II

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2832

To reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management

Act, and for other purposes

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JUNE 29, 2000

Ms. SNOWE introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To reauthorize the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation

and Management Act, 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 ‘‘Magnuson-Stevens Re5 authorization Act of 2000’’.
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1 TITLE I—REAUTHORIZATION

2 AND REVISION

3 SEC. 101. AMENDMENT OF THE MAGNUSON-STEVENS FISH4 ERY CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT ACT.

5 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in

6 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

7 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi8 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a

9 section or other provision of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish10 ery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801

11 et seq.).

12 SEC. 102. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

13 Section 4 (16 U.S.C. 1803) is amended by striking

14 paragraphs (1) through (4) and inserting the following:

15 ‘‘(1) $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2000;

16 ‘‘(2) $415,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;

17 ‘‘(3) $430,000,000 for fiscal year 2002;

18 ‘‘(4) $445,000,000 for fiscal year 2003;

19 ‘‘(5) $460,000,000 for fiscal year 2004; and

20 ‘‘(6) $475,000,000 for fiscal year 2005.’’.

21 SEC. 103. POLICY.

22 Section 2(c) (16 U.S.C. 1081(c)) is amended—

23 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in

24 paragraph (6);
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1 (2) by striking ‘‘States.’’ in paragraph (7) and

2 inserting ‘‘States; and; and

3 (3) by adding at the end thereof the following:

4 ‘‘(8) to use the best scientific information avail5 able when making fisheries management and con6 servation decisions, meaning information that is col7 lected and analyzed by a process that, to the extent

8 practicable—

9 ‘‘(A) is directly related to the specific issue

10 under consideration;

11 ‘‘(B) is based on a statistically sufficient

12 sample such that any conclusions drawn are

13 reasonably supported;

14 ‘‘(C) has been independently peer-reviewed;

15 ‘‘(D) has been collected within a time

16 frame that is reasonably related to the specific

17 issue under consideration; and

18 ‘‘(E) incorporates a broad base of available

19 sources.’’.

20 SEC. 104. DEFINITIONS; NEW TERMS.

21 (a) NEW TERMS.—Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1802) is

22 amended as follows:

23 (1) HABITAT AREA OF PARTICULAR CON24 CERN.—After paragraph (18), insert the following:
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1 ‘‘( ) The term ‘habitat area of particular con2 cern’ means those waters and submerged substrate

3 that form a discrete vulnerable subunit of essential

4 fish habitat that is required for a stock to sustain

5 itself and which is designated through a specified set

6 of national criteria which includes, at a minimum, a

7 requirement that designation be based on the best

8 scientific information available regarding habitat9 specific density of that fish stock, growth, reproduc10 tion, and survival rates of that stock within the des11 ignated area.’’.

12 (2) MAXIMUM SUSTAINABLE YIELD.—After

13 paragraph (23), insert the following:

14 ‘‘( ) The term ‘maximum sustainable yield’

15 means the largest long-term average catch or yield

16 in terms of weight of fish caught for commercial and

17 recreational purposes that can be continuously taken

18 from a stock under existing environmental condi19 tions, and which is adjusted as environmental condi20 tions change.’’.

21 (b) NUMERATION AND REDESIGNATION.—Section 3

22 (16 U.S.C. 1802), as amended by subsection (a), is

23 amended—

24 (1) by moving paragraph (35) to follow para25 graph (36); and
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1 (2) by renumbering all paragraphs in numerical

2 order from (1) through (47).

3 (c) REFERENCES IN OTHER LAW.—Whenever any

4 other provision of law refers to a term defined in section

5 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and

6 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802) by its paragraph num7 ber and that paragraph was renumbered by subsection (b)

8 of this section, the reference shall be considered to be a

9 reference to the paragraph number given that paragraph

10 under subsection (b) or subsequent amendment of that

11 Act.

12 SEC. 105. ADVISORY COMMITTEE REFORM AND PEER RE13 VIEW.

14 (a) REFORM.—Section 302(g) (16 U.S.C. 1852(g))

15 is amended—

16 (1) by adding at the end of paragraph (3) the

17 following:

18 ‘‘(C) For each committee established under

19 subparagraph (A), each Council shall establish

20 standard operating procedures relating to time,

21 place, and frequency of meetings, a description

22 of the type and format of information to be pro23 vided under subparagraph (A), a description of

