The Keep Finfish Free Act (S.1529) is one of those rare pieces of legislation that has genuine bipartisan support — Senator Dan Sullivan, Republican from Alaska, and Senator Cory Booker, Democrat from New Jersey. Two senators from opposite coasts, opposite parties, and opposite ends of the political spectrum, united on one point: America's oceans should not be turned into industrial fish farms.
The bill would permanently prohibit finfish aquaculture in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone — the federal waters extending from 3 to 200 miles offshore. It's the direct counterpoint to the MARA Act, which would open those same waters to industrial-scale net pen operations.
Why This Bill Exists
The push for offshore aquaculture in the U.S. has been building for years. Proponents point to the seafood trade deficit — the U.S. imports roughly 80% of the seafood it consumes — and argue that domestic aquaculture would create jobs, reduce imports, and improve food security.
What they don't say is that the countries leading global aquaculture production — Norway, Chile, China — are also dealing with the environmental and social consequences of that production. Disease outbreaks that wipe out entire farm populations. Coastal pollution that damages wild fisheries and tourism economies. Corporate consolidation that pushes out local fishing communities.
NAMA and the Don't Cage Our Oceans coalition have spent years documenting these consequences and presenting them to lawmakers. Their message: learn from what's happened elsewhere before making the same mistakes here.
NAMA's Role
The Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance has been at the center of this fight because their membership — small-scale fishermen from Maine to North Carolina — would be among the first to feel the impact of offshore aquaculture.
NAMA's approach is distinctive because it's fishermen-led. These aren't policy analysts theorizing about impacts. These are people who work on the water every day, who understand the marine ecosystem from the deck of a boat, and who can speak with authority about what industrial operations would mean for wild fisheries.
NAMA has organized fishermen to testify before Congress, coordinated with legal teams challenging aquaculture permits, and built coalitions with environmental and consumer groups who share their concerns. They've also been instrumental in promoting Community Supported Fisheries as an alternative model — proving that consumers will pay for transparency and direct relationships with fishermen when given the opportunity.
What DCOO Has Accomplished
The Don't Cage Our Oceans coalition has been remarkably effective at shifting the political landscape around offshore aquaculture:
- Blocked previous permitting attempts — DCOO coalition members have successfully challenged aquaculture permits in the Gulf of Mexico and off the coast of Hawaii
- Built bipartisan legislative support — The Keep Finfish Free Act's bipartisan sponsorship is a direct result of coalition advocacy
- Shifted public narrative — From "aquaculture as innovation" to "who benefits and who pays"
- Connected fishing communities — Fishermen from Alaska to Massachusetts to the Gulf Coast who had been fighting isolated battles are now coordinating through the coalition
The Consumer Connection
This isn't just a fishermen's fight. Every consumer who buys seafood has a stake in this outcome.
If the MARA Act passes and offshore aquaculture scales up in U.S. waters, the seafood you buy at the grocery store will increasingly come from industrial net pens rather than fishing boats. The "wild-caught" premium that supports independent fishermen will erode. The direct-to-consumer channels — the CSFs, the farmers markets, the small online operations — will face price competition they can't survive.
If the Keep Finfish Free Act passes, America's oceans remain wild. The fishermen who work those waters continue to have a livelihood. And consumers who want traceable, wild-caught seafood continue to have a source.
The choice is clear. The question is whether enough people will make their voices heard before the decision is made for them.
How to Support the Keep Finfish Free Act
1. Contact your senators — Ask them to co-sponsor S.1529
2. Support NAMA — [namanet.org](https://namanet.org) — their advocacy team needs resources
3. Join DCOO — [dontcageouroceans.org](https://dontcageouroceans.org)
4. Buy wild-caught, traceable seafood — Support the fishermen this legislation protects
5. Share these stories — Most consumers don't know this fight is happening
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