PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • March 20, 2026
A fifth-generation Vinalhaven lobsterman is petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a federal regulation requiring commercial lobster boats to be monitored by GPS trackers 24 hours a day. Frank Thompson is challenging a 2023 regulation that requires all federally licensed lobster vessels in the Northeast to install trackers that transmit the ship’s location to the government at least once per minute. Thompson argues the continuous, warrantless surveillance is a violation of his Fourth Amendment protection from unreasonable search and seizure. Fishing regulators say the data improves understanding of the lobster population and can inform future rules.