Operating expenses -$192.000. Operating expense reductions, totalling $192,000, in four commissions are non-recurred for FY 1984 in various of the following operating expenses categories: printing, equipment, travel, transportation of things, temporary employee salaries, pension updating, vessel operations, contractual services, tag rewards, and fish studies. Commissions affected are International Pacific Halibut Commission, $85,000; International Pacific Salmon Fisheries Commission, $10,000; Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission $63,000; and Great Lakes Fishery Commission, $34,000.

Wage increases. $578.000, Salary adjustments, and attendant benefit increases, are included for the following commissions: International Pacific
Halibut Commission, $13,000; International Pacific Salmon Fisheries Commission, $119,000; Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, $342,000;
International North Pacific Fisheries Commission, $10,000; Great Lakes Fishery Commission, $92,000; and North Pacific Fur Seal Commission, $2,000.
Price increases. $349.000. Price increases in the normal operating costs of the commissions for such items as travel, transportation of things,
communications, printing, contractual services, official fees, rent and utilities, supplies and materials, and equipment are included for:
International Pacific Halibut Commission, $7,000; International Pacific Salmon Fisheries Commission, $65,000; Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission, $70,000; International North Pacific Fisheries Commission, $9,000; Great Lakes Fishery Commission, $195,000; and North Pacific Fur Seal
Commission, $3,000.

The Convention signed in 1953 called for the expenses of the Commission to be divided equally between the United States and Canada. A protocol to the Halibut Convention (negotiated in early 1979 to meet conditions required by the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976) provided for the possibility of a revision in funding the expenses of the Commission from the current equal provision to an equitable division based on the availablity and catch of halibut within the 200-mile fishery conservation zones of the U.S. and Canada. A change could be based on recommendations of the Commission and a concurring vote of at least two of the Commissioners of each country (i.e.. four votes out of a total of six). A determination of a new funding arrangement is complicated by the fact that the United States and Canada have not yet fixed the boundary line between the two countries in areas where the 200-mile fishery conservation zones of each nation overlap.

These

The $703,000 requested for the Commission in FY 1984 represents a net reduction of $65,000 from funding requested in FY 1983. The request represents an increase of $20,000 over the base program cost in FY 1983 of $768,000 as follows: increases of $13,000 for salaries, sea bonuses, and social security; and $7,000 for price increases in travel, communication services, and other contractual services. increases are more than offset by reductions of $85,000 as follows: $12,000 in salaries of temporary employees. $22.000 in pension updating costs, $50,000 in the cost of vessel operations, and $1,000 in equipment costs.

The Convention between the United States and Canada for the protection, preservation and extension of the sockeye salmon fishery of the Fraser River sytem was signed on May 26, 1930 and ratified on July 28, 1937. The Convention was amended by the Sockeye Salmon Fishery Act of 1947 and by a protocol ratified July 3, 1957 which added the species of pink salmon to the coordinated program of conservation. Costs of all work performed by the Commission are borne equally by the two member governments. The duties of the Commission under terms of the Convention are: (1) to investigate the natural history of sockeye and pink salmon, including hatchery methods, spawning grounds and other related matters; (2) to conduct operations to improve fish stocks (collectively called fish cultural operations) including improvement of spawning grounds, construction and maintenance of hatcheries, rearing ponds and other such facilities, and the stocking of sockeye and pink salmon by such methods as it may determine to be most advisable; (3) to regulate the fishery by limiting or prohibiting the taking of sockeye and pink salmon with a view to allowing, as nearly as practicable, an equal portion of sockeye and pink salmon to be caught by the fishermen of each country; and (4) to submit an annual report to the two governments concerning investigations made and action taken.

The Commission has thus far completed construction of 17 fishways on various portions of the Fraser River, has increased releases (escapements) of sockeye upstream from an average of 630,000 (1938-45) to 1,158,000 (1946-81), has increased commercial catches in Convention Waters from an average of 900,000 to 2,400,000 (1914-1949) to an average of 3,300,000 (1950-81). Escapements of pink salmon upstream have increased from none in 1945 to 1,828,000 in 1981, with an average of 766,000 (1957-1981). The Commission's research facilities and staff play a continuing role in assessing treatment facilities which protect the salmon runs from potentially adverse effects of changes in environment in the river system. Fish cultural operations, conducted since 1949, have progressed to two spawning channels for pink salmon and four Spawning channels for sockeye. These spawning channels have been a successful means of increasing production with a high benefit-cost ratio and have produced a catch of 3.6 million pink salmon and 3.1 million sockeye since start of operations.