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Led historic rally in Washington DC on 2/24/10
with 5,000 fishermen representing a united front
between recreational and commercial fishermen in
a call for federal overhaul of restrictive
regulations.
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In response to arbitrary and capricious federal
fisheries closures on both red snapper and black
sea bass, opened federal litigation against NOAA
Fisheries and the Secretary of Commerce calling
for immediate federal action (cases still open
as of January 1, 2011).
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Successfully spearheaded efforts to pass New
Jersey legislation limiting the size and power
of commercial vessels participating in menhaden
harvest for bait, while limiting entry
provisions for commercial owners looking to
harvest menhaden.
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Testified before Congress on behalf of America’s
saltwater anglers in opposition to catch shares
and sector separations schemes perpetrated by
radical preservationist groups.
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Louisiana members led successful campaign to
defeat restrictive ideological bill aimed at
bowfish anglers in the Gulf Region.
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Led efforts to pass saltwater registry
legislation in Maine and New Jersey designed to
meet national angler registration requirements
for saltwater fishermen, while keeping saltwater
fishing a ‘free’ activity to the benefit of
sportfishermen and the sportfishing community.
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Spearheaded the effort to pass legislation to
restrict menhaden harvesting by reduction
vessels in the Long Island Sound.
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Spearheaded legislation in New Jersey, New
York, Connecticut and Rhode Island to ban the
harvest of valuable inshore forage fish and
eliminate menhaden harvest for reduction
purposes inside state waters.
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Spearheaded national campaign to ban pelagic
drift longlines as a gear type in all US waters
and territories. RFA was called upon to testify
at the House Resources Fisheries, Wildlife and
Oceans Subcommittee hearing regarding the pros
and cons of three different bills concerning
this commercial fishing gear type, which
ultimately resulted in a reduced and restricted
fishing fleet.
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Successfully lobbied members of congress to
include recognition of the recreational fishing
industry under the definition of fishing
community in the 2006 reauthorization of the
Magnuson-Stevens Act.
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Testified before the National Research Council
and House Resources Committee on the need to
improve recreational data collection programs at
the national level, which ultimately led to the
addition of a federal saltwater registry
requirement and the reform of MRFSS.
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Filed a 301 petition with US State Department
demanding accountability for non-compliance by
foreign commercial fishing fleets of
international fishing treaties which the US is a
contracting party.
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Successfully lobbied NMFS from issuing
exempted fishing permits to pelagic drift
longline vessels to set gear in closed areas off
the East Coast of Florida and South Carolina.
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Requested a congressional hearing to
investigate the high incidences of striped bass bycatch inherent with the sink gillnet fishery
in federal waters.
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Successfully fought a proposed increase in the
harvest limits of the commercial striped bass
fishery in the Chesapeake Bay.
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Successfully lobbied to keep “game fish”
designation for striped bass in New Jersey and
subsequently killed the bill that would have
changed the law.
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Successfully campaigned to keep federal waters
(EEZ) closed to the harvest of striped bass.
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Successfully lobbied to ban the use of
destructive oceanic driftnet gear for swordfish
in the Atlantic.
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Spearheaded a coalition that defeated NJS457,
the glass eel bill, which would have allowed
harvesting of elvers (glass eels) in New Jersey
waters.
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Successfully formed a New England coalition
and lobbied to ban pelagic pair trawling for HMS
from all Atlantic waters.
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Successfully lobbied to protect recreational
fishermen from state-imposed ground fish
closures (codfish and haddock) in the Gulf of
Maine.
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Only national group to stop a fleet of longline vessels from taking up port in the new
Charleston Maritime Center and prevented them
from destroying a scientifically recognized
swordfish nursery off the South Carolina
Coast-AKA the Battle of Charleston.
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First organization to recognize Sargassum to
be a vitally important habitat and successfully
lobbied to have Sargassum protected as essential
fish habitat.
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Successfully fought to keep the Occulina
Marine Preserve open to recreational fishing.
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Lobbied against the Callahan Amendment, an
amendment that would have extended state waters
in Alabama to 9 miles and provided a loophole
that would permit the shrimp industry
substantially more bycatch. The amendment was
defeated.
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Lobbied to halt “Blanket Marine Reserves” from
denying access to recreational fishermen in the
Gulf waters.
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Filed suit against the NMFS for the
unjustified restrictions and bag limits on
recreational anglers who fish for Red Snapper.
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Co-plaintiff on a suit filed against the Texas
Parks & Wildlife Department and the State of
Texas over the closure of the “Nine-Mile Hole”
to general boat traffic thereby restricting
fishing access to recreational fishermen.
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Spearheaded the development of the Gulf Law
Enforcement Task Force to reign in illegal red
snapper harvest
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Requested a management plan for squid, an
extremely valuable forage fish, in Californian
waters.
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Working with groups in California to secure
permanent funding and materials for current
artificial reef programs.
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Fought for and is continuing to fight for
equity in representation on the North Pacific
Fishery Council. The first two recreational
appointments were made after intensive RFA
lobbying efforts.
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Spearheaded a lobbying campaign to ban
destructive and inefficient oceanic gillnets
from Pacific waters.
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Currently lobbying to protect the guided
recreational halibut fishery from losing quota
to commercial privatization.
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Lobbied successfully for a recreational
nominee to the North Pacific Fishery Management
Council.
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Fought for the rejection of the North Pacific
Fishery Management Council’s (NPFMC) inadequate
allocation provided for guided sportfishing
vessels in Alaska under the guideline harvest
level (GHl) for halibut and the individual
fishing quotas (IFQ’s).
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Worked with the California Striped Bass
Association to extend the angling method
regulations to account for the mortality
occurring in ocean waters as well as inland
waters.
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Successfully lobbied to secure continued
Mitchell Act funding for pacific salmon
hatcheries.
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Successfully lobbied US State Department and
US Commerce Department to stop the International
Pacific Halibut Commission from taking away the
rights of the NPFMC to set season, size and bag
limits in the Pacific Halibut guided
sportfishery.
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Conducting cooperative research to help create
a new recreational chilipepper rockfish fishery
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Supported and lobbied for HB 1706, an anti
shark-finning bill that will protect Sharks from
this wasteful fishing practice. The bill was
passed and signed by President Bill Clinton.
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