June 23, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:
Please note that the Webinar Link for the June Council Meeting has been updated (6/23/26).
You can log onto the meeting using this Zoom link: https://nefmc-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_v-h-i8H8SkSQw02KwpS2hA
The full June Council Meeting agenda and updated meeting link can be found here.
June 15, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:
The New England Fishery Management Council will mark the 50th anniversary of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) at its June Council Meeting in Mystic, Connecticut on June 23-25, 2026.
SUSTAINING FISHERIES AND FISHING COMMUNITIES SINCE 1976
The Council system was established by Congress through the MSA on April 13,1976. Since their creation, the eight regional Councils have promoted sustainable management of U.S. Fisheries, in partnership with NOAA Fisheries, states, tribes, and communities. The Councils have rebuilt fish stocks, reduced bycatch, and protected essential fish habitat all while supporting sustained harvest with the goal of maximizing benefits to fishing communities and consumers.
To mark the anniversary, the Councils developed an interactive timeline highlighting major milestones in U.S. fisheries management over the past five decades and an online photo slide gallery. The anniversary was also featured by NOAA in a recent story.
JUNE MEETING
The Council will begin its June meeting in Mystic, CT at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. On top of a full, threeday agenda, the Council invites the public to a reception celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Magnuson-Stevens Act on Tuesday, June 23rd at 6:00 p.m. at the Mystic Hilton Hotel lounge.
For more meeting information including webinar registration, submitting public comment, or directions please visit the June meeting webpage.
May 29, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:
In-person participation for this workshop is limited to Scientific and Statistical Committee members, Council staff, and invited presenters.
All workshop sessions will be broadcast via webinar and are open to the public. This meeting will be broadcast online via Zoom, preregistration is required. Please note that the webinar is listen-only and no public comment will be accepted.
Register here: https://nefmcorg.zoom.
For more information visit the workshop webpage.
May 20, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:
The nation’s eight Regional Fishery Management Councils commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Council system this week during the Council Coordinating Committee meeting in Homer, Alaska. The Council system was established by Congress through the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act signed on April 13, 1976. For five decades, the Councils have played a central role in conserving marine resources while supporting fishing communities and a vibrant U.S. seafood economy.
Since their creation, the Councils have promoted sustainable management of U.S Fisheries, in partnership with NOAA Fisheries, states, tribes, and communities. The Councils have rebuilt fish stocks, reduced bycatch, and protected essential fish habitat all while supporting sustained harvest with the goal of maximizing benefits to fishing communities and consumers. The Councils are proud to celebrate 50 years dedicated to:
Supporting Economies and Coastal Communities
Commercial, recreational, and subsistence fisheries are vital to coastal communities and the nation’s economy. U.S. fisheries support millions of jobs, generate billions of dollars in economic activity, and provide seafood to domestic and global markets. Recreational fishing contributes to tourism and outdoor leisure, while subsistence fisheries remain critical to food security and cultural traditions in many regions. Fisheries are more than
May 15, 2026 — The Coonamessett Farm Foundation hosted Scallop Research Share Day, on Tuesday, in cooperation with the New England Fishery Management Council.
Melissa Sanderson, chief operating officer of the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance, was one of the presenters. Sanderson said the annual event is a chance to share research progress and results between scientists, fishermen, and fishery managers.
“And it really makes sure that we’re all on the same page,” Sanderson said. “That we’re aware of other projects that we might be able to build upon or learn from. And sometimes it provides new opportunities to collaborate.”
May 14, 2026 — The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has asked the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) to abandon a rule forcing commercial herring fishers to pay for at-sea monitors out of pocket.
“After careful consideration, we have determined that an action removing Atlantic herring monitoring requirements […] may be warranted to remove unused provisions that are not achieving their intended goals and, thereby, reduce regulatory burdens on Atlantic herring fishery participants,” NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler said in a 1 May letter to the council. “Because the herring [industry-funded monitor] program imposes costs on [NOAA Fisheries] as well as the herring industry itself in order to be effectively implemented, in the face of declining resources and the need to prioritize our activities to support the Administration’s goals and objectives of Executive Order 14276, it is unlikely that [NOAA Fisheries] will have the resources necessary to support this program.”
April 22, 2026 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:
The New England Fishery Management Council met from April 14-16, 2026, in Portland, Maine. The following is a summary of actions taken and issues considered during the meeting. Presentations, meeting materials, motions, and meeting audio recordings are available on the Council’s April 2026 meeting page.
ACROSS THE STOCKS
Monkfish and Skates: The Council considered input from the Joint Advisory Panels and Committees and voted to discontinue the 2026 priority related to IFQ Scoping for monkfish and/or skate wing fisheries. The Council approved a series of listening sessions for monkfish and skate fishermen across New England and the Mid-Atlantic to solicit input and ideas for fisheries and management improvements. Read the full press release here.
