At least Todd is still inconsistent with his arguements.

Didnt NOAA come up with the selective live capture program?
They know how it works. Its policy. How they get there is Algebra. If you no longer need the policy you change the equation.
As has been argued before, they have to change the policy. You keep leaving out future tribal gear switches to selective gear, which BPA will pay for. You also keep running an old argument. CCA is supporting safe areas now along with several others. No main stem.
The amount of money already spent on selective testing would make every current gillnetter retire. It would have been simple to buy them out with that money. Just as simple as buying the tribes out of their lawsuit. But a buyout of cowboys doesnt fulfill the interest in reducing wild mortality. Thus they would still have to test to persuade the tribes to adopt it.

The rewrite of the Oregon initiative will shed some light on other changes. It includes set allocations.

Safe areas- wild fish saved incidental bycatch-saved. Apparently at a much greater rate than you predicted.
Barbless hooks- more wild fish saved
Tribal live capture- wild fish saved

It does not matter to Todd that wild steelhead and sturgeon will benefit from non tribal selective gear and put the tribes in the position of releasing them from the seine nets. Perhaps they have an interest now, but the gillnets do not allow it.

Your approach on the other hand relies on the continuation of wild fish being killed by gillnets, until NOAA, BPA, congress offer the gillnetters a healthy "buyout" Then, the remainder of wild fish can no longer stand 5-10% sport mortality and the possibility of a complete river closure will exist, like it did in the past. Nice plan! If they bought out the gillnetters TODAY, the wild fish would still die on the hook and in tribal gillnets, just farther up river. We get 2% they get the 13%. No savings. Sports would be the next casualty of the CR.

All you see is today. You cant look beyond current law. In the mean time, you would allow more sturgeon and wild and hatchery steelhead to die in gillnets and tangle nets, while waiting for your plan to work. It only works if dead fish rise from the dead and the Columbia is not closed to sportfishing.