83 



In consideration of these concerns, the bill has introduced has 

 been modified significantly, and for that I thank you. The most sig- 

 nificant addition to present law would be a requirement that the 

 Secretary's recommendation may only be implemented through a 

 rulemaking process conducted in accordance with the Administra- 

 tive Procedure Act. 



While my personal view is that this extra precaution is super- 

 fluous because of the opportunity for public input already built into 

 the process, I recognize its importance to those who want to guar- 

 antee that all sides are given a full hearing before the final flow 

 recommendations are implemented. 



There are other provisions of H.R. 1906 which remain of concern, 

 Mr. Chairman, and cause me to reserve judgment on the bill. Let 

 me preface this portion of my remarks by submitting for the hear- 

 ing record a news story that appeared in the July 3, 1995, Santa 

 Rosa Press Democrat which is the major daily newspaper in my 

 congressional district. 



This article headlined, "Big Year for Salmon Industry," tells of 

 "huge catches by commercial and sport fishermen along California's 

 North Coast. Most of these fish come from the Sacramento River 

 and its Central Valley tributaries. The large catch is attributable 

 to the conservation measures that have been put in place over the 

 past three years." In fact, the gentleman that I am going to intro- 

 duce in just a moment, Pliny McCovey, just told me that we could 

 look forward to increasing runs in our critical fisheries on the 

 North Coast over the next three years. 



However, this resource is fragile, and salmon stocks are just be- 

 ginning to rebound. The article which I am submitting for the 

 record today demonstrates why it is so important for Congress to 

 move cautiously on any legislation that might impact fishing 

 stocks. 



Among the provisions leading to my misgivings about the current 

 legislation are changes affecting the 800,000 acre-feet of CVP wa- 

 terflow dedicated under the CVPIA to fish, wildlife, and habitat 

 restoration, the elimination of sustainable anadromous fish dou- 

 bling as a major purpose of the CVPIA, and changes to implemen- 

 tation of the fish doubling provision. 



Mr. Chairman, in concluding my remarks, I am going to submit 

 for the record a statement prepared by the Pacific Coast Federation 

 of Fishermen's Associations which discusses these concerns in de- 

 tail. I also ask that you give careful consideration to the testimony 

 presented to you today on behalf of my constituents, the Hoopa 

 Valley Tribe, as represented here today by Pliny McCovey, my good 

 friend, the Vice Chairman of the Tribal Council. 



Mr. Chairman, I am hopeful that your committee will be able to 

 address these matters in the course of the legislative process and 

 maintain the balance that the CVPIA seeks to achieve. I know that 

 you personally are committed to working with other interests, as 

 you have worked with me, and to continue to improve your legisla- 

 tion. Again, I thank you for the opportunity to testify today. 



[The article mentioned and statement of the Pacific Coast Fed- 

 eration may be found at end of hearing.] 



Mr. DOOLITTLE. Thank you. I should at this time introduce the 

 other members of the panel, and then we will go to Mr. Thomas 



