Protect Access to Bottomfishing in the South Atlantic

South Atlantic red snapper have rebounded so much that scientists and fishermen both believe the stock is more abundant today than any living person has ever seen. Despite this success, NOAA Fisheries proposed a 3-month bottom fishing ban in Florida to limit angler interactions with red snapper in January 2025.

Amendment 59 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic would have prohibited fishing for 55 species of reef fish in federally-managed waters from the Florida / Georgia border to southern Brevard County from December 1 through the end of February each year. During the proposed closures, all recreational hook-and-line fishing (including trolling) would be prohibited for 55 species, which would include snappers, groupers, jacks, sea basses, porgies, triggerfish, as well as hogfish, tilefishes, and grunts.

Large area and seasonal closures to all bottom fishing would be devastating to the recreational fishing industry, coastal communities and anglers. Luckily, NOAA Fisheries withdrew the proposed bottomfishing closure from Amendment 59 In June. Unfortunately, this withdrawal also came with the announcement of a 2-day season for South Atlantic red Snapper in 2025, compared to much longer seasons in the Gulf. While much work remains to set South Atlantic red snapper management on a path to sensible management, the sportfishing industry appreciates the decision by NOAA and looks forward to working closely with the Administration and Congress to improve data collection and expand recreational access for South Atlantic reef fisheries.

In addition to prohibiting bottom fishing, the Amendment also included removal of the overfished and experiencing overfishing designations for South Atlantic red snapper. While removing the overfished and undergoing overfishing designations for red snapper is a positive step and reflects what anglers have been observing for years, NOAA Fisheries’ proposed bottomfishing closure is based on notoriously unreliable estimates of fish released by recreational anglers.

Better information about the South Atlantic red snapper stock is being collected right now through an unprecedented scientific study known as the South Atlantic Great Red Snapper Count. Additionally, the South Atlantic states have urged NOAA to take over management of red snapper off their respective coasts as quickly as possible, a move ASA and our partners have been supportive of for years.

ASA’s Government Affairs team has worked tirelessly with Members of Congress, state and federal agencies, fisheries management councils, and industry stakeholders to avoid past attempts to implement bottomfishing closures in the South Atlantic and find solutions that improve data and harvest access for red snapper.

ASA created a one-pager for the recreational fishing community – click here to learn more.

ASA has also supported the bipartisan Red Snapper Act (H.R. 470), sponsored by Reps. John Rutherford (R-FL), Darren Soto (D-FL), and Sen Rick Scott (R-FL), which would prevent NOAA from making sweeping management decisions until the ongoing South Atlantic Great Red Snapper Count is complete and new information can be integrated into the stock assessment. The Red Snapper Act has 16 additional cosponsors in the House.

The Great Red Snapper Count is an independent study funded by Congress that will deliver new, reliable data on the abundance, genomics and mortality of the red snapper stock in 2025.

ASA also sent a joint letter signed by 76 members of the sportfishing industry to the Secretary of Commerce outlining our frustrations with Amendment 59. Click the link above to read the full letter.

NOAA Fisheries received public input on the Amendment until March 17, 2025. ASA Created the below talking points to help stakeholders develop their comments and submit them through the federal register. Stay tuned for ways you can continue to engage on this issue.

NOAA also held multiple in-person public events to hear from stakeholders and partners.