Date Adopted: January 9, 2004.

     Purpose: Amend commercial fishing rules.

     Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 220-44-05000Z; and amending WAC 220-44-050.

     Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 77.12.047.

     Under RCW 34.05.350 the agency for good cause finds that immediate adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule is necessary for the preservation of the public health, safety, or general welfare, and that observing the time requirements of notice and opportunity to comment upon adoption of a permanent rule would be contrary to the public interest.

     Reasons for this Finding: These rules were adopted by the Pacific Fisheries Management Council and provide harvest of available stocks of bottom fish, while reserving brood stock for future fisheries. There is insufficient time to promulgate permanent rules.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 1.

     Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0;      Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.

     Effective Date of Rule: Immediately.

January 9, 2004

J. P. Koenings

Director

     (1) It is unlawful to possess, transport through the waters of the state, or land into any Washington port bottom fish taken from Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A-1, 59A-2, 60A-1, 60A-2, 61, 62, or 63 in excess of the amounts or less than the minimum sizes, or in violation of any gear, handling or landing requirement, established by the Pacific Fisheries Management Council and published in the Federal Register, Volume 69, No. 5, published January 8, 2004. Therefore, persons must consult the federal regulations, which are incorporated by reference and made a part of Chapter 220-44 WAC. Where rules refer to the fishery management area, that area is extended to include Washington State waters coterminous with the Exclusive Economic Zone. A copy of the federal rules may be obtained by contacting Evan Jacoby at (360) 902-2930.

     (a) Effective immediately until further notice, it is unlawful to possess, transport through the waters of the state, or land into any Washington port, walleye pollock taken with trawl gear from Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A-1, 59A-2, 60A-1, 60A-2, 61, 62, or 63, except by trawl vessels participating in the directed Pacific whiting fishery and the directed coastal groundfish fishery.

     (b) Effective immediately until further notice, it is unlawful for trawl vessels participating in the directed Pacific whiting and/or the directed coastal groundfish fishery to land incidental catches of walleye pollock greater than forty percent of their total landing by weight, not to exceed 10,000 pounds.

     (2) At the time of landing of coastal bottom fish into a Washington port, the fish buyer receiving the fish is required to clearly mark on the fish receiving ticket, in the space reserved for dealer's use, all legally defined trawl gear aboard the vessel at the time of delivery. The three trawl gear types are: midwater trawl, roller trawl and small foot rope trawl (foot rope less than eight inches in diameter). The notation of the gear type(s) aboard the vessel is required prior to the signing of the fish receiving ticket by the vessel representative.

     (3) Vessels engaged in chartered research for National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) may land and sell bottomfish caught during that research without the catch being counted toward any trip or cumulative limit for the participating vessel. Vessels that have been compensated for research work by NMFS with an Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) to land fish as payment for such research may land and sell fish authorized under the EFP without the catch being counted toward any trip or cumulative limit for the participating vessel. Any bottomfish landed during authorized NMFS research or under the authority of a compensating EFP for past chartered research work must be reported on a separate fish receiving ticket and not included on any fish receiving ticket reporting bottomfish landed as part of any trip or cumulative limit. Bottomfish landed under the authority of NMFS research work or an EFP compensating research with fish must be clearly marked "NMFS Compensation Trip" on the fish receiving ticket in the space reserved for dealer's use. The NMFS scientist in charge must sign the fish receiving ticket in the area reserved for dealer's use if any bottomfish are landed during authorized NMFS research. If the fish are landed under the authority of an EFP as payment for research work, the EFP number must be listed in the dealer's use space.

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     The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed:

WAC 220-44-05000Z

Coastal bottomfish catch limits. (03-297)