I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 200 

To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

to provide flexibility for fishery managers and stability for fishermen, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 3, 2017 

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act to provide flexibility for fishery managers and stability for fishermen, 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 ‘‘Strengthening Fishing 

5 Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries Man6 agement Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this Act, any term used that is defined in section 

9 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 


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1 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802) shall have the same 

2 meaning such term has under that section. 

3 SEC. 3. REFERENCES. 

4 Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in 

5 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

6 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a provision, the ref7 erence shall be considered to be made to a provision of 

8 the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage9 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). 

10 SEC. 4. FLEXIBILITY IN REBUILDING FISH STOCKS. 

11 (a) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.—Section 304(e) (16 

12 U.S.C. 1854(e)) is amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

14 (A) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking 

15 ‘‘possible’’ and inserting ‘‘practicable’’; 

16 (B) by amending subparagraph (A)(ii) to 

17 read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(ii) may not exceed the time the 

19 stock would be rebuilt without fishing oc20 curring plus one mean generation, except 

21 in a case in which— 

22 ‘‘(I) the biology of the stock of 

23 fish, other environmental conditions, 

24 or management measures under an 

25 international agreement in which the 


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1 United States participates dictate oth2 erwise; 

3 ‘‘(II) the Secretary determines 

4 that the cause of the stock being de5 pleted is outside the jurisdiction of the 

6 Council or the rebuilding program 

7 cannot be effective only by limiting 

8 fishing activities; 

9 ‘‘(III) the Secretary determines 

10 that one or more components of a 

11 mixed-stock fishery is depleted but 

12 cannot be rebuilt within that time13 frame without significant economic 

14 harm to the fishery, or cannot be re15 built without causing another compo16 nent of the mixed-stock fishery to ap17 proach a depleted status; 

18 ‘‘(IV) the Secretary determines 

19 that recruitment, distribution, or life 

20 history of, or fishing activities for, the 

21 stock are affected by informal trans22 boundary agreements under which 

23 management activities outside the ex24 clusive economic zone by another 

25 country may hinder conservation and 


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1 management efforts by United States 

2 fishermen; and 

3 ‘‘(V) the Secretary determines 

4 that the stock has been affected by 

5 unusual events that make rebuilding 

6 within the specified time period im7 probable without significant economic 

8 harm to fishing communities;’’; 

9 (C) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon 

10 at the end of subparagraph (B), by redesig11 nating subparagraphs (B) and (C) as subpara12 graphs (C) and (D), and by inserting after sub13 paragraph (A) the following: 

14 ‘‘(B) take into account environmental con15 dition including predator/prey relationships;’’; 

16 and 

17 (D) by striking the period at the end of 

18 subparagraph (D) (as so redesignated) and in19 serting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding at the end the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘(E) specify a schedule for reviewing the 

22 rebuilding targets, evaluating environmental im23 pacts on rebuilding progress, and evaluating 

24 progress being made toward reaching rebuilding 

25 targets.’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(8) A fishery management plan, plan amend3 ment, or proposed regulations may use alternative 

4 rebuilding strategies, including harvest control rules 

5 and fishing mortality-rate targets to the extent they 

6 are in compliance with the requirements of this Act. 

7 ‘‘(9) A Council may terminate the application of 

8 paragraph (3) to a fishery if the Council’s scientific 

9 and statistical committee determines and the Sec10 retary concurs that the original determination that 

11 the fishery was depleted was erroneous, either— 

12 ‘‘(A) within the 2-year period beginning on 

13 the effective date a fishery management plan, 

14 plan amendment, or proposed regulation for a 

15 fishery under this subsection takes effect; or 

16 ‘‘(B) within 90 days after the completion 

17 of the next stock assessment after such deter18 mination.’’. 

19 (b) EMERGENCY REGULATIONS AND INTERIM MEAS20 URES.—Section 305(c)(3)(B) (16 U.S.C. 1855(c)(3)(B)) 

21 is amended by striking ‘‘180 days after’’ and all that fol22 lows through ‘‘provided’’ and inserting ‘‘1 year after the 

23 date of publication, and may be extended by publication 

24 in the Federal Register for one additional period of not 

25 more than 1 year, if’’. 


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1 SEC. 5. MODIFICATIONS TO THE ANNUAL CATCH LIMIT RE2 QUIREMENT. 

3 Section 302 (16 U.S.C. 1852) is amended by adding 

4 at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(m) CONSIDERATIONS FOR MODIFICATIONS TO AN6 NUAL CATCH LIMIT REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) CONSIDERATION OF ECOSYSTEM AND ECO8 NOMIC IMPACTS.—In establishing annual catch lim9 its a Council may, consistent with section 302(h)(6), 

10 consider changes in an ecosystem and the economic 

11 needs of the fishing communities. 

12 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS TO ANNUAL CATCH LIMIT

13 REQUIREMENT FOR SPECIAL FISHERIES.—Notwith14 standing subsection (h)(6), a Council is not required 

15 to develop an annual catch limit for— 

16 ‘‘(A) an ecosystem component species; 

17 ‘‘(B) a fishery for a species that has a life 

18 cycle of approximately 1 year, unless the Sec19 retary has determined the fishery is subject to 

20 overfishing; or 

21 ‘‘(C) a stock for which— 

22 ‘‘(i) more than half of a single-year 

23 class will complete their life cycle in less 

24 than 18 months; and 

25 ‘‘(ii) fishing mortality will have little 

26 impact on the stock. 


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1 ‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP TO INTERNATIONAL FISH2 ERY EFFORTS.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each annual catch 

4 limit, consistent with section 302(h)(6)— 

5 ‘‘(i) may take into account manage6 ment measures under international agree7 ments in which the United States partici8 pates; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) in the case of an annual catch 

10 limit developed by a Council for a species, 

11 shall take into account fishing for the spe12 cies outside the exclusive economic zone 

13 and the life-history characteristics of the 

14 species that are not subject to the jurisdic15 tion of the Council. 

