The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Fishery Disaster Grant

 

"Application Process Is Now Closed"

The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed in the United States in January 2020. The first COVID-19 case in Texas was reported on March 4, 2020 and the commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services declared a public health disaster in Texas on March 19, 2020. By the end of March, executive orders from the governor of Texas had closed in-house dining in all restaurants and effectively disrupted the seafood supply chain and commercial fisheries across the state. With the implementation of stay-at-home recommendations and closures of hotels, tourism along the Texas coast dropped which further impacted recreational fishing and the for-hire sector.

In response, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump on March 27, 2020. This economic relief package included $300 million that is being allocated to coastal states based on an allocation formula developed by NOAA Fisheries. The Act authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to aid commercial and charter fishery participants affected by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Texas has been allocated almost $9 million for eligible commercial sectors.

Fishery participants include Tribes, persons, fishing communities, aquaculture businesses not otherwise eligible for assistance under part 1416 of title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations for losses related to COVID-19, processors, or other fishery-related businesses, who meet the qualifying criteria.

To receive payment, the applicant must:

• be a resident of the state of Texas;or a non-resident who resides in a state that did not receive CARES Act funding (i.e. a non-coastal state),
• at least 18 years of age,
• show documented proof of a greater than 35% loss during the impact loss period (January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020) as compared to the prior five-year average revenue (2015-2019) over the same months. Applicants must have at least one year of historical landings or revenue within this five-year period in order to determine loss percentage.  For applicants who do not have landings or revenue for one or more years within the period from 2015-2019, the average will be calculated using only the years that do have landings or revenue.
• submit a completed application packet with all required information, a certification under penalty of perjury of a greater than 35% loss, IRS Forms W-9, and loss-determination paperwork (e.g. receipts, tax records, other funding paperwork, business logbooks, etc.) between February 1, 2021 and March 18, 2021. Applications received after the published due date will not be reviewed or considered.
• For the purposes of determining eligible participants, the license holders who actually hold the license that allows participants to act as recreational guides, wholesale dealers, or to participate in a limited-entry commercial fishery are eligible to apply.  Holders of licenses that allow workers to work onboard vessels are not eligible participants.
• Texas resident applicants who land product in states other than Texas and non-resident applicants who land product in Texas must not have been eligible for or received CARES Act funds from any other state programs.

The application deadline is March 18, 2021. You may submit your application online or through the mail.

Applications are also available in Vietnamese and Spanish upon request.

How to Apply

Be sure to have all required items ready and available for the application process

• Contact information
  
• Email address
  
• All applicable 2019-2020 fishing year license numbers
  
• Social security number or Employer ID tax number
  
• Vessel number(s) (commercial fishermen only)
  
• Check routing number (if direct deposit)
  
• Check account number (if direct deposit)
  
• Applicable revenue loss information.
• Use online application (Not Available after March 18, 2021) or
• download and fill out paper application

 

Contact for Each Application Type

For-Hire License Application: Zack Thomas; Work: 512-389-8448
Commercial Fishermen and Vessel Application: Cindy Bohannon; Work: 281-534-0117; Cell: 832-720-2102
Commercial Wholesale and Bait Dealer Application: Justin Esslinger; Work: 361-729-2328; Cell: 361-813-2835

 

For more information about how the CARES Act Fisheries Disaster fund is being used in Texas,
read the Texas Care Act Spend Plan. (Word Document)

 

 

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Mail completed paper application to:

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Coastal Fisheries Division
Attn: Zach Thomas
4200 Smith School Road
Austin, Texas 78744