Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness
Record date: 2025-04-22
( printed page 16993) Executive Order 14276 of April 17, 2025 Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1 . Background. The United States controls one of the largest and most abundant ocean resources in the world, with over 4 million square miles of prime fishing grounds. With this vast resource and centuries of hard work from American fishermen, our Nation has the greatest seafood in the world.
What this record contains
- Federal Register document
- 2025-07062
- Publication date
- 2025-04-22
- Citation
- 90 FR 16993
- Issuing office
- Executive Office of the President
Official record excerpt
( printed page 16993) Executive Order 14276 of April 17, 2025 Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1 . Background. The United States controls one of the largest and most abundant ocean resources in the world, with over 4 million square miles of prime fishing grounds. With this vast resource and centuries of hard work from American fishermen, our Nation has the greatest seafood in the world. Most American fish stocks are healthy and have viable markets. Despite these opportunities, seafood is one of the most heavily regulated sectors in the United States. Federal overregulation has restricted fishermen from productively harvesting American seafood including through restrictive catch limits, selling our fishing grounds to foreign offshore wind companies, inaccurate and outdated fisheries data, and delayed adoption of modern technology. The United States should be the world's dominant seafood leader. But in addition to overregulation, unfair trade practices have put our seafood markets at a competitive disadvantage. Nearly 90 percent of seafood on our shelves is now imported, and the seafood trade deficit stands at over $20 billion. The erosion of American seafood competitiveness at the hands of unfair foreign trade practices must end. Sec. 2 . Purpose. The United States must address unfair trade practices, eliminate unsafe imports, level the unfair playing field that has benefited foreign fishing companies, promote ethical sourcing, reduce regulatory burdens, and ensure the integrity of the seafood supply chain. Previously, I signed Executive Order 13921 of May 7, 2020 (Promoting American Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth). That successful order—which remains in effect—enhanced the competitiveness of United States seafood, streamlined regulations, supported maritime jobs and coastal economies, and improved data collection. During the past 4 years, our fishermen were once again crushed under the pressure of unnecessary regulations and unfavorable policies. It is vital that we now build upon our previous hard work with new, additional measures to promote domestic fishing. Sec. 3 . Policy. It is the policy of the United States to promote the productive harvest of our seafood resources; unburden our commercial fishermen from costly and inefficient regulation; combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing; and protect our seafood markets from the unfair trade practices of foreign nations. Sec. 4 . A New Era of Seafood Policy. (a) The Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services and with input from the United States fishing industry, shall immediately consider suspending, revising, or rescinding regulations that overly burden America's commercial fishing, aquaculture, and fish processing industries at the fishery-specific level. Within 30 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of Commerce shall identify the most heavily overregulated fisheries requiring action and take appropriate action to reduce the regulatory burden on them, in cooperation with the Regional Fishery Management Councils, interagency partners, and through public-private partnerships, as appropriate. This process shall include the following actions: ( printed page 16994) (i) The Secretary of Commerce shall request that each Regional Fishery Management Council, within 180 days of the date of this order, provide the Secretary of Commerce with updates to their recommendations submitted pursuant to Executive Order 13921 , to reduce burdens on domestic fishing and to increase production. Building upon the earlier goals, identified actions should stabilize markets, improve access, enhance economic profitability, and prevent closures. The Regional Fishery Management Councils will commit to a work plan and a schedule for implementation to ensure these actions are prioritized. (ii) The Secretary of Commerce shall solicit direct public comments, including from fishing industry members, technology experts, marine scientists, and other relevant parties, for innovative ideas to improve fisheries management and science within the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act ( 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. ); the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. ); the Marine Mammal Protection Act ( 16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq. ); and other applicable laws. (iii) The Secretary of Commerce shall pursue additional direct public engagement to ensure executive departments and agencies (agencies) are focusing core fisheries management and science functions to directly support
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