A suit was filed in the District of Alaska Tuesday by plaintiffs Wes Humbyrd, Robert Wolfe, and Dan Anderson against Gina Raimondo, Secretary of the Department of Commerce, Janet Coit, Assistant Administrator for the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the National Marine Fisheries Service itself over a new rule being implemented which the plaintiffs claim violates certain clauses of the Constitution.
The annual migrations of salmon in Alaska are the “principal source of income for a large portion of Alaska’s labor force.” The plaintiffs are a part of the population that is reliant on these migrations. The National Marine Fisheries Service, or NMFS, recently approved a rule that will close off Cook Inlet, where the plaintiffs fish, to any commercial salmon fishing. While waters are sometimes closed off due to overfishing or conservation, the plaintiffs explain that this is not the case with Cook Inlet. Rather, they claim that the rule is being implemented because “the government finds it too bothersome to coordinate with the State of Alaska in managing the fishery.”
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Plaintiffs Sue National Marine Fisheries Service Over Constitutionality of New Rule