Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Reef Fish Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Amendment 15

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[I.D. 091997B]

RIN 0648-AJ17

Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic;

Reef Fish Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico; Amendment 15

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability of an amendment to a fishery management

plan; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management

Council (Council) has submitted Amendment 15 to the Fishery Management

Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico (FMP) for

review, approval, and implementation by NMFS. Written comments are

requested from the public.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before November 25,

1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be mailed to the Southeast Regional Office,

NMFS, 9721 Executive Center Drive N., St. Petersburg, FL 33702.

Requests for copies of Amendment 15, which includes an

environmental assessment, a regulatory impact review, and an initial

regulatory flexibility analysis, and for copies of a minority report

submitted by two members of the Council, should be sent to the Gulf of

Mexico Fishery Management Council, 3018 U.S. Highway 301 North, Suite

1000, Tampa, FL 33619-2266, Phone: 813-228-2815; Fax: 813-225-7015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Sadler, 813-570-5305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation

and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires each regional

fishery management council to submit any fishery management plan or

amendment to the Secretary of Commerce for review and approval,

disapproval, or partial approval. The Magnuson-Stevens Act also

requires that NMFS, upon receiving an amendment, immediately publish a

document in the Federal Register stating that the amendment is

available for public review and comment.

Amendment 15 would: Replace the current system of commercial red

snapper permit endorsements and trip limits with a system of two

classes of transferrable commercial red snapper licenses and associated

trip limits; starting in 1998, split the red snapper commercial fishing

season into two time periods, the first commencing February 1 with two-

thirds of the annual quota available and the second commencing on

September 1 with the remainder of the annual quota available; open the

red snapper commercial fishery at noon on the first of each month and

close it at noon on the 15th of each month during the commercial

season; prohibit the possession of reef fish in excess of the bag limit

on a vessel that has on board, or is tending, a trap other than a fish,

stone crab, or spiny lobster trap; increase the minimum size limit for

vermilion snapper; close the commercial fishery for greater amberjack

each year during the period March through May; remove sea bass, grunts,

and porgies from management under the FMP; and remove certain species

from the aggregate bag limit for reef fish.

A proposed rule to implement Amendment 15 has been received from

the Council. In accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, NMFS is

evaluating the proposed rule and may publish it in the Federal Register

for public review and comment.

Comments received by November 25, 1997, whether specifically

directed to the amendment or the proposed rule, will be considered in

the approval/disapproval decision on Amendment 15. Comments received

after that date will not be considered in the approval/disapproval

decision. All comments received on Amendment 15 or on the proposed rule

during their respective comment periods will be addressed in the final

rule.

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

Dated: September 22, 1997.

Bruce C. Morehead,

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine

Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 97-25556 Filed 9-23-97; 1:25 pm]

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