I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2376 

To designate the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Marine Refuge, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 16, 2005 

Mr. CASE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and 

Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To designate the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National 

Marine Refuge, 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 ‘‘Northwestern Hawai5 ian Islands National Marine Refuge Act of 2005’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands 

9 (NWHI) and their associated waters encompass the 
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1 most isolated coral reefs in the world, with the high2 est proportion of marine endemic species, and a 

3 plethora of valuable and unique natural and cultural 

4 resources, most of which are highly vulnerable. 

5 (2) These 1,200 miles of coral islands, sea 

6 mounts, banks, and shoals are unquestionably the 

7 healthiest and most extensive coral reefs in the 

8 United States. 

9 (3) This vast area of exceptional coral reef eco10 systems supports more than 7,000 marine species, of 

11 which approximately one quarter are unique to the 

12 NWHI. 

13 (4) The waters of the NWHI must be set aside 

14 as a fully protected national marine refuge to pre15 serve in perpetuity their unique and fragile eco16 systems, habitats, and communities of flora and 

17 fauna, as well as areas of traditional Hawaiian cul18 tural significance. 

19 (5) A Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National 

20 Marine Refuge would best preserve and protect the 

21 foraging grounds of the endangered monk seal, the 

22 nesting green sea turtle, and the multitude of 

23 seabirds that make the NWHI their home. 

24 (6) Designating the waters of the NWHI as a 

25 national marine refuge would also best preserve and 
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1 protect invaluable nursery and spawning grounds of 

2 many species of fish and invertebrates, and may help 

3 replenish severely depleted marine populations in the 

4 main Hawaiian Islands. 

5 (7) As yet, only a few invasive aquatic species 

6 have become established in the NWHI and their as7 sociated waters, and continued vessel and other ac8 cess to this area is highly likely to cause further con9 tamination by alien aquatic species from the main 

10 Hawaiian Islands and elsewhere. 

11 (8) Establishing the waters of the NWHI as a 

12 national marine refuge will protect and conserve the 

13 largest contiguous coral reef ecosystem in the United 

14 States and in the world and will strengthen global 

15 protection of coral reef resources at a critical time. 

16 (9) The preservation and protection of the wa17 ters of the NWHI as a national marine refuge is in 

18 conformity with the findings and recommendations 

19 on marine protected areas by the United States 

20 Commission on Ocean Policy, the purposes of Execu21 tive Order 13196 of January 18, 2001, Executive 

22 Order 13178 of December 4, 2000, Executive Order 

23 13158 of May 26, 2000, the National Marine Sanc24 tuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.), the National 

25 Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 
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1 (16 U.S.C. 668dd et seq.), the Act of August 25, 

2 1916, popularly known as the National Park Service 

3 Organic Act (16 U.S.C. 1 et seq.), the National His4 toric Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.), the 

5 Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), the Endan6 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), 

7 the Marine Mammal Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1361 

8 et seq.), the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 

9 seq.), the National Environmental Policy Act of 

10 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and other pertinent 

11 statutes. 

12 SEC. 3. PURPOSES AND POLICIES. 

13 The purposes and policies of this Act are as follows: 

14 (1) To designate the Northwestern Hawaiian 

15 Islands National Marine Refuge. 

16 (2) To set aside the waters of the NWHI as a 

17 national marine refuge that fully preserves and pro18 tects in perpetuity the natural resources and cultural 

19 heritage of the area described in section 6. 

20 (3) To provide that the preservation of biodiver21 sity and the protection and conservation of the nat22 ural resources and cultural heritage of that area 

23 shall be the exclusive basis for all associated deci24 sions by Federal agencies. 
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1 (4) To provide authority for comprehensive and 

2 coordinated conservation and management of the 

3 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Marine 

4 Refuge utilizing ecosystem and precautionary man5 agement approaches and best available science. 

6 (5) To allow research and other activities in the 

7 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Marine 

8 Refuge only for the purposes of understanding, 

9 maintaining, protecting, and if necessary restoring 

10 the natural biological communities, habitats, native 

11 species, populations, and ecological processes of such 

12 Refuge, in conformity with paragraph (3). 

13 (6) To provide that all human activities in the 

14 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Marine 

15 Refuge shall be limited to those entirely consistent 

16 with preservation and protection in the true nature 

17 of a fully protected refuge, and that all commercial 

18 use of such refuge shall be prohibited, in conformity 

19 with paragraph (3). 

