Caribbean Fishery Management Council

Council (CFMC) is one of eight regional fishery management councils, established under PL 94-265 (approved on April 13, 1976), now known as the Magnuson-Stevens Act (the Act) as amended in 1996 and 2007 also called Sustainable Fisheries Act, for the conservation and orderly utilization of the fishery resources of the United States of America. The CFMC includes the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (PR) and the United States Virgin Islands (USVI). It has ten members, seven with vote and three with voice but no vote. Four of the voting members are appointed by the US Secretary of Commerce upon recommendations of the Governors of PR and the USVI. The other voting members are directly designated by the Act: the principal officials from PR and USVI with marine fishery management responsibility, and the Regional Administrator for the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Southeast Regional Office (SERO). The three non-voting members are: the Director of the Southeast (Atlanta) Region of the Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Commander of the Seventh (Miami) District of the US Coast Guard (USCG), and a representative from the US Department of State (USDS). The CFMC has its headquarters in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is unique in being the only council that does not include one of the fifty states of the Union and in sharing fish stocks with many Caribbean nations. The Caribbean Fishery Management Council is responsible for the creation of management plans for fishery resources (FMPs) in the US Caribbean Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) off PR and the USVI. FMPs are submitted to the US Secretary of Commerce for approval and implementation in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Once implemented, local Governments may adopt compatible legislation for the conservation of the fishery resources within local waters. To open some documents in this site you will need Adobe Reader, Download Free Adobe Reader XI software.