Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Golden Tilefish Fishery; 2018 and Projected 2019-2020 Specifications, 42266-42268 [2017-18958]
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42266
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 172 / Thursday, September 7, 2017 / Proposed Rules
Notice 2 and a Final Regulatory
Flexibility Analysis (FRFA) in
connection with the 700 MHz Second
Report and Order.3 While no
commenter directly responded to the
IRFA, the FRFA addressed concerns
about the impact on small business of
the KWYS rules. The IRFA and FRFA
set forth the need for and objectives of
the Commission’s rules for the KWYS
rules; the legal basis for those rules, a
description and estimate of the number
of small entities to which the rules
apply; a description of projected
reporting, recordkeeping, and other
compliance requirements for small
entities; steps taken to minimize the
significant economic impact on small
entities and significant alternatives
considered; and a statement that there
are no federal rules that may duplicate,
overlap, or conflict with the rules. The
proposals in this document do not
change any of those descriptions.
This document does, however, detail
proposed procedures for implementing
those rules. Therefore, this document
seeks comment on how the proposals in
this document could affect either the
IRFA or the FRFA. Such comments
must be filed in accordance with the
same filing deadlines for responses to
this document and have a separate and
distinct heading designating them as
responses to the IRFA and FRFA.
Initial Paperwork Reduction Act
Analysis
pmangrum on DSK3GDR082PROD with PROPOSALS
The document contains proposed new
information collection requirements.
The Commission, as part of its
continuing effort to reduce paperwork
burdens, invites the general public and
OMB to comment on the information
collection requirements contained in
this document, as required by PRA. In
addition, pursuant to the Small
Business Paperwork Relief Act of 2002,
Public Law 107–198, see 44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(4), the Commission seeks
specific comment on how it might
‘‘further reduce the information
collection burden for small business
concerns with fewer than 25
employees.’’
Federal Communications Commission.
Nese Guendelsberger,
Senior Deputy Bureau Chief, Wireless
Telecommunications Bureau.
[FR Doc. 2017–18987 Filed 9–6–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712–01–P
2 Service Rules for 698–746, 747–762, and 777–
792 MHz Bands et al., Report and Order and
Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 22 FCC
Rcd 8064, 8212 (2007) (700 MHz Further Notice).
3 700 MHz Second Report and Order, 22 FCC Rcd
at 15542.
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and will generally be posted for public
viewing on www.regulations.gov
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
without change. All personal identifying
Administration
information (e.g., name, address, etc.),
confidential business information, or
50 CFR Part 648
otherwise sensitive information
submitted voluntarily by the sender will
[Docket No. 170717675–7675–01]
be publicly accessible. NMFS will
RIN 0648–XF571
accept anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/
A’’ in the required fields if you wish to
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
remain anonymous).
States; Golden Tilefish Fishery; 2018
A draft environmental assessment
and Projected 2019–2020
(EA) has been prepared for this action
Specifications
that describes the proposed measures
and other considered alternatives, as
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries
well as provides an analysis of the
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
impacts of the proposed measures and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
alternatives. Copies of the specifications
Commerce.
document, including the EA and the
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
comments.
(IRFA), are available on request from Dr.
SUMMARY: NMFS proposes specifications Christopher M. Moore, Executive
Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery
for the 2018 commercial golden tilefish
Management Council, Suite 201, 800
fishery and projected specifications for
North State Street, Dover, DE 19901.
2019 and 2020. The proposed action is
These documents are also accessible via
intended to establish allowable harvest
the Internet at https://www.mafmc.org.
levels and other management measures
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
to prevent overfishing while allowing
Cynthia Hanson, Fishery Management
optimum yield, consistent with the
Specialist, (978) 281–9180.
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act and
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
the Tilefish Fishery Management Plan.
Background
It is also intended to inform the public
of these proposed specifications for the
The golden tilefish fishery is managed
2018 fishing year and projected
by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery
specifications for 2019–2020.
Management Council under the Tilefish
Fishery Management Plan (FMP), which
DATES: Comments must be received by
outlines the Council’s process for
5 p.m. local time, on September 22,
establishing annual specifications. The
2017.
