International Fisheries; Pacific Tuna Fisheries; Safe Handling and Release Practices for Sharks on Longline Vessels and Revision to Vessel Monitoring System Requirements in the Eastern Pacific Ocean

NMFS is issuing regulations under the Tuna Conventions Act (TCA) of 1950, as amended, to implement Resolutions C-23-07 (Conservation Measures for the Protection and Sustainable Management of Sharks) and C-23-11 (On the Establishment of a Vessel Monitoring System) adopted by the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) at its meeting in August 2023 in Victoria, Canada. This final rule implements provisions of these Resolutions and requires U.S. longline vessels fishing for tuna or tuna-like species in the eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO) to release incidentally caught sharks by leaving them in the water and cutting the branchline so that less than 1 meter remains on each animal. The final rule also requires large vessels fishing for tuna or tuna-like species in the EPO to make manual reports every six hours in the event of a malfunctioning vessel monitoring system (VMS) unit. This action is necessary for the United States to satisfy its obligations as a member of the IATTC.