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South Atlantic For-Hire Limited Entry Discussion Document
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Background
In 2016, the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) established a control date of
June 15, 2016, with the intent to consider limiting entry into the for-hire component of the
snapper grouper, dolphin wahoo, and coastal migratory pelagics fisheries. A control date is used
to establish eligibility criteria for determining future access to fisheries or sectors of fisheries.
What eventually became Snapper Grouper Amendment 47 was initiated and developed through
the public scoping stage. This amendment initially included the snapper grouper, dolphin
wahoo, and coastal migratory pelagic fishery management plans, but the scope of the amendment
was narrowed down to focus solely on the snapper grouper fishery. Following scoping hearings
held in August 2018 and most comments being in opposition to a moratorium, the Council
decided to discontinue work on Amendment 47 indefinitely.
In June 2023, the Council requested that the Snapper Grouper Advisory Panel (AP) discuss
limited entry for the for-hire component at their fall 2023 meeting. This request was in response
to public comments provided at the June 2023 and previous Council meetings, recent discussions
about the need to reduce recreational effort for snapper grouper species to decrease dead discards
and landings for several overfished snapper grouper stocks, and address compliance difficulties
with the Southeast For-Hire Integrated Electronic Reporting (SEFHIER) Program.
The Mackerel Cobia AP met in November 2023 and recommended to the Council that a limited-
entry program also be considered for the for-hire component of the coastal migratory pelagics
fishery. This AP cited the need to control the expansion of recreational harvest and
Recreational For-Hire Limited
Entry Programs for the Snapper
Grouper, Dolphin Wahoo, and
Costal Migratory Pelagics Fisheries
in the Atlantic
Discussion Document
March 2024
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South Atlantic For-Hire Limited Entry Discussion Document
March 2024
professionalizing the for-hire fleet. Additionally, the AP stated that they would be interested in
discussing new and unique structures for a limited entry program (e.g., limited leasing, a
greenhorn pool, etc.).
At their December 2023 meeting, the Council discussed the APs’ recommendations and received
an update on the SEFHIER program. Overall, there has been poor compliance with the for-hire
reporting requirements in the South Atlantic and the agency is unable to determine the accuracy
of submitted data. The open access nature of for-hire permits in the South Atlantic was cited as a
potential reason for poor compliance with reporting requirements. As such, the Council
initiated development of an amendment to consider limited entry for the finfish fisheries
under its jurisdiction which include the Snapper Grouper, Coastal Migratory Pelagics, and
Dolphin Wahoo fisheries. Additionally, the Council passed the following motion to revise the
control date of the for-hire permits:
Motion: To prevent speculative entry, establish an additional control date of December 8, 2023,
that the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (Council) may use if it decides to create
restrictions limiting participation in the exclusive economic zone for the federal charter
vessel/headboat (for-hire) component of the recreational sectors of the coastal migratory
pelagics fishery in the Atlantic, dolphin and wahoo fishery in the Atlantic, and snapper-grouper
fishery in the South Atlantic. Anyone obtaining a federal for-hire permit for these recreational
sectors after the control date will not be assured of future access should a management regime
that limits participation in the sector be prepared and implemented.
Additionally, federal permit holders that have not reported snapper-grouper, coastal migratory
pelagic, and/or dolphin and wahoo catch from the South Atlantic to the Southeast For-Hire
Integrated Electronic Reporting program on or prior to December 5, 2023, will not be assured
of future access should a management regime that limits participation in the sector be prepared
and implemented.
On February 8, 2024, NOAA Fisheries published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking
reflecting these control date criteria. The comment period for this notice is open through March
11, 2024.
What issues were considered in Snapper Grouper
Amendment 47?
In developing Amendment 47 the Council considered two main issues with various levels of
supporting information:
1) A moratorium on South Atlantic Charter/Headboat snapper grouper permits.
• Magnuson-Stevens Act and National Standard Guidelines considerations
• Moratoriums and limited entry in other federally managed fisheries
• Start date of a moratorium and exceptions for eligibility
i. Historic captains
ii. Commercial license holders
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• Transferability of permits and allowing new entrants
i. New entrants pool
ii. New entrants or “green horn” permit
2) Revising or removing regulations that prevent federally permitted snapper grouper for-hire
operators from possessing snapper grouper species in state waters when harvest of these
species closes in federal waters.
In the scoping document it was noted that the Council was considering a moratorium on for-hire
snapper grouper permits to evaluate whether a limited entry system or other modifications to how the
for-hire snapper grouper fleet is managed or operates are desirable.
