UFA's new skipper

Thatcher Brouwer is the new executive director for United Fishermen of Alaska, the state's top commercial fishing organization.

Brouwer is a 20-year commercial fisherman who also has worked as a legislative aide every winter since 2015, said an announcement on Facebook.

He succeeds UFA's former executive director, Tracy Welch, who was appointed to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

CFEC sets a meeting

The Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission plans to meet Sept. 2, and the agenda includes some quite significant items.

Commissioner clarifies status of fishing regulations

Here's the press release.

The situation with Cook Inlet beach seines seems particularly noteworthy.

UFA seeks new skipper

The state's top commercial fishing organization, United Fishermen of Alaska, is recruiting a new executive director.

The position carries an estimated starting salary of $90,000 to $100,000 depending on experience, a job description says.

The successful candidate will replace the outgoing executive director, Tracy Welch, who just won legislative confirmation to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

Juneau watch

Legislators on Thursday confirmed the governor's appointments and reappointments:

• Paul Cyr, Blair Hickson and Mike Wood to the Board of Fisheries

• Tracy Welch to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission

• Renee Alward to the Fishermen's Fund Advisory and Appeals Council.

The only drama involved Hickson with Sen. Jesse Bjorkman, R-Nikiski, objecting to his confirmation. On the ensuing roll call of legislators, Hickson was confirmed on a vote of 39 yeas 21 nays.

Here is Hickson's resume.

To see how all legislators voted, check this legislative journal report.

A second commissioner for CFEC

The governor has appointed Tracy Welch, of Juneau, to the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

CFEC now has a full complement of two commissioners, the other being Rick Green.

CFEC sets Thursday meeting

The Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission has scheduled a public meeting for 11 a.m. tomorrow in Juneau. Here's more information.

Haight to step aside at CFEC

Glenn Haight, Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission chair, is leaving the position with Feb. 27 to be his last day.

Haight advised the governor's office via email that he didn't plan to seek reappointment for a new four-year term.

The CFEC is a small agency that controls participation in Alaska's many fisheries. It issued 16,973 commercial fishing permits and 7,101 vessel licenses in 2025.

Haight has helmed CFEC since Gov. Mike Dunleavy appointed him chair effective May 7, 2022. His term expires soon, on March 1.

Haight came to CFEC after serving a number of years as executive director of the Alaska Board of Fisheries.

What's next for him? He told Deckboss he's not sure.

"I don't have anything hard and fast right now," Haight said. "My wife has a list of things."

Haight has led CFEC through a period of rebuilding, concentrating on filling open positions and advancing efforts to modernize the agency's information technology systems. The agency is budgeted for 21 permanent full-time employees.

"Operations have stabilized," Haight told the governor's office. He further wrote: "Working at CFEC these last few years has been very rewarding. However, I need to step back and let others take over."

CFEC has been controversial over the years, with some questioning whether it has enough work to justify a standalone agency, with handsome salaries for its leadership.

State Sen. Cathy Giessel, R-Anchorage, this year introduced Senate Bill 199 to transfer CFEC's duties to the Department of Fish and Game.

CFEC can have up to two commissioners, and with Haight's exit only Rick Green will remain. It's unclear at this point whether the governor will appoint a replacement for Haight.

The governor appointed Green to the commission in 2024. He previously was special assistant to state Fish and Game Commissioner Doug Vincent-Lang, but is best known for his years hosting the "Rick Rydell" radio show.

During a legislative hearing this week in Juneau, with Haight and Green appearing as witnesses, House Speaker Bryce Edgmon asked about the "succession plan" at CFEC.

Green acknowledged he lives in Anchorage, not Juneau where CFEC is based.

Presumably, Green will become lead commissioner, and CFEC for the first time will not have  a commissioner in Juneau, Edgmon said.

"I have to tell you that that is unsettling to me," Edgmon said, noting he himself is a former permit holder. "I think the commissioner should be here with the staff."

Green noted, however, that the commission has an executive director who "basically runs" the agency.

Juneau watch

State Sen. Cathy Giessel, R-Anchorage, has prefiled Senate Bill 199 titled "An Act repealing the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Limited Entry Commission and transferring its duties to the Department of Fish and Game and the office of administrative hearings."

The title is an apparent reference to the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

The prefiled bill comes in advance of the next legislative session, which begins Jan. 20.

Juneau watch

The Alaska Legislature yesterday confirmed the governor's picks for the Alaska Board of Fisheries.

The vote was 40 yeas to 20 nays to confirm Tom Carpenter for a second term on the board.

Legislators voted 50 to 10 to confirm newcomer Olivia Irwin.

Legislators also confirmed Rick Green for continued service on the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

Full details on the confirmations are available here.

CFEC notes

Here are two items of interest from the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

• The commission will hold a public meeting beginning at 10 a.m. Thursday. Here's the agenda.

