I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2823

To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to support the International Dolphin Conservation Program in the eastern tropical Pacific

Ocean, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

DECEMBER 21, 1995

Mr. GILCHREST (for himself, Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Mr. RICHARDSON, Mr.

BOEHLERT, Mr. BILBRAY, Mr. GOSS, Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. PACKARD, Mr. CASTLE, Mr. LAZIO of New York, Mr. GILLMOR, Mr. KOLBE,

Mr. SHAYS, Mr. HUNTER, Mr. KLUG, Mr. HANSEN, Mr. POMBO, Mr.

CARDIN, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. COBLE, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. UPTON, Mr.

DAVIS, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. TORKILDSEN, Mr. FOLEY, and Mr. BLUTE)

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources

A BILL

To amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to

support the International Dolphin Conservation Program

in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, and for other

purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘International Dolphin Conservation Program Act’’.
2

•HR 2823 IH

1 (b) REFERENCES TO MARINE MAMMAL PROTECTION

2 ACT.—Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever

3 in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

4 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi5 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a

6 section or other provision of the Marine Mammal Protec7 tion Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.).

8 SEC. 2. PURPOSE AND FINDINGS.

9 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to give ef10 fect to the Declaration of Panama, signed October 4,

11 1995, by the Governments of Belize, Colombia, Costa

12 Rica, Ecuador, France, Honduras, Mexico, Panama,

13 Spain, the United States of America, Vanuatu, and Ven14 ezuela, including the establishment of the International

15 Dolphin Conservation Program, relating to the protection

16 of dolphins and other species, and the conservation and

17 management of tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean.

18 (b) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that twelve na19 tions, including the United States, agreed in the Declara20 tion of Panama to, among other things—

21 (1) require that the total annual dolphin mor22 tality in the purse seine fishery for yellowfin tuna in

23 the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean not exceed 5,000,

24 with the commitment and objective to progressively
3

•HR 2823 IH

1 reduce dolphin mortality to levels approaching zero

2 through the setting of annual limits;

3 (2) establish a per-stock per-year mortality

4 limit up to the year 2001 of between 0.2 percent and

5 0.1 percent of the minimum population estimate;

6 (3) starting with the year 2001, require that

7 the per-stock per-year mortality of dolphin not ex8 ceed 0.1 percent of the minimum population esti9 mate;

10 (4) require that in the event that the mortality

11 limits in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) are exceeded, all

12 sets on dolphins in the case of paragraph (1), or sets

13 on such stock and any mixed schools containing

14 members of such stock in the case of paragraph (2)

15 or (3), shall cease for that fishing year; in the case

16 of paragraph (2), to conduct a scientific review and

17 assessment in 1998 of progress toward the year

18 2000 objective and consider recommendations as ap19 propriate; and, in the case of paragraph (3), to con20 duct a scientific review and assessment regarding

21 that stock or those stocks and consider further rec22 ommendations;

23 (5) establish a per-vessel maximum annual dol24 phin mortality limit consistent with the established

25 per-year mortality caps; and
4

•HR 2823 IH

1 (6) provide a system of incentives to vessel cap2 tains to continue to reduce dolphin mortality, with

3 the goal of eliminating dolphin mortality.

4 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

5 Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1362) is amended by adding

6 at the end the following new paragraphs:

7 ‘‘(28) The term ‘International Dolphin Conservation

8 Program’ means the international program established by

9 the agreement signed in La Jolla, California, in June

10 1992, as formalized, modified, and enhanced in accord11 ance with the Declaration of Panama.

12 ‘‘(29) The term ‘Declaration of Panama’ means the

13 declaration signed in Panama City, Republic of Panama,

14 on October 4, 1995.’’.