Council members noted that a
that a moratorium could help with:
• Logbook reporting compliance
• Recreational data quality
• Stabilizing participation in the for-hire fishery
• Situations of potential localized vessel overcapacity
• Business planning
• Professionalizing the for-hire fleet
• Reducing fishing pressure on some fish stocks
Council members also expressed concerns over issues that may arise as a result of a moratorium
on snapper grouper for-hire permits that include:
• Conflicts between those who do and do not get permits
• The fate of permits obtained after the control date
• The increased potential for sector separation and associated conflicts such as those between
private recreational fishermen and the for-hire fleet
• The cost of obtaining a for-hire permit if the permits become limited in number and how to
ensure new entrants are allowed into the fishery
Additionally, snapper grouper for-hire permit holders have expressed concern over the inequity
relative to species retention when harvest is closed in federal waters but remains open in state
waters. In that scenario, particularly in Florida where many snapper grouper species inhabit state
waters, customers onboard for-hire vessels with the federal permit are not able to retain these
species, even if they are fishing in state waters. On the other hand, for-hire operators without the
federal permit can allow their customers to retain such species, if they remain in state waters.
Some stakeholders maintain that this situation not only creates an inequity, but also rewards for-
hire operators that purposely do not obtain a federal permit but illegally conduct some for-hire
trips in the South Atlantic exclusive economic zone (EEZ) harvesting snapper grouper species.
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Magnuson-Stevens Act and National Standard Guidelines
considerations
There are several requirements within the Magnusson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act; MSA) and National Standard Guidelines for limiting
access to a fishery. Under MSA section 303(b)(6) the following is stated regarding topics that a
Council should consider for implementing a limited access system:
Sec. 303. CONTENTS OF FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLANS
(b) DESCRETIONARY PROVISIONS
(6) establish a limited access system for the fishery in order to achieve optimum yield if, in
developing such system, the Council and the Secretary take into account—
(A) present participation in the fishery;
(B) historical fishing practices in, and dependence on, the fishery;
(C) the economics of the fishery;
(D) the capability of fishing vessels used in the fishery to engage in other fisheries;
(E) the cultural and social framework relevant to the fishery and any affected fishing
communities;
(F) the fair and equitable distribution of access privileges in the fishery; and
(G) any other relevant considerations
Additional guidance on considerations that Council’s should take when implementing a system
for limiting access to a fishery can be found in §600.325 National Standard 4-Allocations and
§600.330 National Standard 5- Efficiency
1
. As the name implies, Nation Standard 4 discusses
allocations of fishery resources and fishing privileges as well as necessary considerations and
analysis for determining allocations, including access to a fishery. National Standard 5 outlines
the concept of efficiency within a fishery, establishes limited access as a management technique
that may be used to address issues such “overfishing, overcrowding, or overcapitalization in a
fishery to achieve OY”, and provides additional considerations when implementing a limited
access program.
Moratoriums and limited entry in other federally managed fisheries
Implementing a permit moratorium or limiting entry into a fishery has been a more common
management tool practiced for the commercial sector than the for-hire sector. Most federal
charter and headboat permitting systems are open access, provided that permit holders meet
specified permit conditions. On the federal level, such open access permits currently include
some or all for-hire permits for fisheries managed by Highly Migratory Species, the New
England Fishery Management Council, the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, and the
South Atlantic Fishery Management Council.
There are however some circumstances of limiting entry on the federal level in the for-hire
1
The full contents of National Standards 4 and 5 can be found at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/laws-and-
policies/national-standard-guidelines
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South Atlantic For-Hire Limited Entry Discussion Document
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sector
2
. In the Southeast Region, there are four limited access for-hire permits for the coastal
migratory pelagic and reef fish fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico which were preceded by a permit
moratorium being implemented by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council prior to a
limited entry system being developed. Another example of a limited entry in federal for-hire
permits occurred in the Alaskan halibut fishery when the North Pacific Fishery Management
Council implemented a limited entry program for the charter sector of the halibut fishery for a
large portion of Alaska
3
.
The Council could establish a time limit or sunset provision so the moratorium expires on a
specified date, or under specified conditions, such as a change in stock status for a given species
or group of species. A time-limited moratorium could allow the Council to evaluate the current
for-hire sector conditions and to design a more permanent limited entry system without a large
fluctuation in the number of permits. At the end of the moratorium, a plan amendment could be
implemented establishing an indefinite limited entry system that would remain in place until it
was changed by the Council.
