NOAA announced a set of regional priorities on July 2 aimed at cutting regulatory burdens on domestic fishing fleets and boosting seafood production, part of the agency's response to a presidential executive order.
The announcement follows an August 2025 request for public comment in which NOAA Fisheries sought input from stakeholders, including the eight regional fishery management councils, on ways to stabilize markets, improve access and prevent closures. The agency said it received more than 700 comments from individuals and organizations, along with detailed action plans submitted by each council.
"These regional priorities are a critical step in our efforts to fulfill the President's vision of making the United States the world's dominant seafood leader," said NOAA Administrator Neil Jacobs said in a statement. "We look forward to partnering with the councils to advance seafood competitiveness and support our American fishermen."
The Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness executive order was issued in April 2025 and directs federal agencies to reduce regulatory barriers facing U.S. commercial fishermen amid a decline in domestic seafood landings since 2019.
NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler outlined the priorities in a statement, saying input from council meetings pointed to a consistent theme. "Fishermen just want to fish, and they are asking for our support in overcoming the barriers preventing them from doing so," he said.
Piñeiro Soler said the agency received input from 787 individuals and organizations in addition to the council action plans, and that the resulting priorities were selected because they would "reduce burdens on domestic fishing, increase production, stabilize markets, improve access, and enhance economic profitability."
In New England, NOAA said priorities include alleviating industry-funded monitoring burdens, modernizing fleet capacity, and re-evaluating static area closures. Specific actions listed include implementing rotational access for the Northern Edge scallop fishery, implementing scallop permit stacking, rescinding industry-funded monitoring requirements, and considering reopening the Great South Channel habitat management area to surfclam operations. NOAA also said it would deprioritize advancing requirements for ropeless gear.
In the Mid-Atlantic, priorities focus on modernizing fleet capacity and improving quota distribution, including evaluating vessel baseline restrictions jointly with the New England council and considering joint management of squid, mackerel, and butterfish.
In the South Atlantic, NOAA said it will prioritize improving access and flexibility and advancing state-led data partnerships, including revising Snapper Grouper permit policies under Amendment 60, supporting state agency-led exempted fishing permits for red snapper, and addressing shark and dolphin depredation.
In the Caribbean, priorities include reviewing the effectiveness of marine protected areas — NOAA cited Tourmaline Bank and Abrir La Sierra as examples — shifting spiny lobster and queen conch management to the territories, and revising accountability measures for pelagic stocks and spiny lobster.
In the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, renamed under the Trump administration as the Gulf of America, NOAA said it would defend the domestic shrimp fleet against trade imbalances and optimize Individual Fishing Quota accessibility, including refining IFQ participation requirements under Amendments 59A and 59B and prioritizing rulemaking to extend provisions of the DESCEND Act.
In the Pacific, NOAA will review trawl observer redundancies and reconsider Pacific sardine stock definitions and science.
In the North Pacific, priorities include reviewing Steller sea lion closure boundaries, eliminating a 2 percent IFQ deduction for bled sablefish, and pursuing rulemaking on small sablefish voluntary release and maximum retainable amount calculations.
In the Western Pacific, NOAA said it would act to enable commercial fishing previously restricted by marine monument closures, consistent with the Endangered Species Act. Listed actions include removing the shallow-set longline leatherback hard cap and two-turtle trip limit, removing the swordfish retention limit in the deep-set longline fishery, and removing the American Samoa longline turtle mitigation measure.
For Highly Migratory Species, NOAA said it would pursue international quota increases and maximize target catch retention, including reviewing weak hook requirements in the Gulf and retention rules for dead bluefin tuna under 73 inches, and reconsidering upgrading restrictions for the swordfish handgear limited access permit.
Piñeiro Soler said the agency would continue working with councils to advance the priorities, some of which he said "may implicate other statutory requirements." He said NOAA also encouraged councils to expand use of Exempted Fishing Permits to test gear innovations and explore new fishing opportunities, and to assess current Fishery Management Plans for species that "no longer require conservation and management."
