Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Summer Flounder Fishery; Quota Transfer From Virginia to Massachusetts
AI-generated summary for informational purposes only. Not legal advice. See the original source for the authoritative text.
The law facilitates the transfer of a portion of the summer flounder commercial quota from Virginia to Massachusetts for the 2026 fishing year. This transfer is necessary to comply with established fishery management plans and aims to ensure that the overall annual quota is fully utilized. The agreement allows Virginia to transfer 894 pounds of its quota to Massachusetts, thereby adjusting their respective quotas for the year.
AI-generated summary. May contain errors. Refer to official sources for legal decisions.
Key Changes
- Virginia's commercial summer flounder quota decreased by 894 pounds.
- Massachusetts's commercial summer flounder quota increased by 894 pounds.
- The transfer is based on a mutual agreement between the states.
Obligations
What this law requires
Virginia must not exceed a commercial summer flounder quota of 2,434,000 pounds (1,104,044 kg) for the 2026 fishing year
Massachusetts must not exceed a commercial summer flounder quota of 1,041,297 pounds (472,374 kg) for the 2026 fishing year
The NMFS Greater Atlantic Regional Administrator must evaluate quota transfer requests based on three criteria: (1) transfers do not preclude overall annual quota from being fully harvested; (2) transfers address unforeseen variation or contingency; and (3) transfers are consistent with FMP and Magnuson-Stevens Act objectives
States seeking to transfer summer flounder commercial quota must obtain mutual agreement with the transferring state and written concurrence from the NMFS Greater Atlantic Regional Administrator
The revised 2026 summer flounder commercial quotas for Virginia (2,434,000 lb) and Massachusetts (1,041,297 lb) are effective April 7, 2026, through December 31, 2026