15 SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE I.

16 (a) Section 101(a)(2) (16 U.S.C. 1371(a)(2)) is

17 amended—

18 (1) by inserting in the first sentence ‘‘, and au19 thorizations may be granted under title III with re20 spect to the yellowfin tuna fishery of the eastern

21 tropical Pacific Ocean, subject to regulations pre22 scribed under that title by the Secretary without re23 gard to section 103’’ before the period; and

24 (2) by striking the semicolon in the second sen25 tence and all that follows through ‘‘practicable’’.
5

•HR 2823 IH

1 (b) Section 101(a)(2)(B) (16 U.S.C. 1371(a)(2)(B))

2 is amended to read as follows:

3 ‘‘(B) In the case of yellowfin tuna har4 vested with purse seine nets in the eastern trop5 ical Pacific Ocean, and products therefrom, to

6 be exported to the United States, shall require

7 that the government of the exporting nation

8 provide documentary evidence that—

9 ‘‘(i) the tuna or products therefrom

10 were not banned from importation under

11 section 101(a)(2) before the effective date

12 of this section; or

13 ‘‘(ii) the tuna or products therefrom

14 were harvested after the effective date of

15 this section by vessels of a nation which

16 participates in the International Dolphin

17 Conservation Program, and such harvest18 ing nation is either a member of the Inter19 American Tropical Tuna Commission or

20 has initiated steps, in accordance with arti21 cle V, paragraph 3 of the Convention es22 tablishing the Inter-American Tropical

23 Tuna Commission, to become a member of

24 that organization,
6

•HR 2823 IH

1 except that the Secretary shall not accept such

2 documentary evidence as satisfactory proof for

3 purposes of this paragraph if—

4 ‘‘(I) the government of the harvesting

5 nation does not authorize the Inter-Amer6 ican Tropical Tuna Commission to release

7 sufficient information to the Secretary to

8 allow a determination of compliance with

9 the International Dolphin Conservation

10 Program; or

11 ‘‘(II) after taking into consideration

12 this information, findings of the Inter13 American Tropical Tuna Commission, and

14 any other relevant information, including

15 but not limited to information that a na16 tion is consistently failing to take enforce17 ment actions on violations which diminish

18 the effectiveness of the International Dol19 phin Conservation Program, the Secretary,

20 in consultation with the Secretary of State,

21 finds that the harvesting nation is not in

22 compliance with the International Dolphin

23 Conservation Program.’’.

24 (c) Section 101 (16 U.S.C. 1371) is amended by add25 ing at the end the following new subsection:
7

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(d) The provisions of this Act shall not apply to a

2 citizen of the United States when such citizen incidentally

3 takes any marine mammal during fishing operations out4 side the United States exclusive economic zone when em5 ployed on a foreign fishing vessel of a harvesting nation

6 which is in compliance with the International Dolphin

7 Conservation Program.’’.

8 (d) Section 104(h) is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘(h)(1) Consistent with the regulations prescribed

10 pursuant to section 103 of this title and to the require11 ments of section 101 of this title, the Secretary may issue

12 an annual permit to a United States vessel for the taking

13 of such marine mammals, together with regulations to

14 cover the use of any such annual permits.

15 ‘‘(2) Such annual permits for the incidental taking

16 of marine mammals in the course of commercial purse

17 seine fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pa18 cific Ocean shall be governed by section 304, subject to

19 the regulations issued pursuant to section 302.’’.

20 (e) Section 110 (16 U.S.C. 1380) is amended—

21 (1) by redesignating subsection (a)(1) as sub22 section (a); and

23 (2) by striking subsection (a)(2).
8

•HR 2823 IH

1 (f) Subsection (d)(1) of the Dolphin Protection

2 Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(d)(1)) is

3 amended to read as follows:

4 ‘‘(1) It is a violation of section 5 of the Federal

5 Trade Commission Act for any producer, importer,

6 exporter, distributor, or seller of any tuna product

7 that is exported from or offered for sale in the

8 United States to include on the label of that product

9 the term ‘Dolphin Safe’ or any other term or symbol

10 that falsely claims or suggests that the tuna con11 tained in the product was harvested using a method

