Opinion ID: 1405962
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Is the maximum set by the CFEC in accord with the purposes of the Limited Entry Act?

Text: We now address the question of whether the maximum number set by the CFEC is in accord with the purposes of the Limited Entry Act. This point must be distinguished from the point we have discussed above that the Commission had a legal obligation to set the maximum number no lower than the historic high. We must now determine whether the CFEC's action in setting the maximum number at thirty-five is sustainable in light of the general purposes of the Limited Entry Act. The Limited Entry Act has two purposes: enabling fishermen to receive adequate remuneration and conserving the fishery. Art. VIII, § 15 Alaska Const.; AS 16.43.010; Commercial Fisheries Entry Comm'n v. Apokedak, 606 P.2d 1255, 1265 (Alaska 1980). [7] Prior to limiting this fishery, the CFEC consulted the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The CFEC requested the Department to indicate its opinion as to the number of units of gear which could participate in the fishery from the standpoint of sound biological management. The Department of Fish and Game responded that the maximum number should be set so that twenty-five to thirty boats could participate at any opening. The Department also indicated to the CFEC that if the maximum was set above thirty-five it would probably have to close the fishery. The Department's estimate was based upon its belief that the 1977 roe herring take would be in the 1,000 to 1,500 ton range. It noted that it had no evidence that any major increase would occur in the near future. The CFEC had before it information indicating that the level of stocks in the fishery was low. Further, the CFEC had information from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game that they had no evidence that any major increase in the harvest would occur in the near future. Finally, the CFEC had the report of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game which indicated that it felt only twenty to thirty boats would be biologically manageable and that it would probably have to close the fishery if more than thirty-five boats participated. Under these circumstances, we cannot say that the CFEC's action in setting the maximum number at thirty-five was an expression of whim rather than a product of reason. Rutter, 668 P.2d at 1346. We find that the CFEC's action was in accord with the purposes of the Limited Entry Act.