July 2007

We have been in business since 1986. As biologists, we have always been interested in halibut biology. As small business owners, we have had to be savvy about economics. What we have begrudgingly learned is how politics works.

For the last 15 years, we have been occupied every spring with meetings involving either the Governor, the Alaska State Legislature, the Alaska Board of Fisheries, or the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council.

Spring 2007, was the last straw. We are reallocating our charitable donations by giving a large share to Mr Bill Horn, a lawyer representing recreational anglers, and going to court to get the US Secretary of Commerce to write a Halibut Fishery Management Plan. The goal is to apply the National Standards of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, which calls for a fair allocation among users and for economics to be taken into account.

At the moment, recreational anglers take 10 percent of the halibut harvested in Alaska. The rest is taken by commercial fisheries. The North Pacific Fisheries Management Council is determined to keep the recreational harvest at this level, by placing limits on charter boat operations in Alaska.

The politics behind this topic would fill a trash can. Please email us if you have questions or check this website, http://www.alaskasportfishingalliance.org . Remember, we have participated in meetings for 15 years, and have not carelessly reached this conclusion.

If you enjoy fishing and are thinking about halibut fishing in Alaska, we encourage you to mail a check, in whatever amount you choose, to:

Birch, Horton, Bittner & Cherot Law Firm
1155 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 1200
Washington DC 20036

Make your check payable to:
Birch, Horton, Bittner & Cherot Law Firm
Write in the memo section: Alaska Sportfishing Alliance

Thank you.

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