Arlington, VA – The Atlantic coastal states of Maine through North Carolina have scheduled hearings to gather public input on Draft Addendum I to Amendment 7 to the Atlantic Striped Bass Interstate Fishery Management Plan, which considers allowing voluntary transfers of striped bass ocean commercial quota between states that have ocean quota. Some hearings will be conducted via webinar and some hearings will be conducted in-person, or in a hybrid format. Additional details on participating in the webinars can be found later in this release.
The public hearing details are attached.
The Board initiated Draft Addendum I in August 2021 after deciding that changes to the striped bass commercial quota system would not be considered during the ongoing development of Amendment 7. With the adoption of Amendment 7 earlier this year, the Board re-initiated discussions on Draft Addendum I to consider voluntary ocean quota transfers, which could provide some relief to states seeking additional quota. The Draft Addendum proposes a range of options that would permit voluntary transfers of ocean commercial quota, including options based on stock status and options allowing the Board to set criteria for transfers on a regular basis.
The Draft Addendum is available here or via the Commission’s website at http://www.asmfc.org/about-us/public-input. All those interested in the management of Atlantic striped bass are encouraged to provide input either by participating in public hearings, which may be conducted via webinar, or providing written comment. Public comment will be accepted until 11:59 PM (EST) on January 13, 2023 and should be sent to Emilie Franke, FMP Coordinator, at 1050 N. Highland St., Suite 200 A-N, Arlington, Virginia 22201; or at comments@asmfc.org (Subject line: Striped Bass Draft Addendum I).
If your organization is planning to release an action alert in response to the Draft Amendment, please contact Emilie Franke at efranke@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740, so she can work with you to develop a unique subject line to enable us to better organize and summarize incoming comments for Board review.