Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Scup Fishery; 2018 and Projected 2019 Specifications, 51594-51596 [2017-24205]
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 214 / Tuesday, November 7, 2017 / Proposed Rules
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Dated: October 31, 2017.
Suzanne M. Barnett,
Chief U.S. Copyright Royalty Judge.
[FR Doc. 2017–23991 Filed 11–3–17; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 1410–72–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA–R05–OAR–2017–0280; FRL–9969–88–
Region 5]
Air Plan Approval; Wisconsin; 2017
Revisions to NR 400 and 406
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
nshattuck on DSK9F9SC42PROD with PROPOSALS
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a
revision to the Wisconsin State
Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by
the Wisconsin Department of Natural
Resources (WDNR) to EPA on May 16,
2017. The revision replaces the
definition of ‘‘emergency electric
generator’’ with a broader definition of
‘‘restricted internal combustion engine’’.
In addition, the revision makes
amendments to procedures for revoking
construction permits as well as language
changes and other administrative
updates. Lastly, WDNR is withdrawing
two Wisconsin Administrative Code
provisions that affect eligibility under
general and construction permits.
WDNR requested these changes to align
state and Federal requirements and
ensure consistency. EPA is proposing
approval of Wisconsin’s May 16, 2017,
request because the Agency has made
the preliminary determination that this
SIP revision is consistent with the Clean
Air Act and applicable EPA regulations
regarding PSD.
DATES: Comments must be received on
or before December 7, 2017.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R05–
OAR–2017–0280 at https://
www.regulations.gov or via email to
damico.genevieve@epa.gov. For
comments submitted at Regulations.gov,
follow the online instructions for
submitting comments. Once submitted,
comments cannot be edited or removed
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:06 Nov 06, 2017
Jkt 244001
from Regulations.gov. For either manner
of submission, EPA may publish any
comment received to its public docket.
Do not submit electronically any
information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI)
or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be
accompanied by a written comment.
The written comment is considered the
official comment and should include a
discussion of all points you wish to
make. EPA will generally not consider
comments or comment contents located
outside of the primary submission (i.e.,
on the Web, cloud, or other file sharing
system). For additional submission
methods, please contact the person
identified in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the
full EPA public comment policy,
information about CBI or multimedia
submissions, and general guidance on
making effective comments, please visit
https://www2.epa.gov/dockets/
commenting-epa-dockets.
Radhica Kanniganti, Environmental
Engineer, Air Permits Section, Air
Programs Branch (AR–18J),
Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard,
Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 886–8097,
kanniganti.radhica@epa.gov.
In the
Final Rules section of this Federal
Register, EPA is approving the State’s
SIP submittal as a direct final rule
without prior proposal because the
Agency views this as a noncontroversial
submittal and anticipates no adverse
comments. A detailed rationale for the
approval is set forth in the direct final
rule. If no adverse comments are
received in response to this rule, this
rule will be effective on January 8, 2018.
If EPA receives adverse comments, the
direct final rule will be withdrawn and
all public comments received will be
addressed in a subsequent final rule
based on this proposed rule. EPA will
not institute a second comment period.
Any parties interested in commenting
on this action should do so at this time.
Please note that if EPA receives adverse
comment on an amendment, paragraph,
or section of this rule and if that
provision may be severed from the
remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt
as final those provisions of the rule that
are not the subject of an adverse
comment. For additional information,
see the direct final rule which is located
in the Rules section of this Federal
Register.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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Sfmt 4702
Dated: October 6, 2017.
Robert A. Kaplan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. 2017–23448 Filed 11–6–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 170828822–7822–01]
RIN 0648–XF669
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
States; Scup Fishery; 2018 and
Projected 2019 Specifications
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for
comments.
AGENCY:
NMFS proposes revised scup
specifications for the 2018 fishing year
and projected specifications for 2019.
Updated scientific information
regarding the scup stock indicates that
higher catch limits may be implemented
to achieve optimum yield. This action is
intended to inform the public of the
proposed specifications for the 2018
fishing year and projected specifications
for 2019.
