Goethel v. U.S. Department of Commerce

STAHL, Circuit Judge.

This case arrives on the court’s deck from regulations promulgated by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), which require that on certain commercial fishing trips, fishermen must be accompanied on their vessels by at-sea monitors to ensure compliance with catch quotas, and that the industry must foot the bill for these unwelcome guests. David Goethel, a New Hampshire fisherman joined in these proceedings by a group of commercial fishermen subject to this “industry funding” requirement, brought suit in federal district court in New Hampshire, claiming that the…