NOAA SKIRTS RULES , CUTS RECREATIONAL FISHING OPPORTUNITY TO A SINGLE DAY .
SOUTH ATLANTIC RED SNAPPER ANGLERS HIT WITH ‘ EMERGENCY ’ RESTRICTIONS
NOAA SKIRTS RULES , CUTS RECREATIONAL FISHING OPPORTUNITY TO A SINGLE DAY .
Using some fishy timing and processes , the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA ) delivered a huge blow to scientific fisheries management and recreational anglers in the South Atlantic by reducing the red snapper recreational fishing season to one day with a bag limit of one fish per angler while commercial catch was reduced by 25 percent .
South Atlantic red snapper is an incredibly popular offshore game fish pursued along the coasts of North and South Carolina , Georgia and Florida . Unfortunately , management of the species has been up in the air recently , with fishermen and federal fisheries managers starkly disagreeing on the current population status of the stock . The emergency rule is concerning on multiple fronts : First , NOAA issued the rule just one month prior to the one-day red snapper season . Not only does short notice create potential access problems for anglers , but it also leaves little room for any challenge to , or feedback on , the rule .
Second , the emergency rule lacks public input . Since NOAA determined emergency rulemaking was necessary to reduce overfishing for the 2024 season , it was able to promulgate the rule without public notice and comment . Both the Administrative Procedure Act and the Magnuson-Stevens Act ( the major marine fisheries legislation guiding NOAA Fisheries ) provide that rules can sometimes be issued without public input , particularly when required by ‘ emergency .’ Courts have , however , ruled that emergency rulemaking is the rare and narrow exception to requiring notice and opportunity for public comment .
This leads us to the third issue : Does this fishery constitute an emergency ? NOAA notified the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council in July 2021 that red snapper were overfished . The council elected not to regulate the fishery based on available data . NOAA could have acted without council approval as early as July 2023 , but it didn ’ t . Instead , NOAA waited until one month prior to the determined season to publish an emergency rule — without public input . Apparently , we ’ re dealing with an ‘ emergency ’ that ’ s been ongoing for three years .
Finally , and maybe most importantly , NOAA acted on questionable data . The most recent stock assessment , per NOAA ’ s admission , “ shows that adequate progress towards rebuilding is being made and the stock is projected to be rebuilt by the end of the rebuilding timeframe .”
While the seasons and catch limits for 2024 will stand , anglers and coastal states are raising hell , cash and data to ensure that future seasons are scientifically sound and provide appropriate levels of opportunity and take for recreational anglers .
BY THE NUMBERS : Sportsmen ’ s Alliance Fisheries Work 2024
Legislative Bills
216
Monitored :
Total States Impacted :
34
Top States by Number of Bills :
22
Minnesota
28
New York
13
New Jersey
10
South Carolina
12 Virginia
ADOBE STOCK
SUMMER 2024 15