Trump Isn’t the Godsend That Fishermen Had Hoped For

One of the problems that existed before Trump’s reelection, according to Schumann, is that government data on fish populations is often out of date. So, for example, fishermen might be given limits on a species that was in trouble three years ago and has now bounced back. Massive layoffs among the scientists at NOAA Fisheries who collect the data will likely “magnify that problem,” she said.

Meanwhile, the lifting of some catch quotas, a regulation freeze back in January, and reduced data collection are already leading to overfishing, especially of Atlantic bluefin tuna off the coast of North Carolina. Some species that are crucial to the industry and have been declining, like winter flounder, won’t be studied this year.

Before Trump, many fishermen were in the process of decarbonizing their fleets with the help of federal funding. But Trump and Musk’s cuts disrupted those subsidies. Some who began the process of decarbonizing their boats, only to lose the promised money in a DOGE slashing spree, are now on the hookfor enormous expenses and can’t go through with these plans. In some cases, Schumann says, the funding can be recovered from DOGE, but “it’s too late” for those particular fleets; the season has already started, and fishermen can’t take the time to get their boats out of the water and retrofit them.