24 how recommendations under subparagraph (A)

25 will be used, and other relevant factors.’’;
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1 (2) by redesignating paragraph (5) as para2 graph (6); and

3 (3) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol4 lowing:

5 ‘‘(5) Each Council shall establish standard op6 erating procedures relating to the relevant scientific

7 review committee or committees that are responsible

8 for conducting peer reviews of all stock assessments

9 and economic and social analyses prepared for fish10 eries under the Council’s jurisdiction. Committees

11 under this paragraph shall consist of members from

12 the committee established under paragraph (1) of

13 this subsection and, to the extent practicable, inde14 pendent scientists qualified to peer review such as15 sessments and analyses.’’.

16 (b) PEER REVIEW.—Section 302(h) (16 U.S.C.

17 1852(h)) is amended—

18 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph

19 (5);

20 (2) by redesignating paragraph (6) as para21 graph (7); and

22 (3) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol23 lowing:

24 ‘‘(6) to the extent practicable conduct a peer re25 view of any stock assessments and economic and so-
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1 cial analyses prepared for a fishery under its juris2 diction, utilizing the procedures established under

3 subsection (g)(5); and’’.

4 SEC. 106. OVERFISHING AND REBUILDING.

5 (a) REBUILDING OVERFISHED FISHERIES.—Section

6 304(e) (16 U.S.C. 1854(e)) is amended—

7 (1) by striking ‘‘(1) The Secretary’’ in para8 graph (1) and inserting ‘‘(1)(A) The Secretary’’;

9 (2) by inserting after ‘‘overfished.’’ the fol10 lowing:

11 ‘‘The Secretary shall also identify which

12 fisheries are managed under a fishery manage13 ment plan or international agreement, and the

14 estimated percentage of the total volume of all

15 species in United States waters that are

16 manged under a fishery management plan or

17 international agreement.’’

18 (3) by striking the last sentence of paragraph

19 (1) and inserting the following: ‘‘A fishery shall be

20 classified as approaching a condition of being over21 fished if, based on the best scientific information

22 available trends in fishing effort and fishery resource

23 size and other appropriate factors, the Secretary es24 timates that the fishery will become overfished with25 in 2 years.’’;
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1 (4) by adding at the end of paragraph (1) the

2 following:

3 ‘‘(B) If the Secretary determines that insuffi4 cient information is available on which to conclude

5 that a fishery is approaching a condition of being

6 overfished, the Secretary shall immediately notify

7 the appropriate Council and within six months of

8 such notification implement a research program, in9 cluding cooperative research, designed to provide the

10 information needed to determine whether or not the

11 fishery is approaching a condition of being over12 fished.’’;

13 (5) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the

14 following:

15 ‘‘(2)(A) If the Secretary determines at any time

16 that a fishery is overfished, the Secretary shall im17 mediately notify the appropriate Council and request

18 that action be taken to end overfishing and to imple19 ment conservation and management measures to re20 build the stock of fish.

21 ‘‘(B) If a fishery harvests more than one stock

22 of fish, the fishery shall be managed as a unit and

23 considered as a unit for purposes of this Act, and

24 the conservation and management targets of this
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1 Act do not require that the fishery be managed on

2 a stock-by-stock basis.

3 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall publish each notice

4 under this paragraph in the Federal Register.’’;

5 (6) striking clauses (i) and (ii) of paragraph (4)

6 and inserting the following:

7 ‘‘(i) be as short as possible, taking into ac8 count the status and biology of any overfished

9 stocks of fish, the need to minimize adverse so10 cial and economic impacts, including the cumu11 lative impact of conservation and management

12 measures on fishing communities, oceano13 graphic and other environmental conditions that

14 affect the stocks of fish, the interaction of the

15 overfished stock of fish within the marine eco16 system, and be consistent with conservation and

17 management measures adopted by an inter18 national organization in which the United

19 States participates; and

20 ‘‘(ii) not exceed 10 years, except in cases

21 where the biology of the stock of fish, or other

22 environmental conditions dictate otherwise, or

23 in cases where conservation and management

24 measures adopted by an international organiza-
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1 tion in which the United States participates

2 recommend otherwise.’’; and

3 (7) by striking ‘‘United States.’’ in paragraph

4 (4)(C) and inserting the following: ‘‘United States,

5 and provide fair and equitable sharing of the man6 agement and conservation requirements among all

7 contracting harvesters under such an agreement.’’.

