Sportfishing Champions To Be Honored At Capitol Hill Reception Celebrating
National Fishing And Boating Week
by
Janet Tennyson
June 7, 2004—The
American Sportfishing Association will present its most prestigious honors
to two extraordinary sportfishing advocates at an evening reception on
Capitol Hill June 8, 2004, part of National Fishing and Boating Week
celebrations.
U.S.
Senator John Breaux (D-LA) will be honored with the Norville Prosser
Lifetime Achievement Award, and Tom Bedell, Chairman of Pure
Fishing, Inc. of Spirit Lake, Iowa, will receive the Future of Fishing Award. The
reception will take place at Senate Caucus Room 325 in the Russell Senate Office Building
from 5:30–7:30 p.m.
“The
sportfishing champions we give thanks to this year, Senator John Breaux and Tom
Bedell, have been catalysts for so many milestones that have positively influenced
the fishing experience across America,” said Mike Nussman, President and
CEO of the American Sportfishing Association.
The Norville
Prosser Lifetime Achievement Award, named after the American Sportfishing Association’s
former Vice President for Government Affairs, is given for extraordinary contributions
to fisheries conservation and the advancement of sportfishing in America. The
Future of Fishing Award pays tribute to those who design new approaches to expand
fishing participation. Both awards are given annually as part of the association’s
activities highlighting the social, economic, and conservation values of sportfishing
during the National Fishing and Boating Week observance, taking place nationwide
June 5-13 this year.
Senator Breaux, who will retire this fall after serving in Congress for 32 years, is
being recognized for his longstanding and steadfast support for fishing, and
for his leadership in mobilizing bipartisan support for important fisheries issues.
Senator Breaux co-sponsored the 1984 amendments to the Sport Fish Restoration Act, ultimately
putting more than 4 billion additional dollars into fishing and boating across
the country. The Sport Fish Restoration Act (commonly called Wallop-Breaux)
now pumps half a billion dollars in excise tax investments to states each year
for fisheries and habitat conservation, fishing and boating access programs,
and outdoor education and safety.
This year, through the reauthorization process for Wallop-Breaux, Senator Breaux continues
to shepherd fishing and boating interests by supporting legislative measures
that would recover $110 million per year in the Wallop-Breaux excise tax investments
that should be going to fishing and boating.
Because of his extensive knowledge and commitment to fisheries issues, Senator Breaux
has taken a lead role in virtually every major Congressional fisheries policy
over the last two decades, including the Striped Bass Conservation Act and
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management and Conservation Act.
Tom Bedell has a long track record of leadership in long-term initiatives that benefit
the whole sportfishing industry and the future of fishing. In addition to running
one of the largest fishing tackle companies in the world, Bedell has been extremely
active and valuable in the affairs of the American Sportfishing Association over
the years. He chaired the Freshwater Government Affairs Committee and invested
Pure Fishing’s expertise and staff to provide extensive support for the
association’s fishing education and conservation programs.
Bedell also was a founding and longstanding member of the Sport Fishing and Boating
Partnership Council, a group of diverse fishing and boating interests who
work together to advise the Secretary of the Interior. Over the
last decade, this group has greatly raised the profile of fishing issues
with government agencies and Congressional decision-makers, guiding important
policy decisions that affect everyone involved with these outdoor pastimes.
As a
strong advocate on the council, Bedell helped lead the creation of the Recreational
Boating and Fishing Foundation in 1998. The foundation was charged with
marshaling the industry, states, and partners in carrying out an unprecedented
mass marketing campaign to encourage more people to go fishing and boating. Bedell
was at the helm of this effort as Chairman of the Board, leading the launch
of what is now the Water Works Wonders Campaign.
The American Sportfishing Association is the sportfishing industry’s
trade association, uniting more than 600 members of the sportfishing
and boating industries with state fish and wildlife agencies, federal
land and water management agencies, conservation organizations, angler
advocacy groups, and outdoor journalists. The American Sportfishing
Association safeguards and promotes the enduring social, economic,
and conservation values of sportfishing.
