July 2, 2026 Miguel Rolón Executive Director Caribbean Fishery Management Council miguel_rolon_cfmc@yahoo.com Dear Mr. Rolón: Thank you for the Caribbean Fishery Management Council’s (Council) work regarding Executive Order 14276, Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness, including your detailed action plan outlining priorities, and your extensive stakeholder engagement. I deeply appreciate the Council’s partnership and the thorough analysis provided by the Council members, your expert staff and industry advisors. The volume of input from fishery participants and coastal communities received in public comments highlights the urgency of our shared mission. I intimately understand the unique data collection challenges, infrastructural needs, and cultural dynamics present in the U.S. Caribbean. I am fully committed to assisting you in reducing loss of yield, unburdening your local fishermen, and significantly increasing economic returns to the islands. In particular, I want to acknowledge and commend the Council for already integrating several of these priority actions directly into your current action plans. To fulfill the EO’s mandate to reduce burdens on domestic fishing, increase production, stabilize markets, improve access, and enhance economic profitability, I request the Council maintain momentum on these key issues and focus on the following priorities during upcoming prioritization and action planning processes: ●
Shift Spiny Lobster and Queen Conch to Territorial Management: Island based Federal management of these highly localized species is often data-poor, leading to restrictive, precautionary Annual Catch Limits (ACLs) that truncate fishing seasons. I strongly encourage you to evaluate shifting Caribbean Spiny Lobster and Queen Conch to territorial management. Empowering local economies and territorial agencies to manage these stocks will maximize yield, reduce costly federal regulation, and align with the core intent of EO 14276. I understand there is an ongoing status review of Queen Conch, and I expect the Council to use the outcome of that effort to inform its evaluation of who should manage the fishery, including determining if the Queen Conch rebuilding plan is still necessary.
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Revise Accountability Measures (AMs) for Pelagic Stocks and Spiny Lobster: Pelagic stocks in the region are highly seasonal, and federal AMs frequently disrupt markets and community income. Similarly, the AMs for spiny lobster continue to cause fishery closures due to environmentally driven factors. As the Council evaluates moving spiny lobster to territorial management, I request the Council advance regulatory amendments to revise these AMs, incorporating regional seasonality to stabilize local seafood markets and prevent unnecessary socioeconomic disruptions.
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Review Effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs; e.g., Tourmaline Bank and Abrir La Sierra): To expand fishing access and align with the EO’s intent to reopen areas no longer serving active conservation needs, I urge the Council to expedite this priority and evaluate a regulatory amendment to reopen specific MPAs—such as Tourmaline Bank—to commercial fishing, provided that upcoming scientific reviews demonstrate these areas are no longer functioning as active spawning aggregation sites.
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State-Federal Regulatory Compatibility Review: Conflicting territorial and federal regulations confuse fishermen and complicate compliance. I request the Council to expedite its regulatory