The Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program (ACCSP) is a cooperative state-

federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

program of

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

s and the

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

. ACCSP was established to be the principal source of fisheries-dependent information on the

Atlantic Coast of the United States The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Eastern United States meets the North Atlantic Ocean. The eastern seaboard contains the coa ...

. Initial planning for an Atlantic coast fisheries-dependent program began in 1994 to address deficiencies in the data available for fisheries management along the Atlantic coast. The ACCSP was established in 1995 through a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the 23 state and federal agencies responsible for marine fisheries management on the Atlantic coast. The federal partners are the

United States Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

(FWS),

National Marine Fisheries Service The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), informally known as NOAA Fisheries, is a United States federal agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that is responsible for the stew ...

of the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

(NOAA). The state partners are the

Maine Department of Marine Resources Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nort ...

New Hampshire Fish and Game Department The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (NHF&G) is a department within the government of New Hampshire in the United States. The Fish and Game Department manages New Hampshire's fish, game, and aquatic plant resources. Structure The Department ...

, Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, Rhode Island Division of Fish and Wildlife,

Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is a state agency in the US state of Connecticut. The department oversees the state's natural resources and environment and regulates public utilities and energy policy. It ...

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (informally referred to as NYSDEC, DEC, EnCon or NYSENCON) is a department of New York state government. The department guides and regulates the conservation, improvement, and protection ...

New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife is a government agency in the U.S. state of New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the stat ...

, Delaware Department of Natural Resources,

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is an independent state agency responsible for the regulation of all fishing and boating in the state of Pennsylvania within the United States of America. Unlike many U.S. states, Pennsylvania has a separ ...

, District of Columbia Fisheries and Wildlife,

Maryland Department of Natural Resources The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is a government agency in the state of Maryland charged with maintaining natural resources including state parks, public lands, state forests, state waterways, wildlife, and recreation areas. It ...

Virginia Marine Resources Commission The Virginia Marine Resources Commission is a state agency charged with overseeing Virginia's marine and aquatic resources, and its tidal waters and homelands. One of the primary functions of the Commission is to zone water areas for outdoor swi ...

North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) is an agency of the government of North Carolina that focuses on the preservation and protection of natural resources and public health. The Department is headed by the Secretary of En ...

South Carolina Department of Natural Resources The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is a South Carolina state agency charged with regulating hunting, fishing, boating, duck stamp orders, and the conservation efforts of the state government. It is directed by seven-member ...

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is a Florida government agency founded in 1999 and headquartered in Tallahassee. It manages and regulates the state's fish and wildlife resources, and enforces related laws. Officers ar ...

, and

Georgia Department of Natural Resources The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is an administrative agency of the U.S. state of Georgia. The agency has statewide responsibilities for managing and conserving Georgia’s natural, cultural, and historical resources, and has five ...

. Other partners include the New England Fishery Management Council, Potomac River Fisheries Commission, Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission,

South Atlantic Fishery Management Council The eight U.S. regional fishery management councils are the primary forums for developing conservation and management measures for U.S. marine fisheries. The regional councils recommend management measures for fisheries in the Exclusive Economic ...

, and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council. The Program is separated into three divisions: a staff dedicated to handling the ACCSP standards, administrative aspects and outreach requirements of the program; a data team that seeks to identify, transform and audit datasets and answer data queries regarding fisheries' activities; and a software team that designs and builds the data collection systems for the program manages on behalf of its partners, and internal systems that support Program activities.

External links

Official website
Fisheries agencies Natural resources agencies in the United States United States Fish and Wildlife Service