ASA and CCA Intervene in South Atlantic Red Snapper Lawsuitto Defend Recreational Fishing Access

Alexandria, Va. and Houston, Texas – May 15, 2026 – The American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) have jointly moved to intervene in litigation challenging the National MarineFisheries Service’s approval of state Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) for the 2026 South Atlantic red snapper season.

The lawsuit seeks to overturn a landmark pilot program that will allow Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina to implement expanded recreational red snapper seasons while collecting critical fisheries data to inform future management improvements.

ASA and CCA filed their motion to intervene in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to ensure recreational anglers and the recreational fishing industry have a voice in defending the EFPs and the access opportunities they provide.

“For years, anglers have faced extremely limited red snapper seasons despite the stock rebuilding far ahead of schedule,” said Glenn Hughes, president and CEO of the American Sportfishing Association. “These pilot programs represent a transformational opportunity to improve recreational data collection, expand reasonable public access and advance state-led management approaches that have already proven successful in the Gulf. ASA is intervening to help protect that progress for recreational anglers and the sportfishing industry.”

“These pilot programs are about creating an improved recreational data collection and management framework for recreational fisheries while maintaining strong conservation standards,” said CCA President Pat Murray. “Recreational anglers have waited years for management that reflects the stock’s rebuilt status and current abundance trends. The states are stepping up with more responsive management and better data collection, and we believe that effort deserves strong support.”

South Atlantic red snapper harvest was closed in 2010 as part of a rebuilding plan. Conservation measures and angler compliance helped the stock rebound nearly two decades ahead of schedule, and the fishery is no longer considered overfished or undergoing overfishing. However, federal recreational harvest estimates continued to drive extremely short seasons, including a one-day season in 2024 and a two-day season in 2025.

Both organizations emphasized that improved recreational access and strong conservation standards can and should work together.

Under the approved EFPs, Florida’s recreational season will span 39 days split between summer and fall, while Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina will each have 62-day seasons beginning July 1. The states will also collect catch and effort information from anglers and for-hire operators to evaluate improved recreational management approaches.

ASA and CCA noted that similar state-led pilot programs in the Gulf of America helped pave the way for long-term state management of Gulf red snapper beginning in 2020, resulting in expanded fishing opportunities while still meeting federal conservation requirements.
The organizations emphasized that the lawsuit directly threatens recreational fishing access and the economic activity supported by the recreational fishing community across the South Atlantic region.

About the Coastal Conservation Association
Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) is a nonprofit organization comprised of recreational anglers and conservation advocates dedicated to conserving, promoting and enhancing the present and future availability of coastal marine resources for the benefit and enjoyment of the general public.

About the American Sportfishing Association
The American Sportfishing Association (ASA) is the sportfishing industry’s trade association committed to representing the interests of the sportfishing industry and the entire recreational fishing community. ASA gives the industry and anglers a unified voice when emerging laws and policies could significantly affect sportfishing business or recreational fishing itself. ASA also safeguards and promotes the enduring economic, conservation and social values of sportfishing in America.

Columbia, S.C. – Coastal Conservation Association South Carolina (CCA SC) applauds the introduction this week of S.961, a bill that has at its root the sustainability of South Carolina’s most sought after inshore gamefish, red drum. Charleston Senator Chip Campsen’s proposal comes on the heels of last year’s state and regional stock assessment by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASFMC), confirming the species is being overfished and overfishing is occurring; two distinctions in fisheries management reserved for a troubled stock. The measure, if adopted, would reduce the recreational creel limit for red drum from two fish to one fish per person per day and shift the current slot limit (15-23 inches) to 18-25 inches. The measure would also adjust the boat limit from six fish to two.

“The management of red drum in the Palmetto State has consistently been a story about proper stewardship,” said Tombo Milliken, Chairman of CCA SC’s Government Relations Committee. “Recreational anglers have demonstrated again and again that acting in the long-term interest of the resource has always been the desired course. Support for this proposal in front of us now confirms that commitment”.

Over the last 16-18 months, both the SCDNR and the ASMFC ran concurrent red drum benchmark stock assessments, the results of which have been made available and shared with the public. Red drum are regionally managed in cooperation with the ASMFC via a fishery management plan that allows the states flexibility in setting their plan specifics (size limits, creel limits, seasons, etc.) while meeting certain criteria. The ASMFC plan kept in place a key management goal of a regional spawning potential ratio (SPR) of 40 percent for the species. That rate has fluctuated for more than two decades in South Carolina waters and has fallen to a low of approximately 14 percent in 2023; a number that should be truly alarming to all anglers. South Carolina has encountered low numbers in the past, sparking change as far back as 2001. With the cooperation of decision makers, fisheries managers, and the recreational angling public, state management measures were pursued that emphasized red drum restoration while still maintaining a viable fishery for South Carolina’s recreational fishing community.

“We have reached an inflection point in the management of red drum and clearly, we need to do what is in the best interest for the long-term stability of this valuable resource,” said Scott Whitaker, CCA SC executive director. “This is a responsible stewardship action to take given the most recent science, the ubiquitous challenges of the fishery, and the reverence this species holds among anglers in the state”.

The South Atlantic red snapper fishery has been a frustrating debacle for anglers for well more than a decade. Despite a population that has been declared the most robust in recent history, recreational seasons have been measured in days…sometimes a single day. In 2025, the season was just two days and NOAA Fisheries was promoting plans to close the bottom in some areas to prevent any take of red snapper, even as bycatch!

Recognizing the flaws with federal management of red snapper, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina submitted proposals for Exempted Fishing Permits (EFP). The permits would allow the states to test data collection and management improvements that would significantly increase recreational access to Atlantic red snapper this year, with Florida planning a 39-day season while the other states propose 62-day seasons.

NOAA Fisheries has opened a public comment period for these EFP proposals. This gives anglers the chance to leave feedback in support of these proposals and explain how their communities would benefit from them. Click the Take Action button to be taken to the comment page, and feel free to use the talking points below to add to your own views and experience in lending your support to these state management proposals:

• I support approval of the South Atlantic state EFPs to test data collection and management strategies for Atlantic red snapper.
• The Atlantic red snapper population is the healthiest it has been in decades. The EFPs would help break the cycle of extreme access limitations for this abundant fishery while testing much needed data collection improvements.
• Federal management of red snapper has been based on inaccurate catch and effort estimates from the Marine Recreational Information Program, which is ineffective for tracking Atlantic red snapper catches.
• The states propose recreational data collection improvements that would provide critical baseline data to better inform future management decisions.
• Longer recreational red snapper seasons better balance conservation with harvest opportunities and will benefit anglers by significantly increasing harvest opportunities compared to NOAA’s two-day season in 2025.

The comment period ends March 10 so please act now and spread the word to your fishing family members and friends!