16 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION TO ANNUAL CATCH LIMIT

17 REQUIREMENT.—If fishery management activi18 ties by another country with respect to fishing 

19 outside the exclusive economic zone may hinder 

20 conservation efforts by United States fishermen 

21 for a fish species for which any of the recruit22 ment, distribution, life history, or fishing activi23 ties are transboundary, and for which there is 

24 no informal transboundary agreement with that 

25 country in effect, then— 


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1 ‘‘(i) notwithstanding subsection 

2 (h)(6), no annual catch limit is required to 

3 be developed for the species by a Council; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(ii) if an annual catch limit is devel6 oped by a Council for the species, the catch 

7 limit shall take into account fishing for the 

8 species outside the exclusive economic zone 

9 that is not subject to the jurisdiction of the 

10 Council. 

11 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION FOR MULTISPECIES COM12 PLEXES AND MULTIYEAR ANNUAL CATCH LIMITS.— 

13 For purposes of subsection (h)(6), a Council may es14 tablish— 

15 ‘‘(A) an annual catch limit for a stock 

16 complex; or 

17 ‘‘(B) annual catch limits for each year in 

18 any continuous period that is not more than 

19 three years in duration. 

20 ‘‘(5) ECOSYSTEM COMPONENT SPECIES DE21 FINED.—In this subsection the term ‘ecosystem com22 ponent species’ means a stock of fish that is a non23 target, incidentally harvested stock of fish in a fish24 ery, or a nontarget, incidentally harvested stock of 


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1 fish that a Council or the Secretary has deter2 mined— 

3 ‘‘(A) is not subject to overfishing, ap4 proaching a depleted condition or depleted; and 

5 ‘‘(B) is not likely to become subject to 

6 overfishing or depleted in the absence of con7 servation and management measures.’’. 

8 SEC. 6. DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN OVERFISHED AND DE9 PLETED. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1802) is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (34), by striking ‘‘The terms 

13 ‘overfishing’ and ‘overfished’ mean’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘The term ‘overfishing’ means’’; and 

15 (2) by inserting after paragraph (8) the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(8a) The term ‘depleted’ means, with respect 

18 to a stock of fish or stock complex, that the stock 

19 or stock complex has a biomass that has declined 

20 below a level that jeopardizes the capacity of the 

21 stock or stock complex to produce maximum sustain22 able yield on a continuing basis.’’. 

23 (b) SUBSTITUTION OF TERM.—The Magnuson-Ste24 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

25 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) is amended— 


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1 (1) in the heading of section 304(e), by striking 

2 ‘‘OVERFISHED’’ and inserting ‘‘DEPLETED’’; and 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘overfished’’ each place it ap4 pears and inserting ‘‘depleted’’. 

5 (c) CLARITY IN ANNUAL REPORT.—Section 

6 304(e)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1854(e)(1)) is amended by adding 

7 at the end the following: ‘‘The report shall distinguish be8 tween fisheries that are depleted (or approaching that con9 dition) as a result of fishing and fisheries that are depleted 

10 (or approaching that condition) as a result of factors other 

11 than fishing. The report shall state, for each fishery iden12 tified as depleted or approaching that condition, whether 

13 the fishery is the target of directed fishing.’’. 

14 SEC. 7. TRANSPARENCY AND PUBLIC PROCESS. 

15 (a) ADVICE.—Section 302(g)(1)(B) (16 U.S.C. 

16 1852(g)(1)(B)) is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: ‘‘Each scientific and statistical committee shall de18 velop such advice in a transparent manner and allow for 

19 public involvement in the process.’’. 

20 (b) MEETINGS.—Section 302(i)(2) (16 U.S.C. 

21 1852(i)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(G) Each Council shall make available on the 

23 Internet Web site of the Council— 

24 ‘‘(i) to the extent practicable, a Webcast, 

25 an audio recording, or a live broadcast of each 


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1 meeting of the Council, and of the Council Co2 ordination Committee established under sub3 section (l), that is not closed in accordance with 

4 paragraph (3); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) audio, video (if the meeting was in 

6 person or by video conference), or a searchable 

7 audio or written transcript of each meeting of 

8 the Council and of the meetings of committees 

9 referred to in section 302(g)(1)(B) of the Coun10 cil by not later than 30 days after the conclu11 sion of the meeting. 

12 ‘‘(H) The Secretary shall maintain and make 

13 available to the public an archive of Council and sci14 entific and statistical committee meeting audios, vid15 eos, and transcripts made available under clauses (i) 

16 and (ii) of subparagraph (G).’’. 

17 (c) FISHERY IMPACT STATEMENTS.— 

18 (1) REQUIREMENT.—Section 303 (16 U.S.C. 

19 1853) is amended— 

20 (A) in subsection (a), by striking para21 graph (9) and redesignating paragraphs (10) 

22 through (15) as paragraphs (9) through (14), 

23 respectively; and 

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

25 ‘‘(d) FISHERY IMPACT STATEMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) Any fishery management plan (or fishery 

2 management plan amendment) prepared by any 

3 Council or by the Secretary pursuant to subsection 

4 (a) or (b), or proposed regulations deemed necessary 

5 pursuant to subsection (c), shall include a fishery 

6 impact statement which shall assess, specify and 

7 analyze the likely effects and impact of the proposed 

8 action on the quality of the human environment. 

9 ‘‘(2) The fishery impact statement shall de10 scribe— 

11 ‘‘(A) a purpose of the proposed action; 

12 ‘‘(B) the environmental impact of the pro13 posed action; 

14 ‘‘(C) any adverse environmental effects 

15 which cannot be avoided should the proposed 

16 action be implemented; 

17 ‘‘(D) a reasonable range of alternatives to 

18 the proposed action; 

19 ‘‘(E) the relationship between short-term 

20 use of fishery resources and the enhancement of 

21 long-term productivity; 

22 ‘‘(F) the cumulative conservation and man23 agement effects; and 

24 ‘‘(G) economic, and social impacts of the 

25 proposed action on— 


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1 ‘‘(i) participants in the fisheries and 

2 fishing communities affected by the pro3 posed action; 

4 ‘‘(ii) participants in the fisheries con5 ducted in adjacent areas under the author6 ity of another Council, after consultation 

7 with such Council and representatives of 

8 those participants; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) the safety of human life at sea, 

10 including whether and to what extent such 

11 measures may affect the safety of partici12 pants in the fishery. 

