96 



The Nation's successful shriiiii) industri/ contributes significantly to the 

 total docksidc value of living and nonliving marine resources taken from 

 the continental shelf and iraters adjacent to the United States each gear. 



Interstate cooperation in fisheries has been 

 relatively unsuccessful. Three interstate com- 

 missions exist — the Atlantic States, Gulf 

 States, and Pacific Marine Fisheries Com- 

 missions. But none has regulatory powers nor 

 adequate staff. Their function is to exchange 

 information on common problems and to 

 recommend legislation and administrative ac- 

 tion to the executive and legislative branches 

 of the member States. 



Under existing statutes, the Federal Gov- 



ermnent has no explicit role in the manage- 

 ment of fisheries within U.S. territorial 

 waters. In view of the discouraging lack of 

 coordination among State programs, the 

 Conmiission concludes that Federal leader- 

 ship and guidance — and when necessary, 

 regulatory power — must be asserted. 



The Commission recommends that the 

 National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

 Agency (BCF) establish national priori- 