FMP requires the Council to recommend
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
acceptable biological catch (ABC),
on this document, identified by NOAA– annual catch limit (ACL), annual catch
NMFS–2017–0091, by either of the
target (ACT), total allowable landings
following methods:
(TAL), and other management measures,
ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION: Submit
for up to three years at a time. The
all electronic public comments via the
directed fishery is managed under an
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.
individual fishing quota (IFQ) program,
1. Go to www.regulations.gov/
with small amounts of non-IFQ catch
#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2017allowed under an incidental permit. The
0091,
Council’s Scientific and Statistical
2. Click the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ icon,
Committee (SSC) provides an ABC
complete the required fields.
recommendation to the Council to
3. Enter or attach your comments.
derive these catch limits. The Council
- OR makes recommendations to NMFS that
cannot exceed the recommendation of
MAIL: Submit written comments to
its SSC. The Council’s
John Bullard, Regional Administrator,
recommendations must include
National Marine Fisheries Service, 55
supporting documentation concerning
Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA
the environmental, economic, and social
01930. Mark the outside of the
impacts of the recommendations. We
envelope: ‘‘Comments on the Proposed
are responsible for reviewing these
Rule for Golden Tilefish
recommendations to ensure that they
Specifications.’’
achieve the FMP objectives and are
INSTRUCTIONS: Comments sent by
consistent with all applicable laws, and
any other method, to any other address
may modify them if they do not.
or individual, or received after the end
Following review, NMFS publishes the
of the comment period, may not be
final specifications in the Federal
considered by NMFS. All comments
Register.
received are part of the public record
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 172 / Thursday, September 7, 2017 / Proposed Rules
In January 2014, the 58th Northeast
Stock Assessment Workshop (SAW)
declared the golden tilefish stock rebuilt
and concluded that overfishing is not
occurring. A stock assessment update
with data through 2016 is currently in
development, but the 58th SAW is still
the most up to date and best available
science for the Council to use in its
decision-making on these golden tilefish
specifications. Based on this report, and
the ABC recommendations made by the
Council’s SSC, the Council took final
action April 2017 on 2018–2020 quota
specifications for the golden tilefish
fishery, and submitted its recommended
specifications to us on July 5, 2017. A
summary of the Council’s recommended
specifications is shown below in Table
1.
Proposed Specifications
The Council’s recommendations are
consistent with the SSC’s recommended
ABCs, and represent a reduction in ABC
and overall commercial quota from 2017
to ensure overfishing does not occur.
The proposed IFQ quota of 1,554,038 lb
42267
(705 mt) is a 13-percent reduction from
2017, and the incidental quota of 72,397
lb (33 mt) is a 23-percent reduction. The
proposed incidental sector typically
lands less than half of its allocated
quota each year, so this larger reduction
is unlikely to have a significant impact.
As golden tilefish are not overfished or
experiencing overfishing, the reduction
in the quotas is a result of the SSC
applying the Council’s risk policy to the
most recent assessment outputs to
derive its ABC recommendation.
TABLE 1—SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDED GOLDEN TILEFISH SPECIFICATIONS
2018
million lb
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Overfishing Limit ......................................
ABC ..........................................................
ACL ..........................................................
IFQ ACT ...................................................
Incidental ACT .........................................
IFQ TAL ...................................................
Incidental TAL ..........................................
IFQ Quota ................................................
Incidental Quota .......................................
2.332
1.636
1.636
1.554
0.082
1.554
0.072
1.554
0.072
As in recent years, the Council
recommended ABC=ACL=ACT. The
TAL is derived by deducting anticipated
discards of tilefish from the ACT. Under
the FMP, 95 percent of the TAL is
allocated for the IFQ fishery, and the
remaining 5 percent is allocated for the
incidental fishery. Prior to 2018, ACTs
and TALs were specified at the overall
commercial level, with the IFQ fishery
and incidental fishery combined.
Framework Adjustment 2 to the Tilefish
FMP is being developed concurrently
with these specifications, and modifies
this system to allow discards to be
deducted from the specific component
of the commercial sector (IFQ fishery or
incidental fishery) where they were
generated. The Council made
recommendations based on the new
process being developed under
Framework 2, so that IFQ and incidental
specific category discards are used,
allowing for more specific adjustments
to the commercial sector. This also
divides the ACT and TAL between IFQ
and incidental categories within the
specifications. Framework 2 is still in
development, and a proposed rule
outlining the new measures is expected
soon. Because Framework 2 will be
implemented before this action is
finalized, we are proposing to use the
Framework 2 measures for the 2018–
2020 specifications.
The golden tilefish industry strongly
supports consistency in annual harvest
quotas, and has operated under a
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2019
mt
million lb
1,058
742
742
705
37
705
33
705
33
2020
mt
2.421
1.636
1.636
1.554
0.082
1.554
0.072
1.554
0.072
million lb
1,098
742
742
705
37
705
33
705
33
2.291
1.636
1.636
1.554
0.082
1.554
0.072
1.554
0.072
mt
1,039
742
742
705
37
705
33
705
33
constant landings strategy since 2001.
Continuing this strategy, the Council
opted to recommend the same quota for
the 2018–2020 period, with the
understanding that the specifications
will be reviewed on an annual basis. We
are proposing the 2018 specifications
along with the projected specifications
for 2019 and 2020 so that the public is
aware of the likely values for those
years. We will publish a notice in the
Federal Register prior to each fishing
year to confirm or announce any
necessary changes to the specifications
for 2019 and 2020. The Council did not
recommend changes to other regulations
for this fishery. We propose, based on
this recommendation, that all other
management measures in the golden
tilefish fishery will remain unchanged
for the 2018–2020 fishing years. The
incidental trip limit will stay 500 lb
(226.8 kg) (live weight), and the
recreational catch limit will remain
eight fish per angler per trip. Annual
IFQ allocations will be issued to
individual quota shareholders in midOctober, ahead of the November 1 start
of the fishing year.
Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other
applicable law, subject to further
consideration after public comment.
This proposed rule is exempt from the
procedures of E.O. 12866 because this
action contains no implementing
regulations.
The Council prepared a draft EA for
this action that analyzes the impacts of
this proposed rule. The EA includes an
initial regulatory flexibility analysis
(IRFA), as required by section 603 of the
Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), which
is supplemented by information
contained in the preamble of this
proposed rule. The IRFA was prepared
to further evaluate the economic
impacts of the various alternatives
presented in this document on small
business entities. A description of the
specifications, why they are being
considered, and the legal basis for this
action are contained at the beginning of
this section and in the preamble to this
proposed rule. A copy of the detailed
RFA analysis is available from the
Council (see ADDRESSES). A summary of
the 2018–2020 golden tilefish
specifications RFA analysis follows.
Classification
Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the
Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act (MagnusonStevens Act), the NMFS Assistant
Administrator has determined that this
proposed rule is consistent with the
Tilefish FMP, other provisions of the
Description of the Reasons Why Action
Is Being Considered
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This action proposes management
measures, including annual catch limits
and commercial quotas, for the 2018–
2020 golden tilefish fishery. The
measures are consistent with the best
scientific information available and the
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 172 / Thursday, September 7, 2017 / Proposed Rules
most recent catch limit
recommendations of the Council’s SSC
to prevent overfishing and achieve
optimum yield in the fishery. The
golden tilefish fishery successfully
functions under an IFQ management
program, which provides substantial
benefits to fishery participants, and
requires the annual specification of
quotas. Another critical function of this
action is to prevent overfishing and
obtain the optimal yield, as mentioned
earlier.
Statement of the Objectives of, and
Legal Basis for, This Proposed Rule
This action is taken under the
authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Act
and regulations at 50 CFR part 648. A
complete description of the action, why
it is being considered, and the legal
basis for this action are contained in the
specifications document, and elsewhere
in the preamble to this proposed rule,
and are not repeated here.
Description and Estimate of the Number
of Small Entities to Which This
Proposed Rule Would Apply
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This proposed rule affects small
entities engaged in commercial fishing
operations with Federal tilefish permits.
For the purposes of the RFA analysis,
the ownership entities (or firms), not the
individual vessels, are considered to be
the regulated entities. Ownership
entities are defined as those entities or
firms with common ownership
personnel as listed on the permit
application. Because of this, some
vessels with golden tilefish permits may
be considered to be part of the same
firm because they may have the same
owners. To identify these small and
large firms, vessel ownership data from
the permit database were grouped
according to common owners and sorted
by size. In terms of RFA, a business
primarily engaged in commercial fishing
is classified as a small business if it has
combined annual receipts not in excess
of $11 million, for all its affiliated
operations worldwide. The current
ownership data set used for this analysis
is based on calendar year 2016 (the most
recent complete year available) and
contains average gross sales associated
with those permits for calendar years
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2014 through 2016. According to the
commercial ownership database, 148
affiliate firms landed golden tilefish
during the 2014–2016 period, with 145
of those business affiliates categorized
as small business and three categorized
as large business.
Description of the Projected Reporting,
Record-Keeping, and Other Compliance
Requirements of This Proposed Rule
There are no new reporting or
recordkeeping requirements contained
in any of the alternatives considered for
this action.
Federal Rules Which May Duplicate,
Overlap, or Conflict With This Proposed
Rule
NMFS is not aware of any relevant
Federal rules that may duplicate,
overlap, or conflict with this proposed
rule.
Description of Significant Alternatives
to the Proposed Action Which
Accomplish the Stated Objectives of
Applicable Statutes and Which
Minimize Any Significant Economic
Impact on Small Entities
This action proposes to set a
commercial golden tilefish quota of
1.626 million lb (738 mt)—1.554 million
lb (705 mt) of IFQ, 72,397 lb (33 mt) of
incidental—for 2018–2020. Under this
preferred alternative (Alternative 1), it is
expected that the overall revenue
reduction would be less than one
percent for the approximately 145 small
entities impacted by the decrease in
golden tilefish quota when compared to
average revenues generated during the
2014–2016 period. There is the
possibility of an increase in the price for
golden tilefish given the potential
decrease in landings, which could
mitigate some of the revenue loss
associated with lower quotas, but is not
guaranteed. Industry members have
indicated that having consistent quota
levels from year to year is favorable, and
translates into price and supply stability
in the fishery.
There were two alternatives
(Alternative 2 and Alternative 3) to the
proposed action (Alternative 1)
considered by the Council. Alternative 2
is the status quo alternative, and
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maintains the previous year’s
commercial quotas of 1.793 million lb
(813 mt) for the IFQ fishery and 94,357
lb (43 mt) for the incidental fishery
(total commercial quota of 1.887 million
lb or 856 mt). Under this alternative,
commercial landings and revenues for
golden tilefish would be expected to be
the same relative to 2017.
Alternative 3 would set 2018–2020
commercial golden tilefish quotas at
1.505 million lb (683 mt), 1.717 million
lb (779 mt), and 1.657 million lb (752
mt), respectively. While they represent
similar overall quota reductions over the
three-year period, Alternative 3 is nonpreferred to Alternative 1 because of its
inconsistency in the annual quotas,
which could lead to instability in
pricing and supply in the fishery.
The Council recommended these
proposed specifications (Alternative 1)
over Alternatives 2 and 3 to satisfy the
Magnuson-Stevens Act requirements to
ensure fish stocks are not subject to
overfishing, while allowing quota
stability, which the tilefish industry
considers important in order to promote
stability in price and supply in the
marketplace. Alternative 2 was not
recommended by the Council because it
would exceed the catch level
recommendations of the Council’s SSC,
and would be inconsistent with the
requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens
Act. Alternative 3 was not selected
because it would not support the
consistency of quota/landings from year
to year that the tilefish industry
considers important to maintaining
price and supply stability in this
fishery. NMFS agrees with the Council’s
IRFA analysis and rationale for
recommending these catch limits. As
such, NMFS is proposing to implement
the Council’s preferred ABCs, ACLs,
ACTs, and commercial quotas, as
presented in Table 1 of this proposed
rule’s preamble.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: August 31, 2017.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017–18958 Filed 9–6–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 172 (Thursday, September 7, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 42266-42268]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-18958]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 170717675-7675-01]
RIN 0648-XF571
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Golden Tilefish
Fishery; 2018 and Projected 2019-2020 Specifications
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS proposes specifications for the 2018 commercial golden
tilefish fishery and projected specifications for 2019 and 2020. The
proposed action is intended to establish allowable harvest levels and
other management measures to prevent overfishing while allowing optimum
yield, consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act and the Tilefish Fishery Management Plan. It is also
intended to inform the public of these proposed specifications for the
2018 fishing year and projected specifications for 2019-2020.
