SUBCOMMITTEE ON FISHERIES, WILDLIFE, OCEANS AND INSULAR AFFAIRS
1324 Longworth House Office Building
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
10:00 a.m.

• Official hearing transcript
• Press Release - Lethal Removal of Sea Lions Necessary to Ensure Survival of Endangered Salmon Populations in Pacific Northwest (6/14/2011)

LEGISLATIVE HEARING ON:

• H.R. 946 (Hastings), To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to reduce predation on endangered Columbia River salmon, and for other purposes. "Endangered Salmon Predation Prevention Act."

OPENING STATEMENT:

The Honorable John Fleming
Chairman

The Honorable Doc Hastings
Full Committee Chairman

WITNESSES AND TESTIMONY:

Panel I

Jim Lecky
Director of the Office of Protected Resources
National Marine Fisheries Service

Guy Norman
Southwest Regional Director
Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife

Robin Brown
Program Leader, Marine Mammal Research
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Virgil Lewis
Tribal Council Member
Yakama Nation

Sharon B. Young
Marine Issues Field Director
The Humane Society of the United States
(Truth in Testimony Form)

BACKGROUND:

The Endangered Salmon Predation Prevention Act, introduced by Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04), would allow for lethal removal of the most aggressive sea lions in order to deter predation and help protect endangered salmon as they return to spawn. Chairman Hastings is joined by bill cosponsors Reps. Norm Dicks (WA-06), Greg Walden (OR-02), and Jaime Herrera Beutler (WA-03).