Back on April 13, NOAA Fisheries released their official National Saltwater Recreational Fisheries Policy for 2026. In it, the federal agency pledged its commitment to “addressing new and emerging priorities and protecting the vibrant tourism and recreation industries that depend on healthy coastal ecosystems for the benefit of the nation.” As part of that federal document’s Guiding Principles, NOAA Fisheries also promised to “Improve public awareness of recreational opportunities and regulations through effective education, outreach, and compliance assistance.”
Yet the very next day, April 14, the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC) warned NOAA Fisheries of the consequences for the 2026 recreational black sea bass and summer flounder fisheries due to a delay in the federal rulemaking process for the Recreational Measures Setting Process Framework at NOAA Fisheries. In their official letter to U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and NOAA Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler, the council expressed “serious concern that the delay threatens the implementation of the 2026 recreational management measures (bag, size, and season limits) for black sea bass and summer flounder.”
According to MAFMC, without the necessary federal framework in place, NOAA Fisheries has indicated how it intends on enforcing “non-preferred coastwide measures” instead of the state-tailored measures for fluke and sea bass. In other words, when New Jersey’s summer flounder season opens on May 4th, some boaters will be fishing on the state-approved three fluke at 18 inches (three at 17 inches on the New Jersey side of Delaware Bay); for many for-hire captains who possess the federal permit for carrying passengers out to federal waters to fish for fluke, that might not be the case. Those “non-preferred coastwide measures” referenced above are three fluke at 18-1/2 inches when fishing in federal waters, which is what federally permitted for-hire captains must abide by.
In yet another letter to the Fed dated April 17, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) Acting Commissioner, Ed Potosnak, added “Failure to pass the Framework and 2026 recreational measures before the recreational seasons begin in May will result in significant lost fishing opportunity.” He went on to add, “confusion and frustration over different regulations in state and federal waters will lead to unprecedented compliance concerns for these fisheries in New Jersey and throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.”
“I urge you to take the necessary actions that will ensure consistency in regulations between federal and state waters before fishing begins in May,” Potosnak wrote in his letter to NOAA Fisheries, adding “Anything less is a disservice to our recreational angling community.” Kudos to Mr. Potosnak; not yet officially confirmed by the state senate as NJDEP commissioner, but already wading into the federal fisheries debate on behalf of New Jersey anglers!
Private anglers in the Garden State, and those for-hire captains without the federal permit required to take passengers fluke and sea bass fishing beyond 3 miles have nothing to worry about this week, so long as you’re fishing inshore state waters. Federally permitted for-hire captains on the other hand – since they must follow stricter federal guidelines even when fishing in state waters – are left to suffer that “confusion and frustration” referenced by Potosnak.
Things get even more concerning with black sea bass. Delaware’s sea bass fishery opens May 1 with a 12-1/2-inch size limit and 15 fish bag, while New Jersey reopens May 15 with a 12-1/2-inch size limit and 10 fish bag. Theoretically speaking – or perhaps legally – if this federal framework isn’t approved, black sea bass regulations in federal waters under “non-preferred coastwide measures” revert to five sea bass at a 15-inch minimum size starting May 15.
So, where do we stand with federal fluke and sea bass regulations for this season? Your guess is as good as mine; but you won’t find any answers in NOAA’s National Saltwater Recreational Fisheries Policy, or the so-called “swamp” from which it came.
Editor’s Note: On the morning of April 28, 2026, the federal framework adjustment described above – Document# 2026-08205 (91 FR 22766) – was finally posted to the Federal Register as an interim final rule which hopefully means that crisis has been averted and this editorial rendered moot. -JH
