in the BS or AI 
regulatory areas from LLP licenses that are assigned for use in the AFA 
or Amendment 80 LAPP, and NMFS will not remove trawl endorsements in 
the CG regulatory area from LLP licenses assigned for use in the CG 
Rockfish Program LAPP. This exemption would apply only to LLP licenses 
used in fisheries managed under these three LAPPs, because under NMFS' 
regulations, fisheries managed under other LAPPs in the North Pacific 
(e.g., BSAI crab and BSAI halibut and fixed-gear sablefish) cannot be 
fished by vessels using trawl gear.
    The second action under this rule is the issuance of new and 
additional trawl AI area endorsements for catcher vessel operations for 
use in the Aleutian Islands Subarea. Under this rule, NMFS will issue 
AI trawl endorsements based on the harvests of: (1) non-AFA catcher 
vessels less than 60 feet in LOA, if those vessels have made at least 
500 metric tons (mt) of landings of Pacific cod harvested from State of 
Alaska (State) waters adjacent to the Aleutian Islands Subarea during 
2000 through 2006; and (2) non-AFA catcher vessels equal to or greater 
than 60 feet LOA if those vessels have made at least one landing of 
fish harvested from State waters during the Federal groundfish season 
in the Aleutian Islands Subarea and have made at least 1,000 mt of 
Pacific cod landings harvested from the BSAI during 2000 through 2006. 
The rationale and effects of these two proposed actions are described 
in detail in the preamble to the proposed rule and the EA/RIR/FRFA 
supporting this action (see ADDRESSES) and are briefly summarized here.

Action 1: Removing Latent Trawl LLP Licenses

Use of Trawl LLP Endorsements
    Latent LLP licenses are inactive, but not invalid. Removing latent 
trawl LLP endorsements reduces the risk that in the future vessel 
operators could assign latent LLP licenses to trawl vessels, 
effectively reactivating those licenses and thereby increasing the 
amount of trawl effort in the groundfish fisheries. This additional 
effort could increase harvest rate in the trawl fishery, and adversely 
affect currently active participants by increasing competition, 
diluting their potential gross revenues and creating incentives for 
harvesters to

[[Page 41082]]

race for fish in a potentially wasteful manner.
    The Council considered a range of options and alternatives to 
determine the minimum number of landings required for a trawl LLP 
endorsement to remain valid. After a review of groundfish catch history 
and public testimony, the Council determined that two landings during 
the seven year period from 2000 through 2006 represented a minimal, but 
sufficient, amount of participation in the trawl fisheries to indicate 
some level of dependence on trawl fishing. The Council recommended that 
this landing requirement apply to each regulatory area so that 
endorsements would be removed only for those regulatory areas where 
minimum landing requirements were not met. Therefore, LLP licenses that 
were active in more than one regulatory area might meet the minimum 
landing requirements in one area but not another.
Determining the Number of Landings Assigned to an LLP License
    Beginning in 2002, NMFS required that an LLP license designate a 
specific vessel on which it was being used. This requirement allowed 
NMFS to assign landings to a specific LLP license without having to 
make any assumptions about the specific vessel to which the LLP license 
was assigned. If an LLP license is not assigned a sufficient number of 
landings in a specific regulatory area, NMFS would extinguish the trawl 
endorsement on that LLP license in that regulatory area. NMFS can 
verify use of an LLP license on a specific vessel after 2002. When 
combined with landings records, NMFS can determine how many landings 
may be assigned to a specific LLP license during a specific time frame.
    However, during the first two years of the LLP, 2000 and 2001, NMFS 
did not track the use of LLP licenses on specific vessels. Although LLP 
licenses were required to be onboard vessels, there is no independent 
data source to verify specific LLP licenses used on specific vessels 
during 2000 and 2001. NMFS will assume that the vessel that had the 
eligible landings for the original LLP license (i.e., the original 
qualifying vessel) used the LLP license during all of 2000 and 2001, 
unless an LLP license holder provides NMFS a clear and unambiguous 
contract or other written documentation to prove this assumption is 
incorrect. This assumption offers an LLP holder the opportunity to 
challenge NMFS's official record, but a rebuttal of this assumption 
cannot be based merely on oral testimony or recollection, which NMFS 
considers to be insufficient evidence for purposes of this action.
    If a vessel was designated on more than one LLP license, NMFS will 
assign the credit for that landing to any LLP licenses assigned to, or 
``stacked,'' on that vessel at the time of landing. Effectively, NMFS 
will credit a single landing to more than one LLP license. This 
provision ensures that in those cases in which more than one LLP 
license with a specific area endorsement was assigned to a vessel that 
made a landing, all LLP licenses assigned to that vessel at the time of 
landing would be credited with the landing. Because NMFS, and in many 
cases vessel owners and operators, did not specify how specific 
landings should be assigned to multiple LLP licenses assigned to a 
vessel at the time a landing was made, this provision will resolve any 
disputes that may arise about the assignment of specific landings by 
crediting all LLP licenses used on that vessel when a landing was made.

Exemptions From the Minimum Landing Requirements

Exemption 1: LLP Licenses Used on Vessels Active in the GOA

    This rule will retain a trawl endorsement on a catcher vessel LLP 
license in a regulatory area in the GOA (i.e., the CG or WG), if the 
LLP license was assigned to a vessel that made more than 20 landings in 
at least one of the regulatory areas of the GOA from 2005 through 2007. 
This exemption allows catcher vessel LLP license holders who have 
demonstrated a substantial and recent dependence in the GOA to continue 
to hold an endorsement in both the CG and WG. Furthermore, this will 
allow active participants in the CG to keep their WG endorsements 
because the TACs for several groundfish species in the Western GOA have 
not been fully harvested in recent years.

