Washington, D.C. — Today, the House passed H.R. 5103, the FISHES Act, legislation cosponsored by Rep. Webster to streamline disaster relief to fisheries, which has been hampered by delays and cumbersome processes.
 
“Florida’s fisheries are no stranger to natural disaster, but for many the impacts are felt long after disaster strikes,” said Rep. Webster. “Burdensome regulations delay recovery efforts for small businesses and communities that are economically and culturally important to the State of Florida. By cutting red-tape, this legislation will efficiently deliver much needed aid to help our fishing industry and Florida and across the country.”
 
H.R. 5103 requires the Secretary of Commerce to provide disaster relief within a specific timeline when a commercial fishery failure occurs as the result of a fishery resource disaster. While fishery disaster relief has existed since 1996, fishing experts testified to Congress that the regulatory process has become increasingly burdensome and ambiguous causing significant delays in relief reaching fisheries.  
Previously, the Secretary’s determination period varied from a couple of months to multiple years.