13 ‘‘(3) A substantially complete fishery impact 

14 statement, which may be in draft form, shall be 

15 available not less than 14 days before the beginning 

16 of the meeting at which a Council makes its final de17 cision on the proposal (for plans, plan amendments, 

18 or proposed regulations prepared by a Council pur19 suant to subsection (a) or (c)). Availability of this 

20 fishery impact statement will be announced by the 

21 methods used by the council to disseminate public 

22 information and the public and relevant government 

23 agencies will be invited to comment on the fishery 

24 impact statement. 


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1 ‘‘(4) The completed fishery impact statement 

2 shall accompany the transmittal of a fishery man3 agement plan or plan amendment as specified in sec4 tion 304(a), as well as the transmittal of proposed 

5 regulations as specified in section 304(b). 

6 ‘‘(5) The Councils shall, subject to approval by 

7 the Secretary, establish criteria to determine actions 

8 or classes of action of minor significance regarding 

9 subparagraphs (A), (B), (D), (E), and (F) of para10 graph (2), for which preparation of a fishery impact 

11 statement is unnecessary and categorically excluded 

12 from the requirements of this section, and the docu13 mentation required to establish the exclusion. 

14 ‘‘(6) The Councils shall, subject to approval by 

15 the Secretary, prepare procedures for compliance 

16 with this section that provide for timely, clear, and 

17 concise analysis that is useful to decisionmakers and 

18 the public, reduce extraneous paperwork and effec19 tively involve the public, including— 

20 ‘‘(A) using Council meetings to determine 

21 the scope of issues to be addressed and identi22 fying significant issues related to the proposed 

23 action; 

24 ‘‘(B) integration of the fishery impact 

25 statement development process with preliminary 


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1 and final Council decisionmaking in a manner 

2 that provides opportunity for comment from the 

3 public and relevant government agencies prior 

4 to these decision points; and 

5 ‘‘(C) providing scientific, technical, and 

6 legal advice at an early stage of the develop7 ment of the fishery impact statement to ensure 

8 timely transmittal and Secretarial review of the 

9 proposed fishery management plan, plan 

10 amendment, or regulations to the Secretary. 

11 ‘‘(7) Actions taken in accordance with this sec12 tion are deemed to fulfill the requirements of the 

13 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

14 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and all related implementing 

15 regulations.’’. 

16 (2) EVALUATION OF ADEQUACY.—Section 

17 304(a)(2) (16 U.S.C. 1854(a)(2)) is amended by 

18 striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end of sub19 paragraph (B), striking the period at the end of sub20 paragraph (C) and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding 

21 at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(D) evaluate the adequacy of the accom23 panying fishery impact statement as basis for 

24 fully considering the environmental impacts of 


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1 implementing the fishery management plan or 

2 plan amendment.’’. 

3 (3) REVIEW OF REGULATIONS.—Section 304(b) 

4 (16 U.S.C. 1854(b)) is amended by striking so much 

5 as precedes subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) and 

6 inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF REGULATIONS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) Upon transmittal by the Council to the 

9 Secretary of proposed regulations prepared under 

10 section 303(c), the Secretary shall immediately ini11 tiate an evaluation of the proposed regulations to de12 termine whether they are consistent with the fishery 

13 management plan, plan amendment, this Act and 

14 other applicable law. The Secretary shall also imme15 diately initiate an evaluation of the accompanying 

16 fishery impact statement as a basis for fully consid17 ering the environmental impacts of implementing the 

18 proposed regulations. Within 15 days of initiating 

19 such evaluation the Secretary shall make a deter20 mination and—’’. 

21 (4) EFFECT ON TIME REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

22 305(e) (16 U.S.C. 1855(e)) is amended by inserting 

23 ‘‘the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

24 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.),’’ after ‘‘the Regulatory Flexi25 bility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.),’’. 


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1 SEC. 8. LIMITATION ON FUTURE CATCH SHARE PROGRAMS. 

2 (a) CATCH SHARE DEFINED.—Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 

3 1802) is amended by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(2a) The term ‘catch share’ means any fishery 

6 management program that allocates a specific per7 centage of the total allowable catch for a fishery, or 

8 a specific fishing area, to an individual, cooperative, 

9 community, processor, representative of a commer10 cial sector, or regional fishery association established 

11 in accordance with section 303A(c)(4), or other enti12 ty.’’. 

13 (b) CATCH SHARE REFERENDUM PILOT PRO14 GRAM.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 303A(c)(6)(D) (16 

16 U.S.C. 1853a(c)(6)(D)) is amended to read as fol17 lows: 

18 ‘‘(D) CATCH SHARE REFERENDUM PILOT

19 PROGRAM.— 

20 ‘‘(i) The New England, Mid-Atlantic, 

21 South Atlantic, and Gulf of Mexico Coun22 cils may not submit a fishery management 

23 plan or amendment that creates a catch 

24 share program for a fishery, and the Sec25 retary may not approve or implement such 

26 a plan or amendment submitted by such a 


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1 Council or a secretarial plan or amendment 

2 under section 304(c) that creates such a 

3 program, unless the final program has 

4 been approved, in a referendum in accord5 ance with this subparagraph, by a majority 

6 of the permit holders eligible to participate 

7 in the fishery. For multispecies permits in 

8 the Gulf of Mexico, any permit holder with 

9 landings from within the sector of the fish10 ery being considered for the catch share 

11 program within the 5-year period pre12 ceding the date of the referendum and still 

13 active in fishing in the fishery shall be eli14 gible to participate in such a referendum. 

15 If a catch share program is not approved 

16 by the requisite number of permit holders, 

17 it may be revised and submitted for ap18 proval in a subsequent referendum. 

