Why It Matters: Marine fisheries management varies widely among Atlantic Coast states. Any opportunity to develop and implement harvest reporting requirements should be approached carefully with the goal of providing credible data that can, in turn, be used to manage a resource enjoyed by millions of anglers. Reliable catch information, if properly developed, could advance…
(December 17, 2025) – Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, the U.S. Senate took the final step on legislation requiring federal agencies that manage fresh waters to digitize and pool their regulatory data into a consistent mapping format, allowing the American public to confidently access and enjoy our nation’s public waters. H.R. 187, the Modernizing Access to…
Why it Matters: While many, including many of us at the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, are spending their fall chasing pheasants, sitting in deer stands, or calling ducks in, there is still plenty of time to hit the open waters for fishing. With lakes in the upper part of the Great Plains region likely freezing soon,…
Why It Matters: Creating pathways to significantly improve recreational catch information and establishing a Mississippi River Basin Commission, both priorities for the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF), were the subjects of two of the bills heard before the Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee last week. Highlights: Three CSF-supported fishing and fisheries conservation bills, two of which…
Why It Matters: The use of descending devices and venting tools has been shown to significantly reduce post release mortality of deep caught fish. In early January of 2021, President Trump signed the DESCEND Act that directed NOAA to implement descending and venting tool requirements for reef fish fisheries in the Gulf of America (Gulf),…
Why It Matters: Menhaden are a critical part of the coastal ecosystem, serving as an important forage food for many recreationally important species such as redfish, speckled trout, and others. It’s also a critically important resource for the commercial fishing industry in Louisiana. Over the years, there have been growing concerns by the recreational fishing community…
Why It Matters: Management of several important marine fisheries for recreational anglers along the Atlantic seaboard, such as striped bass, red drum, and Atlantic menhaden, are managed cooperatively by the 15 member states of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC). This year’s ASMFC annual meeting presented the Commission with no shortage of hefty decisions,…
Why It Matters: There have been several issues impacting hunters and anglers in Florida so far in 2025. Everything from saving one of the most popular trophy bass fishing lakes in the world, re-establishing a black bear hunting season, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission restructuring, powers of game wardens, and more were on the…
Why It Matters –A recent Presidential Executive Order provided a formal opportunity for the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation and others to weigh in on how we can better manage our marine recreational fisheries. Highlights: 1 million marine recreational anglers support 691,565 jobs and annually contribute $138 billion in sales impacts to the U.S. economy. Recreational fishing…
(October 15, 2025) – Washington, DC – Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus (CSC) Members Mike Ezell and Marc Veasey, along with CSC Vice-Chair Congressman Troy Carter, have introduced the Marine Fisheries Habitat Protection Act – priority legislation for the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) that will facilitate the conversion of decommissioned offshore oil and gas infrastructure that foster…
Why It Matters: With more than 7 million anglers pursuing Atlantic striped bass, it is the most economically and culturally important recreational fish species from North Carolina to Maine. It is vitally important to communities along the mid and upper Atlantic Seaboard that striped bass are sustainably managed for abundance and access by the angling…
Why It Matters: July 11th and 12th marked the beginning, and the end, of the 2025 South Atlantic red snapper season. Unfortunately, anglers have been subjected to a federal management model in the South Atlantic that rewards a rapidly rebuilding red snapper population with few red snapper fishing opportunities. A decade ago, anglers faced a…