With economic pressures mounting and harvest cuts already deep, commercial striped bass fishermen urged the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) last week to hold off on further restrictions.
Meeting in Dewey Beach, Delaware, on Oct. 29, the ASMFC voted against an additional 12 percent reduction in the commercial and recreational striped bass catch, according to reporting by The Chesapeake Bay Journal. The decision follows more than a year of heated debate over the future of the prized Atlantic species, which was declared overfished in 2019 and has struggled to rebound since.
For many in the commercial sector, the latest proposal represented a breaking point. Rob Newberry, chair of the Delmarva Fisheries Association, told the Bay Journal that the commercial striped bass quota has already been slashed by 46 percent since 2012. “Any more cuts are going to put us out of business,” he said.
The commission’s vote came after new data showed that recreational catch numbers were down significantly in the first half of 2025, a sign that reduced fishing pressure could allow the population to meet the rebuilding goal by 2029 without additional cuts. That news prompted commissioners, including Maryland Department of Natural Resources official Mike Luisi, to push caution. “What are we doing? Because the people are just as important as the fish,” he said, as quoted by the Bay Journal.
Still, the debate underscored the tensions between conservation and economic survival. While states such as Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island voted for tighter limits, Mid-Atlantic representatives argued that another reduction would devastate charter operators and working watermen already grappling with smaller quotas and declining demand.
As the commission explores longer-term management options beyond 2029, commercial fishermen say they’re eager to stay at the table, but warn that their livelihoods depend on balance. “But to me, enough is enough,” said David Sikorski, executive director of the Coastal Conservation Association of Maryland, a rare sentiment shared by both sides of the striped bass divide.
Information and quotes for this article were sourced from The Chesapeake Bay Journal and shared by Maryland Matters.
