Seafood Harvesters of America statement on Magnuson Stevens Act Reauthorization bill introduction

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 26, 2021

Media Contacts: Blake Androff, (202) 234-1224

                            Leigh Habegger, (703) 794-5114

WASHINGTON, DC—Today, Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA-02), along with Representative Ed Case (D-HI-01), introduced the Sustaining America’s Fisheries for the Future Act, a bill to amend and reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA). The MSA is the nation’s overarching federal fisheries law governing U.S. fisheries management in our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

“Rep. Huffman has shown great leadership on federal fisheries policy, and we appreciate his continued efforts to improve the laws governing our oceans and fisheries in the Sustaining America’s Fisheries for the Future Act. This bill is a result of many months of stakeholder outreach with the commercial and recreational fishing sectors, environmental NGOs, and concerned stakeholders, and we commend the extensive communication Rep. Huffman and his staff maintained with these stakeholders throughout the drafting process. While this bill addresses many pressing issues including climate-ready fisheries, recreational fisheries data collection, and the use of electronic technologies, there remain outstanding issues that we look forward to addressing with Rep. Huffman and his staff in the coming weeks as the bill moves through the legislative process. Rep. Huffman has been a staunch supporter of healthy fisheries resources, coastal communities, and marine environments, and we have no doubt he will continue to balance the needs of the fisheries, fishing businesses, and ocean as we continue working on this bill.” – Leigh Habegger, Executive Director

“The MSA has elevated U.S. fisheries management to be the global gold standards and has effectively curtailed overfishing, protected critical habitat, and provided a public, transparent process in which stakeholders can engage. As we work to address the challenges facing our oceans, we must take a holistic approach and look beyond simply regulating commercial fishing activity. The concept of our ‘Blue Economy’ is new since the last MSA reauthorization and now must ensure that our fishery management systems can account for the faster pace of development in our nation’s ocean and that its impacts are accounted for in our management system. Otherwise, we risk wasting the incredible investments we have made over the last four decades to improve the health of our fisheries resources and ocean.

“We applaud the work of Reps. Huffman and Case to tackle thorny, complicated issues in this bill, particularly improvements to the recreational fishery data collection. Rigorous science and accountability across all sectors should be the first response to the call for developing climate-ready fisheries. We are committed to continuing our work with Reps. Huffman and Case to address our remaining concerns with the bill and appreciate the opportunity to continue this important work.” – Chris Brown, President

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You can view a PDF of this statement here.