HJR 21-GROUNDFISH FISHERIES LICENSES  4:25:34 PM CO-CHAIR MCGUIRE announced HJR 21 to be up for consideration. 4:26:19 PM REPRESENTATIVE ALAN AUSTERMAN, Alaska State Legislature, sponsor of HJR 21, said the resolution is a message to the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council (NPFMC). [The NPFMC oversees the management of federal fisheries beyond the three-mile limit] and it has a history of either giving away fishery resources to individual fishermen or restricting access. The halibut Individual Fishing Quotas (IFQ) is one such example. As a result of quota prices, a young upstart halibut fisherman today would need to invest up to $1 million to enter that fishery. The NPFMC was moving the Gulf of Alaska [Pacific] cod fishery in the same direction until 2006 when the governor asked it not to rationalize that fishery. To its credit, the NPFMC changed course and established a limited license program for groundfish in the Gulf of Alaska. About 800 permits were issued based on catch history from the 1990s with the primary catch being [Pacific] cod. Currently about 65 percent of the licenses are latent and haven't been used for some time. After 2006 the NPFMC looked at catch histories in a specific range of recent years for the purpose of placing a cod endorsement on the LLP license. Without this endorsement an LLP license would be functionally useless. This works to the advantage of those who receive an endorsement and creates yet another barrier for young people to enter the industry. HJR 21 simply asks the North Pacific Fishery Management Council not to reduce reasonable access to this fishery. Don't place a cod endorsement on these licenses and make 500 some latent LLP licenses non-usable. Part of the goal of the resolution is to raise awareness on some of the options that the NPFMC may not be looking at. This includes looking at how to control the growth in fisheries so the need to rationalize doesn't arise. There are ways to do that, but the NPFMC is only looking at reducing access so that just "X" number of boats will fish in that fishery. 4:33:55 PM REPRESENTATIVE AUSTERMAN said that when he worked for the former governor on fishery issues it was an eye-opener to learn that the administration, through the commissioner of the Department of Fish and Game, and the five Board of Fisheries appointees make policy calls in federal fisheries that directly affect Alaskans and put them out of work. The Crab Rationalization Program is a prime example. Over 1,000 jobs were lost; about half were lost by Alaskans and the other half were by people from the West Coast that came to Alaska to fish. Clearly, the Alaska Legislature should be involved in the policy issues that affect Alaskans so greatly. 4:37:05 PM DON BREMNER, Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (CCTHITA), said HJR 21 is an opportunity to influence control over the Alaska seafood resources. CCTHITA has actively opposed steps by the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council toward rationalization, but has had limited success. When the Magnuson-Stevens Act passed in 1976 it was designed for the average Alaska fisherman. Rationalization came as a result of large open ocean fishermen lobbying their interests at the expense of inshore fisheries and communities. HJR 21 is a good idea, it helps the little guy. 4:40:55 PM SHAWN DOCHTERMANN said he is a second generation Kodiak commercial fishermen who supports HJR 21. He is opposed to eliminating LLP licenses and implementation of Pacific cod endorsements. The NPFMC should stick with the status quo for Gulf of Alaska groundfish management. He noted that a council member recently told him the endorsements will go through regardless and said he has a hard time understanding why the council doesn't listen to the stakeholders. Over 17 Native villages or organizations support the resolution. MR. DOCHTERMANN said the purpose and need statement for the amendments is flawed. There is no increased market value, there is nothing wrong with competition, and this will not insure that active fisherman will be able to participate in these fisheries. The Magnuson-Stevens Act was brought forward for habitat protection and sustainability of resources yet the amendments don't mention that. It's for economic allocation, which violates a standard in the Sustainable Fisheries Act of 1996. Removing the latent licenses from groundfish permit holders will leave state waters as the dumping ground for new entrants. Why shouldn't federal waters have a place for active new entry fishermen to transition to all fisheries? Fishing rights need to remain with those who go out on boats. Removing the LLPs from fixed gear fishermen will take rights from active and future fishermen and give exclusive rights to an investor-only faction that does not fish. 4:45:03 PM DJ VINBERG said he is a third generation Kodiak fisherman and he opposes HJR 21. Morally he agrees with the concept of open fishing, but without restriction the cod fishery is becoming a derby not unlike halibut fishing of the past. The cod season used to last 3-4 months