An intro to the RFA

[DarkSkies]

About Us & Our Accomplishments
1.Spearheaded the effort to pass legislation to restrict menhaden harvesting by reduction vessels in the Long Island Sound.

2.Spearheaded legislation in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island to ban the harvest of valuable inshore forage fish and eliminate menhaden harvest for reduction purposes inside state waters.

3.Spearheaded national campaign to ban pelagic drift longlines as a gear type in all US waters and territories. RFA was called upon to testify at the House Resources Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans Subcommittee hearing regarding the pros and cons of three different bills concerning this commercial fishing gear type, which ultimately resulted in a reduced and restricted fishing fleet.

4.Successfully lobbied members of congress to include recognition of the recreational fishing industry under the definition of fishing community in the 2006 reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

5.Testified before the National Research Council and House Resources Committee on the need to improve recreational data collection programs at the national level, which ultimately led to the addition of a federal saltwater registry requirement and the reform of MRFSS.

6 .Filed a 301 petition with US State Department demanding accountability for non-compliance by foreign commercial fishing fleets of international fishing treaties which the US is a contracting party.

7.Successfully lobbied NMFS from issuing exempted fishing permits to pelagic drift longline vessels to set gear in closed areas off the East Coast of Florida and South Carolina.

8.Requested a congressional hearing to investigate the high incidences of striped bass bycatch inherent with the sink gillnet fishery in federal waters.

9.Successfully fought a proposed increase in the harvest limits of the commercial striped bass fishery in the Chesapeake Bay.

10.Successfully lobbied to keep “game fish” designation for striped bass in New Jersey and subsequently killed the bill that would have changed the law.

11.Successfully campaigned to keep federal waters (EEZ) closed to the harvest of striped bass.

12.Successfully lobbied to ban the use of destructive oceanic driftnet gear for swordfish in the Atlantic.

13.Spearheaded a coalition that defeated NJS457, the glass eel bill, which would have allowed harvesting of elvers (glass eels) in New Jersey waters.

14.Successfully formed a New England coalition and lobbied to ban pelagic pair trawling for HMS from all Atlantic waters.

15.Successfully lobbied to protect recreational fishermen from state-imposed ground fish closures (codfish and haddock) in the Gulf of Maine.

16.Only national group to stop a fleet of longline vessels from taking up port in the new Charleston Maritime Center and prevented them from destroying a scientifically recognized swordfish nursery off the South Carolina Coast-AKA the Battle of Charleston.

17.First organization to recognize Sargassum to be a vitally important habitat and successfully lobbied to have Sargassum protected as essential fish habitat.

18.Successfully fought to keep the Occulina Marine Preserve open to recreational fishing.

19.Lobbied against the Callahan Amendment, an amendment that would have extended state waters in Alabama to 9 miles and provided a loophole that would permit the shrimp industry substantially more bycatch. The amendment was defeated.

20.Lobbied to halt “Blanket Marine Reserves” from denying access to recreational fishermen in the Gulf waters.

21,Filed suit against the NMFS for the unjustified restrictions and bag limits on recreational anglers who fish for Red Snapper.

22.Co-plaintiff on a suit filed against the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department and the State of Texas over the closure of the “Nine-Mile Hole” to general boat traffic thereby restricting fishing access to recreational fishermen.

23.Spearheaded the development of the Gulf Law Enforcement Task Force to reign in illegal red snapper harvest

24.Requested a management plan for squid, an extremely valuable forage fish, in Californian waters.

25.Working with groups in California to secure permanent funding and materials for current artificial reef programs.

26.Fought for and is continuing to fight for equity in representation on the North Pacific Fishery Council. The first two recreational appointments were made after intensive RFA lobbying efforts.

27.Spearheaded a lobbying campaign to ban destructive and inefficient oceanic gillnets from Pacific waters.

28.Currently lobbying to protect the guided recreational halibut fishery from losing quota to commercial privatization.

29,Lobbied successfully for a recreational nominee to the North Pacific Fishery Management Council.

30.Fought for the rejection of the North Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (NPFMC) inadequate allocation provided for guided sportfishing vessels in Alaska under the guideline harvest level (GHl) for halibut and the individual fishing quotas (IFQ’s).

31.Worked with the California Striped Bass Association to extend the angling method regulations to account for the mortality occurring in ocean waters as well as inland waters.

32.Successfully lobbied to secure continued Mitchell Act funding for pacific salmon hatcheries.

33.Successfully lobbied US State Department and US Commerce Department to stop the International Pacific Halibut Commission from taking away the rights of the NPFMC to set season, size and bag limits in the Pacific Halibut guided sportfishery.

34,Conducting cooperative research to help create a new recreational chilipepper rockfish fishery

35.Supported and lobbied for HB 1706, an anti shark-finning bill that will protect Sharks from this wasteful fishing practice. The bill was passed and signed by President Bill Clinton.

To learn more about what the Recreational Fishing Alliance is doing on a regular basis, sign up for our email newsletter, and we’ll keep you up-to-date on the actions and activities of our national and regional sportfishing lobbyists.

About Us - First for Anglers
Remember, the RFA was the first national, grassroots political action organization established to represent the rights recreational fishermen and the recreational fishing industry as a whole on marine fisheries issues. It is our mission to safeguard the rights of saltwater anglers, protect marine, boat and tackle industry jobs, and ensure the long-term sustainability of our Nation's saltwater fisheries.

For more information, call 888-JOIN-RFA