Every time the White House ushers in a new four-year resident, the Cabinet level positions of federal government also change. As of February, at least one saltwater angler from Long Island has taken a seats at the head of the table in roles with major impacts on saltwater fishing at our state and local level, with a second waiting in the proverbial wings.
On January 29, former Long Island congressman Lee Zeldin was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). President Donald Trump’s appointee to the agency responsible for surveying environmental issues and providing assistance to wide-ranging environmental projects in the United States was confirmed by a 56-42 vote.
Zeldin previously served as a congressman from New York’s 1st Congressional District along the eastern tip of Long Island from 2015 to 2023, before stepping down to make a close but unsuccessful run to be New York’s governor. Zeldin was also a member of the New York Senate from 2011-2014 where one of his hallmark legislative successes was working with then Governor Andrew Cuomo on the repeal of a fee to fish in marine waters.
“The elimination of the saltwater fishing license fee was one of many important priorities for me since taking office in 2011,” Zeldin said at the time. A longtime saltwater angler, the newest EPA administrator once called saltwater fishing “one of the many great treasures of Long Island.”
Also awaiting official senate confirmation as Secretary of Commerce is Howard Lutnick, another Long Island native who would head up the Department of Commerce which oversees NOAA Fisheries and ultimately the management of our coastal fish stocks.
During his confirmation hearing in front of members of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, the Trump appointee was asked by Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan if he would pledge to focus on the needs of coastal fishing communities as the Commerce Secretary. “Well, I love to fish, and I’m happy to commit to you,” replied Lutnick, adding “The fishermen of the United States of America are one of our great assets. It’s easy for me to promise to take care of them.”
At the onset of the hearing, Lutnick was asked if he agreed with a Project 2025 proposal to break up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), absorbing that agency into other departments while privatizing the National Weather Service. “No,” Lutnick said, telling Washington Senator Maria Cantwell that he did not support breaking up NOAA or moving that agency out of the Department of Commerce. “I have no interest in separating it,” Lutnick told the senator, adding “That is not on my agenda.”
In one particular exchange during the hearing, Sen. Sullivan asked Lutnick about the unfair fish exporting practices by Russia and China that also restrict the import of commercially harvested “freedom fish” from the United States. “We’ve got to get rid of those communist fish,” Lutnick replied with a laugh.
