Framework Adjustment 16 to the Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Management Plan

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council developed Framework 16 in order to address potential latent effort in the Illexsquid fishery. NOAA Fisheries is approving and implementing the following measures, as recommended by the Council:

Volumetric Hold Baseline for Limited Access IllexSquid Vessels

Framework 16 creates a volumetric hold baseline requirement for limited access Illexsquid permits. In order to establish this baseline, a vessel issued a limited access Illexsquid permit must have its hold capacity certified by a qualified individual or entity. The vessel's fish hold capacity measurement, including a signed certification by the qualified individual or entity, must be submitted to NOAA Fisheries within 12 months of the implementation of this final rule (by November 29, 2025) in order for its 2026 vessel permit application to be complete. A similar volumetric hold baseline requirement was implemented for Tier 1 and Tier 2 Atlantic mackerel permit holders through Amendment 11 to the Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish FMPin 2011. If a vessel already has a volumetric hold baseline related to its Tier 1 or Tier 2 Atlantic mackerel permit, that hold baseline can be used for its limited access Illexsquid permit as well.

If a limited access Illexsquid permit is in Confirmation of Permit History (CPH) when fish hold capacity measurements are due (on November 29, 2025), the default volumetric hold baseline for that CPH permit will be established based on the fish hold capacity measurement of the first replacement vessel greater than 20 ft after the permit is removed from CPH (at which point the vessel's fish hold would have to be measured under the certification requirements before fishing under the permit). If a permit in CPH already had an existing fish hold capacity measurement for the vessel immediately preceding the permit's placement into CPH that met the measurement certification requirements, the fish hold capacity measurement could be used to establish a volumetric hold baseline for the Illexsquid permit within the implementation period (by November 29, 2025).

If an Illexsquid vessel is upgraded (either through refitting or replacement), the upgraded vessel's hold capacity may not exceed the vessel hold capacity baseline by more than 10 percent. The modified fish hold, or the fish hold of the replacement vessel, must be surveyed by a qualified surveyor and submitted to NOAA Fisheries unless the replacement vessel already has an appropriate fish hold capacity measurement on file.

Processing Type for Limited Access Illexand Longfin Squid Vessels

Framework 16 enables NOAA Fisheries to collect information on processing type from vessels issued a limited access Illexor Tier 1 longfin squid permit. This information will be collected annually through the permit renewal process, beginning in permit year 2025 (starting January 1, 2025).

Clarification of Existing Regulations

Finally, Framework 16 clarifies an existing requirement for limited access Illexsquid vessels to submit daily vessel monitoring system (VMS) catch reports when on declared Illextrips. Reports must include:

• Electronic vessel trip report (eVTR) identifier.
• Month, day, and year.
• Total weight (lb) of Illexsquid kept.
• Total weight (lb) of all fish (including Illexsquid) kept.

Daily VMS catch reports must be submitted in 24-hr intervals for each day of a declared Illextrip, and must be submitted by 9:00 a.m. on the following day. Reports are required to be submitted even if the Illexsquid caught that day have not yet been landed.

This bulletin serves as a Small Entity Compliance Guide, complying with section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996.

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