CSSJR 20(RES): Relating to the Western Alaska Community Development Quota Program, the inshore/offshore allocation process, and the North Pacific Fishery Management Council Comprehensive Rationalization Program.
00CS FOR SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 20(RES) 01 Relating to the Western Alaska Community Development Quota Program, the 02 inshore/offshore allocation process, and the North Pacific Fishery Management 03 Council Comprehensive Rationalization Program. 04 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 WHEREAS the Western Alaska Community Development Quota (CDQ) Program is 06 a fisheries development program involving the federal Department of Commerce, the North 07 Pacific Fishery Management Council, the State of Alaska, and 56 Bering Sea coast, Aleutian 08 Islands, and Pribilof Islands communities; and 09 WHEREAS the CDQ program has set aside 7.5 percent of the available Bering Sea 10 pollock quota during 1992 through 1995 for Bering Sea coast, Aleutian Islands, and Pribilof 11 Islands communities; and 12 WHEREAS the amount of pollock available for harvest under the CDQ program is 13 more than 100,000 metric tons per year and has an approximate annual value of $20,000,000; 14 and
01 WHEREAS the CDQ program allocates the available harvest of pollock among 02 eligible communities, local fishermen's organizations, and local economic development 03 organizations who in turn reinvest the proceeds from the harvest and processing of the pollock 04 in additional local fisheries development projects; and 05 WHEREAS the CDQ program has been expanded to include halibut and sablefish 06 (black cod); and 07 WHEREAS the CDQ program is important to the economic development of the 08 Bering Sea coast, Aleutian Islands, and Pribilof Islands communities; and 09 WHEREAS the North Pacific Fishery Management Council established the CDQ 10 program as a component of the inshore and offshore allocation of Bering Sea pollock; and 11 WHEREAS the CDQ program represents an unparalleled opportunity for long-term 12 stable economic development for the communities of the Bering Sea coast, Aleutian Islands, 13 and Pribilof Islands; and 14 WHEREAS the social and economic welfare of many Alaska coastal communities is 15 largely dependent upon continued access to and utilization of the vast pacific cod and pollock 16 resources off the shores of Alaska; and 17 WHEREAS access to and utilization of the pacific cod and pollock resources has been 18 assured under the inshore/offshore allocation adopted by the North Pacific Fishery 19 Management Council; and 20 WHEREAS the increased harvesting capacity of the large industrialized offshore 21 fishing fleets have developed an advantage over the catcher boat fleet that harvests fish for 22 shoreside processing plants; and 23 WHEREAS the North Pacific Fishery Management Council is preparing to adopt a 24 Comprehensive Rationalization Plan (CRP) for groundfish and crab in the Bering Sea and 25 Aleutian Islands area; and 26 WHEREAS the North Pacific Fishery Management Council's CRP will limit access 27 in the groundfish and crab fisheries off Alaska, which are important to Alaska's coastal 28 communities and to Alaska's seafood industry; 29 BE IT RESOLVED by the Alaska State Legislature that the North Pacific Fishery 30 Management Council is respectfully requested to allocate Bering Sea groundfish and crab to 31 the Western Alaska Community Development Quota (CDQ) groups and support the
01 continuation of the inshore/offshore allocation process as parts of any Comprehensive 02 Rationalization Plan (CRP) that the council prepares; and be it 03 FURTHER RESOLVED by the Alaska State Legislature that the North Pacific 04 Fishery Management Council is also respectfully requested to ensure that any CRP developed 05 by the council guarantees access for Alaska's small boat fleet and coastal residents to 06 groundfish and crab; and be it 07 FURTHER RESOLVED by the Alaska State Legislature that nothing in this 08 resolution should be construed as endorsing the federal individual fishery quota (IFQ) process, 09 as endorsing reallocations of fishery resources from one group of Alaskans to another, or as 10 a grant of federal jurisdiction over Alaska fisheries. 11 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Ron Brown, Secretary of the 12 U.S. Department of Commerce; Richard B. Lauber, chair of the North Pacific Fishery 13 Management Council; and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski, 14 U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska 15 delegation in Congress.