Exemption 2: Retaining Trawl Endorsements for LLP Licenses Assigned to 
LAPPs

    This rule exempts any LLP license that is assigned for use in the 
AFA, CG Rockfish Program, or the Amendment 80 Program from the specific 
landing requirements in the regulatory areas for which that area 
endorsement is required. This exemption applies as follows:
    1. Exempt landing requirements for BS or AI area endorsements 
originally issued to LLP licenses for vessels qualified under the AFA, 
and any BS or AI area endorsement on an LLP license assigned to an AFA 
vessel not having any other LLP license assigned to that vessel as of 
the effective date of this rule.
    2. Exempt landing requirements for BS or AI area endorsements 
originally issued to LLP licenses for vessels that may generate quota 
share (QS) under the Amendment 80 Program.
    3. Exempt landing requirements for CG area endorsements on LLP 
licenses that are eligible to receive QS under the CG Rockfish Program.
    This exemption benefits the participants in the three LAPPs that 
have already met stricter requirements for these specific management 
areas to participate in these programs. A person must hold a valid LLP 
license with endorsements in specific regulatory areas to be eligible 
to participate in these LAPPs. The AFA and Amendment 80 LAPPs require 
that a person assign an LLP license with a valid trawl endorsement in 
the BS or AI to a vessel eligible under those LAPPs. Similarly, under 
the CG Rockfish Program, a person must have an LLP license with a trawl 
endorsement in the CG to participate in that LAPP. Removing LLP 
licenses that do not meet specific landing requirements, but that are 
required to continue to receive exclusive harvest allocations for these 
LAPPs for which they are otherwise qualified, adversely affects LAPP 
participants. This is not the intent of this action. The intent of this 
action is to remove latent trawl endorsements. The net effect of this 
exemption is that AFA LLP licenses and LLP licenses originally issued 
to Amendment 80 vessels that are eligible to generate QS are subject 
only to the CG and WG area endorsement landing requirements, and the CG 
Rockfish Program LLP licenses are subject only to the BS, AI, and WG 
area endorsement landing requirements.
    NMFS will determine which LLP licenses are eligible for this 
exemption from the landing requirements for each of the three LAPPs as 
follows:
    1. For the AFA, LLP licenses with a trawl gear designation with a 
BS or AI area endorsement that were originally issued based on the 
harvest activities of AFA vessels are exempt from the landing 
requirements. In addition, LLP licenses with a trawl gear designation 
with BS or AI area endorsements that were not originally issued based 
on the harvest activities of AFA vessels, but that are assigned to AFA 
vessels on the effective date of this regulation, are exempt from the 
landing requirements in the BS or AI. This exemption to the landing 
requirements applies to an LLP license only if no LLP licenses 
originally issued based on the harvest activities of AFA vessels are 
assigned to

[[Page 41083]]

that AFA vessel on the effective date of the rule.
    2. For the Amendment 80 Program, all LLP licenses with a trawl gear 
designation and with a BS or AI area endorsement that were originally 
issued based on the harvest activities of Amendment 80 vessels that may 
generate QS are exempt from the landing requirements in the BS or AI. A 
list of the Amendment 80 vessels that were used to harvest catch that 
may result in the issuance of QS under the Amendment 80 Program is 
provided in Column A of Table 31 to 50 CFR part 679. The LLP licenses 
originally issued based on the harvest activities of those Amendment 80 
vessels, and that are subject to this exemption are listed in Column C 
of Table 31 to 50 CFR part 679.
    3. For the CG Rockfish Program, all LLP licenses with a trawl gear 
designation and with a CG area endorsement to which NMFS has assigned 
Rockfish QS are exempt from the landing requirements in the CG. This 
ensures that LLP licenses that were issued QS and are necessary to 
participate in the CG Rockfish Program can continue to be used in the 
CG and remain valid.

Action 2: Adding Aleutian Island Endorsements to Non-AFA Trawl Catcher 
Vessel LLP Licenses

