My office continues to work toward finding solutions to the rapidly growing sea otter population which is decimating the shellfish biomass in the commercial, subsistence and personal use fisheries throughout Southeast. On July 2nd, my staff participated in a teleconference with state officials and other interested parties to discuss all possible options at the state and federal level to reduce the sea otter population. The meeting resulted in a laundry list of goals and tasks that we will all collectively work to achieve. Additional meetings with interested stakeholders will be held over the coming months and either myself or my staff will attend every meeting. When the next legislative session convenes in January I intend to continue holding hearings on my legislation, SB 60, which proposes a bounty on sea otters. I have conceded that a bounty is not a workable solution as it’s an outdated approach with little public support and would likely be struck down by the courts anyway. Instead, I intend to incorporate any proposals that result from our work over the summer to draft a substitute bill. I will keep everyone informed via this newsletter as to our progress. I want to thank all those who are participating to help find a resolution to this growing problem. Special thanks go out to the moderator of the meeting, Department of Fish and Game Deputy Commissioner Craig Fleener. Deputy Commissioner Fleener ran a professional and productive meeting and I appreciate his attention to detail.
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