26 



project is requested by a Regional Council and is to be executed by a 

 private firm or a university. If disaggregated data are necessary for the 

 research they should be accessible subject to restrictions that the user 

 maintain confidentiality. The author received conflicting opinions in this 

 area and since it involves legal issues did not feel competent to pursue it 

 further. It is an issue which requires clarification, however, because it 

 is anticipated that such situations will arise. Unless it is clarified, 

 federal employees may be reluctant to supply disaggregated data to re- 

 searchers. This would not be conducive to effective functioning of the Act. 



B. Regional Economic Data Base 



1. New England Fisheries 



Various economic studies have been done from time to time on New 

 England Fisheries (Table 9). Most of these were done by universities. Some 

 have been based on primary data; others are based on the Federal data base 

 just described. No regional comprehensive, continuing economic data collec- 

 tion program exists which augments the Federal data base. The current 

 regional economic information requirements must be constructed from the 

 Federal data base and/or piecing together an assortment of ad hoc studies 

 done in the region. The data in such studies are often not current by the 

 time they are published. Table 9 contains a selected list of such studies. 

 The criterion for selection was empirical originality. Various theoretical 

 papers have deliberately been excluded. 



2. Pacific Fisheries 



Data on landings and landed value are collected by the respective 

 states in the Pacific Region. From this information ex-vessel prices can 



