East Coast summer flounder catches will be cut by more than 26 percent next year in spite of a push by New Jersey to keep the reductions in the 21 percent range.

It could have been worse. The initial proposal announced in July called for a 43 percent reduction.

New Jersey representatives on the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission made motions at a joint meeting Wednesday in New York City to reduce the cutbacks.

Jeff Kaelin, a New Jersey representative on the Mid-Atlantic Council, and Tom Fote, a representative on the ASMFC, moved to impose a much smaller reduction. The ASMFC shot down the motion in a 12-5 vote, with three abstaining, while the Mid-Atlantic Council defeated the motion 8-1.

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