Components of the
Council System
The Council system is composed of Council members, Council
staff, advisory bodies who advise the Council, and the public,
which participates in Council decisionmaking both directly and
indirectly.
Council Members
The Council has 14 voting members and five non-voting members.
The voting Council members include:
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The directors of state fish and wildlife departments from California,
Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, or their designees.
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The Regional Director of the National Marine Fisheries Service
or his or her designee.
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A representative of a federally-recognized West Coast Native
American tribe.
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Eight private citizens who are familiar with the fishing industry,
marine conservation, or both. These citizens are appointed
by the Secretary of Commerce from lists submitted by the
governors of the member states. They include one “obligatory
member” from each state, which ensures that someone from
each state is represented. The other four are “at-large” members
who may come from any state.
There are also five non-voting members who assist the Council in
decisionmaking. They represent:
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The Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, which coordinates
data and research for the Pacific states.
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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which serves in an advisory
role.
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The State of Alaska, because both fish and the people who fish
for them migrate to and from Alaskan waters.
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The U.S. Department of State, which is concerned about management
decisions that have international implications.
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The U.S. Coast Guard, which is concerned about enforcement
and safety issues.
Obligatory, at-large, and tribal members serve three-year terms
and may not serve more than three consecutive terms. The private
citizens on the Council are paid for the time they spend in Council
meetings, but not for the time they spend preparing for meetings or
working with constituents.
Financial Interest of Members
Council members’ financial interests are important because they
could influence how members make decisions. Council members
may have a financial interest in any harvesting, processing, or
marketing activity as long as they disclose the extent of this interest
to the public. This ensures that knowledgeable fishing industry
members can serve on the Council. Council members are not allowed
to vote on matters that would benefit only them or a minority
of other people within the same sector or gear group. Financial
disclosure forms are available for public inspection at the Council
office and at Council meetings.
Technically, the Council recommends regulations to the Secretary
of Commerce (through NMFS). The decisions made by the
Council are not final until they are approved by the Secretary of
Commerce through NMFS.
Council members must balance competing interests while trying to
make decisions for the public good. Council members are advised
by the Council’s advisory committees, Council staff, the public, the
states, academia, and NMFS.
The Council Staff
Council staff support the Council by providing information for
management decisions, informing the public about Council activities,
helping the public participate in the process, coordinating the
process and meetings, creating fishery management documents,
and assisting advisory groups.
The Council staff consists of an Executive Director, Deputy Director,
support staff, and Staff Officers. Staff Officers oversee each
fishery management plan (groundfish, coastal pelagic species,
highly migratory species, and salmon), and also focus on economics,
social science, habitat, and outreach and education. As of
November 2007, there were 16 members of the Council staff.
The Council is a nonprofit organization; as such, the Council staff
are not federal government employees. The Executive Director
carries out tasks assigned by the Council and, with the Deputy
Director, directs and oversees the staff.
Advisory Bodies
The Council decisionmaking process includes several types of advisory
bodies. Advisory bodies usually meet during the Council week,
and sometimes between Council meetings. During the Council
meeting, the advisory bodies prepare comments on relevant agenda
items and provide them in written and oral form to the Council.
Advisory body meetings are open to the public.
Advisory subpanels advise the Council from the perspective of
the commercial and recreational fishing industry, the conservation
community, and the public. The Council currently has four
advisory subpanels:
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Groundfish Advisory Subpanel (GAP). This subpanel includes
three fixed gear (at-large) commercial fishers, one conservation
representative, two processors, one at-sea processor, three
sport fishers, two open access fishers, three trawlers, four charter
boat operators (one each for Washington and Oregon, and
two for California), and one tribal fisher. See
the current GAP roster.
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Coastal Pelagic Species Advisory Subpanel (CPSAS). This
subpanel includes three California commercial fishers, one
Oregon commercial fisher, one Washington commercial fisher,
three processors (one from each coastal state), one California
charter or sport fisher, and one conservation representative. See the current CPSAS roster.
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Highly Migratory Species Advisory Subpanel (HMSAS). This
subpanel includes one member each from the commercial troll,
purse seine, gillnet, and charter fisheries; one recreational
at-large fisher and one private recreational fisher; three commercial
at-large members; two processors; one public-at large
member; and one conservation representative. See the current HMSAS roster.
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Salmon Advisory Subpanel (SAS). Currently, this group comprises
two tribal representatives (from the Washington coast,
and California); one gillnetter; three charter boat operators
and three trollers (one from each coastal state); four sport fishers
(one from each state, including Idaho); one processor; and
one conservation representative. See
the current SAS roster.
Other Advisory Groups
The Scientific and Statistical Committee is composed of scientists
from tribal, state, and federal agencies, academic institutions,
and other sources. The SSC provides multidisciplinary
peer review for the Council. This includes reviewing
stock assessments, assessment methods, and biological, economic,
and social impact analyses. The SSC also reviews the qualifications
of technical team and SSC members. The SSC has subcommittees
that focus on salmon, groundfish, highly migratory species, coastal
pelagic species, ecosystem-based management, and economics. See the current
SSC roster.
The Habitat Committee (HC) works with other teams and advisory
bodies on habitat issues that affect Council managed stocks. The
group helps develop ways to resolve habitat problems and avoid
future habitat conflicts, and it makes recommendations for actions
that will help achieve the Council’s habitat objectives. The Habitat
Committee includes two members from NMFS; one member
each from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Pacific States
Marine Fisheries Commission; one at-large member; one conservation
representative; four members from the four state fishery agencies;
two tribal representatives; two fishing industry members; and
one National Marine Sanctuary representative. See
the current HC roster.
The Enforcement Consultants are law enforcement representatives
from state police agencies, state fish and wildlife agencies,
NMFS regions, and the Coast Guard. They provide advice to the
Council about whether proposed management actions are enforceable
and how they affect safety at sea. There are seven enforcement
consultants. See the current EC roster.
The Groundfish Allocation Committee (GAC) is charged with
developing options for allocating certain groundfish species among
the commercial and recreational sectors and among gear groups
within the commercial sector. The purpose of the GAC is to distribute
the harvestable surplus among competing interests in a way
that resolves allocation issues on a short- or long-term basis. The
GAC is composed of voting members who sit on the Council (one
representative each from the state management agencies, NMFS, PSMFC, and the Council Chair). NOAA Northwest Regional
Counsel provides legal advice. In addition, there are seven nonvoting
advisors representing the non-whiting trawl, whiting trawl,
fixed gear, open access, and recreational sectors; conservation
groups; and processors. See the current list of voting GAC members and the current list of non-voting GAC members.
Plan, technical, and management teams (such as the Groundfish
Management Team, Coastal Pelagic Species Management Team,
Highly Migratory Species Management Team, Salmon Technical
Team, and Salmon Model Evaluation Workgroup) provide
objective scientific information about their respective fisheries
to the Council. They contribute to the development of fishery
management plans and amendments, develop relevant analyses,
compile abundance forecasts (in the case of the Salmon Technical
Team), contribute to Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation
documents, review models, and conduct other scientific tasks in
support of decisionmaking.
Ad hoc committees are created to serve special, usually shortterm needs. Ad hoc committees that have existed in the recent
past include the Ad Hoc Allocation Committee, Ad Hoc Groundfish
Strategic Plan Implementation Oversight Committee, Ad Hoc
Observer Program Implementation Committee, Ad Hoc Marine
Protected Areas Committee, Ad Hoc Groundfish Habitat Technical
Review Committee, and Ad Hoc Groundfish Essential Fish
Habitat Environmental Impact Statement Oversight Committee. See the current list and composition of ad-hoc committees here.
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