Saving Seafood

US lawmakers look to codify Arctic ambassador position

November 12, 2025 — U.S. legislators are looking to codify the federal office of the ambassador-at-large for Arctic affairs, a position established in 2022 to focus U.S. Department of State’s priorities on Arctic issues.

“The Arctic is a critical region for U.S. national security, economic development, and environmental preservation,” U.S. Representative Ami Bera (D-California) said in a release. “From increased ship traffic to growing competition with Russia and China, the United States must ensure we have a strong, unified presence in the Arctic. This legislation will help us do just that by formally establishing a senior diplomat position charged with leading and coordinating America’s Arctic strategy.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Shrimpers demand action on turtle conservation standards

September 3, 2024 — The Port Arthur Area Shrimpers’ Association (“PAASA”) and the Southern Shrimp Alliance jointly requested that the U.S. Department of State (“State Department”) re-visit and suspend the certifications granted to Peru and Guatemala under Section 609 of Public Law 101-162.

Based on a law enacted in 1989, the Section 609 program is intended to ensure that shrimp harvested in a manner that harms endangered sea turtles is not imported into the United States. Under the program, the State Department, working with officials from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”) Fisheries, certifies countries and/or individual fisheries as being in compliance with Section 609’s requirements and therefore eligible to supply the U.S. market with shrimp.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

US Trafficking in Persons Report maintains previous ranking of Taiwan, Thailand, upgrades Vietnam

June 16, 2023 — The U.S. Department of State released its annual Trafficking in Persons Report on 15 June, revealing Taiwan and Thailand retained the rankings they held in previous years, despite calls from environmental and labor organizations for them to be downgraded.

The TIP report classifies countries into multiple tiers – Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 2 Watch List, and Tier 3 – based on the prevalence of forced labor and human trafficking in the countries, with a lower number representing a country of lower concern.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US Chamber of Commerce, other industry groups sue Trump administration over foreign worker limits

July 24, 2020 — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce was joined by three industry groups and a technology company in a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and State Department regarding the actions of the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to curb foreign workers from entering the country, primarily via the H-1B visa program.

The lawsuit, filed Tuesday, 21 July, in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, California, comes a month after Trump announced he was temporarily suspending several work visa programs as high unemployment rates due to the coronavirus pandemic left millions of Americans out of work.

Read the full story at Seafood Source