• The commission is conducting an optimum number study for the Prince William Sound salmon drift gillnet fishery. The area includes the Copper River District. The study comes at the request of a permit holder who submitted this petition. The commission obscured the petitioner's name. An optimum number study helps the commission determine if the number of permits in a fishery is appropriate. The Prince William Sound fishery (SO3E) has 535 permits, according to the CFEC database.

Juneau watch

The House Special Committee on Fisheries tomorrow will consider the governor's appointment of Rick Green to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

Here's his resume.

A herring heads-up

A committee on Alaska herring industry revitalization is set to meet via web conference from 9 to 11 a.m. Oct. 31.

The committee is a joint effort of the state Board of Fisheries and the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

"The purpose of this meeting is to review economic and market research that occurred over the summer, review Western Alaska herring fisheries and stocks, hear an update on the Kodiak herring food and bait optimum numbers study, provide for open public testimony, and plan for future meetings," a public notice said.

Written public comments may be submitted through Oct. 29.

Click here for further details.

Next up for the CFEC

The governor has appointed Rick Green to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

The commission is a small state agency that issues commercial fishing permits and vessel licenses. The commission also limits the number of participants in the fisheries, though this work by and large was completed many years ago.

As many as three commissioners head the agency, but it will have only two with Green's appointment.

Green is best known for his years hosting a radio show as "Rick Rydell." More recently, he was special assistant to state Fish and Game Commissioner Doug Vincent-Lang.

He takes the place of Mike Porcaro on the commission. Porcaro, an advertising executive who also hosts a radio talk show, in May failed to win legislative confirmation to the position.

Nathaniel Herz, of Northern Journal, was first to break the news of Green's appointment.

Governor's appointees clear Legislature, mostly

The Alaska Legislature on Tuesday confirmed Gov. Mike Dunleavy's fishery-related appointments, with one exception.

Märit Carlson-Van Dort, of Anchorage, was confirmed to the Board of Fisheries by a vote of 53 yeas 7 nays. This is a reappointment, as she already has served one term on the board.

Curtis Chamberlain, an Anchorage attorney and newcomer to the Board of Fisheries, was confirmed by a vote of 55 yeas 5 nays.

Megan O'Neil, of Petersburg, was confirmed to the Fishermen's Fund Advisory and Appeals Council by unanimous consent.

Mike Porcaro initially won confirmation to the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission by a vote of 31 yeas 29 nays. But on a reconsideration vote, his confirmation failed 30-30. Porcaro is an Anchorage advertising executive and radio talk show host with no background in commercial fisheries.

Here's the legislative journal supplement with complete details on confirmation of the governor's appointments.

Kids and permits

The Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission has launched a survey on minors owning commercial fishing permits. Take the survey here.

Can we revitalize our herring fisheries?

We're approaching new seasons for herring, a vast resource in Alaska with major concentrations at Sitka, Kodiak, Togiak, Goodnews Bay and Norton Sound.

For years, however, herring hasn't produced much of a payoff for Alaska's commercial fishing industry. The herring are valued mainly for their eggs, or roe, and demand for roe has been weak in the main Asian market.

A stupendous volume of herring will be up for grabs this year at Sitka Sound, but only a portion of the 81,246-ton quota is expected to be harvested, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game says.

A huge volume of herring also will be available at Togiak, historically the scene of Alaska's largest herring fishery. But for a second consecutive year, no commercial fishery is expected due to lack of industry interest.

Some industry players have long lamented Alaska's underutilized herring resource. They wonder, could the fish be used to feed hungry people around the world? Could herring roe markets be revived or expanded? Could more Alaska herring be taken for use as bait?

These and other questions could receive an airing soon with the formation of a "herring revitalization committee."

It's a joint effort of the state Board of Fisheries and the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

The committee would work to "better understand current and potential markets, and review potential regulatory change to facilitate those markets," according to this charge statement the Board of Fisheries recently approved.

Expect to hear more about this committee soon.

Kids who fish

Is it OK for kids to hold state commercial fishing permits?

In fact, a handful already do.

But what's the policy on minors holding permits?

It's a question the Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission plans to address this year.

The agency, which issues permits for participating in dozens of Alaska fisheries, will conduct a review including a fleet survey and hearings, says Glenn Haight, commission chairman.

The goal isn't to keep kids off fishing vessels. Rather, it's to give the commission "a little more structure and process to follow when asked to allow a permit to go to a youngster," Haight said.

The commission's review could look at safety, economic advantage in fisheries, or other considerations. 

State regulations already address the issue to some degree. For example, the Alaska Administrative Code at 20 AAC 05.1707 states "there is a rebuttable presumption" a person acquiring most types of permits is "unable to participate actively in the fishery" if under the age of 16.

But the commission can, and has, issued permits to minors under 16, Haight said. He reckons maybe 10 such minors currently hold permits.

What's happening at CFEC?

The Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission has posted its 2022 annual report.

More personnel news

The Alaska Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission has brought aboard Alysha Guthrie as executive director.

Guthrie's prior work experience includes a hitch at the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute.