December 14, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:
NOAA Fisheries is implementing a final rule that adjusts the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s risk policy. This action modifies the Council’s risk policy by accepting a higher level of risk for stocks that are at or above biomass targets, resulting in the ability for the Council to set higher catch limits for healthy fisheries. This action also removes the typical/atypical species designation when applied to the current risk policy allowing the Council to better use improvements in stock assessment and modeling approaches that can more appropriately account for and address overfishing vulnerability.
For more details, please read the rule as filed in the Federal Register and our bulletin. This rule is effective on December 15, 2020.