19 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary may, at the re20 quest of the New England Fishery Man21 agement Council, allow participation in 

22 such a referendum for a fishery under the 

23 Council’s authority, by fishing vessel crew24 members who derive a significant portion 

25 of their livelihood from such fishing. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) The Secretary shall conduct a 

2 referendum under this subparagraph, in3 cluding notifying all permit holders eligible 

4 to participate in the referendum and mak5 ing available to them— 

6 ‘‘(I) a copy of the proposed pro7 gram; 

8 ‘‘(II) an estimate of the costs of 

9 the program, including costs to par10 ticipants; 

11 ‘‘(III) an estimate of the amount 

12 of fish or percentage of quota each 

13 permit holder would be allocated; and 

14 ‘‘(IV) information concerning the 

15 schedule, procedures, and eligibility 

16 requirements for the referendum proc17 ess. 

18 ‘‘(iv) For the purposes of this sub19 paragraph, the term ‘permit holder eligible 

20 to participate’ only includes the holder of 

21 a permit for a fishery under which fishing 

22 has occurred in 3 of the 5 years preceding 

23 a referendum for the fishery, unless sick24 ness, injury, or other unavoidable hardship 


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1 prevented the permit holder from engaging 

2 in such fishing. 

3 ‘‘(v) The Secretary may not imple4 ment any catch share program for any 

5 fishery managed exclusively by the Sec6 retary unless first petitioned by a majority 

7 of those permit holders eligible to partici8 pate in the fishery.’’. 

9 (2) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.—The amend10 ment made by paragraph (1) shall not apply to a 

11 catch share program that is submitted to, or pro12 posed by, the Secretary of Commerce before the date 

13 of enactment of this Act. 

14 (3) REGULATIONS.—Before conducting a ref15 erendum under the amendment made by paragraph 

16 (1), the Secretary of Commerce shall issue regula17 tions implementing such amendment after providing 

18 an opportunity for submission by the public of com19 ments on the regulations. 

20 SEC. 9. REPORT ON FEE. 

21 Section 304(d)(2) (16 U.S.C. 1854(d)(2)) is amended 

22 by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(D) The Secretary shall report annually on the 

24 amount collected under this paragraph from each 


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1 fishery and detail how the funds were spent in the 

2 prior year on a fishery-by-fishery basis, to— 

3 ‘‘(i) Congress; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) each Council from whose fisheries the 

5 fee under this paragraph were collected.’’. 

6 SEC. 10. COOPERATIVE RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT 

7 PROGRAM. 

8 Section 318 (16 U.S.C. 1867) is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before 

10 the first sentence, and by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(2) Within one year after the date of enactment of 

13 the Strengthening Fishing Communities and Increasing 

14 Flexibility in Fisheries Management Act, and after con15 sultation with the Councils, the Secretary shall publish a 

16 plan for implementing and conducting the program estab17 lished in paragraph (1). Such plan shall identify and de18 scribe critical regional fishery management and research 

19 needs, possible projects that may address those needs, and 

20 estimated costs for such projects. The plan shall be revised 

21 and updated every 5 years, and updated plans shall in22 clude a brief description of projects that were funded in 

23 the prior 5-year period and the research and management 

24 needs that were addressed by those projects.’’; and 

25 (2) in subsection (c)— 


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1 (A) in the heading, by striking ‘‘FUNDING’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘PRIORITIES’’; and 

3 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking all after 

4 ‘‘including’’ and inserting an em dash, followed 

5 on the next line by the following: 

6 ‘‘(A) the use of fishing vessels or acoustic 

7 or other marine technology; 

8 ‘‘(B) expanding the use of electronic catch 

9 reporting programs and technology; and 

10 ‘‘(C) improving monitoring and observer 

11 coverage through the expanded use of electronic 

12 monitoring devices.’’. 

13 SEC. 11. COUNCIL JURISDICTION FOR OVERLAPPING FISH14 ERIES. 

15 Section 302(a)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1852(a)) is amended— 

16 (1) in subparagraph (A), in the second sen17 tence— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘18’’ and inserting ‘‘19’’; 

19 and 

20 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

21 end ‘‘and a liaison who is a member of the Mid22 Atlantic Fishery Management Council to rep23 resent the interests of fisheries under the juris24 diction of such Council’’; and 


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1 (2) in subparagraph (B), in the second sen2 tence— 

3 (A) by striking ‘‘21’’ and inserting ‘‘22’’; 

4 and 

5 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

6 end ‘‘and a liaison who is a member of the New 

7 England Fishery Management Council to rep8 resent the interests of fisheries under the juris9 diction of such Council’’. 

10 SEC. 12. GULF OF MEXICO FISHERIES COOPERATIVE RE11 SEARCH AND RED SNAPPER MANAGEMENT. 

12 (a) REPEAL.—Section 407 (16 U.S.C. 1883), and the 

13 item relating to such section in the table of contents in 

14 the first section, are repealed. 

15 (b) REPORTING AND DATA COLLECTION PRO16 GRAM.—The Secretary of Commerce shall— 

17 (1) in conjunction with the States, the Gulf of 

18 Mexico Fishery Management Council, and the rec19 reational fishing sectors, develop and implement a 

20 real-time reporting and data collection program for 

21 the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery using avail22 able technology; and 

23 (2) make implementation of this subsection a 

24 priority for funds received by the Secretary and allo25 cated to this region under section 2 of the Act of 


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1 August 11, 1939 (commonly known as the 

2 ‘‘Saltonstall-Kennedy Act’’) (15 U.S.C. 713c–3). 

3 (c) FISHERIES COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PRO4 GRAM.—The Secretary of Commerce— 

5 (1) shall, in conjunction with the States, the 

6 Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission and the 

7 Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the 

8 Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic Fishery Manage9 ment Councils, and the commercial, charter, and 

10 recreational fishing sectors, develop and implement a 

11 cooperative research program authorized under sec12 tion 318 for the fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico and 

13 South Atlantic regions, giving priority to those fish14 eries that are considered data-poor; and 

15 (2) may, subject to the availability of appropria16 tions, use funds received by the Secretary under sec17 tion 2 of the Act of August 11, 1939 (commonly 

18 known as the ‘‘Saltonstall-Kennedy Act’’) (15 U.S.C. 

