The Alaska Migratory Bird Co-Management Council (AMBCC), consisting of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and Alaska Native representatives, generally meets in the spring to develop recommendations for changing spring/summer subsistence harvest regulations. Based on population status data and proposals reviewed by the AMBCC, they recommended the statewide closure of the emperor goose harvest and the elimination of the permit requirement for the Kodiak Island roaded area. In addition, some administrative corrections and updates have been proposed.

In 2024, the population index of emperor geese declined below the closure threshold of 23,000 birds and triggered a closure, as agreed to in the AMBCC Management Plan. The 2024 Coastal Zone index for emperor geese was 18,788 (95 percent confidence interval of 16,589–20,988) birds. 

Participation and harvest of migratory birds during the spring/summer subsistence harvest was relatively low during the 3-year experimental permit season (2021-2023) in the Kodiak Island Roaded Area. A proposal was submitted by the Kodiak Region to change the regulations for the roaded area, and the AMBCC subsequently recommended eliminating the permit and harvest reporting requirement. The AMBCC acknowledges that permit and harvest reporting requirements are not part of customary and traditional hunting practices and may be a barrier to Indigenous participation and costly to administer.

The proposed administrative corrections and updates include revising an incorrect reference to the United States Code, clarifying the language regarding regional species-specific harvest restrictions, and updating the common and/or scientific names of three migratory bird species.

Please search for Docket No. FWS–R7–MB–2024–0197 on https://www.regulations.gov for an electronic version of this proposed rule.

Proposals are accepted from Nov. 1 through Dec. 15 of each year to change the harvest regulations. The proposal form is available online at The Alaska Migratory Bird Co-Management Council Proposal Form. Proposals submitted will be reviewed by the AMBCC Technical Committee and considered by the AMBCC at their spring meeting.