Section 648.142 - [Effective until 1/1/2025] Black sea bass specifications(a)Specifications. Commercial quota, recreational landing limit, research set-aside, and other specification measures. The Monitoring Committee will recommend to the MAFMC and the ASMFC, through the specification process, for use in conjunction with the ACL and ACT, sector-specific research set-asides, estimates of the sector-related discards, a recreational harvest limit, a commercial quota, along with other measures, as needed, that are projected to prevent overages of the applicable specified limits or targets for each sector as prescribed in the FMP. The following measures are to be considered by the Monitoring Committee:(1) Research quota set from a range of 0 to 3 percent of the maximum allowed.(2) A commercial quota, allocated annually.(3) A commercial possession limit for all moratorium vessels, with the provision that these quantities be the maximum allowed to be landed within a 24-hour period (calendar day).(4) Commercial minimum fish size.(5) Minimum mesh size in the codend or throughout the net and the catch threshold that will require compliance with the minimum mesh requirement.(7) A recreational possession limit.(8) Recreational minimum and/or maximum fish size.(10) Recreational State conservation equivalent and precautionary default measures utilizing possession limits, minimum fish sizes, and/or seasons.(11) Restrictions on gear other than otter trawls and pots or traps.(12) Total allowable landings on an annual basis for a period not to exceed 3 years.(13) Changes, as appropriate, to the SBRM, including the CV-based performance standard, the means by which discard data are collected/obtained, fishery stratification, the process for prioritizing observer sea-day allocations, reports, and/or industry-funded observers or observer set aside programs.(14) Modification of the existing AM measures and ACT control rules utilized by the Black Sea Bass Monitoring Committee.(b)Specification fishing measures. The MAFMC shall review the Monitoring Committee recommendations and, based on the recommendations and public comment, make recommendations to the Regional Administrator on measures projected to constrain the sectors to the applicable limit or target as prescribed in the FMP. Included in the recommendation will be supporting documents, as appropriate, concerning the environmental and economic impacts of the final rule. The Regional Administrator will review these recommendations and any recommendations of the ASMFC. After such review, the Regional Administrator will publish a proposed rule in the FEDERAL REGISTER to implement a commercial quota, a recreational harvest limit, and additional management measures for the commercial fishery.(c)Distribution of annual commercial quota. The black sea bass commercial quota will be allocated on a coastwide basis.(d)Recreational specification measures. The Monitoring Committee shall recommend to the MAFMC and ASMFC measures that are projected to prevent overages of the applicable recreational target as prescribed in the FMP. The MAFMC shall review these recommendations and, based on the recommendations and any public comment, recommend recreational management measures to the Regional Administrator. The MAFMC's recommendations must include supporting documentation, as appropriate, concerning the environmental and economic impacts of the recommendations. The MAFMC and the ASMFC will recommend that the Regional Administrator implement either:(1)Coastwide measures. Annual coastwide management measures that constrain the recreational black sea bass fishery to the recreational target as specified in the fishery management plan, or(2)Conservation equivalent measures. Individual states, or regions formed voluntarily by adjacent states (i.e., multi-state conservation equivalency regions), may implement different combinations of minimum and/or maximum fish sizes, possession limits, and closed seasons that achieve equivalent conservation as the coastwide measures. Each state or multi-state conservation equivalency region may implement measures by mode or area only if the proportional standard error of recreational landing estimates by mode or area for that state is less than 30 percent.(i) After review of the recommendations, the Regional Administrator will publish a proposed rule in the FEDERAL REGISTER as soon as possible to implement the overall recreational target required for the fishing year(s), and the ASMFC's recommendation concerning conservation equivalency, the precautionary default measures, and coastwide measures.(ii) The ASMFC will review conservation equivalency proposals and determine whether or not they achieve the necessary recreational target. The ASMFC will provide the Regional Administrator with the individual State and/or multi-State region conservation measures for the approved State and/or multi-State region proposals and, in the case of disapproved State and/or multi-State region proposals, the precautionary default measures that should be applied to a State or region. At the request of the ASMFC, precautionary default measures would apply to federally permitted party/charter vessels and other recreational fishing vessels harvesting black sea bass in or from the EEZ when landing in a State that implements measures not approved by the ASMFC.(iii) After considering public comment, the Regional Administrator will publish a final rule in the FEDERAL REGISTER to implement either the State or regional conservation equivalency measures or coastwide measures to ensure that the applicable specified target is not exceeded.(iv) The ASMFC may allow states or regions assigned the precautionary default measures to resubmit revised management measures. The ASMFC will detail the procedures by which the State or region can develop alternate measures. The ASMFC will notify the Regional Administrator of any resubmitted State or regional proposals approved subsequent to publication of the final rule and the Regional Administrator will publish a document in the FEDERAL REGISTER to notify the public.(e)Research quota. See § 648.22(g) . 84 FR 65704 , Nov. 29, 2019; 88 FR 14510 , Mar. 9, 2023 84 FR 65704 , 12/30/2019; 88 FR 14510 , 3/9/2023