19 713c–3) to implement this subsection. 

20 (d) STOCK SURVEYS AND STOCK ASSESSMENTS.— 

21 The Secretary of Commerce, acting through the National 

22 Marine Fisheries Service Regional Administrator of the 

23 Southeast Regional Office, shall for purposes of the Mag24 nuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

25 (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.)— 


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1 (1) develop a schedule of stock surveys and 

2 stock assessments for the Gulf of Mexico Region and 

3 the South Atlantic Region for the 5-year period be4 ginning on the date of the enactment of this Act and 

5 for every 5-year period thereafter; 

6 (2) direct the Southeast Science Center Direc7 tor to implement such schedule; and 

8 (3) in such development and implementation— 

9 (A) give priority to those stocks that are 

10 commercially or recreationally important; and 

11 (B) ensure that each such important stock 

12 is surveyed at least every 5 years. 

13 (e) USE OF FISHERIES INFORMATION IN STOCK AS14 SESSMENTS.—The Southeast Science Center Director 

15 shall ensure that fisheries information made available 

16 through fisheries programs funded under Public Law 

17 112–141 is incorporated as soon as possible into any fish18 eries stock assessments conducted after the date of the 

19 enactment of this Act. 

20 (f) STATE FISHERIES MANAGEMENT IN THE GULF

21 OF MEXICO WITH RESPECT TO RED SNAPPER.—Section 

22 306(b) (16 U.S.C. 1856(b)) is amended by adding at the 

23 end the following: 

24 ‘‘(4) Notwithstanding section 3(11), for the purposes 

25 of managing the recreational sector of the Gulf of Mexico 


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1 red snapper fishery, the seaward boundary of a coastal 

2 State in the Gulf of Mexico is a line 9 miles seaward from 

3 the baseline from which the territorial sea of the United 

4 States is measured.’’. 

5 (g) FUNDING OF STOCK ASSESSMENTS.—The Sec6 retary of Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior, act7 ing through the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, 

8 shall enter into a cooperative agreement for the funding 

9 of stock assessments that are necessitated by any action 

10 by the Bureau with respect to offshore oil rigs in the Gulf 

11 of Mexico that adversely impacts red snapper. 

12 SEC. 13. NORTH PACIFIC FISHERY MANAGEMENT CLARI13 FICATION. 

14 Section 306(a)(3)(C) (16 U.S.C. 1856(a)(3)(C)) is 

15 amended— 

16 (1) by striking ‘‘was no’’ and inserting ‘‘is no’’; 

17 and 

18 (2) by striking ‘‘on August 1, 1996’’. 

19 SEC. 14. ENSURING CONSISTENT MANAGEMENT FOR FISH20 ERIES THROUGHOUT THEIR RANGE. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Act is amended by inserting 

22 after section 4 the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 5. ENSURING CONSISTENT FISHERIES MANAGEMENT 

2 UNDER CERTAIN OTHER FEDERAL LAWS. 

3 ‘‘(a) NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES ACT AND AN4 TIQUITIES ACT OF 1906.—In any case of a conflict be5 tween this Act and the National Marine Sanctuaries Act 

6 (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.) or the Antiquities Act of 1906 

7 (16 U.S.C. 431 et seq.), this Act shall control. 

8 ‘‘(b) FISHERIES RESTRICTIONS UNDER ENDAN9 GERED SPECIES ACT OF 1973.—To ensure transparency 

10 and consistent management of fisheries throughout their 

11 range, any restriction on the management of fish in the 

12 exclusive economic zone that is necessary to implement a 

13 recovery plan under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

14 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) shall be implemented— 

15 ‘‘(1) using authority under this Act; and 

16 ‘‘(2) in accordance with processes and time 

17 schedules required under this Act.’’. 

18 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

19 in the first section is amended by inserting after the item 

20 relating to section 3 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 4. Authorization of appropriations. 

‘‘Sec. 5. Ensuring consistent fisheries management under certain other Federal 

laws.’’. 


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1 SEC. 15. LIMITATION ON HARVEST IN NORTH PACIFIC DI2 RECTED POLLOCK FISHERY. 

3 Section 210(e)(1) of the American Fisheries Act (title 

4 II of division C of Public Law 105–277; 16 U.S.C. 1851 

5 note) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(1) HARVESTING.— 

7 ‘‘(A) LIMITATION.—No particular indi8 vidual, corporation, or other entity may harvest, 

9 through a fishery cooperative or otherwise, a 

10 percentage of the pollock available to be har11 vested in the directed pollock fishery that ex12 ceeds the percentage established for purposes of 

13 this paragraph by the North Pacific Council. 

14 ‘‘(B) MAXIMUM PERCENTAGE.—The per15 centage established by the North Pacific Coun16 cil shall not exceed 24 percent of the pollock 

17 available to be harvested in the directed pollock 

18 fishery.’’. 

19 SEC. 16. RECREATIONAL FISHING DATA. 

20 (a) RECREATIONAL DATA COLLECTION.—Section 

21 401(g) (16 U.S.C. 1881(g)) is amended by redesignating 

22 paragraph (4) as paragraph (5), and by inserting after 

23 paragraph (3) the following: 

24 ‘‘(4) FEDERAL-STATE PARTNERSHIPS.— 

25 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary 

26 shall establish partnerships with States to deVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:56 Jan 11, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H200.IH H200

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1 velop best practices for implementation of State 

2 programs established pursuant to paragraph 

3 (2). 

4 ‘‘(B) GUIDANCE.—The Secretary shall de5 velop guidance, in cooperation with the States, 

6 that details best practices for administering 

7 State programs pursuant to paragraph (2), and 

8 provide such guidance to the States. 

9 ‘‘(C) BIENNIAL REPORT.—The Secretary 

10 shall submit to the Congress and publish bien11 nial reports that include— 

12 ‘‘(i) the estimated accuracy of the reg13 istry program established under paragraph 

14 (1) and of State programs that are ex15 empted under paragraph (2); 

16 ‘‘(ii) priorities for improving rec17 reational fishing data collection; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) an explanation of any use of in19 formation collected by such State programs 

20 and by the Secretary, including a descrip21 tion of any consideration given to the in22 formation by the Secretary. 

