2018-01672. Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder, Scup, Black Sea Bass Fisheries; 2018 and Projected 2019 Scup Specifications and Announcement of Final 2018 Summer Flounder and Black Sea Bass Specifications; Correction

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Final rule; correction.

SUMMARY:

On December 22, 2017, NMFS issued final specifications for scup, summer flounder, and black sea bass for 2018. That document inadvertently failed to apply a pound-for-pound overage deduction to the 2018 scup summer period quota due to overages incurred in 2017. Additionally, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts received a late-season summer flounder transfer applicable to the 2017 fishing year that adjusts its final 2018 state summer flounder quota. This document corrects the final 2018 specifications and informs the public of these adjustments.

DATES:

Effective January 30, 2018, through December 31, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Copies of the specifications document, including the Environmental Assessment (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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Emily Gilbert, Fishery Policy Analyst, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Need for Correction

The final 2018 specifcations for scup, summer flounder, and black sea bass published on December 22, 2017 (82 FR 60682). Following its publication, we became aware of two adjustments that need to be made that pertain to the scup and summer flounder commercial fishery quotas.

Adjustment to the Scup Summer Period Quota

Although the 2017 scup annual catch limit (ACL) was not exceeded, landings during the summer commercial quota period exceeded the 2017 summer period quota by 46,753 lb (21,206 kg). The regulations at § 648.123(a)(2)(ii) require any landings in excess of the summer period quota be deducted, pound for pound, from the summer period quota for the following year. As a result, this action adjusts the final 2018 scup summer period quota from 9,340,986 lb (4,237 mt) to 9,294,233 lb (4,216 mt) to account for the 2017 landings overage. Because the overall 2017 ACL was not exceeded, this action does not adjust the final 2018 ACL published on December 22, 2017.

Adjustment to the 2018 Summer Flounder Quota for Massachusetts

This action corrects the state quota allocated to Massachusetts by accounting for a transfer received in late December 2017. As a result of this transfer, Massachusetts received an additional 3,585 lb (1,626 kg) applied towards its 2017 quota. This results in an overage reduction from 37,816 lb (17,153 kg) to 34,231 lb (15,527 kg), which results in a revised 2018 quota of 404,742 lb (183,588 kg).

Corrections

On page 60683 of the Federal Register published on December 22, 2017, Table 2 is corrected to read as follows:

Table 2—Commercial Scup Quota Allocations for 2018 by Quota Period

Quota period	2018 Initial quota
	Percent share	lb	mt
Winter I	45.11	10,820,000	4,908
Summer	38.95	9,294,233	4,216
Winter II	15.94	3,822,816	1,734
Total	100.0	23,937,049	10,858
Note: Metric tons are as converted from pounds and may not necessarily total due to rounding.

Additionally, on page 60684, Table 6 is corrected to read as follows:

Table 6—Final State-by-State Commercial Summer Flounder Quotas for 2018

State	FMP percent share	2018 Initial quota		2018 Adjusted quota (ACL overage)		Overages through October 31, 2017		Final adjusted 2018 quota, less overages
		lb	kg	lb	kg	lb	kg	lb	kg
Maine	0.04756	3,152	1,430	3,061	1,388	0	0	3,061	1,388
New Hampshire	0.00046	30	14	30	13	0	0	30	13
Massachusetts	6.82046	451,998	205,023	438,973	199,115	34,231	15,527	404,742	183,588
Rhode Island	15.68298	1,039,326	471,430	1,009,375	457,845	13,002	5,898	996,373	451,947
Connecticut	2.25708	149,579	67,848	145,268	65,893	0	0	145,268	65,893
New York	7.64699	506,773	229,868	492,169	223,244	0	0	492,169	223,244
New Jersey	16.72499	1,108,381	502,753	1,076,440	488,265	0	0	1,076,440	488,265
Delaware	0.01779	1,179	535	1,145	519	49,638	22,515	−48,493	−21,996
Maryland	2.0391	135,133	61,295	131,239	59,529	0	0	131,239	59,529
Virginia	21.31676	1,412,682	640,782	1,371,972	622,316	0	0	1,371,972	622,316
North Carolina	27.44584	1,818,862	825,022	1,766,447	801,247	0	0	1,766,447	801,247
Total	100	6,627,096	3,006,000	6,436,120	2,919,375			6,387,743	2,897,431
Notes: Kilograms are as converted from pounds and may not necessarily add due to rounding. Total quota is the sum for all states with an allocation. A state with a negative number has a 2018 allocation of zero (0). Total adjusted 2018 quota, less overages, does not include negative allocations (i.e., Delaware's overage).

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

Dated: January 24, 2018.

Samuel D. Rauch, III,

Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Marine Fisheries Service.