Senator Stedman testifying in the Senate Resources Committee on SB 60 regarding sea otters.
On March 15, the Senate Resources Committee passed Senate Bill 60 out of committee. This bill, which I introduced last month, proposes paying a $100 subsidy for each sea otter legally harvested by an Alaska Native. The over-abundance of this marine predator is decimating the shellfisheries in Southeast for crab, clams, abalone, sea urchin, sea cucumber and geoducks. The alarming and unsustainable growth in the population of sea otters has gone unchecked in Southeast for too long and is now having a serious impact on subsistence, commercial and personal use fisheries. Sea otters are protected under federal law and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). In the absence of a realistic management plan from the federal government, we have to act before the shellfish biomass in Southeast is completely decimated and the sea otters starve. Senate Bill 60 now moves to the Senate Judiciary Committee where I look forward to discussing the legal options at the state’s disposal for managing the sea otter population. In other good news, the Senate Finance Subcommittee in charge of the Department of Public Safety’s operating budget added intent language at my request. The language amendment reads, “Money appropriated to the Alaska State Troopers under this appropriation may not be spent to assist federal employees in enforcing the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 as it relates to sea otters in Southeast Alaska.” The USFWS has refused to update its sea otter management plan since it was first drafted 19 years ago even though the plan calls for an annual review and revisions every three to five years. Since they have adopted a hands-off approach to managing our sea otter population, state funds should not be used to assist them in harassing Native Alaskans who wish to legally harvest sea otters.
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