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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9821 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9821

               To improve the management of forage fish.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 25, 2024

Mrs. Dingell (for herself and Mr. Mast) introduced the following bill; 
        which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
               To improve the management of forage fish.

    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 ``Forage Fish Conservation Act of 
2024''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Section 2(a) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801(a)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
            ``(14) Forage fish are generally small to intermediate-
        sized species, occurring in schools or dense aggregations, and 
        function as a main pathway for energy to flow from phyto- and 
        zooplankton to higher trophic level predators, including tuna, 
        Alaska pollock, and other wildlife, in marine ecosystems. While 
        most species function as prey of others at some life stage, 
        especially when small and young, forage fish maintain this 
        important trophic role throughout their life. Further, 
        fluctuations in their populations can result in significant 
        changes in marine communities and ecosystems. Therefore, 
        particular attention to management of forage fish species, and 
        addressing their unique role in marine ecosystems, is critical 
        to maintaining ecosystem function and sustainable fisheries.''.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) Secretary To Define Forage Fish.--Section 305 of the Magnuson-
Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1855) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(l) Forage Fish.--Not later than 12 months after the date of the 
enactment of the Forage Fish Conservation Act of 2024, the Secretary, 
with advice from the Councils, shall issue a definition of the term 
`forage fish' for the purposes of this Act, giving due consideration to 
definitions of `forage fish' included in approved fishery management 
plans. In defining such term, the Secretary shall consider factors 
including whether a species covered by such definition, throughout the 
lifecycle of such species--
            ``(1) is at a low trophic level;
            ``(2) is generally small- to intermediate-sized;
            ``(3) occurs in schools or other dense aggregations;
            ``(4) contributes significantly to the diets of other fish, 
        marine mammals, or birds; and
            ``(5) serves as a conduit for energy transfer to species at 
        a higher trophic level.''.
    (b) Definitions.--Section 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating the second paragraph (33) as paragraph 
        (53);
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (28) through (50) as 
        paragraphs (30) through (52), respectively;
            (3) by redesignating paragraphs (19) through (27) as 
        paragraphs (20) through (28), respectively;
            (4) by inserting after paragraph (18) the following:
            ``(19) The term `forage fish'--
                    ``(A) has the meaning given the term by the 
                Secretary under section 305(l); and
                    ``(B) with respect to a species in a fishery 
                managed pursuant to a fishery management plan or plan 
                amendment that is approved by the Secretary, in 
                coordination with the Councils, under section 304(a), 
                means any species identified in such plan as a forage 
                fish.''; and
            (5) by inserting after paragraph (28), as so redesignated 
        by paragraph (3) of this section, the following:
            ``(29) The term `low trophic level' means a position in the 
        marine food web in which the fish generally consume 
        plankton.''.

SEC. 4. SCIENTIFIC ADVICE.

    Section 302(g)(1)(B) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(g)(1)(B)) is amended to read as 
follows:
            ``(B) Each scientific and statistical committee shall 
        provide its Council ongoing scientific advice for fishery 
        management decisions, including recommendations for--
                    ``(i) acceptable biological catch;
                    ``(ii) preventing overfishing;
                    ``(iii) maximum sustainable yield;
                    ``(iv) achieving rebuilding targets;
                    ``(v) maintaining a sufficient abundance, 
                diversity, and localized distribution of forage fish 
                populations to support their role in marine ecosystems; 
                and
                    ``(vi) reports on stock status and health, bycatch, 
                habitat status, social and economic impacts of 
                management measures, and sustainability of fishing 
                practices.''.

SEC. 5. COUNCIL FUNCTIONS.

    (a) Research Priorities.--Section 302(h)(7) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(h)(7)) is 
amended, in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting 
``forage fish populations and distribution,'' after ``habitats,''.
    (b) Unmanaged Forage Fish.--Section 302(h) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(h)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (8), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (9) as paragraph (10); and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (8) the following:
            ``(9) develop a list of unmanaged forage fish occurring in 
        the area under its authority and recommend within fishery 
        management plans the prohibition of the development of any new 
        directed forage fish fishery until the Council has--
                    ``(A) considered the best scientific information 
                available and evaluated the potential impacts of forage 
                fish harvest on existing fisheries, fishing 
                communities, and the marine ecosystem;
                    ``(B) determined whether conservation and 
                management of the forage fish fishery is needed;
                    ``(C) if a determination is made that conservation 
                and management is needed, prepared and submitted to the 
                Secretary a fishery management plan or amendment 
                consistent with section 303; and
                    ``(D) received final, approved regulations from the 
                Secretary pursuant to section 304(b)(3); and''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) 
shall take effect 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 6. CONTENTS OF FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLANS.

    (a) Forage Fish Management.--Section 303(a) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853(a)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (14), by striking ``and;'' and inserting a 
        semicolon;
            (2) in paragraph (15), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(16) when setting annual catch limits for forage fish 
        fisheries, assess and specify such limits by the diet needs of 
        fish species and other marine wildlife, such as marine mammals 
        and birds, for which forage fish is a significant part of their 
        diet.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 7. ACTION BY SECRETARY OF COMMERCE.

    Section 304 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1854) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating the second subsection (i) as 
        subsection (j); and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(k) Forage Fish Management Guidelines.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date 
        of the enactment of the Forage Fish Conservation Act of 2024, 
        the Secretary, in coordination with the Councils, shall 
        establish by regulation guidelines to assist the Councils in 
        implementing sections 3(19), 302(h)(9), and 303(a)(16).
            ``(2) Workshops.--In developing the guidelines under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary shall conduct workshops with 
        Councils and other scientific, fisheries, and conservation 
        interests.''.

SEC. 8. RIVER HERRING AND SHAD.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) River herring.--The term ``river herring'' means 
        blueback herring (Alosa aestivalis) and alewife (Alosa 
        pseudoharengus).
            (2) Shad.--The term ``shad'' means American shad (Alosa 
        sapidissima) and hickory shad (Alosa mediocris).
    (b) Amendments of Plans.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall--
            (1) amend the fishery management plans for the Atlantic 
        Herring and Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish fisheries 
        for the New England and Mid-Atlantic Regions to add shad and 
        river herring as managed stocks in such plans consistent with 
        section 302(h)(1) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
        and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(h)(1));
            (2) initiate additional fishery management plan amendments 
        to be completed in not more than 1 year from the date of the 
        addition of the species identified in paragraph (1) in order to 
        develop and implement all required conservation and management 
        measures for such stocks consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens 
        Fisheries Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et 
        seq.) and all other applicable law; and
            (3) notwithstanding any other law, rule, or fishery 
        management plan provision, including conservation and 
        management measures under section 303(a)(11) of the Magnuson-
        Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
        1853(a)(11)), reallocate existing resources to provide, for not 
        less than 50 percent of all relevant fishing trips, not fewer 
        than 1 at-sea observer or an on-board electronic or video means 
        of producing equivalent at-sea monitoring information, for any 
        vessel using mid-water trawl or paired mid-water trawl fishing 
        gear in the Atlantic herring and Atlantic mackerel fisheries.

SEC. 9. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act may be construed as--
            (1) extending or diminishing the jurisdiction or authority 
        of any State within its boundaries; or
            (2) affecting--
                    (A) section 306 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
                Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1856); or
                    (B) the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative 
                Management Act (16 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.).
                                 <all>
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