April 5, 2019 — The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council announced on Thursday, 4 April, it approved plans for states to manage the red snapper recreational fishery for the upcoming season.
Pending the approval of U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, which is likely since he’s praised the ongoing pilot project, the five states will get the quota share they originally requested in their applications.
Florida holds the largest share with 44.8 percent of the allocation. Alabama will receive 26.3 percent. Louisiana will receive 19.1 percent, while Texas (6.2 percent) and Mississippi (3.6 percent) get the remainder.
For the second straight year, each state will now get to set its own recreational season and have jurisdiction over private anglers who fish up to 200 miles off the state’s coast.
Earlier this month, NOAA Fisheries gave final approval on a council decision to raise the recreational catch limit from 6.7 million pounds to 7.4 million pounds.
NOAA Fisheries also approved decreasing the target catch buffer to 9 percent. That puts the target at 6.3 million for this upcoming season, and the decreased buffer should give anglers more days in the season.