Marco Rubio Introduces Florida Fisheries Improvement Act

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., brought out the Florida Fisheries Improvement Act on Wednesday. As Congress plans to amend the Magnuson-Stevens Act on marine fishing, Rubios proposal gives the Regional Fishery Management Councils more flexibility, will ensure the Commerce Department reports to Congress on collecting data and speeds up declaring fishery disasters and provides more transparency.

Floridas fisheries are a national treasure that provide direct and indirect benefits to our local, state and national economies by feeding Americans across the country and boosting tourism in our coastal communities, said Rubio. While there is more work to be done, this bill would ensure necessary improvements to management and data collection are made to fully optimize our fisheries and help advance Floridas interests when it comes time to amend the Magnuson-Stevens Act. I will continue to work with Floridians and my colleagues in Congress to fight against any misguided federal directives that threaten Floridians way of life and economic livelihoods.

Rubios proposal won the support of the Gulf Seafood Institute and the Center for Coastal Conservation.