# 2026-15093: NOAA Unlocks Extra Halibut Fishing Days for West Coast Anglers in 2026

2026-15093, Pacific Halibut Fisheries of the West Coast; 2026 Catch Sharing Plan; Inseason Action, is a Federal Register rule from Commerce Department, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration published 2026-07-27, effective 2026-07-24; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-08-03).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-15093
- As of: 2026-08-03
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Document number: 2026-15093
- Title: Pacific Halibut Fisheries of the West Coast; 2026 Catch Sharing Plan; Inseason Action
- Type: Rule
- Agencies: Commerce Department; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Citation: 91 FR 46866
- Published: 2026-07-27
- Effective: 2026-07-24
- Comments close: 2026-08-11
- Significant: no
- Touches household money: yes
- Regulation identifier numbers: none
- Last updated: 2026-08-03

## In one line

NOAA Unlocks Extra Halibut Fishing Days for West Coast Anglers in 2026

## Summary

NMFS announces an inseason action for the Pacific halibut recreational fishery in the International Pacific Halibut Commission's (IPHC) regulatory Area 2A. This action adds fishing dates in August and September in the Columbia River and Washington subareas. These actions are intended to provide additional fishing opportunity for anglers in 2026 and are necessary to achieve the overall recreational fishery allocations for Area 2A established in the Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council) 2026 Pacific Halibut Catch Sharing Plan and the 2026 IPHC regulations.

## Effects PRIA read

- Puget Sound: More August–September Days: benefit, medium. If you fish in the Puget Sound subarea, NMFS opens the area 7 days per week from August 8 through September 30, 2026. Through June 30, anglers had taken 46,791 lb of a 80,512 lb allocation, leaving 33,721 lb (41.9 percent) available for these additional dates.
- North Coast: Open Aug 8–Sept 30: benefit, medium. If you fish in the Washington North Coast subarea, NMFS opens the area 7 days per week from August 8 through September 30, 2026. Through June 30, anglers had taken 58,194 lb of a 131,149 lb allocation, leaving 72,955 lb (55.6 percent) available for the additional dates.
- South Coast: Open Aug 16–Sept 30: benefit, medium. If you fish in the Washington South Coast subarea, NMFS opens the area 7 days per week from August 16 through September 30, 2026. Through June 30, anglers had taken 38,229 lb of a 65,857 lb allocation, leaving 27,628 lb (42.0 percent) available for these extra dates.
- Columbia River: Open Aug 16–Sept 30: benefit, medium. If you fish in the Columbia River subarea, NMFS opens the area 7 days per week from August 16 through September 30, 2026. Through June 30, anglers had taken 11,743 lb of a 19,299 lb allocation, leaving 7,556 lb (39.2 percent) available for the additional dates.

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## Sources
- [2026-15093 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/07/27/2026-15093/pacific-halibut-fisheries-of-the-west-coast-2026-catch-sharing-plan-inseason-action)
- [2026-15093 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-07-27/pdf/2026-15093.pdf)

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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-15093 (as of 2026-08-03).