NOAA Updates West Coast Fishing Permit Forms
Published Date: 6/24/2026
Notice
Summary
NOAA is updating its West Coast fishing permit forms to remove duplicates and add new reports for special fishing and research activities. About 1,164 fishers and researchers will spend a total of 421 hours yearly filling out these forms, which now better match real-world rules. You’ve got 30 days to share your thoughts before these changes get the green light!
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 3 costs, 0 mixed.
New Reports Added for Research and Exempted Activities
NOAA added reports for exempted fishing permits (EFPs), scientific research, and exempted educational activity authorizations (EEAAs). Examples in the collection: scientific research plans take 13 hours and research reports take 7 hours; EFP applications take 1 hour and EFP reports take 4.5 hours; EEAA applications take 5 hours and EEAA reports take 2.5 hours.
Permits Required for Commercial Fishing Participation
Permits administered under the Coastal Pelagic Species (CPS) and Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plans are required authorizations for commercial participation in those fisheries.
Duplicate Permit Forms Removed
NOAA is removing two information collections that were duplicate entries for renewals. That change reduces paperwork for permit renewals under the West Coast Region permit family.
Total Annual Paperwork Burden Quantified
NOAA estimates 1,164 respondents will spend a total of 421 hours per year filling out the West Coast Region permit family of forms. The collection lists per-form time estimates (for example, new paper Highly Migratory Species permit: 20 minutes; renewal online: 5 minutes; appeals: 4 hours).
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Key Dates
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