DATES: Comments must be received by
5 p.m. local time, on November 22,
2017.
ADDRESSES: An environmental
assessment (EA) was prepared for this
action and describes the proposed
measures and other considered
alternatives, and provides an analysis of
the impacts of the proposed measures
and alternatives. Copies of the
Specifications Document, including the
EA, 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.
You may submit comments on this
document, identified by NOAA–NMFS–
2017–0121, 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-20170121,
2. Click the ‘‘Comment Now!’’ icon,
complete the required fields, and
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\07NOP1.SGM
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 214 / Tuesday, November 7, 2017 / Proposed Rules
nshattuck on DSK9F9SC42PROD with PROPOSALS
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 Revised Scup 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).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Emily Gilbert, Fishery Policy Analyst,
(978) 281–9244.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
General Background
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council and the Atlantic
States Marine Fisheries Commission
cooperatively manage the summer
flounder, scup, and black sea bass
fisheries. The Summer Flounder, Scup,
and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management
Plan (FMP) and its implementing
regulations outline the Council’s
process for establishing specifications.
Specifications in these fisheries include
various catch and landing subdivisions,
such as the commercial and recreational
sector annual catch limits (ACLs),
annual catch targets (ACTs), and sectorspecific landing limits (i.e., the
commercial fishery quota and
recreational harvest limit). Annual
specifications may be proposed for
three-year periods, with the Council
reviewing the specifications each year to
ensure that previously established
multi-year specifications remain
appropriate. Following review, NMFS
announces the final annual
specifications in the Federal Register.
The FMP also contains formulas to
divide the specification catch limits into
commercial and recreational fishery
allocations, state-by-state quotas, and
quota periods, depending on the species
in question. Rulemaking for measures
used to manage the recreational
fisheries (minimum fish sizes, open
seasons, and bag limits) for these three
species occurs separately, and typically
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:06 Nov 06, 2017
Jkt 244001
takes place in the spring of each year.
The summer flounder and black sea bass
specifications implemented through
previous rulemaking remain unchanged
by this action.
On December 28, 2015, NMFS
published a final rule implementing the
Council’s recommended 2016–2018
specifications for the scup fishery (80
FR 80689). The Council intended to
reconsider the specifications set for
fishing year 2018 following the review
of a scup assessment update provided in
July 2017.
The assessment update indicated the
scup stock is not overfished and
overfishing did not occur in 2016, the
most recent year for which information
is available. The update estimated that
the scup spawning stock biomass (SSB)
is 2.1 times the proxy reference point for
SSB at maximum sustainable yield
(MSY), and fishing mortality (F) in 2016
was about 63 percent of the FMSY proxy
reference point. In addition, the update
estimated that the 2015 year class was
about 2.1 times the average recruitment
(i.e., number of age 0 scup) from 1984–
2016. The 2016 year class was 46
percent below the 1984–2016
recruitment average. Although the 2016
year class was estimated to be below
average, the 2015 year class was so large
that the assessment update provided
higher revised overfishing limit (OFL)
recommendations for 2018 and 2019.
Compared to the previously
implemented 2018 OFL (29.68 million
lb, 13,462 mt), the 2018
recommendation is a 52-percent
increase.
Proposed Specifications
The Council’s Scientific and
Statistical Committee (SSC) met on July
19–20, 2017, to discuss the assessment
update results and resulting OFL
estimates, to identify an updated
acceptable biological catch (ABC) level
for 2018, and to project an ABC for the
2019 fishing year. To derive the ABC
recommendations, the SSC applied the
Council’s standard risk policy for a
species with a typical life history, which
produces ABCs estimated to result in a
60-percent probability of not overfishing
the stock. The process resulted in ABCs
of 39.14 million lb (17,755 metric tons
(mt)) for 2018 and 36.43 million lb
(16,525 mt) for 2019 (Table 1). The
revised 2018 ABC is approximately 45
percent higher than the previously
established 2018 ABC. Under the FMP,
22 percent of the ABC is allocated to the
recreational fishery, while 78 percent is
allocation to the commercial fishery.
