IV

107TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 193

To express the sense of the Congress that the Secretary of Commerce and

the Secretary of the Interior should direct the representatives of their

departments who are members of the United States delegation to the

International Whaling Commission to remain diligent in their efforts

to protect the ability of Native people of the United States, who have

been issued quotas by the International Whaling Commission, to continue

to legally harvest whales, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 23, 2001

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska submitted the following concurrent resolution; which

was referred to the Committee on International Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

To express the sense of the Congress that the Secretary

of Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior should

direct the representatives of their departments who are

members of the United States delegation to the International Whaling Commission to remain diligent in their

efforts to protect the ability of Native people of the

United States, who have been issued quotas by the International Whaling Commission, to continue to legally harvest whales, and for other purposes.

Whereas the Department of Commerce has the authority and

the expertise for the conservation and management of living marine resources;
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•HCON 193 IH

Whereas the Department of Commerce has the scientific expertise to conserve and manage whale species and is the

executive department with the responsibility for gathering

scientific information on the status and health of whale

populations;

Whereas the Department of the Interior, through the Bureau

of Indian Affairs, has the mission to fulfill its trust responsibilities and promote self-determination on behalf of

tribal governments, Indians, and Alaska Natives;

Whereas many Alaska Natives rely on whales to provide sustenance and to meet their subsistence and cultural needs;

Whereas the International Whaling Commission allocates

quotas for the Alaska Native harvest of bowhead whales;

Whereas a representative of the Department of Commerce is

the Commissioner for the United States delegation to the

International Whaling Commission;

Whereas sound science should guide the decisions of the

United States delegation in negotiating positions on resolutions before the International Whaling Commission;

Whereas the concept of marine protected areas has been a

topic of much debate in the United States; and

Whereas the Secretary of Commerce currently uses scientific

information to determine how marine protected areas

should be developed, implemented, and monitored, and

uses a transparent public process to designate marine

protected areas in the United States: Now, therefore, be

it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that—
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•HCON 193 IH

1 (1) the Secretary of Commerce and the Sec2 retary of the Interior should direct the representa3 tives of their departments who are members of the

4 United States delegation to the International Whal5 ing Commission to remain diligent in their efforts to

6 protect the ability of Native people of the United

7 States who have been issued quotas by the Inter8 national Whaling Commission to continue to legally

9 harvest whales;

10 (2) the Secretary of Commerce and the Sec11 retary of the Interior should instruct their represent12 atives to the United States delegation of the 53d an13 nual meeting of the International Whaling Commis14 sion to support positions that are based on sound

15 science;

16 (3) the Secretary of Commerce and the Sec17 retary of the Interior should instruct their represent18 atives to the United States delegation of the 53d an19 nual meeting of the International Whaling Commis20 sion to oppose designation of the South Pacific

21 Sanctuary or any other large-scale sanctuary until

22 such time as the Scientific Committee of the Inter23 national Whaling Commission issues scientific guide24 lines and criteria for the creation of sanctuaries, de25 velops protocols for the monitoring of such sanc-
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•HCON 193 IH

1 tuaries, and develops a research program to deter2 mine whether sanctuaries meet the goals for which

3 they were created; and

4 (4) the Secretary of Commerce and the Sec5 retary of the Interior should instruct their represent6 atives to the United States delegation of the 53d an7 nual meeting of the International Whaling Commis8 sion to support speedy completion of any remaining

9 portions of the Revised Management Scheme.

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