and this year it lasted just 26 days. This year 30 more boats participated than two years ago. Most disturbing were the boats that came that have crab IFQs. They are free to participate in any open fishery at no risk to their already banked crab money. In an open fishing environment these highly competitive fishermen will receive a bonus season at his expense. If unchecked the cod fishery will become over- capitalized. There should be more restrictions on access to the gulf cod fishery including some qualifying years. The more than 800 LLP licenses in the gulf do nothing to protect people like him who live in Kodiak and are committed to the fishery. His options are limited; he is too small to fish cod out west and his business is jeopardized if his piece of the "cod pie" continues to shrink. While he doesn't favor further privatizations or IFQs, he believes that limiting the number of permits is a good starting tool. The Legislature should be concerned about Alaska fisheries and knowledgeable about the situation, but it should respect those whose sole responsibility it is to make fisheries management decisions. 4:48:41 PM ALVIN BIRCH, Executive Director, Alaska Whitefish Trawlers Association, said he submitted written testimony. He is well familiar with fisheries management issues and his concerns with HJR 21 are numerous. In particular he is concerned about the precedent it sets for the Legislature to make a quick decision about a fisheries issue that is going through the long and very public NPFMC process. The stated purpose of the resolution is far from accurate and is an example of why it is so very important to have a long decision-making process for fishery issues. That way all sides and opinions can be weighed against scientific data. Without scientific data, all fisheries are at risk. The recent NPFMC amendment package is the result of a long public process, scientific input, and months of deliberation. New entrants are allowed into the fisheries and those with a long history of fishing cod are protected. 4:51:44 PM PETER ALLEN, representing himself, said he is a fisherman in Kodiak who has been fishing a small boat for over 25 years. This has been possible because he's been flexible to adapt as fish stocks and markets rise and fall. Small boat fishermen need this flexibility. Currently he has an inactive LP, an inactive salmon seine permit, an inactive herring gillnet permit, and an inactive crab permit. All these permits make up his fishing business. If the federal government takes away his cod fishing rights and the state takes away other rights he'll be out of business. This resolution tells the council what a lot of people feel and it's right on, he said. 4:53:43 PM TONY GREGORIO, representing himself, Chignik Lagoon, said he has fished since 1959 and when people talk about rationalization he thinks back to the time when Del Monte owned all the boats in Chignik and told the skippers how many fish they could catch every day. "That's where we're going back to," he said. In the '50s villages like Squaw Harbor, Unga, and Chignik Lagoon had private salteries but when the cod fishing died out they went to somewhere else. Now those villages are gone. He applauds Representative Austerman for bring this to the Legislature because "trying to deal with the North Pacific [Fisheries Management Council] is like trying to tell your wife not to go shopping anymore." 4:56:02 PM FREDDIE CHRISTIANSEN, representing himself, Anchorage, said he was born and raised on Kodiak Island. He has fished his entire life and believes there comes a time when the state needs to stand up and say, "Enough is enough." These communities aren't asking for a handout; they're asking that their needs are considered when fish are rationalized, he said. When he grew up his family and others fished many different fisheries and now participation is very limited. He noted that the new chief of NOAH recently stated that she knows that what Americans want from the ocean is clean beaches, safe and healthy seafood, abundant wildlife, and stable fisheries. This means vibrant coastal communities for us, our kids, and our grandkids, he said. He thanked Representative Austerman for bringing the resolution forward. 4:58:30 PM STEPHEN TAUFEN, Groundswell Fisheries Movement, Kodiak, said he agrees with earlier testimony that the purposes and needs that the NPFMC is basing its action on are inaccurate. The argument for the cod endorsement eschews efficiencies and makes it clear that this council "is nothing but hell-bent on privatizations…even when things become disconnected from reality." For a lot of reasons the Legislature should be involved in the council's action. Number one is to ensure that their problem and purpose and need statements are accurate and sensible before there is a regulatory review. Also, the state needs to have a deputy attorney general ensure that coastal communities, small business people, and other stakeholders are represented and protected. He applauded Representative Austerman's efforts. CO-CHAIR MCGUIRE closed public testimony and held HJR 21 in committee.