CCGF Press Release

REQUEST FOR ACTION FROM ALL ELECTED OFFICIALS

Gulf of Mexico, November 30, 2009:

The fishing communities of New England have appealed to their Governors and elected officials to join together and lead the way to adjust the excessive regulations being forced by the Reauthorized Magnuson Stevens Act (RMSA). We support this effort and encourage fishing communities across the U.S. to join this movement.

The Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic fishing communities are being confronted by rapidly changing regulations that continue to threaten the very existence of our earliest organized industry. It is unbelievable to watch constituents everywhere be denied access to the enjoyment of recreational angling and purchasing healthy locally harvested seafood. Just when our Nation is struggling to create jobs and build healthy economies a reauthorized Act is working overtime to eliminate jobs and destroy coastal economies. Surely Congress never intended a seemingly innocent Act to cause such devastation among their communities.

Padi Anderson of New England stated, “New England is one region, which shares common interests - and common industries. Fishing has tied our communities together with a common thread for hundreds of years. Now is a time for solutions and responsive politics, not division and passivity. We look to the Senators, Representatives, and Governors to work together for the best interests of our communities and 400 years of tradition.” The group urged their representatives, “…to set aside partisanship, and join together in a United Front with ongoing dedicated communications and collaborative efforts to protect, support and represent community based fishermen and our resource, regardless of political affiliations or special interests. Specifically starting with an immediate halt to the implementation of Catch Shares.”

The five Gulf State Governors have made a formal request to Secretary of Commerce Locke urging a reconsideration of “catch shares" and allow states to play a key role in any proposed "catch share" system.

CCGF urges all elected officials to work together and to join the efforts by the leaders of other coastal states for the best interests of our coastal communities and the Nation.