[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 11 (Thursday, February 12, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S781]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          REGULATING DUNGENESS CRAB HARVEST ON THE WEST COAST

 Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, I rise today to state that I 
intend, with my colleague from Washington state, Senator Murray, to 
introduce legislation shortly after this recess to ensure fair 
management of Dungeness crab on the West Coast. The legislation is 
supported by the Pacific Fishery Management Council, and represents an 
agreement reached by industry representatives, tribal representatives, 
and state fishery management agencies in Washington, Oregon, and 
California. The legislation will extend and expand the current interim 
authority for these states to manage Dungeness crab beyond three miles 
from their shores.
  Historically, the crab fisheries off the coasts of California, 
Oregon, and Washington have been managed by the three states, and 
through cooperative agreements between them. The state jurisdiction, 
however, extends only to three miles. This limitation is particularly 
significant in Washington state, where approximately 60-80 percent of 
the crab is caught beyond three miles. While states can regulate their 
own fishermen beyond three miles, they have not historically been able 
to regulate fishermen from other states.
  Although Washington, Oregon, and California have all adopted limited 
entry programs to conserve and manage crab, Oregon vessels can and do 
fish for Dungeness crab in waters more than three miles off Washington, 
and, until interim authority was granted in 1996 in the Sustainable 
Fisheries Act, Washington could not regulate these vessels. The same, 
of course, was true of Washington vessels fishing off the coast of 
Oregon.
  The problem with the inability to manage out-of-state vessels beyond 
three miles became critical in 1995, when a Federal district court 
allocated a large portion of the crab to Indian tribes, and threatened 
in this way to deprive non-tribal fishermen, who have been fishing for 
generations, of their livelihoods. Without the ability to regulate 
vessels from Oregon, all of the allocation to the tribes would come 
from Washington non-tribal fishermen. This simply is not fair. The bill 
I will introduce will continue to give the fishery managers in Oregon, 
California, and Washington, the authority to regulate all crabbers 
equally in the exclusive economic zone adjacent to the state. This 
regulatory authority will help to ensure that the cost of the tribal 
allocation will be borne more fairly by all commercial crabbers who 
fish in the EEZ adjacent to Washington, not just crabbers whose vessels 
are registered in the state.
  As I mentioned, in 1996, I succeeded in obtaining a provision in the 
Sustainable Fisheries Act, which gave limited interim authority to the 
West Coast states to manage the Dungeness crab fishery beyond three 
miles. This interim authority expires in 1999. It was anticipated that 
the Pacific Council would, by that time, prepare a Fishery Management 
Plan that could be delegated to the states. The Council has determined, 
however, through a careful, public, and inclusive process, that, given 
the unique nature of the West Coast fisheries in which you have 
effective state management, cooperation among the states, and agreement 
on the legislation I will introduce, there is no need for Federal 
management of this fishery.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues to secure quick passage 
of the bill.

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