Hawai'i Fisheries Initiative - The Hawaii Institute for Public Affairs

Governance refers to the entire process by
which laws, procedures, and institutions
address fisheries issues. This process
includes the entire range of activity
from stakeholders representing their
concerns to [regional fishery] councils,
through the councils developing and
analyzing policy alternatives, choosing
preferred policy, developing implementing
regulations, and enforcing them, while
also contending with the intervention of
courts, state legislatures, and Congress.
Management … refers to the ministerial
process of carrying out a council’s
approved management policies through
rule implementation, monitoring, and
enforcement. … Councils are more a part
of governance than management …
[but they] arguably have a foot in
each camp. 431
Wespac has 13 voting and 3 non-voting
members. 432 Eight members, who represent
fishing and marine-related community
interests in the region, are nominated by
the governors of Hawai‘i, Guam, American
Samoa, and Northern Mariana Islands, 433
and are then selected and appointed by the
U.S. Secretary of Commerce. 434 There are
eight obligatory and at-large members,
who serve three-year terms; council
members may be reappointed for up to
three consecutive terms, with approximately
one-third of the terms expiring
annually. 435 The other eight are designated
state, territorial, and federal officials with
fishery management responsibilities, and
include three non-voting members from the
U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Oceans
and International, Environment, and
Scientific Affairs; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service/Refuges; and the U.S. Coast Guard
14th District. 436 Under the MSA, Wespac is
authorized to appoint and assign duties to
an executive director and other full- and
part-time administrative employees. 437
Council decisions are based on a majority
vote of the voting members who are
present and voting. If members of the
council disagree with matters sent to the
U.S. Secretary of Commerce, that member
can submit a statement to the secretary
detailing the disagreement. Also, if the
NMFS regional director disagrees with
council decisions, he or she may submit a
statement to the secretary. 438
Meetings, both general and emergency, are
open to the pubic and the MSA provides
standard agency procedural requirements
(14-day advance notice publication in local
newspapers in the major fishing ports
of the region), and interested persons
may present oral or written testimony on
agenda matters at the meetings. Detailed
minutes of the meetings are maintained.
Meetings may be closed for matters of
national security, employment, or briefings
or litigation. 439
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