New England Fishery Management Council Archives

Gulf of Maine haddock quota stalled as boats near tying up

February 23, 2026 — For commercial fishermen in the Gulf of Maine, spring typically means fresh haddock.

It’s the time of year when the fish show up thick, boats can finally make steady trips, and crews start to see paychecks that carry them through the lean months. But this year, instead of chasing the fish, Gulf of Maine (GOM) groundfishermen are waiting and watching their quota meters hit zero.

Framework 69, the regulatory vehicle that would increase the GOM haddock quota by 50 percent due to assessments of the stock, is stuck in federal review at NOAA’s level, despite being approved by the New England Fishery Management Council and signed on Dec. 4, 2024.

In the meantime, boats are nearing the limit of haddock they’re legally allowed to land.

“We were, for instance, four weeks ago, on track at the current quota level to be out of Gulf of Maine haddock quota right around the end of this year,” said Hank Soule, manager of the Sustainable Harvest Sector. New England sectors are self-managed groups of commercial fishing vessels holding limited access permits for Northeast multispecies (groundfish), including haddock.

“Right now, we’re on track to run out of Gulf of Maine haddock quota by late March,” said Soule. For groundfishing, that means a year reset on May 1, which is beyond devastating to fishermen.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

MASSACHUSETTS: Fishing council mourns loss of seven people in Gloucester fishing boat tragedy

February 6, 2026 — The council that oversees New England’s fishing industry on Friday recognized the loss of seven people who were aboard a fishing vessel when it sank off the coast of Cape Ann on Jan. 30.

“The New England Fishery Management Council extends our sincere condolences to the families, loved ones, and fishing communities affected by the tragic sinking of the F/V Lily Jean” the council said in a statement.

Seven people perished in the tragedy — the captain, Accursio “Gus” Sanfilippo, Paul Beal Sr., Paul Beal Jr., John Rousanidis, Freeman Short, Sean Therrien, and Jada Samitt, a NOAA fisheries observer who was aboard the vessel.

Read the full article at the The Boston Globe

Remembrance of the F/V Lily Jean

February 6, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council extends our sincere condolences to the families, loved ones, and fishing communities affected by the tragic sinking of the F/V Lily Jean on Friday, January 30, 2026.

A full remembrance, along with information on how to support the families impacted by this loss, is available here.

NEFMC: Council Addresses Recreational Groundfishing and Initiates Updates to Habitat Designations

January 30, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) met virtually for their January Council meeting and took actions on the recreational groundfish measures and initiated an Essential Fish Habitat Framework. The Council received updates on a range of initiatives, including strategic planning and risk policy work.

GROUNDFISH RECREATIONAL MEASURES RECOMMENDED TO GARFO

AFTER ADJUSTMENT FOR DATA DELAYS

The Council made recommendations for recreational fishing measures for fishing year (FY) 2026 for Western Gulf of Maine (WGOM) cod and GOM haddock. The Recreational Advisory Panel (RAP) and Groundfish Committee provided recommendations for the Council’s consideration. However, due to the federal government shutdown, updated Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) data were received after the RAP and Committee reviews.

This new “wave 5” MRIP data, from September and October, showed higher cod catch and mortality than previously analyzed and indicated the RAP and Committee recommendations no longer met the criterion of 50% of model runs remaining under both the cod and haddock recreational sub-ACLs.

The Council’s fishing year 2026 recommendations for Atlantic cod are based on the new understanding of cod stock structure, with the intent for implementation of the new cod stock units (including WGOM cod) for May 1, 2026, through Amendment 25 (Revised). Emergency measures remain in place for FY2025 under the existing 2-stock management units, and the Council will transmit a letter to NOAA Fisheries while the final submission on Amendment 25 (Revised) moves toward implementation.

Council Recommendations to GARFO

Western Gulf of Maine Cod:

Open season: October 1 – October 31
Minimum size: 23 inches
Possession limit: 1 fish per day

Gulf of Maine Haddock

Open season: May 1 – February 28/29 and April 1 – April 30
Minimum size: 17 inches
Possession limit: 15 fish per day

The measures would reduce the current cod open season by one month to October only and maintain the minimum size for haddock proposed for FY2025 but not yet implemented. The Council’s recommendations now go to GARFO for final determination.

Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) has redesigned its Fishing Effort Survey, with testing showing improved accuracy and fewer reporting errors. The new design will be implemented in 2026.

NOAA Fisheries is also advancing a state-federal recreational data partnership and a strengthened review process to improve the accuracy, transparency, and timeliness of recreational catch estimates.