20 (7) To provide that access to and transit 

21 through the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Na22 tional Marine Refuge shall be allowed only if author23 ized by a valid permit issued pursuant to this Act, 

24 except as necessary for valid law enforcement pur25 poses. 
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1 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

2 As used in this Act, the following definitions apply: 

3 (1) NATIVE HAWAIIAN SUBSISTENCE PRAC4 TICES.—The term ‘‘Native Hawaiian subsistence 

5 practices’’— 

6 (A) means traditional Native Hawaiian 

7 uses of ocean resources for the purposes of per8 petuating traditional knowledge, taking respon9 sibility and caring for the environment, engag10 ing in direct personal consumption while in the 

11 NWHI or the Refuge, and strengthening cul12 tural and spiritual connections to the NWHI 

13 and the Refuge; and 

14 (B) does not include sale in any place of 

15 any marine resources. 

16 (2) SUSTENANCE FISHING.—The term ‘‘suste17 nance fishing’’ means harvesting any marine re18 sources for personal consumption while in the 

19 NWHI or the Refuge, and only as incidental to 

20 other permitted activity, with all such catch con21 sumed while in the NWHI or the Refuge. 

22 (3) REFUGE RESOURCES.—The term ‘‘Refuge 

23 resources’’ includes all natural resources within the 

24 Refuge, including without limitation, mammals, fish, 

25 including aquaria species and live fish trade species, 

26 crustaceans, coral, live rock, fossil coral, rock, sand, 
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1 mollusks, sponges and other invertebrates, plants 

2 and algae, and other species, subspecies, and any 

3 part, product, egg, or offspring thereof. 

4 (4) VESSEL MONITORING SYSTEM.—The term 

5 ‘‘vessel monitoring system’’ means real time satellite 

6 position fixing transmitters that allow for remote 

7 tracking of the position of vessels, and, where spe8 cifically permitted, communications with vessels. 

9 (5) COOPERATIVE MANAGEMENT.—The term 

10 ‘‘cooperative management’’ means management 

11 under cooperative arrangements between the Na12 tional Ocean Service and other Federal agencies and 

13 the State of Hawaii that specify how such agencies 

14 and the State will cooperate with the National 

15 Ocean Service in the management of the Refuge. 

16 (6) DAMAGES.—The term ‘‘damages’’ in17 cludes— 

18 (A) compensation for— 

19 (i)(I) the cost of replacing, restoring, 

20 or acquiring the equivalent of a Refuge re21 source; and 

22 (II) the value of the lost use of a Ref23 uge resource pending its restoration or re24 placement or the acquisition of an equiva25 lent Refuge resource; or 
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1 (ii) the value of a Refuge resource if 

2 the Refuge resource cannot be restored or 

3 replaced or if the equivalent of such re4 source cannot be acquired; 

5 (B) the cost of damage assessments under 

6 section 9(b)(2); 

7 (C) the reasonable cost of monitoring ap8 propriate to the injured, restored, or replaced 

9 Refuge resources; 

10 (D) the cost of curation and conservation 

11 of archeological, historical, and cultural Refuge 

12 resources; and 

13 (E) the cost of enforcement actions under14 taken by the Secretary in response to the de15 struction or loss of, or injury to, a Refuge re16 source. 

17 (7) RESPONSE COSTS.—The term ‘‘response 

18 costs’’ means the costs of actions taken or author19 ized by the Secretary to minimize destruction or loss 

20 of, or injury to, Refuge resources, or to minimize the 

21 imminent risks of such destruction, loss, or injury, 

22 including costs related to seizure, forfeiture, storage, 

23 or disposal arising from liability under section 10. 

24 (8) NWHI.—The term ‘‘NWHI’’ means the 

25 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, and encompasses 
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1 all terrestrial possessions of the United States from 

2 the Island of Nihoa through and including Kure 

3 Atoll. 

4 (9) REFUGE.—The term ‘‘Refuge’’ means the 

5 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Marine 

6 Refuge designated by section 5. 

7 (10) ONMSR.—The term ‘‘ONMSR’’ means 

8 the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and Ref9 uges established under section 6. 

10 SEC. 5. DESIGNATION. 

11 (a) DESIGNATION.—The area described in this sec12 tion is designated as the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands 

13 National Marine Refuge. 

14 (b) INCLUDED ISLANDS, ATOLLS, ROCKS, AND

15 REEFS.—Subject to the specific boundaries set forth in 

16 subsections (c) and (d), the Northwestern Hawaiian Is17 lands National Marine Refuge shall include the islands, 

18 atolls, rocks, reefs and other substrate, submerged reefs 

19 and other substrate, and oceans and waters of the North20 western Hawaiian Islands Archipelago between latitudes 

21 22 degrees and 30 degrees north and longitudes 161 de22 grees and 180 degrees west. 

