Northeast Lobsterman Protection Act of 2026

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, the Congress returned yesterday from a long district work period where most of us heard a lot of things from our constituents. They told us about the grinding cost of groceries, gas, and healthcare and the instability their small businesses face thanks to President Trump's trade war with Canada.

What is the House majority prioritizing this week?

It is a bill that will push a critically endangered whale closer to extinction. I don't think many of us heard this as a priority from our constituents.

H.R. 9436 would extend the regulatory pause on North Atlantic right whale protections from fishing gear entanglements through 2035. This bill sells our fishing communities a false promise. We may hear that kicking the can down the road saves the Maine lobster fleet. In reality, this bill would lock in a broken status quo that guarantees disaster for both our historic coastal industry and the critically endangered right whale.

Right now, fewer than 380 North Atlantic right whales remain on Earth, with only 70 breeding females. Over 85 percent have experienced at least one fishing gear entanglement, and since 2022, at least 31 whales have suffered severe injuries or death because of entanglements.

In late 2022, Congress inappropriately paused all additional measures to protect these whales from fishing gear entanglements until 2029. This pause was advertised as a stakeholders' window of opportunity to give NOAA time to partner with fishermen, States, and technology companies to gather data to test and deploy safer fishing gear, namely, ropeless gear.

Instead, that pause becomes a license for complacency.

NOAA is lying down on the job, dragging its feet, firing staff, axing science, and deprioritizing ropeless gear, perhaps because they think Congress will bail them out and kick the can a little further down the road. All of this is illegal, and all of it is causing massive uncertainty for the lobster fishery.

Now, 2 years ahead of the deadline, this bill would add another 7- year delay.

Instead of holding NOAA accountable, House Republicans want to freeze action until 2035, abandoning accountability and setting up our fishermen for failure. The solution already exists. On-demand ropeless gear reduces deadly entanglements of whales without sacrificing catch. We can have this fishing industry. We can protect it for the long haul with this win-win solution. Fishermen are actively testing and using ropeless gear right now. They have landed over 1 million pounds of seafood using these methods.

This bill, though, would destroy the market incentives to deploy these safer and innovative technologies, damaging consumer confidence in the environmental sustainability of American seafood. It would unfairly place greater conservation burdens on the other Atlantic coast communities, from Florida to Maine, who are actively trying to do their part to save this whale from extinction.

Mr. Speaker, let's stop pretending that House Republicans and this administration care about the fishermen, coastal communities, or these iconic whales. If Congress can arbitrarily grant a decade-plus statutory exemption to bypass protections for a critically endangered species, then the Endangered Species Act is reduced to a hollow success.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to fight for strong, sustainable fisheries and to defend Federal wildlife protection laws, reject this dangerous precedent, and vote ``no'' on H.R. 9436.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a letter from more than 30 community environmental and civic leaders in New York and New Jersey urging Congress to defend science-based management of the North Atlantic right whale and opposing this legislation. August 31, 2026.

Dear Members of Congress: As community, environmental, and civic leaders based in New York and New Jersey, we write to express our strong opposition to H.R. 9436. This legislation would delay urgently needed protections for the North Atlantic right whale for seven years, freezing management progress until 2035.

North Atlantic right whales are regularly seen in waters off of Long Island, New York and the Coast of New Jersey. Migrating over 1,000 miles from their northeast feeding grounds to their southern calving grounds, they have already been recorded in the New York Bight and southeast of Atlantic City, New Jersey this year. In 2024, scientists from the New England Aquarium recorded 82 Right whales--including 56 in one day--forty miles south of Long Island. This represents nearly a quarter of the total population.

Extinction is permanent, and the crisis facing the North Atlantic right whale demands immediate, courageous leadership. With fewer than 400 individuals remaining--and a critically low count of roughly 70 breeding females--every single year of delayed action brings this species closer to disappearing forever. The science is undisputed: accidental entanglement in vertical fishing lines is one of the primary drivers of serious injury and death for these whales, with over 86 percent of living right whales carrying scars from past entanglements. These injuries and deaths are preventable, but only if our national policy allows science-based solutions to move forward.