Some examples of how a time limited moratorium has used in the past include:
1) Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic commercial king mackerel permit:
• Moratorium implemented on new permits starting Oct 16, 1995 and lasting until Oct 15,
2000 (CMP Amendment 8)
• Moratorium was extended to Oct 15, 2005 (CMP Amendment 12)
• Established indefinite limited entry in July 2005 (CMP Amendment 15)
2) Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish and Coastal Migratory Pelagics charter/headboat permits:
• Moratorium on new permits starting June 16, 2003 and lasting until June 16, 2006 (RF
Amendment 20/ CMP Amendment 14)
• Established indefinite limited entry in June 2006 (RF Amendment 25/CMP Amendment
17)
Summary of Available Data on For-Hire Permits in the
Snapper Grouper, Dolphin Wahoo, and Coastal Migratory
Pelagics Fisheries
The following permit information was provided by the NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional
Office’s (SERO) Limited Access Privilege Programs and Data Management Branch in January
2024. The number of federal for-hire (charter/headboat) permitted vessels for the three finfish
fisheries that the Council manages was examined from 2008 through 2020. Full-year data after
2020 are currently unavailable due to issues and ongoing updates with the SERO permits system.
2
A full list of limited and open access permits issued by the NMFS Southeast Regional Office can be found on page
2 and page 3 of the permit application form at: https://media.fisheries.noaa.gov/2022-03/EEZvesselapplication.pdf
3
For further details on the limited entry Alaskan charter halibut permit got to: https://media.fisheries.noaa.gov/dam-
migration/charter-halibut-limited-access011720.pdf
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It is expected that information from 2020 onwards will be available later in 2024. It should be
noted that COVID-19 and the comprehensive for-hire logbook reporting amendment
(effective January 4, 2021) likely affected the number of federally permitted for-hire vessels
in recent years and these trends are not fully shown in the following figures and tables.
The number of federal for-hire permitted vessels for the three finfish fisheries decreased slightly
from 2008 through 2014 and notably increased from 2014 through 2019. The number of for-hire
snapper grouper and coastal migratory pelagics (CMP) permits was very similar until 2016.
CMP permits increased above snapper grouper permits thereafter. Overall, the number of
dolphin wahoo for-hire permits during the period examined has been substantially higher than
those for the other two fisheries (Figure 1; Table 1). Most of the permitted vessels are
homeported in the South Atlantic region (Figure 2; Table 2).
Figure 1. Number of federally permitted charter/headboat vessels in the Snapper Grouper,
Coastal Migratory Pelagics, and Dolphin Wahoo fisheries from 2008 through 2020.
1,500
1,700
1,900
2,100
2,300
2,500
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Number of Permitted Vessels
Year
Total
Permitted
Vessels
Snapper
Grouper
Dolphin
Wahoo
Coastal
Migratory
Pelagics
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Table 1. Number of federally permitted charter/headboat vessels in the Snapper Grouper,
Coastal Migratory Pelagics, and Dolphin Wahoo fisheries from 2008 through 2020.
Year
Snapper
Grouper
Coastal Migratory
Pelagics
Total Permitted
Vessels
2008
1,805
1,828
2,228
2009
1,852
1,851
2,261
2010
1,812
1,813
2,221
2011
1,781
1,780
2,193
2012
1,797
1,794
2,197
2013
1,781
1,783
2,130
2014
1,727
1,721
2,060
2015
1,779
1,771
2,106
2016
1,867
1,876
2,182
2017
1,982
2,014
2,294
2018
2,126
2,176
2,458
2019
2,183
2,255
2,518
2020
2,136
2,204
2,458
Figure 2. Number of federally permitted charter/headboat vessels in the Snapper Grouper,
Coastal Migratory Pelagics, and Dolphin Wahoo fisheries from 2008 through 2020 by homeport
state or region. (note: OOR stands for “Out of the Region” (i.e., Mid-West, West Coast, Alaska,
etc.))
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Vessels
Year
Carib
FL (East, Keys,
Interior)
GA
Gulf
Mid-Atlantic
NC
New England
OOR
SC
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Table 2. Number of federally permitted charter/headboat vessels in the Snapper Grouper,
Coastal Migratory Pelagics, and Dolphin Wahoo fisheries from 2008 through 2020 by homeport
state or region.
