Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; General Provisions for Domestic Fisheries; Application for Exempted Fishing Permits
The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) applica...
National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION:
Notice; request for comments.
SUMMARY:
The Assistant Regional Administrator for Sustainable Fisheries, Greater Atlantic Region, NMFS, has made a preliminary determination that an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) application contains all of the required information and warrants further consideration. The EFP would allow federally permitted fishing vessels to fish outside fishery regulations in support of exempted fishing activities proposed by the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation (CFRF). Regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act require publication of this notification to provide interested parties the opportunity to comment on applications for proposed EFPs.
DATES:
Comments must be received on or before August 3, 2026.
ADDRESSES:
You may submit written comments by email:
nmfs.gar.efp@noaa.gov.
Include in the subject line “CFRF Expanded Tilefish Fishery EFP.” All comments received are a part of the public record and may be posted for public viewing without change. All personal identifying information (
e.g.,
name, address), confidential business information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter “anonymous” as the signature if you wish to remain anonymous).
The applicant submitted a complete application for an EFP to conduct commercial fishing activities that the regulations would otherwise restrict. This EFP would exempt the participating vessels from the following Federal regulations:
To allow at-sea processing of golden and blueline tilefish for conversion factor data collection and calculation.
Table 2—Project Summary
Project title
Filling gaps and expanding opportunities in the tilefish fishery through fishermen-collected data
Project start
08/01/2026.
Project end
07/31/2027.
Project objectives
To pilot a targeted tilefish research fleet to establish a new data stream for these data-poor, commercially important species, and develop a conversion factor for whole fish to fillet.
This project seeks to leverage the knowledge and experience of the commercial fishing industry to pilot a targeted tilefish research fleet to establish a new data stream for these data-poor, commercially important species. The expected outcomes of the project include the development of a model approach for fishery-dependent data collection involving the commercial fishing industry, as well as a consistent conversion factor, to inform a potential regulatory change that would allow commercial tilefish fishermen to process these species at sea. The specific objectives include: 1. Collect and communicate tilefish data (length and weight) in a cost-effective way using modern electronic technology and fishermen's time on the water, 2. contribute to the improvement of tilefish stock assessment, 3. extract and analyze biological data from images of individual tilefish, and 4. calculate an accurate and reproducible conversion factor that is representative of the ratio of fillet length and weight to whole fish length and weight.
The project would consist of 3 participants conducting field sampling once per month, during their regular fishing activity, for a total of 12 trips per vessel, and 36 total trips for the project duration. Participants would use their standard commercial tilefish rod and reel or bottom longline gear and be required to adhere to their existing whole-fish weight limits, depending on their specific tilefish permit. The overall goal for the project would be to sample 450-500 total tilefish (both golden and blueline combined); this would be an average of approximately 12-15 tilefish per vessel per trip. Participants would be required to keep the skin on all fillets, to enable identification between species. Fillets of each species would be stored separately from one another, in accordance with their regular catch handling activities. This project would not create additional catch or effort.
To record the size and length of individual fish and their resulting fillets, electronic monitoring camera systems would be installed aboard each participant vessel. The system would have two cameras: One to obtain images with a field of view large enough to contain a mature golden tilefish, and one focused on a nearby weight scale. Once a tilefish was caught, it would be placed whole on a length board and scale beneath the camera. The captain would then fillet the fish in full view of the camera, place the fillets on the length board and scale, and record those measurements. After each trip, the video and associated data would be transferred for review and analysis by CFRF. Data would be used to calculate a conversion factor for whole fish to fillet for each species; the conversion factor would be calculated as a ratio of both halves of a fish fillet's length and weight compared against the whole fish's length and weight.
If approved, the applicant may request minor modifications and extensions to the EFP throughout the year. EFP modifications and extensions may be granted without further notice if they are deemed essential to facilitate completion of the proposed research and have minimal impacts that do not change the scope or impact of the initially approved EFP request. Any fishing activity conducted outside the scope of the exempted fishing activity would be prohibited.