Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Snapper-Grouper Fishery Off the Southern Atlantic States; Amendment 18A

NMFS issues this final rule to implement Amendment 18A to the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region (Amendment 18A), as prepared and submitted by the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council). This rule modifies the current system of accountability measures for black sea bass, limits effort in the black sea bass segment of the snapper-grouper fishery, and improves fisheries data in the for-hire sector of the snapper-grouper fishery. Amendment 18A also updates the rebuilding plan and modifies the acceptable biological catch (ABC) for black sea bass. This final rule is intended to reduce overcapacity in the black sea bass segment of the snapper-grouper fishery.