Red Grouper Reallocation
How Did We Get Here?
Amendment 53 to the Reef Fish Fishery Management Plan
October 2019
The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Gulf Council) receives a presentation from NOAA Fisheries on the Red Grouper Stock Assessment (SEDAR 61), which incorporates recreational landings from the new survey, Marine Recreational Information Program - Fishing Effort Survey (FES). The stock assessment shows red grouper populations at historic lows and that the recreational sector caught more fish than previously thought.
NOAA uses this new survey to rewrite history and claim that recreational landings back in time were also larger than assumed, and therefore the sector allocations between the commercial and recreational sectors are wrong. NOAA spearheads the start of Amendment 53 to the Reef Fish Fishery Management Plan, which would reallocate red grouper away from the commercial sector to the recreational sector based on MRIP-FES.
January 2020
The Gulf Council receives a presentation from NOAA showing that red grouper discards by the recreational sector are millions of pounds more per year than the commercial sector..
June 2020
A first draft of Amendment 53 is presented to the Gulf Council. In every alternative in which the allocation shifts in favor of the recreational sector, the overfishing limit has to be reduced because of how the recreational sector fishes and discards red grouper.
January 2021
The Gulf Council selects Alternative 3 as the preferred, which is the largest shift in allocation of the options presented.
April 2021
Analysis for Amendment 53 shows that the overfishing limits must be decreased the higher the recreational sector allocation percentage because "total landings have to be constrained more to account for the greater dead discards from recreational red grouper fishing."
Change in commercial quotas based on Amendment 53 preferred alternative.
June 2021
Despite the unanimous opposition to reallocation by commercial fishermen, the Gulf Council took Final Action on Amendment 53 (Red Grouper Recalibration and Reallocation). If implemented by the Secretary of Commerce, this Amendment would reduce the commercial quota share starting in 2022 from 76% to 59.3%.
August 2021
Members of the Gulf Council who opposed Amendment 53 file a Minority Report with Appendices, notifying the Secretary of Commerce of their disagreement with the Gulf Council's decision.
January 2022
On January 1, NOAA Fisheries holds back 600,000 pounds of red grouper allocation to commercial fishermen in anticipation of the quota reduction from Amendment 53.
The Proposed Rule for Amendment 53 publishes in the Federal Register on January 18 with a thirty day comment period.
March 2022
NOAA sends a letter to the Chair of the Gulf Council, notifying the Council that NOAA Fisheries has approved Amendment 53.
Commercial fishermen at public comment meeting in Ft. Myers, FL.
February 2022
Public comment period closes for proposed rule and 98% of comments are opposed to Amendment 53.
March 2022
NOAA sends a letter to the Chair of the Gulf Council, notifying the Council that NOAA Fisheries has approved Amendment 53.
May 2022
On May 2, NOAA publishes the Final Rule for Amendment 53, making the reallocation from commercial fishermen to the recreational sector law.
On May 7, the Shareholders' Alliance joins lawsuit with Southern Offshore Fishermen's Association and A.P. Bell to legally challenge Amendment 53.
Summary of public comments for Amendment 43 Proposed Rule
How Can you Help?
Donate to the Red Grouper Defense Fund
Fighting this action will be costly, and we need help. Whether you're a commercial fishermen or someone who cares about the health of the red grouper population, please contribute to the red grouper defense fund so we can continue to fight this action in court.
Mail a check
If you would rather donate with a check instead of PayPal, you can do so.
Make checks payable to: Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders' Alliance
1902 Wharf Road
Galveston, TX 77550
Memo: Red Grouper Litigation
Become a Member of the Shareholders' Alliance
Our organization is proud to fight for commercial fishermen, and we can't do so without your support. With a robust membership base, we can continue to work for you and help protect fishermen's livelihoods.
Members also have the added benefit of regular newsletters with detailed up-to-date information on red grouper reallocation and other regional and national decisions that impact the Gulf.
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Additional Information
2021 Sector Allocations
This graphic is from the Gulf Council and shows the current allocation splits for red grouper and other species in the Gulf of Mexico.
Discards by Recreational Sector
NOAA's own data shows that recreational fishermen discard between two million and seven million fish per year. This will only get worse with red grouper reallocation.