National Marine Fisheries

What this funds

NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is responsible for the management and conservation of living marine resources within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) - the area extending from three to 200 nautical miles offshore. NMFS provides critical support to commercial and recreational marine fisheries, which generated $319 billion in sales impact and supported 2.1 million jobs economy-wide1, as well as aquaculture industries, which contributed $1.6 billion worth of seafood or 25 percent of total U.S. seafood production by value in 2023.2 NMFS also provides scientific and policy leadership in the international arena, and plays a key role in the management of living marine resources in coastal areas under state jurisdiction. NMFS implements science-based conservation and management actions aimed at sustaining long-term use and promoting the health of coastal and marine ecosystems for the Nation's benefit. Programmatic authority for fisheries management, species protection, and habitat conservation activities is derived primarily from the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), and Endangered Species Act (ESA). Additional legislation commissions, and other countries. All of these activities rely on strong scientific and research capabilities to support the challenging public policy decision process associated with NMFS' stewardship responsibilities. NOAA's FY 2027 Budget request proposes to transfer ESA and MMPA functions in the NMFS Office of Protected Resources to the Department of the Interior's (DOI) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The FY 2027 Budget consolidates all of NMFS' activities related to ESA and MMPA responsibilities at the Department of the Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which will streamline permitting activities and ensure consistency in ESA and MMPA implementation. This consolidation will improve the efficiency of implementing the ESA by ensuring that only one agency needs to review activities impacting endangered species. With this proposal, FWS will be responsible for listing, delisting, and consulting on activities impacting 1 National Marine Fisheries Service. 2026. Fisheries Economics of the United States, 2023. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-F/SPO-254, p.30 Available at: 2 National Marine Fisheries Service (2026) Fisheries of the United States, 2023. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Current Fishery Statistics No. 2023. Available at:

Extracted from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, p. 54. Verbatim; nothing here is paraphrased.

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