Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic; Exempted Fishing Permits

Zusammenfassung

NMFS announces the receipt of two applications for exempted fishing permits (EFPs) from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). If granted, the EFPs would authorize limited recreational harvest of red snapper outside of any Federal recreational season in South Atlantic Federal waters and exempt that harvest from the red snapper recreational bag and possession limits, recreational annual catch limits (ACLs), general reporting requirements for charter vessels and headboats, and accountability measures (AMs). FWC's projects are intended to test alternative recreational management strategies that could be used by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) to reduce the number of discards of red snapper and other federally managed snapper-grouper species, create additional opportunities to participate in sustainable recreational harvest, and improve angler satisfaction.