April 17, 2026 –This week, fisheries managers, conservation activists, harvesters, processors and those who love seafood have cause to thank the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation Act (MSA), keystone legislation to sustainably manage the nation’s fishery resources, which turned 50 on Monday.
Led by the late US Senators Warren Magnuson (D-WA) and Ted Stevens (R-AK) in the Senate and Representatives Gerry Studds (D-MA) and Don Young (R-AK) in the House, Congress outlined a road map to expel foreign fleets from our waters and rebuild the fish stocks that were collapsing around the country. The Act also extended US jurisdiction from 12 nautical miles to 200 nautical miles and established eight regional councils to protect the nation’s federal waters.
In 1976, Alaska’s Ted Stevens was a relative newcomer to the Senate, and Washington’s Warren Magnuson was nearing the end of his career.
“I had the distinct pleasure of serving as a member, chair, and vice chair of the Caribbean Council for many years,” remembered NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler on Monday. “In fact, it is the job title that I most cherish. I also had the good fortune of meeting Senator Stevens on a number of occasions, and something he told me has always stuck with me: ‘We don’t only manage fish. We manage people.’ This is why the councils and the commitment of its members are so important.”