Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Northeast Multispecies Fishery; Common Pool, Accountability Measures, and Regular B Days at Sea Measures Under Regional Administrator Authority for Fishing Year 2026
Key claim: NOAA implements 2026 fishing year measures for the Northeast multispecies fishery by allocating zero trips to the Closed Area II Yellowtail Flounder/Haddock SAP and closing the Regular B Days-at-Sea Program to prevent quota overages.
Abstract
(Rule · Commerce Department, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) This action implements measures for the Northeast multispecies fishery under Regional Administrator authority for the 2026 fishing year. This action is necessary to ensure that the Northeast multispecies fishery may achieve the optimum yield for the relevant stocks, while controlling catch to help prevent in-season closures or quota overages. These measures are the allocation of zero trips into the Closed Area II Yellowtail Flounder/Haddock Special Access Program (SAP) for common pool vessels to target yellowtail flounder and the closure of the Regular B Days-at-Sea (DAS) Program.
Why this matters
Annual access and accountability measures in the Northeast multispecies fishery directly determine which trips and quota pools commercial groundfish vessels can use, shaping fishing effort, landings volume, and the supply of species like haddock and yellowtail flounder into regional seafood markets. Closing the Regular B DAS program and zeroing out SAP trips constrains fleet flexibility to avoid overages on constraining stocks, with downstream effects on vessel revenue and consumer prices for New England groundfish.