Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Bluefish Fishery; 2023 Bluefish Specifications, 68434-68436 [2022-24490]
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68434
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 219 / Tuesday, November 15, 2022 / Proposed Rules
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
with a rulemaking action. As a result, on
May 1, 2017, the Agency withdrew the
ANPRM.1 (82 FR 20311)
On November 15, 2021, the IIJA was
enacted, Public Law 117–58, 135 Stat.
429 (H.R. 3684, Nov. 15, 2021). Section
23008(a) directed the Agency, within 1
year after the date of enactment, to
solicit additional comments on the
ANPRM to determine if data and
information exist to support moving
forward with a rulemaking. The Agency
published the request for additional
comments on May 10, 2022. (87 FR
29781) The comment period closed on
June 9, 2022.
Discussion of Comments
The Agency received 21 public
comments, with 9 commenters
expressing general opposition to the
mandatory State inspection requirement
discussed in the 2016 ANPRM. Four
commenters supported the
establishment of such a requirement and
the remaining commenters neither
wholly supported nor opposed a
possible requirement. Many
commenters indicated that the existing
standards for annual inspections
prescribed in the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Regulations, or their own
programs, were sufficient. Commenters
also indicated that current standards are
effective at mitigating risk when
properly enforced. Several commenters
made their support contingent on
factors such as uniformity in inspection
standards, standardization of inspector
training, a self-inspection option, and
required reciprocity, whereby States
would be required to recognize
inspections conducted outside their
States.
Many commenters, including State
agencies in Arizona, Kentucky,
Minnesota, Montana, New York,
Virginia, and Wisconsin, addressed
questions aimed at measuring the
effectiveness of inspection programs.
However, none of these commenters
was able to determine whether the
establishment of an inspection program
reduced the number of safety violations
detected.
Several commenters suggested that
FMCSA incentivize States to establish
mandatory inspection programs by
providing Federal funding. The
American Association of Motor Vehicle
Administrators, the Commercial Vehicle
Safety Alliance, and the Kentucky
Transportation Cabinet noted that a
mandate would be a strain on States’
resources, particularly considering the
ongoing financial challenges associated
1 The ANPRM and the ANPRM withdrawal are
available in the docket for this action.
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17:10 Nov 14, 2022
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with the coronavirus disease 2019
pandemic.
FMCSA Decision
After considering all the comments,
FMCSA has concluded that the rationale
for withdrawal of the 2016 ANPRM
remains sound. The Agency is not aware
of any new data or information that
supports the development of a notice of
proposed rulemaking to require the
States to establish mandatory annual
inspection programs for passengercarrying vehicles. FMCSA therefore
confirms withdrawal of the 2016
ANPRM referenced above. The concerns
and recommendations of all the
commenters will be considered if any
new proposed regulations regarding
annual inspections of passengercarrying CMVs are developed.
Issued under authority delegated in 49 CFR
1.87.
Robin Hutcheson,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2022–24708 Filed 11–14–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 221103–0231; RTID 0648–
XC422]
Fisheries of the Northeastern United
States; Atlantic Bluefish Fishery; 2023
Bluefish Specifications
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for
comments.
AGENCY:
Electronic Submission: Submit all
electronic public comments via the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.
1. Go to https://www.regulations.gov,
and enter ‘‘NOAA–NMFS–2022–0102’’
in the Search box;
2. Click the ‘‘Comment’’ icon,
complete the required fields; and
3. Enter or attach your comments.
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). If you are unable to
submit your comment through
www.regulations.gov, contact Cynthia
Ferrio, Fishery Policy Analyst,
Cynthia.Ferrio@noaa.gov.
