Tag Archives: Senate Finance Committee
Sen. Cassidy to Sec. Bessent: Halt U.S. Funding for Foreign Shrimp Aquaculture
U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, has called on Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to block U.S. taxpayer dollars from financing foreign shrimp aquaculture projects through International Financial Institutions (IFIs). In a letter to Secretary Bessent, Cassidy urged the Treasury, in coordination with the State Department, to take all necessary actions to prevent any future funding of shrimp aquaculture development, which would exacerbate the financial crisis facing U.S. shrimpers. The Southern Shrimp Alliance, representing the U.S. shrimp industry in eight states, commends Senator Cassidy’s action and echoes the urgent need for action. Links, graphs, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:23
Coastal lawmaker wants to create fish farming industry in North Carolina waters
A proposal moving through the state Senate calls for leasing waters off the North Carolina coast so people can farm fish. Senate Bill 410 would allow people to lease from 100 to 1,500 acres in the state’s sounds and the Atlantic Ocean, where they could build underwater pens to raise various species of fish that they could later sell to supermarkets and restaurants. “We’re creating an industry here,” sponsor Sen. Bill Cook, R-Beaufort, told members of the Senate Finance Committee this week. “This is not something we’re doing in North Carolina. This will allow us to do fish farming and bring in some big bucks.” Sebastian Belle, executive director of the Maine Aquaculture Association, told lawmakers that fish farming is a $100 million business in his state, which has been leasing areas along its coast for 35 years. “The sector is growing worldwide,” Belle said, adding that fish farming “will help keep kids in those (coastal) communities working on the waterfront.” click here to read the story 13:23
