Saving Seafood

MAFMC Warns of Consequences for 2026 Recreational Black Sea Bass and Summer Flounder Fisheries Due to Federal Rulemaking Delay

April 15, 2026 — The following was released by The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council has expressed serious concern to the U.S. Department of Commerce and NOAA Fisheries regarding significant delays in the rulemaking process for the Recreational Measures Setting Process Framework. Despite the final framework being submitted over eight months ago, a proposed rule has yet to be published.

In a letter to Secretary Howard Lutnick and Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler, the Council expressed serious concern that the delay threatens the implementation of the 2026 recreational management measures (bag, size, and season limits) for black sea bass and summer flounder.

Impacts on the 2026 Season

Without the framework in place, NOAA Fisheries has indicated it intends to enforce “non-preferred coastwide measures” instead of the state-tailored measures developed by the Council, Commission, and individual states. This would have several immediate consequences for the fishing community:

  • The highly anticipated 20% liberalization for black sea bass will not be realized. The black sea bass stock has been increasing for many years and is currently more than double the target level. In December, the Council and Commission agreed to allow states to liberalize measures to achieve a 20% increase in expected harvest—the first such increase since 2012. This change would have expanded angler access, reduced regulatory discards, and supported for-hire businesses. However, these benefits will not be realized if the non-preferred coastwide measures are implemented.

  • Measures in some states will be severely restricted. The non-preferred coastwide measures for both summer flounder and black sea bass are not tailored to individual state needs or regional differences. As such, the non-preferred measures for both species are much more restrictive than the recommended 2026 measures for multiple states.

  • There will be widespread confusion among the recreational fishing public and increased non-compliance. Non-preferred coastwide measures have never been implemented for these species and are therefore largely unknown to the recreational fishing public. With the fishing season opening in less than three weeks in some states, imposing these measures will generate confusion, frustration, and non-compliance.

Proposed Solutions

The Council’s letter urges the Department of Commerce and NOAA Fisheries to approve the Recreational Measures Setting Process Framework and the 2026 recreational measures adopted through the Council, Commission, and state process as soon as possible. To avoid disrupting the upcoming season, the Council also requests that the agency consider expedited implementation methods, such as an interim final rule or emergency rulemaking.

The Council remains committed to working with its partners to resolve this delay and provide stability for the recreational fishing public.

The full text of the letter can be found here.

NOAA Fisheries’ Eugenio Piñeiro Soler: We need better fishery council members

March 18, 2026 — The head of NOAA Fisheries said the U.S. needs better commercial fishery representatives on regional fishery management councils, but he acknowledged nominations are a political process that limits his control of who takes those seats.

“We need to have better council members and better managers,” NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler said. “You need council members who are more involved and knowledgeable of science and economics, the damage that they can do, international issues.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

NOAA Fisheries head says science is his priority

December 19, 2025 — NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Pineiro Soler said his top priority at the U.S. agency is improving science.

“My priorities when I took this job was number one science,” Soler said. “We have to have better science. We have to improve the science. We have to improve not our effort but our products, our results. And that’s number one priority of this administration.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

MASSACHUSETTS: Mayor of New Bedford urges NOAA to approve proposal allowing scallop permit stacking

October 20, 2025 — The mayor of the city of New Bedford, Massachusetts, U.S.A., is calling on NOAA Fisheries to allow full-time scallop vessels to stack two permits on one vessel.

Mayor Jon Mitchell, in a letter sent to NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler, called on the agency to allow for permit stacking in order to help protect the industry. Mitchell’s letter said he has reconsidered his position on the matter, as the scallop fishery continues to face limited days at sea.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Trump admin names new NOAA Fisheries head amid plans to slash agency

April 15, 2025 — U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick has named a new head of NOAA Fisheries, the agency charged with managing the nation’s commercial fisheries, even as the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump plans on slashing the regulator’s budget and moving its functions to the U.S. Department of Interior.

On 14 April, the government announced that former commercial fisherman and officeholder Eugenio Piñeiro Soler will serve as assistant administrator for NOAA Fisheries.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Eugenio Piñeiro Soler Appointed to Lead NOAA Fisheries

April 14, 2025 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, with concurrence from the White House, named Eugenio Piñeiro Soler as Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries. Mr. Piñeiro Soler has assumed his new position, taking the helm from Acting Assistant Administrator Emily Menashes, who will return to her previous position as Deputy Assistant Administrator for Operations.

As Assistant Administrator, Mr. Piñeiro Soler will oversee the federal agency responsible for managing our nation’s marine fisheries and conserving protected marine species.

Mr. Piñeiro Soler has enjoyed a long and illustrious life in fisheries management. In a career that has spanned over 30 years, he has been a successful commercial fisherman, fisheries captain, and entrepreneur in his home island of Puerto Rico and throughout the Caribbean.

Mr. Piñeiro Soler has been part of multiple oceanic conservation and administrative organizations. These include the Caribbean Fishery Management Council, for which he served as Chair from 2001 to 2010, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas, the International Whaling Commission, and the Marine Protected Area Federal Advisory Committee. In the first Trump Administration, Mr. Piñeiro Soler served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. He brings a wealth of experience to this new role.

He received his bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from Radford University, followed by his Juris Doctor from the Catholic University Law School of Puerto Rico. He has also conducted research on deepwater snappers with scientists from Texas A&M University and discovered Odontanthias hensleyi, a new species of jewelfish, while conducting research with the NOAA Fisheries Competitive Research Program.

Eugenio Piñeiro Soler brings extensive managerial and leadership experience to NOAA Fisheries, having worked at the intersection of policy and science throughout his career. Mr. Piñeiro Soler’s passion for these issues is evident and he will work with NOAA Fisheries’ various partners, industries, and constituencies to promote the economic benefits of U.S. fisheries and ensure smart management of our nation’s fisheries and trust resources.