Learn about the Council

The Council held its first ever “Introduction to the Council Process” during the October 2019 Council meeting week in Homer, Alaska.

There were some new as well as familiar faces, and staff had the opportunity to briefly introduce themselves, describe what the Council does, what happens during the meetings, how to navigate them, and how to get involved.  Local participants Daniel Donich, Tom Evich, and Malcom Milne shared their experiences and insight on how to get involved, and former Council member Buck Laukitis had an opportunity to relay his experiences on the Council and how best to engage with the decision-makers.   Download the presentation here.

While the process itself can seem daunting, the Council is making efforts to be more accessible and provide overview documents that are more conversational in tone, like the handouts below.

Public comment from local fishermen and other stakeholders is a critical part of the Council process.  It is easy to provide comments on agenda items through our new electronic meeting platform, meetings.npfmc.org.  Written comments for every meeting, including committee meetings, are submitted and shared on that site.  In addition to written comments, there are numerous opportunities to comment in person during the meeting, and the above guides provide helpful information on how best to organize and provide comments.

Council meetings are live broadcast online so stakeholders can follow the discussion and be informed on an issue if they cannot attend a meeting.  Listening opportunities are listed on each agenda.

The Council is actively working on opportunities to involve and educate local stakeholders to ensure that the Council gets input from those affected by the decisions the Council makes, whether in their communities, their businesses, or in their families.  More information is available from the Council office – by calling 907-271-2809 or contacting the Deputy Director, Diana.Evans@noaa.gov.