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106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2831

To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act

to improve conservation and management of sharks and establish a

consistent national policy toward the practice of shark-finning.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JUNE 29, 2000

Mr. KERRY (for himself and Mr. HOLLINGS) introduced the following bill;

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

Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and

Management Act to improve conservation and management of sharks and establish a consistent national policy

toward the practice of shark-finning.

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 ‘‘Shark Conservation

5 Act of 2000’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress makes the following findings:
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1 (1) The life history characteristics of most

2 sharks, including slow growth, late sexual maturity,

3 and the production of few young, make them par4 ticularly vulnerable to overfishing and necessitate

5 careful management of shark fisheries.

6 (2) Many shark species that range widely would

7 be appropriate for domestic and international man8 agement approaches that govern other highly migra9 tory species.

10 (3) Most sharks are captured incidentally in

11 fisheries directed at other species for which fishing

12 could continue to remain economically viable after

13 less abundant or less economically-valuable shark

14 species are overfished.

15 (4) The lack of adequate data and information

16 on the status and range of highly migratory shark

17 populations, shark harvesting practices, the extent of

18 incidental catch or bycatch of sharks, and the trade

19 in shark products (including shark fins) undermines

20 effective international and national management of

21 shark populations.

22 (5) Shark-finning is the practice of removing

23 the fins of a shark and dumping its carcass back

24 into the ocean. Shark fins comprise approximately 5

25 percent of the weight of a shark, and disposing of
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1 the carcass of a finned shark does not utilize, or

2 wastes, about 95 percent (by weight) of each shark.

3 (6) The global shark fin trade involves at least

4 125 countries, including the United States, and the

5 demand for shark fins and other shark products has

6 driven dramatic increases in shark fishing and shark

7 mortality around the world.

8 (7) The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva9 tion and Management Act states that it is the policy

10 of the Congress to avoid unnecessary waste of fish

11 and requires United States fishery conservation and

12 management measures to minimize bycatch and, to

13 the extent it is unavoidable, minimize the mortality

14 of such bycatch.

15 (8) The Agreement for the Implementation of

16 the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on

17 the Law of the Sea of 10 December, 1982, Relating

18 to the Conservation and Management of Straddling

19 Stocks and Highly Migratory Species requires states

20 to, inter alia, adopt measures to ensure long-term

21 sustainability of highly migratory fish stocks based

22 on the best scientific information available, to apply

23 the precautionary approach, and to minimize waste,

24 discards, and catch of non-target species.
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1 (9) The Food and Agriculture Organization

2 Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries provides

3 that countries should adopt management measures

4 that minimize waste, discards, and catch of non-tar5 get species.

6 (10) The Food and Agriculture Organization’s

7 International Plan of Action for the Conservation

8 and Management of Sharks—

9 (A) urges States to develop shark con10 servation plans that—

11 (i) minimize waste and discards from

12 shark catches (for example, requiring re13 tention of sharks from which fins are re14 moved); and

15 (ii) ensure that shark catches from di16 rected and non-directed fisheries are sus17 tainable; and

18 (B) calls for submission of such plans by

19 the year 2001.

20 (11) At present, while some sharks potentially

21 may be managed internationally under arrangements

22 for highly migratory species, they are not now sub23 ject to specific conservation and management meas24 ures by international or regional organization or ar25 rangements.
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1 (12) The conservation program for sharks for

2 the United States exclusive economic zone varies

3 among management regions, particularly with re4 spect to the practice of shark finning, and should in5 clude quotas and a ban on shark-finning.

6 (13) The establishment of a prohibition on the

7 practice of shark-finning by United States flag ves8 sels and in waters subject to the jurisdiction of the

9 United States would not reduce shark-finning being

10 carried out by other international fishing fleets or

11 United States transshipment or landing of fins

12 taken by these fleets, or imports of processed fins.

13 Foreign fleets transship or land approximately 180

14 metric tons of shark fins annually (about 7 percent

15 of shark fins harvested in the Pacific) through

16 United States vessels or ports in the Pacific, alone.

17 (14) Shark-finning and trade in fins harvested

18 in this manner must be addressed comprehensively

19 at both the national and international levels. Shark

20 finning must be prohibited in the United States,

21 and, as a global leader in fisheries conservation and

22 shark management, the United States should lead

23 efforts at the United Nations and through regional

24 agreements, such as the International Convention

25 for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas and the Mul-
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1 tilateral High Level Conference on the Conservation

2 and Management of Highly Migratory Species and

3 new shark-specific regional management bodies or

4 agreements, to achieve coordinated international

5 management of sharks, including an international

6 ban on shark-finning on the high seas and in the ex7 clusive economic zones of all nations.

8 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON SHARK-FINNING AND THE LAND9 ING OF SHARK FINS TAKEN BY SHARK-FIN10 NING.

