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Nor-Cal Guides & Sportsmen's Association

Salmon Season 3 alternatives proposed by the Pacific Fishery Managament Council

Updated April 12, 2026

SACRAMENTO, CA — The OCEAN Salmon Season fishing dates were presented at the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) meetings starting in March. The 3 alternatives of dates for each zone were discussed daily at the PFMC’s April meetings and were revised during the council process as each agency weighed in. You can watch (rewind and forward) the PFMC meetings that are recorded and streamed live on their Youtube channel. 

NOTE: The Salmon Season fishing dates are not final and won’t be final until the end of the meeting process when the session concludes on Sunday, April 12. The Fish and Game Commission discusses the dates at their April 15-16 meetings and then sets the inland fishing regulations on May 5 based on the PFMC’s recommendations.

• The PFMC makes changes to the Salmon Season dates or three alternatives at the meetings according to each agenda item as new information and quotas are considered. The Salmon Technical Team (STT) report will list these dates and update their reports as the meetings progress.
• Find the initial dates proposed for each zone that were proposed in the March meeting on the PFMC’s website under the March meeting’s Briefing Book. Look for the C.6.a Supplemental STT Report 1: Salmon Technical Team Report Collation of Preliminary Salmon Management Alternatives for 2026 Ocean Fisheries.
• Find the April Meeting’s Briefing Book with all the ocean species reports for the April PFMC meetings here: https://www.pcouncil.org/council_meeting/april-2026-council-meeting/
• Salmon Homework: Read from the Briefing Book Agenda Item D5a: SCIENTIFIC AND STATISTICAL COMMITTEE REPORT ON METHODOLOGY REVIEW PRELIMINARY TOPIC SELECTION
• Salmon fishing dates proposed in each day’s STT Report: Read reports from the PFMC April Meetings Briefing Book under the SALMON agenda items: D.6.a SALMON TECHNICAL TEAM REPORT COLLATION OF PRELIMINARY SALMON MANAGEMENT ALTERNATIVES FOR 2026 OCEAN FISHERIES
• On the final day of the Council meetings (Sunday), you can read the last STT report, Agenda D.8.a of ocean fishing dates: SALMON TECHNICAL TEAM REPORT PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS OF TENTATIVE 2026 OCEAN SALMON FISHERY MANAGEMENT MEASURES

• There are different dates and quotas for each zone in these reports, so scroll through every page and look at the title on the top of the page to find either your commercial zone or recreational zone.
• The PFMC takes written comments from the Public weeks before the meetings start. These comments are included in the fish agencies’ briefing book of materials. These comments are where the public can weigh in on what they’d like to see for each fishery. Visit the PFMC’s E-portal for the April meetings to read more than 200+ comments about SALMON that were submitted from the public: https://pfmc.agendacomments.com/Meeting/Details/5133

PFMC and FGC Timeline: 

• The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) finalized its recommendations for California’s recreational and commercial ocean salmon seasons and harvest limits at its April 7-12 meeting in Portland, Ore. The PFMC will forward its recommendations to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), which will implement them into federal regulations. NOAA has to approve the season as they are in charge of safeguarding any ESA listed species. A summary of the recreational season dates, locations and harvest guidelines will be available on CDFW’s Ocean Salmon Fishery Information web page
• State Action: Based on the PFMC recommendations, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) recommends specific in-river dates to the Fish and Game Commission at their April 15-16 meeting (Agenda), with final adoption on May 5 (see below).
  

  

• CDFW Ocean Salmon Regulations Hotline at (707) 576-3429. Public notification of any in-season change to conform state regulations to federal regulations is made through the NMFS ocean salmon hotline at (800) 662-9825.

Process and Numbers Explained