July 27, 2017 — The following was released by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council:
KEY MESSAGE:
NOAA Fisheries announces a final rule for Amendment 37 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (Amendment 37). Hogfish in the South Atlantic will be managed as two populations: Georgia through North Carolina and Florida Keys/East Florida. A population assessment determined that the Florida Keys/East Florida population is undergoing overfishing (rate of removal is too high) and is overfished (population abundance is too low) and, therefore, in need of a rebuilding plan. The overfishing and overfished status of the Georgia/North Carolina population is unknown.
WHEN RULE WILL TAKE EFFECT:
- Regulations will be effective August 24, 2017.
WHAT THIS MEANS:
The final rule for Amendment 37 will implement the following management measures in addition to specifying commercial and recreational annual catch limits and accountability measures:
| Management Measures | Georgia-North Carolina | Florida Keys/East Florida |
| Minimum size limit
(for both commercial and recreational sectors) |
17 inches fork length | 16 inches fork length |
| Commercial trip limit | 500 pounds whole weight | 25 pounds whole weight |
| Recreational bag limit | 2 fish per person per day | 1 fish per person per day |
| Recreational fishing season | Open year-round | Open – May through October
Closed- January through April; November through December |
FORMAL FEDERAL REGISTER NAME/NUMBER:
82 FR 34584, published July 25, 2017.
This bulletin serves as a Small Entity Compliance Guide, complying with section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996.