LOA request form

L etter of Authorization

(LOA) Request Form

Owner:	Permit Number:
F/V:	Hull Number:

To request an LOA(s), please enter the owner and vessel information requested above, and a valid start date and end date in the appropriate box(es) below. Please see the reverse side of this form for each LOA’s enrollment season and minimum enrollment duration. Please note: A vessel must hold a valid permit in the fishery(s) for which an LOA(s) is requested. Remember to sign and date this form in the spaces provided below. For additional information on the LOAs listed, please see the back of this form, call the Sustainable Fisheries Division at 978-281-9315, or visit http://www.nero.noaa.gov/sfd/. This form may be photocopied. Mail or fax completed forms to the address above.

• The 2012 Permit Year runs from May 1, 2012, through April 30, 2013

I am requesting an LOA(s) for the 2012 permit year.

LOA	Requested Start Date	Requested End Date	Enrollment Duration
Herring Carrier			Minimum 7 days
Herring GOM/GB Midwater Trawl			Minimum 7 days
Herring GOM/GB Purse Seine			Minimum 7 days
Herring Transfer and Receive at Sea			No minimum days required
Monkfish (SFMA) **			Minimum 7 days
GOM Cod Landing Limit (IVR)*			Minimum 7 days
Cultivator Shoals Whiting			Minimum 7 days
Raised Foot Rope Trawl Whiting			Minimum 7 days
P/C Nantucket Lightship Closed Area (CA)			Minimum 7 days
P/C Western GOM Cashes Ledge CA		April 30	No withdrawal allowed
P/C GOM Rolling CA			Minimum 90 days
GOM / GB Transiting			Minimum 7 days
Groundfish Restricted Gear Areas			Minimum 7 days
SNE Little Tunny/Gillnet		October 31	No withdrawal allowed
Whiting & Red Hake Transfer-at-Sea			Minimum 7 days
NAFO Regulatory Area***
Summer Flounder Small-Mesh			Minimum 7 days
Skate (Bait)			Minimum 7 days
Dogfish (Nantucket Shoals)		October 15	No withdrawal allowed
SMB Transfer-at-Sea			No minimum days required
Atlantic Surfclam/Ocean Quahog GB CA		December 31	No minimum days required

* This LOA is issued to vessels declaring such trips through the Interactive Voice Response (IVR) System.

**VMS vessels may declare in and out of the Monkfish Exemption Program via their Vessel Monitoring System instead of requesting a paper LOA.

*** A vessel must hold a valid High Seas Fishing Permit under 50 CFR part 300 in order to be issued this LOA.

Applicant’s Signature: I, the owner or authorized agent of the vessel named above, affirm subject to the penalties provided in 18 U.S.C. 1001, that all information I have given in obtaining this Letter of Authorization(s) is true and correct.

Print Name: _______________________________________

Signature: _________________________________________ Date: _______________

Revised December 2012

LOA Descriptions

Following is a description of each LOA that must be obtained from the Northeast Region Permit Office. A vessel issued a valid LOA(s) must carry the LOA(s) on board at all times while enrolled in the LOA program. A vessel owner/operator may participate in an LOA program for a period no less than its minimum enrollment duration. The effective date of each LOA can be no earlier than one day after the date issued. Unless the participation period specified on an LOA is longer than its minimum enrollment duration and the owner/operator wishes to withdraw from an LOA program prior to its stated end date, an LOA automatically expires at the end of a vessel’s participation period. To withdraw from an LOA program (where applicable) after its minimum enrollment duration but prior to its stated end date, an owner/operator must contact the Northeast Region Permit Office or Port Agent to obtain a withdrawal certificate. The effective date of each withdrawal certificate can be no earlier than one day after the date issued. A vessel is not considered officially withdrawn from an LOA program until the owner/operator receives a withdrawal certificate. LOA enrollments and withdrawals may be requested by mail, by phone, or by fax. The participation period for each LOA may not exceed the permit year for that fishery. Vessel owners/operators must apply each year to be issued an LOA for a given year.

LOA	Enrollment Season	Enrollment Duration
Herring Carrier	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
Herring GOM/GB Midwater Trawl	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
Herring GOM/GB Purse Seine	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
Herring Transfer and Receive at Sea	May 1 - April 30	No minimum days required
Monkfish (SFMA) **	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
GOM Cod Landing Limit (IVR)*	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
Cultivator Shoals Whiting	June 15 - October 31	Minimum 7 days
Raised Foot Rope Trawl Whiting	September 1 - December 31	Minimum 7 days
P/C Nantucket Lightship Closed Area (CA)	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
P/C Western GOM Cashes Ledge CA	May 1 - April 30	No withdrawal allowed
P/C GOM Rolling CA	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 90 days
GOM / GB Transiting	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
Groundfish Restricted Gear Areas	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
SNE Little Tunny/Gillnet	September 1 - October 31	No withdrawal allowed
Whiting & Red Hake Transfer-at-Sea	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
NAFO Regulatory Area***
Summer Flounder Small-Mesh	November 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
Skate (Bait)	May 1 - April 30	Minimum 7 days
Dogfish (Nantucket Shoals)	June 1 - October 15	No withdrawal allowed
SMB Transfer-at-Sea	May 1 - April 30	No minimum days required
Atlantic Surfclam/Ocean Quahog GB CA	January 1 – December 31	No minimum days required

* This LOA is issued to vessels declaring trips through the Interactive Voice Response (IVR)

System.

** VMS vessels may declare in and out of the Monkfish Exemption Program via their Vessel Monitoring System instead of requesting a paper LOA.

*** A vessel must hold a valid High Seas Fishing Compliance Permit under 50 CFR part 300 in order to be issued this LOA.

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 5 minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining data needed, and completing and reviewing the information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or suggestions for reducing this burden to: National Marine Fisheries Service, Permit Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930-2276. OMB NO. 0648-0202 Expires 4/30/2013

All data will be handled in accordance with NOAA Administrative Order 216-100, Confidentiality of Fisheries Statistics, and will not be released for public use except in aggregate statistical form (and without identifying the source of data, i.e., vessel name, owner, etc).  In addition, any information collected under the Permit Family of Forms would be considered confidential and would not be disclosed except as provide in section 402(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.