Fishery Council Stripped of Veto Power, But Catch Limit Remains

A council under the Fisheries Service was stripped of its veto power to avoid constitutional concerns, but the Fifth Circuit allowed a catch limit for Greater Amberjack promulgated by the agency to remain in place.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council’s unconstitutional veto power is severable from the Magnuson-Stevens Act, thus making them advisors not subject to the appointments clause, Judge Stephen A. Higginson said in a Friday opinion. Removing this power means the council didn’t take unconstitutional actions when it recommended the catch limit to the National Marine Fisheries Service, the US Court of Appeals for the ...