12 of fishing that is not harmful to dolphins if the

13 product contains—

14 ‘‘(A) tuna harvested on the high seas by a

15 vessel engaged in driftnet fishing;

16 ‘‘(B) tuna harvested in the eastern tropical

17 Pacific Ocean by a vessel using purse seine nets

18 which do not meet the requirements of being

19 considered dolphin safe under paragraph (2); or

20 ‘‘(C) tuna harvested outside the eastern

21 tropical Pacific Ocean by a vessel using purse

22 seine nets which do not meet the requirements

23 for being considered dolphin safe under para24 graph (3).’’.
9

•HR 2823 IH

1 (g) Subsection (d)(2) of the Dolphin Protection

2 Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(d)(2)) is

3 amended to read as follows:

4 ‘‘(2) For purposes of paragraph (1)(B), a tuna

5 product that contains tuna harvested in the eastern

6 tropical Pacific Ocean by a vessel using purse seine

7 nets is dolphin safe if—

8 ‘‘(A) the vessel is of a type and size that

9 the Secretary has determined, consistent with

10 the International Dolphin Conservation Pro11 gram, is not capable of deploying its purse seine

12 nets on or to encircle dolphins; or

13 ‘‘(B)(i) the product is accompanied by a

14 written statement executed by the captain of

15 the vessel which harvested the tuna certifying

16 that no dolphins were killed during the sets in

17 which the tuna were caught; and

18 ‘‘(ii) the product is accompanied by a writ19 ten statement executed by—

20 ‘‘(I) the Secretary or the Secretary’s

21 designee;

22 ‘‘(II) a representative of the Inter23 American Tropical Tuna Commission; or

24 ‘‘(III) an authorized representative of

25 a participating nation whose national pro-
10

•HR 2823 IH

1 gram meets the requirements of the Inter2 national Dolphin Conservation Program,

3 which states that there was an observer ap4 proved by the International Dolphin Conserva5 tion Program on board the vessel during the en6 tire trip and documents that no dolphins were

7 killed during the sets in which the tuna in the

8 tuna product were caught; and

9 ‘‘(iii) the statements referred to in clauses

10 (i) and (ii) are endorsed in writing by each ex11 porter, importer, and processor of the product;

12 and

13 ‘‘(C) the written statements and endorse14 ments referred to in subparagraph (B) comply

15 with regulations promulgated by the Secretary

16 which would provide for the verification of tuna

17 products as dolphin safe.’’.

18 (h) Subsection (d) of the Dolphin Protection

19 Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(d)) is amend20 ed further by adding the following new paragraphs:

21 ‘‘(3) For purposes of paragraph (1)(C), tuna or

22 a tuna product that contains tuna harvested outside

23 the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean by a fishing vessel

24 using purse seine nets is dolphin safe if—
11

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(A) it is accompanied by a written state2 ment executed by the captain of the vessel cer3 tifying that no purse seine net was intentionally

4 deployed on or to encircle dolphins during the

5 particular voyage on which the tuna was har6 vested; or

7 ‘‘(B) in any fishing in which the Secretary

8 has determined that a regular and significant

9 association occurs between marine mammals

10 and tuna, it is accompanied by a written state11 ment executed by the captain of the vessel and

12 an observer, certifying that no purse seine net

13 was intentionally deployed on or to encircle ma14 rine mammals during the particular voyage on

15 which the tuna was harvested.

16 ‘‘(4) No tuna product may be labeled with any

17 reference to dolphins, porpoises, or marine mam18 mals, except as dolphin safe in accordance with this

19 subsection.’’.

20 (i) Subsection (f) of the Dolphin Protection

21 Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(f)) is amend22 ed to read as follows:

23 ‘‘(f) The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary

24 of the Treasury, shall issue regulations to implement this

25 section not later than three months after the effective date
12

•HR 2823 IH

1 of this section, including, but not limited to, regulations

2 addressing the use of weight calculation and well location,

3 and which require that tuna products are labeled in ac4 cordance with subsection (d).’’.

