The trawl IFQ program allows up to 10 percent of a vessel’s quota pounds to be carried from one year to the next, either as a deficit covered with following year quota pounds or an unused surplus which can be fished in the following year. Concern that the surplus carryover provision might be interpreted as […]
In June 2017, the Council requested that NMFS address possible methods for reducing observer and catch monitoring costs and report back to the Council. A report was provided in March 2018.
In April 2012, the Council recommended allowing a fixed gear permit and a trawl permit to be registered to the same vessel at the same time.
When the Council took action on fixed gear and trawl permit stacking (joint registration), they recommended that the opportunity for joint registration be specified in regulations such that the limited entry fixed gear exception for freezing sablefish would not allow the freezing of sablefish caught under the trawl rationalization program.
In September 2011, the Council recommended providing risk pools a safe harbor from the quota share control rules. Risk pools are basically groups of quota share owners who band together to pool their shares of overfished species. In September 2013, the Council postponed implementation of this recommendation until after the five-year program review; but when […]