I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8705 

To require the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to reform the Marine Recreational Information Program 

of the National Marine Fisheries Service, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 12, 2024 

Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To require the Administrator of the National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration to reform the Marine Recreational Information Program of the National Marine 

Fisheries Service, 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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fisheries Data Mod5 ernization and Accuracy Act of 2024’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 


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1 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis2 trator’’ means the Administrator of the National 

3 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, acting 

4 through the Director of the National Marine Fish5 eries Service. 

6 (2) FISHERY.—The term ‘‘fishery’’ has the 

7 meaning given the term in section 3 of the Magnu8 son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 

9 Act (16 U.S.C. 1802). 

10 (3) INDEPENDENT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘inde11 pendent entity’’— 

12 (A) means an entity that— 

13 (i) is not a unit of the National Oce14 anic and Atmospheric Administration; and 

15 (ii) has expertise in areas of science 

16 related to fishery stock assessments; and 

17 (B) includes— 

18 (i) the National Academies of 

19 Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; and 

20 (ii) an institution of higher education 

21 (as such term is defined in section 101 of 

22 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

23 U.S.C. 1001)). 


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1 (4) MRIP.—The term ‘‘MRIP’’ means the Ma2 rine Recreational Information Program of the Na3 tional Marine Fisheries Service. 

4 (5) NATIONAL ACADEMIES.—The term ‘‘Na5 tional Academies’’ means the National Academies of 

6 Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 

7 (6) PSE.—The term ‘‘PSE’’ means the percent 

8 standard error. 

9 (7) PULSE SPECIES.—The term ‘‘pulse species’’ 

10 means a species that, due to regulatory constraints 

11 or the movement or availability of the species on a 

12 seasonal basis— 

13 (A) is caught— 

14 (i) on an intermittent or infrequent 

15 basis; or 

16 (ii) only during an abbreviated time17 frame; and 

18 (B) is likely not sampled in a representa19 tive manner by data collected through the 

20 MRIP. 

21 (8) REGIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUN22 CIL.—The term ‘‘Regional Fishery Management 

23 Council’’ means a Regional Fishery Management 

24 Council established under section 302 of the MagnuVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:39 Jul 30, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8705.IH H8705

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1 son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 

2 Act (16 U.S.C. 1852). 

3 (9) REGIONAL STATE FISHERIES COMMIS4 SION.—The term ‘‘regional State fisheries commis5 sion’’ means each of— 

6 (A) the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries 

7 Commission; 

8 (B) the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Com9 mission; and 

10 (C) the Pacific States Marine Fisheries 

11 Commission. 

12 (10) SCIENTIFIC AND STATISTICAL COM13 MITTEE.—The term ‘‘scientific and statistical com14 mittee’’ means a scientific and statistical committee 

15 established pursuant to section 302(g) of the Mag16 nuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage17 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(g)). 

18 (11) SEASONAL FISHERY.—The term ‘‘seasonal 

19 fishery’’ means a fishery— 

20 (A) that is subject to an annual closed sea21 son; or 

22 (B) that may be affected by in- or post23 season accountability measures that result in 

24 fishing or harvest closures. 


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1 (12) STANDING COMMITTEE.—The term 

2 ‘‘standing committee’’ means the standing com3 mittee established pursuant to section 2(b)(1). 

4 (13) STOCK OF FISH.—The term ‘‘stock of 

5 fish’’ has the meaning given the term in section 3 

6 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

7 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802). 

8 (14) WAVE.—The term ‘‘wave’’ means the 

9 shortest period in which MRIP data are aggregated 

10 and reported for use in management decisions. 

11 SEC. 3. RECREATIONAL FISHING DATA COLLECTION RE12 FORM. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall reform 

14 the MRIP in effect as of the date of the enactment of 

15 this section to meet the unique needs of individual regions 

16 and States, taking into consideration the needs of State17 level programs related to recreational fishing catch and 

18 effort surveys in effect as of the date of the enactment 

19 of this section to ensure that such reform does not unnec20 essarily dilute the effectiveness of such programs. 

21 (b) NATIONAL ACADEMIES.— 

22 (1) STANDING COMMITTEE.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

24 shall enter into an agreement with the National 

25 Academies to establish a standing committee 


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1 within the National Academies that shall meet 

2 regularly to discuss issues related to rec3 reational fisheries data collection and manage4 ment. 

