We’re not trying to shut it down — we’re trying to shift it offshore.

It’s not anti-business to say the most valuable fish in the Bay shouldn’t be pumped out. Omega Protein can thrive without treating the Chesapeake Bay as a sacrifice zone. We need this bill until we can push Cooke / Omega fisheries out of the Chesapeake Bay. We are the only state on the East coast that lets them in state waters. They use spotter planes and huge nets that don’t give the fish a fighting chance. I’ve lived on the Bay majority of my life. Used to catch rockfish off my dock every night and now can’t catch one. They used to fill the bay. This over fishing has taken a beating on the rockfish, Cobia, osprey etc that need this fish to survive. I don’t think it’s asking too to halt their operation until scientific data can be reached and eventually get them out the bay. If the workers are paid on how many pounds of menhaden they bring in sounds like that is a companies problem and maybe they need to be paid hourly or a salary. I would like my son and his friends to be able to enjoy the bay like I did but we are going in the opposite direction and tiring a blind eye. Thank you for your time and hope you all do the right thing.