Fishermen's safety net

[Sam]

With Maine's groundfishing industry facing an economic collapse, a legislative committee is pushing a $10.5 million financial-aid package aimed at inducing fishermen to stay in business and keep landing their catch at Maine ports.The proposal, which would pay out the money over a three-year period, effectively would lower the cost of ice, fuel, ground transportation and landing fees.Although the money goes to fishermen, the package also would help onshore businesses, such as processors and ice vendors, by maintaining a supply of fish and customers, said Rep. Herb Adams, D-Portland, who co-chaired a committee that developed the plan."It keeps an historic Maine tradition alive until better days," he said.


Because of ever-tightening regulations aimed at restoring depleted fish stocks, groundfish landings in Maine have fallen to levels that have not been seen in a century of record keeping. The Portland Fish Exchange is projected to land 5 million pounds this year, less than a third of what the exchange landed just three years ago.Many Maine fishing boat owners in recent years either have quit fishing or have moved their boats to Massachusetts, where state law allows them to land and sell lobsters that wind up in their nets. They are prohibited from landing lobsters in Maine.From 2004 to 2005, the number of trips by Maine-based trawlers to the Bay State grew from 76 to 160, and the amount of seafood sold on those trips grew from $1.6 million to $3.8 million.


"It's fairly safe to say we are in a crisis situation," said George Lapointe, commissioner of the Maine Department of Marine Resources.Fishermen this year never asked the Legislature for financial aid. Instead, they asked that they be allowed to land lobsters in Maine.Facing intense opposition from the powerful Maine lobster industry, however, the Legislature's Marine Resources Committee last month unanimously rejected the proposal.Afterward, a group of five legislators on the committee worked to develop the financial aid package. The full Marine Resources Committee, which has approved the package unanimously in concept, will review the details Wednesday before sending it to the Legislature.The House and the Senate may vote on the bill next week.

The package would do the following:
n Reimburse fishermen for the 15-cent handling fee they pay for every pound they land at the fish exchange.n Reimburse them for ice they purchase from one the state's two remaining ice vendors.n Reimburse fishermen in midcoast ports 5 cents a pound for the cost of transporting their catch by truck to the fish exchange.n Exempt fishermen from paying a sales tax on diesel fuel. Lobstermen, though, still would pay the tax.To qualify, a boat must land at least 90 percent of its catch in Maine. Boats registered out of state also would qualify if they land 90 percent of their catch in Maine.


Some fishermen are still upset that the Legislature rejected the lobster bill and note that it would have helped the fishing industry without costing taxpayers any money. Still, the proposed aid package would make a big difference to fishermen, said Maggie Raymond of Associated Fisheries of Maine, an industry group that represents the interests of Maine fishermen who fish in offshore waters.She said the package approximates the lobster bycatch revenue that fishermen receive at ports outside of Maine.

Committee members, though, say the lobster issue has nothing to do with this proposal and that any financial comparison is coincidental.Fishing stocks are rebounding and regulations should ease off in a few years, said Glen Libby, a Port Clyde draggerman who chairs the Midcoast Fishermen's Association. If fishermen and the land-shore businesses survive until then, the state will benefit from more jobs and increased tax revenue.If fishermen lose their permits and the shore-side infrastructure collapses, however, Massachusetts ports will reap the bounty, leaving Maine on the sidelines, he predicted.The aid package is needed, he said, "so that the state of Maine doesn't lose its access, so we have something besides lobstering to do up here."


Craig Pendleton, a Saco fishermen, said the fishing industry in Maine was once an "economic powerhouse" and that those days could return when stocks are rebuilt.
"We can't lose sight of the potential," he said. "We have to protect fishing families for the time being so we can get through the tough times and catch fish again."The fish exchange, the city-owned auction house, has cut back on its hours and staff and still expects lose $250,000 this year, according to Tom Valleau, president of the exchange. Maine's active fishing fleet is down to around 100 to 115 boats, just a third of the size it was four years ago, he said.Roger Fleming, a senior attorney with the Conservation Trust who has clashed with fishermen about regulatory issues, said he supports the aid package.


"It keeps the industry in place," he said, "but the longer-term solution is to make changes in fisheries management to help us bring the stocks back."While the aid package is needed, there isn't any available money in the governor's budget to pay for it, Lapointe said. He noted that the state faces a budget shortfall because corporate income tax revenue failed to meet projections. The General Fund revenue for the rest of this fiscal year, which ends June 30, is almost $34 million less than expected.One possible source of money, he said, is the federal government. Gov. John Baldacci this week is reviewing a letter that asks U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez for a unspecified amount of federal aid.


Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick nearly two weeks ago asked Gutierrez to designate a "fisheries resource disaster," the first step in obtaining financial relief for Bay State fishermen. Patrick said federal rules imposed last year cost the Massachusetts fishing industry $22 million in revenue.Massachusetts also plans to spend $12.6 million to buy and lease permits of Gloucester fishermen. The money comes from a fund that energy companies pay into to offset the effect of their offshore liquefied natural gas ports.In addition, the Massachusetts Legislature is considering a bond of up to $20 million to provide grants or low-interest loans to fishermen to help them absorb the cost of government-required safety equipment and training.

Fishermen's safety net