5 SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE III.

6 (a) The heading of title III is amended to read as

7 follows:

8 ‘‘TITLE III—INTERNATIONAL

9 DOLPHIN CONSERVATION

10 PROGRAM’’.

11 (b) Section 301 (16 U.S.C. 1411) is amended—

12 (1) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph (4)

13 and inserting in lieu thereof:

14 ‘‘(4) Nations harvesting yellowfin tuna in the

15 eastern tropical Pacific Ocean have demonstrated

16 their willingness to participate in appropriate multi17 lateral agreements to reduce, with the goal of elimi18 nating, dolphin mortality in that fishery. Recognition

19 of the International Dolphin Conservation Program

20 will assure that the existing trend of reduced dolphin

21 mortality continues; that individual stocks of dol22 phins are adequately protected; and that the goal of

23 eliminating all dolphin mortality continues to be a

24 priority.’’; and
13

•HR 2823 IH

1 (2) in subsection (b), by striking paragraphs

2 (2) and (3) and inserting in lieu thereof:

3 ‘‘(2) support the International Dolphin Con4 servation Program and efforts within the Program

5 to reduce, with the goal of eliminating, the mortality

6 referred to in paragraph (1);

7 ‘‘(3) ensure that the market of the United

8 States does not act as an incentive to the harvest of

9 tuna caught with driftnets or caught by purse seine

10 vessels in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean not op11 erating in compliance with the International Dolphin

12 Conservation Program;’’.

13 (c) Section 302 (16 U.S.C. 1412) is amended to read

14 as follows:

15 ‘‘SEC. 302. AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.

16 ‘‘(a) REGULATIONS.—(1) The Secretary shall issue

17 regulations to implement the International Dolphin Con18 servation Program.

19 ‘‘(2)(A) Not later than three months after the effec20 tive date of this section, the Secretary shall issue regula21 tions to authorize and govern the incidental taking of ma22 rine mammals in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, in23 cluding any species of marine mammal designated as de24 pleted under this Act but not listed as endangered or

25 threatened under the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C.
14

•HR 2823 IH

1 1531 et seq.), by vessels of the United States participating

2 in the International Dolphin Conservation Program.

3 ‘‘(B) Regulations issued under this section shall in4 clude provisions—

5 ‘‘(i) requiring observers on each vessel;

6 ‘‘(ii) requiring use of the backdown procedure

7 or other procedures equally or more effective in

8 avoiding mortality of marine mammals in fishing op9 erations;

10 ‘‘(iii) prohibiting intentional sets on stocks and

11 schools in accordance with the International Dolphin

12 Conservation Program;

13 ‘‘(iv) requiring the use of special equipment, in14 cluding, but not limited to, dolphin safety panels in

15 nets, operable rafts, speedboats with towing bridles,

16 floodlights in operable condition, and diving masks

17 and snorkels;

18 ‘‘(v) ensuring that the backdown procedure dur19 ing sets of purse seine net on marine mammals is

20 completed and rolling of the net to sack up has

21 begun no later than thirty minutes after sundown;

22 ‘‘(vi) banning the use of explosive devices in all

23 purse seine operations;

24 ‘‘(vii) establishing per vessel maximum annual

25 dolphin mortality limits, total dolphin mortality lim-
15

•HR 2823 IH

1 its and per-stock per-year mortality limits in accord2 ance with the International Dolphin Conservation

3 Program;

4 ‘‘(viii) preventing the making of intentional sets

5 on dolphins after reaching either the vessel maxi6 mum annual dolphin mortality limits, total dolphin

7 mortality limits, or per-stock per-year mortality lim8 its;

9 ‘‘(ix) preventing the fishing on dolphins by a

10 vessel without an assigned vessel dolphin mortality

11 limit;

