Saving Seafood

Help for Hawaii’s Fishing Industry

July 14, 2020 — When it comes to Hawaii’s homegrown food sustainability, farming operations usually come to mind. But beyond farm aid, fish aid can’t be forgotten. That’s particularly true in Hawaii, the source of coveted quality catches such as tuna, billfish (swordfish and marlin), and open-ocean fish (mahimahi, ono and opah).

Just as farmers have been hard-hit by the months-long pandemic shutdown, so, too, have fishers and related operations. The shuttering of restaurants, seafood markets and other fish outlets have left some vessels inactive in Honolulu Harbor for 3-1/2 months, with about half of the workforce laid off. The COVID-19 lockdown has caused a 50% reduction in revenue for Hawaii longline vessels over the last four months, totaling losses of more than $20 million so far.

Read the full opinion piece at Seafood News

HAWAII: City throws a line to the longline fishing industry with a new program

July 8, 2020 — Nearly 350,000 fish portions will be distributed to Oahu families over the next five months.

It’s part of a new city initiative called the “Fish to Dish” program. Its intended to support families in need while helping the longline fishing industry.

The city is paying for it with more than $2.6 million from the Coronavirus Relief Act. The funding is expected to cover 28 vessel landings per week for the next three months.

“This support really does, in many ways, act as an investment into Hawaii’s fishing industry, into its future, as well as to get us through this pandemic period,” Eric Kingma, executive director of the Hawaii Longline Association said.

Kingma added that recent restaurants welcoming back customers have helped stabilize the ahi market in particular, but the other fish species continue to take a hit.

Read the full story at Hawaii News Now

Paycheck Protection Program extended again, allowing more 1099 claims

July 2, 2020 — As the deadline for the Paycheck Protection Program’s small business extension drew to a close this week, Congress scrambled to approve an extension of the program to Aug. 8. Meanwhile, fishing businesses hurried to submit applications under the original deadline as new guidelines opened a door to the industry.

On Thursday, June 25, the Small Business Administration announced that the loan program, which was established as part of the CARES Act, would be expanded specifically to address a gap for the commercial fishing industry to include filings for 1099 workers.

“Extending the program to fishermen impacted by the pandemic will be a critical lifeline so they can continue to provide Americans with the safest, most sustainable seafood in the world,” said Leigh Habegger, executive director of Seafood Harvesters of America.

But the application deadline was Tuesday, June 30, giving the industry just four business days to collect paperwork and file — at the height of the summer season.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Paycheck Protection Program Deadline Extension

July 1, 2020 — The following was released by The Office of Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK):

The U.S. Senate unanimously passed legislation to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to August 8, 2020. The small business loan program expired yesterday, on June 30. It now needs to pass the House in order for it to be sent to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

Just last week the Department of Treasury and Small Business Administration announced a rule allowing commercial fishing businesses to account for crew member payroll when applying for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, a change that the Alaska Congressional Delegation had been seeking for weeks. While commercial fishing businesses were previously eligible for PPP loans, before June 25th they were not fully able to take advantage of the PPP due to the Department of Treasury’s previous interpretation of eligible payroll costs. Treasury issued a rule on June 25th to address this. While the fix was welcome news, this gave commercial fishing businesses just days to apply for PPP funds before the June 30 deadline.

“We’ve seen the importance of the Paycheck Protection Program to countless small businesses in Alaska. During this unprecedented coronavirus pandemic, it has been helped them weather the storm,” said Senator Murkowski. “With last week’s fix to finally allow commercial fishing businesses to take full advantage of the program, this extension is absolutely necessary to give them the opportunity and time they need to apply. My hope is that the House quickly takes this legislation up so that we can give these small business owners, including our fisherman, the peace of mind they need.”

“The recent rule change enabling commercial fishermen to more fully access the Paycheck Protection Program was a big win for Alaska, but the narrow window of time left to apply—especially in the middle of fishing season for many—threatened to blunt the benefits,” said Senator Sullivan. “I thank my Senate colleagues for extending the PPP application deadline and, if this bill makes it past the House and the President’s desk, I urge all interested Alaska small businesses, including our hard-working fishermen, to apply quickly so they don’t miss out on the remaining PPP relief funds.”

Click here for more information on the Paycheck Protection Program.

Bipartisan Bill Will Amend MSA to Include COVID-19 as Fisheries Disaster

June 15, 2020 — While thousands of fishermen around the country struggle to get relief funds promised in the CARES Act that was passed last March, two U.S. representatives from different parts of the country introduced a bill yesterday that would resolve many of the problems.

Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA) and Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME)’s new bill would amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation Act (MSA) to allow fisheries disasters to pandemic, such as COVID-19 to be added to the list of disasters eligible for relief.

Read the full story at Seafood News

SEN. ED MARKEY: Fighting for fishermen during COVID-19

June 15, 2020 — Our historic and robust fishing industry is among the hardest-hit sectors of our state’s economy, in the fourth month of this pandemic. The “Sacred Cod” that has hung in the Massachusetts statehouse since the 1700s has seen the fishing industry go through many crises, but this one has been unique.

Restaurants have shuttered and large export markets have been disrupted. Fishermen have lost access to critical points of sale and sources of income. With a decreased demand for fresh seafood, many boats sit idle in port. Meanwhile, boat payments are due and families need to be fed.

In the U.S. Senate, I have been fighting on a bipartisan basis alongside Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Alaska senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan to secure dedicated economic assistance for the fishing and seafood industries in COVID-19 economic relief packages. Thankfully, this bi-coastal effort got results. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, enacted into law on March 27, included $300 million in assistance for fishery participants and $9.5 billion for affected agricultural producers.

Read the full opinion piece at the Gloucester Daily Times

Markey and Warren Seek $500M in Additional Fisheries Aid

June 8, 2020 — U.S. Sens. Edward J. Markey and Elizabeth Warren on Friday called on U.S. Senate leadership to include $500 million in additional fisheries assistance in the next coronavirus recovery package.

In their June 5 letter, the senators said $28 million in fisheries assistance already allocated to Massachusetts should be supplemented as the pandemic continues to affect demand through the summer month’s peak harvests.

“Compared to the previous five-year average, in March and April of this year, Massachusetts bivalve shellfish landings lost 60 percent of their value, lobster landings lost 40 percent of their value, recreational head boats have been completely shut down, and seafood processors have lost their usual restaurant market,” the letter stated.

In Massachusetts, four sectors – commercial fishing, aquaculture, seafood processing, and for-hire recreational fishing – expect pandemic-related losses of 35 percent, leading to approximately $500 million in lost revenue over the year, the letter said.

“The $28 million in CARES Act fisheries assistance allocated to Massachusetts is not sufficient to help the four fisheries sectors survive revenue losses beyond April, and the pandemic is far from over,” the two wrote.

Read the full story at WBSM