Following the SSC meeting, the
Monitoring Committee met on July 24,
2017, to discuss ACLs, ACTs,
PO 00000
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Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
51595
commercial quotas, and recreational
harvest limits for the 2018 and 2019
fishing years. In light of the substantial
increase in the ABC, the Monitoring
Committee recommended a moderate
increase for the fishery and suggested
setting the 2018 commercial ACT at
25.85 million lb (11,725 mt) and the
recreational ACT at 7.29 million lb
(3,307 mt). These recommended ACTs
were 15 percent lower than those
formulaically resulting from the SSC’s
ABC recommendation, but 22.5 percent
higher than what is currently in place
for 2018. The Monitoring Committee
also recommended setting the 2019
ACTs at the same level as the 2018
ACTs. The Monitoring Committee
decided that there was enough
management uncertainty around the
upcoming adjustments to the
commercial quota periods in 2018 and
the outcome of the upcoming
recreational harvest estimate revisions
through the Marine Recreational
Information Program to warrant the
inclusion of a buffer between the ACLs
and ACTs, which would provide for
more stability in the fishery by using
constant ACTs for both years.
The Council and Commission’s Scup
Management Board meet jointly on
August 8, 2017, to review the SSC’s and
Monitoring Committee’s
recommendations. They found merit in
the idea of offering stability in the
fishery by allowing for a buffer between
the ACLs and ACTs, but did not accept
the Monitoring Committee’s specific
recommendations. Instead, the Council
and Commission recommended
constant sector-specific ACTs across
2018 and 2019, based on the 2019 ABC
and setting the ACLs for 2019 equal to
the ACTs (i.e., 8.01 million lb (3,636 mt)
for the recreational fishery and 23.98
million lb (10,879 mt) for the
commercial fishery).
After removing the sector-specific
estimated discards from the ACTs, the
scup commercial quotas and
recreational harvest limits would be
those shown in Table 1. These values
are approximately 40 percent higher
than the current 2018 commercial quota
and recreational harvest limit. The
Monitoring Committee did not
recommend any changes to the current
commercial measures, including the 9inch (22.9-cm) minimum fish size, the
mesh size requirements and seasonal
possession limit thresholds, and the
pot/trap gear requirements.
The Council will revisit its decision
on the projected 2019 specifications
following the SSC’s review next
summer. By providing projected
specifications for 2019, NMFS hopes to
assist fishery participants in planning
E:\FR\FM\07NOP1.SGM
07NOP1
51596
Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 214 / Tuesday, November 7, 2017 / Proposed Rules
ahead. Final 2019 specifications will be
published in the Federal Register before
the start of the 2019 fishing year
(January 1, 2019) based on the Council’s
review.
TABLE 1—COUNCIL-RECOMMENDED SCUP SPECIFICATIONS FOR 2018 AND PROJECTED FOR 2019
Scup specifications
2018
(current)
million lb
OFL ..........................................................
ABC ..........................................................
Commercial ACL ......................................
Commercial ACT ......................................
Commercial Discards ...............................
Commercial Quota ...................................
Recreational ACL .....................................
Recreational ACT .....................................
Recreational Discards ..............................
Recreational Harvest Limit .......................
29.68
27.05
21.10
21.10
3.76
17.34
5.95
5.95
0.75
5.21
Classification
nshattuck on DSK9F9SC42PROD with PROPOSALS
Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act, the Assistant
Administrator has determined that this
proposed rule is consistent with the
Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea
Bass FMP, other provisions of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other
applicable law, subject to further
consideration after public comment.
This action is exempt from review
under E.O. 12866.
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of
the Department of Commerce certified
to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the
Small Business Administration that this
proposed rule, if adopted, would not
have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities.
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management
Council conducted an evaluation of the
potential socioeconomic impacts of the
proposed measures in conjunction with
an EA. According to the commercial
ownership database, 517 affiliate firms
landed scup during the 2014–2016
period, with 513 of those business
affiliates categorized as small businesses
and 4 categorized as large businesses.
Scup represented approximately 3.94
percent of the average receipts of the
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:06 Nov 06, 2017
Jkt 244001
2018
(revised)
mt
million lb
13,462
12,270
9,571
9,571
1,705
7,866
2,699
2,699
338
2,361
45.05
39.14
30.53
28.42
4.43
23.98
8.61
8.01
0.65
7.37
small entities considered and 0.11
percent of the average receipts of the
large entities considered over this time
period.
The ownership data for the for-hire
fleet indicate that there were 359 forhire affiliate firms generating revenues
from fishing recreationally for various
species during the 2014–2016 period, all
of which are categorized as small
businesses. Although it is not possible
to derive what proportion of the overall
revenues came from specific fishing
activities, given the popularity of scup
as a recreational species it is likely that
revenues generated from scup are
important for some, if not all, of these
firms.
The proposed measure would
increase both the 2018 commercial
quota and the 2018 recreational harvest
limit by around 40 percent. However,
the scup fishery is a market-limited
fishery (i.e., market conditions are
typically the limiting factor, not
allowable landings) and it is expected
that, unless market conditions change
drastically, commercial and recreational
landings will likely be similar to current
landings. As a result, this action is not
expected to adversely impact revenues
for vessels that fish for scup
PO 00000
Frm 00015
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 9990
2019
(projected)
mt
million lb
20,433
17,755
13,849
12,890
2,011
10,879
3,906
3,636
293
3,342
mt
41.03
36.43
28.42
28.42
4.43
23.98
8.01
8.01
0.65
7.37
18,612
16,525
12,890
12,890
2,011
10,879
3,636
3,636
293
3,342
commercially. The increase in the
recreational harvest limit does not
directly impact the party/charter
fishery. Future regulatory action may be
needed to adjust current scup
recreational management measures (i.e.,
bag limits, seasons, and minimum
sizes), and consideration of the impact
of those potential future measures on
small entities engaged in the for-hire
fishery will be evaluated at that time,
should such a regulatory action become
necessary. Because this rule will not
have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities,
an initial regulatory flexibility analysis
is not required and none has been
prepared.
There are no new reporting or
recordkeeping requirements contained
in any of the alternatives considered for
this action.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 2, 2017.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017–24205 Filed 11–6–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
E:\FR\FM\07NOP1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 214 (Tuesday, November 7, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 51594-51596]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-24205]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 170828822-7822-01]
RIN 0648-XF669
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Scup Fishery; 2018
and Projected 2019 Specifications
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: NMFS proposes revised scup specifications for the 2018 fishing
year and projected specifications for 2019. Updated scientific
information regarding the scup stock indicates that higher catch limits
may be implemented to achieve optimum yield. This action is intended to
inform the public of the proposed specifications for the 2018 fishing
year and projected specifications for 2019.
DATES: Comments must be received by 5 p.m. local time, on November 22,
2017.
ADDRESSES: An environmental assessment (EA) was prepared for this
action and describes the proposed measures and other considered
alternatives, and provides an analysis of the impacts of the proposed
measures and alternatives. Copies of the Specifications Document,
including the EA, 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.
You may submit comments on this document, identified by NOAA-NMFS-
2017-0121, 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-2017-0121,
2. Click the ``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields,
and
[[Page 51595]]
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 Revised Scup 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).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Gilbert, Fishery Policy Analyst,
(978) 281-9244.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
General Background
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States
Marine Fisheries Commission cooperatively manage the summer flounder,
scup, and black sea bass fisheries. The Summer Flounder, Scup, and
Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP) and its implementing
regulations outline the Council's process for establishing
specifications. Specifications in these fisheries include various catch
and landing subdivisions, such as the commercial and recreational
sector annual catch limits (ACLs), annual catch targets (ACTs), and
sector-specific landing limits (i.e., the commercial fishery quota and
recreational harvest limit). Annual specifications may be proposed for
three-year periods, with the Council reviewing the specifications each
year to ensure that previously established multi-year specifications
remain appropriate. Following review, NMFS announces the final annual
specifications in the Federal Register. The FMP also contains formulas
to divide the specification catch limits into commercial and
recreational fishery allocations, state-by-state quotas, and quota
periods, depending on the species in question. Rulemaking for measures
used to manage the recreational fisheries (minimum fish sizes, open
seasons, and bag limits) for these three species occurs separately, and
typically takes place in the spring of each year. The summer flounder
and black sea bass specifications implemented through previous
rulemaking remain unchanged by this action.
