Applications are due by Oct. 31 for more than $39 million in the second round of federal relief funds for those in Alaska’s fishing industry who incurred a greater than 35% income loss in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The state was involved in deciding the allocation of the federal aid between different fishing interests in Alaska.
The money is Alaska’s share of $255 million in grants being distributed nationwide to help the fishing industry recover from income losses suffered during the worst of the pandemic.
The first round’s checks, totaling $50 million in Alaska, went in the mail in late December to 2,534 qualified commercial harvesters, seafood processors, sportfishing charter and aquaculture applicants. The nationwide total in the first round was $300 million.
Guidelines for second-round eligibility for each sector are laid out in the state’s allocation plan, with applications again being handled by the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, in Portland, in coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The state’s spending plan assigns funds to each fishing sector based on the revenue allocation methodology used by NOAA Fisheries to distribute funds to Alaska, with some modifications, said Rachel Baker, deputy commissioner at Fish and Game.
NOAA Fisheries allocated funds to Alaska using available revenue information for the sport charter sector (5.5%), the commercial harvesting sector (35.2%), and the seafood processing sector, which includes processors, dealers, wholesalers and distributors (59.3%).
The allocation percentages were based on past revenues and not on the estimated scale of loss for each sector due to COVID-19’s impact on their business.
NOAA Fisheries did not include subsistence users in its aid distribution formula.
The Department of Fish and Game, however, adjusted the percentage allocations used by NOAA Fisheries to provide funding to the subsistence sector at 6% of the $39 million available in the second round.
The department also increased the sport charter allocation to 27% to help cover losses to that sector resulting from travel restrictions and health mandates which reduced demand for sport charter services. The state noted that between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2020, the department reported a 48% loss in sportfishing license revenue compared to 2019.
The commercial harvesting (35%) and seafood processing (32%) sector allocations are intended to help cover the losses to those sectors from weakened demand for commercial seafood products from Alaska.
Given the complexities of the application process for all but subsistence users, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game strongly suggests that applicants read the rules and work closely with their income tax preparer to avoid rejection for incomplete applications or errors.
The subsistence application itself is a much simpler form, the state said.
Applications and more information are available at relief.psmfc.org.
Only those who can certify losses of greater than 35% of their 2015-2019 average income in fisheries gross revenue between March 1 and Dec. 31, 2020, are eligible to apply.
Applicants who did not participate in an eligible fishery sector for all preceding five years are still eligible to apply if they participated in 2018 and 2019, but must use an average gross revenue for the same time period, March 1 through Dec. 31, for years available.
The Pacific States Commission will notify applicants who have not met eligibility criteria, have not provided adequate documentation, or have clerical errors in their application. Those applicants will have four weeks from the date of contact to correct any deficiencies and resubmit their applications. The second decision on each application will be considered final.
All applicants will be required to show their absolute loss in 2020, including any pandemic aid payments they received in 2020 which they are not required to pay back. The intent is that applicants do not receive funds from multiple sources which exceed their lost revenues.
All applicants must meet residency requirements to receive an Alaska Permanent Fund dividend check, and be eligible or possess a 2020 Alaska resident sportfishing license or be identified as an Alaska resident in 2020 by the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.
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