WASHINGTON, D.C. – South Carolina marine business leader and SCBFA Founding Chairman Chris Butler pressed Congress this week to include the people who know the waters best: boaters, anglers, and local residents in federal decision-making. He argued that these stakeholders see the real impacts every day, yet their voices are too often drowned out by distant bureaucrats and extremists.

The owner of Butler Marine in Beaufort, S.C., testified before the Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries during a hearing on “Hunting and Fishing Access in the Great American Outdoors,” emphasizing that states, local stakeholders, boaters, anglers, and small business owners should play a central role in marine conservation decisions.

In his opening statement, Butler explained that the recreational boating and fishing industry contributes more than $6.5 billion annually to South Carolina’s economy, along with more than 27,000 jobs across the state. Butler told the committee those numbers represent real people whose livelihoods depend on access to the water and sound management decisions. Butler also submitted written testimony for the record, which further details his views on public fishing access and federal management decisions.

Butler serves on the boards of Center for Sportfishing Policy and Marine Retailers Association of the Americas and is active on several local and statewide boards across South Carolina’s outdoor recreation and marine industries.

Butler shared his personal background as a lifelong sportsman and business owner, noting his experience fishing and hunting across more than two dozen states and internationally. He explained his perspective is shaped not only by policy discussions, but by decades spent on the water and operating a marine business that depends on responsible access to public resources.

“I’m here because I eat, sleep, and breathe fishing, boating, and hunting. All three of these outdoor activities are part of the culture for the Southeastern coast,” Butler said. “Decisions made in DC don’t only affect the ability for access for me, my family, and my friends. They also affects my livelihood.”

“Public access is not just a quality-of-life issue. It is the foundation of the conservation funding model in this country. When access declines, participation declines. When participation declines, conservation funding declines as well,” Butler wrote in his formal testimony. “When conservation funding declines, on-the-water and on-the-ground conservation and management decline.”

House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-AR-04) described Butler’s written testimony as profound, characterizing the link between conservation funding and declining participation as a “vicious cycle” that can cause lasting damage when the balance is disrupted, particularly given the excise taxes and funding mechanisms supported by sportsmen and women under the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation.

During his testimony, Butler addressed the federal management of red snapper off the South Carolina coast.  He emphasized that the boating and fishing community supported wise measures to limit fishing when stocks were actually struggling, but the current conditions point to a strong and growing population. In fact, it is the largest population of red snapper ever in recorded history.  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) removed the “overfished” label from the fishery in 2024. Butler urged the committee to encourage approval of the South Atlantic state’s Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) as written to improve data collection – and to allow states to play a larger role in the decision-making process with federal-waters resources.  

Butler emphasized the dangers of the extremely short red snapper season, noting that anglers often feel they have no choice but to fish in bad weather due to the season only lasting two days. He said longer seasons would allow anglers to pick the days that work best for them to engage with public fishery resources. With a longer season, better data over time with larger sample sizes will lead to better decision making.

In both his written and verbal testimony, Butler raised concerns about the scientific basis used to justify the 10-knot vessel speed restrictions advanced during the Biden Administration ostensibly to reduce North Atlantic right whale strikes. He noted there has been only one documented serious right whale strike off the South Carolina coast in the past 50 years, making such incidents exceedingly rare. Butler told lawmakers that a boater is statistically more likely to be struck by lightning than to strike a right whale in South Carolina waters.

Butler also emphasized that the marine industry has invested heavily in charting, monitoring, and other tools to support practical, science-based right whale conservation. He criticized the reliance and pressure from environmental activist groups rather than objective data and risk-based analysis, arguing that such approaches unnecessarily restrict public access to the water and impose significant burdens on boaters, anglers, and marine businesses.

“If you give me bad information, I can guarantee you a bad decision,” Butler emphasized. “If you give me the right information, I will get it right at least 50% of the time, maybe 75%.”

He concluded his testimony urging lawmakers to rely on better data and to include states, anglers, and boaters in the management process, emphasizing the value of local knowledge in shaping effective conservation policy.

“Who knows your backyard better than you?” He adding that South Carolina understands its coastline and fisheries in ways the federal government simply cannot when managing resources nationwide. Butler stressed that conservation decisions are strongest when informed by those who know the waters best: local anglers, boaters, and the state.

Butler’s testimony reflects SCBFA’s ongoing efforts to ensure public access, sound conservation policy, and a sustainable future for South Carolina’s boating and fishing communities.

To learn more about Butler Marine visit: www.butlermarineinc.com