A federal court ruling has abruptly suspended the Atlantic red snapper season for recreational fishers in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, which was slated to commence today. This action follows a May court order and subsequent rescission of state permits by NOAA Fisheries on June 29, effectively keeping the recreational harvest of red snapper in South Atlantic federal waters closed. The commercial red snapper season, however, is still scheduled to open on July 13.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a decision that paused the Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) previously granted by NOAA Fisheries to Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina on May 21. These permits were designed to extend state-managed red snapper seasons for private and for-hire anglers throughout 2026. While Florida's season was planned to begin on May 22, the seasons for Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina were set to run from July 1 to August 31, each with specific bag and size limits.
NOAA Fisheries withdrew these state-issued EFPs after all four states requested their cancellation. The agency noted that Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina have indicated an interest in submitting new applications, but any future recreational opening would necessitate a separate announcement. The original intention behind these permits was to implement state-led red snapper management and improve data collection on recreational harvesting. This pilot program aimed to offer anglers a significantly longer fishing period compared to the typically short federal seasons, requiring participants to register their trips and report catches, for example, through Georgia’s VESL app.
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources confirmed that the summer pilot season would not proceed as planned due to insufficient time for legal processes to conclude before the scheduled July 1 opening. The department is collaborating with partner states and federal agencies to prepare a revised permit application, with the hope of potentially establishing a fall season.
The lawsuit challenging the permits was filed under the Administrative Procedure Act by commercial fishing entities, trade organizations, and individual commercial fishermen. They argued that the permits would likely lead to overfishing of South Atlantic red snapper and violate the conservation requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Although the court did not issue a final verdict on the entire case, Judge Rudolph Contreras indicated that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed on the merits of their claims. The judge concluded that NOAA Fisheries had acted arbitrarily and capriciously by failing to consider crucial aspects of the issue. The court also identified a credible risk that extended fishing seasons could increase fishing mortality, contribute to overfishing, and impede the red snapper rebuilding plan, which was sufficient grounds to prevent the permits from taking effect while the lawsuit continues.
Currently, recreational red snapper harvesting in South Atlantic federal waters remains prohibited, with the blocked EFPs impacting Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. However, this ruling does not extend to Florida’s Gulf private recreational red snapper season or Florida’s Atlantic state-water regulations. Consequently, anglers must navigate a complex web of state, federal, Atlantic, and Gulf regulations before attempting to catch red snapper. As of today, the highly anticipated July 1 season opening off the coasts of Georgia and the Carolinas will not occur.