Policy News
The National Ocean Policy, launched by President Barack Obama in 2010, is facing congressional scrutiny regarding its scope and cost after seven years of slow but steady progress on the effort. In early December, the Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard convened a hearing entitled “National Ocean Policy: Stakeholder Perspectives.”... Read More
UPDATE 12/19/2017 – The House has passed KARO and the bill now moves on to the Senate. Thank you for your support! The House Natural Resources Committee will consider H.R. 3979, the Keep America’s Refuges Operational Act, on November 29 and 30th in a full committee mark-up. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.),... Read More
In mid-December, Rep. Jeff Fortenberry (R-Neb.) and Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) introduced the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act in the House, a major step forward in securing $1.3 billion annually for state fish and wildlife agencies to undertake significant, proactive conservation efforts for imperiled species. If enacted, fisheries biologists and other resource professionals will be able... Read More
By Tom Bigford, AFS Policy Director This is my 51st and final column for Fisheries magazine, which is cause for celebration and angst. I will be retiring shortly after this column is published, leaving my policy director post at AFS. Other than tasks associated with my continuing role as past-president of the AFS Fish Habitat Section, my... Read More
By Steve McMullin, AFS President President Barack Obama once famously said, “Elections have consequences.” The first year of the Trump Administration clearly demonstrates the truth of that statement, and the consequences for fisheries and the environment are potentially “huge.” The Trump Administration’s approach to science and the environment during its first year in office included... Read More
Tuesday, December 12 The House Committee on Natural Resources has scheduled a markup on 15 bills including the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act beginning on Tuesday, December 12, 2017 at 5:00 p.m. in 1324 Longworth House Office Building. The committee will convene for opening statements only and will reconvene the following day. Tuesday, December 12... Read More
The Tax Cut and Jobs Act passed by the House of Representatives on November 16, 2017 includes language that would repeal a provision in the Tax Code that currently excludes tuition waivers from gross income for qualifying students. The Senate bill, passed on December 2, does not have a corresponding tuition waiver provision. Members of... Read More
AFS is joining with other science societies to oppose the EPA’s most recent proposal to add an “effective date” to the 2015 rule. We believe that this action is an attempt to amend the Clean Water Rule. AFS believes that any agency action concerning WOTUS—including the effective suspension of the Clean Water Rule—must be supported... Read More
On Tuesday, December 12, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee’s Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard will hold a hearing titled “National Ocean Policy: Stakeholder Perspectives.” The hearing will examine the state of the National Ocean Policy and the program’s interaction with existing laws and regulations for ocean management. In 2010, the Obama... Read More
Federal appropriators are once again seeking to address the escalating costs of wildfire suppression on public lands. This year, wildfires have ravaged states in the west, Pacific Northwest, and Northern Rockies regions of the United States. By September, wildland fire suppression costs for the fiscal year had already exceeded $2 billion, making 2017 the most expensive... Read More
