Executive Order (E.O.) 14276

THE SOUTH ATLANTIC FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCIL

Executive Order 14276
Restoring American Seafood
Competitiveness
Information Document
July 2025
What does Executive Order 14276 request of the Regional Fishery
Management Councils?
On April 17 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14276: Restoring American Seafood
Competitiveness. The purpose of the executive order is to “address unfair trade practices,
eliminate unsafe imports, level the unfair playing field that has benefited foreign fishing
companies, promote ethical sourcing, reduce regulatory burdens, and ensure the integrity of the
seafood supply chain.” The Regional Fisheries Management Councils have been asked to
identify actions that would stabilize markets, improve access to fishing opportunities, enhance
economic profitability, and prevent closures. The Regional Fishery Management Councils must
commit to a work plan that would ensure identified actions are prioritized.
Additionally, the Secretary of Commerce has been directed to gather public comment on
innovative ways to improve fisheries management and science and ensure agencies are focusing
core fisheries management and science functions to support the Nation’s seafood supply chain.
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has been tasked with incorporating less
expensive and more reliable technologies and cooperative research programs into fishery
assessments. This may include the expansion of exempted fishing permit programs, creation of
more fishing opportunities, and modernizing data collection to improve the responsiveness of
management.
Executive Order 14276
Seafood Competitiveness

1

Information Document
July 2025

Isn’t this similar to Executive Order 13921 issued in May 2020?
During his first term, President Trump issued Executive Order 13921: Promoting American
Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth. Similar to Executive Order 14276, the 2020
executive order required the Regional Fishery Management Councils to recommend actions to
reduce burdens on domestic fishing and to increase production within sustainable fisheries. The
South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (South Atlantic Council) submitted a list of items
that can be found on the Council’s website but are also summarized Appendix A. As part of
Executive Order 14276, the South Atlantic Council will provide updates to their
recommendations made in response to the 2020 Executive Order.

How is the South Atlantic Council responding to Executive Order
14276?
The South Atlantic Council began discussion of Executive Order 14276 at its June 2025 meeting,
acknowledging the importance of gathering perspectives from the public as a part of the response
process. To that end, the South Atlantic Council is soliciting public input on what types of
management actions may achieve the goals stated in the Executive Order. Public comments
will be accepted via the South Atlantic Council’s website from July 28 through August 15, 2025.
In addition to soliciting public comments, the South Atlantic Council will host an online meeting
of its advisory panels on August 11, 2025 at 6:00 p.m. to gather their feedback on the executive
order. Webinar registration information can be found on the South Atlantic Council’s website. At
its September 15-19, 2025, meeting, the South Atlantic Council will discuss the input received
from the public and advisory panels. This input will be utilized to develop a final list of
recommendations to be submitted to the NMFS no later than September 30, 2025. This timeline
was established to meet the requirement in the Executive Order to have input submitted within
180 days.
Process Step
Executive Order (EO) 14276 is published in the Federal Register.
Council has preliminary discussions on actions that could respond
to the EO mandates.
Public input period on EO recommendations begins.
Council advisory panels meet to recommend actions that would
respond to the EO mandates.
Public input period on EO recommendations closes.
Council reviews public and advisory panel input and finalizes
recommendations.
Council recommendations submitted to NMFS.
Recommendations submitted to the Secretary of Commerce.

Executive Order 14276
Seafood Competitiveness

2

Date
April 17, 2025
June 2025
July 28, 2025
August 11, 2025
August 15, 2025
September 15-19, 2025
September 30, 2025
October 14, 2025

Information Document
July 2025

The South Atlantic Council Wants to Hear from You!
The South Atlantic Council is interested in understanding more about your fishery and what
actions would help achieve the goals outlined in the Executive Order, such as market stability,
increased access to fishing opportunities, and economic profitability. The discussion questions
below are intended to help guide public comment and generate management recommendations.
Please address those relevant to your fishery and experience, and feel free to add any comments.

Provide Your Thoughts on Executive Order 14276
Public comments can be submitted online from July 28, 2025, through
August 15, 2025, at 5:00 p.m.
Don’t miss this opportunity to let the South Atlantic Council know what
actions can stabilize markets and improve access to your fishery!

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR COMMENT
Reducing Burdens and Increasing Productivity
1. What would a “strong and competitive American seafood industry” look like to you?
2. What specific challenges do you face as a commercial, for-hire, or recreational fisherman
in the South Atlantic region that management action could help alleviate?
3. Are there specific fishery management measures that are hurting your ability to
participate in South Atlantic fisheries? Are there other factors preventing you from
competing in the current market?
4. How could regulations be modified to provide more opportunity for small-scale or new
fishermen to participate in South Atlantic fisheries?
5. What management measures would make South Atlantic seafood more competitive
without compromising quality or sustainability?
Innovative Science and Management
1. How do you recommend the South Atlantic Council balance environmental protection
with economic growth in commercial and recreational fisheries?
2. Which regulations support sustainability and profitability and need to remain in place,
and which regulations should be reconsidered?
3. Are there parts of the seafood industry (fishermen, crew, processors, distributors) that
management needs to consider more when looking at regulatory measures?
4. Are there specific policies or permitting processes that you would like to see improved or
simplified?

