The White House has come out in support of legislation that would extend a congressional ban on new whale-related regulations of the New England lobster industry first put in place in 2023.
The move would continue to insulate the lobster sector from any potential new regulatory actions designed to protect the North Atlantic right whale, a critically endangered marine mammal whose habitat overlaps the commercial fishery. There are roughly 380 individual whales left in existence according to the last count, but a prolific calving season over the winter has sparked some hope for the species’ recovery.
According to NOAA Fisheries, vessel strikes and entanglements are the biggest threats to the whale’s survival, which has placed significant pressure on Maine lobster and Jonah crab fishers, both of whom use vertical lines for their traps that can entangle the whales.
The conflict between commercial lobstermen and the whales reached a peak in 2021, when NOAA Fisheries issued a biological opinion suggesting that new regulations were needed to protect the whales from extinction. The industry sued, and a federal judged vacated the biological opinion in 2023, finding that the agency had acted wrongly by using worst-case scenarios for the 2021 biological opinion.
Despite the immediate victory, the Maine lobster community was rattled by the incident, and federal lawmakers worked to assuage their concerns by implementing a five-year prohibition on new regulations of the lobster and Jonah crab fisheries related to North Atlantic right whales.
That moratorium is set to expire in 2028, however, and federal lawmakers are concerned about what might come next. During a 22 April Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) sought assurances from U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick that the administration would work with the commercial fishing sector in developing regulations as the ban expires.
“I'm asking today for your commitment to ensure that the Department will work with the lobster sector ... and also with me and the rest of the Maine and New Hampshire delegation to ensure that future regulatory actions will fully incorporate the most current population data for right whales, real-time monitoring technologies, and region-specific risk assessments, rather than relying on outdated assumptions that may no longer reflect the actual right whale distribution or fishing patterns,” Collins said.
“I hope to be considered the greatest friend of the lobstermen, who are a great asset, and you know I think that they are a great asset to our country,” Lutnick replied. “We promise you that we will use the best data and the most precise data to make sure that our decisions are right for America and ... right for the lobstermen of Maine.”
Some lawmakers, however, are seeking more than assurances. U.S. Representative Jared Golden (D-Maine) has introduced a bill that would extend the regulatory moratorium through 2035.
“Before we enacted this moratorium, Maine’s lobster industry was on the verge of shutting down because of proposed regulations that were onerous and based on flawed science and hypothetical scenarios rather than the reality on the water. Extending the moratorium will give lobstermen and their communities stability and peace of mind, protect an industry worth USD 500 million [EUR 428 million] annually and give the government time to get the science right,” Golden said.
The White House quickly came out in support of the bill, issuing a statement of administration policy backing it.
“This bill aligns with the Administration’s priorities in Executive Order 14276, Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness, to promote the adoption of new technology and the productive harvest of our seafood resources. If H.R. 8509 were presented to the President, his senior advisors would recommend that he sign it into law,” the White House stated.
“The need to protect Maine’s iconic lobster industry knows no party. I’m grateful for the President’s support for Maine’s lobstermen and hopeful that my colleagues in the House will join me in quickly passing this bill into law,” Golden said.
The New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association (NEFSA) has also come out in support of the bill.
“The New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association strongly urges the passage of H.R. 8509. This legislation is critical to ensuring the long-term stability of American fisheries for generations to come,” NEFSA Vice President John Drouin said in a release. “We thank President Trump and Representative Golden for prioritizing American seafood competitiveness and protecting American fishermen. We urge Congress to follow their lead and pass this bill swiftly."
