II 

Calendar No. 733 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2764 

[Report No. 115–442] 

To amend and enhance the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium 

Protection Act to improve the conservation of sharks, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 26, 2018 

Mr. RUBIO (for himself, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. 

VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. WHITEHOUSE) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

DECEMBER 19, 2018 

Reported by Mr. THUNE, without amendment 

A BILL 

To amend and enhance the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act to improve the conservation of 

sharks, 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 ‘‘Sustainable Shark 

5 Fisheries and Trade Act of 2018’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SHARK CONSERVATION AND TRADE FAIRNESS CER2 TIFICATION. 

3 Section 610 of the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Mora4 torium Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1826k) is amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a)(2)— 

6 (A) by striking subparagraph (A) and in7 serting the following: 

8 ‘‘(A) that nation or any individual or entity 

9 from that nation has imported shark products 

10 into the United States or seeks to import shark 

11 products into the United States; and’’; and 

12 (B) in subparagraph (B)— 

13 (i) by striking ‘‘adopted’’ and insert14 ing ‘‘sought and obtained, not later than 

15 the effective date specified in paragraph 

16 (8) of subsection (g), a certification from 

17 the Secretary under that subsection that 

18 the nation has in effect’’; and 

19 (ii) by striking ‘‘, taking into account 

20 different conditions’’; 

21 (2) in subsection (b), in paragraphs (2) and 

22 (3), by striking ‘‘subsection (a)’’ each place it ap23 pears and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)(1)’’; 

24 (3) in subsection (c)— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘sub2 section (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)(1)’’; 

3 and 

4 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(6) APPLICABILITY TO CERTAIN COUNTRIES.— 

6 This subsection does not apply to nations identified 

7 under subsection (a)(2).’’; 

8 (4) in subsection (d)— 

9 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or (g)’’ 

10 after ‘‘under subsection (c)’’; and 

11 (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘or (g)’’ 

12 after ‘‘under subsection (c)’’; and 

13 (5) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(g) SHARK CONSERVATION AND TRADE FAIRNESS

15 CERTIFICATION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION ON IMPORTATION.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

18 subparagraph (B), shark products may not be 

19 imported into the United States unless the 

20 shark products were landed in a nation to 

21 which the Secretary has issued a certification or 

22 partial certification under paragraph (2). 

23 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—The prohibition under 

24 subparagraph (A) shall not apply to shark 

25 products that are— 


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1 ‘‘(i) traded, owned, held, or otherwise 

2 possessed by an employee or agent of a 

3 governmental agency for law enforcement 

4 purposes; 

5 ‘‘(ii) used for noncommercial subsist6 ence purposes in accordance with Federal, 

7 State, tribal, or territorial law; 

8 ‘‘(iii) used solely for display, edu9 cation, conservation, or research purposes 

10 by an accredited zoo, aquarium, museum, 

11 college, or university; or 

12 ‘‘(iv) used by any other person under 

13 a State or Federal permit to conduct non14 commercial scientific research. 

15 ‘‘(2) CERTIFICATIONS.—Pursuant to the regu16 lations prescribed under paragraph (5), the Sec17 retary— 

18 ‘‘(A) shall grant a certification to any na19 tion that has adopted and effectively enforces 

20 regulatory programs to provide for the con21 servation and management of sharks, and 

22 measures to prohibit shark finning, that are 

23 comparable to those of the United States; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) may grant a partial certification to a 

2 nation if the Secretary determines that the na3 tion— 

4 ‘‘(i) has adopted and effectively en5 forces regulatory programs that are com6 parable to the regulatory programs of the 

7 United States to provide for the conserva8 tion and management of a specific species 

9 of shark imported into the United States 

10 or used to produce shark products im11 ported into the United States; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) has in effect an effective ban on 

13 shark finning that is comparable to that of 

14 the United States. 

15 ‘‘(3) EXPIRATION; RENEWAL.—A certification 

16 or partial certification issued under this sub17 section— 

18 ‘‘(A) shall be effective for not more than 3 

19 years from the date of issuance; and 

20 ‘‘(B) may be renewed in accordance with 

21 the provisions of this subsection relating to the 

22 initial issuance of the certification. 

23 ‘‘(4) CERTAIN DETERMINATIONS.—The Sec24 retary shall make a determination with respect to 

25 whether to renew under paragraph (3) or revoke 


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1 pursuant to paragraph (5)(A)(ii) a certification or 

2 partial certification issued under this subsection not 

3 later than 180 days after the submission of the ap4 plication for renewal or the petition for revocation, 

5 as the case may be. 

6 ‘‘(5) REGULATIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years 

8 after the date of the enactment of the Sustain9 able Shark Fisheries and Trade Act of 2018, 

10 the Secretary shall prescribe regulations under 

11 chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, with 

12 respect to the submission, evaluation, revoca13 tion, and renewal of applications for certifi14 cations and partial certifications under para15 graph (2). Such regulations shall— 

16 ‘‘(i) prescribe the content and format 

17 of applications and standards for the infor18 mation to be provided in such applications; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(ii) establish a process for petitioning 

21 the Secretary for revocation of the certifi22 cation or partial certification of any nation, 

23 including standards for the information re24 quired to be provided to demonstrate that 

25 the nation no longer meets the criteria esVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:20 Dec 20, 2018 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2764.RS S2764

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1 tablished under this subsection for the cer2 tification. 

