The U.S. Supreme Court has denied a petition brought by Alaska commercial fishers challenging federal management of the Upper Cook Inlet (UCI) salmon fishery.
The lawsuit was the latest attempt by commercial set net and drift net fishing groups in the region to force the federal government to take an active role in managing the salmon fishery instead of deferring to state managers, which has resulted in the closure of commercial fishing opportunities. The Cook Inlet Fishermen’s Fund claimed that Alaskan regulators intentionally limit the amount of salmon commercial fishers may harvest, instead prioritizing salmon for the personal use, sport, and guided-sport fishing sectors.
“Regulations and executive orders by state fish management officials controlling fishing in UCI federal and state waters continued to change yearly, with increasingly adverse economic consequences for the remaining commercial fishermen and numerous others who engage in related interstate commerce such as canneries, retail supply stores, etc.” the groups said in their petition to the Supreme Court. “UCI commercial set net fishing has been severely restricted for the last 30 years and was entirely closed by the Department in 2023 and 2024, and most of 2025, in violation of the Commerce Clause and other laws requiring fair allocations of salmon among the users.”
Accordingly, the group argued that state management violates the federal Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA) by prioritizing other users over commercial fishers.
The Cook Inlet Fishermen’s Fund first challenged state management in court in 2013, but the case was denied by a lower court in a decision that was later upheld by the Alaska Supreme Court. Another lawsuit in 2019 was also defeated in the lower courts and on appeal.
This latest lawsuit dates back to 2022 and was uniformly rejected by the state courts. The Alaska Superior Court denied the case in 2024, finding that the personal use fishery did not “facially discriminate” against interstate commerce and that the closure of commercial fishing had an “insignificant” impact on interstate commerce. CIFF appealed, but the Alaska Supreme Court upheld the lower court’s decision in an October 2025 ruling.
“The fish harvested in the personal use fishery will never enter the stream of commerce, and the commercial closures in Cook Inlet apply to residents and non-residents alike. Therefore, the superior court properly granted summary judgment in the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s [ADF&G] favor,” the Alaska Supreme Court wrote in its ruling. “Aside from the above-described line taken out of context, CIFF fails to make any meaningful argument about how ADF&G management of the Cook Inlet commercial fishery discriminates against interstate commerce.”
Unsatisfied with the Alaska Supreme Court ruling, CIFF filed a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court in January 2026.
“The Alaska Supreme Court has approved the Alaska-resident-only PU salmon fishery and permits Alaska to manage UCI salmon to minimize the salmon available to the commercial fishing industry and maximize salmon into the rivers, which results in millions of salmon over escaping their maximum sustainable yield mandate. This is wrong, unconstitutional, and will continue unless this Court grants certiorari,” CIFF said in its petition. “CIFF prays that this Court accept this Petition for a Writ of Certiorari to stop the egregious abuses inflicted on the commercial fishery in Cook Inlet. The commercial fishery and fishing communities will not survive otherwise.”
The U.S. Supreme Court did not elaborate on why it denied the group’s petition 4 May.
ADF&G forecast an excellent sockeye salmon season for the Upper Cook Inlet this year, estimating a run of 7.6 million fish. That would allow an available harvest of 5.6 million fish. If the run falls in line with the forecast, it would be notably lower than the 11.5 million sockeye estimated in 2025, which was far higher than the preseason forecast of 6.9 million sockeye. That massive run resulted in a commercial harvest of 3.4 million fish, 60 percent higher than the 20-year average.
