S. 906 

One Hundred Sixteenth Congress 

of the 

United States of America 

AT THE SECOND SESSION 

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Friday, 

the third day of January, two thousand and twenty 

An Act 

To improve the management of driftnet fishing. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 

the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Driftnet Modernization and 

Bycatch Reduction Act’’. 

SEC. 2. DEFINITION. 

Section 3(25) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 

and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802(25)) is amended by inserting 

‘‘, or with a mesh size of 14 inches or greater,’’ after ‘‘more’’. 

SEC. 3. FINDINGS AND POLICY. 

(a) FINDINGS.—Section 206(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1826(b)) is 

amended— 

(1) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

(2) in paragraph (7), by striking the period and inserting 

‘‘; and’’; and 

(3) by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(8) within the exclusive economic zone, large-scale driftnet 

fishing that deploys nets with large mesh sizes causes significant entanglement and mortality of living marine resources, 

including myriad protected species, despite limitations on the 

lengths of such nets.’’. 

(b) POLICY.—Section 206(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1826(c)) is 

amended— 

(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

(2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period and inserting 

‘‘; and’’; and 

(3) by adding at the end the following— 

‘‘(4) prioritize the phase out of large-scale driftnet fishing 

in the exclusive economic zone and promote the development 

and adoption of alternative fishing methods and gear types 

that minimize the incidental catch of living marine resources.’’. 

SEC. 4. TRANSITION PROGRAM. 

Section 206 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 

and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1826) is amended by adding at 

the end the following— 

‘‘(i) FISHING GEAR TRANSITION PROGRAM.— 
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‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—During the 5-year period beginning on 

the date of enactment of the Driftnet Modernization and 

Bycatch Reduction Act, the Secretary shall conduct a transition 

program to facilitate the phase-out of large-scale driftnet fishing 

and adoption of alternative fishing practices that minimize 

the incidental catch of living marine resources, and shall award 

grants to eligible permit holders who participate in the program. 

‘‘(2) PERMISSIBLE USES.—Any permit holder receiving a 

grant under paragraph (1) may use such funds only for the 

purpose of covering— 

‘‘(A) any fee originally associated with a permit authorizing participation in a large-scale driftnet fishery, if such 

permit is surrendered for permanent revocation, and such 

permit holder relinquishes any claim associated with the 

permit; 

‘‘(B) a forfeiture of fishing gear associated with a permit 

described in subparagraph (A); or 

‘‘(C) the purchase of alternative gear with minimal 

incidental catch of living marine resources, if the fishery 

participant is authorized to continue fishing using such 

alternative gears. 

‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall certify that, with 

respect to each participant in the program under this subsection, any permit authorizing participation in a large-scale 

driftnet fishery has been permanently revoked and that no 

new permits will be issued to authorize such fishing.’’. 

SEC. 5. EXCEPTION. 

Section 307(1)(M) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(1)(M)) is amended by 

inserting before the semicolon the following: ‘‘, unless such largescale driftnet fishing— 

‘‘(i) deploys, within the exclusive economic zone, 

a net with a total length of less than two and onehalf kilometers and a mesh size of 14 inches or greater; 

and 

‘‘(ii) is conducted within 5 years of the date of 

enactment of the Driftnet Modernization and Bycatch 

Reduction Act’’. 

SEC. 6. FEES. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—The North Pacific Fishery Management 

Council may recommend, and the Secretary of Commerce may 

approve, regulations necessary for the collection of fees from charter 

vessel operators who guide recreational anglers who harvest Pacific 

halibut in International Pacific Halibut Commission regulatory 

areas 2C and 3A as those terms are defined in part 300 of title 

50, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulations). 

(b) USE OF FEES.—Any fees collected under this section shall 

be available, without appropriation or fiscal year limitation, for 

the purposes of— 

(1) financing administrative costs of the Recreational Quota 

Entity program; 

(2) the purchase of halibut quota shares in International 

Pacific Halibut Commission regulatory areas 2C and 3A by 

the recreational quota entity authorized in part 679 of title 

50, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulations); 
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(3) halibut conservation and research; and 

(4) promotion of the halibut resource by the recreational 

quota entity authorized in part 679 of title 50, Code of Federal 

Regulations (or any successor regulations). 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.