Bill Text: TX SCR36 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Encouraging Congress to pass legislation allowing the State of Texas to manage the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery out to 200 nautical miles.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-05-01 - Left pending in committee [SCR36 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SCR36-Introduced.html
85R10868 RMA-D | ||
By: Hinojosa | S.C.R. No. 36 |
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WHEREAS, In recent years, the Gulf of Mexico has contained | ||
the highest total allowable catch of red snapper in decades, but in | ||
2016, anglers experienced the shortest recreational fishing season | ||
to date, lasting less than two weeks; and | ||
WHEREAS, The U.S. government has overseen the Gulf | ||
recreational red snapper fishery for nearly four decades; today, | ||
federal management systems attempt to regulate red snapper fishing | ||
by the pound with tools specifically designed to manage the | ||
commercial sector, despite the fact that federal data collection | ||
systems are incapable of accounting to such a level of specificity | ||
for recreational harvests; and | ||
WHEREAS, The U.S. government has, moreover, neglected to use | ||
recent data to provide meaningful guidelines and requirements for a | ||
systematic reallocation of federal fisheries; except for minor | ||
adjustments to account for errors in its own data collection | ||
system, the Gulf red snapper fishery allocation is based on highly | ||
suspect data from 1979-1986 and has remained unchanged since 1991; | ||
and | ||
WHEREAS, The federal government is currently promoting a | ||
management strategy to privatize the Gulf red snapper fishery; | ||
approximately 50 percent of the fishery is already held by private | ||
businesses, while another 20 percent has been designated to be | ||
sold; shares of this public resource have also been given away for | ||
free, based on a commercial operator's past catch history; and | ||
WHEREAS, Because of extraordinarily remiss requirements in | ||
its conflict of interest guidelines, the federal fisheries | ||
management system allows commercial operators who already own red | ||
snapper shares or who may be gifted shares to serve on the Gulf of | ||
Mexico Fishery Management Council and to cast votes on issues that | ||
will result in direct financial benefit for them; and | ||
WHEREAS, By creating a prohibitive environment for anglers | ||
and ethical issues among user groups and stakeholders, the U.S. | ||
government has proved itself incapable of properly managing red | ||
snapper fishing in the Gulf of Mexico, and all five states along the | ||
Gulf Coast have increasingly needed to implement regulations and | ||
seasons that are not consistent with the federal management plan; | ||
and | ||
WHEREAS, Numerous studies, including some funded by NOAA | ||
Fisheries, indicate that the greatest economic engine in the Gulf | ||
reef fishery is the recreational angling sector, and federal | ||
control should be relinquished to the Gulf states, which depend | ||
most on this vital public resource; now, therefore, be it | ||
RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas | ||
hereby encourage Congress to pass legislation or adopt policies | ||
allowing Texas to manage the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery out | ||
to 200 nautical miles; and, be it further | ||
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official | ||
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to | ||
the president of the Senate and to the speaker of the House of | ||
Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the | ||
members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that | ||
this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a | ||
memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |