Target: Dr. Neil Jacobs, Administrator, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) & Brian Nesvik, Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Drafted by: Shark Stewards

President Trump’s September 18, 2026 Executive Order, “Restoring American Saltwater Angling and Recreation,” is a direct assault on the fundamental safeguards that keep America's oceans healthy and alive. By prioritizing unrestricted recreational access and maximum harvest quotas over ecological balance, this mandate threatens to wipe out decades of progress in fisheries management and marine conservation.

We urgently call on NOAA Administrator Dr. Neil Jacobs and USFWS Director Brian Nesvik to reject policies that dismantle science-based fisheries management. The push to "remove barriers" to shark fisheries and replace strict catch limits with deregulation is a catastrophic step backward.

Why This Deregulation is a Disaster for Our Oceans:

• Pushes Sharks to the Brink: Sharks are apex predators that grow slowly, mature late, and produce few young. Explicitly targeting "barriers" to shark fishing will decimate these vulnerable populations. Even in recreational catch-and-release fishing, physiological stress and hook injuries result in devastatingly high post-release mortality rates for many elasmobranch species.
• Undermines Science-Based Quotas: Abandoning the strict, scientifically determined catch limits of the Magnuson-Stevens Act in favor of maximizing profitability and access will inevitably lead to overfishing. A healthy ocean relies on cautious, data-driven quotas, not industry-driven deregulation.
• Skyrockets Deadly Bycatch: Rolling back gear restrictions will dramatically increase the unintended capture of endangered and threatened species. Sea turtles, marine mammals, and non-target pelagic fish will pay the price for relaxed oversight.
• Threatens Marine Sanctuaries: The administration’s continued push to open Marine National Monuments and other protected areas destroys the vital safe havens that depleted stocks need to recover.
• Substitutes Trash for Habitat: The "Reef-in-Place" program promotes abandoning decommissioned oil and gas platforms under the guise of creating artificial reefs. Real conservation requires protecting natural coastal ecosystems, blue carbon sinks, and estuaries—not leaving industrial waste on the seafloor to appease the recreational fishing industry.

Our oceans are a shared public trust, not a resource to be recklessly exploited for short-term recreational and economic gain. Weakening these vital protections directly jeopardizes the survival of endangered species and the overall health of our marine ecosystems.

Sign this petition to demand that NOAA and USFWS stand up for science, enforce the Magnuson-Stevens Act, and protect our sharks and ocean habitats before the damage becomes irreversible.