WASHINGTON — November 30, 2012 — Stalled by lawmakers’ focus on the fiscal cliff debate, odds appear to have dimmed for New England fisheries getting $100 million in federal disaster aid by the end of this year.
Members of Massachusetts’ congressional delegation said they are now aiming to attach the funds to a larger disaster bill that would also contain relief for victims of Hurricane Sandy, as well as Midwestern farms stricken by drought.
“Our coastal communities depend on a healthy catch to keep local families and businesses churning, just like Midwestern communities rely on the yield of their crops,” Alec Gerlach, a spokesman for U.S. Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., said in a statement.
Massachusetts lawmakers expressed skepticism this week that a disaster relief bill could be enacted until after the new 113th Congress convenes in January.
U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Brockton, said the debate over expiring tax cuts and $500 billion in spending cuts would have to be resolved first during the lame-duck session of Congress, which runs through the end of December.
“For us to put a bill ahead of the fiscal cliff issue, I don’t think that would be wise,” Mr. Lynch said in a telephone interview.
The U.S. Commerce Department issued a disaster declaration for New England fisheries in September, after the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported it was going to severely reduce catch limits for fish such as cod and flounder. The decision followed recent studies indicating that fish populations remain lower than expected.
The federal declaration did not automatically release any funding, but Mr. Kerry said in September that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., had committed to including the $100 million federal aid package in future legislation. That funding is intended to allow fishing businesses and their communities to weather these low haul years.
Read the full story at the Worcester Telegram & Gazette