Why It Matters
The National Fisheries Institute Inc. (NFI) filed its second-quarter lobbying disclosure listing fisheries management, seafood traceability, tariffs, and H-2B visa processing among its issues. Key named measures include the Fighting Foreign Illegal Seafood Harvest (FISH) Act, targeting foreign illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing; the Marine Aquaculture Research for America Act of 2025 (MARA Act), which would create a new National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) aquaculture office; and the American Seafood Competitiveness Act of 2026, which would expand U.S. Department of Agriculture loan and grant access to commercial fishing businesses.
By the Numbers
The in-house report covers the second quarter of 2026 and discloses $200,000, unchanged from the first quarter of 2026. Holland & Knight LLP filed an amendment for the second quarter of 2026 disclosing $50,000, the same as its first-quarter 2026 amended figure of $50,000. The client's combined second-quarter 2026 total across two registrants was $250,000. A year earlier, in the second quarter of 2025, NFI's combined total across three registrants was $300,000. Miller Strategies LLC filed a termination in the fourth quarter of 2025 and has no filings in 2026.
Holland & Knight added lobbyist Chris DeLacy in the second quarter of 2026; Joel Roberson and Molly Broughton continue on that firm's filings. The in-house team lists Kedrin Simms Brachman, Vice President of Government Relations, with prior House staff experience; Robert DeHaan, Chief Counsel and Executive Vice President; Lisa Picard, President and CEO; and Morgan Bell, Director of Public Policy.
Broader Context
The MARA Act was introduced in both chambers. H.R. 5746, sponsored by Rep. Mike Ezell (R-MS-4), was referred to House committees in October 2025. S. 2586, sponsored by Sen. Roger F. Wicker (R-MS), was referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation in July 2025. Both remain at the introduced stage. S. 4236, the American Seafood Competitiveness Act of 2026, sponsored by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), was referred to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry on March 26, 2026, and also remains at the introduced stage.
Reps. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX-2) and Seth Magaziner (D-RI-2), along with Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK), introduced the bipartisan FISH Act, announced in press releases dated June 5 and 6, 2025. Picard was quoted in both press releases, saying the bill "targets bad actors where they are, rather than imposing more costs and regulatory burdens on American companies."
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in April 2025 directing the Commerce secretary to review seafood trade practices and supply-chain regulations. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed extending the Food Traceability Rule compliance date by 30 months to July 20, 2028, and Congress restricted FDA's use of appropriated funds to implement or enforce the rule. A Congressional Research Service report notes that the fiscal year 2026 H-2B rule exempted one general allocation for work beginning May 1 through Sept. 30 from the returning-worker requirement, a provision that applies to seafood-industry employers.
Competitive Landscape
The bill record lists five other organizations as lobbying H.R. 5746, the House MARA Act: Cambia Health Solutions Inc., Environmental Defense Action Fund Inc., Stronger America Through Seafood Inc., American Fisheries Society Inc., and Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute.
The Bottom Line
NFI's in-house spending was flat in every quarter from the first quarter of 2025 through the second quarter of 2026, and Miller Strategies' exit outweighed a Holland & Knight increase, lowering the client's combined total from a year earlier.
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