Fishery Conservation and Management § 648.70
Area II Sea Scallop Exemption Area (g) Transiting. (1) Closed Area II. Lim- fishery as of the date the Regional Ad- ited access sea scallop vessels may not ministrator projects that 2,934 mt of enter, fish, or be in the area known as Closed Area II sea scallops will be the Closed Area II Sea Scallop Exemp- caught by vessels fishing in the Sea tion Area described in paragraph (b)(1) Scallop Exemption Program described of this section unless the operator has in this section. NMFS shall publish no- determined that there is a compelling tification of the termination in the safety reason and the vessel’s fishing FEDERAL REGISTER. gear is stowed in accordance with the (ii) Nantucket Lightship Sea Scallop requirements of § 648.23(b). Exemption Area. NMFS shall terminate (2) The Nantucket Lightship Closed the Nantucket Lightship Sea Scallop Area and Closed Area I. Limited access Exemption Area fishery as of the date sea scallop vessels fishing under a scal- the Regional Administrator projects lop DAS that have not declared a trip that 2,445 mt of Nantucket Lightship into the Sea Scallop Exemption Pro- sea scallops will be caught by vessels gram may not enter, fish, or be in the fishing in the Sea Scallop Exemption areas known as the Nantucket Program described in this section. Lightship and Closed Area I Sea Scal- NMFS shall publish notification of the lop Exemption Areas described in para- termination in the FEDERAL REGISTER. graphs (b)(2) and (b)(3), respectively, of (iii) Closed Area I Sea Scallop Exemp- this section, unless the vessel’s fishing tion Area. NMFS shall terminate the gear is stowed in accordance with the Closed Area I Sea Scallop Exemption requirements of § 648.23(b). Area fishery as of the date the Re- (h) VMS Polling. For the duration of gional Administrator projects that the Sea Scallop Exemption Program, 3,111 mt of Closed Area I sea scallops as described under this section, all sea will be caught by vessels fishing in the scallop limited access vessels equipped Sea Scallop Exemption Program de- with a VMS unit will be polled twice scribed in this section. NMFS shall per hour, regardless of whether the ves- publish notification of the termination sel is enrolled in the Sea Scallop Ex- in the FEDERAL REGISTER. emption Program. (2) Termination of sea scallop exemption [65 FR 37912, June 19, 2000] area fisheries when the yellowtail floun- der TAC is exceeded—(i) Closed Area II and Closed Area I Sea Scallop Exemption Subpart E—Management Meas- Areas. NMFS shall terminate the ures for the Atlantic Surf Clam Closed Area II and Closed Area I Sea and Ocean Quahog Fisheries Scallop Exemption Area fisheries as of the date the Regional Administrator § 648.70 Annual individual allocations. projects that the 717.75 mt of Georges (a) General. (1) For each fishing year, Bank yellowtail flounder will be the Regional Administrator shall de- caught by vessels fishing in the Sea termine the allocation of surf clams Scallop Exemption Program described and ocean quahogs for each vessel in this section. NMFS shall publish no- owner issued an allocation for the pre- tification of the termination in the ceding fishing year, by multiplying the FEDERAL REGISTER. quotas specified for each species by the (ii) Nantucket Lightship Sea Scallop Regional Administrator under § 648.71 Exemption Area. NMFS shall terminate by the allocation percentage, specified the Nantucket Lightship Sea Scallop for that owner on the allocation permit Exemption Area fishery as of the date for the preceding fishing year, adjusted the Regional Administrator projects to account for any transfer pursuant to that the 49.5 mt of Southern New Eng- paragraph (b) of this section. These al- land yellowtail flounder will be caught locations shall be made in the form of by vessels fishing in the Sea Scallop an allocation permit specifying for Exemption Program described in this each species the allocation percentage section. NMFS shall publish notifica- and the allocation in bushels. Such per- tion of the termination in the FEDERAL mits shall be issued on or before De- REGISTER. cember 15, to the registered holders
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who were assigned an allocation by No- transfer is effective upon the receipt by vember 1. The total number of bushels the transferee of written authorization of allocation shall be divided by 32 to from the Regional Administrator. determine the appropriate number of (3) Review. If the Regional Adminis- cage tags to be issued or acquired trator determines that the applicant under § 648.75. Amounts of allocation 0.5 has been issued a Notice of Permit or smaller created by this division Sanction for a violation of the Magnu- shall be rounded downward to the near- son Act that has not been resolved, he/ est whole number and amounts of allo- she may decline to approve such trans- cation greater than 0.5 created by this fer pending resolution of the matter. division shall be rounded upward to the nearest whole number so that alloca- § 648.71 Catch quotas. tions are specified in whole cages. An (a) Surf clams. The amount of surf allocation permit is only valid for the clams that may be caught annually by entity for which it is issued. fishing vessels subject to these regula- (2) The Regional Administrator may, tions will be specified by the Assistant after publication of a fee notification Administrator, on or about December 1 in the FEDERAL REGISTER, charge a per- of each year, within the range of 1.85 to mit fee before issuance of the permit to 3.4 million bu (98.5 to 181 million L). recover administrative expenses. Fail- (1) Establishing quotas. (i) Prior to the ure to pay the fee will preclude beginning of each year, the MAFMC, issuance of the permit. following an opportunity for public (b) Transfers—(1) Allocation percent- comment, will recommend to the As- age. Subject to the approval of the Re- sistant Administrator quotas and esti- gional Administrator, part or all of an mates of DAH and DAP within the allocation percentage may be trans- ranges specified. In selecting the ferred, in amounts equivalent to not quota, the MAFMC shall consider cur- less than 160 bu (8,500 L) (i.e., 5 cages) rent stock assessments, catch reports, in the year in which the transfer is and other relevant information con- made, to any person eligible to own a cerning: documented vessel under the terms of (A) Exploitable and spawning bio- 46 U.S.C. 12102(a). Approval of a trans- mass relative to the OY. fer by the Regional Administrator and for a new allocation permit reflecting (B) Fishing mortality rates relative that transfer may be requested by sub- to the OY. mitting a written application for ap- (C) Magnitude of incoming recruit- proval of the transfer and for issuance ment. of a new allocation permit to the Re- (D) Projected effort and cor- gional Administrator at least 10 days responding catches. before the date on which the applicant (E) Geographical distribution of the desires the transfer to be effective, in catch relative to the geographical dis- the form of a completed transfer log tribution of the resource. supplied by the Regional Adminis- (F) Status of areas previously closed trator. The transfer is not effective to surf clam fishing that are to be until the new holder receives a new or opened during the year and areas likely revised annual allocation permit from to be closed to fishing during the year. the Regional Administrator. An appli- (ii) The quota shall be set at that cation for transfer may not be made amount that is most consistent with between October 15 and December 31 of the objectives of the Atlantic Surf each year. Clam and Ocean Quahog FMP. The As- (2) Cage tags. Cage tags issued pursu- sistant Administrator may set quotas ant to § 648.75 may be transferred in at quantities different from the quantities of not less than 5 tags at MAFMC’s recommendations only if he/ any one time, subject to the restric- she can demonstrate that the tions and procedure specified in para- MAFMC’s recommendations violate graph (b)(1) of this section; provided the national standards of the Magnu- that application for such cage tag son Act and the objectives of the At- transfers may be made at any time be- lantic Surf Clam and Ocean Quahog fore December 10 of each year and the FMP.
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