View Rule

NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service is proposing this action pursuant to the authorities under sections 303(c) and 304(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission jointly manage summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass as a part of the Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan (FMP). At the joint meeting in December 2024, the Council and the Commission’s Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Board recommended 2025 black sea bass recreational management measures. For black sea bass, the Regional Administrator must implement coastwide measures or approve conservation equivalent measures per 50 CFR 648.142(d) as soon as possible following the Council and Commission’s recommendation. This action proposed establishing conservation equivalency ( i.e. , waiving Federal measures in lieu of appropriate state water measures) for the recreational black sea bass fisheries and proposes non-preferred coastwide measures to be effective in Federal waters if, ultimately, we are unable to approve conservation equivalency. This action proposed no changes to the Federal recreational management measures for scup or summer flounder.