DATES: Comments must be received by 5 p.m. local time, on September 22,
2017.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by
NOAA-NMFS-2017-0091, by either of the following methods:
ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION: Submit all electronic public comments via
the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.
1. Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2017-0091,
2. Click the ``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields.
3. Enter or attach your comments.
- OR -
MAIL: Submit written comments to John Bullard, Regional
Administrator, National Marine Fisheries Service, 55 Great Republic
Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope:
``Comments on the Proposed Rule for Golden Tilefish Specifications.''
INSTRUCTIONS: Comments sent by any other method, to any other
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period,
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are part of the
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), 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).
A draft environmental assessment (EA) has been prepared for this
action that describes the proposed measures and other considered
alternatives, as well as provides an analysis of the impacts of the
proposed measures and alternatives. Copies of the specifications
document, including the EA and the Initial Regulatory Flexibility
Analysis (IRFA), are available on request from Dr. Christopher M.
Moore, Executive Director, Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council,
Suite 201, 800 North State Street, Dover, DE 19901. These documents are
also accessible via the Internet at https://www.mafmc.org.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Hanson, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9180.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The golden tilefish fishery is managed by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council under the Tilefish Fishery Management Plan (FMP),
which outlines the Council's process for establishing annual
specifications. The FMP requires the Council to recommend acceptable
biological catch (ABC), annual catch limit (ACL), annual catch target
(ACT), total allowable landings (TAL), and other management measures,
for up to three years at a time. The directed fishery is managed under
an individual fishing quota (IFQ) program, with small amounts of non-
IFQ catch allowed under an incidental permit. The Council's Scientific
and Statistical Committee (SSC) provides an ABC recommendation to the
Council to derive these catch limits. The Council makes recommendations
to NMFS that cannot exceed the recommendation of its SSC. The Council's
recommendations must include supporting documentation concerning the
environmental, economic, and social impacts of the recommendations. We
are responsible for reviewing these recommendations to ensure that they
achieve the FMP objectives and are consistent with all applicable laws,
and may modify them if they do not. Following review, NMFS publishes
the final specifications in the Federal Register.
[[Page 42267]]
In January 2014, the 58th Northeast Stock Assessment Workshop (SAW)
declared the golden tilefish stock rebuilt and concluded that
overfishing is not occurring. A stock assessment update with data
through 2016 is currently in development, but the 58th SAW is still the
most up to date and best available science for the Council to use in
its decision-making on these golden tilefish specifications. Based on
this report, and the ABC recommendations made by the Council's SSC, the
Council took final action April 2017 on 2018-2020 quota specifications
for the golden tilefish fishery, and submitted its recommended
specifications to us on July 5, 2017. A summary of the Council's
recommended specifications is shown below in Table 1.
Proposed Specifications
The Council's recommendations are consistent with the SSC's
recommended ABCs, and represent a reduction in ABC and overall
commercial quota from 2017 to ensure overfishing does not occur. The
proposed IFQ quota of 1,554,038 lb (705 mt) is a 13-percent reduction
from 2017, and the incidental quota of 72,397 lb (33 mt) is a 23-
percent reduction. The proposed incidental sector typically lands less
than half of its allocated quota each year, so this larger reduction is
unlikely to have a significant impact. As golden tilefish are not
overfished or experiencing overfishing, the reduction in the quotas is
a result of the SSC applying the Council's risk policy to the most
recent assessment outputs to derive its ABC recommendation.
Table 1--Summary of Recommended Golden Tilefish Specifications
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2018 2019 2020
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
million lb mt million lb mt million lb mt
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overfishing Limit....................................... 2.332 1,058 2.421 1,098 2.291 1,039
ABC..................................................... 1.636 742 1.636 742 1.636 742
ACL..................................................... 1.636 742 1.636 742 1.636 742
IFQ ACT................................................. 1.554 705 1.554 705 1.554 705
Incidental ACT.......................................... 0.082 37 0.082 37 0.082 37
IFQ TAL................................................. 1.554 705 1.554 705 1.554 705
Incidental TAL.......................................... 0.072 33 0.072 33 0.072 33
IFQ Quota............................................... 1.554 705 1.554 705 1.554 705
Incidental Quota........................................ 0.072 33 0.072 33 0.072 33
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As in recent years, the Council recommended ABC=ACL=ACT. The TAL is
derived by deducting anticipated discards of tilefish from the ACT.
