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community in determining the health and trends of all marine 

 mammals off our coasts and in new gear development and testing. 



Using these general guidelines, we, out of necessity, need 

 to focus our energies where the interaction problem is most 

 significant and to complete determinations in any fisheries where 

 there has not been enough effort to determine whether or not 

 there is a problem. 



HOW TO PAY FOR IT. 



In these days of declining federal budgets, it is essential 

 that federal dollars be spent more effectively. We can begin to 

 work toward this goal by starting the shift of fiscal 

 responsibility for management from the federal government to the 

 industry. Only by beginning to realize that transfer of funding 

 responsibility can we free up the necessary federal dollars to 

 engage in the research to determine the status of marine mammals 

 wherever possible. This research might also provide critical 

 information which would be useful in determining whether time and 

 area closures could be part of the solution to reduce takes of 

 marine mammals. In addition, freeing up federal funding is 

 essential greater engineering research programs to develop less 

 wasteful gear. 



During this historic reauthorization of the Magnuson Act and 