8 (b) ATLANTIC HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES.—Sec9 tion 304(g)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1854(g)(1)) is amended—

10 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through

11 (G) as subparagraphs (B) through (H), respectively;

12 (2) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so

13 redesignated, the following:

14 ‘‘(A) consult with the commissioners appointed

15 under section 971a of the Atlantic Tunas Conven16 tion Act (16 U.S.C. 971) during the preparation of

17 plans, plan amendments, and regulations that imple18 ment recommendations of the International Commis19 sion for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas to en20 sure that the implementation of such plans, plan

21 amendments, and regulations is consistent with such

22 recommendations.’’;

23 (3) by striking ‘‘commissioners and’’ in sub24 paragraph (B), as so redesignated;
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1 (4) by redesignating clauses (iii) and (iv) in

2 subparagraph (H), as so redesignated, as clauses (v)

3 and (vi), respectively, and inserting after clause (ii)

4 the following:

5 ‘‘(iii) do not have the effect of increasing

6 or decreasing any allocation or quota of fish or

7 fishing mortality level to the United States

8 agreed to pursuant to a recommendation of the

9 International Commission for the Conservation

10 of Atlantic Tunas;

11 ‘‘(iv) require comparable permitting, re12 porting, monitoring, and enforcement for all

13 commercial and recreational fisheries;’’; and

14 (5) by striking ‘‘species;’’ in subparagraph (G),

15 as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘species and maintain

16 the conservation leadership role of the United States

17 through such measures;’’.

18 SEC. 107. OBSERVERS.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 303 (16 U.S.C. 1853) is

20 amended by adding at the end thereof the following:

21 ‘‘(e) OBSERVER PROGRAMS.—

22 ‘‘(1) When establishing any new program under

23 this Act which utilizes observers deployed on United

24 States fishing vessels or in United States fish proc25 essing plants for purposes of monitoring the har-
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1 vesting of fish and collecting scientific information,

2 the Council with jurisdiction over the fishery (or in

3 the case of a highly migratory species fishery, the

4 Secretary) in which the observers will be deployed

5 shall establish a set of goals and objectives, an im6 plementation schedule for the program, and a statis7 tically reliable method for achieving the goals and

8 objectives.

9 ‘‘(2) The goals and objectives required under

10 paragraph (1) shall take into account—

11 ‘‘(A) equity among the various harvesting

12 and processing sectors in the fishery;

13 ‘‘(B) fair and equitable sharing of the

14 costs of the program among participants in the

15 fishery; and

16 ‘‘(C) that those fishing vessels and proc17 essing plants where observers are deployed are

18 not put at a disadvantage with respect to other

19 harvesters or processors in that fishery or in

20 other fisheries.

21 ‘‘(3) Any system of fees established under this

22 section shall provide that the total amount of fees

23 collected under this section not exceed the combined

24 cost of—
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1 ‘‘(A) stationing observers on board fishing

2 vessels and United States fish processors;

3 ‘‘(B) the actual cost of inputting collected

4 data; and

5 ‘‘(C) less any amount received for such

6 purpose from another source, including Federal

7 funds.’’.

8 (b) PLAN REQUIREMENT.—Section 303(a) (16

9 U.S.C. 1853(a)) is amended—

10 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph

11 (13);

12 (2) by striking ‘‘fishery.’’ in paragraph (14)

13 and inserting ‘‘fishery; and’’; and

14 (3) by adding at the end thereof the following:

15 ‘‘(15) to the extent that observers are deployed

16 on board United States fishing vessels or in United

17 States fish processing plants under the provisions of

18 a fishery management plan or regulations imple19 menting a fishery management plan, comply with

20 the goals and objectives required under subsection

21 (e).’’.

22 SEC. 108. CUMULATIVE IMPACTS.

23 (a) NATIONAL STANDARDS.—Section 301(a)(8) (16

24 U.S.C. 1851(a)(8)) is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘(8) Conservation and management measures

2 shall, consistent with the conservation requirements

3 of this Act, take into account the importance of fish4 ery resources to fishing communities, and the indi5 vidual and cumulative economic and social impact of

6 fishery conservation and management measures on

7 such communities, in order to—

8 ‘‘(A) provide for the sustained participa9 tion of such communities; and

10 ‘‘(B) to the extent practicable, minimize

11 adverse social and economic impacts on such

12 communities.’’.

