Now we would like to hear from Secretary Trudy Coxe. 



TESTIMONY OF TRUDY COXE, ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS SEC- 

 RETARY, EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS, 

 COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS, ACCOMPANIED BY 

 JOHN PHILLIPS, COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF FISH- 

 ERffiS, WILDLIFE AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT; 

 AND PAUL SISSEN, MASSACHUSETTS OFFICE OF BUSINESS 

 DEVELOPMENT 



Ms. Coxe. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 



I am here on behalf of Governor Weld and have a statement that 

 I am going to read to you from him. We want to first introduce 

 Paul Sisson, who is from the Massachusetts Office of Business De- 

 velopment. He is the fishing industry coordinator and a real expert 

 on fishing issues in our State. 



The Governor joins me in thanking the Subcommittee on Govern- 

 ment Programs and, in particular, you, for holding this hearing. 

 We are very grateful for your help and leadership on an issue that 

 others in Washington seem to be ignoring. Your attention and as- 

 sistance, we hope, will turn this attitude of indifference around, 

 and we want you to know up front that we enthusiastically support 

 the amendment you are proposing today. 



In Massachusetts we continue to be disappointed by the attitude 

 of Federal officials who continue to misunderstand the plight of 

 small fishing businesses in their quest for little more than some fi- 

 nancial help to get them through these very hard times. 



On March 29, 1995, the Governor requested a major disaster dec- 

 laration from FEMA due to the decline of the Massachusetts fish- 

 eries. That request for a major disaster declaration was denied. He 

 then appealed to FEMA to reconsider. That appeal was denied. In 

 January, he wrote requesting President Clinton to review the 

 FEMA denials, and to date we have had no response. 



This past spring, Massachusetts turned to a different arm of the 

 Federal Government, the Small Business Administration, for disas- 

 ter assistance. This request was summarily denied by Mr. Kulik, 

 whom you have just heard from. 



In the meantime, Mr. Chairman, the fisheries and the small fish- 

 ing businesses of our State are hurting. In fact, the National Ma- 

 rine Fisheries Service has reported that 1994 landings in Massa- 

 chusetts saw an 18 percent drop, the highest of any State in New 

 England. For the first time in our history, the Commonwealth lost 

 its position as the top revenue-producing State in the region. 



The severity and magnitude of the Commonwealth's fishing crisis 

 is such that an effective response is beyond the capabilities of one 

 State alone, and supplemental Federal assistance is needed. 



The Federal Boat Buyback Program is an example of the need 

 faced by the fishing industry in our State. Nine of the 13 vessels 

 purchased by the Federal Government recently were Massachu- 

 setts boats employing Massachusetts fishermen. While it is true 

 that the Federal Fisheries Relief Program provided Massachusetts 

 with $6.5 million, the fact is that these funds are nearly exhausted. 

 I think both of these illustrations point out how important the need 

 in our State really is. 



