May 2, 2016 — The following was released by NOAA:
We are announcing the commercial groundfish annual catch limits for the 2016 fishing year (May 1, 2016-April 30, 2017).
2016 catch limits will increase for 10 stocks, but will decrease substantially for some stocks. The catch limits are available in the rule filed with the Federal Register today.
We are adjusting the sector at-sea monitoring program to make it more cost-efficient while ensuring sector catch is still reliably monitored. The target sector at-sea monitoring coverage level is 14% for 2016, as compared to 24% for 2015.
We are increasing recreational fishing opportunities for Gulf of Maine (GOM) cod and haddock.
Recreational GOM 2016 Cod Measures:
Season: Open Aug 1-Sep 30
Per Day Possession: 1 fish
Minimum Size: 24 inches
Recreational GOM 2016 Haddock Measures:
Season: Open Apr 15-Feb 28
Per Day Possession: 15 fish
Minimum Size: 17 inches
Read the final rule for Framework 55 and the final rule for recreational measures as filed in the Federal Register for further details. The fishery bulletins for the commercial and recreational rules (scroll to page 11) are available as pdfs on our website.