IUU Category Archives — Maritime Injury Law Blog Published by Alaska & Washington Maritime Injury Lawyers

As the federal government shutdown extends into its third week, legislation unrelated to funding disputes, such as H.R. 3756, a bipartisan bill designed to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing worldwide, remains stalled. Introduced in June 2025, this bill has been referred to multiple House committees and has yet to progress, as lawmakers continue to prioritize resolving the ongoing budget impasse.

IUU fishing is a major global problem, accounting for an estimated 20% of all seafood harvested annually. It costs legitimate fisheries between $10 billion and $23 billion each year and includes small-scale violations as well as organized criminal operations that falsify catch reports, bypass permits, and use fishing vessels for illicit activities.

The government shutdown, which began on October 1st, 2025, has furloughed roughly 900,000 federal employees, with another 700,000 working without pay. The U.S. Coast Guard continues operations under the Department of Homeland Security, but other agencies that support fisheries enforcement, such as NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement, are operating with limited capacity. Essential inspections and enforcement continue, but some investigative and international cooperation efforts may be delayed.

It is estimated that IUU (Illegal, unreported and unregulated) fishing vessels harvest more than $23.5 billion worth of seafood from the world’s oceans each year. That translates roughly into 26 million tons of seafood and reveals that one in every five wild-caught fish is harvested unlawfully. Over 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water, and much of that space is unregulated. This makes it difficult for countries to enforce maritime laws, robs law-abiding fishermen of their livelihood, and threatens the delicate balance of sustainable fishing. This is a growing issue, but many countries are coming together to combat these fishing practices by adopting international vessel identification standards.

Properly marking fishing vessels with consistent identification across all countries is an important step to keeping our oceans sustainable. Properly marked vessels allow for accurate identification, monitoring for compliance of applicable rules and regulations, authorized vessel registration, as well as promoting communication and safety at sea.

Fishing vessels should be marked such that they can easily be identified in accordance with international standards. When standardized vessel markings are used, a vessel can be properly identified all around the globe. Proper markings streamline and standardize the process of retrieving information and authorization of a given vessel. Appropriate fishing vessel identification that is linked to an international registry, is an appropriate step towards international management and conservation of our oceans.

Articles Posted in IUU

Fishing Bill Stalls Amid Government Shutdown

Marking and Identifying Fishing Vessels