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In response to a recommendation by the New England Fishery Management Council, this action proposes measures for a long-term acceptable biological catch (ABC) control rule to address the biological and ecological requirements of the Atlantic herring stock, including explicitly accounting for Atlantic herring's role in the ecosystem, and minimizing localized depletion and user group conflict when effort in the Atlantic herring fishery overlaps (spatially and temporally) with effort in fisheries targeting predators of Atlantic herring (e.g., tuna, groundfish) or ecotourism industries. Specifically, this action would implement a control rule generating an ABC intended to meet specific criteria identified by the New England Fishery Management Council, including low variability in yield, low probability of the stock becoming overfished, low probability of a fishery shutdown, and catch limits set at a relatively high proportion of maximum sustainable yield. This action would specify that ABC would be set for a 3-year period, but would allow ABC to vary year-to-year in response to projected changes in biomass.