The U.S. Senate has confirmed a new leader to head the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries division, the agency responsible for managing the nation’s marine fisheries and conserving protected ocean species. The Senate approved Timothy Petty as the new Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, the top position overseeing NOAA Fisheries, on Dec. 19, 2025. … Petty previously served as a senior staffer for the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Subcommittee on Water and Environment, and as Assistant Secretary for Water and Science at the Department of the Interior from 2018 to 2021. 

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