Government Accountability Office Archives

Government watchdog study finds some problems – and much uncertainty – in offshore wind industry

April 14, 2025 — A study on offshore wind development by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) – one that’s been nearly two years in the making – was at last released today, and it identifies a number of potential problems with the industry but few concrete answers.

The 68-page report acknowledges that building massive wind turbines off America’s coastline, including along the Jersey Shore, could have a variety of impacts on commercial fishing, marine ecosystems, defense radar systems, and local communities. But it also stresses how much is still uncertain about what’s still a relatively new industry.

“Development and operation of offshore wind energy facilities could affect marine life and ecosystems, including through acoustic disturbance and changes to marine habitats,” the GAO report declares in its introduction. “Wind development could bring jobs and investment to communities. At the same time, it could disrupt commercial fishing to varying degrees. Turbines could also affect radar system performance, alter search and rescue methods, and alter historic and cultural landscapes.”

“Because technology and implementation are still developing, the extent of some impacts is unknown,” it later states. “In addition, uncertainty exists about long-term and cumulative effects, but research and monitoring activities are ongoing to better understand potential impacts.”

The report was first commissioned in 2023, at a time when offshore wind was commanding headlines in New Jersey. That year, a number of dead whales washing up along the Jersey Shore prompted calls from local and national Republican politicians to halt offshore wind development, though federal scientific agencies said at the time that the deaths did not appear to be connected to the construction of wind turbines (something that the GAO reiterated in its study today).

Read the full article at New Jersey Globe

Agency critics slam federal oversight of bycatch

July 18, 2024 — The agency that oversees the performances of federal agencies gave a sobering assessment of those tasked with monitoring bycatch in US fisheries.

That oversight falls to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), also called NOAA Fisheries, which agreed with the troubling performance outlined in a report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

In a June report to the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee titled “Efforts to Reduce and Monitor Unintentional Catch and Harm Need Better Tracking,” the GAO addressed four issues: measures used to reduce bycatch, coverage, and funding of fisheries observers, how bycatch estimates are developed and reported and how NMFS tracks its performance towards reducing and monitoring bycatch.

It added: “NMFS’ efforts to track its performance in reducing and monitoring bycatch do not align with key elements of evidence-based policymaking related to performance management.”

The GAO outlined numerous ways in which NMFS has failed to adequately tackle bycatch issues and blamed a lack of observer coverage overall. NMFS replied that it needs more funding to recruit and retain observers, but it hasn’t communicated that need to Congress.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Watchdog agency highlights shortcomings in federal fisheries management

July 17, 2024 — A congressional watchdog agency says that serious improvements are needed in the way the federal government manages observers and bycatch in the nation’s fisheries.

A recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) calls on the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to bolster observers on fishing vessels and develop better ways to track and monitor bycatch.

The July 10 report is based on interviews with NMFS officials. It looks at the agency through the lens of five specific fisheries across the country.

For the Alaska region, the report looked at the Bering Sea pollock trawl fishery, the largest single-species fishery in the world.

The Alaska pollock fishery is among a relatively small number of high-value federal fisheries able to afford having at least one observer aboard vessels at all times while fishing.

Read the full article at KYUK

Federal fishing monitoring program needs overhaul, GAO says

July 11, 2024 — Only days after the Supreme Court dealt a blow to the federal government’s program placing human observers on commercial fishing boats, a federal watchdog said NOAA Fisheries should do a better job monitoring the industry.

A report released Wednesday by the Government Accountability Office said NOAA Fisheries — also known as the National Marine Fisheries Service — has failed to execute its program as Congress intended under law.

NOAA has long relied on independent observers to ensure compliance with regulations and collect data to guide fisheries management decisions. In recent years, as critical fish stocks have declined due to overfishing and climate change, regulators have placed greater emphasis in particular on reducing the accidental taking of unwanted species, which is called bycatch.

Such species — including marine mammals, sea turtles, seabirds and juvenile fish — are usually unnetted and released, but they can suffer injuries that lead to death.

