June 11, 2020 — Eligible Massachusetts commercial fishermen and other seafood businesses could begin receiving funds in late July or early August from the $28 million in federal fishery assistance designated for the Massachusetts seafood industry, according to the state’s top fishery regulator.
But Dan McKiernan, the newly appointed director of the state Division of Marine Fisheries, also joined the growing chorus of public officials and seafood stakeholders who say the funds won’t come close to covering the more than $500 million in losses projected for the state’s four major seafood components: commercial fishing, seafood processing, for-hire charter services and aquaculture.
“That’s the unfortunate aspect,” McKiernan said in an interview with the Gloucester Daily Times. “The losses are so great that they can’t be covered by the $28 million. Commercial fishing lost $28 million in March and April alone. That’s just fishing.”
McKiernan said four separate groups began working this week to develop spending plans for each of the four industry components, along with eligibility requirements and the structure of payment methods and systems.