Proposed rule · 2026-22815

Pacific Island Fisheries; Commercial Fishing in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument Expansion

NMFS proposes to amend regulations that prohibit commercial fishing in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument Expansion (PRIMNM Expansion), which comprises waters of the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between 50 to 200 nautical miles (nmi; 93 to 370 kilometers (km)) around Johnston Atoll and Wake and Jarvis Islands. This action is necessary to conform fishing regulations with Presidential Proclamation 10918 of April 17, 2025--Unleashing American Commercial Fishing in the Pacific, as amended by Presidential Proclamation 11035 of June 11, 2026--Restoring American Commercial Fishing in the Pacific, and in light of a court order. Fisheries in the PRIMNM Expansion would be regulated pursuant to existing fishing regulations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act), the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act (WCPFCIA), the South Pacific Tuna Act (SPTA), and other applicable laws, that apply to all U.S. commercial fishing vessels but were superseded and made inapplicable when the commercial fishing prohibition for the PRIMNM Expansion was established. The proposed rule supports the long-term sustainability of U.S. fisheries and provides for the proper care and management of the PRIMNM and PRIMNM Expansion and the objects of historic or scientific interest therein, as directed by Proclamation 10918, as amended by Proclamation 11035.