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.

Why it matters: fisheries managers and industry said recent assessment outcomes and changes in harvest advice have produced sharp, destabilizing reductions in available quota for certain sinking or “choke” species (for example, canary rockfish and short‑spine thornyhead in some areas). Those reductions can constrain entire target fisheries and create economic hardship for processors, harvesters and coastal communities. The requested measures could preserve conservation standards while increasing short‑term access and smoothing abrupt changes.

Advisory body input: staff, the GAP and GMT presented analyses and examples. The GAP recommended the five items above in that order, arguing carryover and phase‑in offer the fastest, most broadly beneficial relief. The GMT supported further development of mid‑biennium changes, phase‑in, carryover and off‑the‑top accounting and emphasized a prescriptive framework would permit faster implementation.

Scientific context and concerns: SSC members and staff discussed the ABC control‑rule framework (p‑star and sigma) that underpins ABCs. SSC and science presenters cautioned that any change to precautionary parameters must be analyzed for long‑term risk. The science discussion also covered “time‑varying sigma” (an age‑of‑assessment uncertainty penalty) and how multiple precautionary buffers can compound; staff and the GAP asked the SSC to explore multiyear risk approaches and the effect of time‑varying sigma on yield.

Public comment: charter operators, processors and trawl representatives supported SpecsFlex. Speakers said that modest, timely increases in available ACLs (for example, ABC adjustments or carryover) would have direct economic benefit and reduce fleet instability. Multiple speakers urged the council to move quickly.

Next steps: staff will draft a concise problem statement and scope the five priority items; the motion also directed staff to begin outreach with the SSC to evaluate multiyear risk approaches. The council explicitly flagged that front‑loading prescriptive frameworks (clear if‑then criteria) will expedite implementation and reduce repeated ad‑hoc workload.

Quote from the motion: Council member Asia Shumalo moved the scoping directive, saying the purpose is “to facilitate ABC carryover and similar ideas for pooling the risk created by the variability and catch experience within many fishery sectors.” The motion passed unanimously.

Why the council chose this route: advisory reports and public comments converged on the need for predictable, rapid options to translate new scientific information into management without causing the large, immediate reductions that have disrupted harvest opportunities.