But the fishermen and the states will have to turn to Congress to seek financial help because Department of Commerce officials weren't persuaded.
"It's obvious the New England groundfish stocks are rebuilding," William Hogarth, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Fisheries Service, said in an afternoon conference call. "Fishing ports in these states are among the most productive."
New Hampshire recently indicated it would seek a disaster declaration but has not officially applied.
Frank Rose, co-owner of Rose's Marine Service in Gloucester, said government regulations are killing the industry. Just 5 percent of his repair shop's business comes from commercial fishing, compared to 100 percent 15 years ago, he said.
"They don't allow the fishermen to fish," he said. "The thing that's ripping our guts out is this needn't happen. It's a combination of bad science and poor decision-making."
Governor Deval Patrick argued that rules passed last year to protect vulnerable groundfish stocks sharply reduced the number of days at sea for fishermen, costing the industry $22 million in Massachusetts.
Ian Bowles, the state's environmental secretary, said he and Patrick are disappointed but pledged to "work with our congressional delegation to seek much needed relief for Massachusetts groundfishermen."
US Senators John Kerry and Edward Kennedy said a Senate-passed spending bill in Congress contains $15 million to help the fishermen. It's awaiting action in the House.
Federal fisheries officials cited increased fish stocks and some increases in fishing revenue. Only four of 18 groundfish stocks have not increased, they said. They acknowledged that groundfish revenue declined between 15 and 25 percent in Massachusetts and Maine from 2005 to 2006 but said that does not constitute a failure.
"There has to be a significant reduction," said Sam Rauch, deputy director of the Fisheries Service. "The majority of groundfish fishermen are making less money than they were before. We have taken that into account. That is not the same thing as to say the commercial fishery has failed."
Groundfish revenue in Rhode Island ports increased by 73 percent from 2005 to 2006, federal officials said, noting that there are far fewer Rhode Island groundfishermen compared with Massachusetts and Maine.
The system tries to protect fish by making it harder for fishermen to catch them. But after about 13 years under those rules, key species such as cod and flounder are still struggling. The New England fishing fleet has steadily shrunk; the number of boats fell from 990 to 773 between 1996 and 2004. And some fishermen are allowed to fish just 24 days a year.
The industry has benefited from disaster declarations in the past. President Clinton released $30 million in emergency funding to the Northeast fishing industry and affected communities in 1994 following the collapse of commercial fisheries.