5 (B) INDEPENDENCE.—In carrying out this 

6 subsection, the standing committee shall oper7 ate independently and without the influence of 

8 the Administrator. 

9 (C) COMPOSITION.—The standing com10 mittee shall include individuals who are experts 

11 in recreational fisheries data collection and 

12 management, including representatives from 

13 State fish and wildlife agencies. 

14 (2) CONSULTATION REGARDING PSE.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the PSE for data 

16 collected through the MRIP for a given sea17 sonal fishery reaches or exceeds 30 percent in 

18 a given wave, or if a State submits a petition 

19 with respect to a given seasonal fishery under 

20 paragraph (4), the Administrator shall consult 

21 with the standing committee regarding op22 tions— 

23 (i) to reduce the PSE of such sea24 sonal fishery; or 


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1 (ii) if reducing the PSE is not prac2 ticable, to adjust the management of such 

3 seasonal fishery, including by using the 

4 management approaches described in sec5 tion 302(h)(8) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

6 Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

7 (16 U.S.C. 1852(h)(8)) or multi-year an8 nual catch limits. 

9 (B) REPORT.—After the Administrator 

10 consults with the standing committee under 

11 subparagraph (A) with respect to a seasonal 

12 fishery described in that subparagraph, the Ad13 ministrator shall, not later than 6 months after 

14 the date on which either the PSE for data col15 lected through the MRIP for such seasonal fish16 ery exceeds 30 percent in a given wave or the 

17 Administrator receives a petition submitted by 

18 a State under paragraph (4), publish a report 

19 specifying— 

20 (i) the options considered under that 

21 subparagraph (A); 

22 (ii) the recommendation of the Ad23 ministrator regarding how— 


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1 (I) to reduce the PSE for data 

2 collected through the MRIP for such 

3 seasonal fishery; or 

4 (II) to adjust the management of 

5 such seasonal fishery in a manner 

6 that allows continued access and con7 siders recommendations contained in 

8 the report submitted to Congress 

9 under section 102 of the Modernizing 

10 Recreational Fisheries Management 

11 Act of 2018 (Public Law 115–405); 

12 and 

13 (iii) the reasoning, written in a man14 ner easily understood by the public, for 

15 giving such recommendation. 

16 (C) REGIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT

17 COUNCIL.—If the Administrator publishes a re18 port under subparagraph (B) with respect to a 

19 seasonal fishery described in subparagraph (A), 

20 the Administrator shall send such report to the 

21 relevant Regional Fishery Management Council 

22 for consideration. 

23 (3) CONSIDERATION.—In carrying out para24 graphs (1) and (2), the Administrator and the 


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1 standing committee shall consider issues including 

2 the following: 

3 (A) Whether the data collected through the 

4 MRIP is appropriate and useful for manage5 ment decisions, including options to improve 

6 data collection methods. 

7 (B) The extent to which existing and po8 tential data collection options are— 

9 (i) burdensome to anglers; and 

10 (ii) an efficient or appropriate use of 

11 resources. 

12 (C) Whether and to what extent specific 

13 recommendations from the report published by 

14 the National Academies titled ‘‘Data and Man15 agement Strategies for Recreational Fisheries 

16 with Annual Catch Limits’’ (2021) and other 

17 relevant National Academies activities can and 

18 should be applied in light of the particular con19 text of the fishery being considered. 

20 (4) PETITION TO INITIATE CONSULTATION.—A 

21 State may submit to the Administrator a petition for 

22 the Administrator to initiate the consultation process 

23 under paragraph (2) with respect to a given seasonal 

24 fishery if— 


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1 (A) the PSE for data collected through the 

2 MRIP for such seasonal fishery is— 

3 (i) significantly greater or less than 

4 the preceding 3-year average PSE for such 

5 seasonal fishery; or 

6 (ii) substantially greater than the 

7 PSE for data collected through State sur8 veys for such seasonal fishery; or 

9 (B) data collected through the MRIP for 

10 such seasonal fishery is unreliable because the 

11 stock of fish of such seasonal fishery is— 

12 (i) infrequently encountered through 

13 MRIP surveys; or 

14 (ii) a pulse species. 

