Steve Southerland

A government big enough to meet all of your needs is a government big enough to take everything you own.

I mean, we are $16 trillion in debt, OK, the CBO just came out this week and said on our current pace we are going to hit $20 trillion in debt by 2016.

We deserve more, you deserve more. You have been sold out for decades. It breaks my heart.

That is not right, it is unfair. That is unacceptable.

They will not recognize the good data that we do have, they will not make adjustments when we have increases and there is strong evidence that the fisheries are healthy.

And I think to ask what the economic impacts are before we push these regulations over on someone, I think that is a fair expectation.

But one of the standards, and I want everyone to understand that one of the standards that is clearly inside the Magnuson-Stevens Act that is often overlooked--and I am reading from Section 301 of the National Standards for Fisheries…

You deserve a say, that is why we brought this field hearing here, because not everybody can afford to come to D.C.

This Administration is funding luxuries while the necessities--good data, so you all can make a living--are being ignored.

If the Federal Government were to remove some of the restrictions and encourage private reef building, then we could help our fishery.

We need some 'flexibility' in our federal fisheries law . . . there are no deadlines in nature; the last thing we need is to mandate unnatural timelines for rebuilding fisheries.

Why would NOAA continually over and over and over again refuse to count the fish that are making their home on artificial reefs?

We have to make good decisions with good data.

My sincere hope is that the enthusiasm some members of this committee have shown for engaging on questions of fisheries management may evolve into a sustained commitment to forging policies in Congress that promote healthy fisheries…

I encourage committee members to do what they can to provide adequate appropriations for fisheries science.

We are the victims of endemic seafood fraud, and more must be done to combat instances of our catch being undermined in restaurants and on supermarket shelves by cheap and inferior product.

I remain very fearful about the long-term consequences that disaster will have on the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem and our fisheries' long-term health.

I'm very surprised that Mr. Southerland would presume to suggest that it would never be--and that he would enshrine his misguided conviction on that point in legislation.

We're not an industry that's looking for handouts--we're only asking for a hand, to protect our coastal heritage and traditions while fostering sustainable Gulf fisheries for generations to come.

The new sector separation schemes and 'individual catch shares' for Gulf of Mexico fisheries is not an answer, it's an agenda, and it will forever change the face of our local community in a way that is not at all what's good for Florida…

I can tell you that if you want fish populations to explode, all you have to do is stop people from fishing, that's easy.

It seems to be incredibly inconsistent and what I am worried about is that this inconsistency of acknowledging truth is crushing you.

Do not turn back the clock, help us create fisheries and jobs for tomorrow.

We are having to impose highly draconian restrictions upon the ability of our citizens to catch fish, recreationally or commercially.

I am proud to fulfill my commitment of what I made in this room.