13 (b) CONTENTS OF PLANS.—Section 303(a)(9) (16

14 U.S.C. 1853(a)(9)) is amended by striking ‘‘describe the

15 likely effects, if any, of the conservation and management

16 measures on—’’ and inserting ‘‘describe in detail the likely

17 effects, including the individual and cumulative economic

18 and social impacts, of the conservation and management

19 measures on—’’.

20 SEC. 109. ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT.

21 (a) FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLANS.—Section

22 303(a)(7) (16 U.S.C. 1853(a)(7)) is amended to read as

23 follows:

24 ‘‘(7) describe and identify essential fish habitat

25 and habitat areas of particular concern for the fish-
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1 ery based on the guidelines established by the Sec2 retary under section 305(b)(1)(A), and minimize to

3 the extent practicable adverse effects on habitat

4 areas of particular concern caused by fishing and

5 identify other actions to encourage the conservation

6 and enhancement of such habitat.’’.

7 (b) FISH HABITAT REQUIREMENT.—Section

8 305(b)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1855) is amended by inserting ‘‘and

9 habitat areas of particular concern’’ following ‘‘essential

10 fish habitat’’ each time it appears in subparagraphs (A)

11 and (B).

12 SEC. 110. REGIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCILS.

13 Section 302 (16 U.S.C. 1852) is amended—

14 (1) by inserting ‘‘and of the commonwealths,

15 territories, and possessions of the United States in

16 the Caribbean Sea’’ in subsection (a)(1)(D) after

17 ‘‘States’’;

18 (2) by inserting ‘‘or disseminated by any other

19 means that will result in wide publicity’’ in sub20 section (i)(2)(C) after ‘‘fishery)’’; and

21 (3) by inserting ‘‘or notify the public through

22 any other means that will result in wide publicity’’

23 in subsection (i)(3)(B) after ‘‘ports)’’.
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1 SEC. 111. CONTENTS OF FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLANS.

2 Section 303(b)(7) (16 U.S.C. 1853(b)(7)) is amended

3 by striking ‘‘(other than economic data)’’.

4 SEC. 112. ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.

5 Section 304 (16 U.S.C. 1854) is amended—

6 (1) by inserting ‘‘and any proposed imple7 menting regulations prepared under section

8 303(c)(1),’’ in subsection (a)(1) after ‘‘plan amend9 ment,’’;

10 (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) and

11 (B) of subsection (a)(1) as subparagraphs (B) and

12 (C), respectively;

13 (3) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so

14 redesignated, of subsection (a)(1) the following:

15 ‘‘(A) immediately make a preliminary evalua16 tion of the management plan or amendment for pur17 poses of deciding if it is consistent with the national

18 standards and sufficient in scope and substance to

19 warrant review under this subsection, and

20 ‘‘(i) if that decision is affirmative, imple21 ment subparagraphs (B) and (C) with respect

22 to the plan or amendment; or

23 ‘‘(ii) if that decision is negative, disapprove

24 the plan or amendment and notify the Council,

25 in writing, of the disapproval and of those mat-
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1 ters specified in paragraph (3)(A), (B), and (C)

2 as they relate to the plan or amendment;’’;

3 (4) striking subparagraph (C), as so redesig4 nated, of subsection (a)(1) and inserting the fol5 lowing:

6 ‘‘(C) by the 15th day following transmittal of

7 the plan and proposed implementing regulations,

8 publish in the Federal Register—

9 ‘‘(i) a notice stating that the plan or

10 amendment is available and that written data,

11 views, or comments of interested persons on the

12 plan or amendment may be submitted to the

13 Secretary during the 50-day period beginning

14 on the date the notice is published; and

15 ‘‘(ii) any proposed implementing regula16 tions that are consistent with the fishery man17 agement plan or amendment, this Act, and

18 other applicable law, for a comment period of

19 50 days (incorporating any technical changes to

20 the Council’s proposed regulations the Sec21 retary believes to be necessary for clarity, to22 gether with an explanation of those changes).’’;

23 (5) by striking ‘‘section 303(c),’’ in subsection

24 (b)(1) and inserting ‘‘section 303(c)(2),’’;
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1 (6) by striking ‘‘if that determination is affirm2 ative, the Secretary shall’’ in subsection (b)(1)(A)

