The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is issuing this interim final rule to amend the regulations that require summer flounder trawlers to use Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) in waters off Virginia and North Carolina to reduce the incidental capture of endangered and threatened sea turtles. NMFS is reguiring that any approved hard TED or special TED installed in a summmer flounder trawl be installed in a TED extension (a cylinder of webbing in which the TED is installed). NMFS also is introducing specifications for the TED extensionand requiring that the TED extension be constructed of webbing no larger than 3.5- inch (8.9 cm) stretched mesh. This interim final rule is necessary to prevent adverse impacts to turtles in the upcoming fall/winter summer flounder trawling season.