Background on Aleutian Island Fisheries
     Congress, the Council, and NMFS have developed and implemented a 
series of programs in recent years that provide harvest opportunities 
for catcher vessels in the Aleutian Islands. They attempted to provide 
economic opportunities for harvesters and processors in the Aleutian 
Islands, specifically for the community of Adak. For example, section 
803 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-
199), allocates the Aleutian Islands directed pollock fishery to the 
Aleut Corporation, or its authorized agents, for the economic 
development of Adak. NMFS published a final rule to implement section 
803 on March 1, 2005 (70 FR 9856). Also in 2005, NMFS implemented the 
Crab Rationalization Program, a LAPP for BSAI crab fisheries (March 2, 
2005, 70 FR 10174) that allocates 10 percent of the TAC for Western 
Aleutian Islands golden king crab (Lithodes aequispinus) to a specific 
entity representing the community of Adak. The Crab Rationalization 
Program also places geographic delivery requirements on a portion of 
the remaining Western Aleutian Islands golden king crab TAC that favors 
processing in Adak and the nearby community of Atka. In 2007, NMFS 
implemented the Amendment 80 Program which specifies that a portion of 
the Aleutian Islands Pacific ocean perch and Atka mackerel fisheries 
would be available for harvest by trawl catcher vessels. These vessels 
may choose to land their catch in Adak or Atka, but are not required to 
do so (September 14, 2007, 72 FR 52668).
    The State of Alaska also has established Pacific cod and sablefish 
fisheries in the State waters of the Aleutian Islands that are 
exclusively managed by the State and that provide harvesting and 
processing opportunities for vessels and processors based in Adak and 
the nearby community of Atka. These fisheries are managed based on a 
guideline harvest level (GHL) that is determined by the State. These 
State-managed fisheries are tailored to open after the close of the 
federally managed seasons. In addition, State fishery managers 
coordinate with NMFS to open and close State waters to fishing 
concurrently with openings and closings for the Federal seasons to 
harvest the Federal TAC. A State-managed fishery that occurs in state 
waters concurrently with a Federal fishery is called a ``parallel 
fishery.'' The coordinated parallel fishery in State waters allows 
harvesters to efficiently harvest the Federal TAC regardless of whether 
harvest occurs in State or Federal waters.
    Commercial fishing grounds often occur within State waters (i.e., 
within 3 nautical miles of the coastline) on the narrow continental 
shelf around some of the Aleutian Islands because of the bathymetry of 
the region and the life histories of the target species; however, these 
fishery resources are also present in Federal waters. In recent years, 
many of the catcher vessels actively fishing in the Aleutian Islands 
and delivering their catch to Adak, and to a lesser extent, Atka, have 
harvested fish from State waters, either under the GHL during the 
State-managed Pacific cod fishery, or under the Federal TAC during the 
parallel fishery. Many of these vessels are not currently designated on 
an LLP license with an AI area endorsement.
    This action will assign new AI area endorsements to provide 
additional harvest opportunities to non-AFA trawl catcher vessels that 
have been active in State waters in the Aleutian Islands in recent 
years, but which are not designated on an LLP license with an AI area 
endorsement. These new AI area endorsements will be added to LLP 
licenses that name non-AFA trawl catcher vessels because those vessels 
have been active in the fisheries in the Aleutian Islands, and AFA LLP 
licenses that already hold AI area endorsements will continue to be 
eligible to use those LLP licenses to fish in the Aleutian Islands 
under the exemption to the landing requirements described earlier in 
this preamble. In particular, these new AI area endorsements will 
provide additional opportunities for catcher vessels to harvest and 
process Pacific cod in the Aleutian Islands. Pacific cod is the 
groundfish species most frequently targeted by non-AFA catcher vessels 
in the State GHL and parallel fisheries in the Aleutian Islands; 
therefore the Council used those landings as the basis for determining 
eligibility to receive an AI area endorsement.
    Two different types of AI area endorsements will be created. First, 
non-AFA trawl catcher vessels that are equal to or greater than 60 feet 
LOA, have made at least one landing in either the State GHL or parallel 
fishery, and have made at least 1,000 metric tons (mt) of Pacific cod 
landings harvested from the BSAI from 2000 through 2006 will be 
eligible to receive an AI area endorsement on the LLP licenses that 
name these vessels. Second, non-AFA trawl catcher vessels that are less 
than 60 feet LOA and that have made at least 500 mt of Pacific cod 
landings harvested from the parallel fishery, but not the Stage GHL 
fishery, from 2000 through 2006 would be eligible to receive an AI 
endorsement on the LLP licenses that name these vessels. NMFS will 
assign these new AI endorsements to the LLP licenses that designate 
eligible vessels at the time of the effective date of this rule. The 
EA/RIR/FRFA estimates that eight AI area endorsements will be issued 
based on the catch history of vessels less than 60 feet LOA, and four 
AI area endorsements will be issued based on the catch history of 
vessels equal to or greater than 60 feet LOA (see ADDRESSES).
    As discussed above, different qualification criteria apply for 
catcher vessels less than 60 feet LOA and those equal to or greater 
than 60 feet LOA. Vessels less than 60 feet LOA are typically adapted 
to fish in multiple fisheries using multiple gear types and are subject 
to a different range of monitoring, enforcement, recordkeeping, and 
reporting requirements under existing regulations than are vessels 
equal to or greater than 60 feet LOA. In addition, LLP licenses 
initially issued based on the documented landings of vessels less than 
60 feet LOA cannot be used on vessels greater than 60 feet LOA. Because 
of the operational and regulatory distinctions applicable to

[[Page 41084]]