Under the FMP, 95 percent of the TAL is allocated for the IFQ fishery,
and the remaining 5 percent is allocated for the incidental fishery.
Prior to 2018, ACTs and TALs were specified at the overall commercial
level, with the IFQ fishery and incidental fishery combined. Framework
Adjustment 2 to the Tilefish FMP is being developed concurrently with
these specifications, and modifies this system to allow discards to be
deducted from the specific component of the commercial sector (IFQ
fishery or incidental fishery) where they were generated. The Council
made recommendations based on the new process being developed under
Framework 2, so that IFQ and incidental specific category discards are
used, allowing for more specific adjustments to the commercial sector.
This also divides the ACT and TAL between IFQ and incidental categories
within the specifications. Framework 2 is still in development, and a
proposed rule outlining the new measures is expected soon. Because
Framework 2 will be implemented before this action is finalized, we are
proposing to use the Framework 2 measures for the 2018-2020
specifications.
The golden tilefish industry strongly supports consistency in
annual harvest quotas, and has operated under a constant landings
strategy since 2001. Continuing this strategy, the Council opted to
recommend the same quota for the 2018-2020 period, with the
understanding that the specifications will be reviewed on an annual
basis. We are proposing the 2018 specifications along with the
projected specifications for 2019 and 2020 so that the public is aware
of the likely values for those years. We will publish a notice in the
Federal Register prior to each fishing year to confirm or announce any
necessary changes to the specifications for 2019 and 2020. The Council
did not recommend changes to other regulations for this fishery. We
propose, based on this recommendation, that all other management
measures in the golden tilefish fishery will remain unchanged for the
2018-2020 fishing years. The incidental trip limit will stay 500 lb
(226.8 kg) (live weight), and the recreational catch limit will remain
eight fish per angler per trip. Annual IFQ allocations will be issued
to individual quota shareholders in mid-October, ahead of the November
1 start of the fishing year.
Classification
Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the Magnuson Stevens Fishery
Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the NMFS
Assistant Administrator has determined that this proposed rule is
consistent with the Tilefish FMP, other provisions of the Magnuson-
Stevens Act, and other applicable law, subject to further consideration
after public comment.
This proposed rule is exempt from the procedures of E.O. 12866
because this action contains no implementing regulations.
The Council prepared a draft EA for this action that analyzes the
impacts of this proposed rule. The EA includes an initial regulatory
flexibility analysis (IRFA), as required by section 603 of the
Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), which is supplemented by information
contained in the preamble of this proposed rule. The IRFA was prepared
to further evaluate the economic impacts of the various alternatives
presented in this document on small business entities. A description of
the specifications, why they are being considered, and the legal basis
for this action are contained at the beginning of this section and in
the preamble to this proposed rule. A copy of the detailed RFA analysis
is available from the Council (see ADDRESSES). A summary of the 2018-
2020 golden tilefish specifications RFA analysis follows.
Description of the Reasons Why Action Is Being Considered
This action proposes management measures, including annual catch
limits and commercial quotas, for the 2018-2020 golden tilefish
fishery. The measures are consistent with the best scientific
information available and the
[[Page 42268]]
most recent catch limit recommendations of the Council's SSC to prevent
overfishing and achieve optimum yield in the fishery. The golden
tilefish fishery successfully functions under an IFQ management
program, which provides substantial benefits to fishery participants,
and requires the annual specification of quotas. Another critical
function of this action is to prevent overfishing and obtain the
optimal yield, as mentioned earlier.
Statement of the Objectives of, and Legal Basis for, This Proposed Rule
This action is taken under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens
Act and regulations at 50 CFR part 648. A complete description of the
action, why it is being considered, and the legal basis for this action
are contained in the specifications document, and elsewhere in the
preamble to this proposed rule, and are not repeated here.
Description and Estimate of the Number of Small Entities to Which This
Proposed Rule Would Apply
This proposed rule affects small entities engaged in commercial
fishing operations with Federal tilefish permits. For the purposes of
the RFA analysis, the ownership entities (or firms), not the individual
vessels, are considered to be the regulated entities. Ownership
entities are defined as those entities or firms with common ownership
personnel as listed on the permit application. Because of this, some
vessels with golden tilefish permits may be considered to be part of
the same firm because they may have the same owners. To identify these
small and large firms, vessel ownership data from the permit database
were grouped according to common owners and sorted by size. In terms of
RFA, a business primarily engaged in commercial fishing is classified
as a small business if it has combined annual receipts not in excess of
$11 million, for all its affiliated operations worldwide. The current
ownership data set used for this analysis is based on calendar year
2016 (the most recent complete year available) and contains average
gross sales associated with those permits for calendar years 2014
through 2016. According to the commercial ownership database, 148
affiliate firms landed golden tilefish during the 2014-2016 period,
with 145 of those business affiliates categorized as small business and
three categorized as large business.
Description of the Projected Reporting, Record-Keeping, and Other
Compliance Requirements of This Proposed Rule
There are no new reporting or recordkeeping requirements contained
in any of the alternatives considered for this action.
Federal Rules Which May Duplicate, Overlap, or Conflict With This
Proposed Rule
NMFS is not aware of any relevant Federal rules that may duplicate,
overlap, or conflict with this proposed rule.
Description of Significant Alternatives to the Proposed Action Which
Accomplish the Stated Objectives of Applicable Statutes and Which
Minimize Any Significant Economic Impact on Small Entities
This action proposes to set a commercial golden tilefish quota of
1.626 million lb (738 mt)--1.554 million lb (705 mt) of IFQ, 72,397 lb
(33 mt) of incidental--for 2018-2020. Under this preferred alternative
(Alternative 1), it is expected that the overall revenue reduction
would be less than one percent for the approximately 145 small entities
impacted by the decrease in golden tilefish quota when compared to
average revenues generated during the 2014-2016 period. There is the
possibility of an increase in the price for golden tilefish given the
potential decrease in landings, which could mitigate some of the
revenue loss associated with lower quotas, but is not guaranteed.
Industry members have indicated that having consistent quota levels
from year to year is favorable, and translates into price and supply
stability in the fishery.
There were two alternatives (Alternative 2 and Alternative 3) to
the proposed action (Alternative 1) considered by the Council.
Alternative 2 is the status quo alternative, and maintains the previous
year's commercial quotas of 1.793 million lb (813 mt) for the IFQ
fishery and 94,357 lb (43 mt) for the incidental fishery (total
commercial quota of 1.887 million lb or 856 mt). Under this
alternative, commercial landings and revenues for golden tilefish would
be expected to be the same relative to 2017.
Alternative 3 would set 2018-2020 commercial golden tilefish quotas
at 1.505 million lb (683 mt), 1.717 million lb (779 mt), and 1.657
million lb (752 mt), respectively. While they represent similar overall
quota reductions over the three-year period, Alternative 3 is non-
preferred to Alternative 1 because of its inconsistency in the annual
quotas, which could lead to instability in pricing and supply in the
fishery.
The Council recommended these proposed specifications (Alternative
1) over Alternatives 2 and 3 to satisfy the Magnuson-Stevens Act
requirements to ensure fish stocks are not subject to overfishing,
while allowing quota stability, which the tilefish industry considers
important in order to promote stability in price and supply in the
marketplace. Alternative 2 was not recommended by the Council because
it would exceed the catch level recommendations of the Council's SSC,
and would be inconsistent with the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens
Act. Alternative 3 was not selected because it would not support the
consistency of quota/landings from year to year that the tilefish
industry considers important to maintaining price and supply stability
in this fishery. NMFS agrees with the Council's IRFA analysis and
rationale for recommending these catch limits. As such, NMFS is
proposing to implement the Council's preferred ABCs, ACLs, ACTs, and
commercial quotas, as presented in Table 1 of this proposed rule's
preamble.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: August 31, 2017.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-18958 Filed 9-6-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
