The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has issued the Gloucester Seafood Display Auction a Wednesday deadline to show the federal regulatory agency why the hub of the local fishing industry should not be shut down for 10 days in the coming weeks.
The letter, sent today by NOAA officials, asks the auction to inform NOAA by June 24 if there is any legal reason it should not now face the sanction. If there is none, the letter asks the auction to determine when — between now and July 13 — it will begin its 10-day sanction.
In the letter, NOAA notified the local auction it must inform the federal oceans agency by June 24 if there is any "legal reason" it should not face sanctions in accordance with a 2003 settlement agreement stemming from previous charges that the auction accepted illegally caught fish.