vessels less than and equal to or greater than 60 feet LOA, the Council 
recommended different criteria be applied to determine whether an AI 
trawl endorsement would be issued to vessels based on their size. The 
preamble to the proposed rule contains an extensive discussion of the 
rationale for this action, and is not repeated here.
    In addition, the Council recommended that the new AI area 
endorsements based on the landings of vessels less than 60 feet LOA 
should be severable and transferable from the overall LLP license. 
However, the Council clarified that these AI area endorsements may be 
reassigned only to a trawl catcher vessel LLP license with a maximum 
length overall (MLOA) of less than 60 feet in order to ensure that 
these endorsements would be used on small vessels in the Aleutian 
Islands. During deliberations, the Council noted that the less than 60-
foot catcher vessel fleet is more reliant on multi-species operations 
than are vessels greater than 60 feet; and most of the under 60-foot 
vessel operators also hold LLP licenses that are endorsed for trawl 
fisheries in other regulatory areas. These vessel operators must 
balance a variety of fishing opportunities in other areas (e.g., WG or 
CG) and may choose not to fish in the AI if conditions are not 
favorable. Vessels choosing to not fish in the AI could reduce 
potential economic benefits to processors in Adak or in other locations 
in the Aleutian Islands. However, if an LLP license holder were issued 
an AI area endorsement that could be transferred independently of the 
LLP license to which it was originally assigned, and at some point the 
LLP license holder decides to no longer fish in the Aleutian Islands, 
there could be increased incentive to sell the AI area endorsement, 
apart from the LLP license. Allowing the AI area endorsement to be 
severable from the LLP license to which it is originally assigned would 
avoid a situation in which AI endorsements would be irrevocably tied to 
LLP licenses that were not being used on vessels operating in the 
Aleutian Islands. The Council concluded that allowing severable AI 
endorsements would not lead to excess effort in the AI regulatory area.
    The Council determined that the ability to sever endorsements for 
LLP license was not necessary for the AI area endorsements derived from 
vessels that are equal to or greater than 60 feet LOA. As noted 
earlier, the Council sought to balance the objectives of reducing 
latent fishing capacity in the first action included in this rule with 
the goal of providing additional harvesting and processing alternatives 
in the Aleutian Islands.
Assigning an AI Area Endorsement to a Specific LLP License
    Because the landing criteria to qualify for an AI area endorsement 
are primarily based on landings with fish caught within State waters, 
some qualifying landings have been made by vessels that did not have 
LLP licenses assigned to them at the time the landings were made. 
Vessels fishing exclusively within the jurisdiction of the State in 
State waters are not under the jurisdiction of the Council and so are 
not required to be assigned an LLP license. Therefore, NMFS will use 
two methods to assign any new AI area endorsements to an LLP license to 
ensure that there is a linkage between the landings made by a non-AFA 
catcher vessel that fished in State waters and a specific LLP license.
    The first method is applicable to non-AFA catcher vessels less than 
60 feet LOA that meet the requisite minimum 500 mt landings requirement 
to receive an AI endorsement. NMFS will assign an AI endorsement based 
on the landings of a non-AFA trawl catcher vessel to an LLP license 
that 1) designates that non-AFA vessel on the effective date of this 
regulation; 2) was not derived in whole or in part from the qualifying 
fishing history of an AFA vessel; 3) has a trawl gear designation; 4) 
does not have a catcher/processor vessel designation; 5) does not have 
an MLOA equal to or greater than 60 feet; and 6) has at least 500 mt of 
Pacific cod landings using trawl gear harvested from the parallel 
fishery adjacent to the Aleutian Islands Subarea during the period from 
January 1, 2000, through December 31, 2006.
    The second method is applicable to non-AFA catcher vessels equal to 
or greater than 60 feet LOA that meet the requisite minimum 1,000-mt-
landings requirement to receive an AI area endorsement. NMFS will 
assign an AI area endorsement based on the landings of a non-AFA trawl 
catcher vessel to an LLP license that 1) designates that non-AFA vessel 
on the effective date of this regulation; 2) was not derived in whole 
or in part from the qualifying fishing history of an AFA vessel; 3) has 
a trawl gear designation; 4) does not have a catcher/processor vessel 
designation; and 5) has at least 1,000 mt of landings of Pacific cod 
using trawl gear harvested from the BSAI made under the authority of 
that LLP license during the period from January 1, 2000, through 
December 31, 2006, according to the official record created by NMFS.
    These requirements would ensure that the AI area endorsement is 
assigned to an LLP license that can only be used on a non-AFA trawl 
catcher vessel consistent with the Council's intent. NMFS will 
establish a rebuttable presumption that an AI area endorsement will be 
assigned to the LLP license that designates the non-AFA trawl catcher 
vessel on the effective date of this rule. This presumption ensures 
that an AI area endorsement is issued to a specific LLP license that is 
actively being used on the vessel that met the requisite landing 
requirements.
    If the official record shows that, on the effective date of this 
rule, the owner of a vessel that meets the AI endorsement landing 
criteria does not hold an LLP license to which an AI area endorsement 
may be assigned, the vessel owner will have the opportunity to provide 
additional information and challenge NMFS's presumption to designate an 
otherwise eligible LLP license. Similarly, if the vessel owner 
disagrees with NMFS's designation of the LLP license to which the AI 
area endorsement is assigned, the vessel owner will have the 
opportunity to provide additional information and challenge NMFS's 
designation and have the AI area endorsement assigned to an otherwise 
eligible LLP license. Should the owner of a vessel meeting the AI 
endorsement requirements subsequently receive an LLP license (i.e., 
purchase an LLP license) that is otherwise eligible to be assigned an 
AI endorsement (i.e., it is a non-AFA, trawl catcher vessel endorsed 
LLP license with the appropriate MLOA), the vessel owner can request 
that NMFS assign the AI endorsement to that LLP license. Otherwise, 
NMFS will assign the AI endorsement to the LLP license specified in the 
amended official record.
Transfers of AI Endorsements
    Only LLP AI area endorsements for vessels less than 60 feet LOA are 
transferrable separate from the LLP. To facilitate the transfers, NMFS 
modified LLP license transfer regulations at Sec.  679.4(k)(7) to 
clarify the process for transferring an AI area endorsement independent 
of the LLP license. NMFS specified that a new AI area endorsement may 
be transferred from the LLP license to which it was originally issued 
to another LLP license that (1) was not derived in whole or in part 
from the qualifying fishing history of an AFA vessel; (2) has a catcher 
vessel designation; (3) has a trawl gear designation; (4) has an MLOA 
of less than 60 feet LOA; and (5) has an MLOA that is not longer than 
the MLOA designated on the LLP license to which

