Modification to the Recreational For-hire Red Snapper Fishing Season

This rule considers updating the recreational federal for-hire (charter and headboat) Gulf red snapper regulations to change the season opening date from June 1 to the Friday before Memorial Day federal holiday, and close the season when the for-hire component annual catch target is projected to be met, or on December 31, whichever occurs first, consistent with the Gulf Council’s framework action. The Gulf Council developed this framework action to allow greater recreational access to red snapper while continuing to constrain landings to the component annual catch limit (ACL), as well as the total recreational ACL. The need for this framework action is to allow the federal for-hire component more opportunity to harvest red snapper at a level consistent with achieving optimum yield in the long-term, while preventing overfishing on an annual basis, and while rebuilding the red snapper stock.