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Letter to the Honorable John Culberson, Chairman, and the Honorable Jose Serrano, Ranking Member of House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science - Full Funding for the National Sea Grant College Program

Letter

By: Raul Grijalva, Jackie Speier, Jimmy Panetta, Nanette Barragán, Susan Davis, Elizabeth Esty, Ted Yoho, Charlie Crist, Jr., Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Sanford Bishop, Jr., Cedric Richmond, Bill Keating, Elijah Cummings, Sandy Levin, Keith Ellison, David Rouzer, Frank Pallone, Jr., Don Payne, Jr., Thomas Suozzi, Dan Donovan, Jr., Eliot Engel, John Katko, Marcia Fudge, Peter DeFazio, Tom Marino, Al Green, Donald McEachin, Suzan DelBene, Denny Heck, Mike Gallagher, Mark DeSaulnier, Anna Eshoo, Julia Brownley, Juan Vargas, Rosa DeLauro, Lisa Blunt Rochester, Bill Posey, Alcee Hastings, Sr., Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Colleen Hanabusa, Seth Moulton, Anthony Brown, Chellie Pingree, Brenda Lawrence, G. K. Butterfield, Jr., Frank LoBiondo, Albio Sires, Lee Zeldin, Kathleen Rice, Carolyn Maloney, John Faso, Brian Higgins, Steve Stivers, Pat Meehan, Jenniffer González-Colón, Sheila Jackson Lee, Gerry Connolly, Pramila Jayapal, Ron Kind, Joe Courtney, Jared Huffman, Ro Khanna, Salud Carbajal, Alan Lowenthal, John Larson, Eleanor Norton, Stephanie Murphy, Kathy Castor, Carlos Curbelo, Madeleine Bordallo, Joe Kennedy III, John Sarbanes, Jamie Raskin, Debbie Dingell, Rick Nolan, Alma Adams, Donald Young, Barbara Lee, Zoe Lofgren, Ted Lieu, Scott Peters, Jim Himes, Neal Dunn, Darren Soto, Ted Deutch, Buddy Carter, Tulsi Gabbard, Mike Capuano, John Delaney, Bruce Poliquin, Tim Walz, Walter Jones, Jr., Chris Smith, Bill Pascrell, Jr., Pete King, Jerry Nadler, Adriano Espaillat, Paul Tonko, Bob Latta, Earl Blumenauer, Brian Fitzpatrick, David Cicilline, Rob Wittman, Peter Welch, Adam Smith, Gwen Moore, Louise Slaughter
Date: March 16, 2018
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Government Budget and Spending Natural Resources

Dear Chairman Culberson and Ranking Member Serrano:

As you develop the Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies appropriations bill, we urge your support for the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Sea Grant College Program--a program critically important to shoreline states throughout the country.

Across the nation, thirty-three universities participate in the National Sea Grant Program--a federal-state partnership which provides critical services to a wide range of constituents in every coastal and Great Lakes state, and U.S. territories. Sea Grant contributes to making coastal communities more resilient while also aiding our aquaculture industries in navigating federal and state regulations. In this sense, Sea Grant serves as the coastal, marine-based equivalent of Agriculture Extension programs.

With imported seafood making up 90% of American seafood consumption, our nation should be focusing on programs to expand and improve our domestic aquaculture industry. Sea Grant is a program that does just that--helping fishermen and shellfish farmers navigate a complex patchwork of state and federal coastal zone management regulations through technical assistance. Sea Grant works with local producers to grow and sustain their business models while connecting them to local resources to share best practices.

The economic impact of the Sea Grant Program highlights the benefit of this federal investment. According to the 2016 performance metrics of the program, Sea Grant contributed to creating and sustaining 20,770 jobs and 2,903 businesses. On top of business and job creation, Sea Grant logged a staggering 265,602 volunteer hours in 2016. Further, the program contributed to $575 million in economic impact--nearly half of our nation's $1.2 billion aquaculture economy.

The National Sea Grant Program is a known job creator that is highly leveraged to maximize the effectiveness of federal investment. This program serves as the primary resource for our coastal small businesses and fishing communities. We urge you to continue your support for this important program.

Sincerely,


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