February 9, 2021 — Commercial seafood organizations have begun responding to a U.S. Justice Department task force report on human trafficking in international waters.
The report, nearly three years in the making, included 27 recommendations for the federal government to eliminate loopholes or strengthen policies. Some of those recommendations include the need for congressional legislation. Among this is a recommendation to create a temporary worker visa program that would ban “recruitment fees” paid by workers on American vessels that fish in international waters but deliver products in U.S. ports.