Virginia shifts 9,745 pounds of summer flounder quota to New Jersey

Virginia is transferring 9,745 pounds of its 2026 commercial summer flounder quota to New Jersey, NOAA Fisheries announced in a Federal Register notice published Oct. 28. The transfer is effective from Oct. 27 through Dec. 31, 2026.

The two states agreed to the move to repay landings made by an out-of-state permitted vessel under a safe-harbor agreement. NOAA's Greater Atlantic regional administrator signed off after finding the transfer meets the fishery management plan's three tests: it won't keep the coastwide quota from being harvested, it addresses an unforeseen situation, and it is consistent with the plan and the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

After the transfer, Virginia's revised 2026 commercial summer flounder quota is 2,423,982 pounds, and New Jersey's is 2,119,613 pounds.

This is a The Gillnet news desk summary, not a reprint.

Source: Federal Register (NOAA Fisheries): Summer Flounder Fishery; Quota Transfer From Virginia to New Jersey (Oct. 28, 2026).