Herring: The Council received an update on the 2026 herring action that will:
• Set Atlantic herring specifications for fishing years 2027-2031.
• Enhance river herring and shad (American shad and hickory shad) avoidance and other catch reduction measures to support ongoing coastwide restoration efforts.
• Address other management measures such as the carryover of unharvested catch. This action will be initiated in June with Council final action planned for the September 2026 meeting.
Redfish Sector Exemption Review: The Council received a report evaluating the performance of the Redfish Sector Exemption program. This program allows commercial trawl vessels enrolled in sectors to target redfish with smaller mesh gear in designated areas. It was established as a universal sector exemption in the Northeast Multispecies (Groundfish) Fishery Management Plan (FMP) in Framework 61. The review found generally strong sector compliance with catch thresholds and stable participation. It also examined bycatch of other groundfish, vessellevel performance, and program goals and objectives. The review was a regulatory requirement and a 2026 Council Priority. Based on information from the review, the Council may consider modifications to the redfish sector exemption program in the future.
Groundfish Action Update: Framework 69, which set specifications for several groundfish stocks for fishing years 2025-2027, was implemented on March 8, 2026. Amendment 25 (A25), which incorporates the four Atlantic cod stocks (Eastern Gulf of Maine; Western Gulf of Maine; Georges Bank; and Southern New England) into the Northeast Multispecies FMP and sets status determination criteria and management measures for these stocks, including accountability measures, recreational provisions, and catch limits for fishing years 2026 and 2027, was approved by NMFS on April 6, 2026. The action received broad public support, with over 250 comments largely favoring timely approval and implementation. Final implementing regulations are forthcoming, with interim default allocations expected to be in place until the rule is finalized. Framework 72, which will set specifications for several groundfish stocks for FY2026-2028, is currently in review with anticipated implementation in the coming months.
March 5, 2026 — The following was released by the NOAA Fisheries:
Today, NOAA Fisheries is approving updated management measures for the Northeast multispecies fishery (Framework 69). These measures, developed by the New England Fishery Management Council, establish catch limits for several multispecies stocks for fishing years 2025–2027, modify the accountability measure implementation catch threshold for the scallop fishery and several flatfish stocks, and remove certain reporting requirements for sectors. Allocations for two stocks of Atlantic cod were established in an emergency rule that went into effect on May 1, 2025, and are not changed by this action. Framework 69 also approves sector provisions and catch allocations for 2025 and 2026 fishing years, sets recreational measures for haddock, updates common pool possession limits, and clarifies and corrects regulations.
Read the final rule and the permit holder bulletin available at our website.
March 4, 2026 — It has been almost a week since six New England groundfish sector managers formally petitioned the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for relief on Framework 69, and, from the industry’s perspective, nothing has changed.
In a Feb. 27 letter addressed to Michael Pentony, regional administrator for NOAA’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, the managers called the delay in approving Framework 69 “frankly ridiculous,” noting that there are only nine weeks (now eight weeks) left in the fishing year and that vessels are already being forced to stop fishing in the Gulf of Maine.
“We the undersigned Northeast groundfish sector managers petition for relief from the frankly ridiculous delay in what should have been a belated but routine approval of groundfish Framework 69,” the letter states.
Framework 69, approved by the New England Fishery Management Council in December 2024 and submitted to NMFS in March 2025, would increase the Gulf of Maine haddock quota by roughly 50 percent over the prior fishing year. But with the action still awaiting final signoff in Washington, D.C., that additional quota remains inaccessible on the water.
In the meantime, sector managers say they are running out of options.
March 3, 2026 — The federal government had no right to impose severe limits on how much haddock New England fishermen can catch, a fishermen’s group told the First Circuit Monday, but the judges seemed uncertain, peppering both sides with sharp questions over constitutional authority.
The New England Fishery Management Council, created by Congress in the 1970s to oversee commercial fishing operations, infuriated local fishermen in 2023 by slashing haddock catch limits by more than 80% while placing additional restrictions on hake and cod.
A fishermen’s group sued, claiming the council was unconstitutional because it wasn’t subject to executive branch control as required by the appointments clause. Although council members exercise federal authority, they’re selected by state officials, not federal officials, and most can be removed only by a two-thirds vote of fellow members.
A federal judge in Maine agreed the council was unconstitutional, but he tried to remedy the problem by rewriting the law to limit the members’ powers, which would make them employees rather than federal officers. And he left the catch limits in place — finding that while the limits harmed fishermen’s livelihoods, they didn’t amount to “significant” federal action.
At oral argument, the judges struggled to determine whether the council members were officers who exercised significant federal authority and whether that meant the haddock rule must be struck down.