January 16, 2019 — The longest government shutdown in U.S. history is beginning to affect the most valuable fishing port in the country.
The partial shutdown reached day 25 on Tuesday, which means many offices within NOAA have been closed for more than three weeks.
“Our shell stock has dwindled because I have one boat in limbo and only one boat that’s fishing,” CEO and President of Nantucket Sound Seafood LLC Allen Rencurrel said. “So we’re definitely feeling the effect of the government shutdown.”
Without an open government, Rencurrel can’t get federal approval for leasing licenses or “tags.” It’s led Nantucket Sound Seafood to only have one vessel to harvest clams in federal waters and one in state waters.
The regulations in state waters are far more restrictive including less quota.
Without receiving approval for leasing, Rencurrel estimated losses exceeding $17,000 a week.
“And that’s the smallest boat in the fleet,” he said.
It’s just one example of the fallout the New Bedford fishing industry is feeling in dealing with the shutdown in Washington. While monitors and observers continue to police quotas, other aspects of the shutdown have crippled production on the waterfront.
“I think the industry would pay them to go in to work for a week. Just to get all the transfers done,” Rencurrel said.
Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times