54 



Opening Statement of the Honorable Mike Kopetskd 



Before the House Committee on Small Business 



Subcommittee on Regulation, Business Opportunities and Technology 



Newport, Oregon 



June 4, 1993 



Mr. Chairman, thank you for taking the time and effort to hold this hearing here 

 in Newport today. As you can see, this is an issue of great importance and interest to 

 many people on the Oregon Coast. 



Today we will be hearing from many of the key players in the development of the 

 on-shore whiting fishery in Oregon. I am especially pleased to see that Barry Fisher, 

 President of the Midwater Trawlers Association, will be testifying today. Barry, arguably 

 the grandfather of the whiting fishery in Oregon, has spent many hours with me and my 

 staff, getting this formerly land-locked legislator up to speed on the issues affecting 

 Oregon's coastal fishermen. I am also grateful that other members of the coastal fishing 

 community are able to attend. 



Similarly, I am happy to see The State of Oregon and fisheries associations and 

 commissions well represented at this hearing. Over the years, our State government has 

 been involved in an intensive effort to develop the shore-side processing industry, 

 investing both money and time to develop better ways of more efficiently utilizing the 

 whiting resource. 



I would also like to thank the representatives of the off-shore processing industry 

 for being here today. It may come as a surprise to some that I am not against factory 

 trawlers. I simply believe the Council process was fair, given the history of the factory 

 trawler fleet in the whiting fishery, and that this sector should contribute to the well being 

 of the fishery in proportion to the benefits they receive. As you may know, I recently 

 introduced legislation, H.R. 2274, the Factory Trawler Equitable Tax Act, to impose an 

 excise tax on the offshore processing of Pacific whiting. 



This legislation is straightforward. The amount of the tax per metric ton shall be 

 ten percent of the ex-vessel value of processed whiting, approximately $7.70 to $8.80 per 

 metric ton in today's market. Importantly, the bill directs that revenues collected from 

 the tax be dedicated to Pacific whiting habitat restoration, restoration and rebuilding of 

 fisheries and fishing stock, and by-catch gear selectivity and reduction research in Oregon, 

 Washington and California. 



The Factory Trawler Equitable Tax Act attempts to make up for the competitive 

 advantage the factory trawlers enjoy by not significantly contributing to State and local 

 taxes in the Pacific Northwest and provides the revenues we need to research how to 



