American Seafoods CP Sea Alliance
The MSA requires a formal and detailed review of Limited Access Privilege Programs 5 years after the implementation of the program, and thereafter to coincide with scheduled Council review of the relevant fishery management plan ( but no less frequently than once every 7 years). In December 2015, the Council reviewed a workplan for a program review of the American Fisheries Act (AFA) limited access privilege program. In February 2017, the Council reviewed and accepted the AFA program review as completed and final with the addition of an added section describing the amount of Alaska Fisheries Business tax and the Fisheries Resource Landing tax revenue collected by the State from AFA fishing activity and how those revenues may have changed over time and how its distributed to communities. The Council also noted that the program review should include corrections and clarifications raised during the staff presentation in the AP, to the extent practicable. The future program review will also include a section that summarizes key findings.
The Council also tasked staff to initiate a discussion paper for a management action that would prohibit directed fishing by regulation for those species listed in the review document where sideboard limits are insufficient to support a directed fishery and remove the sideboard for those species. Staff contact is Jon McCracken.