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 307 of the Magnuson-Ste12 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16

13 U.S.C. 1857) is amended—

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

15 ‘‘It is unlawful—’’;

16 (2) by striking ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon in sub17 paragraph (N);

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

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

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

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

22 the fins of a shark that were taken by shark23 finning. There is a rebuttable presumption that

24 shark fins landed from a fishing vessel or found
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1 on board a fishing vessel were taken by shark2 finning.’’.

3 (b) DEFINITION ADDED TO ACT.—Section 3 of the

4 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage5 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1802) is amended—

6 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (35) through

7 (45), and any reference to any such paragraph else8 where in that Act, as paragraphs (36) through (46);

9 and

10 (2) by inserting after paragraph (34) the fol11 lowing:

12 ‘‘(35) The term ‘shark-finning’ means the tak13 ing of a shark, removing the fin or fins (whether or

14 not including the tail) of a shark, and returning the

15 remainder of the shark to the sea.’’.

16 SEC. 4. REGULATIONS.

17 No later than 90 days after the date of enactment

18 of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall promulgate

19 regulations implementing the prohibition set forth in sec20 tion 307(1)(P) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con21 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1857(1)(P))

22 that—

23 (1) establish shark fin landing requirements

24 that consider species identification needs, shark

25 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 assess10 ments, conservation, and enforcement efforts; and

11 (4) set forth the facts and circumstances under

12 which a person may rebut the presumption estab13 lished in section 307(1)(P) 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. 5. INTERNATIONAL NEGOTIATIONS.

19 The Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Sec20 retary of State, shall—

21 (1) notify other nations whose vessels engage in

22 fishing on sharks, as soon as possible, about the im23 port certification procedures and regulations under

24 section 6 of this Act, as well as the international co25 operation and assistance provisions of section 10;
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1 (2) initiate discussions as soon as possible for

2 purpose of developing bilateral or multilateral agree3 ments with other nations for the prohibition on fin4 ning of sharks;

5 (3) initiate discussions as soon as possible with

6 all foreign governments which are engaged in, or

7 which have persons or companies engaged in shark8 finning or in commercial fishing operations that the

9 Secretary of Commerce determines may affect ad10 versely such species of sharks, for the purpose of en11 tering into bilateral and multilateral treaties with

12 such countries to protect such species;

13 (4) seek agreements calling for an international

14 ban on shark-finning and other fishing practices ad15 versely affecting these species through the United

16 Nations, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s

17 Committee on Fisheries, and appropriate regional

18 fishery management bodies; and

19 (5) initiate the amendment of any existing

20 international treaty for the protection and conserva21 tion of species of sharks to which the United States

22 is a party in order to make such treaty consistent

23 with the purposes and policies of this section.
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1 SEC. 6. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

2 The Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the

3 Secretary of State, shall provide to Congress, by not later

4 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and

5 every year thereafter, a full report which—

6 (1) includes a list of nations whose vessels

7 conduct shark-finning or commercial fishing op8 erations which adversely affect shark species;

9 (2) describes the efforts taken by nations

10 to carry out this title, listed under subsection

11 (1), and evaluates the progress of those efforts;

12 (3) includes a determination as to whether

13 the importation into the United States of

14 sharks or shark products (including fins) is ad15 versely affecting the effectiveness of national

16 and international measures for the conservation

17 of sharks;

18 (4) sets forth a plan of action for ensuring

19 the conclusion and entry into force of inter20 national measures for the conservation of

21 sharks; and

22 (5) includes recommendations for measures

23 to ensure that United States actions are con24 sistent with national, international, and regional

25 obligations relating to highly migratory shark

26 populations, including those listed under the
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1 Convention on International Trade in Endan2 gered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna.

3 SEC. 7. IMPORT CERTIFICATION.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce shall

5 establish a procedure, consistent with the provisions of

6 subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code,

7 and including notice and an opportunity for comment by

8 the governments of nations listed by the Secretary under

9 paragraph (1) of section 6, for determining whether

10 governments—

11 (1) have adopted regulatory programs gov12 erning shark-finning and other harvesting practices

13 adversely affecting sharks that are comparable, tak14 ing into account different conditions, to those of the

15 United States;

16 (2) have established management plans gov17 erning release of species of sharks caught but not re18 tained by fishing vessels that ensure maximum prob19 ability of survival after release; and

20 (3) have established a management plan con21 taining requirements that will assist in gathering

22 species-specific data to support international and re23 gional shark stock assessments and conservation en24 forcement efforts.