23 ‘‘(D) STATES GRANT PROGRAM.—The Sec24 retary shall make grants to States to improve 

25 implementation of State programs consistent 


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1 with this subsection. The Secretary shall 

2 prioritize such grants based on the ability of the 

3 grant to improve the quality and accuracy of 

4 such programs.’’. 

5 (b) STUDY ON RECREATIONAL FISHERIES DATA.— 

6 Section 401(g) (16 U.S.C. 1881(g)) is further amended 

7 by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(6) STUDY ON PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 

10 days after the enactment of this paragraph, the 

11 Secretary shall enter into an agreement with 

12 the National Research Council of the National 

13 Academy of Sciences to study the implementa14 tion of the programs described in this section. 

15 The study shall— 

16 ‘‘(i) provide an updated assessment of 

17 recreational survey methods established or 

18 improved since the publication of the 

19 Council’s report ‘Review of Recreational 

20 Fisheries Survey Methods (2006)’; 

21 ‘‘(ii) evaluate the extent to which the 

22 recommendations made in that report were 

23 implemented pursuant to paragraph 

24 (3)(B); and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) examine any limitations of the 

2 Marine Recreational Fishery Statistics 

3 Survey and the Marine Recreational Infor4 mation Program established under para5 graph (1). 

6 ‘‘(B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year 

7 after entering into an agreement under sub8 paragraph (A), the Secretary shall submit a re9 port to Congress on the results of the study 

10 under subparagraph (A).’’. 

11 SEC. 17. STOCK ASSESSMENTS USED FOR FISHERIES MAN12 AGED UNDER GULF OF MEXICO COUNCIL’S 

13 REEF FISH MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title IV (16 U.S.C. 1881 et seq.) 

15 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 409. STOCK ASSESSMENTS USED FOR FISHERIES 

17 MANAGED UNDER GULF OF MEXICO COUN18 CIL’S REEF FISH MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Gulf States Marine Fish20 eries Commission shall conduct all fishery stock assess21 ments used for management purposes by the Gulf of Mex22 ico Fishery Management Council for the fisheries man23 aged under the Council’s Reef Fish Management Plan. 

24 ‘‘(b) USE OF OTHER INFORMATION AND ASSETS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Such fishery assessments 

2 shall— 

3 ‘‘(A) incorporate fisheries survey informa4 tion collected by university researchers; and 

5 ‘‘(B) to the extent practicable, use State, 

6 university, and private assets to conduct fish7 eries surveys. 

8 ‘‘(2) SURVEYS AT ARTIFICIAL REEFS.—Any 

9 such fishery stock assessment conducted after the 

10 date of the enactment of the Strengthening Fishing 

11 Communities and Increasing Flexibility in Fisheries 

12 Management Act shall incorporate fishery surveys 

13 conducted, and other relevant fisheries information 

14 collected, on and around natural and artificial reefs. 

15 ‘‘(c) CONSTITUENT AND STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPA16 TION.—Each such fishery assessment shall— 

17 ‘‘(1) emphasize constituent and stakeholder 

18 participation in the development of the assessment; 

19 ‘‘(2) contain all of the raw data used in the as20 sessment and a description of the methods used to 

21 collect that data; and 

22 ‘‘(3) employ an assessment process that is 

23 transparent and includes— 


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1 ‘‘(A) includes a rigorous and independent 

2 scientific review of the completed fishery stock 

3 assessment; and 

4 ‘‘(B) a panel of independent experts to re5 view the data and assessment and make rec6 ommendations on the most appropriate values 

7 of critical population and management quan8 tities.’’. 

9 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

10 in the first section is amended by adding at the end of 

11 the items relating to title IV the following: 

‘‘Sec. 408. Deep sea coral research and technology program. 

‘‘Sec. 409. Stock assessments used for fisheries managed under Gulf of Mexico 

Council’s Reef Fish Management Plan.’’. 

12 SEC. 18. ESTIMATION OF COST OF RECOVERY FROM FISH13 ERY RESOURCE DISASTER. 

14 Section 312(a)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1861a(1)) is amend15 ed— 

16 (1) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(1)’’; 

17 (2) by redesignating existing subparagraphs (A) 

18 through (C) as clauses (i) through (iii), respectively, 

19 of subparagraph (A) (as designated by the amend20 ment made by paragraph (1)); and 

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

22 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall publish the estimated cost 

23 of recovery from a fishery resource disaster no later than 


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1 30 days after the Secretary makes the determination 

2 under subparagraph (A) with respect to such disaster.’’. 

3 SEC. 19. DEADLINE FOR ACTION ON REQUEST BY GOV4 ERNOR FOR DETERMINATION REGARDING 

5 FISHERY RESOURCE DISASTER. 

6 Section 312(a) (16 U.S.C. 1861a(a)) is amended by 

7 redesignating paragraphs (2) through (4) as paragraphs 

8 (3) through (5), and by inserting after paragraph (1) the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall make a decision regarding 

11 a request from a Governor under paragraph (1) within 90 

12 days after receiving an estimate of the economic impact 

13 of the fishery resource disaster from the entity requesting 

14 the relief.’’. 

15 SEC. 20. PROHIBITION ON CONSIDERING RED SNAPPER 

16 KILLED DURING REMOVAL OF OIL RIGS. 

17 Any red snapper that are killed during the removal 

18 of any offshore oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico shall not be 

19 considered in determining under the Magnuson-Stevens 

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

21 1801 et seq.) whether the total allowable catch for red 

22 snapper has been reached. 


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1 SEC. 21. PROHIBITION ON CONSIDERING FISH SEIZED 

2 FROM FOREIGN FISHING. 

3 Any fish that are seized from a foreign vessel engaged 

4 in illegal fishing activities in the Exclusive Economic Zone 

5 shall not be considered in determining under the Magnu6 son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

7 (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) the total allowable catch for that 

8 fishery. 

