Cormorant Relief Act of 2025

Floor Speech

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Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I am here today to speak on H.R. 2293, the Cormorant Relief Act of 2025.

Aquaculture facilities nationwide are facing issues with predatory birds. We experience it in Washington State as well, along with the pinnipeds that we spent some time discussing last week.

Double-crested cormorants consume large quantities of fish from these operations, negatively impacting businesses that provide jobs and support their local communities.

From 2003 to 2014, the Fish and Wildlife Service implemented the 2003 proposed rule adopting the Aquaculture Depredation Order and the Public Resource Depredation Order, a Federal program that allowed aquaculture operators, States, and Tribes to manage cormorant populations in a controlled way with proper oversight. That program was found to be unlawful by the courts.

This bill would lawfully reinstate the depredation order for aquaculture facilities. Further, it would expand coverage to 12 States and allow the Secretary to add others as appropriate. The bill would also include aquaculture lake managers and pond managers who face similar challenges.

I am pleased we were able to work out a bipartisan solution that maintains environmental safeguards under bedrock environmental protections like NEPA and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This approach will provide a reasonable regulatory framework with proper oversight and require renewal every 5 years to ensure that it is working as intended and that, moving forward, the Fish and Wildlife Service conducts proper environmental assessments as it renews the program.

This bill will help U.S.-based aquaculture producers deliver healthy and affordable protein for American families.

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Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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