Sen. Kerry and the other members of the Massachusetts delegation should be applauded for their tireless work in helping the state's fishermen. The hearing will raise many legitimate concerns about the New England groundfish fishery and how decisions were made in the past. This open forum is also the perfect time to talk about solutions: improvements to the sector program to help more fishermen succeed in this new management system.

It's been well over a year since the New England groundfish fishery underwent a substantial shift in management and began operating as sectors, or cooperative-like groups that share an annual allocation of fish. At the same time, a separate rule went into effect requiring groundfish fishermen to begin operating under strict catch limits.

The New England fishing industry has been struggling for decades. Although the new sector system hasn't provided an instant solution to the decline in fishing vessels and jobs, the program has led to other improvements on the water and at the dock, bringing hope of stability. With a year of experience in how the system is working, it is now time to focus on some commonsense solutions to ensure the system works effectively for as many fishermen as possible.

Read the complete opinion piece from The Standard-Times