From May 4 to 7 the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) will hold their annual spring meeting at the Westin Crystal City, 1800 Richmond Highway, Arlington, VA. The meeting will be broadcast daily via webinar beginning Monday, May 4 at 9 a.m. and continuing daily until the conclusion of the meeting (expected to be 5 p.m.) on Wednesday, May 6.
For tautog fishermen, take note of the Monday, May 4th meeting of the Tautog Management Board starting at 9 a.m. as fisheries managers look at harvest projections to reach fishing mortality targets in the fishery. As noted in our May edition of The Fisherman, results of the 2025 regional stock assessments update show that tautog were not overfished nor experiencing overfishing in Massachusetts-Rhode Island (MARI) and Long Island Sound (LIS) regions; not overfished but experiencing overfishing in New Jersey-New York Bight (NJ-NYB) region; and overfished and experiencing overfishing in Delaware/Maryland/Virginia (DMV).
Also on Monday, May 4th from 1:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. the Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board meet to discuss Reference Points and Spatial Management in the striped bass fishery, while also reviewing composition of the new striped bass Work Group.
On Tuesday, May 5th from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board will also consider approval of Draft Addendum II for Public Comment in the bunker fishery, while also discussing impacts of changing environmental conditions impacting coastwide bunker populations.
The webinar will allow registrants to listen to board deliberations and view presentations and motions as they occur. To register for the webinar, please go to: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1954560493628461656 (Webinar ID: 165-183-795). You can also access the meeting by phone by calling 415-655-0060, access code 649-369-347. A PIN will be provided to you after joining the webinar.
Each day, the webinar will begin 15 minutes prior to the start of the first meeting so that people can troubleshoot any connectivity or audio issues they may encounter. If you are having issues with the webinar (connecting to or audio related issues), you can contact Chris Jacobs at 703-842-0790.
Find the ASMFC meeting page with agenda and meeting materials at asmfc.org/events/2026-spring-meeting.
