September 23, 2005 The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection's Division of Fish and Wildlife will host two public meetings regarding changes to the ASMFC's Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Weakfish. The first meeting will be held on October 12 in Cape May County; the second on October 13 in Ocean County. The changes were developed to address declines in weakfish abundance, and commercial and recreational catches. Proposals include reductions in recreational bag limits, commercial and recreational seasons, and by-catch allowances. Modifications also address a major challenge in assessing the weakfish population, namely significant gaps in biological data such as age and length. As a result, new required levels of biological sampling intensity are proposed. Atlantic coastal states from Rhode Island through Florida have also scheduled public meetings. Details on New Jersey's meetings follow: Wednesday, October 12 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. Rutgers Cooperative Research and Extension 355 Court House-South Dennis Road Route 657 Cape May Court House, New Jersey Thursday, October 13 7-9 p.m. Ocean County Administration Building Room 119 101 Hooper Avenue Toms River, New Jersey Copies of the proposed changes may be obtained via the ASMFC's Web site at www.asmfc.org under Breaking News or by calling 202-289-6400. Written comments will be accepted until 5 p.m. on October 21, 2005 and should be forwarded to Fishery Management Plan Coordinator Braddock Spear at 1444 Eye Street, NW, Sixth Floor, Washington, DC 20005, faxed to 202-289-6051, or e-mailed to comments@asmfc.org (use subject line: Weakfish).