"When making decisions, federal fishery managers are required to consider the importance of fishery resources to fishing communities. National Standard 8 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (as amended through 12 January 2007) specifies that such considerations utilize economic and social data based on the best scientific information available to provide for sustained participation, and to the extent practicable, minimize adverse economic impacts on fishing communities. Policy changes involving fishery harvest affect individuals and businesses directly involved in the fishing industry. These decisions also affect gas stations that supply fuel to fishing vessels, grocery stores that supply provisions to vessel crew members, health care providers who service communities in which crew families reside, and even teachers whose salaries depend partially on sales and property taxes generated by fishing activity. This paper describes a new model developed by the Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC) to estimate these effects and provide information about the effects of fishing on regional economies"--Introduction, paragraph 1.

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