House Fisheries panel hears broad East Side support for bill to create Cook Inlet administrative area

The House Special Committee on Fisheries held a second hearing on Tuesday, April 7, 2026, on Senate Bill 158, a proposal to create a new administrative area in Cook Inlet that would allow the East Side set-net fishery to be managed separately, sponsor Sen. Jesse Bjorkman said.

The measure, Bjorkman told the committee, "simply draws lines on a map" to keep permits that fish in other parts of Cook Inlet from moving into the East Side, and would let CFEC manage those East Side permits distinctly from the West Side and Northern District. "It keeps permits that fish in other parts of Cook Inlet from moving into the East Side," Bjorkman said.

Why it matters: callers who identified as East Side permit holders told the committee the measure would protect multigenerational small businesses and local fishing communities from management decisions they say have targeted their gear type. Several witnesses said board-level actions and special meetings threaten set-net operations and that a separate administrative area would preserve local voice and management options.

Those who testified included multiple permit holders and long-term East Side residents. A commercial fisherman who spoke in support said he owns a small, family-run fishing business and that SB 158 would give local decision-makers "the tools they need" to manage a geographically unique fishery. Another witness described a 140-year-old local set-net tradition and urged the committee to pass the bill to preserve local options.

Dan Norman, a Kenai resident and small business owner, accused the Board of Fish of targeting set-net gear through special meetings and said the board's actions risked eliminating a gear type with deep community ties. "They're gonna carry out this meeting due to special interest from pretty powerful sport lobby groups and eliminate set nets," Norman said. The senator and other speakers framed those claims as testimony; the committee did not receive new board rulings at the hearing.

Sen. Bjorkman also disclosed on the record that he currently holds two Cook Inlet drift permits and said passage of the bill could, if anything, reduce his drift opportunities rather than enrich him.

Committee action and next steps: the committee set the bill aside at the conclusion of the hearing and did not set an amendment deadline during the meeting. Chair Stutes said she would email members with an amendment deadline after further interaction with the sponsor. No vote on the bill occurred during the session.

The committee adjourned at 10:30 a.m.