12 ‘‘(x) allowing for the authorization and conduct

13 of experimental fishing operations, under such terms

14 and conditions as the Secretary may prescribe, for

15 the purpose of testing proposed improvements in

16 fishing techniques and equipment that may reduce

17 or eliminate dolphin mortality or do not require the

18 encirclement of dolphins in the course of commercial

19 yellowfin tuna fishing; and

20 ‘‘(xi) containing such other restrictions and re21 quirements as the Secretary determines are nec22 essary to implement the International Dolphin Con23 servation Program with respect to vessels of the

24 United States;
16

•HR 2823 IH

1 except that the Secretary may make such adjustments as

2 may be appropriate to provisions that pertain to fishing

3 gear and fishing practice requirements in order to carry

4 out the International Dolphin Conservation Program.

5 ‘‘(b) CONSULTATION.—In developing any regulation

6 under this section, the Secretary shall consult with the

7 Secretary of State, the Marine Mammal Commission and

8 the United States Commissioners to the Inter-American

9 Tropical Tuna Commission appointed under section 3 of

10 the Tuna Conventions Act of 1950 (16 U.S.C. 952).

11 ‘‘(c) EMERGENCY REGULATIONS.—(1) If the Sec12 retary determines, on the basis of the best scientific infor13 mation available (including that obtained under the Inter14 national Dolphin Conservation Program) that the inciden15 tal mortality and serious injury of marine mammals au16 thorized under this title is having, or is likely to have, a

17 significant adverse effect on a marine mammal stock or

18 species, the Secretary shall take actions as follows—

19 ‘‘(A) notify the Inter-American Tropical Tuna

20 Commission of his or her findings, along with rec21 ommendations to the Commission as to actions nec22 essary to reduce incidental mortality and serious in23 jury and mitigate such adverse impact; and
17

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(B) prescribe emergency regulations to reduce

2 incidental mortality and serious injury and mitigate

3 such adverse impact.

4 ‘‘(2) Prior to taking action under paragraph (1) (A)

5 or (B), the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of

6 State, the Marine Mammal Commission, and the United

7 States Commissioners to the Inter-American Tropical

8 Tuna Commission.

9 ‘‘(3) Emergency regulations prescribed under this

10 subsection—

11 ‘‘(A) shall be published in the Federal Register,

12 together with an explanation thereof;

13 ‘‘(B) shall remain in effect for the duration of

14 the applicable fishing year; and

15 ‘‘(C) may be terminated by the Secretary at an

16 earlier date by publication in the Federal Register of

17 a notice of termination, if the Secretary determines

18 that the reasons for the emergency action no longer

19 exist.

20 ‘‘(4) If the Secretary finds that the incidental mortal21 ity and serious injury of marine mammals in the yellowfin

22 tuna fishery in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean is con23 tinuing to have a significant adverse impact on a stock

24 or species, the Secretary may extend the emergency regu25 lations for such additional periods as may be necessary.
18

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(d) RESEARCH.—The Secretary shall, in coopera2 tion with the nations participating in the International

3 Dolphin Conservation Program and with the Inter-Amer4 ican Tropical Tuna Commission, undertake or support ap5 propriate scientific research to further the goals of the

6 International Dolphin Conservation Program, including,

7 but not limited to—

8 ‘‘(1) devising cost-effective fishing methods and

9 gear so as to reduce, with the goal of eliminating,

10 the incidental mortality and serious injury of marine

11 mammals in connection with commercial purse seine

12 fishing in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean;

13 ‘‘(2) developing cost-effective methods of fishing

14 for mature yellowfin tuna without setting nets on

15 dolphins or other marine mammals;

16 ‘‘(3) carrying out a scientific research program

17 as described in section 117 for those marine mam18 mal species and stocks taken in the purse seine fish19 ery for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific

20 Ocean, including species or stocks not within waters

21 under the jurisdiction of the United States; and

22 ‘‘(4) studying the effect of chase and encircle23 ment on the health and biology of dolphin and dol24 phin populations incidentally taken in the course of
19

•HR 2823 IH

1 purse seine fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern

2 tropical Pacific Ocean.

