The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission was established by an act of Congress (P.L. 81-66) in 1949 as a compact of the five Gulf States. Its charge is:
"to promote better utilization of the fisheries, marine, shell and anadromous, of the seaboard of the Gulf of Mexico, by the development of a joint program for the promotion and protection of such fisheries and the prevention of the physical waste of the fisheries from any cause."
Upcoming Meetings
GSMFC 76th Annual Meeting
Oct 13-Oct 16, 2025
MS
The annual meeting of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to discuss a variety of issues related to fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico.
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GSMFC 77th Annual Meeting
Oct 12-Oct 15, 2026
FL
The annual meeting of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to discuss a variety of issues related to fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico.
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GSMFC 78th Annual Meeting
Oct 18-Oct 21, 2027
TX
The annual meeting of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to discuss a variety of issues related to fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico.
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GSMFC 79th Annual Meeting
Oct 16-Oct 19, 2028
LA
The annual meeting of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to discuss a variety of issues related to fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico.
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GSMFC 80th Annual Meeting
Oct 15-Oct 18, 2029
MS
The annual meeting of the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to discuss a variety of issues related to fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico.
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Latest Publications
General Session: 2024 Return ‘Em Right Overview
The Return ‘Em Right program, funded by the Damage Assessment, Remediation, and Restoration Program (DARRP), addresses a critical challenge facing recreational reef fisheries in the Southeast United States—discard mortality due to barotrauma. Barotrauma occurs when fish experience rapid pressure changes as they are brought to the surface, causing gases to expand within their bodies, often leading to injury or death. Each year, millions of reef fish are released after being caught, but many do not survive.
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GDAR04/SEDAR 97 Gulf Menhaden Stock Assessment 2024 Update
This assessment provides an update to the 2018 Gulf Menhaden (Brevoortia patronus) benchmark for the Gulf of Mexico (SEDAR 63) and the 2021 Gulf Menhaden update assessment (GDAR 03). The assessment was updated with recent data from 2021-2023. No changes in structure or parameterization were made to the base model run. Changes made to data inputs were minor and are described in the body of this report.
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Lyles-Simpson Award 2023 - Joseph Albert Shepard
The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission is pleased to announce that the 2023 Lyles-Simpson Award has been awarded to Joseph Shepard. This prestigious Award is presented annually to an individual, agency, or organization which has contributed to the betterment of the fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico through significant biological, industrial, legislative, enforcement, or administrative activities.
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Lyles-Simpson Award 2022 - Thomas David McIlwain
The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission is pleased to announce that the 2022 Lyles-Simpson Award has been awarded to Thomas McIlwain. This prestigious Award is presented annually to an individual, agency, or organization which has contributed to the betterment of the fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico through significant biological, industrial, legislative, enforcement, or administrative activities.
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Lyles-Simpson Award 2020 - Harriet MacGill Perry
The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission previously announced that the 2020 Lyles-Simpson Award had been awarded to Harriet MacGill Perry. This prestigious Award is presented annually to an individual, agency, or organization which has contributed to the betterment of the fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico through significant biological, industrial, legislative, enforcement, or administrative activities.
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Request for Proposals
Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission/NOAA Fisheries IRA
Funding Request for Proposals
October 1, 2024 - Recreational fishing generates more than 138
billion in sales impacts and supports more than 692 thousand jobs. In the
Southeast, more recreational angler fishing trips occur than the rest of the
United States combined. Accurate collection of recreational data is critical to
manage recreational fisheries. Estimation of recreational fishing effort and
released fish discards represent two of the greatest sources of uncertainty in
recreational data statistics. Given questions regarding the accuracy of
recreational catch estimates in the offshore finfish reef fishery, we are
seeking proposals that would improve the quality of two specific components of
marine recreational finfish data collection systems. The specific areas of
interest are:
- Research that would provide estimates of recreational fishing effort from private boats in offshore waters (related to managed reef fish species such as red snapper, groupers, jacks and others).
- Research that would validate and improve the quality of private and for-hire vessel released catch data available for red snapper and other managed reef fish species.
Pre-proposals must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. CST on November 15,
2024.
Proposals must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. CST on January 15,
2025.
Gulf States
Marine Fisheries Commission Fisheries Restoration Program
Request for Proposals
November 12, 2024 - The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission
(GSMFC) is requesting proposals for contractor support to assist in the analysis
of discards of reef fish (red snapper, red grouper, and gag) in the Gulf of
Mexico and the South Atlantic recreational fisheries, including private boats,
charter and headboat sectors. Results of the analysis will be published on the
Return ‘Em Right (https://returnemright.org/) website for easy query and access
by the general public. This project is a component of the “Reduction of
Post-release Mortality from Barotrauma in Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Recreational
Fisheries” project. The GSMFC is partnering with NOAA’s Damage Assessment,
Remediation, and Restoration Program (DARRP) on this project to restore reef
fish species impacted by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of
Mexico. Proposals must be received by e-mail by 5:00 pm Central Standard Time on
Wednesday, December 11, 2024.
Fisheries Information Network
A cooperative program for the collection, management, and dissemination of statistical data and information on the Gulf Region's commercial and recreational fisheries.
Read More »Interjurisdictional Fisheries Program
Designed to develop management plans for transboundary stocks that migrate freely through state and federal jurisdictions.
Read More »Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program
A state/federal/university program for the collection, management and dissemination of fishery-independent data and information in the southeastern United States.
Read More »Sport Fish Restoration Administrative Program
Designed to provide coordination of the recreational fisheries programs in the five gulf states.
Read More »Fisheries Disaster Recovery Program
Aimed at improving the public perception and confidence in Gulf of Mexico seafood following various man-made and natural disasters.
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