15 (5) COMBINED REPORTS.—In carrying out this 

16 subsection, the Administrator may carry out a single 

17 consultation with the standing committee under 

18 paragraph (2) with respect to 2 or more species if 

19 the Administrator and the standing committee joint20 ly determine the underlying issues that triggered the 

21 consultation are highly similar. 

22 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec23 tion may be construed to override the role of the scientific 

24 and statistical committees in advising the Regional FishVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:39 Jul 30, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8705.IH H8705

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1 ery Management Councils regarding recommendations de2 veloped pursuant to this section. 

3 SEC. 4. STATE RECREATIONAL FISHERY CATCH AND EF4 FORT DATA COLLECTION. 

5 (a) STATE RECREATIONAL FISHERY CATCH AND EF6 FORT DATA COLLECTION PROGRAM.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State may, subject to the 

8 approval of the Administrator, carry out a program 

9 within the waters of such State and Federal waters 

10 to collect recreational fishing catch and effort data 

11 for individual, or sets, of species that are federally 

12 managed. 

13 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—If a State carries out a 

14 program under paragraph (1), the head of such pro15 gram shall— 

16 (A) ensure that such program complies 

17 with paragraph (3); 

18 (B) collect recreational fishery catch and 

19 effort data with respect to such State; 

20 (C) report such data that is necessary for 

21 Federal management to the Administrator in a 

22 manner and timeliness that complies with sec23 tion 401 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con24 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 

25 1881); and 


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1 (D) take into consideration the burden of 

2 such program to the average angler such that 

3 such program is not overly burdensome to the 

4 point that substantial noncompliance would be 

5 expected. 

6 (3) DATA REQUIREMENTS.—The Administrator, 

7 in consultation with the regional State fisheries com8 missions, shall, with respect to data collected 

9 through a recreational fishery catch and effort data 

10 collection program of a State carried out under this 

11 subsection— 

12 (A) establish universal standards regarding 

13 the collection of such data, including ensuring 

14 that such standards— 

15 (i) allow for flexibility in the design of 

16 such programs to account for differences 

17 in recreational fishing activity between 

18 States; and 

19 (ii) facilitate the collection of com20 parable data between States within a re21 gion for the purposes of stock assessments 

22 and management; 

23 (B) establish such data as the baseline for 

24 the calibration of historic estimates of rec25 reational catch; and 


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1 (C) use such data to establish catch limits 

2 and monitor landings without calibration to any 

3 Federal program, including the MRIP. 

4 (4) USE OF STATE DATA.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—Data collected through 

6 a State program carried out under this sub7 section may be used in Federal stock assess8 ments and regulatory actions. 

9 (B) MRIP.—If a State collects data pursu10 ant to this subsection that is collected pursuant 

11 to the MRIP, the Administrator shall use the 

12 data collected by the State in place of the data 

13 collected pursuant to the MRIP. 

14 (5) SUBSEQUENT FUNDING.—Upon approval by 

15 the Administrator of a recreational fishery catch and 

16 effort data collection program of a State under para17 graph (1), funding previously allocated to such State 

18 for the collection of recreational fishery catch and ef19 fort data through the MRIP shall continue to be al20 located to such State for such State to carry out 

21 such program of the State. 

22 (b) GRANT PROGRAM.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

24 after the date of the enactment of this section, the 

25 Administrator shall establish and carry out a grant 


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1 program to award amounts to States to develop, 

2 with respect to each such State, a new, or improve 

3 an existing, program described in subsection (a). 

4 (2) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible for a grant 

5 under this subsection, a State shall submit to the 

6 Administrator an application in such form, at such 

7 time, and containing such information as the Admin8 istrator determines appropriate. 

9 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—A State that is awarded 

10 a grant under this subsection shall use such 

11 award— 

12 (A) to support the development or im13 provement of a program described in subsection 

14 (a) of such State; 

15 (B) to enhance the timeliness of reporting 

16 by such State of data collected by such State 

17 through such program; and 

18 (C) to increase the accuracy and precision 

19 of the data collected by such State pursuant to 

20 such program. 

21 (4) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

22 subsection, the Administrator shall give priority to 

23 applications— 


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1 (A) based on the ability of the award to re2 duce the uncertainty of data collected through 

3 the MRIP, including with respect to— 

4 (i) economically or socially important 

5 species; 

6 (ii) species a fishery of which is at 

7 risk of closure; and 

8 (iii) species a fishery of which is at 

9 risk of closing another fishery because the 

10 management of both fisheries are inter11 mingled; and 

12 (B) that would alter or improve an existing 

13 State program carried out under subsection (a) 

14 to meet the requirements under subsection 

15 (a)(3). 