[[Page 41085]]

that AI endorsement was originally issued. These limitations would meet 
the Council's intent to provide opportunities for LLP licenses used on 
smaller non-AFA catcher vessels.
    The voluntary transfer process for an AI area endorsement is 
similar to the procedures currently in place for transferring an LLP 
license. First, a person seeking to transfer an AI area endorsement 
must submit a complete transfer application for an LLP license to the 
Regional Administrator as described under Sec.  679.4(k)(7). As part of 
that application process, the person must specify the specific LLP 
license to which the transferred AI area endorsement will be assigned. 
NMFS will not approve the transfer unless the AI area endorsement was 
assigned for transfer to an LLP license that met the five requirements 
specified above.
    This rule also will modify LLP license transfer regulations at 
Sec.  679.4(k)(7)(v) to clarify that the Regional Administrator will 
transfer an AI area endorsement based on a court order, operation of 
law, or a security agreement if the Regional Administrator determines 
that the transfer application is complete and the transfer will not 
otherwise violate any of the provisions relating to LLP license 
transfers. This change is necessary to ensure that AI endorsements are 
treated in the same manner that applies to LLP licenses in general.
    NMFS will apply the same limitations on the number of transfers of 
AI area endorsements that currently exist for LLP licenses. This 
limitation ensures that AI endorsements are not traded in a manner that 
could substantially increase the potential number of vessels actively 
fishing in the AI area, and would subject AI endorsements to the same 
transfer restrictions applicable to LLP licenses. Specifically, an AI 
area endorsement can be voluntarily transferred only once in any 
calendar year. A voluntary transfer is a transfer other than one 
pursuant to a court order, operation of law, or a security agreement. 
NMFS will not approve an application for transfer that will cause a 
person to exceed the transfer limit of this provision. NMFS will 
consider any transfer of an AI endorsement from one LLP license to 
another LLP license, or the transfer of an LLP license to which an AI 
endorsement is affixed, as a voluntary transfer of an AI endorsement. 
This provision is consistent with the Council's intent to limit the 
transfer of AI area endorsements in the same manner as those applicable 
to LLP licenses.
Process for Removing Latent Trawl Endorsements and Assigning New AI 
area Endorsements
    NMFS will create an official record with all relevant information 
necessary to assign landings to specific LLP licenses. As explained 
earlier in this preamble, NMFS did not track the use of specific LLP 
licenses onboard specific vessels during 2000 and 2001. Because NMFS 
cannot assign landings made aboard specific vessels to specific LLP 
licenses during this time period, NMFS will assume that any landings 
made by a vessel during 2000 and 2001 will be assigned to the LLP 
license derived from that vessel. Prior to modifying any LLP licenses, 
NMFS will notify all trawl LLP license holders of the status of their 
LLP license endorsements (i.e., whether they will retain or lose their 
endorsements for specific regulatory areas, or will be eligible to 
receive an AI area endorsement). Should an LLP license holder disagree 
with NMFS's official record, NMFS will provide an opportunity for any 
person to submit information to rebut the assumptions made by NMFS.
    The official record created by NMFS will contain vessel landings 
data and the LLP licenses to which those landings would be attributed. 
Evidence of the number and amount of landings would be based only on 
legally submitted NMFS weekly production reports for catcher/processors 
and State fish tickets for catcher vessels. Historically, NMFS has only 
used these two data sources to determine the specific amount and 
location of landings, and NMFS will continue to do so under this 
action. The official record will also include the records of the 
specific LLP licenses assigned to vessels and other relevant 
information necessary to attribute landings to specific LLP licenses. 
NMFS will presume the official record is correct, and a person wishing 
to challenge the presumptions in the official record will bear the 
burden of proof through an evidentiary and appeals process.
    NMFS will mail a notification to each trawl LLP license holder to 
the address on record at the time the notification is sent about the 
status of each regulatory area endorsement for that LLP license. NMFS 
will provide a single 30-day evidentiary period from the date that 
notification is sent for an LLP holder to submit any supporting 
information, or evidence, to verify that the information contained in 
the official record is inconsistent with his or her records.
    An LLP license holder who submits claims that are inconsistent with 
information in the official record will have the burden of proving that 
the submitted claims are correct. NMFS will not accept inconsistent 
claims unless verified by clear written documentation. NMFS will 
evaluate the additional information or evidence to support an LLP 
license holder's inconsistent claims submitted from the effective date 
of this regulation and within the 30-day evidentiary period. If NMFS 
determines that the additional information or evidence proves that the 
LLP license holder's inconsistent claims were indeed correct, NMFS will 
act in accordance with that information or evidence. However, if after 
the 30-day evidentiary period, NMFS determines that the additional 
information or evidence did not prove that the LLP license holder's 
inconsistent claims were correct, NMFS will deny the claim. NMFS will 
notify the applicant that the additional information or evidence did 
not meet the burden of proof to overcome the official record through an 
initial administrative determination (IAD). An applicant can appeal an 
IAD. The appeals process is described under Sec.  679.43. A person who 
appeals an IAD will be eligible to use the disputed LLP license with 
the endorsements listed on the LLP license until final action by NMFS 
on the appeal. NMFS will reissue any LLP licenses pending final action 
by NMFS as interim LLP licenses. NMFS will prohibit the transfer of an 
interim LLP license until the appeal is resolved.
    If a person does not dispute the notification of changes in their 
LLP license endorsements, or upon the resolution of any inconsistent 
claims, a revised LLP license with the appropriate endorsements will be 
reissued to the LLP license holder. In cases where all endorsements on 
a LLP license with only a trawl endorsement are extinguished, NMFS will 
not reissue the LLP license because it would no longer be valid for use 
with trawl gear in any management area.
Housekeeping Revisions to LLP Transfer Application and Permit 
Regulations
    This rule modifies regulations at Sec.  679.4(k)(7)(iii) to 
consolidate and clarify the regulations describing the contents of the 
LLP transfer application. In addition, this rule modifies the 
regulations at Sec.  679.7(i)(2) through (5), and Sec.  679.7(i)(8)(i) 
to replace the requirement that a person must have the original LLP 
license onboard to conduct directed fishing for license limitation 
groundfish, fish for LLP crab or scallops, or process those species 
with a requirement that a legible copy of the license will suffice.