3 and inserting ‘‘if the Secretary determines that the

4 regulations are consistent, the Secretary shall, with5 in 15 days of transmittal,’’;

6 (7) by striking ‘‘if that determination is nega7 tive, the Secretary shall’’ in subsection (b)(1)(B)

8 and inserting ‘‘if the Secretary determines that the

9 regulations are not consistent, the Secretary shall,

10 within 15 days of transmittal,’’; and

11 (8) by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)(A).’’ in sub12 section (b)(3) and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)(A), and

13 within 45 days after the end of the comment period

14 under subsection (a)(1)(C).’’.

15 SEC. 113. INFORMATION COLLECTION.

16 Section 402 (16 U.S.C. 1881a) is amended—

17 (1) by striking ‘‘(other than information that

18 would disclose proprietary or confidential commercial

19 or financial information regarding fishing operations

20 or fish processing operations)’’ each place it appears

21 in subsection (a);

22 (2) by striking ‘‘under this Act shall be con23 fidential and shall not be disclosed,’’ in subsection

24 (b)(1) and inserting ‘‘under this Act, and that would

25 disclose proprietary or confidential commercial or fi-
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1 nancial information regarding fishing operations or

2 fish processing operations, shall be kept confidential

3 and not disclosed for a period of 20 years following

4 the year of submission to the Secretary,’’; and

5 (3) by striking ‘‘under this Act,’’ in subsection

6 (b)(2) and inserting ‘‘under this Act, and that would

7 disclose proprietary or confidential commercial or fi8 nancial information regarding fishing operations or

9 fish processing operations,’’.

10 SEC. 114. COOPERATIVE RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT.

11 The Act is amended by adding at the end thereof the

12 following:

13 ‘‘TITLE V—COOPERATIVE

14 RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT

15 ‘‘SEC. 501. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish a

17 national cooperative research and management program

18 to be administered by the National Marine Fisheries Serv19 ice, based on recommendations by the Councils. The pro20 gram shall consist of cooperative research and manage21 ment activities between fishing industry participants, the

22 affected States, and the Service.

23 ‘‘(b) RESEARCH AWARDS.—Each research project

24 under this program shall be awarded on a standard com25 petitive basis established by the Service, in consultation
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1 with the Councils. Each Council shall establish a research

2 steering committee to carry out this subsection.

3 ‘‘(c) GUIDELINES.—The Secretary, in consultation

4 with the appropriate Council and the fishing industry,

5 shall create guidelines so that participants in this program

6 are not penalized for loss of catch history or unexpended

7 days-at-sea as part of a limited entry system.’’.

8 ‘‘SEC. 502. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

9 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Na10 tional Marine Fisheries Service, in addition to amounts

11 otherwise authorized by this Act, the following amounts,

12 to remain available until expended, for the conduct of this

13 program:

14 ‘‘(1) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2001.

15 ‘‘(2) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2002.

16 ‘‘(3) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2003.

17 ‘‘(4) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2004.

18 ‘‘(5) $35,000,000 for fiscal year 2005.’’.

19 SEC. 115. INDIVIDUAL FISHING QUOTAS.

20 Section 303(d)(1)(A) is amended by striking ‘‘before

21 October 1, 2000,’’ and inserting ‘‘before October 1,

22 2003,’’.

23 SEC. 116. COOPERATIVE ENFORCEMENT AGREEMENTS.

24 Titile III is amended by adding at the end thereof

25 the following:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 315. COOPERATIVE ENFORCEMENT USES.

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Governor of a State rep3 resented on an Interstate Fisheries Commission may apply

4 to the Secretary for execution of a cooperative enforce5 ment agreement with the Secretary that will authorize the

6 deputization of State law enforcement officers with marine

7 law enforcement responsibilities to perform duties of the

8 Secretary relating to law enforcement provisions under

9 this Act or any other marine resource laws enforced by

10 the Secretary. Upon receiving an application meeting the

11 requirements of this section, the Secretary shall enter into

12 the cooperative enforcement agreement with the request13 ing State.

14 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—Cooperative enforcement

15 agreements executed under subsection (a)—

16 ‘‘(1) shall be consistent with the purposes and

17 intent of section 311(a) of this Act, to the extent ap18 plicable to the regulated activities; and

19 ‘‘(2) may include specifications for joint man20 agement responsibilities as provided by the first sec21 tion of Public Law 91-412 (15 U.S.C. 1525).

