The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) is seeking applicants for its Recreational Initiative Working Group. The Council’s Recreational Initiative is an effort to engage the Gulf of Mexico recreational community to review and evaluate past and current reef fish management strategies and explore potential new approaches that could be applied in the future. In doing so, the Council seeks to identify ways to increase and maintain angler satisfaction while achieving long-term stock health for managed species. The Recreational Initiative will focus on the following five species as examples: Gag grouper, gray triggerfish, greater amberjack, red grouper, and red snapper.

Work on the Recreational Initiative will be performed primarily by the Working Group. Applicants should have experience and a vested interest in Gulf recreational fisheries and should be interested in contributing to proactive, solutions-oriented dialogue to improve long-term management approaches and outcomes. Applicants should be available to attend meetings in-person and should expect to convene for three 1-2 day meetings planned for October 2024 (Tampa, FL), December 2024 or January 2025 (New Orleans, LA), and February or March 2025 (Tampa, FL). The Council will cover travel expenses.

Members of the Working Group will be appointed at the Council’s discretion. Consideration for appointment may include the appropriate experience, interest, geographic location, and record of fishery violations. After reviewing applications, the Council is expected to populate the Working Group during its August 2023 Council Meeting.

Application Deadline: 5:00 PM, EST on July 31, 2024

To apply to the Recreational Initiative Working Group, visit:

https://forms.gle/ZQdTHYNGVEzjEbHU6

If you have any questions, please visit https://gulfcouncil.org/recreational-initiative/ or contact the Council office at 813-348-1630.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional Fishery Management Councils established by the Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976. The Council prepares fishery management plans, which are designed to manage fishery resources within the 200-mile limit of the Gulf of Mexico.