Source: United States Senator for Alaska Dan Sullivan
03.11.22
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, today welcomed the Senate’s passage of S. 497, the American Fisheries Advisory Committee Act, bipartisan legislation he introduced to create an industry-led Advisory Committee to assist in the administration of fisheries marketing, research, and development grants. The bill was cosponsored by Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).
“I have long championed Alaska’s status as the global superpower of seafood. But in order to sustain this great distinction for our state, we need to ensure that federal grant dollars are truly focused on the priorities and needs of our fishing industry. That has not always been the case,” said Sen. Sullivan. “Our fishermen, vessel owners, distributors and processors must have a voice in the Saltonstall-Kennedy grant process to offer appropriate input and oversight so that we do not miss out on opportunities for improvement and growth—particularly for marketing and global competitiveness. I thank my colleagues in the Senate for supporting my bipartisan legislation to restore the voice of fisheries’ most important stakeholders and support the long-term vitality of American-caught seafood.”
The Saltonstall-Kennedy (SK) Act provides funding for fisheries marketing, research, and development. These funds are derived from a portion of fishery import duties. To inform how these funds are allocated, Congress authorized a group of experts from different segments of the fishing industry to advise on commercial fishing problems and needs. Following a 1972 law, the original American Fisheries Advisory Committee was disbanded. In the committee’s absence, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) decides, by its own criteria, who receives grants. In some cases, the priorities of the fishing industry and Alaska fishermen do not match those of NMFS. The American Fisheries Advisory Committee Act would bring back the board of experts, with members chosen regionally and across all sectors of the fishing industry, to bring fishermen back into the process of identifying needs and funding priorities.
In 2021, NMFS issued 43 grants worth $11 million. The American Fisheries Advisory Committee Act has garnered the support of a number of organizations, including the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation, the United Fishermen of Alaska, and the North Pacific Fisheries Association.
The American Fisheries Advisory Committee Act was previously passed by the Senate on August 22, 2018.
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