16 (c) REPORT.—On the date that is 2 years after the 

17 date of the enactment of this section, and biennially there18 after, the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate 

19 congressional committees and make publicly available a re20 port regarding the implementation of this section that in21 cludes— 

22 (1) the number of States that have participated 

23 in the grant program established under subsection 

24 (b); 


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1 (2) a description of each State recreational fish2 ery catch and effort data collection program; 

3 (3) a description of how the Administrator in4 corporates data collected pursuant to each such pro5 gram in fishery stock assessments, fishery manage6 ment decisions, and catch monitoring; and 

7 (4) an analysis regarding the improvement in 

8 data precision and the accuracy of data collected 

9 pursuant to each such program compared to data 

10 collected through the MRIP. 

11 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec12 tion may be construed to negate, uncertify, or otherwise 

13 undo existing State programs to collect recreational fish14 ing catch and effort data. 

15 SEC. 5. HEALTHY FISHERIES THROUGH BETTER SCIENCE. 

16 (a) DEFINITION OF STOCK ASSESSMENT.—Section 3 

17 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Man18 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1802) is amended— 

19 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (43) through 

20 (50) as paragraphs (44) through (51), respectively; 

21 (2) by inserting after paragraph (42) the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(43) The term ‘stock assessment’ means an 

24 evaluation of the past, present, and future status of 

25 a stock of fish, including— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a range of life history characteristics 

2 for such stock of fish, including, to the extent 

3 practicable— 

4 ‘‘(i) the geographical boundaries of 

5 such stock of fish; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) information regarding age, 

7 growth, natural mortality, sexual maturity 

8 and reproduction, feeding habits, and habi9 tat preferences of such stock of fish; and 

10 ‘‘(B) fishing for the stock of fish.’’; and 

11 (3) by redesignating the second paragraph (33) 

12 as paragraph (52). 

13 (b) STOCK ASSESSMENT PLAN.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 404 of the Magnu15 son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 

16 Act (16 U.S.C. 1881c) is amended by adding at the 

17 end the following: 

18 ‘‘(f) STOCK ASSESSMENT PLAN.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop 

20 and publish in the Federal Register, on the same 

21 schedule as required for each strategic plan required 

22 under subsection (b), a plan to conduct stock assess23 ments for priority stocks of fish for which a fishery 

24 management plan is in effect under this Act. 


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1 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each plan described in para2 graph (1) shall— 

3 ‘‘(A) for each priority stock of fish for 

4 which a stock assessment has previously been 

5 conducted— 

6 ‘‘(i) establish a schedule for updating 

7 the stock assessment that is reasonable 

8 given the biology and characteristics of the 

9 stock of fish; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) subject to the availability of ap11 propriations, require completion of a new 

12 stock assessment, or an update of the most 

13 recent stock assessment— 

14 ‘‘(I) every 5 years; or 

15 ‘‘(II) within such other time pe16 riod specified and justified by the Sec17 retary in the plan; 

18 ‘‘(B) for each priority stock of fish for 

19 which a stock assessment has not previously 

20 been conducted— 

21 ‘‘(i) establish a schedule for con22 ducting an initial stock assessment that is 

23 reasonable given the biology and character24 istics of the stock; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) subject to the availability of ap2 propriations, require completion of the ini3 tial stock assessment not later than 3 

4 years after the date on which the plan is 

5 published in the Federal Register unless 

6 another time period is specified and justi7 fied by the Secretary in the plan; and 

8 ‘‘(C)(i) identify data and analysis, includ9 ing both data and analysis that is and is not 

10 available at the time the plan is prepared, that 

11 would reduce the uncertainty, improve the accu12 racy, and increase the efficiency of future stock 

13 assessments; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) with respect to data and analysis 

15 identified under clause (i), determine whether 

16 such data and analysis could be provided by 

17 fishermen, fishing communities, universities, 

18 and research institutions, to the extent that the 

19 use of such data would be consistent with the 

20 requirements in section 301(a)(2). 

