Better Data Means Improved Fish Access and Species Sustainability

Better Data Means Improved Fish Access and Species Sustainability

Graves' Bill Fixes Long-Standing Flaws in Fishery Management

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources held a hearing on U.S. Congressman Garret Graves' (South Louisiana) recently-introduced legislation aimed at modernizing data used to manage fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico and other coastal areas. The Fisheries Data Modernization and Accuracy Act empowers states to take a more active role in gathering recreational fishing data. It also mandates greater accountability from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to ensure that their "best available science" meets high standards of reliability and utility.

"For years, we've been saying that the states can provide better and more precise fisheries management data than the federal government. We know that NOAA's data collection is skewed, and our bill provides the solution to fix this problem," said Congressman Graves. "More reliable data leads to more precise management decisions. By leveraging the expertise of state agencies - who have a deeper understanding of local resources and fishing communities - we will gather better data. We owe it to our future generations to be responsible stewards of our fisheries, and this is a crucial step forward."

"We are greatly appreciative of Congressional efforts to help provide the infrastructure and resources needed to help improve recreational data collection efforts that support science needs for making sound marine fisheries management decisions. This proposed bill would make positive strides in advancing our efforts to collect the highest quality recreational effort and landings data possible. The Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission in collaboration with state and federal fisheries agencies will continue to strive for improvements in data collection methods and systems that provide high quality data efficiently to state and federal stock assessors." -Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission

"Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission thanks Congressman Graves for introducing this important legislation. It is a serious proposal that would add important data for fish managers to make the best decisions for conservation." - Jessica McCawley, Director, Division of Marine Fisheries Management at Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

Background:

• In April 2024, Congressmen Graves, Westerman, Senators Wicker, Cruz, and 20 other bipartisan Members of Congress sent a letter to NOAA Assistant Administrator Janet Coit, urging NOAA to modernize the data used by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NFMS) and bring better science to the table for fisheries management.
• After years of forcing the management of recreational fishing limits based on an inaccurate federal data collection program, NOAA confirmed in August 2023 that their data was skewed and federal data collection efforts overestimated recreational fishing by as much as 30-40 percent for species like red snapper.
• Graves' landmark legislation that favors more exact state fisheries management over federal data, the Modern Fish Act, was signed into law by President Trump on December 31, 2018.