102 Establishing a Community Quota Entity Program in Area 4B
Purpose and Need
The Gulf of Alaska (GOA) Community Quota Entity (CQE) Program was implemented in 2004, to provide commercial harvest opportunities for small, remote, coastal communities that lacked access to the halibut and sablefish fishery resource. While many small, fishery dependent, coastal communities in the BSAI were already associated with fishing opportunity through the Community Development Quota (CDQ) Program, Amendment 102 identified a similar need for residents in the community of Adak. Based on a proposal submitted by the Adak Community Development Corporation (ACDC), the Council developed a CQE program for halibut in IPHC regulatory Area 4B and for sablefish in the Aleutian Islands. Similar to the GOA CQE Program, this program was created to allow eligible communities establish a non-profit entity to purchase catcher vessel quota shares and lease them to community members. The Council sought to develop a program modeled after the GOA CQE program that would provide sustained participation for rural residents, allow for entry-level opportunities for fishers residing in fishery dependent communities, while maintaining the goals of the halibut and sablefish IFQ program.
Analysis
An 83-page RIR was prepared for the amendment analyzing the economic impacts of developing a CQE in the BSAI halibut and sablefish IFQ program. Two alternatives were considered: status quo and the preferred alternative of establishing a CQE program in Area 4B. Additionally, four options for use caps for individual communities and four options for cumulative community use caps were considered. For both, the four options represented two halibut and two sablefish options. The preferred option would allow for the CQE to utilize 15% of the Area 4B halibut and AI sablefish QS pools as a cap for individual communities, and the same for cumulative community use caps. The RIR analysis determined that the development of a CQE would not only directly benefit fishers participating in the program, but would have positive externalities as well on the communities and secondary service providers. Community participation in the halibut and sablefish fisheries increases the potential for participants to utilize Adak processors, which in turn would benefit local businesses and reinvigorate the local economy. A second RIR was prepared under Alternative 102 to allow IFQ derived from D share halibut QS to be fished on Category C vessels in Area 4B. This separate analysis was joined with the establishment of a CDQ Program in 4B in the proposed rule.
Regulation Summary
Amendment 102 amended the regulations for the halibut and sablefish IFQ Program and the CQE Program. This amendment grants Aleutian Island communities the ability to establish a non-profit organization as a CQE to purchase halibut catcher vessel quota share in Area 4B and sablefish quota share in the Aleutian Islands. Eligibility is determined by seven factors. The community must be: 1) located within the Aleutian Islands, 2) not eligible for a western Alaska Community Development Quota Program, 3) have a population greater than 20 and less than 1,500 people, 4) have direct access to saltwater, 5) lack direct road access to communities of 1,500 people or more, 6) have historic documentation of participation in the halibut and sablefish fisheries, and 7) be specifically designated on a list in Federal regulation. A CQE representing a qualified community or communities can hold no more than 15% of the AI sablefish quota share, and all CQEs collectively can hold no more than 15% of the AI sablefish quota share pool.
Results
This action provides additional fishing opportunities for residents of fishery dependent communities and the ability to sustain participation in halibut and sablefish IFQ fisheries. Given the prevalence of fishery dependent communities in the Aleutian Islands already associated with the CDQ Program, Adak has been the only eligible non-CDQ community located in Area 4B. Since ACDC was the recipient of an exclusive access to a percent of the Western Aleutian Islands golden king crab TAC, it has been successful in financing the acquisition of some Area 4B halibut QS and some AI sablefish QS (as of 3/30/2016).