Calendar No. 328

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1126

[Report No. 103–201]

A BILL

To improve the conservation and management of

N

poses.and management programs, and for other puramong the States in implementing conservationCoast by providing for greater cooperationinterjurisdictional fisheries along the Atlantic

OVEMBER 20 (legislative day, NOVEMBER 2), 1993

Reported with an amendment
II

Calendar No. 328

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1126

[Report No. 103–201]

To improve the conservation and management of interjurisdictional fisheries

along the Atlantic Coast by providing for greater cooperation among

the States in implementing conservation and management programs,

and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JUNE 17 (legislative day, JUNE 15), 1993

Mr. HOLLINGS (for himself, Mr. KERRY, and Mr. SARBANES) introduced the

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on

Commerce, Science, and Transportation

NOVEMBER 20 (legislative day, NOVEMBER 2), 1993

Reported by Mr. HOLLINGS, with an amendment

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To improve the conservation and management of

interjurisdictional fisheries along the Atlantic Coast by

providing for greater cooperation among the States in

implementing conservation and management programs,

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,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited at the ‘‘Atlantic Coastal Fish3 eries Cooperative Management Act’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

5 (a) FINDING.—The Congress finds the following:

6 (1) Coastal fishery resources that migrate, or

7 are widely distributed, across the jurisdictional

8 boundaries of two or more of the Atlantic States and

9 of the Federal Government are of substantial com10 mercial and recreational importance and economic

11 benefit to the Atlantic coastal region and the

12 Nation.

13 (2) Increased fishing pressure, environmental

14 pollution, and the loss and alteration of habitat have

15 reduced severely certain Atlantic coastal fishery

16 resources.

17 (3) Because no single governmental entity has

18 exclusive management authority for Atlantic coastal

19 fishery resources, harvesting of such resources is fre20 quently subject to disparate, inconsistent, and inter21 mittent State and Federal regulation that has been

22 detrimental to the conservation and sustainable use

23 of such resources and to the interests of fishermen

24 and the Nation as a whole.

25 (4) The responsibility for managing Atlantic

26 coastal fisheries rests with the States, which carry
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1 out a cooperative program of fishery oversight and

2 management through the Atlantic States Marine

3 Fisheries Commission. It is the responsibility of the

4 Federal Government to support such cooperative

5 interstate management of coastal fishery resources.

6 (5) The failure by one or more Atlantic States

7 to fully implement a coastal fishery management

8 plan can adversely affect the status of Atlantic

9 coastal fisheries, and can discourage other States

10 from fully implementing coastal fishery management

11 plans.

12 (6) It is in the national interest to provide for

13 more effective Atlantic State fishery resource con14 servation and management.

15 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to support

16 and encourage the development, implementation, and en17 forcement of effective interstate conservation and manage18 ment of Atlantic coastal fishery resources.

19 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

20 In this Act, the following definitions apply:

21 (1) The term ‘‘coastal fishery management

22 plan’’ means a plan for managing a coastal fishery

23 resource, or an amendment to such plan, prepared

24 and adopted by the Commission, that—
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1 (A) contains information regarding the sta2 tus of the resource and related fisheries;

3 (B) specifies conservation and management

4 actions to be taken by the States; and

5 (C) recommends actions to be taken by the

6 Secretary in the exclusive economic zone to con7 serve and manage the fishery.

8 (2) the term ‘‘coastal fishery resource’’ means

9 any fishery, any species of fish, or any stock of fish

10 that moves among, or is broadly distributed across,

11 waters under the jurisdiction of two or more States

12 or waters under the jurisdiction of one or more

13 States and the exclusive economic zone.

14 (3) the term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Atlantic

15 States Marine Fisheries Commission established

16 under the interstate compact consented to and ap17 proved by the Congress in Public Laws 77–539 and

18 81–721.

19 (4) The term ‘‘Councils’’ means Regional Fish20 ery Management Councils established under section

21 302 of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and

22 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852).

23 (5) The term ‘‘exclusive economic zone’’ means

24 the exclusive economic zone of the United States es25 tablished by Proclamation Numbered 5030, dated
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1 March 10, 1983. For the purposes of this Act, the

2 inner boundary of that zone is a line coterminous

3 with the seaward boundary of each of the coastal

4 States, and the outer boundary of that zone is a line

5 drawn in such a manner that each point on it is two

6 hundred nautical miles from the baseline from which

7 the territorial sea is measured.