22 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION AND ALLOCATION OF

23 FUNDS.—There are authorized to be appropriated to the

24 Secretary for the purposes of carrying out this section

25 $10,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.

26 The Secretary shall include in each cooperative enforce-
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1 ment agreement an allocation of funds to assist in man2 agement of the agreement. The allocation shall be equi3 tably distributed among all States participating in cooper4 ative enforcement agreements under this subsection, based

5 upon consideration of the specific marine conservation en6 forcement needs of each participating State. Such agree7 ment may provide for amounts to be withheld by the Sec8 retary for the cost of any technical or other assistance pro9 vided to the State by the Secretary under the agreement.’’.

10 SEC. 117. STATEMENT OF POLICY REGARDING DELEGA11 TION.

12 Section 2(c) (16 U.S.C. 1801(c)) is amended—

13 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in

14 paragraph (6);

15 (2) by striking ‘‘States.’’ in paragraph (7) and

16 inserting ‘‘States; and’’; and

17 (3) by adding at the end thereof the following:

18 ‘‘(8) to ensure that, notwithstanding any other

19 provision of law, the Secretary has exclusive author20 ity in the Federal Government for managing fishery

21 resources (as defined in this Act), but the Secretary

22 may delegate such authority to any other Federal of23 ficial.’’.
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1 SEC. 118. SCIENTIFIC AND STATISTICAL COMMITTEES RE2 PORT ON ECOSYSTEM RESEARCH PRIOR3 ITIES; PILOT PROGRAM FOR FISHERY ECO4 SYSTEM PLANS.

5 Section 406 (16 U.S.C. 1882) is amended by adding

6 at the end thereof the following:

7 ‘‘(f) RESEARCH.—

8 ‘‘(1) REPORT REQUIRED.—Within 12 months

9 after the date of enactment of the Magnuson-Ste10 vens Reauthorization Act of 2000 the Scientific and

11 Statistical Committees of each regional fishery man12 agement council shall identify and submit a report

13 to the Secretary outlining prioritized information or

14 research needs to support ecosystem based manage15 ment of the fisheries within its jurisdiction. In deter16 mining what factors to consider, the Committees

17 may consider the recommendations outlined in the

18 report under section (d).

19 ‘‘(2) ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall provide

20 assistance to the regional councils to obtain the

21 prioritized information and conduct research identi22 fied in the reports under paragraph (1). These ef23 forts shall not displace existing research efforts and

24 priorities identified by the regional councils or the

25 Secretary.

26 ‘‘(g) PILOT PROGRAM.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Within 18 months after the

2 date of enactment of the Magnuson-Stevens Reau3 thorization Act of 2000, the Secretary, in consulta4 tion with the 8 regional fishery management council

5 Chairs and affected stakeholders, shall identify at

6 least one fishery or complex of interacting fisheries

7 suitable for the development of a pilot Fishery Eco8 system Plan. The Secretary shall consider the re9 ports submitted under subsection (f) when selecting

10 the pilot program.

11 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION WITH APPROPRIATE COUN12 CIL.—After identifying the pilot Fishery Ecosystem

13 Plan, the Secretary shall coordinate with the appro14 priate regional fishery management council to iden15 tify any information or conduct any research that

16 may be needed to complete such a plan including a

17 model of the food web, habitat needs of organisms

18 identified in the food web, rates of mortality, identi19 fication of indicator species, and any other relevant

20 data and monitoring needs.

21 ‘‘(3) FISHERY ECOSYSTEM PLAN.—Within 30

22 months after identification of the pilot fishery or

23 complex of interacting fisheries, the appropriate re24 gional fishery management council shall submit to

25 the Secretary for approval a Fishery Ecosystem
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1 Plan. In creating such plan, the council may con2 sider the recommendations outlined in the report

3 under section (d).’’.

4 TITLE II—SHARK

5 CONSERVATION

6 SEC. 201. PROHIBITION ON SHARK-FINNING AND THE

7 LANDING OF SHARK FINS TAKEN BY SHARK8 FINNING.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 307 of the Magnuson-Ste10 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16

11 U.S.C. 1857) is amended—

12 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before

13 ‘‘It is unlawful—’’;

14 (2) by striking ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon in sub15 paragraph (N);

16 (3) by striking the period in subparagraph (O)

17 and inserting a semicolon and ‘‘or’’; and

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

19 ‘‘(P) to engage in shark-finning, or to land

20 the fins of a shark that were taken by shark21 finning.

