{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.schatz.senate.gov/press-releases/new-fishing-rule-to-ensure-fresh-supply-of-sashimi-through-the-holidays", "New Fishing Rule to Ensure Fresh Supply of Sashimi Through the Holidays", "2014-10-24", "2014", "2014-10", "Democrat", "House", "HI", "Brian Schatz", "S001194", "www.schatz.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "New Fishing Rule to Ensure Fresh Supply of Sashimi Through the Holidays \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t Schatz worked with Hawai\u2018i Longliners and NOAA on Rule to Access Portions of CNMI\u2019s Ahi Catch \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tFriday, October 24, 2014\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t  Honolulu, HI \u2013 Today U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai\u2018i) announced that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has approved Amendment 7, a rule proposed by the Western Pacific Fishery Management\u00a0Council to establish a management framework and process for specifying fishing catch and accountability measures for fisheries in the U.S. Pacific territories.\r\nSenator Schatz successfully pressed Hawai\u2018i\u2019s case to the Senate Appropriations Committee, and as a result, appropriations legislation for Fiscal Year 2014 urged NOAA to take action.\u00a0 Schatz continued to work with NOAA, the Hawai\u2018i Longline Association, and the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council on a solution that allows the longliners to keep fishing year round in a responsible, sustainable way and increase ahi catch for the rest of the year.\u00a0\r\n\u201cSharing sashimi with family over the holidays is a valued tradition in Hawai\u2018i.\u201d \u00a0Senator Schatz said.\u00a0 \u201cFor many years, the threat of a shortage during the holidays has caused higher prices for families and less productivity for our fishermen.\u00a0 That is why I am so pleased we were able to work with both NOAA and the Hawai\u2018i longliners on a solution to increase our ahi catch, ensuring Hawai\u2018i families won\u2019t experience any shortages of sashimi when ringing in the New Year.\u201d The framework would authorize the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) to allocate a portion of its ahi quota to Hawai\u2018i\u2019s longline fleet.\u00a0Under the current regime, the longline fleet would likely exhaust its own ahi tuna quota in November, just before the holiday season, when demand spikes.\u00a0 Amendment 7 allows Hawai\u2018i\u2019s fleet contract with the CNMI to use a portion of its unused quota.\u00a0 By combining the unused quota from the CNMI with its own, Hawai\u2018i\u2019s fleet can remain active all year round, ensuring the state\u2019s supply of the seafood delicacy for the remainder of the year.\u00a0 The rule also serves as a workable blueprint for similar action in the coming years.\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.schatz.senate.gov/press-releases/new-fishing-rule-to-ensure-fresh-supply-of-sashimi-through-the-holidays"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8277958258986473, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}