(a) General. The quotas limiting the amount of precious coral that may be taken in any precious coral permit area during the fishing year are listed in §665.167(d). Only live coral is counted toward the quota. The accounting period for all quotas begins July 1, 1983.

(b) Conditional bed closure. A conditional bed will be closed to all nonselective coral harvesting after the quota for one species of coral has been taken.

(c) Reserves and reserve release. The quotas for exploratory area X-P-AS will be held in reserve for harvest by vessels of the United States in the following manner:

(1) At the start of the fishing year, the reserve for the American Samoa exploratory area will equal the quota minus the estimated domestic annual harvest for that year.

(2) As soon as practicable after December 31 each year, the Regional Administrator will determine the amount harvested by vessels of the United States between July 1 and December 31 of the year that just ended on December 31.

(3) NMFS will release to TALFF an amount of precious coral for each exploratory area equal to the quota minus two times the amount harvested by vessels of the United States in that July 1-December 31 period.

(4) NMFS will publish in the Federal Register a notification of the Regional Administrator's determination and a summary of the information on which it is based as soon as practicable after the determination is made.

(d) Exploratory areas. The American Samoa exploratory permit area X-P-AS has an annual quota of 1,000 kg for all American Samoa precious coral ECS combined with the exception of black corals.

[75 FR 2205, Jan. 14, 2010, as amended at 84 FR 2771, Feb. 8, 2019]