8 (6) The term ‘‘fish’’ means finfish, mollusks,

9 crustaceans, and all other forms of marine animal

10 life other than marine mammals and birds.

11 (7) The term ‘‘fishery’’ means—

12 (A) one or more stocks of fish that can be

13 treated as a unit for purposes of conservation

14 and management and that are identified on the

15 basis of geographical, scientific, technical, com16 mercial, recreational, or economic characteris17 tics; or

18 (B) any fishing for such stocks.

19 (8) The term ‘‘fishing’’ means—

20 (A) the catching, taking, or harvesting of

21 fish;

22 (B) the attempted catching, taking, or har23 vesting of fish;
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1 (C) any other activity that can be reason2 ably expected to result in the catching, taking,

3 or harvesting of fish; or

4 (D) any operations at sea in support of, or

5 in preparation for, any activity described in

6 subparagraphs (A) through (C).

7 Such term does not include any scientific research

8 activity.

9 (9) The term ‘‘implement and enforce’’ means

10 to enact and implement laws or regulations as re11 quired to conform with the provisions of a coastal

12 fishery management plan and to assure compliance

13 with such laws or regulations by persons participat14 ing in a fishery that is subject to such plan.

15 (10) the term ‘‘person’’ means any individual

16 (whether or not a citizen or national of the United

17 States), any corporation, partnership, association, or

18 other entity (whether or not organized or existing

19 under the laws of any State), and any Federal,

20 State, local, or foreign government or any entity of

21 any such government.

22 (11) The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ means the

23 Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of the

24 Interior.
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1 (12) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

2 of Commerce.

3 (13) the term ‘‘State’’ means Maine, New

4 Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecti5 cut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dela6 ware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South

7 Carolina, Georgia, Florida, the District of Columbia,

8 or the Potomac River Fisheries Commission.

9 SEC. 4. STATE-FEDERAL COOPERATION IN ATLANTIC

10 COASTAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT.

11 (a) FEDERAL SUPPORT FOR STATE COASTAL FISH12 ERIES PROGRAMS.—The Secretary in cooperation with the

13 Secretary of the Interior shall develop and implement a

14 program to support the interstate fishery management ef15 forts of the Commission. The program shall include activi16 ties to support and enhance State cooperation in collec17 tion, management, and analysis of fishery data; law en18 forcement; habitat conservation; fishery research, includ19 ing biological and socioeconomic research; and fishery

20 management planning.

21 (b) FEDERAL REGULATION IN EXCLUSIVE ECO22 NOMIC ZONE.—(1) In the absence of an approved and im23 plemented fishery management plan under the Magnuson

24 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C.

25 1801 et seq.), and after consultation with the appropriate
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1 Councils, the Secretary may implement regulations to gov2 ern fishing in the exclusive economic zone that are—

3 (A) necessary to support the effective imple4 mentation of a coastal fishery management plan;

5 and

6 (B) consistent with the national standards set

7 forth in section 301 of the Magnuson Fishery Con8 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1851).

9 The regulations may include measures recommended by

10 the Commission to the Secretary that are necessary to

11 support the provisions of the coastal fishery management

12 plan. Regulations issued by the Secretary to implement

13 an approved fishery management plan prepared by the ap14 propriate Councils or the Secretary under the Magnuson

15 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C.

16 1801 et seq.) shall supersede any conflicting regulations

17 issued by the Secretary under this subsection.

18 (2) The provisions of sections 307, 308, 309, 310,

19 and 311 of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Man20 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1857, 1858, 1859, 1860, and

21 1861) regarding prohibited acts, civil penalties, criminal

22 offenses, civil forfeitures, and enforcement shall apply with

23 respect to regulations issued under this subsection as if

24 such regulations were issued under the Magnuson Fishery
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1 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et

2 seq.).

3 SEC. 5. STATE IMPLEMENTATION OF COASTAL FISHERY

4 MANAGEMENT PLANS.

5 (A) COASTAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLANS.—The

6 Commission shall prepare and adopt coastal fishery man7 agement plans to provide for the conservation and man8 agement of coastal fishery resources. In preparing a coast9 al fishery management plan for a fishery that is located

10 in both State waters and the exclusive economic zone, the

11 Commission shall consult with appropriate Councils to de12 termine areas where such coastal fishery management

13 plan may complement Council fishery management plans.

