Even as the Legislature takes a pass, there’s a compelling case for more transparency in California fisheries.

Figuring out who owns the right to fish commercially on the Pacific Coast is typically easy: In fisheries managed by the states of Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington, as well as the federal government, all you have to do is ask. California is an outlier. Here, the names of individuals and companies that own the right to fish in state-managed fisheries are confidential.

I wrote a cover story on this issue for the Monterey County Weekly in 2016 when I was a staff writer for the paper. Through my investigation I found the wording of the confidentiality provision hadn’t been changed since 1933, even though at that time, there were no fishing rights to own.

Times have changed, but the law hasn’t. Now commercial fishing rights, or limited-entry permits as they’re known in the industry, are worth more than $100 million and bought and sold on an open market. Consumers – as well as fishermen – don’t have the right to know who owns what in state-managed fisheries.

A fisheries omnibus bill, Senate Bill 1309, has been passed by the State Senate and is now in the Assembly Appropriations Committee where it is expected to move forward. The bill would be the perfect opportunity to bring much-needed transparency to California’s working waterfronts. Here’s why it should be part of legislation next year.

When I was still working on fishing boats (and writing freelance) in 2014, California squid permits were the hottest thing on the market, going for well over $1 million each. The rumor on the docks was that a handful of seafood companies in Southern California were buying up permits to corner the market, creating a de facto cartel. If that was the case, it was a story I wanted. I first needed the facts, but then I learned the facts were confidential. (Also unlike most other Pacific Coast states, there are few rules against a single entity buying up multiple permits in California fisheries.)

Since that time I’ve spoken with the leaders of various industry organizations, seafood company executives and politicians. The most common response has been some version of, “Who cares?” The answer: Anyone interested in supporting independent fishermen should care.

Fishermen I’ve spoken to have told me they’d support making their ownership in fisheries public. It’s not about the individual names so much as knowing who’s buying and who’s selling. The answers can affect both the price of permits and the price of fish. State Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, is chair of the Natural Resources Committee. His office has been open to exploring the issue, but more feedback from the public is needed.

Commercial fishing is as much a business as anything else, with limited-entry permits are bought and sold on an open market for as high as seven-figures sums. Economics 101 tells us that markets only function properly when there’s competition – and for competition, transparency is needed.

NICK RAHAIM is a writer and former commercial fisherman based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He blogs at outside-in.org