William Tweit, Interim Chairman
David Witherell, Executive Director
SUBJECT: title
Unguided halibut rental boats - Discussion paper
end
STAFF CONTACT: Steve MacLean
ACTION REQUIRED: recommended action
a) Review the discussion paper
b) Decide whether to initiate additional action
body
BACKGROUND:
In December 2017, the Council requested an expansion of a discussion paper, originally requested in June 2017, exploring mechanisms to create a registration for motorized rental boats that are used by unguided anglers to harvest halibut in IPHC regulatory areas 2C and 3A. The Council's request included a purpose and need statement that proposed that differences in harvest regulations between guided and unguided anglers, and the presumed growth of the rental boat segment of the unguided sector, may negatively impact other halibut fishing sectors. This paper provides an overview of existing vessel registration programs, examines patterns in halibut harvest in the unguided, guided, and commercial sectors in recent years, and addresses questions posed by the Council concerning opportunities and challenges to designing and implementing a registration for rental boats in areas 2C and 3A.
Both the State of Alaska and Federal government have vessel registration programs in place. The U.S. Coast Guard documents vessels greater than five net tons. The State of Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles registers all motorized boats used on freshwater or saltwater within three miles of shore. ADF&G also registers all vessels used to provide sport fishing guide services. NMFS requires businesses that offer halibut charter fishing in areas 2C and 3A to obtain and keep a valid Charter Halibut Permit (CHP). There may be incremental changes made to the State of Alaska or NMFS CHP registration programs that may serve the Council's purpose, although any resulting registration would be incomplete.
Total recreational halibut harvest declined in areas 2C and 3A from 2003 to 2016. In area 2...
Click here for full text