June 12, 2026 — U.S. President Donald Trump issued a proclamation opening roughly 500,000 square miles of Pacific marine national monuments to commercial fishing, continuing his push to roll back protections unilaterally enacted by his predecessors.
“President Trump is once again delivering for American fishermen by opening prized Pacific fishing grounds with this Executive Proclamation,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in a release. “By restoring commercial fishing in the remote Pacific, we are creating new economic opportunity for coastal communities and restoring U.S. seafood competitiveness.”