The Department of Commerce has essentially confirmed what those in the fishing industry have claimed for years — that the law enforcement arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is a renegade policing agency.
The report by the office of Inspector General Todd Zinser, released Thursday, cites "systemic" problems tied, in part, to the manner in which elements of NOAA's policing force have been wrongly allowed to operate "autonomously," especially in the Northeast. The IG's office has turned up alleged instances of "abusive treatment" that, while not "widespread," merit in-depth attention.
There are significant clouds over the agency's finance, which lacks oversight for the heavy-handed fines the agency keeps for its own use. And there are concerns that NOAA enforcement is stocked with agents who have criminal certification to qualify for higher pay for what should be civil case work.
Officials from Mass. Attorney General Martha Coakley to U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe have used terms such as "appalled" and "astounding" in their reactions.