Halibut/Sablefish IFQ Program

The Pacific halibut and sablefish fixed gear fisheries have been managed under the individual fishing quota (IFQ) program since 1995. The program assigns the privilege of harvesting a percentage of the annual halibut and sablefish quota to specific individuals with a history of harvest in the fisheries. At the time of implementation, the access privilege granted to each participant was proportional to their fixed gear halibut and sablefish landings during the qualifying period, and are represented as quota shares (QS). Quota shares are transferable. Under this program, only persons holding quota shares are allowed to make fixed gear landings of halibut and sablefish in the regulatory areas identified. There are several key provisions of the program: the process for initial allocation of QS; assignment of shares to vessel categories; share transfer provisions; quota share use and ownership limits; QS ‘blocks’ to mitigate excessive consolidation; a process for allocating annual IFQ based on participants’ QS; and the establishment of Community Quota Entities (CQE). Staff contact is Sam Cunningham: 907-271-2809.

• NOAA Fisheries: IFQ Program
• NOAA Fisheries: IFQ Halibut/Sablefish Reports
• International Pacific Halibut Commission (IPHC)

IFQ  Committee

The IFQ Committee provides recommendations to the Council regarding potential future revisions to the IFQ program. Membership is intended to represent a broad range of stakeholders in the IFQ fisheries, including representatives from both the halibut and sablefish fisheries, representation covering multiple areas, and IFQ processors. The current membership includes: Cora Campbell (chair), Jerry Dahl, Craig Evens, Jeff Farvour, Dave Fraser, Natasha Hayden, Jeff Kauffman, Linda Kozak, Buck Laukitis, Bob Linville, Shawn McManus, Michael Offerman, Peggy Parker, Jeff Peterson, Matt Robinson, and Erik Velsko. Staff contact is Sam Cunningham, 907-271-2809.

The Council maintains a list of ongoing and yet-to-be-scheduled analytical tasks related to the IFQ Program, available here (updated November 2020).

The next meeting of the IFQ Committee is TBD. Continue to visit NPFMC.org for updates.

Recent Events

The IFQ Committee met virtually March 25-26, 2021. The link to the Committee’s eAgenda can be accessed here. IFQ management actions reviewed at this meeting included the IFQ access expanded discussion paper and the GOA sablefish pot fishery review. The Committee also addressed and prioritized several new proposals and other actions. These actions and the Committee’s recommendations are included in the Committee’s report. At the April 2021 Council meeting, the Council received the Committee report and IFQ-related agenda items. The April NPFMC newsletter includes articles summarizing the Council’s actions on IFQ Access opportunities and the sablefish pots and IFQ Committee report topics.

On February 10, 2021 the Council requested that NMFS take three separate emergency actions relating to the IFQ Program. NMFS is maintaining a webpage that describes the actions, will link to updates on implementation if the actions are approved, and answers frequently asked questions. The three IFQ emergency action recommendations concern:

• Allowing temporary transfer of catcher vessel halibut and sablefish IFQ for all individual quota share holders for the 2021 fishing season
• Removing the vessel use cap for IFQ halibut harvested in IPHC Areas 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D for the 2021 fishing season
• Suspending the residency requirements that apply to the Adak Community Quota Entity (CQE) for 2021

On May 15, 2020 the Council held a special session to address stakeholder requests for emergency action relating to challenges brought on by the public health emergency. The Council recommended two actions that affect the IFQ fisheries:

• Allow temporary transfer of IFQ for all quota share holders for the remainder of the 2020 fishing season – Analysis; MOTION
  • Final Rule: 85 FR 38100, June 25, 2020
• Temporarily remove vessel use caps for IFQ halibut harvested in Areas 4B, 4C, and 4D for the remainder of the 2020 fishing season – Memo; MOTION
  • Final Rule: 85 FR 41197, July 8, 2020

On February 20, 2020 the Alaska Fisheries Science Center hosted interested stakeholders and the public for presentations and discussion on analyses of sablefish ABC apportionment across the six Alaska management areas (SE, WY, CG, WG, BS, AI). The SSC will address this topic at its online meeting (June 1-3) and provide feedback to inform the harvest specifications process for the 2021 fishing year.

• Presentation slides
• Summary table of results (A)
• Summary table of results (B)

Newsletter Articles

• Sablefish Pots and IFQ Committee Report (4/21/2021)
• IFQ Access Opportunities (4/21/2021)
• IFQ Rollover Increase & Season Extension (5/19/2020)
• IFQ Vessel Caps (5/19/2020)
• IFQ Transfer Provisions (5/19/2020)
• Call for Nominations (6/13/2019)
• CQE Fish Up in Area 3A (6/13/2019)
• IFQ Access Opportunities- Global Examples (6/13/2019)
• IFQ Committee Report and Whale Depredation Workshop (4/12/2019)
• IFQ Medical & Beneficiary Transfer Provisions (2/15/2019)

Recent Council Motions:

2021 April Motion on sablefish pots and Adak CQE residency requirement
2021 April Motion on IFQ Access Opportunities
2021 April Motion on IFQ tasking: hired master and IFQ QS transfer
2020 May Motion on Temporary IFQ Transfer
2020 May Motion on Temporary Suspension of Vessel Use Caps in Areas 4BCD
2019 December Motion on Small Sablefish Release
2019 October Motion on Halibut Abundance-Based Management PSC Limits
2019 June Motion on IFQ Access Opportunities (Global Examples)
2019 June Motion on Area 3A CQE Fish-up Public Review (Final Action)
2019 April Motion on Area 3A CQE Fish-up Initial Review
2019 April Motion on Small Sablefish Release Discussion Paper
2019 April Motion on IFQ Eligibility Requirements Discussion Paper
2019 April Motion on Medical Transfer and Beneficiary Designation Public Review
2018 October Motion on Halibut Abundance-Based Management PSC Limits
2018 October Motion on Small Sablefish Release Discussion Paper
2018 October Motion on Area 3A CQE Fish-Up Discussion Paper
2018 October Motion on Medical Transfer Provisions
2018 October Motion on Halibut Retention in Pots
2018 June Motion on Global Examples of IFQ Access Program
2018 June Motion on Regulatory and Non-Regulatory Options to Promote QS Transfer to Skippers and Crew

Previous Council actions are accessible under Council Documents and Motions at the bottom of this page.

Minutes and other Items of Interest:

2021 April Committee Meeting Minutes
2019 April Committee Meeting Minutes
2019 April Whale Depredation Workshop Description and Summary Report
2018 June IFQ Outreach Meeting (Kodiak) Summary
2018 February: Committee Proposals; Meeting Minutes
2017 October Committee Meeting Minutes
2017 January Meeting Minutes, Briefing Materials, Presentation on rural participation (Carothers-UAF)
2015 December Committee Meeting Minutes
2013 December: PVOA and KVOA Proposals 10/13, Discussion Papers: GOA Sablefish Pots, Sablefish Freezer Longliner Use Cap
2012 March: Agenda; Minutes; Status Report on discussion papers for IFQ Proposals, Hubbard Proposal
2009 September Committee Meeting Agenda; Minutes; Motions

Internal Links

• Community Quota Entity Program
• Community Development Quota Program
• Halibut Charter Management
• Recreational Quota Entity Committee
• Halibut Charter Stakeholder Committee
• Charter Management Implementation Committee

Council Documents and Motions