NOAA Cuts Red Tape for Bering Sea Cod Fishers
Published Date: 2/23/2026
Notice
Summary
NOAA is updating the paperwork for the Pacific Cod Trawl Cooperative Program, which affects 13 fishing groups who catch and process Pacific cod in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. They’re removing some old forms and a formal appeal process to make things simpler, while keeping the main info collection going. This update won’t cost extra time or money but asks for public feedback for 30 more days.
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 2 costs, 0 mixed.
Paperwork Burden for 13 Fishery Participants
The rule covers 13 respondents (harvesters and processors) in the Pacific Cod Trawl Cooperative Program who must submit specific forms. Average times are: Application for PCTC Cooperative Quota — 2 hours; Application for Inter‑Cooperative Transfer of CQ — 10 minutes; Application for Transfer of PCTC QS for Processors — 2 hours; Notification of Intent to Process PCTC — 30 minutes; total annual burden hours = 15 hours.
Two Obsolete Forms Removed
NMFS is removing two forms it says are no longer needed: (1) Application for PCTC Program Quota Share (QS) and (2) Ninety-Day Transfer Window for Non-Exempt American Fisheries Act (AFA) License Limitation Program (LLP) holders. Participants who previously used those forms will no longer need to submit them under this revision.
Formal Appeal Process for CQ Allocations Removed
The revision removes the formal appeal process for cooperative quota (CQ) allocations; the notice states that the formal appeal process was only used during program implementation. Participants will no longer have that formal appeal route for CQ allocations under this collection.
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Key Dates
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