What/When:
- The 2026 recreational fishing season for snowy grouper in federal waters of the South Atlantic started on May 1, 2026, and will end at 12:01 a.m., local time, on June 7, 2026.
- Recreational harvest for the 2027 fishing year in South Atlantic federal waters will open at 12:01 a.m., (local time), on May 1, 2027, unless otherwise specified.
Why This Announcement is Happening:
- Recreational landings in 2025 exceeded the 2025 recreational annual catch limit.
- Regulations implementing Amendment 51 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Snapper-Grouper Fishery of the South Atlantic Region require NOAA Fisheries to reduce the 2026 season by the amount necessary to prevent the recreational annual catch limit from being exceeded in 2026.
- NOAA Fisheries estimates that recreational snowy grouper landings will reach the recreational annual catch limit of 1,713 fish for the 2026 fishing year by June 7, 2026.
This bulletin provides only a summary of the existing regulations. Full regulations can be found in the Code of Federal Regulations at 50 CFR part 622 at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-50/chapter-VI/part-622/subpart-I.
