April 5, 2019 — A proposal to let dozens of new lobstermen into Maine’s signature fishery is going to be put off until at least 2020.
More than 200 people are waiting for a state license to harvest lobster, and the annual haul has grown in volume and value this decade. Earlier this year, state Rep. Joyce McCreight, a Democrat of Harpswell, proposed bringing people into the fishery if they’ve been waiting for 10 or more years.
McCreight said she’s going to withdraw the bill from the current legislative session and consider bringing it back in the next session, which starts in January. The lobster industry is facing too much uncertainty to bring more than 50 new fishermen in at once, she said.
Lobstermen have had several productive years in a row, but this year the business is facing a bait shortage and potential new fishing rules to protect rare whales.
“We’re going to soon have info about whales and bait. Let’s see what we get,” McCreight said. “I’d like to have a bill — let’s not kill it.”
Many members of the lobstering industry were skeptical of McCreight’s proposal from the beginning and some said holding it over until the next session is a good idea. Bringing new fishermen into the business could have also hurt the state in ongoing discussions with regulators about new whale protection rules, said Kristan Porter, president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association.