CFR

CFR

600.1416—Requirements for exempted state designation based on submission of state license holder data.

(a) A state must annually submit to NMFS, in a format consistent with NMFS guidelines, the name, address and, to the extent available in the state's database, telephone number and date of birth of all persons and for-hire vessels and for-hire vessel operators who are licensed to fish, or who are registered as fishing, in the EEZ, in the tidal waters of the state, or for anadromous species. The Memorandum of Agreement will specify the timetable for a state to compile and submit complete information on the telephone numbers and dates of birth for its license holders/registrants. The waters of the state for which such license-holder data must be submitted will be specified in the Memorandum of Agreement.

(b) A state is eligible to be designated as an exempted state even if its licensing program excludes anglers who are:

(1) Under 16 years of age;

(2) Over age 59 (see § 600.1416(d)(1) );

(3) Customers on licensed for-hire vessels;

(4) Customers on state-licensed fishing piers, provided that the pier license holder provides to the state complete angler contact information or angler effort information for users of the pier;

(5) On active military duty while on furlough; or

(6) Disabled or a disabled Veteran as defined by the state.

(c) Unless the state can demonstrate that a given category of anglers is so small it has no significant probability of biasing estimates of fishing effort if these anglers are not included in a representative sample, a state may not be designated as an exempted state if its licensing program excludes anglers that meet any of the following conditions:

(1) Fishing on a state-licensed private vessel;

(2) Fishing from privately-owned land;

(3) Fishing on a public pier;

(4) Fishing from shore;

(5) Fishing in tidal waters of the state; or

(6) Fishing as an occupant of a beach buggy, the operator of which is licensed or permitted to operate the vehicle on public beaches.

(d) Required enhancements to exempted state license-holder data. An exempted state must submit the following angler identification data by Jan. 1, 2012, or within two years of the effective date of the Memorandum of Agreement, whichever islater, and thereafter in accordance with the Memorandum of Agreement:

(1) Name, address and telephone number of excluded anglers over age 59;

(2) Name, address and telephone number, updated annually, of holders of state lifetime and multi-year licenses;

(3) Name, address and telephone number of state combination license holders who fished in tidal waters in the prior year, or who intend to fish in tidal waters. The Memorandum of Agreement will define the boundaries of the state's tidal waters for this purpose.