Year
FL (East,
Keys, Interior)
GA
SC
NC
Gulf
Mid-
Atlantic
New
England
Carib
OOR
2008
859
26
153
425
434
309
14
1
7
2009
869
30
164
429
427
315
19
2
6
2010
861
27
165
406
411
323
21
3
4
2011
866
28
159
402
394
315
21
4
4
2012
886
28
164
376
398
315
22
3
5
2013
878
31
167
354
393
280
21
1
5
2014
836
35
175
342
373
272
21
1
5
2015
851
46
199
359
358
265
21
3
4
2016
884
55
220
369
349
270
28
2
5
2017
944
65
221
398
360
266
36
1
3
2018
1,067
70
240
401
366
272
37
1
4
2019
1,121
61
244
415
364
274
35
1
3
2020
1,136
61
219
401
343
261
33
2
2
Snapper Grouper
Federal South Atlantic Charter/Headboat permits for Snapper Grouper are open access. Figure 3
and Table 3 show the number of federally permitted for-hire snapper grouper vessels by
homeport state or region from 2008 through 2020.
The number of federally permitted charter/headboat vessels in the snapper grouper fishery
hovered near or just below 1,800 from 2008 until 2015. The increase thereafter may reflect
speculative entry into the fishery as discussion of a possible limited entry program ensued during
Snapper Grouper AP meetings, through the Council’s Snapper Grouper Visioning Project, and
development of Amendment 47. The number of permits peaked in 2019 at 2,183 permitted
vessels (Table 3).
Among the South Atlantic states, Florida has consistently had the highest number of permitted
snapper grouper for-hire vessels. Florida has also seen the largest increase in the number of for-
hire snapper grouper permits compared to the other South Atlantic states since the June 15, 2016
control date.
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Figure 3. Number of vessels with federal charter/headboat snapper grouper permits by homeport
state or region from 2008 through 2020.
Table 3. Number of vessels with federal charter/headboat snapper grouper permits by homeport
state or region from 2008 through 2020.
Year
FL (East,
Keys, Interior)
GA
SC
NC
Gulf
Mid-
Atlantic
New
England
Carib
OOR
Total
2008
815
26
139
338
382
91
7
0
7
1,805
2009
834
30
146
349
380
99
8
0
6
1,852
2010
826
27
146
331
369
100
8
1
4
1,812
2011
829
26
132
331
360
89
8
2
4
1,781
2012
849
26
138
313
365
91
9
1
5
1,797
2013
842
30
147
302
362
85
8
0
5
1,781
2014
802
34
160
294
341
82
9
0
5
1,727
2015
813
45
188
308
331
81
8
1
4
1,779
2016
847
53
212
331
323
87
9
0
5
1,867
2017
910
62
215
362
332
88
10
0
3
1,982
2018
1,037
67
225
367
333
84
9
0
4
2,126
2019
1,092
61
229
377
333
77
11
0
3
2,183
2020
1,104
61
205
363
314
74
12
1
2
2,136
Dolphin Wahoo
Federal Atlantic Charter/Headboat permits for Dolphin Wahoo are open access. From 2008
through 2020, most of the federal for-hire dolphin wahoo permitted vessels had a homeport in
the South Atlantic region. A similar increase in the number of permits also seen in the snapper
grouper fishery is evident in the dolphin wahoo for-hire component after 2015 (Figure 4, Table
4) with most permitted vessels homeported in Florida. The number of permits peaked in 2019 at
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Vessels
Year
Carib
FL (East, Keys,
Interior)
GA
Gulf
Mid-Atlantic
NC
New England
OOR
SC
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2,360 permitted vessels (Table 4). Compared to snapper grouper for-hire permits, there are
notably more dolphin wahoo permits for vessels in the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions
since the permit is required to fish for the two species in those regions.
Figure 4. Number of vessels with federal charter/headboat dolphin wahoo permits by homeport
state or region from 2008 through 2020.
Table 4. Number of vessels with federal charter/headboat dolphin wahoo permits by homeport
state or region from 2008 through 2020.
Year
FL (East,
Keys, Interior)
GA
SC
NC
Gulf
Mid-
Atlantic
New
England
OOR
Carib
Total
2008
757
24
137
401
320
304
14
7
1
1,965
2009
774
28
148
412
320
312
19
6
2
2,021
2010
764
24
147
394
329
320
21
4
3
2,006
2011
785
23
140
394
331
312
21
4
4
2,014
2012
803
25
141
369
339
312
22
5
3
2,019
2013
802
27
141
348
340
278
21
5
1
1,963
2014
763
30
143
337
326
271
20
5
1
1,896
2015
774
34
170
352
321
264
21
4
3
1,943
2016
818
39
192
363
313
269
28
5
2
2,029
2017
890
49
197
388
322
264
36
3
1
2,150
2018
1,014
53
201
391
332
268
36
4
1
2,300
2019
1,073
48
200
404
325
272
34
3
1
2,360
2020
1,095
45
177
392
308
260
33
2
2
2,314
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Vessels
Year
Carib
FL (East, Keys,
Interior)
GA
Gulf
Mid-Atlantic
NC
New England
OOR
SC
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Coastal Migratory Pelagics
CMP Amendment 14, which established a charter vessel/headboat permit moratorium for the
CMP fishery in the Gulf of Mexico, was implemented on June 16, 2003. The intended effect
was to cap the number of for-hire vessels operating in the CMP fishery as of March 29, 2001,
while the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council evaluated whether a limited access
program was needed to permanently constrain effort. The moratorium on permits was set to
expire June 16, 2006. CMP Amendment 17, implemented on June 15, 2006, established the
current limited access system on for-hire CMP permits in the Gulf of Mexico. Permits are
renewable and transferable, and the Gulf Council conducts periodic reviews on the effectiveness
of the limited access system.
