Amendment 17B to the Fishery Management Plan for the Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. Waters

First, the amendment would define the aggregate maximum sustainable yield and aggregate optimum yield for penaeid shrimp. Because federal shrimp permits are limited access, a passive decrease in the number of permits occurs when permit holders fail to timely renew. Therefore, the amendment would also specify a threshold number of federal shrimp permits based on the number of active permits that is necessary to achieve the aggregate optimum yield on a continuing basis and specify actions to be taken both prior to and when that threshold number is reached. Additionally, the amendment would allow non-federally permitted shrimping vessels to transit through federal waters while not actively shrimping.