The Fishes Act is crucial to speed disaster relief to American fisheries

By U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott

Your federal government is broken, and Florida’s seafood sector is paying the price for Washington’s dysfunction. While nearly everyone agrees that Washington should quickly deploy resources and assistance after natural disasters wreak havoc on coastal communities, right now it takes up to three years under current regulatory processes and a maze of red tape before federal fishery disaster relief is approved by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Office of Management and Budget. 

By the time NOAA and OMB finally approve and allocate disaster relief, small businesses and fisheries are already devastated and, in some cases, may have already been forced to close shop. This self-induced, slow-moving bureaucratic process is unacceptable. Simply put, we need to streamline the process and get Washington working faster for Florida — that’s why we’re fighting to pass our Fishery Improvement to Streamline Untimely Regulatory Hurdles post Emergency Situation (Fishes) Act.

Overall, the Fishes Act expedites the deployment of federal fishery disaster relief by cutting unnecessary red tape and enacting a 30-day decision requirement for the Office of Management and Budget to either deny or approve a state’s spending plan. What we hope to do with this bill is to throw American fisheries and coastal communities a life raft to stay afloat post-disaster. 

In the U.S. House, we have 29 bipartisan co-sponsors from across the nation, and in the Senate, Lisa Murkowski, Marco Rubio and Dan Sullivan are all co-sponsors. Additionally, our bill has gained support from more than 60 diverse organizations and key industry players both in and out of the fishing industry. When we can create efficiencies in the federal government, everyone benefits because no industry stands alone — and that’s especially true for American fisheries. 

U.S. fisheries support millions of jobs and bring in billions of dollars to the broader U.S. economy each year. Whether fishing is one’s livelihood or a favorite pastime, or whether seafood is one’s meal of choice, U.S. fisheries are an economic engine that support communities nationwide. 

In 2022, commercial fisheries and the seafood industry generated $183.4 billion in sales, $42.2 billion in income, and $74.0 billion in value-added impacts throughout the United States. Fisheries also supported 1.6 million jobs in 2022 and recreational fishing generated $138 billion in sales impact nationwide. These statistics alone demonstrate why and how we have secured a wide range of bipartisan cosponsors and a diverse range of organizations that cumulatively support the Fishes Act — from the boating industry to our environmental partners. 

In recent years, we’ve seen the devastation of hurricanes firsthand with Ian and Idalia wreaking havoc on Florida’s coastal communities — and we’ve seen our fisheries struggle while waiting for federal action. Since 2012, Florida has requested federal fishery disaster relief on six separate occasions, and each time it has taken more than two years between the declaration of the federal fishery disaster to when the Office of Management and Budget approved Florida’s plan. Enough is enough. We must cut this self-induced red tape. 

As hurricane season is under way, the Fishes Act should be a top priority for Congress. Action to modernize the Office of Management and Budget’s slow and bureaucratic disaster relief process is long overdue. American fisheries can’t afford to wait several years for relief after a natural disaster strikes. We need to put the federal government on the clock when it comes to disaster response and stop these unnecessary delays that are crushing our hardworking anglers. Time is of the essence to get U.S. fisheries and coastal communities back up and running post-disaster, and the Fishes Act is a crucial step to make this happen. 

Rick Scott represents Florida in the U.S. Senate. He is the former governor of Florida. Byron Donalds represents Florida’s 19th District in the U.S. House. Both men are Republicans. This opinion piece was originally published by the Tampa Bay Times, which is a media partner of The Invading Sea. 

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