There is still a chance for a proper American Red Snapper Season this year for the South Atlantic states. The states of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina have all applied for new, revised exempted fishing permits (EFPs) to pilot state data collection and management strategies for American red snapper. After a federal court blocked the opening of the recreational red snapper season in South Atlantic federal waters earlier this year on the eve of the originally planned Atlantic Red Snapper season. The new Red Snapper EFP applications from Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina would allow for recreational harvest of red snapper in state and Federal waters during October, with additional fishing days possibly being allowed in December if the state’s harvest limit has not been met.
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The new EFP applications addresses the court’s decisions on the prior EFPs while still continuing the goal of improving data on recreational fishing efforts, catches, and discards of red snapper in the South Atlantic. That way, the long-term management of snapper by the South Atlantic States will be made using proper data about the stocks. The new EFPs will also evaluate mandatory electronic reporting programs set in place for monitoring catches. This will provide recreational anglers on both privately owned boats and for-hire anglers more snapper fishing opportunities, while quantifying data on angler participation, angler behavior, and biological information of the ARS fishery.
As of now, NOAA is accepting public comment on the revised EFPs through August 25. Anglers can help get the new revised EFP be approved by telling NOAA to do so here directly through NOAA or here through the American Sportfishing Association with their easy-to-use form.
