Jane Lubchenco made one very important public commitment — on the record and under oath. She noted that the problems in enforcement of fishery regulations, documented in a blistering report by U.S. Commerce Department Inspector General Todd Zinser, had predated her tenure. But she added, "I own them, and I intend to fix them."
If Lubchenco truly intends to fix the problems, there are two things she should carry out immediately.
The first is to out and out fire Dale Jones, the NOAA law enforcement director for the past decade of the National Marine Fisheries Service.
Second, she should order that $8.5 million in an Asset Forfeiture Fund, also controlled by Jones until recently, be spent on improvements to the fishery, and on providing reimbursement to Northeast fishermen who have been driven into bankruptcy and out of the industry by fines and penalties 250 percent more severe than those handed out in other parts of the country.