Executive Order 14276
Seafood Competitiveness

3

Information Document
July 2025

5. What types of scientific research or data (updated stock assessments, habitat data, etc.)
would be most helpful for your fishing activities?
6. What would make it easier for you to contribute data or knowledge to science efforts?

Appendix A. South Atlantic Fishery Management Council’s
Response to Executive Order 13921 (2020)
Responsible
Entities

Description of Action

Status

Adequate monitoring for deepwater species.

NMFS

In Progress

Restore longline surveying for tilefish to reduce stock
assessment uncertainty.

NMFS

Complete

Provide increased funding for SEFIS to fully support the
SERFS and MARMAP components.

NMFS

Unknown

Address the priorities of the Fishery Independent
Monitoring Workshop.

NMFS

Not
Addressed

Fully support SEAMAP priorities.

NMFS

Unknown

Develop juvenile surveys for the priority stocks identified
in the Prioritization Plan for the South Atlantic.

NMFS

Not
Addressed

Change tag and permit fee policies so that fees are
provided to the Region where collected and allow funds
from tags or fees to be directed to fishery and data
improvement projects to benefit the fishery that provides
the funds.

NMFS

Not
Addressed

NMFS

Not
Addressed

Provide SAFE Reports to the SAFMC as required under
National Standard 2 guidelines.

Executive Order 14276
Seafood Competitiveness

4

Additional Notes
South Atlantic
Deepwater Longline
Survey is now online
and awaiting enough
years of information
to be applied in stock
assessments of
deepwater species.

SAFE Reports for
some FMPs have
been prepared by
Council staff.

Information Document
July 2025

Responsible
Entities

Description of Action
Request that NMFS create a regional working group across
the Gulf and Atlantic to evaluate, characterize, and
quantify the impract of shark depredation and trends over
time by shark species. The working group should
recommend management changes to the appropriate
entities.

NMFS

Status

Not
Addressed

Evaluate the National Standard 1 guidelines relative to the
Modern Fish Act and provide clarification on the flexibility
NMFS
available to the GFMC and SAFMC to implement
alternative approaches for managing recreational fisheries.

Not
Addressed

Complete the work of the Rare Event Species Estimation
Working Group and provide the Council recommendations
on management actions it can take to improve data collects
and estimation precisions.

NMFS

In Progress

Develop protocols to incorporate supplemental and
voluntarily submitted data from recreational anglers.

NMFS

Not
Addressed

Develop methods to provide more timely MRIP estimates
of harvest for the stocks requiring in-season accountability
measures.

Provide funding to ensure the success of the for-hire
electronic reporting in the South Atlantic.

Executive Order 14276
Seafood Competitiveness

NMFS

NMFS

5

Additional Notes

No changes have
been made to
National Standard 1
or the MagnusonStevens Act.

In progress

Plans have been
developed but are
currently on hold due
to staff and funding
limitations

Not
Addressed

Participation in
SEFHIER is low in
the South Atlantic
region leading
NMFS to consider
the data unreliable.
The Council began
discussion of
new regulations,
however, in June
2025 the Council
postponed work on
the amendment.

Information Document
July 2025

Responsible
Entities

Description of Action

Provide financial support to the SAFMC, MAFMC, and
NEFMC to pursue the Scenario Planning process initiated
through the Northeast Region Coordinating Council.

Evaluate the Wreckfish ITQ program and consider
changes.

Establish a shrimp fishery access area along with the
eastern boundary of the northern extension of the Oculina
Bank closed area.

Implement commercial electronic logbooks.

Executive Order 14276
Seafood Competitiveness

6

Additional Notes

In Progress

Scenario planning
was completed by the
councils and
implementation was
recognized as an
allowable activity
under IRA grants.

NMFS

In Progress

Meeting held with
the states. Unknown
progress since that
time.

Council

In Progress;
Council
portion
complete

Amendment
submitted to the
NMFS by the
Council in December
2024.

Council

In Progress

The Council
submitted Coral
Amendment 10 in
December 2021;
however, it was
rejected by NMFS.
The Council is
currently developing
a joint Coral and
Shrimp amendment
to address concerns
with plans to
resubmit the
amendment in
December 2025.

Council

In Progress;
Council
portion
complete

Amendment
submitted to the
NMFS by the
Council in February
2024.

NMFS

Request that NMFS implement an order to improve the
disaster relief process and develop efficient methods of
distributing allocated relief funds. Relief funds should be
distributed within six months of disaster allocation by
Congress.

Status

Information Document
July 2025

Responsible
Entities

Description of Action

Evaluate performance of the snapper group commercial
permit two for one provision and consider if changes will
provide social and economic benefits to the fishery.

Council

Status

In Progress

The Council has
initiated work on
Snapper Grouper
Amendment 60,
which includes
consideration of the
two-for-one
provision.
New catch levels
effective on June 8,
2023.

Modify the Atlantic king mackerel management actions
through an FMP amendment to address optimum yield.

Council

Complete

Evaluate stock determination criteria and biological
reference point alternatives for Spiny Lobster.

Council

Not Started

Evaluate reasons for early commercial closures in the
Atlantic Spanish mackerel fishery.

Executive Order 14276
Seafood Competitiveness

Council

7

Additional Notes

Delayed

Management action
on Atlantic Spanish
mackerel delayed
until results from the
MRIP pilot study are
available.

Information Document
July 2025