22 ‘‘(b) SHARK-FINNING PRESUMPTION.—For purposes

23 of subsection (a)(1)(P), there is a rebuttable presumption

24 that shark fins landed from a fishing vessel or found on

25 board a fishing vessel were taken by shark-finning.’’.
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1 (b) DEFINITION ADDED TO ACT.—Section 3 of the

2 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage3 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1802), as amended by section 103,

4 is amended—

5 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (38) through

6 (48), and any reference to any such paragraph else7 where in that Act, as paragraphs (39) through (49);

8 and

9 (2) by inserting after paragraph (37) the fol10 lowing:

11 ‘‘(38) The term ‘shark-finning’ means the tak12 ing of a shark, removing the fin or fins (whether or

13 not including the tail), and returning the remainder

14 of the shark to the sea.’’.

15 SEC. 202. REGULATIONS.

16 No later than 90 days after the date of enactment

17 of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall promulgate

18 regulations implementing the prohibition set forth in sec19 tion 307(a)(1)(P) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con20 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(a)(1)(P))

21 that—

22 (1) establish shark fin landing requirements

23 that consider species identification needs, shark

24 processing methods, and the nature and availability
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1 of markets for shark products in the region in which

2 the shark fins are landed;

3 (2) contain procedures governing release of

4 sharks caught but not retained by a fishing vessel

5 that will ensure maximum probability of survival of

6 sharks after release;

7 (3) contain documentation and other require8 ments necessary to assure the timely and adequate

9 collection of data to support shark stock assessments

10 and conservation enforcement efforts; and

11 (4) set forth the facts and circumstances under

12 which a person may rebut the presumption estab13 lished by section 307(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens

14 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16

15 U.S.C. 1857(b), including the use of documentation

16 provided through applicable fisheries observer pro17 grams and dockside inspection.

18 SEC. 203. INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS.

19 The Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Sec20 retary of State, may with respect to the fishing practices

21 on highly migratory sharks governed by regulations pro22 mulgated by the Secretary of Commerce pursuant to sec23 tion 202 of this title—

24 (1) notify other nations whose vessels engage in

25 fishing on highly migratory sharks, as soon as pos-
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1 sible, about the import certification procedures and

2 regulations under section of this title, as well as the

3 international cooperation and assistance provisions

4 of section 204;

5 (2) initiate discussions as soon as possible for

6 purpose of developing bilateral or multilateral agree7 ments with other nations to conserve and manage

8 highly migratory sharks, which should include provi9 sions prohibiting shark-finning and minimizing ad10 verse effects of commercial fishing operations on

11 species of highly migratory sharks;

12 (3) provide to the Congress, by not later than

13 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and

14 every year thereafter, a full report which—

15 (A) includes a list of nations whose vessels

16 conduct shark-finning or commercial fishing op17 erations which may adversely affect highly mi18 gratory shark species;

19 (B) describes the efforts taken to carry out

20 this title and evaluates the progress of those ef21 forts;

22 (C) includes a determination as to whether

23 the importation into the United States of

24 sharks and shark products (including fins) is

25 adversely affecting the effectiveness of national
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1 and international measures for the conservation

2 of highly migratory sharks; and

3 (D) includes recommendations for meas4 ures to ensure that United States actions are

5 consistent with national, international, and re6 gional obligations relating to highly migratory

7 shark populations, including those listed under

8 the Convention on the International Trade in

9 Endangered Species.

10 SEC. 204. IMPORT CERTIFICATION.

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary of Commerce,

12 after consultation with the Secretary of State, determines

13 that the importation of sharks or shark products into the

14 United States is adversely affecting the effectiveness of

15 national and international measures for the conservation

16 of highly migratory sharks, then the Secretary shall report

17 that determination to the Congress and establish a proce18 dure, consistent with the provisions of subchapter II of

19 chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, and including

20 notice and an opportunity for comment by the govern21 ments of nations listed by the Secretary under paragraph

22 (6) of section 203, for determining whether those

23 governments—

24 (1) have adopted regulatory programs gov25 erning shark-finning and other harvesting practices
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1 adversely affecting highly migratory sharks that are

2 comparable, taking into account different conditions,

3 to those of the United States;

4 (2) have established management plans gov5 erning release of highly migratory species of sharks

6 caught but not retained by fishing vessels that en7 sure maximum probability of survival after release;

8 and

9 (3) have established a management plan con10 taining requirements that will assist in gathering

11 species-specific data to support international and re12 gional shark stock assessments and conservation en13 forcement efforts.

