June 25, 2018 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:
Please find attached and below the preliminary agenda and public comment guidelines for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s 2018 Summer Meeting, August 7-9, in Arlington, VA. The agenda is also available at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2018-summer-meeting. Materials will be available on July 25, 2018 on the Commission website at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2018-summer-meeting.
A block of rooms is being held at The Westin Crystal City, 1800 S. Eads Street, Arlington, VA 22202. Meeting attendees can make reservations online via Star Group Website at http://www.starwoodhotels.com/ or call The Westin Crystal City at 703.486.1111 and mention the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to obtain the group room rate of $175.00 plus tax single/dbl. Please be aware you must guarantee your room reservation with a major credit card or one night’s advance payment. Hotel reservations must be made by Monday, July 9, 2018. Room availability will not be guaranteed beyond this date. If you are being reimbursed by ASMFC for your travel, please make your reservation directly with the hotel as reservations made through travel websites do not apply toward our minimum number of required reservations with the hotel. Please note, cancellations at The Westin must be made by 4:00 p.m. two days prior to arrival to avoid penalty and an early departure fee of $100 will apply when checking out prior to the confirmed date. If you have any problems at all regarding accommodations please contact Cindy at 703.842.0740 or at crobertson@asmfc.org.
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
Summer Meeting
August 7 – 9, 2018
The Westin Crystal City
Arlington, Virginia
Preliminary Agenda
The agenda is subject to change. Bulleted items represent the anticipated major issues to be discussed or acted upon at the meeting. The final agenda will include additional items and may revise the bulleted items provided below. The agenda reflects the current estimate of time required for scheduled Board meetings. The Commission may adjust this agenda in accordance with the actual duration of Board meetings. Interested parties should anticipate Boards starting earlier or later than indicated herein.
Tuesday, August 7
8:00 – 10:00 a.m. Executive Committee
(A portion of this meeting may be a closed session for Committee members and Commissioners only)
- Consider Changes to the Appeals Process
- Update on Right Whale Lawsuit
- Update on Federal Appropriations
- Discuss the Commission’s Role in Aquaculture Activities
- Discuss Development and Use of Ecosystem Reports
- Review White Paper on Future Scope of Recreational Data Collection Programs
10:15 a.m. – Noon Atlantic Herring Section
- Review and Consider Approval of 2018 Benchmark Stock Assessment for Management Use
- Discuss Recent New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) Action on 2018 Quotas
- Reconsider ASMFC 2018 Sub-Annual Catch Limits
- Provide Recommendation to NEFMC for 2019-2021 Fishery Specifications
Noon – 1:00 p.m. Lunch (On Your Own)
1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Atlantic Herring Section (continued)
2:15 – 3:15 p.m. NOAA Fisheries Presentation on Revised Recreational Catch Histories Resulting from Changes to the Marine Recreational Information Program Survey
3:30 – 5:00 p.m. Atlantic Menhaden Management Board
- Consider Postponed Motion from May Board Meeting:
Move the Atlantic Menhaden Board recommend to the ISFMP Policy Board that the Commonwealth of Virginia be found out of compliance for not fully and effectively implementing and enforcing Amendment 3 to the Atlantic Menhaden Fishery Management Plan if the State does not implement the following measure from section 4.3.7 (Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap) of Amendment 3: The annual total allowable harvest from the Chesapeake Bay by the reduction fishery is limited to no more than 51,000 mt.
Motion by Mr. Batsavage; second by Mr. Estes.
