Fishing Industry Safety, Health, and Wellness Improvement Act of 2025

This legislation significantly enhances federal fishing safety training and research grant programs by expanding their scope to address critical health and wellness issues within the commercial fishing industry. It specifically mandates that safety training grants now cover behavioral and physical health risks , including substance use disorder and worker fatigue , for vessel operators and crewmembers. Similarly, the bill directs fishing safety research grants to focus on understanding and mitigating these same behavioral and physical health challenges facing commercial fishers. To support these expanded efforts, the legislation substantially increases annual funding for both grant programs from $3 million to $6 million for each of fiscal years 2025 through 2029. These funds will now be directed to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, while grant criteria will continue to be developed in consultation with the Commandant of the Coast Guard.