FB12-092
Reminders Regarding the Individual Fishing Quota
Program in the Gulf of Mexico
End of Year Landing Transactions
NOAA Fisheries will shut down the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) online system for maintenance beginning 6 p.m. EST, December 31, 2012, through 2 p.m. EST January 1, 2013. Dealers and IFQ fishermen are reminded that all electronic transactions for the 2012 fishing year must be completed before this time. Online IFQ functions will resume at 2 p.m. EST on January 1, 2013. You may still submit an advanced notice of landing during the 20-hour maintenance window by using your vessel's vessel monitoring system or by calling IFQ Customer Service (866) 425-7627 (Option 1), however, only landing transactions completed by 6 p.m. EST will count against your 2012 quota allocation.
Quotas for 2013 Fishing Year
Quotas for IFQ species are listed below.
IFQ Share Category
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Quota (lbs gw)
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Deep Water Grouper
|
1,118,000
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Gag Grouper
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708,000
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Other Shallow Water Grouper
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518,000
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Red Grouper
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5,530,000
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Red Snapper
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3,712,613
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Tilefish
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582,000
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Note: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will review updated red snapper projections in February 2013, which may result in a mid-year increase in the red snapper quota. Additionally, a red snapper stock assessment will be completed in mid-2013. Based on the results of the assessment, additional quota changes may occur in 2013.
Gag and Red Grouper Multiuse Allocation
In March 2012, new regulations established formulas for setting gag and red grouper IFQ multi-use allocations. In 2013, gag multiuse allocation will be set at 70% while red grouper multiuse allocation will remain at 0% because gag is overfished and rebuilding. Gag multi-use allocation may be used to possess, land, or sell either gag or red grouper under certain conditions. Gag multi-use allocation may be used to possess, land, or sell gag only after an IFQ account holder's gag allocation has been landed and sold, or transferred; and to possess, land, or sell red grouper, only after both red grouper and red grouper multi-use allocation have been landed and sold, or transferred.
Price Reporting Changes
Share, allocation, and ex-vessel price data are used to evaluate the economic performance of the IFQ program. Under-reporting prices devalue the fishery. Based on feedback from the industry, beginning on January 1, 2013, share and allocation pages will have new drop-down menus for reporting price information in an effort to improve the collection of reported prices. Account holders making a transfer will be able to indicate the type of transfer (e.g., transfers to a related account, barter/trade, package deal, etc.) which will allow for better analysis and evaluation of the program.
Transfer 2013 Allocation to Your Vessel Account after January 1
On January 1, allocation will be issued to your shareholder account, not your vessel account.To harvest this allocation, you must transfer sufficient allocation to your vessel account prior to your landing notification.
To Transfer Allocation to your vessel, log in to your IFQ account. On the menu bar select Allocation thenselect Transfer Allocation (Red Snapper) or Transfer Allocation (Grouper-Tilefish) and follow the instructions.
- Step 1: Select "From My Shareholder Account To My Vessel Account" from the drop-down menu.
- Step 2: Select your vessel account; you must click the vessel name to highlight it in blue. The numbers to the right of your vessel's name indicate the allocation currently held in the vessel account by share category.
- Step 3: In the "Transfer Pounds (gutted weight)" column type in the number of pounds of allocation you would like to transfer to your vessel account.
- To complete an allocation transfer press Submit in the lower left corner of the screen. You will receive a pop-up asking you to confirm the transfer.
Accept Share Transfers
Remember that a share transfer is a two step process requiring shares to be transferred by the transferor, and then accepted by the transferee. The transferee must log into their shareholder account, select the "Receive Transferred Shares" tab, and then accept the share transfer. Share transfers must be complete prior to December 31, 2012, to receive allocation associated with the shares in 2013. To receive transferred shares, go to the menu bar select Shares then select Receive Transferred Shares and follow the instructions.
IFQ Accounts and Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Permits
An IFQ account must be related to a Gulf of Mexico reef fish permit in order to harvest IFQ species. The same name(s) must be on both the IFQ account and Gulf of Mexico reef fish permit. Any changes to the name(s) on a permit
(e.g., adding or removing a spouse or partner) will separate the permit from the IFQ account. A new IFQ account must then be established based on the names on the permit. Please allow adequate time to establish an IFQ account, as it may take a few days for the new account UserID and PIN to be mailed to you. For additional information about IFQ accounts and Gulf reef fish permits, please review the Frequently Asked Questions on the IFQ Homepage.
Cost Recovery Fees
IFQ fishers are charged a cost recovery fee to recover a portion of the costs required to administer, manage, and enforce the IFQ program. The current cost recovery fee is 3% of the ex-vessel value of the landed fish before any deductions are made for the transferred (leased) allocation and goods and services (e.g., bait, ice, fuel, repairs, machinery replacement, etc.). At the end of each calendar quarter, the dealer is responsible for submitting the cost recovery fee to NOAA Fisheries via the online system. The dealer has 30 days to submit the cost recovery fee. Dealer accounts will be suspended after 30 days pending payment of applicable fees. The payment schedule is listed below so that dealers may mark their calendars as a reminder.
Quarter
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CRF available
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CRF due on or before
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1st
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April 1
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May 1
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2nd
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July 1
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July 31
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3rd
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October 1
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October 31
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4th
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January 1
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January 31
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Please Send Your Feedback
As the online system continues to change, please provide your suggested changes and additions by e-mail SER-IFQ.Support@noaa.gov, or call IFQ Support at 1-866-425-7627 (Option 2) Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays. We will review the suggested changes and if possible, incorporate your suggestions into the program.
This bulletin provides only a summary of the information regarding the existing regulations. Any discrepancies between this bulletin and the regulations as published in the Federal Register will be resolved in favor of the Federal Register.
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