9 SEC. 22. SUBSISTENCE FISHING. 

10 (a) DEFINITION.—Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1802) is 

11 amended by inserting after paragraph (43) the following: 

12 ‘‘(43a)(A) The term ‘subsistence fishing’ means 

13 fishing in which the fish harvested are intended for 

14 customary and traditional uses, including for direct 

15 personal or family consumption as food or clothing; 

16 for the making or selling of handicraft articles out 

17 of nonedible byproducts taken for personal or family 

18 consumption, for barter, or sharing for personal or 

19 family consumption; and for customary trade. 

20 ‘‘(B) In this paragraph— 

21 ‘‘(i) the term ‘family’ means all persons re22 lated by blood, marriage, or adoption, or any 

23 person living within the household on a perma24 nent basis; and 

25 ‘‘(ii) the term ‘barter’ means the exchange 

26 of a fish or fish part— 


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1 ‘‘(I) for another fish or fish part; or 

2 ‘‘(II) for other food or for nonedible 

3 items other than money if the exchange is 

4 of a limited and noncommercial nature.’’. 

5 (b) COUNCIL SEAT.—Section 302(b)(2) (16 U.S.C. 

6 1852(b)(2)) is amended— 

7 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘or rec8 reational’’ and inserting ‘‘, recreational, or subsist9 ence fishing’’; and 

10 (2) in subparagraph (C), in the second sen11 tence, by inserting ‘‘, and in the case of the Gov12 ernor of Alaska with the subsistence fishing interests 

13 of the State,’’ after ‘‘interests of the State’’. 

14 (c) PURPOSE.—Section 2(b)(3) (16 U.S.C. 

15 1801(b)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘and recreational’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘, recreational, and subsistence’’. 

17 SEC. 23. INTER-SECTOR TRADING OF COMMERCIAL CATCH 

18 SHARE ALLOCATIONS IN THE GULF OF MEX19 ICO. 

20 Section 301 (16 U.S.C. 1851) is amended by adding 

21 at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(c) INTER-SECTOR TRADING OF COMMERCIAL

23 CATCH SHARE ALLOCATIONS IN THE GULF OF MEX24 ICO.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 

25 any commercial fishing catch share allocation in a fishery 


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1 in the Gulf of Mexico may only be traded by sale or lease 

2 within the same commercial fishing sector.’’. 

3 SEC. 24. ARCTIC COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT QUOTA. 

4 Section 313 (16 U.S.C. 1862) is amended by adding 

5 at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(k) ARCTIC COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT QUOTA.— 

7 If the North Pacific Fishery Management Council issues 

8 a fishery management plan for the exclusive economic zone 

9 in the Arctic Ocean, or an amendment to the Fishery 

10 Management Plan for Fish Resources of the Arctic Man11 agement Area issued by such Council, that makes avail12 able to commercial fishing, and establishes a sustainable 

13 harvest level, for any part of such zone, the Council shall 

14 set aside not less than 10 percent of the total allowable 

15 catch therein as a community development quota for 

16 coastal villages located north and east of the Bering 

17 Strait.’’. 

18 SEC. 25. PREFERENCE FOR STUDENTS STUDYING WATER 

19 RESOURCE ISSUES. 

20 Section 402(e) (16 U.S.C. 1881a(e)) is amended by 

21 adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(4) The Secretary shall, to the extent practicable, 

23 when hiring individuals to collect information regarding 

24 marine recreational fishing under this subsection, give 

25 preference to students studying fisheries conservation and 


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1 management, water resource issues, or other relevant sub2 jects at an institution of higher education in the United 

3 States.’’. 

4 SEC. 26. REQUIREMENTS FOR LIMITED ACCESS PRIVI5 LEGES. 

6 Section 3303A(c)(1)(G) (16 U.S.C. 1853a(c)(1)(G)) 

7 is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(G) include provisions for a formal and 

9 detailed review 5 years after the implementation 

10 of the program, and thereafter the regular mon11 itoring and review by the Council and the Sec12 retary of the operations and impacts of the pro13 gram, to coincide with scheduled Council review 

14 of the relevant fishery management plan (but 

15 no less frequently than once every 7 years) in16 cluding— 

17 ‘‘(i) determining progress in meeting 

18 the goals of the program and this Act; 

19 ‘‘(ii) delineating the positive and nega20 tive economic effects of the program on 

21 fishermen and processors who are part of 

22 the program and the coastal communities 

23 in which they reside; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) any necessary modification of 

25 the program to meet those goals, including 


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1 a formal schedule for action to be taken 

2 within 2 years;’’. 

3 SEC. 27. HEALTHY FISHERIES THROUGH BETTER SCIENCE. 

4 (a) DEFINITION OF STOCK ASSESSMENT.—Section 3 

5 (16 U.S.C. 1802), as amended by section 22(a) of this 

6 Act, is further amended by redesignating the paragraphs 

7 after paragraph (42) in order as paragraphs (44) through 

8 (53), and by inserting after paragraph (42) the following: 

9 ‘‘(43) The term ‘stock assessment’ means an 

10 evaluation of the past, present, and future status of 

11 a stock of fish, that includes— 

12 ‘‘(A) a range of life history characteristics 

13 for such stock, including— 

14 ‘‘(i) the geographical boundaries of 

15 such stock; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) information on age, growth, nat17 ural mortality, sexual maturity and repro18 duction, feeding habits, and habitat pref19 erences of such stock; and 

20 ‘‘(B) fishing for the stock.’’. 

21 (b) STOCK ASSESSMENT PLAN.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 404 (16 U.S.C. 

23 1881c), as amended by section 9(d) of this Act, is 

24 further amended by adding at the end the following: 

25 ‘‘(f) STOCK ASSESSMENT PLAN.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop 

2 and publish in the Federal Register, on the same 

3 schedule as required for the strategic plan required 

4 under subsection (b) of this section, a plan to con5 duct stock assessments for all stocks of fish for 

6 which a fishery management plan is in effect under 

7 this Act. 

