Commercial fishermen are scratching their heads over the direction in which Erik Anderson, the president of the New Hampshire Commercial Fishermen’s Association (NHCFA), is taking their supposed organization.
There is not one commercial or sport fisherman that supports offshore wind (OSW) in the Gulf of Maine except Eric Anderson. The construction and operation of these monsters have affected marine life, from the largest endangered whale to the smallest crustaceans.
In a recent post, Mr. Anderson sent his members, he quotes, “It’s finally taking shape,” referring to the upcoming BOEM meetings and pending OSW in the Gulf of Maine. He has further gone on to tell people OSW is inevitable. The question is why he is not representing his members. He also referenced in the May newsletter that it’s too late to stop it, and the fishermen had their chance, blaming the fishermen. But the fishermen believed that was what Mr. Anderson was doing!
According to the NH state website on corporations, Mr. Anderson’s nonprofit, NHCFA, has been defunct since 2005. It is also not on the NH Attorney General’s list of current standing Nonprofits.
There are hundreds of members paying Mr. Anderson $50 a year for a defunct organization with no board of directors, minutes, or Internet presence—just a monthly email.
In his email newsletter in May, he claimed he has no board of directors and over $5k in an account a secretary, not named, manages.
Mr Anderson first published in his newsletter in May that the NHCFA was not a corporation or a 501c! This was new news to all his “members” since all prior newsletters did not have this disclaimer.
Mr. Anderson also unilaterally decided to back Republican governor candidate Kelly Ayotte in March 2024. Her website proudly boasts the backing of the defunct NHCFA organization!
Is it strange that a former attorney general does not check her campaign sources?
We tried repeatedly to find out if Ms. Ayotte would oppose OSW and received no replies.
There is unsubstantiated talk that Mr. Anderson was instrumental in getting Port Authority Director Gino Marconi placed on suspension but went out of his way to publish in his May newsletter that he was not involved. Perhaps Mr. Marconi doesn’t like OSW either.
Good or bad intentions, fraud is illegal. Were these fishermen who have been paying dues to an individual, some for nearly 20 years, duped into believing it’s a registered non-profit? They are owed answers.