3 The Secretary shall include a description of the annual

4 results of research carried out under this subsection in the

5 report required under section 303.’’.

6 (d) Section 303 (16 U.S.C. 1413) is hereby repealed.

7 (e) Section 304 (16 U.S.C. 1414) is hereby redesig8 nated as section 303, and amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘SEC. 303. REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.

10 ‘‘Notwithstanding section 103(f), the Secretary shall

11 submit annual reports to the Congress which include—

12 ‘‘(1) results of research conducted pursuant to

13 section 302;

14 ‘‘(2) a description of the status and trends of

15 stocks of tuna;

16 ‘‘(3) a description of the efforts to assess,

17 avoid, reduce, and minimize the bycatch of juvenile

18 yellowfin tuna and bycatch of nontarget species;

19 ‘‘(4) a description of the activities of the Inter20 national Dolphin Conservation Program and of the

21 efforts of the United States in support of the Pro22 gram’s goals and objectives, including the protection

23 of dolphin populations in the eastern tropical Pacific

24 Ocean, and an assessment of the effectiveness of the

25 Program;
20

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(5) actions taken by the Secretary under sec2 tion 101(a)(2)(B)(iii) (I) and (II);

3 ‘‘(6) copies of any relevant resolutions and deci4 sions of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commis5 sion, and any regulations promulgated by the Sec6 retary under this title; and

7 ‘‘(7) any other information deemed relevant by

8 the Secretary.’’.

9 (f) Section 305 (16 U.S.C. 1415) is hereby repealed.

10 (g) Section 306 (16 U.S.C. 1416) is hereby redesig11 nated as section 304, and amended to read as follows:

12 ‘‘SEC. 304. PERMITS.

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Consistent with the regula14 tions issued pursuant to section 302, the Secretary shall

15 issue a permit to a vessel of the United States authorizing

16 participation in the International Dolphin Conservation

17 Program and may require a permit for the person actually

18 in charge of and controlling the fishing operation of the

19 vessel. The Secretary shall prescribe such procedures as

20 are necessary to carry out this subsection, including, but

21 not limited to, requiring the submission of—

22 ‘‘(A) the name and official number or other

23 identification of each fishing vessel for which a per24 mit is sought, together with the name and address

25 of the owner thereof; and
21

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(B) the tonnage, hold capacity, speed, process2 ing equipment, and type and quantity of gear, in3 cluding an inventory of special equipment required

4 under section 302, with respect to each vessel.

5 ‘‘(2) The Secretary is authorized to charge a fee for

6 granting an authorization and issuing a permit under this

7 section. The level of fees charged under this paragraph

8 may not exceed the administrative cost incurred in grant9 ing an authorization and issuing a permit. Fees collected

10 under this paragraph shall be available to the Under Sec11 retary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere for ex12 penses incurred in granting authorizations and issuing

13 permits under this section.

14 ‘‘(3) After the effective date of this section, no vessel

15 of the United States shall operate in the yellowfin tuna

16 fishery in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean without a

17 valid permit issued under this section.

18 ‘‘(b) PERMIT SANCTIONS.—(1) In any case in

19 which—

20 ‘‘(A) a vessel for which a permit has been is21 sued under this section has been used in the com22 mission of an act prohibited under section 305;

23 ‘‘(B) the owner or operator of any such vessel

24 or any other person who has applied for or been is-
22

•HR 2823 IH

1 sued a permit under this section has acted in viola2 tion of section 305; or

3 ‘‘(C) any civil penalty or criminal fine imposed

4 on a vessel, owner or operator of a vessel, or other

5 person who has applied for or been issued a permit

6 under this section has not been paid or is overdue,

7 the Secretary may—

8 ‘‘(i) revoke any permit with respect to such

9 vessel, with or without prejudice to the issuance

10 of subsequent permits;

11 ‘‘(ii) suspend such permit for a period of

12 time considered by the Secretary to be appro13 priate;

14 ‘‘(iii) deny such permit; or

15 ‘‘(iv) impose additional conditions or re16 strictions on any permit issued to, or applied

17 for by, any such vessel or person under this sec18 tion.

