(JUNEAU) - House Joint Resolution 34, sponsored by Rep. Dan Ogg (R-Kodiak), passed the Senate today by a vote of 19 to 1.

The resolution, which originated with the Joint Legislative Salmon Industry Task Force, requests that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the United States Department of Labor make Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) and additional disaster and price-support benefits more readily available to Alaska salmon fishermen.

"I am pleased that this important piece of legislation has now successfully passed both the House and the Senate," Rep. Ogg said. "I will continue to work with the United Fishermen of Alaska and Sen. Lisa Murkowski to ensure Alaska's salmon fishermen get the assistance they deserve."

In recent years, Alaska salmon fishermen have seen dramatically reduced prices for their salmon catches due to imported salmon flooding the market. Many salmon fishermen could not fish at all in 2002 or 2003 because the processors who traditionally bought their catch made the decision not to buy salmon because of devastatingly low prices.

The USDA and the U.S. Department of Labor have TAA programs designed to help workers whose industries have been hurt by imports. As a result of efforts by Sen. Lisa Murkowski last year, Alaska salmon fishermen were made eligible for these TAA programs. However, the programs were designed primarily for agricultural workers. This resolution urges the federal government to make adjustments to the existing program to accommodate salmon fishermen and to ultimately create a separate program designed to better suit the unique qualities of the commercial fishing industry.

The resolution is now forwarded to Gov. Murkowski for his signature.

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