3 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA FOR CERTIFICATION OR

4 PARTIAL CERTIFICATION.—The regulations pre5 scribed under subparagraph (A) shall establish 

6 criteria for determining whether a nation has 

7 and effectively enforces regulatory programs to 

8 provide for the conservation and management 

9 of sharks, and measures to prohibit shark fin10 ning, that are comparable to those of the 

11 United States, which shall include, at a min12 imum, a requirement that such programs— 

13 ‘‘(i) be consistent with the national 

14 standards for fishery conservation and 

15 management set forth at section 301(a) of 

16 the Magnuson-Stevens Conservation and 

17 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1851(a)); 

18 ‘‘(ii) provide for regularly updated 

19 management plans, scientifically estab20 lished catch limits, and bycatch assess21 ments and minimization; 

22 ‘‘(iii) include a program to prevent 

23 overfishing of sharks and rebuild over24 fished stocks; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) require reporting and data col2 lection; 

3 ‘‘(v) be consistent with the Inter4 national Plan of Action for Conservation 

5 and Management of Sharks of the Food 

6 and Agriculture Organization of the 

7 United Nations; and 

8 ‘‘(vi) include a mechanism to ensure 

9 that, if the nation allows landings of 

10 sharks by foreign vessels that are not sub11 ject to such programs, only shark products 

12 that comply with such programs are ex13 ported to the United States. 

14 ‘‘(6) PUBLICATION; PUBLIC COMMENT.—The 

15 Secretary shall— 

16 ‘‘(A) publish in the Federal Register notice 

17 of applications, petitions, and decisions with re18 spect to certifications, renewal of certifications, 

19 or revocation of certifications under this sub20 section; and 

21 ‘‘(B) provide an opportunity for public 

22 comment with respect to such applications, peti23 tions, and decisions. 

24 ‘‘(7) FINAL AGENCY ACTION.—A decision of the 

25 Secretary with respect to the issuance, renewal, or 


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1 revocation of a certification or partial certification 

2 under this subsection, or a failure to make a deter3 mination under paragraph (4) in the time required 

4 by that paragraph, shall be considered a final agency 

5 action for the purposes of chapter 7 of title 5, 

6 United States Code. 

7 ‘‘(8) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The prohibition under 

8 paragraph (1) shall take effect on the earlier of— 

9 ‘‘(A) the date on which regulations are 

10 prescribed under paragraph (5); or 

11 ‘‘(B) the date that is 3 years after the date 

12 of the enactment of the Sustainable Shark 

13 Fisheries and Trade Act of 2018. 

14 ‘‘(9) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

15 ‘‘(A) SHARK.—The term ‘shark’ means 

16 any species of the subclass Elasmobranchii. 

17 ‘‘(B) SHARK PRODUCT.—The term ‘shark 

18 product’ means live sharks, whole sharks, and 

19 the meat, skin, oil, fins (including wings and 

20 tails), gill rakers, cartilage, jaws, teeth, liver, or 

21 any product containing meat, skin, oil, fins (in22 cluding wings and tails), gill rakers, cartilage, 

23 jaws, teeth, or liver derived from sharks. 

24 ‘‘(C) SHARK FINNING.—The term ‘shark 

25 finning’ means the removal of a shark’s fins, inVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:20 Dec 20, 2018 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2764.RS S2764

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1 cluding the tail, and discarding the remaining 

2 carcass of the shark at sea.’’. 

3 SEC. 3. ACTIONS TO STRENGTHEN INTERNATIONAL FISH4 ERY MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATIONS. 

5 Section 608(a) of the High Seas Driftnet Fishing 

6 Moratorium Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1826i(a)) is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking subparagraph 

9 (F) and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(F) to adopt shark conservation and man11 agement measures and measures to prevent 

12 shark finning that are consistent with the Inter13 national Plan of Action for Conservation and 

14 Management of Sharks of the Food and Agri15 culture Organization of the United Nations;’’; 

16 and 

17 (2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(3) seeking to enter into international agree20 ments that require measures for the conservation 

21 and management of sharks and measures to prevent 

22 shark finning that are consistent with the Inter23 national Plan of Action for Conservation and Man24 agement of Sharks; and’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. INCLUSION OF RAYS AND SKATES IN SEAFOOD 

2 TRACEABILITY PROGRAM. 

3 Not later than one year after the date of the enact4 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall revise 

5 section 300.324 of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations 

6 to include rays and skates on the list provided for under 

7 subsection (a)(2) of that section. 

8 SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

9 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to preempt any 

10 Federal or State law establishing additional or more strin11 gent requirements than the requirements of subsection (g) 

12 of section 610 of the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Morato13 rium Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1826k), as added by sec14 tion 3. 

15 SEC. 6. FUNDING. 

16 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec17 retary of Commerce to carry out this Act— 

18 (1) $325,000 for fiscal year 2019; 

19 (2) $325,000 for fiscal year 2020; 

20 (3) $400,000 for each of fiscal years 2021, 

21 2022, and 2023; and 

22 (4) $250,000 for fiscal year 2024. 


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Calendar No. 733 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2764 

[Report No. 115–442] 

A BILL 

To amend and enhance the High Seas Driftnet 

poses. the conservation of sharks, and for other purFishing Moratorium Protection Act to improve 

DECEMBER 19, 2018 

Reported without amendment 


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