Amendment No. 2 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Red Drum Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico.

This Amendment to the Fishery Management Plan for the Red Drum Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico prohibits retention and possession of red drum from the EEZ. It redefines Optimum Yield (OY) and sets specific harvest levels for the primary area at zero. Also the Total allowable catch (TAC), statement of optimum yield is modified to specify a new escapement goal and the procedure for specifying total allowable catch is modified. This action was based on a Southeast Fisheries Center (SEFC) stock assessment on the juvenile population which assessed low escapement rates to the spawning stock biomass (SSB)and high fishing mortality on the offshore stock was estimated to be about 0.25 (22 percent annually). The 1987 Stock Assessment Panel report recommended that acceptable biological catch (ABC) be set at zero for the EEZ and that the states increase the escapement rate from the estuaries to 30 percent. The Council recommended to NMFS that total allowable catch (TAC) be zero for 1992, and that a more comprehensive assessment of a SSBR level be provided in 1992.