November 17, 2014 — Corbett, a commercial fisherman based in Hampstead, was recently named chairman of the state Marine Fisheries Commission, which formulates rules and policies to regulate the state's fisheries.
For years, state officials asked Sammy Corbett to serve on the N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission. And for years, Corbett said no.
"I've participated on fishery management plans for the past 14 or 16 years," said Corbett, a Hampstead-based commercial fisherman. "So I always said no. I always looked at it like, the management plan is what the commission makes its rules by – so you can be at the top trying to decide what to do, or you can make the rules."
The Marine Fisheries Commission, a nine-member board, oversees regulation and management of the state's "marine and estuary resources," according to its official description; what it does, in layman's terms, is govern the thousands of specific rules and policies that dictate North Carolina's many recreational and commercial fisheries. By helping formulate management plans for specific fisheries – rules for red snapper, say, or for oysters – Corbett felt he had a more direct impact on the industry that supplies his livelihood.
But eventually, he began to change his mind. So when the state came calling this year, Corbett finally said yes. He attended his first meeting in August. A month later, the commission's chairman suffered a fatal heart attack. By the end of October, Gov. Pat McCrory had tapped Corbett to take his place. Corbett agreed to the three-year term, on one condition.
Read the full story from the Star News