25 (b) CERTIFICATION PROCEDURE.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall deter2 mine, on the basis of the procedure under subsection

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

4 days after promulgation of the regulations under

5 section 4, and annually thereafter whether the gov6 ernment of each harvesting nation—

7 (A) has provided documentary evidence of

8 the adoption of a regulatory program governing

9 shark-finning and the conservation of sharks

10 that is comparable, taking into account dif11 ferent conditions, to that of the United States;

12 (B) has established a management plan

13 governing release of species of sharks caught

14 but not retained by a fishing vessel that will en15 sure maximum probability of survival of after

16 release; and

17 (C) has established a management plan

18 containing requirements that will assist in gath19 ering species-specific data to support inter20 national and regional shark stock assessments

21 and conservation enforcement efforts.

22 (2) ALTERNATIVE PROCEDURE.—The Secretary

23 shall establish a procedure for certification, on a

24 shipment-by-shipment, shipper-by-shipper, or other

25 basis of imports of sharks or products (including
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1 fins) from a vessel of a harvesting nation not cer2 tified under paragraph (1) if the Secretary deter3 mines that such imports were harvested by practices

4 that—

5 (A) do not adversely affect sharks;

6 (B) include release of species of sharks

7 caught but not retained by such vessel in a

8 manner that ensures maximum probability of

9 survival after release;

10 (C) include the gathering of species-spe11 cific data that can be used to support inter12 national and regional shark stock assessments

13 and conservation efforts; or

14 (D) are consistent with harvesting prac15 tices comparable, taking into account the cir16 cumstances, to those of the United States.

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

18 sharks or products (including fins) more than 90 days

19 after promulgation of the regulations under section 4 if

20 such sharks or products were harvested by a vessel of a

21 harvesting nation not certified under subsection (b)(1) un22 less that vessel is certified under subsection (b)(2).

23 (d) REINSTATEMENT OF UNCERTIFIED COUNTRY

24 STATUS.—If the Secretary fails to make the annual cer25 tification required by subsection (b)(1) with respect to a
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1 country previously certified under that subsection, and ex2 cept as provided in subsection (b)(2), then subsection (c)

3 shall apply to imports of sharks or products (including

4 fins) harvested by vessels of that nation beginning 90 days

5 after the date in any year on which the Secretary fails

6 to make the scheduled annual certification required by

7 subsection (b).

8 SEC. 8. SHARK-FINNING DEFINED.

9 For the purposes of this Act, the term ‘‘shark-fin10 ning’’ means the taking of a shark, removing the fin or

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

12 remainder of the shark to the sea.

13 SEC. 9. RESEARCH.

14 The Secretary of Commerce shall establish a research

15 program for Pacific and Atlantic sharks to engage in the

16 following data collection and research:

17 (1) The collection of data to support stock as18 sessments of highly-migratory shark populations

19 subject to incidental or directed harvesting by com20 mercial vessels, giving priority to species according

21 to vulnerability of the species to fishing gear and

22 fishing mortality, and its population status.

23 (2) Research to identify fishing gear and prac24 tices that prevent or minimize incidental catch of

25 sharks in commercial and recreational fishing.
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1 (3) Research on fishing methods that will en2 sure maximum likelihood of survival of captured

3 sharks after release.

4 (4) Research on methods for releasing sharks

5 from fishing gear that minimize risk of injury to

6 fishing vessel operators and crews.

7 (5) Research on methods to maximize the utili8 zation of, and funding to develop the market for,

9 sharks not taken in violation of a fishing manage10 ment plan approved under section 303 or of section

11 307(1)(P) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con12 servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853,

13 1857(1)(P)); and

14 (6) Research on the international shark fin

15 trade.

16 SEC. 10. WESTERN PACIFIC LONGLINE FISHERIES COOPER17 ATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM.

18 The National Marine Fisheries Service, in consulta19 tion with the Western Pacific Fisheries Management

20 Council, shall initiate a cooperative research program with

21 the commercial longlining industry to carry out activities

22 consistent with this Act, including research described in

23 section 8 of this Act. The service may initiate such shark

24 cooperative research programs upon the request of any

25 other fishery management council.
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1 SEC. 11. INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AND ASSISTANCE.

2 To the greatest extent possible consistent with exist3 ing authority and the availability of funds, the Secretary

4 of Commerce shall—

5 (1) provide appropriate technological and other

6 assistance to nations listed under paragraph (6) of

7 section 5 and regional or international organizations

8 of which those nations are members to assist those

9 nations in qualifying for certification under section

10 6(b)(1);

11 (2) undertake, where appropriate, cooperative

12 research activities on species statistics and improved

13 harvesting techniques, with those nations or organi14 zations;

15 (3) encourage and facilitate the transfer of ap16 propriate technology to those nations or organiza17 tions to assist those nations in qualifying for certifi18 cation under section 6(b)(1); and

19 (4) provide assistance to those nations or orga20 nizations in designing and implementing appropriate

21 shark harvesting plans.

22 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

23 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec24 retary of Commerce for fiscal years 2001 through 2005

25 such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act.

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