Strengthening Fishing Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries Management Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chair, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 1335, the Strengthening Fishing Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries Management Act. This short-sighted legislation undermines the longterm sustainability of fish populations putting fish stocks, coastal communities, and our nation's economy at risk.

In California, we are fortunate to have access to one of the world's most productive marine ecosystems. The California Current system drives highly productive fisheries that support 158,000 jobs and more than $25 billion annually in commercial and recreational sales impacts. Nationwide, fisheries generated $199 billion in sales impacts in 2012 and provided 1.7 million jobs. Commercial and recreational fisheries are a critical part of this nation's economy whose continued prosperity depends on getting fisheries management right.

In 2015, California entered its fourth year of extreme drought. This winter's snowpack levels were the lowest since 1950 and precipitation levels are at critical lows. That spells bad news for California salmon. High water temperatures lead to poor survival and low flows leave salmon stranded in drying pools. Unfortunately, this is not the first time we have faced this problem. In 2008, low flows and high in-stream temperatures coupled with low ocean productivity caused a crash in salmon populations, and for the first time since 1848, the California salmon fishery was closed and declared a federal fishery disaster. The Pacific Fishery Management Council had already prepared a fishery management plan for salmon, in accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) guidelines, that prompted the fishery closure and set strict limits on harvest while the stock was rebuilding. Since the closure, salmon fisheries have rebounded, due in no small part to the swift action of the Council under the fishery management plan and rebuilding guidelines established by the MSA.

While we cannot make it rain in California, we can ensure that well-informed management of offshore salmon fisheries do not jeopardize the sustainability of this commercially-valuable species. The more fish we conserve in the ocean, the more return to streams to spawn, increasing our chances of making it through this drought with a salmon fishery intact.

The fact is, MSA is working. The implementation of stock rebuilding plans and annual catch limits have resulted in the recovery of 37 fish stocks since 2000. NOAA's 2014 Status of Stocks report indicates that fish stocks that are overfished or subject to overfishing are at an all-time low. This is a far cry from the overexploited, overcapitalized fisheries of the past. We should be moving forward to build on those successes, not rolling them back. Since 2006, commercial fisheries revenue has risen 43 percent, and the rebuilding of all U.S. fish stocks would provide an additional $31 billion in annual sales impacts and support 500,000 new jobs. Instead, H.R. 1335 would delay rebuilding timelines and allow exemptions to continue overfishing on depleted stocks, which is both ecologically and economically irresponsible. Current MSA provisions have proven their effectiveness in rebuilding stocks and provide the way forward for realizing our fisheries' full economic potential. There's something to be said for the old adage, ``If it's not broken, don't fix it.''

That's not to say that fisheries management should remain stagnant. Just as scientific data collection and fisheries science is changing and improving, our fisheries management statute should also change to reflect the best available science. Fisheries managers and scientists have acknowledged that there are areas for improvement, including providing more clarity and flexibility within the current statutory limits. To that end, NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service is currently undertaking a revision of the National Standard 1 guidelines, the regulations that govern fisheries management objectives and stock rebuilding timelines, to provide greater clarity on which fish stocks require rebuilding plans, greater flexibility for rebuilding timelines, and to incorporate the latest in ecosystem-based fisheries management. The proposed revisions would address many of the concerns outlined in this bill without undermining the critical conservation measures that have led to MSA's success. The determination on how to best manage fish stocks for a sustainable, profitable future is best left to the scientists, not Members of Congress.

Our oceans are increasingly under threat from climate change and ocean acidification, making strong, effective fisheries management more critical than ever. Unfortunately, H.R. 1335 does not deliver and I urge a NO vote on H.R. 1335.

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