Meeting Notice
September 21, 2021
The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will host two informational webinars designed to give federal charter/headboat permit holders and for-hire captains the opportunity to compare Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) options approved for the Southeast For-Hire Integrated Electronic Reporting (SEFHIER) Program and ask vendors questions about the units.
The Vessel Monitoring System requirement for the Southeast For-Hire Integrated Electronic Reporting Program will become effective on December 13, 2021. This requirement applies to all owners or operators of vessels with Charter Vessel/Headboat federal permits for Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) Reef Fish or Gulf Coastal Migratory Pelagic Fish. Vessels will be required to have a NOAA Fisheries approved VMS unit that includes a GPS device affixed to the vessel that, at a minimum, archives vessel position data once per hour and transmits data at the end of the trip to NOAA Fisheries. A variety of VMS units have been tested and type-approved for use in the SEFHIER Program, including cellular and satellite options that can be found at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/southeast/rules-and-regulations/approved-vessel-monitoring-system-vms-units-reporting-southeast-hire-integrated.
The informational webinars will be held on the following dates and times:
October 7, 2021
10:00 – 11:30 AM EDT
October 12, 2021
6:00 – 7:30 PM EDT
Contact staff at [email protected] with questions.