14 The coastal fishery management plan shall specify the re15 quirements necessary for States to be in compliance with

16 the plan. Upon adoption of a coastal fishery management

17 plan, the Commission shall identify each State that is re18 quired to implement and enforce that plan.

19 (b) STATE IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT.—

20 (1) Each State identified under subsection (a) with respect

21 to a coastal fishery management plan shall implement and

22 enforce the measures of such plan within the time frame

23 established in the plan.

24 (2) Within ninety days after the date of enactment

25 of this Act, the Commission shall establish a schedule of
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1 time frames within which States shall implement and en2 force the measures of coastal fishery management plans

3 in existence before such date of enactment. No such time

4 frame shall exceed twelve months after the date on which

5 the schedule is adopted.

6 (c) COMMISSION MONITORING OF STATE IMPLEMEN7 TATION AND ENFORCEMENT.—The Commission shall, at

8 least annually, review each State’s implementation and en9 forcement of coastal fishery management plans for the

10 purpose of determining whether such State is effectively

11 implementing and enforcing each such plan. Upon comple12 tion of such reviews, the Commission shall report the re13 sults of the reviews to the Secretaries.

14 SEC. 6 STATE NONCOMPLIANCE WITH COASTAL FISHERY

15 MANAGEMENT PLANS.

16 (a) NONCOMPLIANCE DETERMINATION.—The Com17 mission shall determine that a State is not in compliance

18 with the provisions of a coastal fishery management plan

19 if it finds that the State has not implemented and enforced

20 such plan within the time frames established under the

21 plan or under section 5.

22 (b) NOTIFICATION.—Upon making any determina23 tion under subsection (a), the Commission shall within ten

24 working days notify the Secretaries of such determination.

25 Such notification shall include the reasons for making the
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1 determination and an explicit list of actions that the af2 fected State must take to comply with the coastal fishery

3 management plan. The Commission shall provide a copy

4 of the notification to the affected State.

5 (c) WITHDRAWAL OF NONCOMPLIANCE DETERMINA6 TION.—After making a determination under subsection

7 (a), the Commission shall continue to monitor State imple8 mentation and enforcement. Upon finding that a State has

9 complied with the actions required under subsection (b),

10 the Commission shall immediately withdraw its determina11 tion of noncompliance. The Commission shall promptly no12 tify the Secretaries of such withdrawal.

13 SEC. 7. SECRETARIAL ACTION.

14 (a) SECRETARIAL REVIEW OF COMMISSION DETER15 MINATION OF NONCOMPLIANCE.—Within thirty days after

16 receiving a notification from the Commission under sec17 tion 6(b) and after review of the Commission’s determina18 tion of noncompliance, the Secretary in consultation with

19 the Secretary of the Interior shall make a finding on—

20 (1) whether the State in question has failed to

21 carry out its responsibility under section 5; and

22 (2) if so, whether the measures that the State

23 has failed to implement and enforce are necessary

24 for the conservation and management of the fishery

25 in question.
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1 (b) CONSIDERATION OF COMMENTS.—In making a

2 finding under subsection (a), the Secretary shall solicit

3 and consider the comments of the Commission, the af4 fected State, and the appropriate Councils.

5 (c) MORATORIUM.—(1) Upon making a finding under

6 subsection (a) that a State has failed to carry out its re7 sponsibility under section 5 and that the measures it failed

8 to implement and enforce are necessary for conservation

9 and management, the Secretary shall declare a morato10 rium on fishing in the fishery in question within the waters

11 of the noncomplying State. The Secretary shall specify the

12 moratorium’s effective date, which shall be any date within

13 6 months after declaration of the moratorium.

14 (2) If after a moratorium is declared under para15 graph (1) the Secretaries are notified by the Commission

16 that the Commission is withdrawing under section 6(c) the

17 determination of noncompliance, the Secretary in con18 sultation with the Secretary of the Interior shall imme19 diately determine whether the State is in compliance with

20 the applicable plan. If so, the moratorium shall be termi21 nated.

22 (d) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—The Secretary

23 in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior may

24 issue regulations necessary to implement this section.

25 Such regulations may provide for the possession and use
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1 of fish which have been produced in an aquaculture oper2 ation, subject to applicable State regulations.

