News Room > Press Releases
April 11, 2002

Contact: Mark Helm, FoE (202)-783-7400 x102
Keith Ashdown, TCS (202) 546-8500 x108
Liz Hitchcock, U.S. PIRG (202) 546-9707 x316

New report demands national standards that will discourage wasteful fishing practices and protect fishing communities

Washington, D.C. - A report identifying $54 billion in pork-barrel federal programs and projects that harm the environment, including individual fishing quotas (IFQs), today was released by a coalition of taxpayer and environmental organizations. The Green Scissors 2002 report targets 78 environmentally destructive and wasteful programs for reform or elimination. The individual fishing quota program is a new target in the report.

"Unfettered fishing quotas could lead to wasteful fishing practices and wreak havoc on traditional fishing communities," said Harriet Nash, Director of the Fisheries Program at Friends of the Earth. "Without mandatory national standards, quotas could permanently damage marine ecosystems and put fishermen out of work."

Under the reauthorization of the nation's fishery law, Congress is considering whether to allow fishery managers to create new individual fishing quota programs. Existing quotas guarantee some fishermen the privilege to catch a percentage of the total allowable catch of fish every season. Because the quotas are transferable, many fishermen sell their quotas to the highest bidder, including foreign finance institutions.

"This will amount to one of the largest public giveaways in history -- $15 billion of fish for free," said Nate Heasley, Fisheries Director at Taxpayers for Common Sense. "Transferring exclusive fishing privileges into the hands of a few large commercial fishing interests at the expense of small fishermen and taxpayers is outrageous."

The Green Scissors 2002 report recommends that Congress implement a royalty-based auction to allocate quotas to fishermen. The auctions would guarantee taxpayer compensation as a percentage of the market value of the fish. Such cost recovery will allow regional increases in the monitoring, enforcement, and scientific research required for adequate fishery management. The report also calls on Congress to impose consolidation caps to prevent privatization of a fishery and five-year time limits on quotas to prevent their treatment as property rights and to facilitate program review.

Over the past eight years, the Green Scissors campaign has cut $26 billion in wasteful, environmentally harmful spending programs. In 2001, the coalition successfully fought to eliminate the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles saving taxpayer $1.1 billion over five years.

The report is being released at more than 20 locations nationwide by local Green Scissors coalitions that provide grassroots support for the recommendations throughout the year. For a copy of the report, contact Erich Pica at 202-783-7400 x229.

Friends of the Earth is a national environmental advocacy organization with member groups in 66 countries.

U.S. PIRG is the national lobby office for the State Public Interest Research Groups. State PIRGs are non-profit, non-partisan public interest advocacy groups.

Taxpayers for Common Sense is a non-partisan advocate for American taxpayers. TCS is dedicated to cutting wasteful spending and subsidies in order to achieve a responsible and efficient government that lives within its means.