03-25928. Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Notice of public meeting.

SUMMARY:

The Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) Ad Hoc Groundfish Trawl Individual Quota Committee (TIQC) will hold a working meeting which is open to the public.

DATES:

The TIQC working meeting will begin Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 8:30 a.m. and may go into the evening until business for the day is completed. The meeting will reconvene from 8 a.m. and continue until business for the day is complete on Wednesday, October 29, 2003.

ADDRESSES:

The meetings will be held at: Embassy Suites Hotel, 7900 NE 82nd Avenue, Portland, OR 97220; [phone].

Council address: Pacific Fishery Management Council, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97220-1384.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Jim Seger, Staff Officer (Economist), telephone: [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The purpose of the TIQC working meeting is to begin development of alternatives for an individual quota program to cover limited entry trawl landings in the West Coast groundfish fishery. Committee charge, decision rules, and the purpose, need and objectives for an individual quota program will also be addressed.

Although nonemergency issues not contained in this announcement may come before the TICQ for discussion, during this meeting those issues may not be the subject of a TICQ recommendation for a final Council action that results in Council recommendation to NOAA fisheries. Recommendations for such final action by the Council will be restricted to those issues specifically listed in this notice and any issues arising after publication of this notice that require emergency action under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the GMT's intent to take final action to address the emergency.

Special Accommodations

The meeting is physically accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids should be directed to Ms. Carolyn Porter at [phone] at least 5 days prior to the meeting date.

Dated: October 7, 2003.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.