NMFS is opening directed fishing for sablefish with fixed gear managed under the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) program. The season will open 1200 hrs, Alaska local time (A.l.t.), February 29, 2004, and will close 1200 hrs, A.l.t., November 15, 2004. This period is the same as the 2004 IFQ and Community Development Quota season for Pacific halibut adopted by the International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC). The IFQ halibut season is specified by a separate publication in the Federal Register of annual management measures pursuant to 50 CFR 300.62.