- Elect Vice-Chair
Wednesday, August 8
8:00 – 10:30 a.m. American Eel Management Board
- Consider Addendum V for Final Approval
- Review Maine Aquaculture Proposal
10:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Atlantic Sturgeon Management Board
- NOAA Fisheries Update on 5-year Status Review of the Endangered Species Act Listing and Recovery Plan
- Review Technical Committee Report Regarding Highest Priority Data Sources for Stock Assessment
- Consider Approval of 2018 Fishery Management Plan Review and State Compliance Reports
12:15 – 1:00 p.m. Lunch (Provided for Commissioners, Proxies and Board Members)
1:00 – 2:15 p.m. Coastal Sharks Management Board
- Review of Draft Addendum V for Adjusting Coastal Shark Regulations Annually
- Update on NOAA Fisheries Highly Migratory Species Draft Amendment 11
- Discuss Best Practices for Safe Handling and Release of Coastal Sharks from Shore Sites
2:30 – 4:30 p.m. Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management Board
- Working Group Progress Report on Strategic Plan for Black Sea Bass Management
- Discuss Options for 2019 Black Sea Bass and Summer Flounder Recreational Management
- Consider Approval of 2017 Fishery Management Plan Reviews and State Compliance Reports for Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass
4:45 – 5:30 p.m. Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board
- Consider Approval of 2018 Fishery Management Plan Review and State Compliance Reports
- Update on the Benchmark Stock Assessment Progress
- Elect Vice-Chair
Thursday, August 9
8:00 – 10:30 a.m. Interstate Fisheries Management Program Policy Board
- Executive Committee Update
- Review Annual Performance of the Stocks
- Update on Risk and Uncertainty Policy
- Discuss the Commission’s Role in Aquaculture Activities
- Update on the Northeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program
- Update on the Atlantic Coastal Fish Habitat Partnership
- Review Progress on Horseshoe Crab and Shad Benchmark Stock Assessments
- Review Noncompliance Findings, If Necessary
10:30 – 11:00 a.m. Business Session
- Review Noncompliance Findings, If Necessary
11:15 a.m. – 1:45 p.m. South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board
(Lunch will be provided at an appropriate break time during this meeting)
- Review Progress on 2018 Traffic Light Analyses for Atlantic Croaker and Spot
- Consider Postponed Motion to Initiate an Addendum to the Spot and Atlantic Croaker Fishery Management Plans that Incorporate the New Traffic Light Analyses and Management Responses to Those Analyses
- Consider Approval of Public Information Document for Amendment 1 to the Cobia Fishery Management Plan for Public Comment
- Consider Approval of 2018 Fishery Management Plan Review and State Compliance Reports for Atlantic Croaker and Red Drum
- Elect Vice-Chair
Public Comment Guidelines
With the intent of developing policies in the Commission’s procedures for public participation that result in a fair opportunity for public input, the ISFMP Policy Board has approved the following guidelines for use at management board meetings:
For issues that are not on the agenda, management boards will continue to provide opportunity to the public to bring matters of concern to the board’s attention at the start of each board meeting. Board chairs will use a speaker sign-up list in deciding how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.
For topics that are on the agenda, but have not gone out for public comment, board chairs will provide limited opportunity for comment, taking into account the time allotted on the agenda for the topic. Chairs will have flexibility in deciding how to allocate comment opportunities; this could include hearing one comment in favor and one in opposition until the chair is satisfied further comment will not provide additional insight to the board.
For agenda action items that have already gone out for public comment, it is the Policy Board’s intent to end the occasional practice of allowing extensive and lengthy public comments. Currently, board chairs have the discretion to decide what public comment to allow in these circumstances.
In addition, the following timeline has been established for the submission of written comment for issues for which the Commission has NOTestablished a specific public comment period (i.e., in response to proposed management action).
- Comments received 3 weeks prior to the start of a meeting week will be included in the briefing materials.
- Comments received by 5:00 PM on the Tuesday immediately preceding the scheduled ASMFC Meeting (in this case, the Tuesday deadline will be July 31, 2018) will be distributed electronically to Commissioners/Board members prior to the meeting and a limited number of copies will be provided at the meeting.
- Following the Tuesday, July 31, 2018 5:00 PM deadline, the commenter will be responsible for distributing the information to the management board prior to the board meeting or providing enough copies for the management board consideration at the meeting (a minimum of 50 copies).
The submitted comments must clearly indicate the commenter’s expectation from the ASMFC staff regarding distribution. As with other public comment, it will be accepted via mail, fax, and email.