The purpose of this rule amendment is to modify the Commission’s Spiny Lobster Rule regarding the reduction in the number of lobster trap certificates. The lobster trap certificate reduction was initiated to reduce overcapitalization in the commercial spiny lobster fishery and to address concerns about excessive mortality of undersized lobsters, declining yield per trap, and public concerns over debris pollution from existing traps. The reduction process has been under moratorium since 2003. The effect of this rule amendment will be to end the moratorium and implement a trap certificate reduction schedule whereby upon the sale or transfer of certificates outside the immediate family of the certificate holder, the number of certificates received by the purchaser shall be reduced by 10 percent. Once the number of lobster trap certificates is reduced to 400,000, there shall be no further reduction in the number of lobster trap certificates issued each year thorough this mechanism. Reducing the number of traps will maintain fishing effort in the spiny lobster fishery at a level to maintain the fishery’s yield while maximizing economic efficiency, reducing ecological impacts, and preserving the general aesthetics of the coastal environment.