Home / Agencies / Commerce / 2026-05252
Final Rule

Fisheries Off West Coast States; Coastal Pelagic Species Fisheries; Biennial Specifications; 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 Specifications for Pacific Mackerel

Agency
Commerce
Document Number
2026-05252
Published
March 18, 2026
Effective Date
April 17, 2026

Abstract

NMFS is implementing annual harvest specifications and management measures for Pacific mackerel in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the West Coast for the fishing year July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, and the fishing year July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027. These specifications include overfishing limits (OFL), allowable biological catch (ABC), annual catch limits (ACL), harvest guidelines (HG), and annual catch targets (ACT) for each respective fishing year. If the fishery attains the ACT for either fishing year, 8,143 metric tons (mt) for 2025-2026 or 9,448 mt for 2026-2027, the directed fishery will close, reserving the 1,000 mt difference between the HG and ACT as a set-aside for incidental landings in other coastal pelagic species (CPS) fisheries and other sources of mortality. The HG is 9,143 mt for 2025-2026 and 10,448 mt for 2026-2027. This rulemaking is made pursuant to the CPS Fishery Management Plan (FMP), and is intended to conserve and manage the Pacific mackerel stock off the U.S. West Coast.

Federal Register Source

This document is published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration. Access the full regulatory text, preamble, and docket comments below.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the 2026-05252 Federal Register document?
Document 2026-05252 is a Final Rule published by the Department of Commerce in the Federal Register on March 18, 2026, with an effective date of April 17, 2026. NMFS is implementing annual harvest specifications and management measures for Pacific mackerel in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the West Coast for the fishing year July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, and the fishing year July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027. These specifications include overfishing limits (OFL), allowable biological catch (ABC), annual catch limits (ACL), harvest guidelines (HG), and annual catch targets (ACT) for each respective fishing year. If the fishery attains the ACT for either fishing year, 8,143 metric tons (mt) for 2025-2026 or 9,448 mt for 2026-2027, the directed fishery will close, reserving the 1,000 mt difference between the HG and ACT as a set-aside for incidental landings in other coastal pelagic species (CPS) fisheries and other sources of mortality. The HG is 9,143 mt for 2025-2026 and 10,448 mt for 2026-2027. This rulemaking is made pursuant to the CPS Fishery Management Plan (FMP), and is intended to conserve and manage the Pacific mackerel stock off the U.S. West Coast. View the original at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/03/18/2026-05252/fisheries-off-west-coast-states-coastal-pelagic-species-fisheries-biennial-specifications-2025-2026.
Is document 2026-05252 an economically significant rule?
No. Document 2026-05252 is not classified as economically significant under Executive Order 12866. Economically significant rules require OIRA review and are estimated to have impacts of $100 million or more per year.

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