Preserving the New Hampshire Fishing Tradition

Statement

For nearly 400 years, our fishing industry has helped sustain our local economy, providing thousands of steady jobs and millions of dollars in economic opportunities. Those who brave the rocky shoals and often white capped waters off our coast help make New Hampshire a premier tourist destination. Whether chartering a fishing boat with friends and family in Rye or consuming a fresh lobster at Markey's Lobster Pool in Seabrook, our state's fishing industry remains a crucial piece of our state's economy.

Unfortunately, we now find our fishermen contending with more than just bad weather and tangled nets. Due to increasing and ever changing federal regulations, they are constantly fighting against stringent rules which threaten to put an end to this historic industry. Catch quotas, government-mandated vessel observers, increased costs of doing business, restrictions on catching grounds --- the list of regulations challenging the financial health and sustainability of our fishing industry are endless.

As you may know, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently proposed a rule for consideration by the United States Department of Commerce to help mitigate the effects of significant reductions in quota in recent years. The Commerce Department has yet to finalize this proposed rule which is absolutely critical to implement before the upcoming fishing season. This proposal follows on the heels of a winter where they were not permitted to fish for groundfish at all.

As your representative to Washington, I will do everything in my power to alleviate the challenges impacting our Seacoast region and fishing industry.

In order to place pressure on the Commerce Department to act swiftly and deliberately, I sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Pritzker urging her to take up this proposed rule immediately to prevent Granite State anglers from further experiencing delays. This uncertainty harms our fishermen's ability to hire more deck hands, generate more revenue and preserve the tradition of fishing fleet operated by small business owners to prevent any further blows to our anglers and charter boat fishing industry.

In 2013, commercial fishers landed 4100 tons of more than 30 different commercial species with an economic value of $20.1 million. However, increased costs brought on by burdensome regulations have resulted in a 5 percent loss of its vessels from 2011 to 2013. This is unacceptable.

While this amended catch quota is a step in the right direction, there's still much more that needs to be done to ameliorate the numerous challenges facing the Granite State's fishing industry.

Last week, I joined Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Kelly Ayotte urging the Administration to release disaster relief funds for Granite State fishermen. These funds were allocated to New Hampshire after we successfully fought for a disaster declaration for our fishing industry in 2012.

New Hampshire was allotted approximately $2 million in funds; however, our state has only received nearly $1 million in direct assistance. Our fishing industry cannot afford to wait any longer to receive these essential funds, therefore we urged for immediate action to provide our fishermen with the necessary temporary relief.

New England fishermen believe as Hemingway wrote in the Old Man and the Sea that, "man is not made for defeat." And so it is with us. It is our charge to fight for regulatory relief and a strengthening of New Hampshire's commercial fishing industry. This will remain one of my top priorities and I will continue to work in a tireless, bipartisan fashion to preserve this industry that is so essential to our Granite State.

Source