On December 28, 2015, NMFS published a final rule implementing the
Council's recommended 2016-2018 specifications for the scup fishery (80
FR 80689). The Council intended to reconsider the specifications set
for fishing year 2018 following the review of a scup assessment update
provided in July 2017.
The assessment update indicated the scup stock is not overfished
and overfishing did not occur in 2016, the most recent year for which
information is available. The update estimated that the scup spawning
stock biomass (SSB) is 2.1 times the proxy reference point for SSB at
maximum sustainable yield (MSY), and fishing mortality (F) in 2016 was
about 63 percent of the FMSY proxy reference point. In
addition, the update estimated that the 2015 year class was about 2.1
times the average recruitment (i.e., number of age 0 scup) from 1984-
2016. The 2016 year class was 46 percent below the 1984-2016
recruitment average. Although the 2016 year class was estimated to be
below average, the 2015 year class was so large that the assessment
update provided higher revised overfishing limit (OFL) recommendations
for 2018 and 2019. Compared to the previously implemented 2018 OFL
(29.68 million lb, 13,462 mt), the 2018 recommendation is a 52-percent
increase.
Proposed Specifications
The Council's Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC) met on
July 19-20, 2017, to discuss the assessment update results and
resulting OFL estimates, to identify an updated acceptable biological
catch (ABC) level for 2018, and to project an ABC for the 2019 fishing
year. To derive the ABC recommendations, the SSC applied the Council's
standard risk policy for a species with a typical life history, which
produces ABCs estimated to result in a 60-percent probability of not
overfishing the stock. The process resulted in ABCs of 39.14 million lb
(17,755 metric tons (mt)) for 2018 and 36.43 million lb (16,525 mt) for
2019 (Table 1). The revised 2018 ABC is approximately 45 percent higher
than the previously established 2018 ABC. Under the FMP, 22 percent of
the ABC is allocated to the recreational fishery, while 78 percent is
allocation to the commercial fishery.
Following the SSC meeting, the Monitoring Committee met on July 24,
2017, to discuss ACLs, ACTs, commercial quotas, and recreational
harvest limits for the 2018 and 2019 fishing years. In light of the
substantial increase in the ABC, the Monitoring Committee recommended a
moderate increase for the fishery and suggested setting the 2018
commercial ACT at 25.85 million lb (11,725 mt) and the recreational ACT
at 7.29 million lb (3,307 mt). These recommended ACTs were 15 percent
lower than those formulaically resulting from the SSC's ABC
recommendation, but 22.5 percent higher than what is currently in place
for 2018. The Monitoring Committee also recommended setting the 2019
ACTs at the same level as the 2018 ACTs. The Monitoring Committee
decided that there was enough management uncertainty around the
upcoming adjustments to the commercial quota periods in 2018 and the
outcome of the upcoming recreational harvest estimate revisions through
the Marine Recreational Information Program to warrant the inclusion of
a buffer between the ACLs and ACTs, which would provide for more
stability in the fishery by using constant ACTs for both years.
The Council and Commission's Scup Management Board meet jointly on
August 8, 2017, to review the SSC's and Monitoring Committee's
recommendations. They found merit in the idea of offering stability in
the fishery by allowing for a buffer between the ACLs and ACTs, but did
not accept the Monitoring Committee's specific recommendations.
Instead, the Council and Commission recommended constant sector-
specific ACTs across 2018 and 2019, based on the 2019 ABC and setting
the ACLs for 2019 equal to the ACTs (i.e., 8.01 million lb (3,636 mt)
for the recreational fishery and 23.98 million lb (10,879 mt) for the
commercial fishery).
After removing the sector-specific estimated discards from the
ACTs, the scup commercial quotas and recreational harvest limits would
be those shown in Table 1. These values are approximately 40 percent
higher than the current 2018 commercial quota and recreational harvest
limit. The Monitoring Committee did not recommend any changes to the
current commercial measures, including the 9-inch (22.9-cm) minimum
fish size, the mesh size requirements and seasonal possession limit
thresholds, and the pot/trap gear requirements.
The Council will revisit its decision on the projected 2019
specifications following the SSC's review next summer. By providing
projected specifications for 2019, NMFS hopes to assist fishery
participants in planning
[[Page 51596]]
ahead. Final 2019 specifications will be published in the Federal
Register before the start of the 2019 fishing year (January 1, 2019)
based on the Council's review.
Table 1--Council-Recommended Scup Specifications for 2018 and Projected for 2019
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scup specifications
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2018 (current) 2018 (revised) 2019 (projected)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
million lb mt million lb mt million lb mt
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OFL..................................................... 29.68 13,462 45.05 20,433 41.03 18,612
ABC..................................................... 27.05 12,270 39.14 17,755 36.43 16,525
Commercial ACL.......................................... 21.10 9,571 30.53 13,849 28.42 12,890
Commercial ACT.......................................... 21.10 9,571 28.42 12,890 28.42 12,890
Commercial Discards..................................... 3.76 1,705 4.43 2,011 4.43 2,011
Commercial Quota........................................ 17.34 7,866 23.98 10,879 23.98 10,879
Recreational ACL........................................ 5.95 2,699 8.61 3,906 8.01 3,636
Recreational ACT........................................ 5.95 2,699 8.01 3,636 8.01 3,636
Recreational Discards................................... 0.75 338 0.65 293 0.65 293
Recreational Harvest Limit.............................. 5.21 2,361 7.37 3,342 7.37 3,342
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Classification
Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the
Assistant Administrator has determined that this proposed rule is
consistent with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass FMP,
other provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other applicable law,
subject to further consideration after public comment.
This action is exempt from review under E.O. 12866.
The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business
Administration that this proposed rule, if adopted, would not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council conducted an evaluation of
the potential socioeconomic impacts of the proposed measures in
conjunction with an EA. According to the commercial ownership database,
517 affiliate firms landed scup during the 2014-2016 period, with 513
of those business affiliates categorized as small businesses and 4
categorized as large businesses. Scup represented approximately 3.94
percent of the average receipts of the small entities considered and
0.11 percent of the average receipts of the large entities considered
over this time period.
The ownership data for the for-hire fleet indicate that there were
359 for-hire affiliate firms generating revenues from fishing
recreationally for various species during the 2014-2016 period, all of
which are categorized as small businesses. Although it is not possible
to derive what proportion of the overall revenues came from specific
fishing activities, given the popularity of scup as a recreational
species it is likely that revenues generated from scup are important
for some, if not all, of these firms.
The proposed measure would increase both the 2018 commercial quota
and the 2018 recreational harvest limit by around 40 percent. However,
the scup fishery is a market-limited fishery (i.e., market conditions
are typically the limiting factor, not allowable landings) and it is
expected that, unless market conditions change drastically, commercial
and recreational landings will likely be similar to current landings.
As a result, this action is not expected to adversely impact revenues
for vessels that fish for scup commercially. The increase in the
recreational harvest limit does not directly impact the party/charter
fishery. Future regulatory action may be needed to adjust current scup
recreational management measures (i.e., bag limits, seasons, and
minimum sizes), and consideration of the impact of those potential
future measures on small entities engaged in the for-hire fishery will
be evaluated at that time, should such a regulatory action become
necessary. Because this rule will not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities, an initial regulatory
flexibility analysis is not required and none has been prepared.
There are no new reporting or recordkeeping requirements contained
in any of the alternatives considered for this action.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 2, 2017.
Samuel D. Rauch III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-24205 Filed 11-6-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
