Federal fishing regulators are considering new ways to help revive the striped bass population after new estimates show the species remains overfished. 

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which oversees stripers, is concerned that the fish will struggle to rebuild its stock in the coming years, prompting a special meeting next month to consider how to move forward. 

A new report from commission staff found that fishing mortality, the number of fish that die or are harvested annually, is expected to increase in 2025 and 2026, as the last strong generation of fish is expected to grow into harvestable size.

“Unfortunately, the results of the update are not all promising and there is the prospect of additional striped bass fishery restrictions in the coming years, possibly even in 2025,”  the state Division of Marine Fisheries wrote in a bulletin to fishermen. 

Stripers, a beloved fish on the Vineyard, came to the brink of extinction in the 1980s, and efforts to rebuild the stock have been going on for years. The most recent plan, enacted in 2019, sought to have the species in a stronger position by 2029. 

But the new report from the commission shows the chance that the commission meets its 2029 goals has fallen below 50 per cent, triggering the new review. 

“That’s really the impetus for the board to consider action in 2025,” said Emilie Frank, the fishery management plan coordinator with the fisheries commission. 

The commission could consider changing the current striper size limit for recreational fishermen, as well as seasonal closures, she said. On the commercial side, the commission is considering reducing the current quota. 

The last strong class of striped bass was in 2018, and now, almost seven years later, the fish are starting to grow into the harvestable size. But with no strong generations of fish behind them, officials are concerned that if the 2018 cohort is heavily fished, it could hurt the entire stock. 

“The board is really concerned that after this above average 2018 class, there aren’t any strong classes coming behind it,” Ms. Frank said.

Emergency regulations were put into place last year to aid stripers, which are below the target stock numbers. At the time, the commission dropped the maximum keeper size limit for a striped bass from 35 inches to 31. 

The recreational fishermen slot for a keeper fish is now between 28 inches and 31 inches. Commercial fishermen in Massachusetts can only catch fish longer than 35 inches. 

Ms. Frank said that while striped bass are still not back to where the commission had hoped, the fish are doing much better than previous decades. 

“We are still above where we were when the stock was collapsed,” she said. 

The commission plans to have a meeting to discuss future options at a Dec. 16 meeting. Members of the public can submit comments on potential management measures and an informational webinar is being held on Dec. 5. 

Details on the webinar and how to virtually attend the meeting, being held in-person in Virginia, will be posted on the commission website.