Just as she did in January when acknowledging the serious nature of the report, Lubchenco did not get into the details of why enforcement is seen as heavy-handed and arbitrary, especially in the Northeast. She left that to the inspector general's report.

But she did impose a series of orders to the management of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that run down the list of problems spotted by the inspector in interviews with hundreds of people.

The first of her orders is the most sweeping and addresses the question of the evenhandedness and fairness of the enforcement actions taken against those who violate fishing regulations and restrictions.

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