Salmon Assistance and Recovery Act of 2006
Key claim: The bill would have required the Commerce Department to run a recovery research program for Klamath River fall Chinook and Coho salmon and to send emergency disaster aid to fishing communities, tribes, and businesses hurt by the Chinook decline.
Abstract
(S2649 · 109th Congress) Salmon Assistance and Recovery Act of 2006 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to develop and implement a coordinated, comprehensive research and recovery program for Klamath River Fall Chinook salmon and Klamath River Fall Coho salmon. Provides emergency disaster assistance to fishing communities, Indian tribes, businesses, holders of community development quotas, individuals, and other entities to mitigate economic losses caused by declining Klamath River Fall Chinook salmon. Latest action (2006-04-25): Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Why this matters
The 2006 Klamath Chinook collapse triggered fishery closures along much of the West Coast and severe economic hardship for coastal fishing communities and tribes with treaty rights. This bill is an early example of Congress pairing species-recovery research funding with direct disaster aid for the fishing sector, a template that later fishery disaster statutes built on. Although it never advanced, it documents the federal response pattern for salmon-dependent economies when a run crashes.