The report states that ten senators and 13 members of the House informed Locke that he, as secretary, has the legal authority to impose emergency rules changes without running afoul of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Testimony on the predicted economic trouble coming from new rules that are expected to decimate commercial fishing in the Northeast has been heard by the House Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife.
The Lawmakers has written a letter to Locke which states that while fishery management councils are bound under the (Magnuson-Stevens Act) to set (annual catch limits) that do not exceed the recommendations of their Science and Statistical Committees, the (Magnuson-Stevens Act) does not place that same requirement on emergency secretarial action.
The letter urged Locke to use his authority and promulgate an emergency regulation increasing the (annual catch limits) of groundfish — especially the five choke stocks — sufficiently to minimize the risks of the failure of the sector management system while still preventing overfishing from occurring. It is also mentioned that some fishermen have informed us that last year, with a single pass of their trawl, they landed more of one species, pollock, than they were allocated for the entire 2010 fishing year.
Lawmakers, local officials and fishing industry representatives have had no results in trying to persuade National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Administrator Jane Lubchenco to increase the allocations or delay implementation of sectors management in May.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., commented that moving to catch shares is a controversial step that will cause some turmoil in the fishing industry under the best circumstances. He urged those who are seeking acceptance of the catch share decision to recognize that it is in their interest to see that it is implemented with as little harm to fisherman as is possible.
