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DOC/NOAA RIN: 0648-BN64 Publication ID: Spring 2025 
Title: ●Emergency Measures to Revise Portions of the Fishing Year 2025 Provisions in the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan 
Abstract:

This temporary rule includes emergency measures pursuant to the rulemaking authorities under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to revise portions of the fishing year 2025 provisions in the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan.  The National Marine Fisheries Service only recently determined that proposed actions in Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan Amendment 25 and Framework 69 will not be able to proceed to completion prior to the beginning of the Northeast multispecies fishing season on May 1, 2025.  This action is necessary to address an emergency arising from the absence of measures proposed in those actions that would create serious conservation and management problems for the fishery and severe economic harm to the Northeast multispecies fishery participants.  This action would mitigate significant economic harm by establishing fish catch limits and approve operations plans and sector allocations that allow the fishery to operate during the 2025 fishing year (beginning May 1, 2025).  Several other measures are necessary to address the potential for serious conservation and management problems by ensuring that the fishery can operate beginning May 1, 2025, without causing overfishing.  This action would:  Set fishing year 2025 catch limits for Gulf of Maine (GOM) cod, Georges Bank (GB) cod, and GB haddock; fishing year 2025 total allowable catches for eastern GB cod and eastern GB haddock that are shared stocks between the United States and Canada; confirm projected fishing year 2025 specifications for other northeast multispecies stocks that were previously published; approve northeast multispecies sector operations plans, allocate annual catch entitlements (ACE) to the sectors, prohibit transfers of GOM cod and GB cod ACE between sectors, prohibit sectors from converting eastern GB cod to western GB cod; prohibit recreational fishing vessels from possessing GB cod; and prohibit commercial fishing vessels fishing under the common pool management program from possessing GB cod.  This emergency action is necessary because without approval of cod catch limits and dependent Northeast multispecies sector operations plans and sector ACE allocations, the vessels enrolled in sectors (responsible for >90 percent of groundfish landings) would be unable to fish during the 2025 fishing year.

 
Agency: Department of Commerce(DOC)  Priority: Substantive, Nonsignificant 
RIN Status: First time published in the Unified Agenda Agenda Stage of Rulemaking: Final Rule Stage 
Major: No  Unfunded Mandates: No 
EO 14192 Designation: Not subject to, not significant 
CFR Citation: 50 CFR 648   
Legal Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.   
Legal Deadline:  None
Timetable:
Action Date FR Cite
Emergency Rule  05/02/2025  90 FR 18804   
Emergency Rule Effective  05/01/2025 
Emergency Rule Comment Period End  06/02/2025 
Emergency Rule; Extension  10/00/2025 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Required: No  Government Levels Affected: None 
Small Entities Affected: Businesses  Federalism: No 
Included in the Regulatory Plan: No 
RIN Data Printed in the FR: No 
Agency Contact:
Michael Pentony
Regional Administrator, Greater Atlantic Region
Department of Commerce
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
55 Great Republic Drive,
Gloucester, MA 01930
Phone:978 281-9283
Email: michael.pentony@noaa.gov