GAO found that not all fisheries have sufficient observers and that NOAA Fisheries hasn’t gathered the information on what resources are needed for the programs or told Congress what is needed. In the Gulf of Mexico, only two percent of shrimp trawl fishing trips included an observer.

Read the full article at E&E News

Senators Push USDA to Buy More Seafood After COVID-19 Decimates Fisheries Sector

December 8, 2020 — Two senators are trying to help U.S. fisheries decimated by the coronavirus pandemic.

Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., on Friday requested the Government Accountability Office conduct a study to explore ways to ensure that American fisheries receive the expanded economic support they desperately need. The senators are asking for more seafood be purchased through the federal government purchases through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Commodity Procurement Program.

“The seafood industry is critical to local and regional economies across the country and is largely sustained by the sale of fresh product,” the senators’ letter to Comptroller General Gene Dodaro said. “Notably, more than 68 percent of the $102.2 billion that consumers paid for U.S. fishery products in 2017 was spent at food service establishments. Because of the coronavirus, this market evaporated, and the supply chain for fishermen and seafood processors was decimated.”

Read the full story at Seafood News

Florida GOP Congressmen Back Bill to Help Fisheries With Climate Change’s Impact

October 18, 2019 — This week, U.S. Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., paired up with a South Carolina Democrat on a proposal to help local fisheries deal with the impact of climate change.

With Mast as the main cosponsor, U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham, D-SC, introduced the “Climate-Ready Fisheries Act” on Tuesday.

“The Climate-Ready Fisheries Act of 2019 directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to examine what actions have already been taken by fishery managers to prepare for the impacts of climate change,” Mast’s office noted. “The bill also requires the GAO to identify whether any knowledge or funding gaps are hindering action and provide recommendations for how to better adapt fishery management in local communities. It also directs the GAO to offer recommendations for how Congress can enhance our nation’s science and management systems to better address climate change.”

Read the full story at Florida Daily

Climate Change Impacts on Fisheries Gains Traction in U.S. House of Representatives

October 17, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Freshman Democrat Rep. Joe Cunningham of South Carolina’s coastal First District introduced the Climate-Ready Fisheries Act of 2019 yesterday, a bill addressing the impacts of climate change on the area’s fisheries. Joe Cunningham sits on the Congressional Resources Committee.

The bipartisan legislation is cosponsored by Reps. Brian Mast (R-FL), Francis Rooney (R-FL), and Jared Huffman (D-CA).

Huffman, Chair of the Water, Oceans, and Wildlife Subcommittee, is conducting a nationwide listening tour this fall and winter to see whether improvements to the Magnuson-Stevens Act are needed and if so, what they should be. Climate change impacts on fisheries and potential budget increases to management agencies is one topic for discussion.

Cunningham’s bill directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to look at what actions have already been taken by fishery managers, identify information gaps, provide recommendations on how to better adapt fishery management, and prepare fishing industries and communities for the impacts of climate change. It also directs the GAO to make recommendations to Congress on how to enhance the nation’s science and management systems to better address climate change.

“Lowcountry fishermen are some of the hardest working people in South Carolina, and climate change has put their way of life under direct attack. The Climate-Ready Fisheries Act gives our fishermen the tools they need to continue fishing sustainably for generations to come” said Rep. Joe Cunningham. “Ultimately, well-managed fisheries are resilient fisheries. I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to help us learn what is working, what is not, and how we can be the best possible stewards of our natural resources.”

“Healthy waterways are critical to our environment and economy—supporting the businesses in our communities that rely on fishing and tourism to thrive,” Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) said. “This bill will go a long way to protect our local fisheries and promote healthier ecosystems for generations to come.”

The situation in South Carolina’s Low Country (the southern two-thirds of the state’s coastline) may be a microcosm of impacts on fisheries from climate change around the country.

Last Monday Cunningham toured Shem Creek, homeport for many of South Carolina’s commercial fishermen. Over the last three decades, the fleet has shrunk from 70 vessels to only “a handful.”

Among the reasons for the decline are warming waters, increased hurricane activity, a significant decline in shrimp species, as well as other species that may have moved north due to warming waters.

While visiting the area, Cunningham noted, “What I learned today is back in August, the surface water temperatures here in the harbor were like 89 degrees,” he said. “The average in the past has been like 83 degrees. So a six-degree difference is huge.”

As the economy changed, some residents started businesses like an oyster hatchery to develop spawn and create new oyster reefs.

Others, like clam farmer Dave Belanger, worry about runoff from the increasing development in the Charleston area. He said there is no monitoring of herbicides and pesticides used by coastal-area property owners that result in polluted waters of the fishing grounds.

“There’s no long-term natural resource planning,” Belanger told Roll Call’s Lindsey McPherson in an article published yesterday.

“Climate change is affecting our nation’s fisheries and our adjacent oceans’ ecosystems. The Climate-Ready Fisheries Act is an important first step in assuring that we have the information we need so we are prepared to adapt our fisheries to mitigate these impacts,” said Rep. Francis Rooney (R-FL).

The bill has support from Ocean Conservancy, National Audubon Society, Earthjustice, Oceana, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Conservation Voters of South Carolina, Coastal Conservation League, and the Marine Fish Conservation Network.

“We already know that climate change is taking a toll on our fisheries. The big question we now face is what we can do to ensure healthy fish populations and fishing communities for generations to come, despite a changing ocean. The Climate-Ready Fisheries Act will help ensure our fisheries and fishing communities are prepared to deal with climate change by positioning Congress to address barriers and develop solutions to these growing challenges. Ocean Conservancy applauds Congressman Cunningham’s leadership on this important issue,” said Meredith Moore, Ocean Conservancy’s Fish Conservation Program Director.

This story was originally published on SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

US bill would mandate report on NOAA, council efforts to address climate change

October 17, 2019 — A bill introduced Tuesday by US representative Joe Cunningham, a Democrat from South Carolina, would make sure climate change’s impact on fish stocks is a focal point for the Donald Trump administration and the regional fishery management councils.

HR 4679, The Climate-Ready Fisheries Act of 2019, would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to submit a report to Congress examining efforts by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, the councils and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to “prepare and adapt US fishery management for the impacts of climate change”.

The bill, introduced in the House Committee on Natural Resources, already has three cosponsors, including Florida Republicans Francis Rooney and Brian Mast. Representative Jared Huffman, chair of the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans & Wildlife, also is a cosponsor.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

South Carolina congressman files fishery management bill tied to climate change

October 16, 2019 — A South Carolina congressman filed a bill on Tuesday, 15 October, that calls on the government to determine what actions fishery managers are taking to address climate change and provide recommendations for what else can be done to address it.

The bill, titled the Climate-Ready Fisheries Act of 2019, sponsored by U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham (D-South Carolina) would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to identify fishery managers’ actions, provide recommendations to managers, and address gaps in industrial knowledge or funding.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Officials calling for more accurate fish counts

December 14, 2015 — WASHINGTON – The federal agency in charge of the nation’s fisheries should do a better job counting fish so it can develop proper catch limits for recreational anglers, a report by Congress’ investigative arm concludes.

The analysis by the Government Accountability Office was requested nearly three years ago by several Republican senators from the Gulf Coast who believe the Obama administration may have been overly restrictive in imposing catch limits on several popular fish, including red snapper.

The GAO report says the National Marine Fisheries Service has taken “many steps” in recent years to improve data collection but needs to adopt a master plan for counting fish in a more accurate, timely and transparent manner.

For example, the agency doesn’t have a complete registry of recreational anglers, often misses some groups of fishermen while conducting surveys, lacks catch-and-discard data in areas where access to the coastal communities is limited, and needs more “shoreside observers” to improve data collection.

“Without a comprehensive strategy, NMFS may have difficulty ensuring that the variety of steps it is taking to improve data collection are prioritized so that the most important steps are undertaken first,” the report says. “Further, without communicating the strategy and NMFS’ progress in implementing it, NMFS may have difficulty building trust among its stakeholders, and these stakeholders may have difficulty tracking the agency’s efforts.”

Read the full story from USA Today at Pensacola News Journal