la-202609-d1534eab41: Commercial Menhaden Reporting Requirements

Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Wildlife and Fisheries Commission Commercial Menhaden Reporting Requirements(LAC 76:VII.308) The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission do hereby provide notice of their intent to amend the Rule for commercial menhaden reporting requirements (LAC 76:VII.308). The rule modification is intended to remove the requirement for reporting of 15 menhaden fork lengths per set and to provide for non-confidentiality of data reported to the legislature. This change is being proposed as a result of changes to menhaden regulations set forth in Act 444 of the 2026 Regular Session. The secretary of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is authorized to take any and all necessary steps on behalf of the commission to promulgate and effectuate this notice of intent, including but not limited to, the filing of the fiscal and economic impact statement, the filing of the notice of intent, and compiling public comments and submissions for the commission’s review and consideration. In the absence of any further action by the commission following an opportunity to consider all public comments regarding the proposed rule, the secretary is authorized and directed to prepare and transmit a summary report to the legislative oversight committees and promulgate the final Rule. Title 76 WILDLIFE AND FISHERIES Part VII. Fish and Other Aquatic Life Chapter 3.Saltwater Sport and Commercial Fishery §308.Commercial Menhaden Reporting Requirements A.Reporting 1.Companies taking menhaden by vessels equipped with purse seines for the purpose of reduction fishing shall report monthly, beginning in May 2023, commercial menhaden harvest reports. Reports for the previous month shall be due to the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) by the tenth of the following month (the first report shall be due May 10, 2023 for the month of April 2023). 2.Monthly Reporting shall include the following data for each set: a.year, date, set number, vessel, plant, set start time, and set end time; b.location data in degrees, minutes, and seconds with a defined datum determined by global positioning satellite (GPS) navigational instrument reading; c.estimated volume of harvest in 1,000s of fish; d.Reports shall be provided in electronic form to LDWF in an electronic manner as specified by LDWF and containing the elements outlined above in this Section. 3.Beginning February 10, 2024, LDWF shall annually report to the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and the House Committee on Natural Resources and the Environment the commercial harvest from the prior year based upon aggregated data from the monthly reports. B.Definitions Set—for the purposes of this rule, a “set” is defined as when a purse seine is deployed and encircles a school of menhaden, regardless of whether those fish are reduced to possession by transferring to the mother ship or steamer. C.Confidentiality 1.Any data provided to LDWF under the provisions of this Rule shall comply with confidentiality provisions set forth in R.S. 56:325.5(D). AUTHORITY NOTE:Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 56:325.5. HISTORICAL NOTE:Promulgated by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, LR 49:76 (January 2023), amended LR 52: Family Impact Statement In accordance with Act 1183 of 1999, the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries/Wildlife and Fisheries Commission hereby issue its Family Impact Statement in connection with the preceding Notice of Intent. This Notice of Intent will have no impact on the six criteria set out at R.S. 49:972(B). Poverty Impact Statement The proposed rulemaking will have no impact on poverty as described in R.S. 49:973. Small Business Analysis The proposed Rule has no known impact on small businesses as described in R.S. 49:974.4 and R.S. 49:974.5. Provider Impact Statement This proposed Rule has no known impact on providers as described in HCR 170 of 2014. Public Comments Interested persons may submit written comments relative to the proposed Rule to Jason Adriance, Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, P.O. Box 98000, Baton Rouge, LA 70898-9000, or via e-mail to jadriance@wlf.la.gov prior to 3 p.m. on October 26, 2026. Kenneth A. “Andy” Brister Chairman FISCAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACT STATEMENT FOR ADMINISTRATIVE RULES RULE TITLE: Commercial Menhaden Reporting Requirements I.ESTIMATED IMPLEMENTATION COSTS (SAVINGS) TO STATE OR LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS (Summary) The proposed rule change is not anticipated to impact costs or savings for state or local governmental units. The proposed rule change eliminates the requirement to record the length of 15 fish from every take of menhaden harvested commercially in Louisiana. The proposed rule change removes confidentiality protections for data related to Louisiana's commercial menhaden harvests. The removal of the requirement to record fish lengths in every set is intended to reduce the regulatory burden associated with commercial menhaden harvests. The removal of confidentiality protections for commercial menhaden harvests is intended to make Title 76 consistent with Louisiana law that removed the protections as a means to make information public about the menhaden fishery. II.ESTIMATED EFFECT ON REVENUE COLLECTIONS OF STATE OR LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL UNITS (Summary) The proposed rule change is not anticipated to impact revenue collections of the state or local governmental units. III.ESTIMATED COSTS AND/OR ECONOMIC BENEFITS TO DIRECTLY AFFECTED PERSONS, SMALL BUSINESSES, OR NONGOVERNMENTAL GROUPS (Summary) The proposed rule change is anticipated to lower costs of complying with LDWF commercial fisheries data requirements for directly affected persons and businesses. The proposed rule change is anticipated to reduce the time dedicated to making and maintaining records of menhaden harvested commercially in Louisiana. Menhaden harvesting crews completed an average of 15,000 sets for menhaden per year. The proposed rule would eliminate the requirement to measure 15 fish from each set. Assuming that the procedure takes about 10 minutes per set, the removal of the reporting requirement would reduce regulatory compliance effort by approximately 2,500 worker-hours per year. IV.ESTIMATED EFFECT ON COMPETITION AND EMPLOYMENT (Summary) The proposed rule change is not anticipated to impact competition or employment in either the public or private sector. Cara TylerPatrice Thomas UndersecretaryDeputy Fiscal Officer 2609#054Legislative Fiscal Office