January 15, 2021 — The New England Fishery Management Council will assume a decidedly different composition later this year when four councilors with almost 40 years combined tenure exit because of term limits.
On Aug. 10, the terms of Chairman John Quinn of Massachusetts, Matthew McKenzie of Connecticut, Vincent Balzano and Terry Alexander, both of Maine, are set to expire.
Each is in his third term and will have served the maximum nine consecutive years when the terms expire.
“The new members will come onboard on Aug. 11,” said Janice Plante, council spokeswoman. “We expect the Commerce Department will make an announcement on the new members around the end of June.”
The U.S. Commerce Department manages the nomination and appointment process for all eight U.S. fishery management councils through NOAA Fisheries. It also relies on nominations from the governors of individual states represented by the councils.