WHEREAS, the National Marine Fisheries Service (MOS) has required tuna permits and fees of sports fishermen with no visible evidence that such fees have been utilized to benefit sports fishermen, and
WHEREAS, the NMFS is generally allowed to operate “autonomously” to keep politics out of their operations.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Louisiana Wildlife Federation urges the Louisiana
Congressional Delegation to introduce legislation directing the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to cease requiring recreational anglers to purchase permits when such permits are not utilized to facilitate the gathering of research data for any fish species, and prohibiting regulations to restrict size and/or creel limits or closures in one area when the threat to a sustainable fishery for a targeted species exists in a different area.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that LWF urges the Gulf ofMexico Fisheries Management
Council to insure that regulations imposed by NMFS are equitable and based on sound research.
Adopted by the Louisiana Wildlife Federation in convention assembled, 62nd Annual Meeting, March 4, 2001 in Many, Louisiana.