June 13, 2025 — The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Council (WPRFC) has authorized mandatory electronic monitoring of all commercial longline vessels operating in the Hawai‘i and American Samoa fisheries.
With the number of human observers dwindling due to limited funding, the council determined that it was necessary to adopt electronic monitoring in order to adequately track the fisheries’ operations and ensure compliance with the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Marine Mammal Protection Act.