March 23, 2021 — The White House has appointed Jane Lubchenco, a well-known marine scientist at Oregon State University and former head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to a high-level position coordinating climate and environmental issues within its Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).
Wicker, Cantwell Reintroduce Fishery Disasters Bill
March 18, 2021 — The following was released by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation:
U.S. Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., ranking member and chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today reintroduced legislation to reform the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)’s Fishery Resource Disaster Relief program of the National Marine Fisheries Service. This legislation, the Fishery Resource Disasters Improvement Act, will make improvements to provide fishermen with disaster relief more quickly.
“I have met with local officials and seen firsthand how extensive flooding in Mississippi has created an economic and environmental emergency for my state and its coastal fisheries,” said Wicker. “Freshwater has devastated our seafood industry and spurred the growth of Harmful Algal Blooms, further hurting our coastal economy. This legislation would expedite the process by which fishermen receive disaster relief. I hope my colleagues will move quickly to pass this bill and help our fishermen.”
“In Washington, fisheries are a cornerstone of our maritime economy. Its related businesses and seafood processors, ship builders, gear manufacturers, support 60 percent of our maritime economy, which is about 146,000 jobs and 30 billion in economic activity,” said Cantwell. “Washington has experienced 17 fishery disasters since 1992, including crab, groundfish, and salmon. There are several pending fishery disaster determinations for my state, and our bipartisan bill includes deadlines to ensure that those fishery disasters are elevated and declared in a reasonable timeframe. Fishermen are tired of waiting.”
The Fishery Resource Disasters Improvement Act would:
- Maintain the authority of the Secretary of Commerce to determine the existence of a fishery disaster, after which the Secretary would make funds available to be used by state or regional groups to assess the impacts of the disaster and conduct other activities that support fishing activity;
- Assign a 120-day timeline for the Secretary to evaluate a request, either upon receipt or immediately after the close of the fishery season; and
- List the eligible uses of fishery disaster relief funds, including direct payments to affected members of the fishing community, habitat restoration and conservation, management improvements, job training, public information campaigns, and preventative measures for future disasters. It would prioritize hiring fishermen displaced by the fishery disaster for these tasks.
To read the full bill, click here.
Deb Haaland Becomes First Native American Cabinet Secretary
March 16, 2021 — Representative Deb Haaland of New Mexico made history on Monday when the Senate confirmed her as President Biden’s secretary of the Interior, making her the first Native American to lead a cabinet agency.
Ms. Haaland in 2018 became one of the first two Native American women elected to the House. But her new position is particularly redolent of history because the department she now leads has spent much of its history abusing or neglecting America’s Indigenous people.
Beyond the Interior Department’s responsibility for the well-being of the nation’s 1.9 million Native people, it oversees about 500 million acres of public land, federal waters off the United States coastline, a huge system of dams and reservoirs across the Western United States and the protection of thousands of endangered species.
“A voice like mine has never been a Cabinet secretary or at the head of the Department of Interior,” she wrote on Twitter before the vote. “Growing up in my mother’s Pueblo household made me fierce. I’ll be fierce for all of us, our planet, and all of our protected land.”
Sen. Cantwell Questions Department of Commerce Nominee on Census Delays and Fisheries Disaster Relief
March 16, 2021 — The following was released by the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation:
U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, questioned Don Graves, nominee to be Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce, on issues regarding Census data for the State of Washington and getting disaster relief funds for fishermen in the Pacific Northwest.
The Census Bureau announced last month that it is delaying its deadline for releasing data needed to draw Census maps, and the information that should be delivered in March will not be available until September 30th of this year. In the State of Washington, a bipartisan commission draws and approves the 10-year congressional and legislative redistricting plans and must do so by November 15th. This shortened window will lead to a truncated commission process and limit the community engagement that normally allows Washingtonians to have significant input in these maps.
Chair Cantwell addressed this issue in her questioning with Mr. Graves: “[The delay] will cause challenges for states as they try to meet their constitutional duties on redistricting,” Cantwell said. “So, some are already struggling with how to get meaningful public input with a truncated timeline. If confirmed, will you work to address the state issues and address the accuracy and timeliness of the Census?”
Graves responded, “I absolutely will work on that issue. I will also listen to the experts, the career experts at the department, and not allow politics to impact the accuracy and timeliness of the Census.”
In her questioning, Cantwell also highlighted the need for immediate fisheries disaster funding for WA state fishermen: “There are several pending fishery disaster determinations for my state, such as Washington Puget Sound Coho salmon fishery, they’ve been pending for years. Senator Wicker and I are planning to reintroduce our bipartisan bill, which is about reform of the fisheries disaster process, including deadlines to ensure that fishery disasters are elevated and declared in a reasonable timeframe. Let me be blunt: our fishermen are tired of waiting, dealing with NOAA on these fisheries. It’s taken literally years to receive, you know, the disaster determination, let alone the funding. So we need a solution and we need reform. How will you help turn the tide on what seems like an endless cycle of disaster timing?”
Graves responded, “You and I have talked about this in the past and I appreciate how critical it is for the fisheries around the country, and especially for the fishing industry. Sustainably managed fisheries are critical to our economy, to our culture, to the fishing industry. I will absolutely work with the career staff at NOAA to make certain that we get these disaster dollars out the door and supporting those communities that have been most critically impacted by the pandemic, and by the challenge to our fisheries.”
Video of Chair Cantwell’s opening statement can be found HERE and audio is HERE.
Video of Cantwell’s Q&A with Mr. Graves can be found HERE and audio is HERE.
Transcripts can be found HERE.
Biden signs American Rescue Plan, providing aid for restaurants, seafood industry
March 11, 2021 — U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday, 11 March, signed the USD 1.9 trillion (EUR 1.59 trillion) American Rescue Plan Act into law, opening the door for billions in aid to go to businesses – including nearly USD 29 billion (EUR 24.2 billion) for a restaurant industry that’s been battered by closures and other restrictions over the past year due to COVID-19.
On Thursday, the National Restaurant Association lauded the bill’s Restaurant Revitalization Fund, which association president and CEO Tom Bene said will help save jobs across the country.
House passes amended Rescue Plan, keeps amendment for seafood purchases
March 10, 2021 — The U.S. House of Representatives gave final approval on 10 March to a USD 1.9 trillion (EUR 1.6 trillion) COVID-relief spending plan that includes some opportunities for the seafood industry to benefit.
A spokesperson for U.S. President Joe Biden said during the vote that he is expected to sign the bill into law on Friday, 12 March, according to C-SPAN.
Gina Raimondo confirmed as US Commerce Department secretary
March 4, 2021 — By an 84-15 vote on the afternoon of Tuesday, 2 March, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo as the next U.S. secretary of Commerce. In that position, Raimondo will be the top official in the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden to oversee the federal government’s policies concerning the fishing industry.
Raimondo was nominated for the position on 7 January and testified before the Senate on 27 January. She was sworn into her new position in the evening of Wednesday, 3 March.
Biden’s Commerce Secretary, Gina Raimondo, Confirmed By Senate
March 2, 2021 — The Senate confirmed Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo on Tuesday as the next secretary of the U.S. Commerce Department.
With a 84-15 confirmation vote that was delayed by a procedural move in February by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Raimondo is set to lead one of the federal government’s most eclectic departments, which includes the Census Bureau, close to two months after President Biden announced the Democratic governor’s nomination.
As secretary, Raimondo is set to take on a portfolio of agencies that also includes the Minority Business Development Agency, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Raimondo, the first woman to lead Rhode Island, is cutting short her second term as governor of the country’s smallest state to join the Biden administration.
During the confirmation process, Raimondo emphasized the need for the department to address how the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged the economy and underscored structural inequities facing people of color and families with lower incomes.
American Rescue Plan Act faces US Senate scrutiny this week
March 2, 2021 — U.S. foodservice industry groups celebrated after the House of Representatives passed the American Rescue Plan Act – U.S. President Joe Biden’s proposed USD 1.9 trillion (EUR 1.6 trillion) COVID-19 relief plan – in the early morning hours of Sunday, 28 February.
The legislation includes a USD 25 billion (EUR 21 billion) restaurant grant program, as well as USD 3.6 billion (EUR 3 billion) to support the food supply chain, including food purchases and loans to small- and mid-sized processors, with a specific mention of seafood processing facilities. The bill also calls for the creation of a USD 15 billion (EUR 13 billion) grant program for small business owners, separate from the existing Paycheck Protection Program.
REP. DEFAZIO RE-INTRODUCES SOUTHWESTERN OREGON SALMON AND WATERSHED PROTECTION ACT TO MAKE SW OREGON MINING BAN PERMANENT
March 1, 2021 — The following was released by The Office of Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR):
Rep. Peter DeFazio yesterday re-introduced legislation to make permanent a twenty-year ban on new mining projects in the Pistol River and Rough and Ready Creek watersheds in southwest Oregon.
“These watersheds provide critical drinking water for several communities and support highly sensitive ecosystems for salmon as well as the highest concentrations of rare plants in Oregon,” said Rep. DeFazio. “This legislation is necessary to maintain the current 20-year ban on mining in the area and will enable Congress to make that ban permanent. For the health of our communities and ecosystems throughout the region, it is imperative to protect this area from the threat of foreign-owned mining companies.”
“The headwaters of our wild rivers are no place for strip mining,” said Ann Vileisis, President of the Kalmiopsis Audubon Society, Port Orford. “We’re grateful that Rep. DeFazio continues to fight to protect Southwest Oregon’s cherished rivers.”
“As a brewer, I care deeply about protecting the source of the water I use to make great beer,” said James Smith, Arch Rock Brewery, Gold Beach. “I applaud Congressman DeFazio for introducing legislation to permanently protect the headwaters of Hunter Creek and other amazing wild rivers in southwestern Oregon from the threat of strip mining.”
“I so appreciate that Rep. DeFazio has reintroduced the Southwestern Oregon Watershed and Salmon Protection Act,” said Dave Lacey, South Coast Tours, Gold Beach. “It means so much to local residents of Curry County to protect our rivers. My business, South Coast Tours, is completely reliant on thriving and resilient ecosystems that would be imperiled by strip mining the headwaters of our Wild Rivers Coast streams.”
In 2017, the Obama administration agreed to DeFazio’s request to establish a 20-year ban on new mining projects in the Pistol River and Rough and Ready Creek watersheds.
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