ASMFC 2022 Winter Meeting Webinar Final Agenda and Materials Now Available

January 12, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The final agenda and meeting materials for the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Winter Meeting Webinar (January 25-27, 2022 are now available at http://www.asmfc.org/home/2022-winter-meeting; click on the relevant Board/Committee name to access the documents for that Board/Committee. For ease of access, all meeting materials have been combined into one document: Main Meeting Materials.

Due to concerns about the continued spread of COVID-19 and the challenges of conducting a fully participatory hybrid meeting (in-person and virtual meeting combined), the meeting has shifted from a hybrid meeting to one that will be conducted entirely via webinar.

Supplemental materials will be posted to the website on Wednesday, January 19. For those Boards that have FMP Reviews and Compliance Reports on their agendas, the compliance reports are not posted due to their large file sizes. If you would like a copy of a specific state’s or jurisdiction’s compliance report, please contact the respective FMP Coordinator.

The agenda is subject to change. 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. It is our intent to begin at the scheduled start time for each meeting, however, if meetings run late the next meeting may start later than originally planned. Please note there has been a slight shift in timing for the Executive Committee and Horseshoe Crab Management Board, which meet on Wednesday. January 26.

Webinar Information
Board meeting proceedings will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning Monday, January 25 at 10 a.m. and continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be 3:15 p.m.) on Thursday, January 27. The webinar will allow registrants to listen to board deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur. 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 ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the board chair will decide how to allocate the available time on the agenda (typically 10 minutes) to the number of people who want to speak.

Each day, the webinar will begin 30 minutes prior to the start of the first meeting so that people can troubleshoot any connectivity or audio issues they may encounter. If you are having issues with the webinar (connecting to or audio related issues), please contact Chris Jacobs at 703.842.0790.

If you are joining the webinar but will not be using VoIP, you can may also call in at +1 (415) 655-0600, access code 774-133-932. A PIN will be provided to you after joining the webinar; see webinar instructions for details on how to receive the PIN.

For those who will not be joining the webinar but would like to listen in to the audio portion only, press the # key when asked for a PIN.

Public Comment Guidelines
To provide a fair opportunity for public input, the ISFMP Policy Board approved the following guidelines for use at management board meetings.

For issues that are not on the agenda, management boards will continue to provide an opportunity to the public to bring matters of concern to the board’s attention at the start of each board meeting. Board chairs will ask members of the public to raise their hands to let the chair know they would like to speak. Depending upon the number of commenters, the board chair will decide 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 NOT established a specific public comment period (i.e., in response to proposed management action).

1. Comments received 3 weeks prior to the start of the meeting (January 10) will be included in the briefing materials.

2. Comments received by 5:00 PM on Tuesday, January 18 will be included in the supplemental materials.

3. Comments received by 10:00 AM on Friday, January 21 will be distributed electronically to Commissioners/Board members prior to the meeting.

Comments should be submitted via email at comments@asmfc.org. All comments must clearly indicate the commenter’s expectation from the ASMFC staff regarding distribution.