3 (e) PROHIBITED ACTS DURING MORATORIUM.—Dur4 ing the time in which a moratorium under this section is

5 in effect, it is unlawful for any person to—

6 (1) violate the terms of the moratorium or of

7 any implementing regulation issued under subsection

8 (d);

9 (2) engage in fishing for any species of fish to

10 which the moratorium applies within the waters of

11 the State subject to the moratorium;

12 (3) land, attempt to land, or possess fish that

13 are caught, taken, or harvested in violation of the

14 moratorium or of any implementing regulation is15 sued under subsection (d);

16 (4) fail to return to the water immediately, with

17 a minimum of injury, any fish to which the morato18 rium applies that are taken incidental to fishing for

19 species other than those to which the moratorium

20 applies;

21 (5) possess within the State subject to the mor22 atorium, including the waters of that State, any fish

23 to which the moratorium applies;

24 (6) refuse to permit any officer authorized to

25 enforce the provisions of this Act to board a fishing
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1 vessel subject to such person’s control for purposes

2 of conducting any search or inspection in connection

3 with the enforcement of this Act;

4 (7) forcibly assault, resist, oppose, impede, in5 timidate, or interfere with any such authorized offi6 cer in the conduct of any search or inspection under

7 this Act;

8 (8) resist a lawful arrest for any act prohibited

9 by this section;

10 (9) ship, transport, offer for sale, sell, purchase,

11 import, or have custody, control, or possession of,

12 any fish taken or retained in violation of this Act;

13 or

14 (10) interfere with, delay, or prevent, by any

15 means, the apprehension or arrest of another person,

16 knowing that such other person has committed any

17 act prohibited by this section.

18 (f) CIVIL AND CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—(1) Any per19 son who commits any act that is unlawful under sub20 section (e) shall be liable to the United States for a civil

21 penalty as provided by section 308 of the Magnuson Fish22 ery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1858).

23 (2) Any person who commits an act prohibited by

24 paragraph (6), (7), (8), or (10) of subsection (e) is guilty

25 of an offense punishable as provided by section 309 (a)(1)
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1 and (b) of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Man2 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1859 (a)(1) and (b)).

3 (g) CIVIL FORFEITURES.—(1) Any vessel (including

4 its gear, equipment, appurtenances, stores, and cargo)

5 used, and any fish (or the fair market value thereof) taken

6 or retained, in any manner, in connection with, or as the

7 result of, the commission of any act that is unlawful under

8 subsection (e), shall be subject to forfeiture to the United

9 States as provided in section 310 of the Magnuson Fishery

10 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1860).

11 (2) Any fish seized pursuant to this Act may be dis12 posed of pursuant to the order of a court of competent

13 jurisdiction or, if perishable, in a manner prescribed in

14 regulation.

15 (h) ENFORCEMENT.—A person authorized by the

16 Secretary, the Secretary of the department in which the

17 Coast Guard is operating, or the Secretary of the Interior

18 may take any action to enforce a moratorium declared

19 under subsection (c) of this section that an officer author20 ized by the Secretary under section 311(b) of the Magnu21 son Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16

22 U.S.C. 1861(b)) may take to enforce that Act. The Sec23 retaries may, by agreement, on a reimbursable basis or

24 otherwise, utilize the personnel, services, equipment (in25 cluding aircraft and vessels), and facilities of any other
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1 Federal department or agency and of any agency of a

2 State in carrying out that enforcement.

3 SEC. 8. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

4 The Secretaries may provide financial assistance to

5 the Commission and to the States to carry out their re6 spective responsibilities under this Act, including—

7 (1) the preparation, implementation, and en8 forcement of coastal fishery management plans; and

9 (2) State activities that are specifically required

10 within such plans.

11 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

12 To carry out the provisions of this Act, there are au13 thorized to be appropriated $3,000,000 for fiscal year

14 1994, $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1995, and $7,000,000

15 for fiscal year 1996.

16 SEC. 10. ATLANTIC STRIPED BASS CONSERVATION ACT.

17 Section 9 of the Atlantic Striped Bass Conservation

18 Act (16 U.S.C. 1851 note) is repealed.

19 SEC. 11. INTERJURISDICTIONAL FISHERIES ACT OF 1986.

20 Section 308(c) of the Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act

21 of 1986 (16 U.S.C. 4107(c)) is amended by inserting ‘‘,

22 and $600,000 for each of the fiscal years 1994 and 1995,’’

23 immediately after ‘‘and 1993’’.
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited at the ‘‘Atlantic Coastal Fish3 eries Cooperative Management Act’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

5 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:

6 (1) Coastal fishery resources that migrate, or are

7 widely distributed, across the jurisdictional bound8 aries of two or more of the Atlantic States and of the

9 Federal Government are of substantial commercial

10 and recreational importance and economic benefit to

11 the Atlantic coastal region and the Nation.

