- Division of Marine Fisheries
On October 7, 2021, payments were mailed to all qualified applicants for Massachusetts’ Round 2 CARES Act Fisheries Relief program, concluding this critical pandemic recovery program. This funding was allocated through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 to support activities previously authorized under Sec. 12005 of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also called the CARES Act, to states, Tribes, and territories with coastal and marine fishery participants who have been negatively affected by COVID-19.
For the Round 2 CARES Act Fisheries Relief program, DMF kept much of the same structure of the Round 1 CARES program, with modifications where allowable to streamline the application process and qualify new applicants.
DMF mailed Round 2 applications to all relevant permit holders on July 20, 2021 and set an application deadline of August 28. During the application process, DMF worked intensively with applicants to ensure that submitted applications were complete and correct, including holding four workshops along the Massachusetts coast, in coordination with the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association and the Cape Cod Commercial Fisherman’s Alliance, to assist with the application process. Following the completion of appeal review, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) mailed checks to qualified Massachusetts Round 2 CARES Act Fisheries Relief applicants.
Across the four program sectors (seafood processors/wholesale dealers, commercial fishing, aquaculture, and for-hire fishing), the number of Round 2 applicants decreased slightly compared to Round 1, but interest in the program remained high. Due to the requirement that applicants could not be made more than “whole” (i.e., exceed traditional revenue), some applicants were found to be ineligible based on their 2020 revenue and Round 1 CARES payment, while others received a partial share so they did not exceed their made “whole” amount.
On October 14, 2021, DMF was alerted by some Round 2 CARES Act relief recipients that their checks had bounced after deposit. This problem arose from an unexpected technical issue with ASMFC’s financial institution and was corrected on that same day. DMF quickly emailed CARES recipients when the issue arose to alert them of this complication and to ask that checks not be deposited at that time. On October 15, 2021, a follow-up email was sent to inform recipients that checks could be deposited without any issues and to ask anyone who needed checks to be re-issued to contact DMF. ASMFC has mailed new checks to all Round 2 CARES recipients who have contacted us about this issue.
DMF is also pursuing other seafood industry relief allocated through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. The U.S. Department of Agriculture Seafood Processors Pandemic Response and Safety (SPRS) Block Grant Program will reimburse eligible seafood processors for partial expenses incurred from January 27, 2020, to December 31, 2021, in the following categories: workplace safety measures, market pivots, retrofitting facilities, transportation, worker housing, and medical services.
Massachusetts was allocated $1,104,725 in funding for this program. DMF applied for the SPRS block grant program in November 2021 and expects to be notified of funding by January 2022. DMF will continue to perform outreach and inform potential beneficiaries of the program as more information becomes available.
By Maggie Nazarenus, Program Coordinator
