Saving Seafood

Huffman, Graves get AIS provision included in Coast Guard bill

March 4, 2022 — Two U.S. representatives who have worked across the aisle to combat illegal fishing practices succeeded on Wednesday, 2 March, in amending a Coast Guard funding bill to include a requirement for more fishing vessels to install tracking systems.

U.S. Reps. Jared Huffman (D-California) and Garret Graves (R-Louisiana) say requiring boats that are at least 65 feet in length to have automatic identification systems (AIS) technology on board. A grant program that includes USD 5 million (EUR 4.5 million) would be made available to help boat owners purchase the equipment.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Huffman brings back Salmon FISH Act

January 26, 2022 — On Tuesday, Jan. 25, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), reintroduced the Salmon Focused Investments in Sustainable Habitats Act. The bill, introduced first in October 2019, seeks to identify, restore, and protect the most outstanding salmon rivers and watersheds in America, and to ensure funding needed to sustain thriving salmon populations.

Habitat degradation, pollution, dams, overharvesting, climate change, and other factors have caused salmon populations to decline across the country, severely impacting Tribes, fishermen, and the communities that depend on them, according to a release from Huffman.

“The ecological, cultural, and economic importance of salmon is hard to overstate; they support tens of thousands of jobs, sustain fishing communities, generate billions of dollars in economic activity, and provide a food source for millions of people. They also hold immense cultural significance for Tribes, like many in my district, who have fished for salmon since time immemorial,” said Huffman, chair of the House Subcommittee on Water, Oceans and Wildlife and Co-Chair of the Congressional Wild Salmon Caucus.

Stakeholders in Bristol Bay and Southeast Alaska have been fighting for salmon habitat protections from Pebble Mine and logging in the Tongass National Forest.

Read the full story from National Fisherman

 

Scientists pen letter to Congress urging SIMP expansion

December 16, 2021 — More than 100 scientists signed a letter sent to Congress on Monday, 13 December, urging lawmakers to ensure that all seafood products imported into the United States are caught using legal means.

Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing is often associated with human trafficking and other human rights abuses, and distant-water fishing forces vessel owners and operators to extend trips to “achieve a sizeable catch,” the university professors, research fellows, and scientists claimed in the two-page letter. In order to get that kind of catch, some operators will use forced labor and harvest fishing stocks beyond allowable limits, they alleged.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

NOAA, groups back adding climate mandates to fishing law

November 18, 2021 — The following was released by the office of Rep. Jared Huffman:

NOAA’s top fisheries official yesterday endorsed a plan that would require the agency for the first time in its history to add climate change requirements to its management of the nation’s fish stocks.

“Fisheries management must continue to adapt as our ocean ecosystem faces unprecedented changes due to climate change,” Janet Coit, the head of NOAA Fisheries, told a House Natural Resources panel.

Testifying before the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans and Wildlife, Coit said NOAA appreciates “the overarching climate focus” of a proposed overhaul of the nation’s primary fishing law, the 1976 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.

Coit weighed in as the subcommittee heard testimony on a bill, H.R. 4690, sponsored by Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), that would reauthorize the law and require NOAA to create plans for “climate ready fisheries.”

If approved, it would mark the first time that climate change received a mention in the federal fishing law, which Congress last reauthorized in 2006.

Read the full release from the office of Rep. Jared Huffman

A Tale of Two Magnuson-Stevens Act Reauthorization Bills

November 18, 2021 — On Tuesday the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Oceans and Wildlife examined Congressman Don Young’s Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) reauthorization bill and Subcommittee Chairman Representative Jared Huffman’s MSA reauthorization bill.

“Alaska’s seafood industry is one of the primary drivers of our economy, and for over forty years, the Magnuson-Stevens Act has allowed our fishermen, processors, and coastal communities to thrive,” said Congressman Young. “It has also assisted in the preservation of subsistence and recreational fishing, which are both essential to our state’s way of life.”

Congressman Young, along with Congressman Gerry Studds, first drafted the bipartisan legislation in 1976. And now Young says that he’s ready to continue defending the bill in Congress.

“The truth is MSA has worked and worked well,” explained Young. “As with any law, it is wise to ensure policies keep pace with changing times. While I believe some changes merit discussion, I do not believe in throwing the baby out with the bathwater.”

Read the full story at Seafood News

MSA reauthorization debated in US House of Representatives

November 18, 2021 — Two bills that would reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act received a hearing on Tuesday, 16 November, in the U.S. House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife.

As U.S. Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) said in a statement, the hearing was “one of contrasts,” as lawmakers reviewed his proposal and one by Subcommittee Chairman Jared Huffman (D-California). Young said Huffman’s bill would take authority away from fishing councils and give it to the U.S. Commerce Secretary. While he agrees with Huffman that some changes should be discussed, Young said the chairman’s bill goes too far.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

HUFFMAN, GRIJALVA, CASE ISSUE JOINT STATEMENT ON INSPECTOR GENERAL AUDIT OF WESTERN PACIFIC REGIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCIL

November 16, 2021 — The following was released by the Office of Congressman Jared Huffman:

Water Oceans and Wildlife Subcommittee Chair Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii) and Rep. Gregorio Sablan (D-CNMI) issued the following joint statement regarding the recent audit of the Western Pacific Sustainable Fisheries Fund (WPSFF) conducted by the Department of Commerce Office of the Inspector General.

The audit found that the Western Pacific Fisheries Management Council (WESPAC) and its sub-recipients claimed questionable costs of more than $1.2 million in awards – 40% of all costs it examined – and didn’t obtain required approvals or have sufficient documentation.

“The results are deeply alarming. The Inspector General’s audit is a necessary first step towards the transparency and accountability that is needed to ensure WESPAC is not wasting the taxpayers’ money it is entrusted with,” Chair Grijalva said. “As damning as this report is, it raises more questions about WESPAC than it answers. Their financial activities should continue to be examined.”

“The Western Pacific Council’s management of the Western Pacific Sustainable Fisheries Fund Award has long been questionable, and this audit of the Fund paints an unflattering picture of WESPAC’s financial activities, to say the least,” said Rep. Huffman. “As Chair of the Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Subcommittee, it is clear Congress must take action to improve oversight and management of WESPAC and ensure that government funds are being spent responsibly. On Tuesday, we are holding a hearing on my and Rep. Case’s bill, the Sustaining America’s Fisheries for the Future Act, which takes steps to address these issues by adding transparency and reporting requirements for the Fund.”

“The Inspector General’s report underscores the need for substantial reforms in the way that WESPAC does business. Our federal dollars should be spent on the critical mission of sustaining and conserving vital marine ecosystems, not on controversial awards and questionable and unsupported spending at the behest of council staff with potential conflicts of interest,” said Rep. Case. “This report is just the beginning of our inquiry and response. We must act on the report’s findings to prevent any further waste and abuse of government funds by WESPAC and potentially other regional fishery councils operating under the same rules.”

“The Inspector General found $1.2 million in questionable expenditures by WESPAC and breaches of the rules on sole-source contracts and other financial controls. This all confirms the concerns that led Chair Grijalva, Representatives Huffman and Case, and me to request this in-depth audit of how WESPAC uses federal funds,” said Rep. Sablan. “I look forward to the decision of NOAA’s Grants Management Division on the appropriate next steps to recover any money that was improperly paid.”

The WPSFF administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was established under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation Act (MSA) and was intended to support conservation efforts in the U.S. Pacific territories and Hawai’i. Funds are provided by NOAA to WESPAC, which carries out contracts and subawards for projects. However, concerns raised from oversight of NOAA led to the audit request by Chair Grijalva, Rep. Huffman, Rep. Case and Rep. Sablan more than two years ago.

Read the release here

Huffman, Graves reestablish congressional marine sanctuary caucus

October 22, 2021 — In advance of next year’s golden anniversary for the National Marine Sanctuaries Act, two congressmen representing key fishery regions have joined forces to relaunch a bipartisan caucus to promote and continue protecting habitats crucial for coastal economies.

U.S. Reps. Jared Huffman (D-California) and Garret Graves (R-Louisiana) will serve as co-chairs for the reestablished caucus, which according to the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation was first formed 15 years ago. The foundation noted that 30 members have already signed up to join the group.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Amended IUU fishing bill approved by House committee would expand SIMP

October 18, 2021 — A U.S. congressional committee has passed an amended bill that seeks to prevent more seafood produced through illegal practices from entering the country – in part by expanding the Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP).

The U.S. House Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday, 13 October, voted to advance the Illegal Fishing and Forced Labor Prevention Act, legislation sponsored by U.S. Reps. Jared Huffman (D-California) and Garret Graves (R-Louisiana).

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

 

US Representative Jared Huffman defends AIS requirement in IUU bill that fishing industry finds redundant

September 30, 2021 — Nearly 130 members of the U.S. fishing industry signed a letter sent earlier this month to the top members of the U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee that oversees fishing policies, expressing concerns about a bill they said would create technological redundancies, add to their costs, and raise privacy concerns.

The industry members told U.S. Reps. Jared Huffman (D-California) and Cliff Bentz (R-Oregon), in the 14 September letter they oppose a proposed requirement in H.R. 3075, also known as the Illegal Fishing and Forced Labor Prevention Act, that would mandate automatic identification systems (AIS) be used to track fishing activities in both U.S. waters and the open seas.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource