Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder Fishery; Quota Transfer From NC to CT, 59735 [2019-24182]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 215 (Wednesday, November 6, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 59735]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-24182]



[[Page 59735]]

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

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 648

[Docket No. 190312234-9412-01; RTID 0648-XX024]


Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder 
Fishery; Quota Transfer From NC to CT

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

ACTION: Notification of quota transfer.

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

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the State of North Carolina is 
transferring a portion of its 2019 commercial summer flounder quota to 
the State of Connecticut. This quota adjustment is necessary to comply 
with the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management 
Plan quota transfer provisions. This announcement informs the public of 
the revised commercial quotas for North Carolina and Connecticut.

DATES: Effective November 5, 2019, through December 31, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Ferrio, Fishery Management 
Specialist, (978) 281-9180.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations governing the summer flounder 
fishery are found in 50 CFR 648.100 through 648.110. These regulations 
require annual specification of a commercial quota that is apportioned 
among the coastal states from Maine through North Carolina. The process 
to set the annual commercial quota and the percent allocated to each 
state is described in Sec.  648.102, and the revised 2019 allocations 
were published on May 17, 2019 (84 FR 22392).
    The final rule implementing Amendment 5 to the Summer Flounder 
Fishery Management Plan, as published in the Federal Register on 
December 17, 1993 (58 FR 65936), provided a mechanism for transferring 
summer flounder commercial quota from one state to another. Two or more 
states, under mutual agreement and with the concurrence of the NMFS 
Greater Atlantic Regional Administrator, can transfer or combine summer 
flounder commercial quota under Sec.  648.102(c)(2). The Regional 
Administrator is required to consider the criteria in Sec.  
648.102(c)(2)(i)(A) through (C) in the evaluation of requests for quota 
transfers or combinations.
    North Carolina is transferring 40,000 lb (18,144 kg) of summer 
flounder commercial quota to Connecticut through mutual agreement of 
the states. The revised summer flounder quotas for fishing year 2019 
are: North Carolina, 2,886,555 lb (1,309,319 kg); and Connecticut, 
293,119 lb (132,957 kg).

Classification

    This action is taken under 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from 
review under Executive Order 12866.

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

    Dated: October 31, 2019.
Ngagne Jafnar Gueye,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-24182 Filed 11-5-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P