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Sustainably Managing Atlantic Fisheries
As a partnership of coastal states, we work together to protect essential marine species, ensuring vibrant fisheries, thriving communities, and resilient ecosystems, all through science-driven, cooperative management.
Meetings Calendar
Meetings Calendar
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Tuesday, December 2
Newport Harbor Hotel and Marina, Newport, RI
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Monday, December 8
Hilton Garden Inn Outer Banks/Kitty Hawk: 5353 N. Virginia Dare Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC
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Tuesday, December 9
Webinar
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Wednesday, December 10
Educational Session on Horseshoe Crab Management in the DE Bay Region: Part 1
Wednesday, December 10
Webinar
Our Programs
POLICY: Promoting Sustainable Fishing Practices for the Atlantic Coast
The goal of fisheries management is to balance sustainable harvests that support the fishing and seafood industries while safeguarding the productivity and health of marine ecosystems. Learn more about our management program, dive into species-specific information, and explore our Action Tracker that offers detailed insights into ongoing challenges, management discussions, and the steps being taken to address them. Discover how ASMFC’s law enforcement program upholds regulations to protect our fisheries.
SCIENCE: Providing Robust and Actionable Science to Inform Management Decisions
Sustainable management of fisheries relies on accurate and timely scientific advice. Find out more about how the Commission conducts rigorous stock assessments to guide sustainable fishing practices. Delve into our work on fish ageing, conserving fish habitat, tagging, resource surveys, and the integration of multispecies and ecosystem approaches.
DATA: Producing Dependable and Timely Marine Fisheries Data
Effective management depends on quality fishery-dependent data to inform stock assessments and fisheries management decisions. Learn how state, regional and federal partners work to ensure accurate catch, effort, and biological data on Atlantic coast recreational, for-hire, and commercial fisheries through the ACCSP.
Access the Action Tracker
Stay informed and engaged with the latest developments in fisheries management. You can explore current issues, ongoing discussions, and the actions being taken to address them.
Latest News & Resources
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Directed Atlantic Herring Area 1A Fishery Closure Effective 6 PM, November 24, 2025— November 2025
This memorandum announces closure dates for the Western Maine and Massachusetts/New Hampshire spawning areas; and days out measures for the 2025 Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) Atlantic herring fishery for Season 2 (October 1…
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Status Of The Stocks Overview
Quick Guide to ASMFC Species Stock Status (Current as of August 2025)
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Report of the Quality Assurance/Quality Control Fish Ageing Workshop — 2025
The objectives of the 2025 workshop were to: (1) Age samples collected and prepared from labs along the Atlantic coast for Atlantic menhaden, black sea bass, red drum, scup, striped bass, tautog, and winter flounder;…
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Atlantic Menhaden Ageing Exchange Report — 2025
The goals of the Atlantic menhaden ageing structure exchange are to: (1) Establish methods to prepare and read otoliths and/or scales; (2) Determine the precision and bias of age reading data between different readers and…
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Atlantic Coast Fisheries Infographic
Graphic on the economic impact of Atlantic coast fisheries
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Atlantic Herring Area 1A Fishery Season 2 Days Out Measures — November 2025
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board members from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts met November 19 via webinar to set effort control measures for the 2025 Area 1A fishery for Season 2 (October 1 – December 31) following an increase in available quota for Area 1A. The 2025 Area 1A sub-annual…
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ASMFC Schedules Educational Webinars for Delaware Bay Horseshoe Crab Management Stakeholder Process
The Commission’s Horseshoe Crab Management Board is convening a stakeholder engagement process to inform revisions to the Delaware Bay Horseshoe Crab Adaptive Resource Management (ARM) Framework, including a series of three educational webinars and an in-person stakeholder workshop. The process will be facilitated by Compass Resource Management with the goal of identifying stakeholder values and…
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Atlantic Herring Area 1A Days Out Meeting on November 19, 2025
Atlantic Herring Management Board members from the states of Maine, New Hampshire and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will meet via webinar on November 19, 2025 from 8 to 9 a.m., to discuss days out measures for the remainder of Season 2 (October 1 – December 31) for the 2025 Area 1A fishery (inshore Gulf of…
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Northern Shrimp Section and Advisory Panel to Meet December 11
Section to Set Fishery Specifications
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American Lobster Benchmark Stock Assessment Overview — 2025
This document presents a summary of the 2025 benchmark stock assessment for American lobster (Homarus americanus) provides the most recent information on the status of US American lobster stocks. The assessment was peer-reviewed by an independent panel of scientific experts through the Commission’s external review process.
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American Lobster Benchmark Stock Assessment and Peer Review Report – October 2025
The 2025 benchmark stock assessment for American lobster (Homarus americanus) provides the most recent information on the status of US American lobster stocks. The assessment was peer-reviewed and fully endorsed by an independent panel of scientific experts through the Commission’s external review process. This American Lobster Board accepted the assessment and peer-review for management use…
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2025 Tautog Regional Stock Assessment Update
Tautog is assessed and managed in four stock regions: the Massachusetts-Rhode Island (MARI) region, the Long Island Sound (LIS) region, the New Jersey-New York Bight (NJ-NYB) region, and the Delaware-Maryland-Virginia (DMV) region. This stock assessment is an update to the existing benchmark assessment for tautog (ASMFC 2015, ASMFC 2016); the previous assessment update was completed…
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2025 Ecological Reference Point Benchmark Stock Assessment Report and Peer Review Report
This document contains the 2025 Ecological Reference Point Peer Review and Benchmark Stock Assessment Report. Additional supporting information, including the working papers on natural mortality and other topics referenced herein, the presentations given at the Review Workshop, and background literature, can be found at the SEDAR 102 project page: https://sedarweb.org/assessments/sedar-102-asmfc-atlantic-menhaden/ Please note that this report…
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2025 Atlantic Menhaden Stock Assessment Update
The purpose of this assessment was to update the 2020 Atlantic Menhaden Single-Species Benchmark Stock Assessment (SEDAR 2020a) and recent stock assessment update (ASMFC 2022) with data from 2022-2023. The stock assessment update reran the peer-reviewed BAM with a terminal year of 2023. As part of the assessment process, the Atlantic Menhaden Stock Assessment Subcommittee…
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