Council Solicits Contractor Proposals to Support Development of Atlantic Sea Scallop Stock Projection Methods

January 27, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council (Council) is seeking proposals from qualified independent contractors to assist with the development of enhanced stock projection methods to support management of the Atlantic sea scallop fishery. Read the full RFP.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Proposals must be received no later than February 13, 2026. Work is expected to begin on or about February 23, 2026, and conclude by April 1, 2027.

WHAT IS THE PROJECT: This is a temporary contractor position that will work with Council and NOAA staff and technical advisors to develop and evaluate improved methods for forecasting exploitable scallop biomass and abundance to support sustainable fishery. See the full RFP.

TO APPLY: Interested professionals are encouraged to submit a letter of interest, current resume or CV, examples of similar work completed for other organizations or publications, and budget with expected expenses. In addition, applicants should describe the approach that would be used to meet the requirements of this project, including deliverables. Travel expenses need not be included in the budget as approved travel will be reimbursed by the Council.

Letters of interest and supporting materials should be received no later than February 13, 2025, email submissions are highly encouraged and can be sent to cokeefe@nefmc.org or mailed to:

Dr. Cate O’Keefe

New England Fishery Management Council

50 Water Street, Mill 2

Newburyport, MA 01950

Questions regarding this solicitation should be directed to the same contact.

Now Soliciting Proposals for 2026/2027 Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside Program

January 23, 2026 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

NOAA Fisheries, in coordination with the New England Fishery Management Council, is soliciting proposals for the Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program under a Notice of Funding Opportunity.

Due to the timing of this announcement, prospective applicants should anticipate that NOAA Fisheries may not issue a 2027 Scallop RSA Notice of Funding Opportunity, and that most, if not all, of the 2026 and 2027 research set aside scallops may be awarded under this competition. Further, because applicants may not have sufficient time to prepare for field work this year, NOAA Fisheries acknowledges that field work may need to start in 2027.

For more information, visit our application solicitation webpage.

Atlantic Scallop Harvests Anticipated to Drop to 17.1 Million Pounds for 2025

December 23, 2025 — The challenges for the scallop fishing industry in the U.S. Northeast show no signs of letting up.

A SeafoodSource report noted that the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) approved Framework Adjustment 40, assigning 36 days-at-sea for full-time Limited Access permit holders and 14.4 days for part-time holders. The council projects 2025 landings at about 17.1 million pounds — well below the 2019 peak of 60 million pounds harvested.

Read the full article at HOT 96.9

Low scallop quota will likely continue string of lean years for industry in Northeast US

December 18, 2025 — Scallop fishing opportunities in the U.S. Northeast continue to be low, leaving companies in the region facing another lean year.

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) recently approved Framework Adjustment 40, setting 36 days-at-sea for full-time Limited Access permit holders and 14.4 days-at-sea for part-time Limited Access permit holders. With that level of fishing opportunity, the council is projecting landings of 17.1 million pounds – a far cry from the historically high harvest of 60 million pounds projected in 2019.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

NEFMC Responds to Reduced Federal Capacity, Sets 2026 Priorities without Revisiting Northern Edge

December 16, 2025 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) held its December meeting and took actions on the 2026 Priorities.

REDUCTION IN REGIONAL MANAGEMENT CAPACITY

The Council heard an update on recent reductions to federal science and management resources, including a total loss of 545 National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) positions, including 50 staff positions within the Northeast Region alone. These reductions have not only delayed management actions, but directly affected stock assessments, surveys, and data streams.

In 2025, several planned stock assessments were replaced with “data updates,” which are “summaries of new data that have become available since the last management track assessment. Specifically, they update (1) total U.S. catch (landings and discards) by commercial and recreational sector, as appropriate, and (2) aggregated NEFSC survey indices.” Data updates are expected for many stocks in 2026 as well, see the full NRCC schedule here. The Council is responding to these reductions through the Omnibus Management Flexibility Action and the Risk Policy work (see below).

NEFMC projects continued low landings for scallop fishery, adopts new strategic plan

December 15, 2025 — The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) has approved Framework Adjustment 40, setting the rules for the Northeast U.S. scallop fishery for 2026 and projecting landings of 17.1 million pounds.

That 17.1 million pound project is down from the 19.75 million pounds projected for 2025, which itself was a 28 percent drop from the 27.4 million pounds projected for 2024. The decreased quota fits with NEFMC’s predictions in 2024, which suggested the years following would be challenging for the fishery.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource