July 28, 2014

Gloucester Daily Times: Tierney, senators press for fishing aid

JUL 28, 2014

Members of the state's congressional delegation have joined Massachusetts officials in urging NOAA to expedite the disbursement of the direct financial assistance to commercial fishermen that is part of the federal fishery disaster aid package.

In a letter to Eileen Sobeck, assistant administrator for NOAA fisheries, five members, including U.S. Rep. John Tierney and Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey, pointed out that it has been nearly eight months since Congress appropriated $75 million in fishery disaster aid and expressed disappointment that the Commerce Department, through NOAA, "has yet to disburse a single dollar."

...

"As you know, many fishermen and their families in Massachusetts are struggling to make ends meet following drastic cuts to catch limits for a number of critical groundfish stocks," the members of the delegation wrote. "It has been nearly eight months since $75 million in emergency disaster assistance was appropriated and weeks since those states affected by the disaster reached consensus on how to ensure the funds are distributed quickly and efficiently."

Read the full article here.