H.R. 9436 sets a dangerous precedent by locking our ocean management into outdated status quo practices for nearly a decade. Specifically, the bill would prevent NOAA Fisheries from developing and implementing science-based management measures that could reduce the risk of entanglements, such as modifying fishing practices in areas and at times of highest risk, and expanding new technologies that both protect whales and maintain fishing opportunities. Protecting endangered wildlife and fostering resilient coastal economies are not opposing goals. Pushing safety measures off to 2035 stalls the momentum behind collaborative ocean stewardship, science- based dynamic management, and crucial federal resources that help both whales and coastal communities thrive.

Communities in New York and New Jersey have consistently supported forward-thinking, science-based approaches that safeguard our shared marine heritage while ensuring our coastal economies can adapt and flourish. Halting progress for another seven years undermines the work our region has done to promote a healthy ocean ecosystem.

The North Atlantic right whale cannot afford to wait until 2035, and neither can the communities that care about the future of our oceans. We urge you to reject H.R. 9436 and stand up for the recovery of one of the most endangered species on Earth. Sincerely, New York

Candis Whitney, Executive Director, Amelia Island Whale Ambassadors.

John Balet, MS, SUNY Master Science Teacher, Ballston Spa High School, Ballston Spa, New York.

Diana Hernandez, Managing Director, Beyond Plastics, Albany, New York.

Carolina Korth, Co-President, Beyond Plastics Queens, Queens, New York.

Nancy Tudor, Climate Steward, Beyond Plastics Schenectady, Clifton Park. New York.

Michael Rosenthal, President, Capital Region Vegan Network, Albany, New York.

Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Farmindale, New York.

Barbara Heinzen, Member, Clean Air Coalition of Ravena- Coeymans, New Baltimore, New York.

Christina Rupp, Ecological Artist, Ulster County, New York.

Jean Citarella, Leadership Team, Forest Hills Indivisible, Forest Hills, New York.

Catherine M. Filloux, Playwright, New York City, New York.

Sara Gronim, Co-leader, 350Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York.

Jennifer Vogt, Sierra Club Atlantic Chapter, East Northport, New York.

Carl Safina, Endowed Professor in Marine Science, University of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, New York.

Brody Eggert, Eastern Long Island Chapter Manager, Surfrider Foundation, East Hampton, New York.

Natalya Khorover, Founder/Educator, Repurposer Collective, Mamaroneck, New York.

Jessica Welshans, Volunteer Member, Rensselaer Enviro. Coalition, Rensselaer, New York.

Chris Allieri, Executive Director, NYC Plover Project, Rockaway Beach, New York.

Barry Pendergrass, Volunteer, Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism, Albany, New York.

Mindy Block, President, Quality Parks, Port Jefferson, New York.

Megan Wolff, Executive Director, P-SNAP Network, New Paltz, New York.

Rob Weltner, President, Operation SPLASH, Freeport, New York.

Gail Tierney, New York Field Representative, Oceana, Brooklyn, New York.

Saman Mahmood, Director of Advocacy, NYC Bird Alliance, New York City, New York.

Joseph Butera, President, NE Ecological Recovery Society, New York.

Susan Schwarz, Board member, LWV Riverowns, Tarrytown, New York. New Jersey

Casey Deacon, President, Alliance for a Living Ocean Surf City, New Jersey.

Allison McLeod, Interim Executive Director, New Jersey League of Conservation Voters, New Jersey.

Gregory A. Remaud, Executive Director, NY/NJ Baykeeper, Trenton, New Jersey.

Doug O'Malley, Director, Environment New Jersey, Trenton, New Jersey.

John Turner, Conservation Policy Advocate, Seatuck Environmental Association, Setauket, New Jersey.

Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of the chairman and others here, the facts are these: Since 2022, 31 whales have died or been seriously injured by entanglements.

Entanglements are a huge problem. It is not even in serious dispute. Eighty-five percent of living whales have been entangled at least once, and 60 percent at least twice.

