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This rule adjusted the 2016 fishing season quotas for North and South Atlantic swordfish based upon 2015 commercial quota underharvests and 2016 quota transfers in accordance with International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas recommendations. This rule was necessary to ensure that current swordfish quotas account for any underharvests from the 2015 fishing year consistent with the National Marine Fisheries Service regulations and International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas recommendations that establish the U.S. North and South Atlantic swordfish allowable catch. This rule also modified the regulations to specify that the National Marine Fisheries Service will not undertake notice and comment rulemaking when annual quota specifications simply apply a formula previously adopted through notice and comment rulemaking and as described in existing regulatory text. In those specific circumstances, the National Marine Fisheries Service will instead publish an annual notice in the Federal Register announcing the final available adjusted quota(s) with a description of the application of the formulas.