19 ‘‘(2) In imposing a sanction under this subsection,

20 the Secretary shall take into account—

21 ‘‘(A) the nature, circumstances, extent, and

22 gravity of the prohibited acts for which the sanction

23 is imposed; and
23

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(B) with respect to the violator, the degree of

2 culpability, any history of prior offenses, and other

3 such matters as justice requires.

4 ‘‘(3) Transfer of ownership of a vessel, by sale or oth5 erwise, shall not extinguish any permit sanction that is

6 in effect or is pending at the time of transfer of ownership.

7 Before executing the transfer of ownership of a vessel, by

8 sale or otherwise, the owner shall disclose in writing to

9 the prospective transferee the existence of any permit

10 sanction that will be in effect or pending with respect to

11 the vessel at the time of transfer.

12 ‘‘(4) In the case of any permit that is suspended for

13 the failure to pay a civil penalty or criminal fine, the Sec14 retary shall reinstate the permit upon payment of the pen15 alty or fine and interest thereon at the prevailing rate.

16 ‘‘(5) No sanctions shall be imposed under this section

17 unless there has been a prior opportunity for a hearing

18 on the facts underlying the violation for which the sanction

19 is imposed, either in conjunction with a civil penalty pro20 ceeding under this title or otherwise.’’.

21 (h) Section 307 (16 U.S.C. 1417) is hereby redesig22 nated as section 305, and amended—

23 (1) in subsection (a)—

24 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as

25 follows:
24

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘(1) for any person to sell, purchase, offer for

2 sale, transport, or ship, in the United States, any

3 tuna or tuna product unless the tuna or tuna prod4 uct is either dolphin safe or has been harvested in

5 compliance with the International Dolphin Conserva6 tion Program by a country that is a member of the

7 Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission or has

8 initiated steps, in accordance with Article V, para9 graph 3 of the Convention establishing the Inter10 American Tropical Tuna Commission, to become a

11 member of that organization;’’;

12 (B) by striking paragraphs (2) and insert13 ing in lieu thereof the following:

14 ‘‘(2) except as provided for in subsection

15 101(d), for any person or vessel subject to the juris16 diction of the United States intentionally to set a

17 purse seine net on or to encircle any marine mam18 mal in the course of tuna fishing operations in the

19 eastern tropical Pacific Ocean except in accordance

20 with this title and regulations issued under pursuant

21 to this title;’’; and

22 (C) by amending paragraph (3) to read as

23 follows:

24 ‘‘(3) for any person to import any yellowfin

25 tuna or yellowfin tuna product or any other fish or
25

•HR 2823 IH

1 fish product in violation of a ban on importation im2 posed under section 101(a)(2);’’;

3 (2) in subsection (b)(2), by inserting ‘‘(a)(5)

4 and’’ before ‘‘(a)(6)’’; and

5 (3) by deleting subsection (d).

6 (i) Section 308 (16 U.S.C. 1418) is redesignated as

7 section 306, and amended by striking ‘‘303’’ and inserting

8 in lieu thereof ‘‘302(d)’’.

9 (j) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of contents

10 in the first section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act

11 of 1972 is amended by striking the items relating to title

12 III and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

‘‘TITLE III—INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM

‘‘Sec. 301. Findings and policy.

‘‘Sec. 302. Authority of the Secretary.

‘‘Sec. 303. Reports by the Secretary.

‘‘Sec. 304. Permits.

‘‘Sec. 305. Prohibitions.

‘‘Sec. 306. Authorization of appropriations.’’.

13 SEC. 6. AMENDMENTS TO THE TUNA CONVENTIONS ACT.

14 (a) Section 3(c) of the Tuna Conventions Act (16

15 U.S.C. 952(c)) is amended to read as follows:

16 ‘‘(c) at least one shall be either the Director, or an

17 appropriate regional director, of the National Marine

18 Fisheries Service; and’’.

19 (b) Section 4 of the Tuna Conventions Act (16 U.S.C.

