HB 266-PERSONAL USE FISHING PRIORITY  10:51:57 AM CHAIR EDGMON announced that the final order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 266 "An Act providing for a priority for a fishery that is restricted to residents when fishing restrictions are implemented to achieve an escapement goal." 10:52:14 AM BEN MULLIGAN, Staff, Representative Bill Stoltze, Alaska State Legislature, speaking on behalf of the sponsor, Representative Stoltze, paraphrased from the sponsor statement, which read: Insuring that residents have access to Alaska's fisheries resources is vitally important as we continue to grow as a state. Right now, user groups are growing both in size and number, splitting the allocation of our resources into smaller and smaller percentages. However, one thing all Alaskans can agree on is that we should have a priority over people coming from elsewhere in the country and the world to utilize and harvest our fisheries resources. Fisheries that are restricted to residents only are meant to enable Alaskans to access their fisheries resources for their personal use and consumption. Currently, there are many personal use fisheries throughout the state. Excluding the priority that is already contained within statute for subsistence, HB 266 directs the Board of Fisheries to place restrictions on sport and commercial fisheries before putting restrictions on personal use fisheries when the harvest of a stock or species is limited to achieve an escapement goal. I ask for your consideration and support of HB 266 so Alaskans can be assured that they will continue to have access to their fisheries resources to the benefit of themselves and their families. 10:53:23 AM REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSON referred to the sponsor statement, and asked which fisheries the term personal use includes. MR. MULLIGAN said he would defer to Alaska Department of Fish & Game (ADF&G) for a definitive answer, but it would include dip netting, crab pots, shrimp pots, but not hook and line fisheries. 10:54:43 AM REPRESENTATIVE KELLER moved to adopt CSHB 266, 26-LS1199\S, Kane, 2/22/10, as the working document. CHAIR EDGMON, hearing no objection, announced that Version S was before the committee. 10:55:28 AM JENNIFER YUHAS, Public Communications Director, Legislative Liaison, Office of the Commissioner, stated that the department does not take official positions on allocative issues. 10:56:13 AM REPRESENTATIVE MUNOZ asked how personal use is determined. 10:56:22 AM MS. YUHAS said that a proposal is brought to the Board of Fisheries (BOF), followed by public testimony, and eight specific criteria are taken into account. Board action may then result in the naming of an area for personal use. She deferred to legal counsel for further comment. 10:57:24 AM LANCE NELSON, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Natural Resources Section, Department of Law, pointed out that personal use only applies to fishing and said there is not a statutory standard that the board considers prior to declaring a personal use fishery. The BOF makes the determination without consideration for tradition, culture, or other findings. Historically, however, the board has created personal use fisheries in areas designated as nonsubsistence. There have been occasion when an area has not met the criteria to be named for subsistence use, and the board has designated it for personal use. 10:59:09 AM CHAIR EDGMON opened public testimony. 10:59:19 AM MATTHEW DONOHOE stated opposition to HB 266 and expressed concern that the bill may represent a reallocation of, or a grab for, a resource. He questioned the necessity for the legislation. 11:01:04 AM JOHN MURRAY stated opposition to HB 266 and reported that the BOF prioritizes personal use fisheries in the Southeast area, when it's deemed necessary. He speculated that the issue may represent localized conflicts, which should be addressed through the board process. Legislation does not appear to be necessary, he said. 11:02:35 AM ROD ARNO, Executive Director, Alaska Outdoor Council (AOC), stated support for HB 266. He informed the committee that the AOC is currently in litigation with the BOF because of the board's inability to comply with Article 8, Section 3, regarding common use, of the Alaska State Constitution. He pointed out that the bill will affect nonsubsistence areas as well. 11:03:36 AM MELVIN GROVE, Member, Mat-Su Fish and Game Advisory Council, Board Member, Alaska Outdoor Access Alliance, stated support for HB 266 and said residents should have a prioritized opportunity to catch fish. Under the Public Trust Doctrine, fish are not a commercial resource. "The public should have every right to catch their own over having to buy it at the store," he said. 11:05:01 AM STEPHEN RUNYAN, Chairman, Susitna Valley Fish and Game Advisory Committee, stated support for HB 266, reporting that personal use fisheries are important in the Mat-Su Valley. He opined that there should be fishing priority given to residents over nonresidents and nonconsumptive uses. 11:07:17 AM BYRON HALEY, President, Chitina Dip Netters Association, Board Member, Alaska Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fund, stated support for HB 266 and said that recently the Conservation Fund Board voted unanimously in favor of the bill. 11:07:32 AM KEN LARSON, Representative, Prince William Sound Charter Boat Association, stated support for HB 266. He said, "The king salmon fishery and the halibut fishery are treaty fish and [are] federally managed." Referring to previous testimony, he opined that Alaska has already experienced a resource grab with the commercial fishery controlling 85 percent of the annual halibut harvest, including the by-catch. Suggesting that HB 266 should include a prioritization on fishing restrictions, from first to last, he stated: When the resource dictates that restrictions be imposed, that we first restrict commercial fishery access, then sport guide fishing secondly, then we restrict nonguided sport fishing thirdly, personal use fourthly, and subsistence would be the last priority. 