Senate panel advances fishing cooperative bill with electronic monitoring

The Alaska Senate Resources Committee voted unanimously Monday to advance legislation legalizing commercial fishing cooperatives for set gillnet permit holders, after adopting amendments that add electronic monitoring requirements and cap cooperative size.

The committee approved House Bill 117 with two amendments. The bill allows two or more set gillnet entry permit holders to pool their operations, a practice currently prohibited under Alaska law but already occurring in some fisheries.

The first amendment authorizes the Alaska Department of Fish and Game commissioner to establish electronic monitoring programs for vessels participating in state commercial trawl fisheries. The monitoring would apply only to vessels already equipped with federal electronic monitoring systems for Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, or Aleutian Islands fisheries.

"This amendment deals with the trawl fishery, the state commercial trawl fishery, and it gives the Department of Fish and Game, the commissioner, the ability to establish and manage an electronic monitoring program for vessels participating in a state commercial trawl fishery," said Senator Bill Wielechowski, who introduced the amendment.

The amendment would not require vessel owners to purchase or install new electronic monitoring equipment. It applies only to vessels that already have the equipment on board for federal fisheries. The provision takes effect January 1, 2027.

Commissioner Doug Vincent Lang said the department supports the electronic monitoring provision. "It adds another important tool in the toolbox for us to use in managing Alaska's fisheries," Vincent Lang said. He noted that Alaska statutes currently provide authority only for onboard observers, with no provision for electronic monitoring.

The department had introduced broader electronic monitoring legislation in 2024 that received feedback it was too broad. The amendment before the committee has narrower scope, limiting the program to vessels with existing federal monitoring systems.

"I certainly support this amendment," said Representative Louise Stutes, the bill's sponsor. "I think the fact that it is specifically tailored so that the electronic monitoring can only be required when you are engaged in trawl fishing in state waters, I think that is important."

The second amendment caps cooperative size at five permits until the Board of Fisheries establishes maximum sizes for each administrative area through regulation. The cap addresses concerns raised by Bristol Bay fishermen about potential consolidation.

"This amendment addresses those concerns by capping the number of people that may fish as one cooperative at five permits until such time as the regulation package is passed in that administrative area," Wielechowski said.

Vincent Lang confirmed the department is aware of cooperatives already operating in Bristol Bay despite current legal prohibitions. "I think setting a five limit is a reasonable approach until the Board of Fisheries has an opportunity to hear public comment and decide what the maximum number should be," he said.

The bill requires the Board of Fisheries to set maximum cooperative sizes of at least three permits per area. Individual fisheries could have larger maximums based on local input during the board's three-year meeting cycle.

Stutes said the amendment provides important data collection capabilities. "This amendment will provide additional important data to the Department of Fish and Game and the Board of Fisheries, which will help them make important decisions, not knee-jerk decisions," Stutes said.

Matt Greening, staff to Stutes, said five permits represents a typical cooperative size. "Five is a pretty average number," Greening said. He noted the amendment includes transition language allowing the Board of Fisheries to adjust limits through local meetings.

Committee Chair Senator Cathy Giessel said the Board of Fisheries retains authority to prohibit cooperatives entirely in areas where communities oppose them. She cited an email exchange with Vincent Lang indicating that if fishermen and communities in a region do not support cooperative fishing structures, the board could simply take no action on proposals.

Stutes told the committee she had spoken with testifiers who raised concerns during a previous hearing and cleared up confusion about the bill. "There is not the pushback that we heard yesterday," Stutes said.

The committee closed public testimony after no one signed up to testify. The bill now moves to the next committee of referral.

The committee spent the remainder of its meeting examining Senate Bill 280, which proposes an alternative tax structure for a potential natural gas pipeline. That discussion will continue at the committee's next meeting Wednesday.