From The Republic

AUSTIN, Texas — A proposal to crack down on the slaughter of sharks for their fins has stalled in the last stages of the Texas Legislature.

After encountering opposition on the floor of the Texas Senate Monday, Democratic Sen. Juan Hinojosa of McAllen withdrew his proposal. It had already cleared the House.

Asian restaurants in many parts of the world, including big cities in Texas, legally serve shark fin soup as a delicacy. The fins can command $700 a pound.

The bill sought to make a state crime of participating in the practice known as finning. Poachers slice off the fins and dump the carcasses in the water to avoid fishing limits.

Republican Sen. Troy Fraser of Horseshoe Bay said the bill would unfairly target only smugglers who work within the state.

 

NOAA’s  Shark Finning Report in 2011

From Stop Sharkfinning

“Not only is the finning of sharks barbaric, but their indiscriminate slaughter at an unsustainable rate is pushing many species to the brink of extinction. Since the 1970s the populations of several species have been decimated by over 95%. Due to the clandestine nature of finning, records are rarely kept of the numbers of sharks and species caught. Estimates are based on declared imports to shark fin markets such as Hong Kong and China.”