[[Page 41086]]

Response to Comments

    Comment 1: NMFS should consider a wider range of documentary 
evidence to establish that a vessel made the requisite qualifying 
landings. The commenter notes NMFS will consider only legal landings 
that are documented on State of Alaska (State) fish tickets or NMFS 
weekly production reports as the basis for establishing whether a 
specific LLP license meets the requirements to retain its trawl 
endorsements. Because a legal landing had to be properly recorded on a 
State fish ticket or weekly production report, the ability of a person 
to use other documentation to challenge NMFS's official record for 
determining whether an LLP license meets the qualification is 
meaningless. Although legal landings must be recorded on a State fish 
ticket or weekly production report, other documentary evidence 
establishing that landings were recorded but not in NMFS's official 
record should be accepted. State of Alaska law limits the ability of a 
vessel owner to review State fish ticket records without the consent of 
the vessel skipper, thereby limiting the ability of a person to 
challenge NMFS's official record based on those records. Therefore, a 
person's right to challenge NMFS's official record is meaningless and a 
violation of due process privileges.
    Response: NMFS has used State fish tickets and NMFS weekly 
production reports as the most reliable and accurate information to 
establish landings in a variety of programs (e.g., Amendment 80 
Program, and Central GOA Rockfish Program). The commenter does not 
propose that NMFS should use other sources for establishing a legal 
landing, but that NMFS should accept other information that a landing 
occurred but that landing was not, for whatever reason, properly 
submitted to NMFS or is not otherwise available in NMFS's official 
record. If NMFS and the commenter agree that only State fish tickets or 
NMFS weekly production reports should be used to certify a landing, 
then it is not clear how any other information could be considered as 
evidence of a landing.
    NMFS will provide an LLP holder with the opportunity to submit 
information, including other documentary evidence, to challenge NMFS's 
official record. Even though other documentary evidence is not proof of 
a legal landing, this information can result in NMFS modifying the 
official record. For example, a person could submit landing settlements 
or other records that lead NMFS or the State to investigate the 
official record. This investigation could determine that a State fish 
ticket or NMFS weekly production report was misfiled by the State or 
NMFS, applied to the wrong vessel, or subject to some other error that 
could result in NMFS modifying the official record. An LLP license 
holder has a meaningful opportunity to present information to NMFS that 
could result in changes to the official record.
    NMFS provides adequate opportunity for a person to challenge an 
agency decision. As noted in the preamble, NMFS will provide each LLP 
license holder with a single 30-day evidentiary period to submit any 
information to challenge the official record (79 FR 79785). If NMFS 
does not accept the information submitted and does not modify the 
official record, NMFS will issue an Initial Agency Determination (IAD) 
rejecting a claim. After an IAD is issued, an LLP license holder can 
pursue a challenge to the official record through the use of an appeals 
process established in regulation at Sec.  679.43. NMFS will not revoke 
or extinguish an LLP license endorsement until the appeal process has 
concluded.
    The commenter's concern about State confidentiality requirements 
for the release of State fish tickets is outside the scope of this 
action. NMFS does not have the authority to modify State statutes.
    Comment 2: NMFS should clarify that those persons eligible to 
receive an AI trawl endorsement must designate the qualifying vessel on 
an eligible LLP license as of the effective date of the proposed 
regulations to receive the endorsement. To do otherwise, or to hold AI 
endorsements in regulatory limbo until the potential recipient obtains 
a qualifying LLP license to couple with that endorsement, will create 
too much uncertainty and limit the ability of NMFS to manage the 
fishery because of the potential increase in harvesting capacity 
associated with the AI trawl endorsements.
    Response: In cases where a person does not hold an LLP license, but 
is otherwise eligible to receive an AI endorsement, NMFS will withhold 
issuing that AI endorsement until such time as that person holds an LLP 
license with the requisite endorsements and MLOA appropriate for that 
endorsement. Extinguishing an AI endorsement if a person does not hold 
an LLP license within some time frame after the implementation of this 
regulation was not specifically addressed by the Council during the 
development of this provision; establishing such a provision now would 
require new rulemaking and would prohibit otherwise eligible persons 
from receiving an AI endorsement. Choosing to withhold the issuance of 
an AI trawl endorsement until the potential recipient obtains the 
appropriate LLP license does not undermine the ability of NMFS to carry 
out its fishery management responsibilities. If an AI endorsement is 
issued to an LLP license at some point in the future, NMFS is able to 
track the specific LLP license to which the endorsement is assigned, 
the vessel to which an LLP license is assigned, and the fisheries that 
a vessel operator is actively fishing by communicating with the 
operator or by monitoring the vessel electronically through the vessel 
monitoring system. NMFS can monitor that vessel's landings through 
mandatory catch reports. NMFS can use this information to adjust 
management actions to account for the harvest activity of a vessel to 
which an AI endorsement is assigned by closing fisheries earlier to 
accommodate any increased effort due to additional AI endorsements.
    In response to this comment, NMFS has modified the regulations at ' 
679.4(k)(4)(ix)(C) and (D) to state that a person may designate the LLP 
license to which the AI endorsement is assigned when an endorsement is 
issued by NMFS. If a person otherwise eligible to receive an AI 
endorsement does not hold an LLP license to which an AI endorsement may 
be assigned at the time this rule takes effect, an otherwise eligible 
LLP license may be designated by that person in the future, such as 
when the person has purchased an eligible LLP license. Furthermore, 
NMFS concluded that the proposed regulatory text did not clearly state 
that a person could select a specific eligible LLP license if more than 
one was held by the person eligible for the AI endorsement. This change 
ensures that a person can amend the official record once that person 
holds an eligible LLP to be assigned an AI endorsement. This change 
clarifies that this amendment does not require a challenge to the 
official record. Although these changes modify the proposed process for 
assigning AI endorsements to LLP licenses, they do not change the 
intent of this provision.
    Comment 3: NMFS should reissue trawl licenses for which all area 
endorsements are extinguished to facilitate the use of the AI trawl 
endorsements. Extinguishing a trawl endorsed LLP license if all of the 
area endorsements assigned to that license are no longer valid would be 
appropriate in most cases. However, allowing an LLP license holder to 
be able to transfer an AI endorsement onto

