Vessels that are not eligible for a black sea bass moratorium permit under §648.4(a)(7), and fishermen subject to the possession limit specified in §648.145(a), may only possess black sea bass from February 1 through February 28, May 15 through December 31, unless otherwise specified in the conservation equivalent measures described in §648.1542(d)(2)or unless this time period is adjusted pursuant to the procedures in §648.142. However, possession of black sea bass harvested from state waters outside of this season is allowed for state-only permitted vessels when transiting Federal waters within the Block Island Sound Transit Area provided they follow the provisions at §648.151 and abide by state regulations.

[84 FR 65705, Nov. 29, 2019]