Copies of the Supplemental
Information Report (SIR) and other
supporting documents for this action are
available upon 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/
action-archive.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Cynthia Ferrio, Fishery Policy Analyst,
(978) 281–9180.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council (Council) and the
SUMMARY: NMFS proposes specifications Atlantic States Marine Fisheries
for the 2023 Atlantic bluefish fishery, as Commission (Commission) jointly
recommended by the Mid-Atlantic
manage the Atlantic Bluefish Fishery
Fishery Management Council. This
Management Plan (FMP). The FMP
action is necessary to establish
requires the specification of annual
allowable harvest levels for the stock
regulatory limits for up to three years at
that will prevent overfishing and
a time, including: an acceptable
promote rebuilding, using the best
biological catch (ABC), commercial and
scientific information available. This
recreational annual catch limits (ACL),
rule is intended to inform the public of
commercial and recreational annual
the proposed fishery specifications and
catch targets (ACT), a commercial quota,
provide an opportunity for comment on a recreational harvest limit (RHL), and
the proposed action.
other management measures. This
DATES: Comments must be received by
action proposes adjusted bluefish
November 30, 2022.
specifications for the 2023 fishing year,
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
based on Council and Commission
on this document, identified by NOAA– recommendations.
The bluefish fishery is operating
NMFS–2022–0102, by the following
under multi-year specifications for
method:
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 219 / Tuesday, November 15, 2022 / Proposed Rules
fishing years 2022 and 2023 (87 FR
5739; February 2, 2022), which were
based on a 2021 assessment update and
Amendment 7 to the Bluefish FMP (86
FR 66977; November 24, 2021). Upon
review of a 2022 data update and recent
catch information, the Council’s
Scientific and Statistical Committee
(SSC) and the Council’s Bluefish
Monitoring Committee agreed that no
changes are necessary to the previously
projected ABC, subsequent ACLs and
ACTs, or any limits in the commercial
sector. Prior to two adjustments
described below, these 2023
specifications would have resulted in a
21-percent increase to the projected
commercial quota and a 59-percent
increase to the projected RHL. However,
the 2022 data update indicated that the
initial projection of recreational
discards (4.19 million lb, 1,901 mt) did
not fully account for expected discards,
so the Monitoring Committee
68435
approved bluefish catch specifications
for fishing year 2023 at a joint meeting
in August 2022, as recommended by the
SSC and Monitoring Committee. The
Council and Board did not recommend
changes to any regulations in place for
bluefish. Therefore, all other
commercial and recreational
management measures would remain
unchanged for the 2023 fishing year.
recommended an adjustment to the
recreational total allowable landings
(TAL) to account for higher than
expected discards (6.64 million lb, 3,012
mt). There was also a 5.59 million-lb
(2,536-mt) overage of the fishery ACL
caused by recreational catch in 2021.
Because the bluefish fishery is
overfished, the accountability measure
(AM) required by the FMP at 50 CFR
648.163(d)(1) is a pound-for-pound
payback of the overage against the
soonest possible year’s recreational ACT
as a single-year adjustment. The 2021
overage would be applied to the 2023
specifications in this action. No changes
were recommended to recreational
management measures because the
adjusted RHL remains slightly higher
than the current RHL in 2022, and there
was no compelling reason found to
change existing measures.
The Council and the Commission’s
Bluefish Management Board (Board)
Proposed Specifications
This action proposes the Council’s
recommendations for 2023 bluefish
catch specifications, which are
consistent with the recommendations of
the SSC and Monitoring Committee
(Table 1). Although ACLs in both the
commercial and recreational sectors
would still increase by 21 percent as
projected, the proposed RHL is adjusted
and would only increase 1.6 percent
from 2022, rather than 59 percent as
originally projected.
TABLE 1—COMPARISON OF CURRENT 2022, PREVIOUSLY PROJECTED 2023, AND PROPOSED ADJUSTED 2023 BLUEFISH
SPECIFICATIONS *
Current 2022
Million lb
Overfishing Limit ........................................................
ABC ............................................................................
Commercial ACL = Commercial ACT ........................
Recreational ACL = Recreational ACT ......................
Recreational AM ........................................................
Recreational Discards ................................................
Commercial TAL ........................................................
Recreational TAL .......................................................
Sector Transfer ..........................................................
Commercial Quota .....................................................
RHL ............................................................................
