Charter halibut committee meets online Sept. 30; comment accepted beforehand

Guided halibut operators can weigh in on federal permit policy Wednesday, Sept. 30, when the North Pacific Fishery Management Council's Charter Halibut Management Committee meets by web conference, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Alaska time, to review a Charter Halibut Permit discussion paper.

Written comment is accepted before the meeting; agenda, materials and connection details are at meetings.npfmc.org, meeting 7157.

The committee advises. It recommends to the full Council, which allocates catch among sectors and sets annual charter measures with the International Pacific Halibut Commission. Those measures already bind: one fish a day in Area 2C, off Southeast, and two in Area 3A, off Southcentral, both with size restrictions, plus a $20 daily stamp for adult anglers keeping halibut, new in 2026.

Permits are entry to a fishery the Alaska Department of Fish and Game says accounts for 60 to 70 percent of Alaska's sport halibut harvest. The National Marine Fisheries Service published the notice Sept. 2.