Federal Register #2026-20330

NOAA Rule Reclassifies Rainbow Runner Under Puerto Rico Fishery Management Plan

NOAA issued a final rule changing how rainbow runner is managed under the Puerto Rico Fishery Management Plan. - Government buyer and responsible organizations: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), through the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The Caribbean Fishery Management Council prepared and submitted the amendment. - Regulatory change: Amendment 4 reclassifies rainbow runner from a reef fish to a pelagic fish and applies pelagic-fish accountability measures. - Catch limits and allocations: Commercial and recreational annual catch limits remain 913 lb and 8,091 lb, respectively. Existing allocations remain 10.14% commercial and 89.86% recreational. The total annual catch limit is removed from the regulations. - Other effects: Rainbow runner is no longer subject to certain reef-fish-specific restrictions, including seasonal closures, anchoring restrictions, and aggregate recreational bag and possession limits. - Procurement relevance: This is a regulatory action, not a purchase; no products, services, quantities, vendors, or OEMs are identified.

Description

NMFS issues regulations implementing Amendment 4 to the Puerto Rico Fishery Management Plan, prepared and submitted by the Caribbean Fishery Management Council. The rule reclassifies rainbow runner from a reef fish to a pelagic fish and establishes sector annual catch targets and accountability measures, while retaining existing sector-specific annual catch limits. It also removes certain reef fish-specific restrictions that applied to rainbow runner. The final rule is effective October 5, 2026.

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