12 (2) Increased fishing pressure, environmental

13 pollution, and the loss and alteration of habitat have

14 reduced severely certain Atlantic coastal fishery re15 sources.

16 (3) Because no single governmental entity has

17 exclusive management authority for Atlantic coastal

18 fishery resources, harvesting of such resources is fre19 quently subject to disparate, inconsistent, and inter20 mittent State and Federal regulation that has been

21 detrimental to the conservation and sustainable use of

22 such resources and to the interests of fishermen and

23 the Nation as a whole.

24 (4) The responsibility for managing Atlantic

25 coastal fisheries rests with the States, which carry out

26 a cooperative program of fishery oversight and man-
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1 agement through the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries

2 Commission. It is the responsibility of the Federal

3 Government to support such cooperative interstate

4 management of coastal fishery resources.

5 (5) The failure by one or more Atlantic States

6 to fully implement a coastal fishery management plan

7 can adversely affect the status of Atlantic coastal fish8 eries, and can discourage other States from fully im9 plementing coastal fishery management plans.

10 (6) It is in the national interest to provide for

11 more effective Atlantic State fishery resource con12 servation and management.

13 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to support

14 and encourage the development, implementation, and en15 forcement of effective interstate conservation and manage16 ment of Atlantic coastal fishery resources.

17 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

18 In this Act, the following definitions apply:

19 (1) The term ‘‘coastal fishery management plan’’

20 means a plan for managing a coastal fishery resource,

21 or an amendment to such plan, prepared and adopted

22 by the Commission, that—

23 (A) contains information regarding the sta24 tus of the resource and related fisheries;
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1 (B) specifies conservation and management

2 actions to be taken by the States; and

3 (C) recommends actions to be taken by the

4 Secretary in the exclusive economic zone to con5 serve and manage the fishery.

6 (2) The term ‘‘coastal fishery resource’’ means

7 any fishery, any species of fish, or any stock of fish

8 that moves among, or is broadly distributed across,

9 waters under the jurisdiction of two or more States

10 or waters under the jurisdiction of one or more States

11 and the exclusive economic zone.

12 (3) The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Atlantic

13 States Marine Fisheries Commission established

14 under the interstate compact consented to and ap15 proved by the Congress in Public Laws 77–539 and

16 81–721.

17 (4) The term ‘‘conservation’’ means the restoring,

18 rebuilding, and maintaining of any coastal fishery

19 resource and the marine environment, in order to as20 sure the availability of coastal fishery resources on a

21 long-term basis.

22 (5) The term ‘‘Councils’’ means Regional Fishery

23 Management Councils established under section 302 of

24 the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management

25 Act (16 U.S.C. 1852).
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1 (6) The term ‘‘exclusive economic zone’’ means

2 the exclusive economic zone of the United States estab3 lished by Proclamation Number 5030, dated March

4 10, 1983. For the purposes of this Act, the inner

5 boundary of that zone is a line coterminous with the

6 seaward boundary of each of the coastal States, and

7 the outer boundary of that zone is a line drawn in

8 such a manner that each point on it is 200 nautical

9 miles from the baseline from which the territorial sea

10 is measured.

11 (7) The term ‘‘fish’’ means finfish, mollusks,

12 crustaceans, and all other forms of marine animal life

13 other than marine mammals and birds.

14 (8) The term ‘‘fishery’’ means—

15 (A) one or more stocks of fish that can be

16 treated as a unit for purposes of conservation

17 and management and that are identified on the

18 basis of geographical, scientific, technical, com19 mercial, recreational, or economic characteris20 tics; or

21 (B) any fishing for such stocks.

22 (9) The term ‘‘fishing’’ means—

23 (A) the catching, taking, or harvesting of

24 fish;
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1 (B) the attempted catching, taking, or har2 vesting of fish;

3 (C) any other activity that can be reason4 ably expected to result in the catching, taking, or

5 harvesting of fish; or

6 (D) any operations at sea in support of, or

7 in preparation for, any activity described in

8 subparagraphs (A) through (C).

9 Such term does not include any scientific research ac10 tivity or the catching, taking, or harvesting of fish in

11 an aquaculture operation.

