The Council is more than an organization – it is a public process. Although the Council staff are located in Portland, the Council process spans the entire West Coast, including five major meetings a year where fishery management decisions are made.
If you are already involved in the Council process, you may want to see our travel page, advisory groups, staff, meeting locations, current briefing book, past Council decisions, or fishery management plans.
If you are new to the process and are trying to figure out how it works, please learn about the Council, learn how to get involved, sign up for our newsletters, and plan to attend a meeting. You are welcome here.
Backgrounders
This collection of backgrounders provides the basic facts on a wide array of Council-related topics.
- Council Meetings 101
- Acronyms and definitions
- Getting involved
- Advisory bodies
- Council testimony
- Written public comment and the e-Portal
- Magnuson-Stevens Act
- National Environmental Policy Act
- Overfishing and rebuilding
- Annual catch limits and other management thresholds
- Habitat
- Exempted fishing permits
- Communities
- Groundfish
- Geography of rockfish
- Trawl catch shares
- Electronic monitoring
- Salmon
- Geography of salmon
- Common salmon terms
- Highly migratory species
- Coastal pelagic species
- Halibut
- Fishery Ecosystem Plan
- Marine reserves
- Powerpoint tips