The Finish Line: Albie Comment Period

Feature Photo Credit: Capt. John Mauser

Our beloved little speedsters need your voice once more time.

False albacore management is back on the docket in North Carolina. The first time albies entered the conversation in February 2024, we saw big wins for little tunny. You can learn more about that by clicking here. In that comment period, the North Carolina state agency let us know that it’s been years since they received this many comments on an issue.  This influx of passionate digital comments was followed by more than 20 guides and anglers giving thoughtful in-person testimony over the course of two days. Every single voice made a difference.  False albacore won because of your efforts. 

We’re now in the final step of the process.

The NC Marine Fisheries Commission will meet in-person Hilton Garden Inn, 5353 N. Virginia Dare Trail, Kitty Hawk, N.C. 27949. The meeting will also be livestreamed on YouTube. The commission will hold public comment sessions at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 19, and at 9 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 20.
We know Kitty Hawk is distant for many albie lovers. Please submit online comments if you can’t make these times.

North Carolina is a difficult state when it comes to conservation. That being said, what they showed in the first Albie meeting is that they are aiming to operate a fair process, and that is all we need. We know our advocates are educated, passionate and relentless. This is another opportunity to display that spirit.

Here are some of the talking points to guide your comments:

• NC Leads With Influence: Thank the state of North Carolina for taking the lead on albie management! Note that other states are now utilizing their rule-making processes to establish albie regulations.
• Abundance Serves All Sectors: Commercial and bait fisheries exist for this species, and anecdotal reports indicate these fisheries may be expanding without functional guardrails and monitoring. The proposed regulations are not designed to limit anyone’s usage of the resource but rather conserve this economically critical fish and provide long-term opportunities for all sectors.
• An Important Fishery: False albacore are a tremendously important recreational fish species for anglers and fishing-related businesses from Massachusetts to Florida. In 2021, there were over 500,000 directed trips on the Atlantic coast where false albacore were the primary or secondary target species. From 2011-2021, the average number of directed false albacore trips was more than half a million trips. Our guides and members rely on this species, especially in recent years when striped bass and other inshore species have been less abundant.
• Worthy of Management: ASGA believes that false albacore deserve guardrail management at a minimum. This species drives a large economy from Florida to the Vineyard.
• Precautionary Management: We are not saying that false albacore are in a crisis, but given the importance of this fish to anglers up and down the coast, putting some guardrails in place to ensure the fishery’s abundance moving forward is critical.
• One Connected Coast: While there is little scientific information on this species at this time, ASGA is thrilled to be conducting a false albacore acoustic tagging study in Massachusetts waters with several key partners—we hope that this information can be used by fishery managers to better understand the species and encourage precautionary management for this hugely important recreational species.

You DO NOT need to be a North Carolina resident to submit a comment.

Here’s how to submit your comment:

• Head to the public comment portal by clicking here.
• Scroll down the NC DEQ page and click the green “Submit Written Comments Online” button.
• Add your name and state to the form, followed by your comment. Be sure to include “I support false albacore management in North Carolina”.
• Respectful, thoughtful comments are well-received but do not need to be extensive. If you want to include the rule-making reference number, it is as follows: “15A NCAC 03M.053 for False Albacore Management”.
• The deadline to submit written comments for this meeting is 4 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 17.

Every single comment counts. Albies provide countless drag-screaming, smile-inducing memories along the entire coast. Now is our chance to be a voice for the voiceless: the fisheries we know and love. Have questions about this process? Reach out to us on social media or email us at info@saltwaterguidesassociation.org.