MARCH 10 UPDATE: Opinion: Lawmakers should heed state call for full NMFS probe
PRIOR COVERAGE:
GLOUCESTER, MA (March 7, 2009) – The Democratic leaders of the Massachusetts Legislature have appealed to Congress for an independent investigation into — and relief from — what they describe as rogue enforcement actions designed to grind down and denigrate commercial fishermen.
"For too many years," lawmakers wrote to the state’s two U.S. senators and three fishing port congressmen, "we have been presented with complaints from local elected officials and fishing industry members detailing overzealous and intimidating enforcement practices and vindictive behavior (by enforcement officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)."
Read the Gloucester Daily Times story in full
View the official letter requesting an investigation of the NOAA and NMFS [PDF]
Please contact your elected officials to express your thoughts on the accusations and the request of these Massachusetts legisltors. To find and contact your elected officials, enter your zip code at www.congress.org