Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that provides statutory authority for a program of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for the mass marking of hatchery-produced fish in the Great Lakes basin.

Highlights:

• Establishes and provides statutory authority for a program of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for the mass marking of hatchery-produced fish in the Great Lakes basin. Mass marking is the practice of tagging large numbers of hatchery-produced fish to distinguish them from the wild fish population (Sec. 2-5).

• Specifies that the FWS initiated the program in 2010 on a limited scale. Under the existing program, the FWS (Sec. 2-5):

• Tags hatchery-produced fish stocked in the Great Lakes; and

• Produces data used by state and tribal fish management agencies to make management decisions regarding Great Lakes fisheries.

• Authorizes the FWS, in carrying out the program, to (Sec. 2-5):

• Purchase items to support and carry out tagging and tag recovery operations on a greater scale; and

• Hire additional personnel.

• Specifies that FWS must make the data collected under the program available to applicable federal, state, and tribal fish management agencies to (Sec. 2-5):

• Increase the understanding of the outcomes of management action;

• Assist in meeting the restoration objectives of the Great Lakes;

• Assist in balancing predators and prey;

• Support and improve the economic status of tribal, recreational, and commercial fisheries; and

• assist in evaluating the effectiveness of habitat restoration efforts in the Great Lakes.

Full Bill Text

Full Bill Text