Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority Act

Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority Act

(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to direct the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to establish a Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority (GSRSMA) that consists of the principal fisheries manager of each of the five Gulf of Mexico coastal states: Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. The GSRSMA must:

• establish a deadline for each Gulf coastal state to submit to the GSRSMA a fishery management plan for the long-term sustainability of Gulf of Mexico red snapper,
• review those plans and approve them if they meet the requirements of this bill,
• provide standards for each Gulf coastal state to use in developing fishery management measures to sustainably manage the Gulf of Mexico red snapper in the coastal waters adjacent to the state, and
• provide an opportunity for public participation before approving a plan.

For three years, the NMFS must continue to manage the commercial sector of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery in coordination with the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council.

The bill establishes a plan certification process. After the three-year period and once a plan is certified, the NMFS must transfer management of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper to the GSRSMA. Each Gulf coastal state must then implement and enforce approved plans for the fishery in the coastal waters adjacent to it.

If the Gulf of Mexico red snapper in the coastal waters adjacent to a Gulf coastal state is experiencing overfishing or is subject to a rebuilding plan, the state must certify to the GSRSMA that it has implemented the necessary measures to end overfishing or rebuild the fishery and has implemented a harvest monitoring program. A process is established for closing a red snapper fishery within the waters adjacent to the state territorial waters of the Gulf coastal state if those measures have not been implemented.