Fisheries Innovation Fund: Electronic Monitoring and Reporting Grant Program

The Fisheries Innovation Fund's Electronic Monitoring and Reporting Grant Program aims to enhance fisheries management through electronic technologies. Administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), this initiative will support U.S. fisheries in implementing electronic monitoring tools to improve data collection, accessibility, and management. The program is open to various fisheries, including commercial and recreational sectors, promoting sustainable practices and fostering stakeholder involvement for better fishery information systems.

Overview
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) will award grants that catalyze the voluntary implementation of electronic technologies (ET) for fisheries catch, effort, and/or compliance monitoring, and improvements to fishery information systems in U.S. fisheries.
The Electronic Monitoring and Reporting (EMR) Grant Program will advance the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) goals for productive and sustainable fisheries and safe sources of seafood by working to partner with fishermen and other stakeholders, state agencies, and Fishery Information Networks to incorporate technologies that modernize fisheries data collection and management. Specifically, the EMR Grant Program will solicit proposals that develop and implement promising ET that improves the timeliness and quality of fisheries data; expand access and availability of data; increase knowledge of fisheries for management, industry, and science purposes; improve regional data management systems and data interoperability; and empower fishermen and other citizens to become more actively involved in the data collection process. Examples of ET include any electronic tool used to support fisheries monitoring both onshore and at sea, including electronic reporting (e.g., e-logbooks, tablets, and other input devices), electronic monitoring (e.g., electronic cameras and gear sensors on-board fishing vessels), and vessel monitoring systems or electronic tools to improve data processing, management, or access.
The EMR Grant Program was created through a partnership with NOAA.
Geographic Focus
The Electronic Monitoring and Reporting Grant Program is a national program and will consider proposals from all U.S. state and federal fisheries, including commercial, recreational, or for-hire sectors. Fisheries operating outside the U.S. are ineligible for funding under this opportunity.
Fisheries nationwide are eligible to receive funding to support electronic monitoring and reporting efforts, including data management system modernization. NFWF encourages applications that continue to advance ET and data modernization from the Gulf reef fish fishery, the New England groundfish fishery, the West Coast groundfish fishery, the Alaska halibut and groundfish fisheries, and highly migratory species fisheries, that have all been engaging with these innovations for some time, but other fisheries exploring these topics are fully eligible and have a strong history of receiving funding.