Data / Federal rules / 2026-07536

Taking and Importing Marine Mammals; Taking Marine Mammals Incidental to Geophysical Surveys in the Gulf of America

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration published this final rule in the Federal Register on April 17, 2026. It took effect on April 20, 2026.

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What the agency says

In accordance with the regulations implementing the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), as amended, notification is hereby given that NMFS promulgates regulations to govern the incidental taking of marine mammals during geophysical survey activity conducted in the Gulf of America (GOA), over the course of 5 years. These regulations, which allow for the issuance of Letters of Authorization (LOA) to survey operators for the incidental take of marine mammals during the described activities and specified timeframe, prescribe the permissible methods of taking and other means of effecting the least practicable adverse impact on marine mammal species or stocks and their habitat, as well as requirements pertaining to the monitoring and reporting of such taking.

Key facts

Document number: 2026-07536
Type: Final rule
Action: Final rule
Agency: Commerce Department; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Published: April 17, 2026
Takes effect: April 20, 2026
Dates: Effective from April 20, 2026, through April 19, 2031.
Docket: Docket No. 260414-0101
Regulation ID (RIN): 0648-BO19
Code of Federal Regulations: 50 CFR 217
Topics: Exports; Fish; Imports; Indians; Labeling; Marine mammals; Penalties; Reporting and recordkeeping requirements; Seafood; Transportation
Pages: 75

The document on federalregister.gov PDF

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Everything from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration · Rules on exports · Rules on fish · Rules on imports · Published in April 2026

Read from the Federal Register API, last updated 2026-10-23. The document on federalregister.gov is the official record; dates and dockets can change through later corrections. Free to reuse with credit to SpecStream under CC BY 4.0.