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Pacific Council scopes ‘SpecsFlex’: council directs staff to analyze carryover, phase‑in, green light and off‑the‑top accounting
Summary
The Pacific Fishery Management Council unanimously asked staff on June 15 to scope a ‘SpecsFlex’ package to add tools that could smooth abrupt assessment‑driven reductions in harvest advice, prioritizing ABC carryover, phase‑in rules, a mid‑biennium change mechanism, off‑the‑top accounting changes and a possible shift to annual specifications.
The Pacific Fishery Management Council on June 15 voted unanimously to scope a harvest‑specification flexibility project (’SpecsFlex’) intended to give councils and fishery participants more ways to respond when assessments or scientific updates sharply change harvest advice.
Immediate action: the council adopted a motion directing staff to “develop a concise problem statement” grounded in the GAP’s fleet‑impact discussion and to scope an analysis that includes, in priority order, (1) ABC carryover of unused ACLs, (2) a phase‑in ABC control rule, (3) a mid‑biennium harvest specification change framework (a “green light”), (4) off‑the‑top accounting changes, and (5) consideration of annual harvest specifications. The motion also asks staff to open a dialogue with the SSC on approaches for assessing overfishing risk over multiyear periods to support carryover and pooled‑risk approaches.
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