The commercial fishing industry is bracing for significant challenges as a preliminary budget proposal from the White House Office of Management and Budget suggests a 27% funding cut for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in fiscal year 2026.
This proposed reduction comes amidst ongoing concerns following the Trump administration’s decision to terminate hundreds of NOAA employees in February, particularly those in probationary positions.
The budget plans also include a restructuring of NOAA’s fisheries division, transferring crucial responsibilities to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, a move that has raised alarm among industry experts and local officials.
Frank Kelty, a fisheries consultant and former mayor of Unalaska, expressed his concerns regarding the potential fallout from such budgetary changes.
“What are we going to do if we don’t have weather information?” he questioned, emphasizing the risks fishermen could face without reliable marine weather forecasts.
Kelty, who now advises the city of Unalaska—the nation’s largest fishing port by volume—highlighted the dependence of sustainable harvest management on accurate stock assessments and real-time data.
“We’re going to have a lack of information. And in the fisheries, timely information is critical,” he stated.
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council, tasked with managing federal fisheries and setting catch limits under the Magnuson-Stevens Act, relies heavily on NOAA data for its essential functions.
Executive Director David Witherell warned that the proposed cuts would impair the council’s operations significantly.
“Cuts of this magnitude will have significant impacts on fisheries in the North Pacific,” he cautioned.
Witherell pointed out that NOAA employees in the fisheries division play vital roles in numerous areas, including opening and closing fisheries, issuing permits, providing technical analysis, and conducting monitoring programs to maintain sustainable harvest levels.
He raised serious concerns regarding the anticipated reductions in scientific surveys, stating that they would lead to less accurate stock assessments and ecosystem monitoring.
“Inadequate scientific surveys result in unnecessary reductions in sustainable yields,” Witherell explained.
This loss of scientific data directly affects catch limits, he warned, as reduced surveys equate to reduced confidence in stock assessments.
Vice Chair Bill Tweit, speaking in a personal capacity, echoed these concerns regarding the ramifications of the proposed budget.
The degradation of NOAA’s mission could hinder efforts to attract and retain highly qualified scientists, many of whom have faced challenges under the current administration.
Witherell noted that the Council has already begun scaling back its operations, reducing staff, canceling travel, and holding meetings virtually to adapt to the current circumstances.
He emphasized that there are no viable private-sector alternatives to NOAA’s data collection and analysis capabilities.
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski described the budget proposal as “more than concerning,” though she acknowledged it is still an early draft that requires further budgetary discussions.
“I think it’s too early to say,” she said in an interview before the ComFish trade show in Kodiak.
Likewise, U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan reassured stakeholders that no final decisions had been made regarding the proposed cuts and reorganization of NOAA.
Sullivan indicated that he would be actively engaging with the administration to address potential impacts on Alaska’s economy.
As the Trump administration prepares the proposed budget for Congress, stakeholders are closely monitoring the situation, hopeful for changes that could mitigate the anticipated cuts.
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