14 (b) CERTIFICATION PROCEDURE.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall deter16 mine, on the basis of the procedure under subsection

17 (a), and certify to the Congress not later than 90

18 days after promulgation of the regulations under

19 section 202, and annually thereafter whether the

20 government of each harvesting nation—

21 (A) has provided documentary evidence of

22 the adoption of a regulatory program governing

23 shark-finning and the conservation of highly mi24 gratory sharks that is comparable, taking into
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1 account different conditions, to that of the

2 United States;

3 (B) has established a management plan

4 governing release of highly migratory species of

5 sharks caught but not retained by a fishing ves6 sel that will ensure maximum probability of sur7 vival of after release; and

8 (C) has established a management plan

9 containing requirements that will assist in gath10 ering species-specific data to support inter11 national and regional shark stock assessments

12 and conservation enforcement efforts.

13 (2) ALTERNATIVE PROCEDURE.—The Secretary

14 shall establish a procedure for certification, on a

15 shipment-by-shipment, shipper-by-shipper, or other

16 basis of imports of highly migratory sharks or prod17 ucts (including fins) from a vessel of a harvesting

18 nation not certified under paragraph (1) if the Sec19 retary determines that such imports were harvested

20 by practices that—

21 (A) do not adversely affect highly migra22 tory sharks;

23 (B) include release of highly migratory

24 species of sharks caught but not retained by
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1 such vessel in a manner that ensures maximum

2 probability of survival after release;

3 (C) include the gathering of species-spe4 cific data that can be used to support inter5 national and regional shark stock assessments

6 and conservation efforts; or

7 (D) are consistent with harvesting prac8 tices comparable, taking into account the cir9 cumstances, to those of the United States.

10 (c) UNCERTIFIED IMPORTS.—It is unlawful to import

11 highly migratory sharks or products (including fins) which

12 have been harvested by the practice of shark-finning or

13 other commercial fishing practices that may affect ad14 versely such populations of sharks more than 90 days

15 after promulgation of the regulations under section 202

16 if such sharks or products were harvested by a vessel of

17 a harvesting nation not certified under subsection (b)(1)

18 unless that vessel is certified under subsection (b)(2).

19 (d) REINSTATEMENT OF UNCERTIFIED COUNTRY

20 STATUS.—If the Secretary fails to make the annual cer21 tification required by subsection (b)(1) with respect to a

22 country previously certified under that subsection, and ex23 cept as provided in subsection (b)(2), then subsection (c)

24 shall apply to imports of highly migratory sharks or prod25 ucts (including fins) harvested by vessels of that nation
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1 beginning 90 days after the date in any year on which

2 the Secretary fails to make the scheduled annual certifi3 cation required by subsection (b).

4 SEC. 205. SHARK-FINNING DEFINED.

5 For the purposes of this title, the term ‘‘shark-fin6 ning’’ means the taking of a shark, removing the fin or

7 fins (whether or not including the tail), and returning the

8 remainder of the shark to the sea.

9 SEC. 206. INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AND ASSIST10 ANCE.

11 To the greatest extent possible consistent with exist12 ing authority and the availability of funds, the Secretary

13 of Commerce shall—

14 (1) provide appropriate technological and other

15 assistance to nations listed under paragraph (6) of

16 section 203 and regional or international organiza17 tions of which those nations are members to assist

18 those nations in qualifying for certification under

19 section 204(b)(1);

20 (2) undertake, where appropriate, cooperative

21 research activities on species statistics and improved

22 harvesting techniques, with those nations or organi23 zations;

24 (3) encourage and facilitate the transfer of ap25 propriate technology to those nations or organiza-
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1 tions to assist those nations in qualifying for certifi2 cation under section 204(b)(1); and

3 (4) provide assistance to those nations or orga4 nizations in designing and implementing appropriate

5 shark harvesting plans.

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