Projected 2023
Metric tons
40.56
25.26
3.54
21.73
3.65
4.19
3.54
13.89
0
3.54
13.89
18,399
11,460
1,604
9,856
1,656
1,901
1,604
6,298
0
1,604
6,298
Million lb
Metric tons
45.17
30.62
4.29
26.34
0
4.19
4.29
22.14
0
4.29
22.14
Proposed 2023
Million lb
20,490
13,890
1,945
11,945
0
1,901
1,945
10,044
0
1,945
10,044
45.17
30.62
4.29
26.34
5.59
6.64
4.29
14.11
0
4.29
14.11
Metric tons
20,490
13,890
1,945
11,945
2,536
3,012
1,945
6,400
0
1,945
6,400
* Specifications are derived from the ABC in metric tons (mt). When values are converted to millions of pounds the numbers may slightly shift
due to rounding. The conversion factor used is 1 mt = 2204.6226 lb.
The coastwide commercial quota is
allocated to coastal states from Maine to
Florida based on percent shares
specified in the FMP. These proposed
state allocations for 2023 (Table 2) are
unchanged from what was previously
projected, as this action makes no
changes to the commercial sector or the
final coastwide commercial quota. In
addition, no states exceeded their
allocated quota in 2021, or are projected
to do so in 2022; therefore, no AMs for
the commercial fishery are required for
the 2023 fishing year based on the data
available at this time.
TABLE 2—PROPOSED 2023 BLUEFISH STATE COMMERCIAL QUOTA ALLOCATIONS
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State
Percent share
Maine ...........................................................................................................................................
New Hampshire ...........................................................................................................................
Massachusetts .............................................................................................................................
Rhode Island ................................................................................................................................
Connecticut ..................................................................................................................................
New York .....................................................................................................................................
New Jersey ..................................................................................................................................
Delaware ......................................................................................................................................
Maryland ......................................................................................................................................
Virginia .........................................................................................................................................
North Carolina ..............................................................................................................................
South Carolina .............................................................................................................................
Georgia ........................................................................................................................................
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0.51
0.36
7.69
7.61
1.22
13.06
14.54
1.48
2.69
10.16
32.05
0.05
0.04
15NOP1
Quota
(lb)
21,807
15,331
329,578
326,165
52,094
560,031
623,295
63,572
115,409
435,625
1,374,077
2,344
1,544
Quota
(kg)
9,892
6,954
149,494
147,946
23,629
254,026
282,722
28,836
52,349
197,596
623,271
1,063
700
68436
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 219 / Tuesday, November 15, 2022 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 2—PROPOSED 2023 BLUEFISH STATE COMMERCIAL QUOTA ALLOCATIONS—Continued
State
Quota
(lb)
Quota
(kg)
Florida ..........................................................................................................................................
8.55
366,585
166,280
Total ......................................................................................................................................
100.01
4,287,109
1,944,600
No changes were recommended to
recreational management measures as a
part of these specifications. Therefore,
all management measures, including the
recreational daily bag limit of three fish
per person for private anglers and five
fish per person for for-hire (charter/
party) vessels, would remain unchanged
for 2023.
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
Atlantic Bluefish 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 because it contains no
implementing regulations.
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 factual basis for this determination
is as follows.
The Councils conducted an
evaluation of the potential
socioeconomic impacts of the proposed
measures in conjunction with a SIR.
There are no proposed regulatory
changes in this bluefish action, so none
are considered in the evaluation. The
proposed action would implement the
previously projected 2023 bluefish
specifications, with an adjusted RHL to
account for a recreational overage in
2021 and updated recreational discard
data. Compared to the 2022
specifications, the coastwide
commercial quota would increase 21
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Percent share
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17:10 Nov 14, 2022
Jkt 259001
percent to 4.29 million lb (1,945 mt),
and the RHL would increase 1.6 percent
to 14.11 million lb (6,400 mt).
This proposed action would affect
entities that hold federal for-hire (party/
charter) recreational fishing permits for
bluefish. Vessels may hold multiple
fishing permits and some entities own
multiple vessels and/or permits.