12 (10) The term ‘‘implement and enforce’’ means

13 to enact and implement laws or regulations as re14 quired to conform with the provisions of a coastal

15 fishery management plan and to assure compliance

16 with such laws or regulations by persons participat17 ing in a fishery that is subject to such plan.

18 (11) The term ‘‘person’’ means any individual

19 (whether or not a citizen or national of the United

20 States), any corporation, partnership, association, or

21 other entity (whether or not organized or existing

22 under the laws of any State), and any Federal, State,

23 local, or foreign government or any entity of any such

24 government.
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1 (12) The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ means the Secretary

2 of Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior.

3 (13) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

4 of Commerce.

5 (14) The term ‘‘State’’ means Maine, New

6 Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecti7 cut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware,

8 Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina,

9 Georgia, Florida, the District of Columbia, or the Po10 tomac River Fisheries Commission.

11 SEC. 4. STATE-FEDERAL COOPERATION IN ATLANTIC

12 COASTAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT.

13 (a) FEDERAL SUPPORT FOR STATE COASTAL FISH14 ERIES PROGRAMS.—The Secretary in cooperation with the

15 Secretary of the Interior shall develop and implement a pro16 gram to support the interstate fishery management efforts

17 of the Commission. The program shall include activities to

18 support and enhance State cooperation in collection, man19 agement, and analysis of fishery data; law enforcement;

20 habitat conservation; fishery research, including biological

21 and socioeconomic research; and fishery management plan22 ning.

23 (b) FEDERAL REGULATION IN EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC

24 ZONE.—(1) In the absence of an approved and implemented

25 fishery management plan under the Magnuson Fishery
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1 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.),

2 and after consultation with the appropriate Councils, the

3 Secretary may implement regulations to govern fishing in

4 the exclusive economic zone that are—

5 (A) necessary to support the effective implemen6 tation of a coastal fishery management plan; and

7 (B) consistent with the national standards set

8 forth in section 301 of the Magnuson Fishery Con9 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1851).

10 The regulations may include measures recommended by the

11 Commission to the Secretary that are necessary to support

12 the provisions of the coastal fishery management plan. Reg13 ulations issued by the Secretary to implement an approved

14 fishery management plan prepared by the appropriate

15 Councils or the Secretary under the Magnuson Fishery Con16 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.)

17 shall supersede any conflicting regulations issued by the

18 Secretary under this subsection.

19 (2) The provisions of sections 307, 308, 309, 310, and

20 311 of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Manage21 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1857, 1858, 1859, 1860, and 1861)

22 regarding prohibited acts, civil penalties, criminal offenses,

23 civil forfeitures, and enforcement shall apply with respect

24 to regulations issued under this subsection as if such regula-
24

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1 tions were issued under the Magnuson Fishery Conservation

2 and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.).

3 SEC. 5. STATE IMPLEMENTATION OF COASTAL FISHERY

4 MANAGEMENT PLANS.

5 (a) COASTAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLANS.—(1) The

6 Commission shall prepare and adopt coastal fishery man7 agement plans to provide for the conservation of coastal

8 fishery resources. In preparing a coastal fishery manage9 ment plan for a fishery that is located in both State waters

10 and the exclusive economic zone, the Commission shall con11 sult with appropriate Councils to determine areas where

12 such coastal fishery management plan may complement

13 Council fishery management plans. The coastal fishery

14 management plan shall specify the requirements necessary

15 for States to be in compliance with the plan. Upon adoption

16 of a coastal fishery management plan, the Commission shall

17 identify each State that is required to implement and en18 force that plan.

19 (2) Within 1 year after the date of enactment of this

20 Act, the Commission shall establish standards and proce21 dures to govern the preparation of coastal fishery manage22 ment plans under this Act, including standards and proce23 dures to ensure that—
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1 (A) such plans promote the conservation of fish

2 stocks throughout their ranges and are based on the

3 best scientific information available; and

4 (B) the Commission provides adequate oppor5 tunity for public participation in the plan prepara6 tion process.

7 (b) STATE IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT.—

8 (1) Each State identified under subsection (a) with respect

9 to a coastal fishery management plan shall implement and

10 enforce the measures of such plan within the time frame

11 established in the plan.

12 (2) Within 90 days after the date of enactment of this

13 Act, the Commission shall establish a schedule of time

14 frames within which States shall implement and enforce the

15 measures of coastal fishery management plans in existence

16 before such date of enactment. No such time frame shall ex17 ceed 12 months after the date on which the schedule is

18 adopted.

19 (c) COMMISSION MONITORING OF STATE IMPLEMENTA20 TION AND ENFORCEMENT.—The Commission shall, at least

21 annually, review each State’s implementation and enforce22 ment of coastal fishery management plans for the purpose

23 of determining whether such State is effectively implement24 ing and enforcing each such plan. Upon completion of such
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1 reviews, the Commission shall report the results of the re2 views to the Secretaries.

3 SEC. 6. STATE NONCOMPLIANCE WITH COASTAL FISHERY

4 MANAGEMENT PLANS.

5 (a) NONCOMPLIANCE DETERMINATION.—The Commis6 sion shall determine that a State is not in compliance with

7 the provisions of a coastal fishery management plan if it

8 finds that the State has not implemented and enforced such

9 plan within the time frames established under the plan or

10 under section 5.

11 (b) NOTIFICATION.—Upon making any determination

12 under subsection (a), the Commission shall within 10 work13 ing days notify the Secretaries of such determination. Such

14 notification shall include the reasons for making the deter15 mination and an explicit list of actions that the affected

16 State must take to comply with the coastal fishery manage17 ment plan. The Commission shall provide a copy of the no18 tification to the affected State.

19 (c) WITHDRAWAL OF NONCOMPLIANCE DETERMINA20 TION.—After making a determination under subsection (a),

21 the Commission shall continue to monitor State implemen22 tation and enforcement. Upon finding that a State has com23 plied with the actions required under subsection (b), the

24 Commission shall immediately withdraw its determination
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1 of noncompliance. The Commission shall promptly notify

2 the Secretaries of such withdrawal.

3 SEC. 7. SECRETARIAL ACTION.

4 (a) SECRETARIAL REVIEW OF COMMISSION DETER5 MINATION OF NONCOMPLIANCE.—Within 30 days after re6 ceiving a notification from the Commission under section

7 6(b) and after review of the Commission’s determination

8 of noncompliance, the Secretary in consultation with the

9 Secretary of the Interior shall make a finding on—

10 (1) whether the State in question has failed to

11 carry out its responsibility under section 5; and

12 (2) if so, whether the measures that the State has

13 failed to implement and enforce are necessary for the

14 conservation of the fishery in question.

15 (b) CONSIDERATION OF COMMENTS.—In making a

16 finding under subsection (a), the Secretary shall—

17 (A) give careful consideration to the comments of

18 the State that the Commission has determined under

19 section 6(a) is not in compliance with a coastal fish20 ery management plan, and provide such State, upon

21 request, with the opportunity to meet with and

22 present its comments directly to the Secretary; and

23 (B) solicit and consider the comments of the

24 Commission and the appropriate Councils.
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1 (c) MORATORIUM.—(1) Upon making a finding under

2 subsection (a) that a State has failed to carry out its re3 sponsibility under section 5 and that the measures it failed

4 to implement and enforce are necessary for conservation,

5 the Secretary shall declare a moratorium on fishing in the

6 fishery in question within the waters of the noncomplying

7 State. The Secretary shall specify the moratorium’s effective

8 date, which shall be any date within 6 months after declara9 tion of the moratorium.

10 (2) If after a moratorium is declared under paragraph

11 (1) the Secretaries are notified by the Commission that the

12 Commission is withdrawing under section 6(c) the deter13 mination of noncompliance, the Secretary in consultation

14 with the Secretary of the Interior shall immediately deter15 mine whether the State is in compliance with the applicable

16 plan. If so, the moratorium shall be terminated.

17 (d) IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS.—The Secretary in

18 consultation with the Secretary of the Interior may issue

19 regulations necessary to implement this section. Such regu20 lations—

21 (1) may provide for the possession and use of

22 fish which have been produced in an aquaculture op23 eration, subject to applicable State regulations; and

24 (2) shall allow for retention of fish that are sub25 ject to a moratorium declared under this section and
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1 unavoidably taken as incidental catch in fisheries di2 rected toward menhaden if—

3 (A) discarding the retained fish is imprac4 ticable;

5 (B) the retained fish do not constitute a sig6 nificant portion of the catch of the vessel; and

7 (C) retention of the fish will not, in the

8 judgment of the Secretary, adversely affect the

9 conservation of the species of fish retained.

10 (e) PROHIBITED ACTS DURING MORATORIUM.—Dur11 ing the time in which a moratorium under this section is

12 in effect, it is unlawful for any person to—

13 (1) violate the terms of the moratorium or of any

14 implementing regulation issued under subsection (d);

15 (2) engage in fishing for any species of fish to

16 which the moratorium applies within the waters of

17 the State subject to the moratorium;

18 (3) land, attempt to land, or possess fish that are

19 caught, taken, or harvested in violation of the morato20 rium or of any implementing regulation issued under

21 subsection (d);

22 (4) fail to return to the water immediately, with

23 a minimum of injury, any fish to which the morato24 rium applies that are taken incidental to fishing for

25 species other than those to which the moratorium ap-
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1 plies, except as provided by regulations issued under

2 subsection (d);

3 (5) refuse to permit any officer authorized to en4 force the provisions of this Act to board a fishing ves5 sel subject to such person’s control for purposes of con6 ducting any search or inspection in connection with

7 the enforcement of this Act;

8 (6) forcibly assault, resist, oppose, impede, in9 timidate, or interfere with any such authorized officer

10 in the conduct of any search or inspection under this

11 Act;

12 (7) resist a lawful arrest for any act prohibited

13 by this section;

14 (8) ship, transport, offer for sale, sell, purchase,

15 import, or have custody, control, or possession of, any

16 fish taken or retained in violation of this Act; or

17 (9) interfere with, delay, or prevent, by any

18 means, the apprehension or arrest of another person,

19 knowing that such other person has committed any

20 act prohibited by this section.

21 (f) CIVIL AND CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—(1) Any person

22 who commits any act that is unlawful under subsection (e)

23 shall be liable to the United States for a civil penalty as

24 provided by section 308 of the Magnuson Fishery Conserva25 tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1858).
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1 (2) Any person who commits an act prohibited by

2 paragraph (5), (6), (7), or (9) of subsection (e) is guilty

3 of an offense punishable as provided by section 309(a)(1)

4 and (b) of the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Man5 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1859(a)(1) and (b)).

6 (g) CIVIL FORFEITURES.—(1) Any vessel (including

7 its gear, equipment, appurtenances, stores, and cargo) used,

8 and any fish (or the fair market value thereof) taken or

9 retained, in any manner, in connection with, or as the re10 sult of, the commission of any act that is unlawful under

11 subsection (e), shall be subject to forfeiture to the United

12 States as provided in section 310 of the Magnuson Fishery

13 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1860).

14 (2) Any fish seized pursuant to this Act may be dis15 posed of pursuant to the order of a court of competent juris16 diction or, if perishable, in a manner prescribed in regula17 tion.

18 (h) ENFORCEMENT.—A person authorized by the Sec19 retary, the Secretary of the department in which the Coast

20 Guard is operating, or the Secretary of the Interior may

21 take any action to enforce a moratorium declared under

22 subsection (c) of this section that an officer authorized by

23 the Secretary under section 311(b) of the Magnuson Fishery

24 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1861(b))

25 may take to enforce that Act. The Secretaries may, by agree-
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1 ment, on a reimbursable basis or otherwise, utilize the per2 sonnel, services, equipment (including aircraft and vessels),

3 and facilities of any other Federal department or agency

4 and of any agency of a State in carrying out that enforce5 ment.

6 SEC. 8. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

7 The Secretaries may provide financial assistance to the

8 Commission and to the States to carry out their respective

9 responsibilities under this Act, including—

10 (1) the preparation, implementation, and en11 forcement of coastal fishery management plans; and

12 (2) State activities that are specifically required

13 within such plans.

14 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

15 To carry out the provisions of this Act, there are au16 thorized to be appropriated $3,000,000 for fiscal year 1994,

17 $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1995, and $7,000,000 for fiscal

18 year 1996.

19 SEC. 10. ATLANTIC STRIPED BASS CONSERVATION ACT.

20 Section 9 of the Atlantic Striped Bass Conservation

21 Act (16 U.S.C. 1851 note) is repealed.

22 SEC. 11. INTERJURISDICTIONAL FISHERIES ACT OF 1986.

23 Section 308(c) of the Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act

24 of 1986 (16 U.S.C. 4107(c)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, and
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1 $600,000 for each of the fiscal years 1994 and 1995,’’ imme2 diately after ‘‘and 1993’’.

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