Federal Atlantic Charter/Headboat permits in the CMP fishery are open access. From 2008
through 2020, most of the CMP for-hire permits were in the South Atlantic region and, similarly
to the other two fisheries, the number of permits increased after 2015, presumably in response to
concerns about a future limited entry program being established (Figure 5, Table 5). The same
trend is reflected in the breakdown by state, with most of the permits originating in Florida. The
number of permits peaked in 2019 at 2,255 permitted vessels (Table 5). Compared to snapper
grouper for-hire permits, there are notably more permits held in the Mid-Atlantic region since the
federal for-hire coastal migratory pelagics permit is required to fish for Spanish mackerel or king
mackerel in that region.
Figure 5. Number of vessels with federal charter/headboat coastal migratory pelagics permits by
homeport state or region from 2008 through 2020.
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Vessels
Year
Carib
FL (East, Keys,
Interior)
GA
Gulf
Mid-Atlantic
NC
New England
OOR
SC
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Table 5. Number of vessels with federal charter/headboat coastal migratory pelagics permits by
homeport state or region from 2008 through 2020.
Year
FL (East,
Keys, Interior)
GA
SC
NC
Gulf
Mid-
Atlantic
New
England
OOR
Carib
Total
2008
766
26
148
370
390
114
7
7
0
1,828
2009
771
27
152
377
385
123
10
5
1
1,851
2010
769
25
153
353
378
120
10
3
2
1,813
2011
775
27
144
349
366
104
8
4
3
1,780
2012
790
27
148
329
378
106
9
5
2
1,794
2013
791
30
157
311
381
100
8
5
0
1,783
2014
747
35
168
301
355
101
9
5
0
1,721
2015
747
46
194
322
338
109
10
4
1
1,771
2016
799
55
214
340
326
124
12
5
1
1,876
2017
884
65
217
367
338
126
14
3
0
2,014
2018
1,010
70
236
371
340
130
15
4
0
2,176
2019
1,067
61
241
386
339
139
19
3
0
2,255
2020
1,083
59
215
375
317
134
18
2
1
2,204
Additional Summary Data Availability
As noted, the ongoing SERO permits system update prevents additional analysis of permits from
2021 through 2023. It is expected that later this year the system upgrade will be complete and
additional analysis will be possible. In addition to for-hire permit information for more recent
years, such analyses could include information on permitted vessels that do and do not qualify
for the control dates that the Council set in December 2023. While exact timing is unknown, it is
expected that this information may be available at the Council’s September or December 2024
meetings.
Next Steps for the Council
To develop a for-hire limited entry amendment, it would be helpful to have additional feedback
on the topics that the Council would like to pursue. How does the Council want to proceed with
the development of a for-hire limited entry amendment? What direction can the Council offer to
staff?
1) Is the intent to issue a moratorium on for-hire permits and then consider developing a limited
entry system (i.e. what was considered in Amendment 47) or does the Council want to go
directly to limited entry in the for-hire sector?
2) Does the Council want staff to develop a scoping document for review at the June 2024
meeting? What topics should be included? Examples could include:
• Eligibility criteria
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o The start date of a moratorium or limited entry requirement
o Exceptions to eligibility criteria
Historic captains
Commercial license holders
• Permit transferability and allowing for new entrants
o Permit transferability
Leasing of permits
o A new entrants or “green horn” permit
o Permit pool for new entrants
o Setting a target number of permits in each fishery
o How to account for climate change and range expansion northward (particularly in
the Coastal Migratory Pelagic and Dolphin Wahoo fisheries)
o Equity and environmental justice (EEJ) considerations such as whether limiting
access to a fishery is going to disproportionately affect some communities
• Sunset provision of a moratorium or limited entry program
3) What additional information would be helpful for the Council to review at this point in the
amendment development process?