NOAA Fisheries approves the conservation equivalency approach for the black sea bass recreational fishery for fishing year 2025. Under conservation equivalency, states or regions develop minimum sizes, possession limits, and fishing seasons that will achieve the necessary level of conservation. Recreational fishery participants, including federally permitted for-hire vessels, must comply with the recreational black sea bass measures for the state in which they land.
There are no changes to the Federal recreational summer flounder or scup measures from 2024 because they were previously set for two years (2024 and 2025).