Patrick Keliher Patrick Keliher (Photo courtesy Maine Dept. of Marine Resources) Policy and Management Bureau The New England Fishery Management Council met on December 1-3 via webinar. Much of the current work of the Council is focused on identifying specifications for fishing year 2021, including catch limits for the federal scallop, whiting, and spiny dogfish fisheries. The Council did take final action on groundfish catch limits for FY2021 as a part of Framework 61. The Council will continue work on Framework 61 in January when it is slated to take final action on a redfish universal sector exemption. DMR has been auditing the data collected through the CARES Act application process. As we said in a recent email to industry, we received more than 2700 applications and appeals. We have confirmed the eligibility of the majority of applicants and we anticipate that ASMFC will mail checks to this group this week. The arrival of the checks will depend on how the Christmas season impacts the Postal Service. We are also working to resolve errors and other issues that have delayed processing of payments for the remaining 25% of applications.