Wednesday, April 3, 2024

Gulf Council to Meet in Gulf Shores April 8-11

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) will meet at The Lodge at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, Alabama from April 8 – 11, 2024. During this meeting the Council plans to select the 2023 Law Enforcement Officer/Team of the Year. The Council will also make preliminary appointments to the Reef Fish, Shrimp, and Ad Hoc Snapper/Grouper-Tilefish Advisory Panels that will then be subject to a fishery violation background check before being appointed during the June Council meeting.


During this meeting, the Council also plans to discuss shrimp effort and modifications to the shrimp vessel position data collection program. It will also discuss the Southeast Data and Review (SEDAR) schedule and hear a presentation on fisheries economic data collection methods. The Council expects a 2024 update on gag and red grouper recreational season projections and plans to work on documents that consider mid-water snapper and shallow-water grouper management issues. The Council will also work on modifications to the commercial Individual Fishing Quota program and discuss Spanish mackerel catch limits and King mackerel management issues.


The meeting will convene at 8:00 AM, CDT each day. Full Council will convene for a closed session on April 8th at 4:15 PM, CDT and again for open session at 10:15 AM, CDT on April 10, 2024. Public Comment will be held from 1:30 – 5:00 PM, CDT on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. The Council welcomes public comment from both in-person and virtual participants. Instructions on how to provide comment will be located on the meetings materials webpage as soon as it’s available.


Full Committee and Council Agendas and meeting materials will be posted as they become available on the Council Meetings webpage.