Senate Passes Coast Guard Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 2015 and 2016

WASHINGTON (December 10, 2014) -- Today the Senate passed S. 2444, the Coast Guard Authorization Act for fiscal years 2015 and 2016, which authorizes spending on Coast Guard programs. As a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) worked to secure the specific provisions in the bill that ensure fishermen have access to the lifesaving safety and survival training they need. The bill also includes an amendment for a three-year extension of the vessel discharge moratorium.

“Working on the water is hard and sometimes dangerous work. That’s why I fought to make sure that Massachusetts fishermen and fishing communities around the country would have the training they need to return to their families safe and sound,” said Senator Markey.

“Fishermen in Massachusetts and throughout New England owe a great debt of gratitude to Senator Ed Markey for his leadership on the Senate Commerce Committee to secure safety training and protection for our communities in need,” said JJ Bartlett, the President of Fishing Partnership Support Services. “He successfully shepherded this important provision through the Senate. This is truly great news for fishermen and their families. Fishermen work in one of the deadliest industries in the country, and now they will have access to lifesaving safety and survival training.”

Earlier this year, Senators Markey and Elizabeth Warren, Rep. Bill Keating, and others in the Massachusetts delegation successfully acquired more than $32 million for New England fishermen in disaster relief money. The Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries has already created a plan to disburse the $8.3 million allotted for Massachusetts for this second round of disaster funding, and sent a final grant application to NOAA on October 24, 2014.

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