21 ‘‘(3) WAIVER OF STOCK ASSESSMENT REQUIRE22 MENT.—Notwithstanding subparagraphs (A)(ii) and 

23 (B)(ii) of paragraph (2), a stock assessment is not 

24 required for a stock of fish in the plan described in 

25 paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines that such 


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1 stock assessment is not necessary and justifies such 

2 determination in the Federal Register notice re3 quired by this subsection.’’. 

4 (2) DEADLINE.—Notwithstanding section 

5 404(f)(1) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con6 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 

7 1881c(f)(1)), as added by this section, the Secretary 

8 of Commerce shall issue the first stock assessment 

9 plan under section 404(f) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

10 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

11 U.S.C. 1881c(f)), as added by this section, not later 

12 than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this 

13 section. 

14 SEC. 6. FISHERY-INDEPENDENT SURVEYS BY INDE15 PENDENT ENTITIES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall establish 

17 a program to enter into contracts with independent enti18 ties on a competitive basis under which such independent 

19 entities shall conduct fishery-independent surveys de20 signed to estimate the absolute abundance of stocks of fish 

21 included in the Fish Stock Sustainability Index on behalf 

22 of the Administrator. 

23 (b) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to enter into a 

24 contract under the program established under subsection 

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1 trator an application in such form, at such time, and con2 taining such information as the Administrator determines 

3 appropriate, including evidence of the following: 

4 (1) Use by the independent entity of modern or 

5 cutting-edge science. 

6 (2) The ability of the independent entity to 

7 handle data in a reliable manner. 

8 (c) USE OF DATA.—Upon favorable peer review, the 

9 Administrator, in consultation with the relevant scientific 

10 and statistical committees and independent entity and 

11 with consideration of the report submitted under section 

12 7, shall incorporate data collected pursuant to a fishery13 independent abundance survey conducted by an inde14 pendent entity under the program established under sub15 section (a) in management decisions. 

16 (d) REPORT.—The Administrator shall annually sub17 mit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 

18 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

19 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report re20 garding the findings of surveys conducted pursuant to this 

21 section and the incorporation of the results of such surveys 

22 in management decisions pursuant to subsection (c). 

23 SEC. 7. REPORT. 

24 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

25 of this section, the National Academies, in consultation 


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1 with the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico 

2 Studies, shall submit to the Committee on Natural Re3 sources of the House of Representatives and the Com4 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

5 Senate and make publicly available a report regarding— 

6 (1) the incorporation of the results of the study 

7 titled ‘‘Estimating the Absolute Abundance of Age8 2+ Red Snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) in the 

9 U.S. Gulf of Mexico’’ (August 16, 2021) in manage10 ment decisions of the National Marine Fisheries 

11 Service; and 

12 (2) recommendations regarding the incorpora13 tion of data collected pursuant to section 6 in man14 agement decisions of the National Marine Fisheries 

15 Service. 

16 SEC. 8. TRANSPARENCY AND PUBLIC PROCESS. 

17 (a) ADVICE.—Section 302(g)(1)(B) of the Magnuson18 Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

19 U.S.C. 1852(g)(1)(B)) is amended by adding at the end 

20 the following: ‘‘Each scientific and statistical committee 

21 shall develop such advice in a transparent manner and 

22 allow for public involvement in the process.’’. 

23 (b) MEETINGS.—Section 302(i)(2) of the Magnuson24 Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 


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1 U.S.C. 1852(i)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(G) Each Council shall make available on the 

4 Internet website of the Council— 

5 ‘‘(i) with respect to each meeting of the 

6 Council and Council coordination committee es7 tablished under subsection (l) that is not closed 

8 in accordance with paragraph (3), to the extent 

9 practicable, a Webcast, live audio recording, or 

10 live broadcast of each such meeting; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) with respect to each meeting of the 

12 Council and of the scientific and statistical 

13 committee established by the Council under 

14 subsection (g)(1)(A) that is not closed in ac15 cordance with paragraph (3), by not later than 

16 30 days after the conclusion of each such meet17 ing, an audio or video (if the meeting was held 

18 in person or by video conference) recording or 

19 a searchable audio or written transcript of each 

20 such meeting. 

21 ‘‘(H) The Secretary shall maintain and make 

22 available to the public an archive of each recording 

23 and transcript made available under subparagraph 

24 (G).’’. 

Æ 


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