Fisheries of the Northeastern United States: Coastal Migratory Pelagic Resources of the Gulf and Atlantic Region

Coastal Migratory Pelagic Resources of the Gulf and Atlantic Region; Re-Opening of Commercial Harvest for Atlantic Spanish Mackerel in the Northern Zone

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The fishery for coastal migratory pelagic fish in the Atlantic includes king mackerel, Spanish mackerel, and cobia on the east coast of Florida, and is managed under the Fishery Management Plan for Coastal Migratory Pelagic Resources of the Gulf and Atlantic Region (FMP). The FMP was prepared by NMFS and the Gulf and South Atlantic Fishery Management Councils, was approved by the Secretary of Commerce, and is implemented by NMFS through regulations at 50 CFR part 622 under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act). All weights described in this document for Spanish mackerel in the Atlantic EEZ apply as either round or gutted weight. The metric conversion for the imperial measurements used in this document is 1 pound (lb) equals approximately 0.45 kilograms.

Atlantic Spanish mackerel are divided into northern and southern zones for management purposes. The northern zone for Spanish mackerel extends in the Atlantic EEZ from New York through North Carolina. The northern boundary of the northern zone extends from an intersection point off New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island at 41°18′16.249″ N latitude and 71°54′28.477″ W longitude, and proceeds southeast to 37°22′32.75″ N latitude and the intersection point with the outward boundary of the EEZ. The southern boundary of the northern zone extends from the North Carolina and South Carolina state border along a line in a direction of 135°34′55″ from true north beginning at 33°51′07.9″ N latitude and 78°32′32.6″ W longitude to the intersection point with the outward boundary of the EEZ [50 CFR 622.369(b)(2)]. See figure 2 of appendix G to part 622-Spanish Mackerel for an illustration of the management zones.

The commercial annual catch limit (ACL; equal to the commercial quota) for the Atlantic migratory group of Spanish mackerel (Atlantic Spanish mackerel) is 3.33 million lb [50 CFR 622.384(c)(2)]. The commercial quota for Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the northern zone is 662,670 lb and is 2,667,330 lb in the southern zone for the 2025-2026 fishing year, which is March 1, 2025, through February 28, 2026 [50 CFR 622.384(c)(2)(i) and (ii)].

Regulations at 50 CFR 622.384(c)(2)(iii) allow for quota transfers between the northern and southern zones with the approval from the Regional Administrator (RA) of the NMFS Southeast Region. North Carolina or Florida, in consultation with the other states in the respective zones, may request approval from the RA to transfer part or all of a respective zone's annual commercial quota to the other zone. For the purposes of quota closures as described in 50 CFR 622.8, the receiving zone's quota will be the original quota plus any transferred amount for that fishing year only. Landings associated with any transferred quota will be included in the total landings for Atlantic Spanish mackerel, which will be evaluated relative to its total ACL.

NMFS approved and transferred 250,000 lb of Atlantic Spanish mackerel commercial quota from the southern zone to the northern zone in response to a request from the State of Florida in July 2025. Following the transfer, and because NMFS projected that landings of Atlantic Spanish mackerel from the northern zone reached the revised commercial quota, NMFS implemented a commercial closure in the northern zone on September 20, 2025 (90 FR 44581, September 16, 2025).

In a letter to NMFS dated September 18, 2025, the State of Florida requested the transfer of an additional 75,000 lb of Atlantic Spanish mackerel commercial quota from the southern zone to the northern zone to allow the commercial quota for both zones in this fishing year to be fully harvested. NMFS approved the transfer of commercial quota, and along with the July 2025 transfer of 250,000 lb from the southern zone to the northern zone, the revised northern zone commercial quota for Atlantic Spanish mackerel is 987,670 lb and the revised southern zone commercial quota is 2,342,330 lb for the 2025-2026 fishing year. Pursuant to 50 CFR 622.8(c), NMFS is reopening commercial harvest in the northern zone.

Regulations at 50 CFR 622.388(d)(1)(i) require NMFS to close the commercial sector for Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the northern zone when landings reach or are projected to reach the commercial quota for that zone. NMFS projects that landings of Atlantic Spanish mackerel from the northern zone will reach the revised commercial quota of 987,670 lb with another 8 days of commercial landings. After those 8 days, the commercial sector for Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the northern zone is closed from October 7, 2025 through February 28, 2026, the end of the current fishing year.

During the commercial closure, a person on a vessel that has been issued a valid Federal commercial permit to harvest Atlantic Spanish mackerel may continue to retain this species in the northern zone under the recreational bag and possession limits specified in 50 CFR 622.382(a)(1)(iii) and (2)(i), if recreational harvest of Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the northern zone has not been closed [50 CFR 622.384(e)(1)].

Also during the commercial closure, Atlantic Spanish mackerel from the northern zone, including those fish harvested under the recreational bag and possession limits, may not be purchased or sold. This prohibition does not apply to Atlantic Spanish mackerel from the northern zone that were harvested, landed ashore, and sold prior to the closure and were held in cold storage by a dealer or processor [50 CFR 622.384(e)(2)].

Classification

NMFS issues this action pursuant to section 305(d) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. This action is taken under 50 CFR 622.8(c), issued pursuant to section 304(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and is exempt from review under Executive Order 12866.

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there is good cause to waive prior notice and an opportunity for public comment on this action, as notice and comment is unnecessary. Such procedure is unnecessary, because the regulations associated with the commercial quota for Atlantic Spanish mackerel in the northern zone and a re-opening to provide an opportunity for the harvest of the revised commercial quota have already been subject to notice and public comment, and all that remains is to notify the public of the commercial sector re-opening.

For the same reason just stated, there is good cause to waive the 30-day delay in the effectiveness of this action under 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3).