National Fisherman

URI's two-year Fisheries and Marine Technology program ran from 1967 to 1985, turning out vessel captains, regulators, and fish buyers who shaped New England's fishing industry.

The URI fisheries and technology program legacy When it comes to breadth and depth, few fisheries education programs today can rival the University of Rhode Island's two-year Fisheries and Marine Technology degree program, which ran for almost 20 years from 1967 to 1985. "The market doesn't need it anymore," said Dr. Joe DeAlteris, who was hired....

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) and Southern colleagues introduced the SHRIMP Act of 2026, directing NOAA to develop a portable chemical test to verify shrimp country of origin. The tool would support enforcement of trade restrictions and food safety laws. The Southern Shrimp Alliance and South Carolina Shrimpers Association backed the bill.

Mace, Southern legislators back ‘shrimp honesty’ act Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., with Congressional colleagues from other shrimp producing states introduced legislation to require NOAA and other federal agencies to develop a portable chemical testing methodology to identify the country of origin of shrimp sold in the U.S. market.

Britain's 1775 fishing ban put thousands of New England fishermen out of work. George Washington armed their schooners and sent them to intercept British supply ships. The fleet captured 55 vessels, including one carrying 2,000 muskets. Historian Christopher Magra tells the story of how out-of-work fishermen helped save the Revolution.

How out‑of‑work fishermen saved the American Revolution George Washington knew his forces could not win the American Revolutionary War without some measure of sea power. “It follows then as certain as that night succeeds the day,” he later wrote in a letter, “that without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive, and with it everything h...

A federal appeals court has upheld the dismissal of Louisiana oystermen's lawsuit over the 2019 Bonnet Carre Spillway openings, which caused an estimated $258 million in commercial fishing losses. The court ruled Louisiana law subordinates oyster lease rights to the Corps' flood-control operations.

US appeals court affirms dismissal of Louisiana oystermen’s Bonnet Carre Spillway lawsuit A U.S. court of appeals has ruled the Court of Federal Claims was correct in dismissing a lawsuit brought by Louisiana oystermen who were seeking damages for the destruction of their oysters by the Bonnet Carre Spillway openings in 2019.

Marad has published two final rules modernizing how vessel owners evidence U.S. citizenship. The changes eliminate PII requirements from affidavits, drop notarization, and introduce streamlined annual recertification. One rule covers Marad programs like CCF and Title XI. The other covers the American Fisheries Act.

Marad modernizes US citizenship evidencing requirements for vessel owners and program participants The Maritime Administration (Marad) published two companion final rules in the Federal Register on June 4, 2026, that together modernize and streamline the process by which corporations and other business entities must evidence United States citizenship to participate in Marad programs and obtain fi...