45 



Captain Anderson. I feel very comfortable that my voice is 

 heard as needed on enforceability issues. 



The Chairman. So, you would not recommend a change, then, on 

 that? 



Captain Anderson. Not at all. 



The Chairman. What about, Admiral Rufe, training and famili- 

 arity with respect to fishing laws? I am in the Coast Guard and 

 I am out there enforcing fisheries laws. What is my background 

 and what training and expertise do I have? As we all know, fish- 

 eries laws are very complex, incidental to a particular area and ev- 

 erything else. Are your personnel sufficiently backgrounded? I ask 

 that because, as we know, we have got the Coast Guard reauthor- 

 ization up, as well as the Magnuson Act itself. Maybe we ought to 

 have further provisions for that within your Coast Guard author- 

 ization. I am just asking. 



Admiral Rufe. Those training teams that we discussed will ad- 

 dress that problem. We do have one right now in Cape Cod which 

 has been operating for a number of years, to train our boarding of- 

 ficers that operate in the New England fishery. That has been very 

 effective and it does do just what the senator was alluding to a few 

 minutes ago. We bring in the fishing industry representative to 

 talk to our people, we bring in the National Marine Fisheries Serv- 

 ice and others who have a broad background in the complexities of 

 the regulations. And it has been very effective, so that is why we 

 want to do that here in Kodiak. I think that is the best way to at- 

 tack that problem. I do not think we are as good as we can be. We 

 need to 



The Chairman. I think that is one of the findings of the study. 



Admiral Rufe. It is, it is one of the findings, and the result of 

 that is this request in this year's Coast Guard appropriations bill 

 for additional money to establish a team. 



The Chairman. Oh, all right. What you need is the money, then. 

 The process is ongoing, but we really need 



Admiral Rufe. It is in the President's 1994 budget. 



The Chairman [continuing]. Financial support to extend it. 



Admiral Rufe. Yes, sir. 



The Chairman. Good. Have you got any further questions? 



Senator Stevens. No, other than to thank the Admiral again for 

 the help that you have given us in organizing this series of hear- 

 ings in Alaska. I appreciate it very much. 



The Chairman. I thank you very, very much, Admiral Rufe, and 

 you, too, Captain Anderson. The record will stay open for any fur- 

 ther questions. On our next panel, let us see, we have Ms. Chris 

 Blackburn, the director of the Alaska Groundfish Data Bank; Mr. 

 Kevin O'Leary, the vice president of the Kodiak Longline Vessel 

 Owners Association; and Beth Stewart, director of the department 

 of natural resources for the Aleutians East Borough in Juneau. 



We had a few other witnesses listed here on this panel, if you 

 have a copy of the witness list. We are going to receive their pre- 

 pared statements. We are glad to have these three here. Ms. 

 Blackburn, we welcome you and we would be delighted to hear 

 from you at this time. 



