Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 52, December 27, 2024
(a) General Provisions. No person shall
engage in commercial groundfish fishing except as provided by the Fish and Game
Code and regulations provided herein. Unless otherwise specified in this
Division, applicable regulations adopted by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce
pursuant to the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act and published
in Title 50, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Parts 600 and 660 are hereby
incorporated and made a part of these regulations. Federal regulations shall be
made available upon request from the Department of Fish and Wildlife, Marine
Region, email: groundfish@wildlife.ca.gov.
(b) General Definitions. For the purposes of
these regulations, the following definitions shall apply:
(1) Land or Landing. The transfer of fish
from a fishing vessel. Once offloading begins, all fish aboard the vessel are
counted as part of the landing.
(2)
Closure. Taking and retaining, possessing, or landing the particular species or
species group is prohibited. Unless otherwise announced in the Federal
Register, offloading must begin before the time the fishery closes.
(3) Sorting. It is unlawful for any person to
fail to sort prior to the first weighting after offloading, those groundfish
species or species groups for which there is a trip limit, size limit, quota,
or optimum yield, if the vessel fished or landed in an area during a time when
such trip limit, size limit, quota, or optimum yield applied. This provision
applies to both the limited entry and open access fisheries.
(4) Trip Limits. Trip limits specify the
amount of fish that a vessel may legally land per fishing trip or cumulatively
per unit of time or the number of landings of fish that may be made by a vessel
in a given period of time.
(A) Daily Trip
Limit. Daily trip limit is the maximum amount of groundfish that may be taken
and retained, possessed, or landed per vessel in 24 consecutive hours, starting
at 0001 hours local time. Only one landing of groundfish shall be made in that
24-hour period. Daily trip limits shall not be accumulated during multiple day
trips.
(B) Cumulative Trip Limit.
Cumulative trip limit is the maximum amount of groundfish that may be taken and
retained, possessed, or landed per vessel in a cumulative fishing period,
without a limit on the number of landings or trips.
(5) Size Limits and Length Measurement. Total
length is measured from the tip of the snout (mouth closed) to the tip of the
tail (pinched together) without mutilation of the fish or the use of additional
force to extend the length of the fish.
(6) Limited Entry Fishery. Limited entry
fishery includes vessels using trawl gear, longline, and trap (or pot) gear
fished pursuant to the harvest guidelines, quotas, and other management
measures governing the limited entry fishing. Limited entry gear includes only
longline, trap (or pot) or trawl gear used under the authorization of a valid
limited entry permit.
(7) Open
Access Fishery. Open access fishery includes vessels using exempted gear, and
longline and trap (or pot) gear fished pursuant to the harvest guidelines,
quotas, and other management measures governing open access fishing. Exempted
gear includes all types of fishing gear except longline, trap (or pot), and
groundfish trawl gear, and includes trawl gear used to take pink shrimp, and
spot and ridgeback prawns, and south of 38° 57' 30" N (Point Arena),
California halibut and sea cucumber. A State of California limited entry permit
is required for the take of sea cucumbers.
(8) Federally Designated Routine Management
Measures. Routine Management Measures, identified as catch restrictions
intended to keep landings within the harvest levels announced by the Secretary
of Commerce and noticed in the Federal Register by the National Marine
Fisheries Service, and hereby incorporated and made a part of these
regulations. Should any federal management measures conflict with existing
statutes, including Fish and Game Code Sections 8496 and 8842(b), or
regulations of the commission, the provisions in the statutes or regulations
which conflict with the federal management measures are made
inoperative.
Note: Authority cited: Section 7652, Fish and Game Code.
Reference: Sections 7652, 7652.2 and 8607, Fish and Game Code.
Note: Authority cited: Section
7652,
Fish and Game Code. Reference: Sections
7652,
7652.2,
and
8607,
Fish and Game Code.
