November 2, 2022 — Acoalition of Gulf of Mexico fishermen got their day in federal court, making the case against reallocating red grouper to the recreational sector.
At an Oct. 18 hearing in Washington, D.C., lawyers for the Gulf Reef Fish Shareholders Alliance and allied fishermen presented their case against Amendment 53 to the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council’s reef fish management plan.
The arguments before U.S. District Court Judge Timothy J. Kelly focused on the amendment’s effect of reducing the annual commercial allocation to 59.3 percent, down from 76 percent, and increasing the recreational allocation from 24 percent to 40.7 percent.