Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. v. Donald Evans

316 F.3d 904 NATURAL RESOURCES DEFENSE COUNCIL, INC.; The Center for Marine Conservation, Inc., Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. Donald EVANS, Secretary of Commerce; The National Marine. Fisheries Service; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Defendants-Appellants. No. 01-17143. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted December 4, 2002. Filed January 13, 2003. Todd S. Kim, U.S. Department of Justice, Environment & Natural Resources Division, Washington, D.C., for the defendants-appellants. Andrew P. Caputo, Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., San Francisco, California, for the plaintiffs-appellees. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California; James Larson, Magistrate Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CV-01-00637-JL. Before RYMER, THOMAS and SILVERMAN, Circuit Judges. RYMER, Circuit Judge. 1 This appeal requires us to decide whether the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), must provide notice and the opportunity for public comment before issuing specifications and management measures for the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery. 2 The Natural Resources Defense…