Evaluating and benchmarking the federal fishery management action process for an Atlantic coast council

The challenge. A regional fishery management council sought to respond more quickly to emerging management issues and to act promptly on new scientific information. Participants regarded the council as relatively efficient within the federally prescribed process. However, the early stages of developing management actions were lengthy and unpredictable, and the process was difficult for partners and the public to follow and engage in.

Our approach. We applied a three-phase Discover, Assess, and Recommend framework. We conducted 10 focus groups and 6 individual interviews with 47 participants, including council members, staff, and partner agency personnel, and fielded an online questionnaire (55 responses; 54% response rate). We reconstructed stage-level timelines for recent amendment and framework actions and benchmarked them against two peer Atlantic coast councils. The analysis showed that initiation, scoping, and development of alternatives drive overall timelines, and that revisiting those steps is the largest source of delay. An oversight team of council and federal partner staff reviewed findings and refined the recommendations.

Outcomes.

• A streamlined approach to the regulatory process, with potential time savings of 3–4 months per action.
• 17 recommendations, ranging from quick fixes to long-term strategic considerations and changes.
• A one-stop compilation of the council’s processes, partnerships, and regulatory requirements, written for council members, partners, and the public.
• Improvements to data collection, stakeholder outreach, and coordination with partner agencies.

Why it matters. Faster, clearer processes let the council act before problems become crises, and give fishing communities a better understanding of how decisions get made.