20 953) is amended to read as follows:
26

•HR 2823 IH

1 ‘‘SEC. 4. GENERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND SCIENTIFIC

2 ADVISORY SUBCOMMITTEE.

3 ‘‘The Secretary, in consultation with the United

4 States Commissioners, shall:

5 ‘‘(1) Appoint a General Advisory Committee

6 which shall be composed of not less than five nor

7 more than fifteen persons with balanced representa8 tion from the various groups participating in the

9 fisheries included under the conventions, and from

10 nongovernmental conservation organizations. The

11 General Advisory Committee shall be invited to have

12 representatives attend all nonexecutive meetings of

13 the United States sections and shall be given full op14 portunity to examine and to be heard on all pro15 posed programs of investigations, reports, rec16 ommendations, and regulations of the commission.

17 The General Advisory Committee may attend all

18 meetings of the international commissions to which

19 they are invited by such commissions.

20 ‘‘(2) Appoint a Scientific Advisory Subcommit21 tee which shall be composed of not less than five nor

22 more than fifteen qualified scientists with balanced

23 representation from the public and private sectors,

24 including nongovernmental conservation organiza25 tions. The Scientific Advisory Subcommittee shall

26 advise the General Advisory Committee and the
27

•HR 2823 IH

1 Commissioners on matters including the conserva2 tion of ecosystems; the sustainable uses of living ma3 rine resources related to the tuna fishery in the east4 ern Pacific Ocean; and the long-term conservation

5 and management of stocks of living marine resources

6 in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. In addition,

7 the Scientific Advisory Subcommittee shall, as re8 quested by the General Advisory Committee, the

9 United States Commissioners or the Secretary, per10 form functions and provide assistance required by

11 formal agreements entered into by the United States

12 for this fishery, including the International Dolphin

13 Conservation Program. These functions may include:

14 (A) the review of data from the Program, including

15 data received from the Inter-American Tropical

16 Tuna Commission; (B) recommendations on research

17 needs, including ecosystems, fishing practices, and

18 gear technology research, including the development

19 and use of selective, environmentally safe and cost20 effective fishing gear, and on the coordination and

21 facilitation of such research; (C) recommendations

22 concerning scientific reviews and assessments re23 quired under the Program and engaging, as appro24 priate, in such reviews and assessments; (D) consult25 ing with other experts as needed; and (E) rec-
28

•HR 2823 IH

1 ommending measures to assure the regular and

2 timely full exchange of data among the parties to

3 the Program and each nation’s National Scientific

4 Advisory Committee (or equivalent).

5 ‘‘(3) Establish procedures to provide for appro6 priate public participation and public meetings and

7 to provide for the confidentiality of confidential busi8 ness data. The Scientific Advisory Subcommittee

9 shall be invited to have representatives attend all

10 nonexecutive meetings of the United States sections

11 and the General Advisory Subcommittee and shall be

12 given full opportunity to examine and to be heard on

13 all proposed programs of scientific investigation, sci14 entific reports, and scientific recommendations of

15 the commission. Representatives of the Scientific

16 Advisory Subcommittee may attend meetings of the

17 Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission in ac18 cordance with the rules of such Commission.

19 ‘‘(4) Fix the terms of office of the members of

20 the General Advisory Committee and Scientific Advi21 sory Subcommittee, who shall receive no compensa22 tion for their services as such members.’’.

23 SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.

24 Sections 3 through 6 of this Act shall become effec25 tive upon certification by the Secretary of State to Con-
29

•HR 2823 IH

1 gress that a binding resolution of the Inter-American

2 Tropical Tuna Commission or other legally binding instru3 ment establishing the International Dolphin Conservation

4 Program has been adopted and is in effect.

Æ

HR 2823 IH——2

HR 2823 IH——3