ABSTRACT
Disputes between the states and the federal government as to who should regulate resources and the industries that exploit them go back to the earliest days of our republic. 2 States have demanded and gotten substantial autonomy in the governance of many affairs within their boundaries. As a result, though aquaculture is now practiced in all fifty states, any one state’s attitude towards the industry depends on several factors and varies greatly from state to state. 3 Available resources, social and cultural traditions, state politics, the prevailing business climate, and the state’s economic well being all have an influence on aquaculture and its sponsorship within a particular state. The spectrum of state involvement runs from the creation of whole agencies and plans to promote and assist aquaculture, to a lack of recognition that aquaculture is practiced within that state’s boundaries.
