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An archaic rule outlining citizenship requirements for commercial fishing vessel crews has both fishermen and Coast Guard officials scratching their heads. Confusion over the interpretation of the so-called 75/25 rule — part of the 1920 Jones Act — has made some green card holders concerned that they might be violating federal law if they continue to crew on fishing vessels. Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Benjamin Benson clarified yesterday the rule does not limit the number of green card holders who can crew on a fishing vessel. Instead, it requires that no more than 25 percent of unlicensed crew members may be “non-resident aliens holding H-2B visas,” Lt. Cmdr. Benson said.

He noted that captains of fishing vessels can only be U.S. citizens, not green card holders.

H-2B visas are granted to temporary non-agricultural workers with sponsoring employers. They are used in such industries as landscaping, seasonal construction, fisheries, retail and other industries, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Fishing advocacy groups, including the New Bedford Seafood Coalition, have signed a letter asking members of Congress to amend the 75/25 rule so that more foreign workers with H-2B visas can crew on vessels. Such workers are needed for skilled crew positions that are increasingly becoming harder to fill with U.S. workers, said Bonnie Spinazzola, executive director of the Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen’s Association.

Offshore vessels with larger crews can typically carry one foreign worker under the rule, Ms. Spinazzola said. Meanwhile, inshore vessels, which have two-man crews, cannot carry any foreign workers without going over the 25 percent limit, she said.

New Bedford boat owner Carlos Rafael said recent confusion over the rule made him question whether he could continue to staff his vessels with skilled Portuguese fishermen, who hold green cards and have been fishing on New Bedford vessels for decades.

“Everybody’s paranoid,” he said.

When notified of the clarification, Mr. Rafael accused Coast Guard enforcement agents of misinterpreting the rule and including green card holders as part of the 25 percent.

“They have been enforcing the rule wrong,” he said.

Lt. Cmdr. Benson admitted that the rule is “confusing” and “a bit of a challenge to interpret.”

He said he was not aware of any particular cases where Coast Guard enforcement agents misinterpreted the rule, but said they were “not infallible when reading a confusing regulation like this.”

Author: Becky W. Evans From: http://www.southcoasttoday.com

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