I find it interesting that there are no coastal Senators named as signing on to the letter.....


Senators Recognize Saltwater Recreational Fishing's Economic and Social Impact

| April 26, 2016

Senators Recognize Saltwater Recreational Fishing's Economic and Social Impact

Letter calls for including the recreational fishing community's priorities in the MSA reauthorization

Alexandria, VA - The recreational fishing industry welcomed the action taken by Sens. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) to recognize the significant economic, social and conservation benefits that saltwater recreational fishing provides to the nation.

The five senators recently sent a letter to the Senate Commerce Committee leadership requesting that the recreational fishing community's priorities are adequately represented in the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) reauthorization. The MSA is the primary law governing federal marine fisheries management. The five senators also serve on the Senate Commerce Committee.

"The recreational fishing industry thanks Sens. Blunt, Klobuchar, McCaskill, Johnson and Manchin for championing the effort to ensure that managing saltwater recreational fisheries is not just a coastal issue, but one of national significance," said Scott Gudes, vice president of Government Affairs for the American Sportfishing Association (ASA). "For example, many manufacturers who produce saltwater fishing gear, accessories and apparel are found in inland states, and anglers from across the U.S. country fish in saltwater."

In the letter, the senators say, "The management model established in MSA has a commercial fishing foundation, which is a fundamentally different activity than recreational fishing. While both of these sectors are vitally important to the nation, they are unique from each other and therefore require different management approaches. Therefore, it is important that the priorities of the recreational fishing community are incorporated in the upcoming MSA reauthorization."

A bill to reauthorize MSA, H.R. 1335, passed the U.S. House of Representatives on June 1, 2015. The final House bill was supported by the nation's leading recreational fishing and boating organizations for including provisions reflective of the recommendations of the Commission on Saltwater Recreational Fisheries Management, also known as the Morris-Deal Commission, named after co-chairs John Morris, founder of Bass Pro Shops, and Scott Deal, president of Maverick Boats.

The U.S. Senate has not yet taken up a full MSA reauthorization bill, which would originate in the Senate Commerce Committee.

"Congress has a tremendous opportunity through the MSA reauthorization to elevate recreational fishing within our federal fisheries management system to the level of attention it deserves," said ASA's Ocean Resource Policy Director Mike Leonard. "The Morris-Deal Commission set forth a roadmap for the future of saltwater fisheries management, and we call upon Congress to enact the needed legislative changes to help maximize saltwater recreational fishing's benefits to the nation."


The American Sportfishing Association (ASA) is the sportfishing industry's trade association committed to representing the interests of the entire sportfishing community. We give the industry a unified voice, speaking out on behalf of sportfishing and boating industries, state and federal natural resource agencies, conservation organizations, angler advocacy groups and outdoor journalists when emerging laws and policies could significantly affect sportfishing business or sportfishing itself. ASA invests in long-term ventures to ensure the industry will remain strong and prosperous, as well as safeguard and promote the enduring social, economic and conservation values of sportfishing in America. ASA also gives America's 46 million anglers a voice in policy decisions that affect their ability to sustainably fish on our nation's waterways through KeepAmericaFishing™, our angler advocacy campaign. America's anglers generate more than $48 billion in retail sales with a $115 billion impact on the nation's economy creating employment for more than 800,000 people.
- See more at: http://www.thefishingwire.com/story/373207#sthash.TWVIVmOe.dpuf