May 27, 2016 — State environmental officials quietly replaced the Marine Fisheries Advisory Commission members last Friday, after a disagreement last year over who should serve as the division’s director. The board blocked Governor Charlie Baker’s choice for the job, later choosing longtime division official David Pierce as director.
The Baker administration did not issue a press release on the personnel moves, and longtime fishing boat captains and several industry activists said they were unaware of the changes until contacted this week by the Globe.
Daniel Sieger, assistant secretary for the environment, said the administration was motivated by a desire to bring in new blood and said there were no concrete policy goals associated with the move.
“There’s people that have provided their viewpoint on that board for a long time, and we thought it was a good time to provide some additional perspective,” he said. All of the commissioners who were dismissed were serving past the length of their terms.