In terms of the alleged progress in the past year or so for this whale, they are not reproducing nearly fast enough to avoid an extinction trajectory. There are right now more Members of the House of Representatives than there are North Atlantic right whales living in our ocean.

Mr. Speaker, I was confused a moment ago because the chairman suggested that the effort to develop all this data and perfect ropeless gear is going really well. These investments are rolling out and this is all being taken very seriously, but here we have a bill that would shut all of that down 2 years early.

This is about running out the clock, Mr. Speaker. We were told that the 6-year pause granted in 2022 was for all these same things, for data collection and to allow time for collaboration and open rulemaking process, and more.

Congress invested $20 million in ropeless gear development, testing, and deployment. The States and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission ran programs for fishermen to test the gear, but under the Trump administration, NOAA has shut this down. They have been telling the New England Fishery Management Council to deprioritize ropeless gear.

This is not a process that is being taken seriously or that is going well and, therefore, needs more time. This is a stalling tactic that has already begun and is about to receive 7 more years by virtue of the Republican Congress.

This administration has not provided Congress, by the way, with the annual reports on progress toward 2029. That is required in the law. They are ignoring it. They have 2 more years to do their job. States need to finalize that data collection. We don't need another 7-year extension. We especially don't need this to happen 2 years earlier.

Let's allow this process to run its course and see what it produces. Then, if there is a compelling reason for a further extension, we could talk about it.

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am not sure why my friend from Maine just cited data from 2009 through 2018 to suggest there has been virtually no mortality. The numbers I gave are a little more relevant. From 2022 until now, we know that 31 North Atlantic right whales have either died or been seriously injured by the very type of entanglements we are talking about here--entanglements that would, if this legislation passes, somehow secure a total pass from the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act regulations for a period of 13 full years. That is not honoring these environmental protection laws. That is not upholding them. That is gutting them.

Mr. Speaker, the data--31 deaths or serious injuries from entanglements since 2022--comes from NOAA. It is available to Democrats and Republicans alike.

Mr. Speaker, I urge this body to reject H.R. 9436. This bill moves the goalposts and risks the extinction of an iconic whale that calls our Nation's Atlantic waters home.

Instead of taking the next 2 years to address the progress that has been made and additional policy levers that may be necessary to support a thriving lobster fishery and recover the right whale, this bill legislates blindly. It throws away momentum amongst the States, tech companies, and many fishery participants, kicking the can down the road. This is a shame.

I recognize that fishing communities around this country are facing extreme levels of uncertainty, and this administration is doing nothing to help. In the lobster fishery, families who have fished these waters for generations are asking questions about what comes next. H.R. 9436 presents a false choice between saving a native species and protecting their livelihoods.

This delay would undermine massive public investment. Since 2022, Congress has devoted an estimated $280 million to right whale recovery. We are beginning to see results from these investments. Advancing monitoring technologies have improved mapping of right whale patterns. Vessels are using trackers to avoid conflicts and, most importantly for this debate, ropeless gear now has a near-perfect retrieval success record and a critical safety feature. The man overboard system is now open source technology for ropeless gear developers.

By removing the 2029 regulatory backstop, this bill creates a permission structure that discourages fishery participants from engaging in cooperative research to obtain the answers they say are needed. Worse, it punishes the forward-thinking fishermen who have spent money and time transitioning their gear in good faith.

Lastly, the bill would extend that waiver without authorizing additional money. By delaying action until 2035 without any new funding, NOAA would need to write rules using obsolete data from the early 2020s.

Democrats offered improvements to this bill to ensure that lobstermen and their families would get the support needed to confidently transition to this new gear, but Republicans rejected these improvements.

Our suggestions would have authorized additional Federal investments for on-demand ropeless fishing technology to ensure fishermen can keep working, while removing the deadly vertical lines that entangle, injure, and kill these endangered whales.

True leadership invests in modernizing our fisheries, not freezing our conservation laws in place while marine life pays the ultimate price. Allowing a species to go extinct on our watch is a moral failure that we cannot erase.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to reject this dangerous precedent, stand with science, and vote ``no'' on H.R. 9436. I yield back the balance of my time.

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