Congressional Guidance and Better Federal Coordination Would Improve Marine Mammal Management

Highlights

GAO was requested to review the activities and effectiveness of the Marine Mammal Commission (MMC) and the Departments of Commerce and the Interior in fulfilling the Marine Mammal Protection Act's (MMPA) requirements.

Recommendations

Matter for Congressional Consideration

Matter	Status	Comments
Congress should amend both the FCMA and the MMPA to clarify the extent to which the interests of each law must be considered in fulfilling the objectives of the other.	Closed	GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Congress should, in connection with the need to establish an appropriate marine mammal enforcement program, amend the MMPA to clarify such terms as subsistence, native handicraft, and wasteful, which are used with limiting or establishing quotas on the harvesting of marine animals by Natives.	Closed	GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Congress should amend the MMPA to allow the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior, according to the species being managed, to exercise managerial controls over the Native subsistence harvesting of the species, such as the walrus, when it appears such steps will help prevent the species' depletion or assist in protecting the marine environment.	Closed	GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected	Recommendation	Status
Department of the Interior	The Secretary of the Interior should insure that the proposed reorganization for marine mammal management provide a sufficiently high level of specific management emphasis to marine mammals and, to the extent possible, eliminate divided responsibilities between the various Fish and Wildlife Service offices.	Closed GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Department of Commerce	The Secretary of Commerce should direct the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to give priority attention, with appropriate direction and level of commitment and funding, to resolving those issues and carrying out those functions, such as establishing recovery teams and developing recovery plans, which facilitate timely development of suitable management programs to encourage and accomplish species recovery.	Closed GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Department of Commerce	The Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior should establish interagency working arrangements to expedite the waiver review process when States request a waiver and return of management. In addition, the two agencies should coordinate their enforcement programs and other related activities to reduce costs and minimize delays that may occur as a result of the split Federal jurisdiction inherent in the Federal Government's management of marine mammals.	Closed GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Department of the Interior	The Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior should establish interagency working arrangements to expedite the waiver review process when States request a waiver and return of management. In addition, the two agencies should coordinate their enforcement programs and other related activities to reduce costs and minimize delays that may occur as a result of the split Federal jurisdiction inherent in the Federal Government's management of marine mammals.	Closed GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Department of the Interior	The Secretary of the Interior should require the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service to work more closely with MMC, the State, and others to resolve the biological and social problems relating to issues, such as optimum sustainable population, the multiple use of coastal resources, and the development of translocation criteria to establish new or separate locations for the sea otter.	Closed GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Department of Commerce	The Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior should, in cooperation with State authorities requesting a waiver of the moratorium and a return of management to the States, establish as a high priority, procedures to ensure that the process required to make such determinations is accomplished in an expeditious and responsive manner. Problems that arise with the process should be promptly discussed with appropriate State officials, MMC, and other interested parties to ensure that the time and effort and related costs are kept to a minimum and, more importantly, to help establish an effective marine mammal protection program as the MMPA envisioned.	Closed GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.
Department of the Interior	The Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior should, in cooperation with State authorities requesting a waiver of the moratorium and a return of management to the States, establish as a high priority, procedures to ensure that the process required to make such determinations is accomplished in an expeditious and responsive manner. Problems that arise with the process should be promptly discussed with appropriate State officials, MMC, and other interested parties to ensure that the time and effort and related costs are kept to a minimum and, more importantly, to help establish an effective marine mammal protection program as the MMPA envisioned.	Closed GAO has no information on the actions taken in response to this recommendation.

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