Tag Archives: Fishery Disaster Aid

Fishery disaster aid and nearly $500 million worth of Alaska projects included in omnibus budget bill

Aid to Alaska fishermen, companies and communities was included in the year-end omnibus appropriations package that won final passage on Friday. The $300 million in aid funding follows official disaster declarations issued last week by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo for Alaska salmon and crab fishery failures dating back to 2020, as well as some salmon failures in Washington state dating back to 2019. The $300 million in total disaster aid “is a great start for much-needed money to help fishermen and communities pay their bills,” Jamie Goen, executive director of Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers, said in a statement. >click to read< 10:01

Mixed messages for the New England fishing industry

cashLast week brought a mix of news for the region’s fishermen, some of it straight-out bad, some offering a glimmer of hope for the future of one of New England’s oldest industries. We’ll start with the bad news — the state’s rejection of the so-called “Gloucester Plan” for distributing the last batch of U.S. fishery disaster aid to Massachusetts fishermen with federal permits. Instead, the stead opted for a plan with much lower standards. Allowing a boat with one monitored trip in a year to qualify for disaster aid seems an overly lax standard. Read the rest here  08:07

The First Indicator – Looking Back. The 2nd indicator, looking forward.

hatLet me say first off, no one ever accused me of being smart, not even me. I learned at an early age what a stupid son of a bitch was, and I learned it the hard way.,, “This is pretty dire,” said Russell Brown, deputy science and research director of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center, the branch of NOAA that did the research. Warning! Savory language ahead. Not to be read if offended easily! Read more here 09:06

The Devil in the Fishery Disaster Aid Details.- Mass. seen having leg up on fish aid

Elizabeth WarrenMassachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s office confirmed yesterday that the process for developing the distribution formula remains a work in progress, but with the underlying principle that the funds — specifically designated as assistance to the groundfish disaster proclaimed by the Department of Commerce in 2012 — should go to areas where the most groundfish fishermen have suffered the greatest level of economic distress from the disaster.But Warren’s office also confirmed that federal disaster funds, no matter the type of disaster, usually come with a hefty price tag for the states that accept them — a state must provide an additional 25 percent of the total amount of disaster aid it accepts. Read more@gdt  02:28