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[106th Congress Public Law 557]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]

<DOC>
[DOCID: f:publ557.106]

[[Page 2771]]

                      SHARK FINNING PROHIBITION ACT

[[Page 114 STAT. 2772]]

Public Law 106-557
106th Congress

                                 An Act

 
To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to 
      eliminate the wasteful and unsportsmanlike practice of shark 
            finning. <<NOTE: Dec. 21, 2000 -  [H.R. 5461]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress <<NOTE: Shark Finning Prohibition 
Act.>>  assembled,

SECTION <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Shark Finning Prohibition Act''.

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to eliminate shark-finning by addressing 
the problem comprehensively at both the national and international 
levels.

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  3. PROHIBITION ON REMOVING SHARK FIN 
            AND DISCARDING SHARK CARCASS AT SEA.

    Section 307(1) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(1)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``or'' after the semicolon in subparagraph 
        (N);
            (2) by striking ``section 302( j)(7)(A).'' in subparagraph 
        (O) and inserting ``section 302( j)(7)(A); or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(P)(i) to remove any of the fins of a shark 
                (including the tail) and discard the carcass of the 
                shark at sea;
                    ``(ii) to have custody, control, or possession of 
                any such fin aboard a fishing vessel without the 
                corresponding carcass; or
                    ``(iii) to land any such fin without the 
                corresponding carcass.
        For purposes of subparagraph (P) there is a rebuttable 
        presumption that any shark fins landed from a fishing vessel or 
        found on board a fishing vessel were taken, held, or landed in 
        violation of subparagraph (P) if the total weight of shark fins 
        landed or found on board exceeds 5 percent of the total weight 
        of shark carcasses landed or found on board.''.

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  4. REGULATIONS.

    No <<NOTE: Deadline.>>  later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall promulgate 
regulations implementing the provisions of section 3076(1)(P) of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1857(1)(P)), as added by section 3 of this Act.

[[Page 114 STAT. 2773]]

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  5. INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS.

    The Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Secretary of State, 
shall--
            (1) initiate discussions as soon as possible for the purpose 
        of developing bilateral or multilateral agreements with other 
        nations for the prohibition on shark-finning;
            (2) initiate discussions as soon as possible with all 
        foreign governments which are engaged in, or which have persons 
        or companies engaged in shark-finning, for the purposes of--
                    (A) collecting information on the nature and extent 
                of shark-finning by such persons and the landing or 
                transshipment of shark fins through foreign ports; and
                    (B) entering into bilateral and multilateral 
                treaties with such countries to protect such species;
            (3) seek agreements calling for an international ban on 
        shark-finning and other fishing practices adversely affecting 
        these species through the United Nations, the Food and 
        Agriculture Organization's Committee on Fisheries, and 
        appropriate regional fishery management bodies;
            (4) initiate the amendment of any existing international 
        treaty for the protection and conservation of species of sharks 
        to which the United States is a party in order to make such 
        treaty consistent with the purposes and policies of this 
        section;
            (5) urge other governments involved in fishing for or 
        importation of shark or shark products to fulfill their 
        obligations to collect biological data, such as stock abundance 
        and by-catch levels, as well as trade data, on shark species as 
        called for in the 1995 Resolution on Cooperation with FAO with 
        Regard to study on the Status of Sharks and By-Catch of Shark 
        Species; and
            (6) urge other governments to prepare and submit their 
        respective National Plan of Action for the Conservation and 
        Management of Sharks to the 2001 session of the FAO Committee on 
        Fisheries, as set forth in the International Plan of Action for 
        the Conservation and Management of Sharks.

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  6. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

    The Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of 
State, shall provide to Congress, by not later than 1 year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and every year thereafter, a report 
which--
            (1) includes a list that identifies nations whose vessels 
        conduct shark-finning and details the extent of the 
        international trade in shark fins, including estimates of value 
        and information on harvesting of shark fins, and landings or 
        transshipment of shark fins through foreign ports;
            (2) describes the efforts taken to carry out this Act, and 
        evaluates the progress of those efforts;
            (3) sets forth a plan of action to adopt international 
        measures for the conservation of sharks; and
            (4) includes recommendations for measures to ensure that 
        United States actions are consistent with national, 
        international, and regional obligations relating to shark 
        populations, including those listed under the Convention on 
        International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and 
        Fauna.

[[Page 114 STAT. 2774]]

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  7. RESEARCH.

    The Secretary of Commerce, subject to the availability of 
appropriations authorized by section 10, shall establish a research 
program for Pacific and Atlantic sharks to engage in the following data 
collection and research:
            (1) The collection of data to support stock assessments of 
        shark populations subject to incidental or directed harvesting 
        by commercial vessels, giving priority to species according to 
        vulnerability of the species to fishing gear and fishing 
        mortality, and its population status.
            (2) Research to identify fishing gear and practices that 
        prevent or minimize incidental catch of sharks in commercial and 
        recreational fishing.
            (3) Research on fishing methods that will ensure maximum 
        likelihood of survival of captured sharks after release.
            (4) Research on methods for releasing sharks from fishing 
        gear that minimize risk of injury to fishing vessel operators 
        and crews.
            (5) Research on methods to maximize the utilization of, and 
        funding to develop the market for, sharks not taken in violation 
        of a fishing management plan approved under section 303 or 
        section 307(1)(P) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
        and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853, 1857(1)(P)).
            (6) Research on the nature and extent of the harvest of 
        sharks and shark fins by foreign fleets and the international 
        trade in shark fins and other shark products.

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  8. WESTERN PACIFIC LONGLINE FISHERIES 
            COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM.

    The National Marine Fisheries Service, in consultation with the 
Western Pacific Fisheries Management Council, shall initiate a 
cooperative research program with the commercial longlining industry to 
carry out activities consistent with this Act, including research 
described in section 7 of this Act. The service may initiate such shark 
cooperative research programs upon the request of any other fishery 
management council.

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  9. SHARK-FINNING DEFINED.

    In this Act, the term ``shark-finning'' means the taking of a shark, 
removing the fin or fins (whether or not including the tail) of a shark, 
and returning the remainder of the shark to the sea.

[[Page 114 STAT. 2775]]

SEC. <<NOTE: 16 USC 1822 note.>>  10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce 
for fiscal years 2001 through 2005 such sums as are necessary to carry 
out this Act.

    Approved December 21, 2000.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 5461:
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CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 146 (2000):
            Oct. 30, considered and passed House.
            Dec. 7, considered and passed Senate.
WEEKLY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS, Vol. 36 (2000):
            Dec. 26, Presidential statement.

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