According to the Northeast Fisheries
Science Center commercial ownership
database, 384 for-hire affiliate firms
generated revenues from recreational
fishing for various species during the
2019–2021 period (the most recent and
complete data available). All of those
business affiliates are categorized as
small businesses, but it is not possible
to derive the proportion of overall
revenues for these for-hire firms
resulting from fishing activities for an
individual species such as bluefish.
Nevertheless, given the popularity of
bluefish as a recreational species in the
Mid-Atlantic and New England, it is
likely that revenues generated from
bluefish may be somewhat important for
many of these firms at certain times of
the year. Although this action wouldn’t
affect the commercial sector beyond
what was considered in the prior
specifications action (providing an
increase in fishing opportunity), 526
commercial fishing affiliate firms
landed bluefish during this data period,
with 521 of those commercial entities
categorized as small businesses, and 5
categorized as large businesses.
Analyses indicate that bluefish revenues
contributed approximately 0.46 percent
of the total gross receipts for these small
entities.
The proposed specifications are
expected to provide similar fishing
opportunities in the recreational sector
when compared to the previous year, as
the RHL is increasing by less than two
percent, and because the management
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measures (bag limit, season, etc.) would
remain unchanged. As noted in the
prior specifications action, entities
issued a commercial bluefish permit
may experience a slight positive impact
related to potentially higher landings
throughout the course of the entire year.
However, because state allocations are
changing in accordance with
Amendment 7, there may be different
amounts of quota available regionally
compared to past years. Often fishing
behavior and short-term landings are
based on market conditions, which are
not expected to substantially change as
a result of these specifications. As such,
this proposed action is not expected to
have an impact on the way the fishery
operates or the revenue of small entities.
Overall, analyses indicate that the
proposed specifications will not
substantially change fishing effort, the
risk of overfishing, prices/revenues, or
fishery behavior. Therefore, the Council
concluded, and NMFS agrees, that this
action would not have a significant
adverse impact on a substantial number
of small businesses. As a result, an
initial regulatory flexibility analysis is
not required and none has been
prepared.
This action would not establish any
new reporting or record-keeping
requirements.
This proposed rule contains no new
information collection requirements
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 3, 2022.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for
Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2022–24490 Filed 11–14–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–22–P
E:\FR\FM\15NOP1.SGM
15NOP1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 219 (Tuesday, November 15, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 68434-68436]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-24490]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Part 648
[Docket No. 221103-0231; RTID 0648-XC422]
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Bluefish
Fishery; 2023 Bluefish 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 2023 Atlantic bluefish
fishery, as recommended by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council.
This action is necessary to establish allowable harvest levels for the
stock that will prevent overfishing and promote rebuilding, using the
best scientific information available. This rule is intended to inform
the public of the proposed fishery specifications and provide an
opportunity for comment on the proposed action.
DATES: Comments must be received by November 30, 2022.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this document, identified by
NOAA-NMFS-2022-0102, by the following method:
Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via
the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.
1. Go to https://www.regulations.gov, and enter ``NOAA-NMFS-2022-
0102'' in the Search box;
2. Click the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields; and
3. Enter or attach your comments.
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). If you are unable to submit your comment through
www.regulations.gov, contact Cynthia Ferrio, Fishery Policy Analyst,
[email protected].
Copies of the Supplemental Information Report (SIR) and other
supporting documents for this action are available upon 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/action-archive.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Ferrio, Fishery Policy
Analyst, (978) 281-9180.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) and the
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission) jointly manage
the Atlantic Bluefish Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The FMP requires
the specification of annual regulatory limits for up to three years at
a time, including: an acceptable biological catch (ABC), commercial and
recreational annual catch limits (ACL), commercial and recreational
annual catch targets (ACT), a commercial quota, a recreational harvest
limit (RHL), and other management measures. This action proposes
adjusted bluefish specifications for the 2023 fishing year, based on
Council and Commission recommendations.
