June 18, 2019
Commissioner Kelly Tshibaka
Department of Administration
550 W 7th Ave, Ste. 1970
Anchorage, Alaska 99501
Re: AS 05.25.055/ SB 92, the Derelict Vessels Act
Dear Commissioner Tshibaka,
United Fishermen of Alaska (UFA) is the statewide commercial fishing trade association,
representing 36 commercial fishing organizations participating in fisheries throughout the
state, and the federal fisheries off Alaska’s coast.
We respectfully ask that the implementation of AS 05.25.055/ SB 92, the Derelict Vessels
Act be delayed until June 2020. The rollout of this bill was poorly executed, leaving state
agencies and vessel owners scrambling to understand their respective responsibilities and
effectively coordinate their roles.
When SB 92 was first introduced, UFA expressed its concern to both Senator Micciche and
the Alaska Association of Harbormasters and Port Administrators that in order for this to be
successful, there would need to be ample notice to vessel owners. We requested that vessels
registered with the Commercial Fishing Entry Commission (CFEC) be exempt from this law
because vessels registered with CFEC are entered into a state-managed database, which is
one of the main objectives SB 92 set out to accomplish. Regardless if it was intentional or an
oversight that CFEC registered vessels were not made exempt, the lack of notice to vessel
owners has made compliance with this law extremely challenging.
Since becoming aware of this new law in late May, UFA has been working with the
Department of Motor Vehicles and Alaska State Wildlife Troopers to understand how they
intend to implement the requirements of the law. We have notified thousands of fishermen of
the law’s requirements through emails and social media posts. As far as we can tell, the
commercial fishing industry, spearheaded by UFA, is the only sector currently actively
working to inform commercial fishermen of the new requirements, even though this affects
thousands of non-commercial fishing boat owners around the state. Who is informing them?
As fishermen attempt to comply with the law’s requirements they are discovering that many
DMV offices are not ready to deal with the onslaught of this new bill. Several DMV offices
were lacking proper forms and stickers, and many DMV employees were confused by the
new law and provided incorrect information to fishermen. In addition, many DMV offices
are only open a few days a week and some have even been closed for a multiple weeks.
Many fishermen were already fishing out in Bristol Bay and Prince William Sound when
word of this new law reached them, and could not readily make it to a DMV office.
The UFA office has become a clearing house for frustrated vessel owners who want to
comply with the law but are having trouble doing so due to DMV offices being closed in
their region, offices lacking the correct forms, running out of sticker decals, and
misinformation. We have spoken several times with the Director of the DMV, Marla
Thompson, and have found her to be extremely helpful. She is doing her very best to help
everyone meet the law’s requirements, yet, due to the fact that fishing and boating season is
in full-swing, it appears to be too much for many local DMV offices to keep up with.
There are still many questions left unanswered with this bill. What constitutes 90 consecutive
days? If a boat goes up in a shipyard, does the 90 days start over? Does a seine skiff need to
get a registration and title, or is that included with the main seine vessel? These are questions
that law enforcement and the DMV have been asked, but have not answered. What are
Bristol Bay and Prince William Sound fishermen supposed to do when their DMV offices are
closed and they have made attempts to comply? These are just a few of the many questions
that vessel owners have brought to our attention.
We understand the need for this bill and support the idea behind it, but its translation and
implementation is currently flawed. We will be working with legislators next year to include
language that CFEC registered vessels be exempt from compliance. In the meantime, we ask
that this implementation of this law be postponed until all state agencies are better prepared
and trained, and adequate notice and education are given prior to it going into effect.
Sincerely,
Matt Alward UFA President
Frances H. Leach UFA Executive Director
CC: Governor Michael Dunleavy
Amanda Price, Commissioner of Public Safety
Senator Peter Micciche
Alaska Association of Harbormasters and Port Administrators
