[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 181 (Monday, September 20, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 50772-50773]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-24315]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
50 CFR Parts 622 and 648
[Docket No. 981014259-8312-02; I.D. 091499B]
Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Black Sea Bass
Fishery; Commercial Quota Harvested for Quarter 3 Period; Fisheries of
the Caribbean, Gulf and South Atlantic
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Commercial quota harvest for Quarter 3 period.
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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the black sea bass commercial quota
available in the Quarter 3 period to the coastal states from Maine
through North Carolina will have been harvested as of September 25,
1999. Commercial vessels may not land black sea bass in the Northeast
Region for the remainder of the 1999 Quarter 3 quota period (through
September 30, 1999). Regulations governing the black sea bass fishery
require publication of this notification to advise the coastal states
from Maine through North Carolina that the quota has been harvested and
to advise vessel permit holders and dealer permit holders that no
commercial
[[Page 50773]]
quota is available for landing black sea bass in these states north of
35 deg.15.3' N. lat.
DATES: Effective 0001 hours, September 25, 1999, through 2400 hrs
September 30, 1999 (local time).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Walter J. Gardiner, Fishery Management
Specialist, (978) 281-9326.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulations governing the black sea bass
fishery north of 35 deg.15.3' N. lat. are found at 50 CFR part 648.
Regulations governing the black sea bass fishery south of 35 deg.15.3'
N. lat. as part of the South Atlantic snapper-grouper fishery (also
known as the NMFS Southeast Region snapper-grouper fisheries) are found
at 50 CFR part 622. The regulations for black sea bass at 50 CFR part
648 require annual specification of a commercial quota that is
allocated into four quota periods, based upon percentages of the annual
quota. The Quarter 3 commercial quota (July through September) is
distributed to the coastal states from Maine through North Carolina.
The process to set the total annual commercial quota and the percent
allocated to each state is described in Sec. 648.140.
The initial total commercial quota for black sea bass for the 1999
calendar year was set equal to 3,025,000 lb (1,372,117 kg) (63 FR
72203, December 31, 1998). The Quarter 3 period quota, which is equal
to 12.33 percent of the annual commercial quota, was set at 372,983 lb
(169,182 kg).
Section 648.141 requires the Administrator, Northeast Region, NMFS
(Regional Administrator) to monitor the commercial black sea bass quota
for each quota period and, based upon dealer reports, state data, and
other available information, to determine when the commercial quota has
been harvested. The Regional Administrator is further required to
publish notification in the Federal Register advising and notifying
commercial vessels and dealer permit holders that, effective upon a
specific date, the black sea bass commercial quota has been harvested
and no commercial quota is available for landing black sea bass for the
remainder of the Quarter 3 period north of 35 deg.15.3' N. lat. The
Regional Administrator has determined, based upon dealer reports and
other available information, that the black sea bass commercial quota
for the 1999 Quarter 3 period will have been harvested as of September
25, 1999.
The regulations at Sec. 648.4(b) provide that, if the commercial
black sea bass quota for a period is harvested and the coastal states
are closed to the landing of black sea bass north of 35 deg.15.3' N.
lat., any vessel owner that holds valid commercial permits for both the
black sea bass and the NMFS Southeast Region Snapper-Grouper fisheries
may surrender their moratorium black sea bass permit by certified mail
addressed to the Regional Administrator (See Table 1 to Sec. 600.502)
and fish pursuant to their Snapper-Grouper permit, as long as fishing
is conducted exclusively in waters, and landings are made, south of
35 deg.15.3' N. lat. A moratorium permit for the black sea bass fishery
that is voluntarily relinquished or surrendered will be reissued upon
the receipt of the vessel owner's written request after a minimum
period of 6 months from the date of cancellation.
Classification
This action is required by 50 CFR part 648 and is exempt from
review under E.O. 12866.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: September 14, 1999.
Bruce C. Morehead,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 99-24315 Filed 9-17-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-F