11:09:08 AM RICKY GEASE, Executive Director, Kenai River Sport Fishing Association, stated support for HB 266 and said it is consistent with other state policies regarding subsistence. Subsistence is open to all state residents, and priority does exist for designated subsistence areas. The bill follows the current policy for prioritization based on conservation needs. There are personal use fisheries for crab and shrimp as well, which would benefit from this bill. He reported that over 95 percent of all harvested fish are for commercial purposes. 11:11:55 AM GERALD McCUNE, President, Cordova District Fishermen United, stated opposition to HB 266 and reported that there are 350 resident commercial fishermen permitted for the Copper River. The Copper River hosts personal use, commercial, subsistence, and sport fisheries. [He held up a hand drawn map and indicated the user areas.] He read from HB 266, page 1: "...to achieve escapement goals, the BOF shall place restrictions on all other fisheries before restricting personal use fisheries." Although there is not currently a priority for personal use, he said the first fishery shut down is the commercial fishery. He continued to report on how the fishery is conducted, the run, run timing, and allocations. Last year was a poor king return, for the Copper River, and commercial fishing was limited to the ocean area outside of a barrier at the mouth of the river. The personal use fishery was not closed last year, despite the weak run. He said there have been few restrictions on personal use. 11:16:05 AM REPRESENTATIVE MILLETT asked whether this legislation might have affected the Copper River had it been previously instituted. MR. McCUNE responded yes it may have, particularly during the low runs of the 1970's. 11:18:44 AM REPRESENTATIVE MILLETT asked for a description of how the escapement goals are established, and whether the Copper River commercial fleet is confident with the numbers produced. MR. McCUNE said the fleet is comfortable with how the fishery management is handled. The Copper River is not very wide, hence two sonar stations are utilized, and the escapement goal is established following the initial two, twelve hour commercial fishing periods, and extrapolating the number based on the 20 year history of the run. 11:20:55 AM REPRESENTATIVE MILLETT surmised that some areas have developed fisheries, appropriate technology, and historic data to make confident projections. She asked how sophisticated the system is in the Mat-Su area. MR. NELSON suggested the fisheries managers may need to be questioned on how this is handled. Index streams are used, and sonar has been questionable regarding what type is most effective. Many areas of the state do not have the capacity for sophisticated monitoring, he said, and deferred to the department for further comment. MR. MULLIGAN reported that ADF&G has indicated that the sonar system does not work well in the Mat-Su, and thus weir systems have been utilized to provide a check. 11:26:04 AM CHAIR EDGMON indicated that the department would be invited to respond to these specific questions. 11:26:27 AM CHERYL SUTTON reported on the management of the Cook Inlet harvest, where she fishes. The commercial fishery must provide enough escapement for personal and subsistence usage, not just for spawning purposes. Additionally, personal use fishery enforcement is an issue, due to the lack of manpower. She said the commercial fishermen support the personal use fishery as a resident fishery. 11:30:22 AM MR. NELSON indicated that the sponsor's intent is to have personal use be the second priority behind subsistence fishing. However, the language of the available bill version does not carry out that purpose, but rather creates a super priority for personal use above all other uses, including subsistence. Additionally, he said that the priority kicks in based on escapement goals. There are many state fisheries that have guideline harvest levels and other management policies, but not escapement goals. Thus, the sponsor may choose to consider different language and include species other than salmon. He confirmed that the BOF currently has the authority to prefer personal use over all uses, save subsistence. To the extent that HB 266 would create a priority over sport, guided sport, and commercial fishing, he said it would be helpful to have legislative findings as to why that would be appropriate and necessary. The bill does not contain reasons and justifications for preferring the personal use fishery, which would be helpful if the law needed to be defended in a constitutional challenge. 11:33:37 AM CHAIR EDGMON stated that HB 266 would be held over and public testimony would remain open.