[[Page 41087]]

an LLP license that would otherwise be extinguished would provide some 
minimal value to some of the licenses that would otherwise be 
extinguished under this amendment package.
    Response: Adopting the commenter's suggestion would have the effect 
of requiring that NMFS maintain latent trawl LLP licenses so that an AI 
endorsement could be transferred onto any LLP license at some 
indeterminate point in the future. This would frustrate the overall 
goal of this action, which is to remove area endorsements, and 
potentially LLP licenses, that have not met the minimum landing 
requirements. The action recommended by the Council did not include a 
provision to reissue LLP licenses that are extinguished under this 
action. Including such a provision now would be contrary to the purpose 
and need for this action and the clear intent of the Council. In an 
action that amended eligibility to hold crab LLP licenses (September 
24, 2001; 66 FR 48813), NMFS extinguished those LLP licenses that no 
longer had any eligible endorsements, and a consistent approach would 
be used for this action.
    Comment 4: Permitting LLP license holder to maintain a legible copy 
of an LLP license on their vessel while fishing or processing, as 
opposed to the original LLP license, will greatly benefit participants 
in the fisheries. Maintaining an original LLP license onboard a vessel 
can impose significant costs on the industry during fishing due to 
expedited delivery costs and incidental costs incurred while waiting 
for an original LLP license to arrive. This change is long overdue.
    Response: NMFS agrees and notes the support.
    Comment 5: Remove latent trawl LLP licenses as described in the 
proposed rule. The proposed rule provides active participants with 
stability and insures some amount of protection of their investments 
in, and dependency on, the North Pacific fisheries. The threshold 
landing requirement does not harm LLP holders who are active in the 
fisheries and who show a dependency in such fisheries. Maintain the 
exemption to allow WG or CG endorsements to remain valid if at least 20 
landings were made during the qualifying period, and the exemption for 
LLP licenses required for specific LAPPs.
    Response: NMFS notes the support for this action. NMFS notes that 
this action removes trawl endorsements. NMFS will be extinguishing, or 
removing, LLP licenses only in cases where all endorsements on an LLP 
license are extinguished (see response to Comment 3 for additional 
detail).
    Comment 6: The commenter opposes the creation of new LLP 
endorsements for catcher vessels in the Aleutian Islands. This action 
is contrary to one of the central goals of the LLP Program as 
originally implemented. The action would not meet the goals stated in 
the preamble to the proposed rule. The rationale for this action is: 
the economic development of Adak, Alaska; the development of an under 
60 foot vessel fleet to harvest the AI pollock quota given to the Aleut 
Corporation; and the development of a resident fleet for Adak.
    This action will not contribute to the economic development for 
Adak. Because most participants in the AI fishery, including those that 
would receive new endorsements, have chosen not to deliver to Adak, 
increasing participation by issuing new federal endorsements could 
negatively impact Adak by attaining catch quotas and closing the 
fishery earlier without increasing deliveries to Adak fisheries. No new 
under-60-foot endorsements are needed to harvest AI pollock allocated 
to the Aleut Corporation because an AI endorsement is not required for 
those vessels. The creation of 12 new AI area endorsements will not 
develop a resident fleet of vessels for Adak. None of the vessel owners 
slated to receive the new endorsements are residents of Adak. The 
owners of the vessels that participated in the State Water Al Pacific 
cod fishery either live in Washington or Gulf of Alaska communities. 
More importantly, all have LLP licenses in other regions and are more 
dependent on fisheries in other regions.
    Increased participation in the AI subarea would increase fishing 
pressure in relation to the regional distribution of BSAI Pacific cod 
biomass. The most harm would be caused by issuance of new area 
endorsements that are severable and transferable, an action that even 
one of the recipients of such a new transferable LLP area endorsement 
testified to the Council that he did not want. This is contrary not 
only to the original purpose of this action, it contradicts the purpose 
of the LLP which prohibits the severability and transfer of 
endorsements because it will increase rather than limit participation. 
In creating these new endorsements, Adak would be hurt because the 
influx of new participants would likely cause the trawl catcher vessel 
Pacific cod fishery to be shortened.
    Response: As noted in the preamble to the proposed rule, this 
action would provide additional harvest opportunities to a specific 
group of LLP holders based on the catch history of vessels that have 
been active in AI parallel water fisheries in recent years. This action 
is intended to modify the LLP Program as originally implemented by 
NMFS, and the Council adopted a separate purpose and need statement to 
support this action. The Council is not restricted from modifying the 
LLP provided it is consistent with applicable law. The preamble to the 
proposed rule notes that this action is primarily intended to provide 
additional flexibility to vessels that are active in the Aleutian 
Islands and could provide additional opportunities for shorebased 
processors, but such opportunities were not guaranteed. Specifically, 
the preamble to the proposed rule (73 FR 79780) stated:

    LLP license holders who are issued new AI trawl endorsements 
would be provided with additional harvest opportunities in Federal 
waters that could be more economic to harvest. Processing facilities 
in the Aleutians, specifically those located in the communities of 
Adak and Atka, could benefit from access to Federal resources that 
could be more economically processed than fishery resources 
available only in State waters.

    The commenter's assertion that this action would not result in 
additional deliveries to Adak cannot be verified by NMFS because there 
is no way to predict choices that vessel operators will make in the 
future about their fishery deliveries. As noted in the preamble to the 
proposed rule, this action is not intended to ensure that additional 
deliveries will occur at a specific port, but that the catcher vessel 
fleet will have additional harvesting opportunities in Federal waters 
that did not previously exist. Those additional harvest opportunities 
could provide additional processing for shorebased facilities in Adak 
and Atka. This action does not guarantee that additional deliveries 
will occur at these ports, or any other specific port.
    Contrary to the commenter's assertion, the Council did not 
recommend this action to provide opportunities for the harvest of 
Aleutian Islands pollock. As noted in the preamble to the proposed 
rule, ``these new AI area endorsements would provide additional 
opportunities for catcher vessels to harvest and process Pacific cod in 
the Aleutian Islands. Pacific cod is the groundfish species most 
frequently targeted by non-AFA catcher vessels in the State GHL and 
parallel fisheries in the Aleutian Islands; therefore the Council used 
those landings as the basis for determining eligibility to receive an 
AI area endorsement (73 FR 79780). The analysis used to support this 
action also notes that the primary benefits of this

[[Page 41088]]

action would be for those active in the Atka mackerel, Pacific ocean 
perch, and Pacific cod fisheries (see section 2.8.2).
    NMFS cannot confirm the commenter's assertion that the recipients 
of the AI endorsement will choose not to deliver catch to a specific 
port. Again, this action does not mandate delivery to specific ports 
and the Council did not intend that specific ports would receive a 
specific portion of the catch, nor did the Council guarantee such a 
result. As noted in section 2.7.5.4 of the analysis prepared for this 
rule ``there is no guarantee that these AI endorsements would be used 
to fish groundfish in the AI, or be used by vessels that would choose 
to ``homeport'', or deliver to a shoreside processing plant, in Adak. 
The creation of the endorsements, and their potential severability and 
transferability, however, may provide an opportunity to facilitate 
economic development in Adak, compared to the status quo.
    The Council and NMFS were aware that this action could have 
distributional effects on the specific participants who are active in 
Aleutian Islands groundfish fisheries. Specifically, the preamble to 
the proposed rule (73 FR 79773) notes that:

     In recommending this action, the Council balanced the potential 
benefits against the potential negative effect on existing fishery 
participants in the Aleutian Islands. This proposed action would not 
increase the total amount of the TAC harvested in the BSAI. The TAC 
would continue to limit total harvests. This proposed action could 
shift the proportion of groundfish harvested by trawl vessels 
relative to other vessels in the Aleutian Islands thereby affecting 
the associated ex-vessel revenues for existing fishery participants.

    The commenter's assertion that this action will result in increased 
fishing pressure on the regional distribution of the BSAI Pacific cod 
biomass is based on assumptions about the potential distribution of the 
Pacific cod biomass that have not been reviewed by the Council or NMFS. 
The Pacific cod fishery is constrained by the Pacific cod TAC specified 
annually for the BSAI. Based on data from a variety of sources, the 
Council is reviewing the potential implications of apportioning the 
Pacific cod TAC between the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. As that 
analysis is developed, the Council and NMFS will consider fishing 
practices in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands, and may recommend 
changes to fishery management program that may be necessary to 
accommodate a TAC apportionment. However, based on the best available 
information at this time, issuing a limited number of additional AI 
endorsements that are likely to be used on vessels that are already 
active in harvesting BSAI Pacific cod in the Aleutian Islands parallel 
water fishery would not be likely to cause the BSAI Pacific cod fishery 
to close earlier than it does currently. The Council did review and 
consider the potential effects of this action on current Aleutian 
Islands harvesters and processors during its deliberative process and 
in section 2.7.5 of the analysis prepared for this action.
    Comment 7: The commenter supports designating LLP licenses as non-
transferable while any appeals on the status of an LLP license 
endorsement are resolved. However, past experience suggests that the 
appeal process can be very lengthy, particularly for resolving LLP 
license appeals. While an LLP is under appeal it is still valid and may 
be used until the appeals process is completed. If the appeals process 
is lengthy, the net effect is that a regulation intended to reduce 
latent capacity does not fully accomplish its goal. The Alaska Region 
Office of Administrative Appeals should resolve any appeals quickly. In 
the Pacific groundfish fishery, regulations are in place that requires 
appeals to be resolved within 30 or 45 days. A similar timeline for 
resolution of appeals for this action would seem to be appropriate.
    Response: NMFS notes the support for designating LLP licenses as 
non-transferable while under appeal. NMFS intends to move expeditiously 
to resolve all appeals in a timely manner, but a specific timeline for 
resolving appeals is difficult to predict given the wide range of 
issues that may be addressed under appeal. The Council considered and 
rejected a fixed timeline similar to the one used in the Pacific 
groundfish fishery to resolve appeals given the potential that 
complexities may arise during a specific appeal that could require more 
than the 30 or 45 days.
    Comment 8: Although the proposed rule suggests that removing latent 
trawl LLP licenses became a consideration in early 2007, this issue 
came before the Council much earlier. In 2005, the Council considered 
provisions to remove latent catcher vessel LLP licenses under Amendment 
80 and Amendment 85 to the FMP for BSAI gr