ICYMI: Huffman Resumes Nationwide Listening Tour

Holds Virtual Session on New England Fisheries Management

September 30, 2020

San Rafael, CA – On Monday, Congressman Jared Huffman (CA-02), Chair of the House Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife, hosted the latest session on his nationwide fisheries listening tour for a discussion on federal fisheries policy in the context of the New England fishery management region. Huffman’s listening tour has previously visited Hawaii, the Gulf Coast, Florida, Seattle, Maryland, San Francisco, and Eureka, California.

“New England has a long and storied history of fishing, and communities in this region depend on healthy oceans and coasts,” said Rep. Huffman. “There are many challenges facing the fishing industry today; as we all know the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the entire country, but the fishing industry has been hit particularly hard. The New England region is also seeing some of the most drastic ocean warming on the planet. This was an important conversation about how we can support fisheries through science and sustainability as they meet these crises head-on.” 

Click the following links to watch a recording of Monday’s event on Facebook or Youtube. 

Representative Huffman heard from a range of stakeholders, including fishermen, advocates, scientists, and members of the public, who gave feedback on the current state of fisheries management under the Magnuson-Stevens Act and what they hope to see in future federal fisheries policy. Rep. Huffman was joined by Representatives Seth Moulton (MA-06), Chellie Pingree (ME-01), Ed Case (HI-01), Joe Courtney (CT-02), Bill Keating (MA-09), and a video appearance by Senator Ed Markey (MA).

The ideas Huffman receives from this listening tour, and from other stakeholder outreach that is already underway, will inform his introduction of a reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the primary law governing fisheries management in U.S. federal waters.

More detail on Huffman’s listening tour, which was first announced in July 2019, can be found here.

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