8 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The plan shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) for each stock of fish for which a 

10 stock assessment has previously been con11 ducted— 

12 ‘‘(i) establish a schedule for updating 

13 the stock assessment that is reasonable 

14 given the biology and characteristics of the 

15 stock; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) subject to the availability of ap17 propriations, require completion of a new 

18 stock assessment, or an update of the most 

19 recent stock assessment— 

20 ‘‘(I) every 5 years; or 

21 ‘‘(II) within such other time pe22 riod specified and justified by the Sec23 retary in the plan; 


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1 ‘‘(B) for each stock of fish for which a 

2 stock assessment has not previously been con3 ducted— 

4 ‘‘(i) establish a schedule for con5 ducting an initial stock assessment that is 

6 reasonable given the biology and character7 istics of the stock; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) subject to the availability of ap9 propriations, require completion of the ini10 tial stock assessment within 3 years after 

11 the plan is published in the Federal Reg12 ister unless another time period is specified 

13 and justified by the Secretary in the plan; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(C) identify data and analysis, especially 

16 concerning recreational fishing, that, if avail17 able, would reduce uncertainty in and improve 

18 the accuracy of future stock assessments, in19 cluding whether such data and analysis could 

20 be provided by fishermen, fishing communities, 

21 universities, and research institutions. 

22 ‘‘(3) WAIVER OF STOCK ASSESSMENT REQUIRE23 MENT.—Notwithstanding subparagraphs (A)(ii) and 

24 (B)(ii), a stock assessment is not required for a 

25 stock of fish in the plan if the Secretary determines 


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1 that such a stock assessment is not necessary and 

2 justifies such determination in the Federal Register 

3 notice required by this subsection.’’. 

4 (2) DEADLINE.—Notwithstanding paragraph 

5 (1) of section 404(f) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish6 ery Conservation and Management Act, as amended 

7 by this section, the Secretary of Commerce shall 

8 issue the first stock assessment plan under such sec9 tion by not later than 2 years after the date of en10 actment of this Act. 

11 (c) IMPROVING SCIENCE.— 

12 (1) INCORPORATION OF INFORMATION FROM

13 WIDE VARIETY OF SOURCES.—Section 2(a)(8) of the 

14 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Man15 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1801) is amended by add16 ing at the end the following: ‘‘Fisheries management 

17 is most effective when it incorporates information 

18 provided by governmental and nongovernmental 

19 sources, including State and Federal agency staff, 

20 fishermen, fishing communities, universities, and re21 search institutions. As appropriate, such information 

22 should be considered the best scientific information 

23 available and form the basis of conservation and 

24 management measures as required by this Act.’’. 


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1 (2) IMPROVING DATA COLLECTION AND ANAL2 YSIS.—Section 404 (16 U.S.C. 1881c), as amended 

3 by this section, is further amended by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘(g) IMPROVING DATA COLLECTION AND ANAL6 YSIS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta8 tion with the Councils acting in reliance on their 

9 science and statistical committees established under 

10 section 302(g), shall develop and publish in the Fed11 eral Register guidelines that will facilitate greater 

12 incorporation of data, analysis, and stock assess13 ments from nongovernmental sources, including fish14 ermen, fishing communities, universities, and re15 search institutions, into fisheries management deci16 sions. 

17 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—The guidelines shall— 

18 ‘‘(A) identify types of data and analysis, 

19 especially concerning recreational fishing, that 

20 can be reliably used as the basis for estab21 lishing conservation and management measures 

22 as required by section 303(a)(1), including set23 ting standards for the collection and use of 

24 such data and analysis in stock assessments 

25 and for other purposes; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) provide specific guidance for col2 lecting data and performing analyses identified 

3 as necessary to reduce the uncertainty referred 

4 to in section 404(f)(2)(C). 

5 ‘‘(3) ACCEPTANCE AND USE OF DATA AND

6 ANALYSES.—The Secretary and Regional Fishery 

7 Management Councils shall— 

8 ‘‘(A) use all data and analyses that meet 

9 the guidelines published under paragraph (1) as 

10 the best scientific information available for pur11 poses of this Act in fisheries management deci12 sions, unless otherwise determined by the 

13 science and statistical committee of the Coun14 cils established pursuant to section 302(g) of 

15 the Act; and 

16 ‘‘(B) explain in the Federal Register notice 

17 announcing the fishery management decision 

18 how such data and analyses have been used to 

19 establish conservation and management meas20 ures.’’. 

21 (3) DEADLINE.—The Secretary of Commerce 

22 shall develop and publish guidelines under the 

23 amendment made by paragraph (2) by not later 

24 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 (d) COST REDUCTION REPORT.—Within 1 year after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Com3 merce, in consultation with the Regional Fishery Manage4 ment Councils, shall submit a report to Congress that, 

5 with respect to each fishery governed by a fishery manage6 ment plan in effect under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

7 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et 

8 seq.)— 

9 (1) identifies the goals of the applicable pro10 grams governing monitoring and enforcement of 

11 fishing that is subject to such plan; 

12 (2) identifies methods to accomplish those 

13 goals, including human observers, electronic moni14 toring, and vessel monitoring systems; 

15 (3) certifies which such methods are most cost16 effective for fishing that is subject to such plan; and 

17 (4) explains why such most-cost-effective meth18 ods are not required, if applicable. 

19 SEC. 28. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 Section 4 (16 U.S.C. 1803) is amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘this Act’’ and all that follows 

22 through ‘‘(7)’’ and inserting ‘‘this Act’’; and 

23 (2) by striking ‘‘fiscal year 2013’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022’’. 


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1 SEC. 29. AUTHORITY TO USE ALTERNATIVE FISHERY MAN2 AGEMENT MEASURES. 

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

4 (1) by redesignating paragraph (8) as para5 graph (9); and 

6 (2) by inserting after paragraph (7), the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(8) have the authority to use alternative fish9 ery management measures in a recreational fishery 

10 (or the recreational component of a mixed-use fish11 ery), including extraction rates, fishing mortality 

12 targets, and harvest control rules, in developing a 

13 fishery management plan, plan amendment, or pro14 posed regulations.’’. 

Æ 


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