Defying a White House veto threat, the Republican-controlled House on Monday approved a bill to give regional fisheries managers more power to set local fishing levels in federal waters.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, would remove a 10-year timeframe for rebuilding depleted fish stocks and allow fisheries managers to consider the economic needs of fishing communities in setting annual catch limits.

Republicans said the bill would added needed "flexibility" to the fisheries law while still protecting against overfishing. Democrats said it would roll back an important requirement that has ensured the recovery of many fish populations.

The House approved the bill, 225-152.

Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, called the vote "a win for the consumer, a win for the industry that puts food on our tables and restaurants, a win for the recreational fisherman, a win for better and more transparent science and a win for the American taxpayers."

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