Hears about enforcement issues and regulatory difficulties from Maine fishermen

Today Congresswoman Chellie Pingree met with Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and local fishermen in Portland to get their input on how to address fisheries enforcement issues and better support coastal communities.

“I’m so glad that the Secretary took the time to really listen to Maine fishermen-- who are innovative leaders in their industry here in New England--to hear their perspective on problems in fisheries enforcement and their ideas on addressing them,” said Pingree. “I’m hopeful the Secretary will leave Maine with some concrete ideas about how to move forward and support our fishermen. The plans he talked about today are a good step in that direction.”

Recent reports have found unfair enforcement for Northeast fishermen and misuse of the funds raised through fines and asset forfeitures. In a meeting with local fishermen and other groups today, Locke said the agency is taking several steps to address these concerns:
· Placing stronger limits and giving fishermen input on how to spend asset forfeiture funds;
· Appointing a Special Master to review questionable enforcement cases; and
· Creating a hotline for fishermen with enforcement issues at www.noaa.gov.

Locke also announced increased funding in the Northeast for cooperative research of fish stocks to ensure the agency has good scientific data needed to make its decisions.

“We heard the message of Maine fishermen loud and clear today: they’re struggling to get by under a new management system, they play by the rules, and the last thing they need to worry about is whether those rules are being enforced fairly,” said Pingree. “I hope the Secretary’s plans go into place soon so we can start rebuilding trust between our fishermen and fisheries managers—it’s absolutely critical to our coastal communities.”

In March, Pingree met with Eric Schwaab, head of fisheries management for NOAA, in Port Clyde to discuss the enforcement issues. She has also long-advocated that better scientific data is needed before setting regulations that unduly burden local fishermen. She has coauthored the Coastal Jobs Creation Act, which would increase funding for cooperative and other research by fishermen.