The bluefish fishery is operating under multi-year specifications
for
[[Page 68435]]
fishing years 2022 and 2023 (87 FR 5739; February 2, 2022), which were
based on a 2021 assessment update and Amendment 7 to the Bluefish FMP
(86 FR 66977; November 24, 2021). Upon review of a 2022 data update and
recent catch information, the Council's Scientific and Statistical
Committee (SSC) and the Council's Bluefish Monitoring Committee agreed
that no changes are necessary to the previously projected ABC,
subsequent ACLs and ACTs, or any limits in the commercial sector. Prior
to two adjustments described below, these 2023 specifications would
have resulted in a 21-percent increase to the projected commercial
quota and a 59-percent increase to the projected RHL. However, the 2022
data update indicated that the initial projection of recreational
discards (4.19 million lb, 1,901 mt) did not fully account for expected
discards, so the Monitoring Committee recommended an adjustment to the
recreational total allowable landings (TAL) to account for higher than
expected discards (6.64 million lb, 3,012 mt). There was also a 5.59
million-lb (2,536-mt) overage of the fishery ACL caused by recreational
catch in 2021. Because the bluefish fishery is overfished, the
accountability measure (AM) required by the FMP at 50 CFR 648.163(d)(1)
is a pound-for-pound payback of the overage against the soonest
possible year's recreational ACT as a single-year adjustment. The 2021
overage would be applied to the 2023 specifications in this action. No
changes were recommended to recreational management measures because
the adjusted RHL remains slightly higher than the current RHL in 2022,
and there was no compelling reason found to change existing measures.
The Council and the Commission's Bluefish Management Board (Board)
approved bluefish catch specifications for fishing year 2023 at a joint
meeting in August 2022, as recommended by the SSC and Monitoring
Committee. The Council and Board did not recommend changes to any
regulations in place for bluefish. Therefore, all other commercial and
recreational management measures would remain unchanged for the 2023
fishing year.
Proposed Specifications
This action proposes the Council's recommendations for 2023
bluefish catch specifications, which are consistent with the
recommendations of the SSC and Monitoring Committee (Table 1). Although
ACLs in both the commercial and recreational sectors would still
increase by 21 percent as projected, the proposed RHL is adjusted and
would only increase 1.6 percent from 2022, rather than 59 percent as
originally projected.
Table 1--Comparison of Current 2022, Previously Projected 2023, and Proposed Adjusted 2023 Bluefish
Specifications *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Current 2022 Projected 2023 Proposed 2023
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Million lb Metric tons Million lb Metric tons Million lb Metric tons
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overfishing Limit.............. 40.56 18,399 45.17 20,490 45.17 20,490
ABC............................ 25.26 11,460 30.62 13,890 30.62 13,890
Commercial ACL = Commercial ACT 3.54 1,604 4.29 1,945 4.29 1,945
Recreational ACL = Recreational 21.73 9,856 26.34 11,945 26.34 11,945
ACT...........................
Recreational AM................ 3.65 1,656 0 0 5.59 2,536
Recreational Discards.......... 4.19 1,901 4.19 1,901 6.64 3,012
Commercial TAL................. 3.54 1,604 4.29 1,945 4.29 1,945
Recreational TAL............... 13.89 6,298 22.14 10,044 14.11 6,400
Sector Transfer................ 0 0 0 0 0 0
Commercial Quota............... 3.54 1,604 4.29 1,945 4.29 1,945
RHL............................ 13.89 6,298 22.14 10,044 14.11 6,400
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Specifications are derived from the ABC in metric tons (mt). When values are converted to millions of pounds
the numbers may slightly shift due to rounding. The conversion factor used is 1 mt = 2204.6226 lb.
The coastwide commercial quota is allocated to coastal states from
Maine to Florida based on percent shares specified in the FMP. These
proposed state allocations for 2023 (Table 2) are unchanged from what
was previously projected, as this action makes no changes to the
commercial sector or the final coastwide commercial quota. In addition,
no states exceeded their allocated quota in 2021, or are projected to
do so in 2022; therefore, no AMs for the commercial fishery are
required for the 2023 fishing year based on the data available at this
time.
Table 2--Proposed 2023 Bluefish State Commercial Quota Allocations
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
State Percent share Quota (lb) Quota (kg)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maine........................................................... 0.51 21,807 9,892
New Hampshire................................................... 0.36 15,331 6,954
Massachusetts................................................... 7.69 329,578 149,494
Rhode Island.................................................... 7.61 326,165 147,946
Connecticut..................................................... 1.22 52,094 23,629
New York........................................................ 13.06 560,031 254,026
New Jersey...................................................... 14.54 623,295 282,722
Delaware........................................................ 1.48 63,572 28,836
Maryland........................................................ 2.69 115,409 52,349
Virginia........................................................ 10.16 435,625 197,596
North Carolina.................................................. 32.05 1,374,077 623,271
South Carolina.................................................. 0.05 2,344 1,063
Georgia......................................................... 0.04 1,544 700
[[Page 68436]]
Florida......................................................... 8.55 366,585 166,280
-----------------------------------------------
Total....................................................... 100.01 4,287,109 1,944,600
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No changes were recommended to recreational management measures as
a part of these specifications. Therefore, all management measures,
including the recreational daily bag limit of three fish per person for
private anglers and five fish per person for for-hire (charter/party)
vessels, would remain unchanged for 2023.
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 Atlantic Bluefish 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 because it
contains no implementing regulations.
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 factual basis for this determination is as follows.
The Councils conducted an evaluation of the potential socioeconomic
impacts of the proposed measures in conjunction with a SIR. There are
no proposed regulatory changes in this bluefish action, so none are
considered in the evaluation. The proposed action would implement the
previously projected 2023 bluefish specifications, with an adjusted RHL
to account for a recreational overage in 2021 and updated recreational
discard data. Compared to the 2022 specifications, the coastwide
commercial quota would increase 21 percent to 4.29 million lb (1,945
mt), and the RHL would increase 1.6 percent to 14.11 million lb (6,400
mt).
This proposed action would affect entities that hold federal for-
hire (party/charter) recreational fishing permits for bluefish. Vessels
may hold multiple fishing permits and some entities own multiple
vessels and/or permits. According to the Northeast Fisheries Science
Center commercial ownership database, 384 for-hire affiliate firms
generated revenues from recreational fishing for various species during
the 2019-2021 period (the most recent and complete data available). All
of those business affiliates are categorized as small businesses, but
it is not possible to derive the proportion of overall revenues for
these for-hire firms resulting from fishing activities for an
individual species such as bluefish. Nevertheless, given the popularity
of bluefish as a recreational species in the Mid-Atlantic and New
England, it is likely that revenues generated from bluefish may be
somewhat important for many of these firms at certain times of the
year. Although this action wouldn't affect the commercial sector beyond
what was considered in the prior specifications action (providing an
increase in fishing opportunity), 526 commercial fishing affiliate
firms landed bluefish during this data period, with 521 of those
commercial entities categorized as small businesses, and 5 categorized
as large businesses. Analyses indicate that bluefish revenues
contributed approximately 0.46 percent of the total gross receipts for
these small entities.
The proposed specifications are expected to provide similar fishing
opportunities in the recreational sector when compared to the previous
year, as the RHL is increasing by less than two percent, and because
the management measures (bag limit, season, etc.) would remain
unchanged. As noted in the prior specifications action, entities issued
a commercial bluefish permit may experience a slight positive impact
related to potentially higher landings throughout the course of the
entire year. However, because state allocations are changing in
accordance with Amendment 7, there may be different amounts of quota
available regionally compared to past years. Often fishing behavior and
short-term landings are based on market conditions, which are not
expected to substantially change as a result of these specifications.
As such, this proposed action is not expected to have an impact on the
way the fishery operates or the revenue of small entities.
Overall, analyses indicate that the proposed specifications will
not substantially change fishing effort, the risk of overfishing,
prices/revenues, or fishery behavior. Therefore, the Council concluded,
and NMFS agrees, that this action would not have a significant adverse
impact on a substantial number of small businesses. As a result, an
initial regulatory flexibility analysis is not required and none has
been prepared.
This action would not establish any new reporting or record-keeping
requirements.
This proposed rule contains no new information collection
requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: November 3, 2022.
Samuel D. Rauch, III,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-24490 Filed 11-14-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
