Monitoring Committees

Overview

Each of the Council’s fishery management plans (FMPs) has a Monitoring Committee which is responsible for annually reviewing the best available data and recommending commercial and recreational measures designed to assure that the target mortality level for each fishery managed under the FMP is not exceeded.  The Council and its Committees consider Monitoring Committee recommendations (along with input from the SSC, advisory panels, and the public) during the annual specification-setting process for each fishery.

Monitoring Committees consider a wide range of data, including commercial and recreational catch/landing statistics, current estimates of fishing mortality, stock status, the most recent estimates of recruitment, VPA results or length-based stock projection models, target mortality levels, beneficial impacts of size/mesh regulations, as well as the level of noncompliance by fishermen or states.

Membership

Monitoring Committees always include staff representatives from the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, the Greater Atlantic Regional Office, and the Northeast Fisheries Science Center. Other members may include staff from the New England and/or South Atlantic Fishery Management Councils, Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and state management agencies, as well as industry representatives involved in the affected fishery. The MAFMC Executive Director or his designee serves as chair the Committee. 

Mackerel, Squid, Butterfish

  • Jason Didden, MAFMC

  • Julia Beaty, MAFMC

  • Charles Adams, NEFSC

  • Kiersten Curti, NEFSC

  • Maria Fenton, GARFO

  • Jessica Blaylock, NEFSC

  • Kristopher Winiarski, GARFO

Summer Flounder, Scup, Black Sea Bass

  • Julia Beaty, MAFMC

  • Kiley Dancy, MAFMC

  • Hannah Hart, MAFMC

  • Tracey Bauer, ASMFC

  • Chelsea Tuohy, ASMFC

  • Peter Clarke, NJ Div of Fish and Wildlife

  • Laura Deighan, NMFS GARFO

  • Lorena de la Garza Hernandez, NC Div Marine Fisheries

  • Steve Doctor, MD DNR

  • Alexa Galvan, VA Marine Resources Commission

  • Elise Koob, MA DMF

  • Savannah Lewis, NMFS GARFO

  • Mike Schmidtke, SAFMC

  • Rachel Sysak, NY DEC, Marine Fisheries

  • Corinne Truesdale, RI Div of Fish and Wildlife

  • Sam Truesdell, NMFS NEFSC

  • Greg Wojcik, CT DEP

  • Ben Wasserman, DE Div of Fish and Wildlife

  • Anthony Wood, NMFS/NEFSC

Bluefish

  • Jose Montanez, MAFMC

  • Melinda Lambert , NC Division of Marine Fisheries

  • John Carmichael, SAFMC

  • Michael Celestino, NJ Div of Fish and Wildlife

  • Laura Deighan, NMFS GARFO

  • Eric Durrell, MD DNR

  • James Gartland, VIMS

  • Kurt Gottschall, CT Bureau of Marine Fisheries

  • Wilson Laney, US Fish and Wildlife Service

  • Nicole Lengyel, RI Div of Fish and Wildlife

  • Savannah Lewis, NMFS GARFO

  • Sandra Dumais, NY DEC, Marine Fisheries

  • Halie Ofarell, FL FWC

  • Chelsea Tuohy, ASMFC

  • Richard Wong, DNREC - Div of Fish and Wildlife

  • Anthony Wood, NMFS/NEFSC

  • Amy Zimney, SC DNR

  • TBD, MA DMF

Spiny Dogfish

  • Jason Didden, MAFMC

  • Melinda Lambert , NC Division of Marine Fisheries

  • Laura Deighan , GARFO

  • Dvora Hart, NEFSC

  • David McCarron, NEFMC

  • Nichola Meserve, Massachusetts Div. of Marine Fisheries

  • Conor McManus, Rhode Island Div. of Fish & Wildlife

  • Angel Willey, MD Dept. of Natural Resource

  • Scott MacDonald*

  • John Whiteside*

Tilefish

  • José Montañez, MAFMC

  • Hannah Hart, MAFMC

  • Tyler Harris, NJ Div of Fish and Wildlife

  • John Maniscalco, NYSDEC Div of Marine Resources

  • Paul Nitschke, NEFSC

  • Douglas Potts , GARFO

  • Laurie Nolan, NY Fisherman*

*Non-voting, ex-officio industry representatives