Citing a “Systemic Failure”, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley is calling on the United States Department of Commerce to voluntarily release documents pertaining to disciplinary and corrective actions taken by the Department, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) with regard to “overzealous” and “abusive” prosecutions of Massachusetts fishermen.
The following was released by the Massachusetts Attorney General's office:
BOSTON – Sept. 29, 2011 — Seeking further accountability about actions taken to correct a systemic failure that led to the “overzealous” and “abusive” prosecutions of Massachusetts fishermen, Attorney General Martha Coakley is calling on the United States Department of Commerce to voluntarily release documents pertaining to disciplinary and corrective actions taken by the Department, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in response to the revelations.
Coakley’s office issued the letter to Acting Commerce Department Secretary Rebecca Blank yesterday.
“Regulations are only effective and appropriate when we can ensure the integrity of those who enforce them,” AG Coakley said. “We believe only a full review of the decisions made in the past can restore the faith of our office and the public in NOAA’s enforcement efforts going forward.”
In the letter to Secretary Blank, Attorney General Coakley raises significant concerns stemming from an investigation by the Inspector General of the Department of Commerce and a subsequent report issued by Special Master Charles B. Swartwood, III that found that NOAA engaged in enforcement practices that were excessive and unreasonable. The IG’s and Special Master’s reports outlined a pattern of abuses committed by law enforcement personnel under that agency’s oversight that negatively impacted the livelihoods of individual fisherman, businesses, and fishing communities in Massachusetts.
In her letter AG Coakley states that questions remain about what disciplinary actions, if any, the Department, NOAA or NMFS took in response to conduct of personnel that was described by the Special Master as “overzealous, abusive or arbitrary.” Further, there has been little detailed information about how, or even if, the Department plans to address the “systemic failings” of managerial oversight acknowledged by former-Commerce Secretary Gary Locke in the NOAA Northeast Regional Office.
AG Coakley also calls for further corrective action to provide necessary restitution to those affected by the prosecutions including the refund of legal costs incurred by all parties that were found to have been unfairly penalized, and restitution for lost business costs due to overzealous suspensions. AG Coakley is requesting a voluntary release of all documents relied upon by the Secretary of Commerce, NOAA and NMFS in order to ensure that safeguards are in place to prevent such abusive behavior from re-occurring in the future
Last month, AG Coakley expressed her support for two bills filed by Senator John Kerry and Congressman Barney Frank which amend the federal Magnuson-Stevens Act Fishery Conservation and Management Act (“MSA”). The bills would establish a formal process to reimburse local fishermen for legal fees incurred while appealing excessive fishing fines.
Today’s letter is a continuation of the Attorney General’s efforts to advocate for Massachusetts fishing communities. In 2006, the AG successfully brought a lawsuit against the U.S. Secretary of Commerce arguing that the fisheries management plan in place at the time, Framework 42, did not properly consider the interests of fishermen and fishing communities. While the Attorney General’s Office was able to successfully force the modification of Framework 42, AG Coakley has expressed new concerns with the recent transition to a “catch share” system, known as Amendment 16, and submitted briefs as amici in lawsuits challenging Amendment 16.
Read the letter from Attorney General Coakley to Acting Secretary Blank