HJR601 Summary

• Urges U.S. Congress to consider mechanisms to lessen the sudden impact of revisions to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act on Alabama's fishing industry.

• Highlights that federally managed fisheries undergoing overfishing must implement annual catch limits and accountability measures by 2010, with all other species required to comply by 2011.

• Notes that federal managers are considering a ten-month closure of red snapper fishing and that severe restrictions on reef fish harvest could put Alabamians out of business.

• Requests that Congress provide federal fishery managers with adequate funding for fisheries monitoring and research needed to meet conservation standards.

• Calls for economic assistance to fishing industries and businesses unable to survive the new restrictions, while balancing resource protection with economic prosperity in Alabama.