Guam Fishermen Get Boost: Bottomfish Catch Limit Raised to 34,500 Pounds
Published Date: 4/23/2026
Proposed Rule
Summary
The government wants to let Guam fishermen catch a bit more bottomfish by raising the yearly catch limit from 31,000 to 34,500 pounds. Instead of stopping fishing right away if they go over, they'll check after the season and adjust next year’s limits if needed. This change helps keep fishing fair and supports the fish population’s comeback, with comments open until May 26, 2026.
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Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
Guam ACL raised to 34,500 lb
If you fish Guam bottomfish, the annual catch limit (ACL) would increase from 31,000 lb to 34,500 lb (a 3,500 lb, ~11% increase). NMFS says the stock can still rebuild by 2031 under this ACL; if the fleet attains the full ACL and 19.2% of catch is sold at $6.73/lb, estimated fleet-wide revenue would be about $44,580 (about $1,115 per vessel).
Replace in-season closure with post-season adjustment
If you fish Guam bottomfish, NMFS would remove the in-season measure that could close the fishery immediately and instead use a post-season overage adjustment: if the average catch over the most recent 3 years exceeds the ACL, NMFS will reduce the subsequent year's ACL by the amount of the overage via a separate rulemaking. The change means no immediate Federal-water closure based on in-season projections, but ACLs could be reduced later if multi-year averages show an overage.
Indefinite closure standard removed
If you fish Guam bottomfish, the proposed rule would remove the stricter performance standard that required NMFS to close Federal waters indefinitely for any ACL exceedance. Fishery management would revert to the Fishery Ecosystem Plan standard that triggers re-evaluation of accountability measures if the ACL is exceeded twice in a 4-year period.
Small-entity impact and paperwork unchanged
If you operate a Guam bottomfish vessel (about 63 fishermen are estimated to fish this fishery), NMFS determined that affected entities are small businesses and expects no significant economic impact, no disproportionate effects across vessels, and no new reporting or record‑keeping requirements from this rule. NMFS states fishermen should not expect any loss in revenue as a result of the proposed action.
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