WASHINGTON – Jan. 7, 2011 – (Saving Seafood) After announcing with great fanfare before the November election that he was "prepared to issue an emergency regulation to revise catch limits whenever there is both sufficient economic and sound scientific data available to meet these requirements.", Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced today that he will not agree to either Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick's request for increased allocation of groundfish in New England, nor for economic aid.
In letters sent to Governor Deval Patrick and Congressman Barney Frank, the secretary wrote: "I need scientific data not previously considered by the Council because the Magnuson Stevens Act does not permit me to overrule Council decisions on the basis of a disagreement over scientific judgment. In the absence of new scientific data, I am consequently unable to exercise my emergency rule authority in response to information in the Report."
The Secretary continued, "With respect to Governor Patrick's request for $21 million in direct economic relief for the impacts caused by the transition to catch shares under Sections 312(a) and 315 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the data provided are insufficient to warrant either a fishery disaster or a commercial fishery failure under that Act."
Read the letter from Secretary Locke to Governor Patrick
Read the letter from Secretary Locke to Congressman Frank
Read the letter from NMFS Adminstrator Eric Schwaab to Governor Patrick