Menhaden Advisory Committee

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the Gulf states have been working together for over 4 decades to monitor the gulf menhaden fishery and its progress through data collection and analysis; however, the fishery is managed by the states and the interstate commission. In the Gulf of Mexico , the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission (GSMFC) formed the Gulf Menhaden Subcommittee in March 1973, which existed under various names and currently is the Menhaden Advisory Committee (MAC). The committee completed development of the first Gulf Menhaden Fishery Management Plan in 1977.

The MAC is comprised of one member from each state's fishery agency and one member from each active menhaden company in the Gulf - all of whom are voting members - and one non-voting member from the NMFS. Recommendations of the MAC are approved by a two-thirds majority vote of those present and voting, and then presented to their parent committee, the State-Federal Fisheries Management Committee (SFFMC). Currently, member seats on the MAC are held by: 

        Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
        Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural
              Resources/Marine Resources Division, 
        Mississippi Department of Marine Resources,  
        Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, 
        Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, 
        Daybrook Fisheries, Inc.
        Omega Protein, Inc.,
        Menhaden Advisory Council for the Gulf of Mexico .

The MAC has a minimum of two meetings each year as deemed necessary by two or more MAC members or at the direction of the SFFMC.  

The purpose of the SFFMC is to guide the GSMFC and set policy for regional management actions.  The SFFMC establishes appropriate procedures and policies to take necessary actions to design, implement and evaluate all regional management activities.  Actions presented to the SFFMC by the MAC are evaluated and, if accepted, moved forward to the full Commission for their consideration.  The SFFMC is made up of agency representatives that have knowledge of and an interest in regional fishery management problems.  The state administrators who serve on the SFFMC regularly advise their state decision-makers on fishery management problems as well as make recommendations to their legislators on behalf of their respective state agency.

As the gulf menhaden fishery operates mostly in state territorial seas, many management decisions can be made by the state agencies themselves although some policy changes may require approval of one or more of the other state legislatures.  By being a member of the GSMFC, the states in no way give up their own management authority. Inclusion of the NMFS Regional Director as a member on the SFFMC provides representation of Federal interests in the region.

To view or download recent minutes from the MAC meetings, click on the appropriate PDF file or right+click your mouse and select "Save Target As..."