Various federal statutes, including the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and Executive Order 12898 (Environmental Justice) among others, require agencies to examine the social and economic impacts of policies and regulations at the community level.

To meet these mandates, we have initiated a national effort to create and maintain a series of regional fishing community snapshots. These snapshots will portray past and current engagement in fisheries and also contain basic information on the social and economic characteristics of these communities. They will enable us to provide timely assessments of communities, engaged in or dependent on fishing, for management actions.