Oregon Public Broadcasting

Thousands of fishermen from the West Coast and elsewhere rallied at the U.S. Capitol Wednesday. Commercial and sport fishermen and charter boat owners have united behind legislation to change catch limits.

Brookings, Oregon fisherman William Manning says they want more “flexibility” in the rules governing overfished species such as salmon and rockfish.William Manning: “Instead of having a hard number or a hard date that they have to reach, they want to allow them to say, ‘Okay, this fishery is improving. Its stocks have improved consistently. We're going to allow you to keep fishing it - or fish it more - as long as it stays on an upward trend.'”

The National Marine Fisheries Service released a statement in response to the rally. It sounded dubious about loosening catch restrictions.

A high level administrator said the federal fisheries act already contains the flexibility needed for rebuilding fish stocks.