Political Quotes

“As the Senator knows, section 112 of the manager's amendment amends the Magnuson Act to clarify that the existing provision which allows a State to impose State laws and regulations on its State-registered vessels, even if those vessels fish in the exclusive economic zone. This provision greatly interests Maine because, in addition to the Federal rules, Maine imposes stringent State lobster conservation regulations on all of its vessels, regardless of where they fish. These State regulations are certainly consistent with the Federal lobster management plan in conserving and sustainably managing the lobster resource. But some of Maine's regulations do differ in design from some of the regulations currently in force in the Federal zone. For instance, Maine prohibits the possession or landing of lobsters by State vessels that do not use traps to harvest lobster, imposes a maximum-size lobster possession limit, prohibits the possession of egg-bearing female lobsters, and requires the v-notching technique to ensure the identification of these lobsters. The Federal lobster management plan does not contain conservation and management measures of the same design. As I understand the amendment, section 112 would allow Maine to continue imposing its more stringent State lobster regulations on all of its State-registered fishing vessels because the regulations are consistent with the Federal lobster management plan.”