The Pew Charitable Trusts is asking members of a U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources subcommittee to return to the strong tradition of bipartisanship when considering changes to the nation’s signature law governing fishing in federal ocean waters. The Water, Power, and Oceans Subcommittee will hold an oversight hearing on the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act on July 19 to review the successes and challenges in managing U.S. ocean fish populations.
The July 17 letter highlights how the law is effectively preventing overfishing and enabling the rebuilding of depleted fish populations as well as additional measures that should be included in the act’s next update. Pew also called on the committee to use an inclusive public process to ensure that revisions to the law incorporate the perspectives and needs of stakeholders, including commercial and recreational fishermen, coastal business owners, conservationists, scientists, and chefs.