23 (c) SEAWARD BOUNDARY.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The seaward boundary of 

25 the Refuge is a line that is 50 nautical miles from 
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1 the approximate geographic center positions of each 

2 of Nihoa Island, Necker Island (also known as 

3 Mokumanamana Island), French Frigate Shoals, 

4 Gardner Pinnacles, Maro Reef, Laysan Island, 

5 Lisianski Island, Pearl and Hermes Reef, Midway 

6 Atoll and Kure Atoll, except that at Kure Atoll the 

7 seaward boundary shall extend northwest by west 

8 (approximately 300 compass degrees) to the limits of 

9 the United States exclusive economic zone between 

10 two parallel lines that are tangent to the 50 nautical 

11 mile boundary around Kure Atoll. 

12 (2) INTERMEDIATE AREAS.—Where the areas 

13 described in paragraph (1) are not contiguous, par14 allel lines drawn tangent to and connecting those 

15 semicircles of the 50 nautical mile areas that lie 

16 around such areas shall delimit the remainder of the 

17 Refuge. 

18 (d) INLAND BOUNDARY.—The inland boundary of 

19 the Refuge around each of the areas described in sub20 section (b) is, as appropriate— 

21 (1) the seaward boundary of the Hawaiian Is22 lands National Wildlife Refuge; 

23 (2) the seaward boundary of the Midway Atoll 

24 National Wildlife Refuge; and 

25 (3) the ordinary low watermark of Kure Atoll. 
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1 SEC. 6. MANAGEMENT. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE.—There is estab3 lished within the National Ocean Service of the Depart4 ment of Commerce the Office of National Marine Sanc5 tuaries and Refuges. 

6 (b) PRIMARY AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of Com7 merce, acting through the ONMSR, has primary jurisdic8 tion and ultimate management authority and control over 

9 the Refuge area and its resources. 

10 (c) MANAGEMENT OF REFUGE.—The Secretary of 

11 Commerce, acting through the ONMSR, shall provide for 

12 the following: 

13 (1) Cooperative management arrangements with 

14 the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge, Mid15 way Atoll National Wildlife Refuge, other appro16 priate Federal agencies, and the State of Hawaii, all 

17 consistent with relevant authorities. 

18 (2) Coordination among Federal agencies and 

19 the Director of the National Science Foundation to 

20 make vessels and other resources available for con21 servation and research activities in the Refuge. 

22 (3) Research and monitoring for the purposes 

23 of understanding, maintaining, protecting, and if 

24 necessary restoring the natural biological commu25 nities, habitats, native species, populations, and eco26 logical processes of the Refuge. 
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1 (4) The cleanup and prevention of marine de2 bris in the Refuge. 

3 (5) The anticipation and mitigation of threats 

4 to Refuge resources and cooperation with other Fed5 eral and State agencies to maintain contingency 

6 planning, emergency response, damage assessment, 

7 and restoration measures. 

8 (6) The development and maintenance of en9 forcement and surveillance programs to maximize 

10 protection of the Refuge, including the use of new 

11 technologies and coordination with the Coast Guard 

12 and other relevant agencies. 

13 (7) Identification, in consultation with Native 

14 Hawaiian interests, of culturally significant, non15 commercial subsistence, cultural, and religious prac16 tices and locations within the Refuge. 

17 (8) Any regulations, in addition to the con18 servation measures established under this Act, that 

19 the Secretary determines are necessary to mange the 

20 Refuge in accordance with this Act. 

21 (9) A report to the Congress every 12 months 

22 on the status of the Refuge. 

23 (d) MEMORANDA OF AGREEMENT.—To promote co24 operative management of the entirety of the shallow areas 

25 of the coral reef ecosystem throughout the Northwestern 
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1 Hawaiian Islands, the Secretary shall work with the Sec2 retary of the Interior and the Governor of the State of 

3 Hawaii to enter into memoranda of agreement for the co4 operative management of the Refuge, Midway Atoll Na5 tional Wildlife Refuge, Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife 

6 Refuge, and State waters and submerged lands within the 

7 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Marine Refuge. 

8 (e) ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

9 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es10 tablish a Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National 

11 Marine Refuge Advisory Council to provide advice 

12 and recommendations to the Secretary regarding 

13 management of the Refuge. The Federal Advisory 

14 Committee Act (5 App. U.S.C.) shall not apply to 

15 the Advisory Council. 

16 (2) FUNCTIONS.—The Advisory Council shall— 

17 (A) review permitted activities pursuant to 

18 the purposes, policies, and management require19 ments of the Refuge, other pertinent laws, and 

20 international conventions; 

21 (B) recommend to the Secretary and to 

22 other Federal officials such steps as it considers 

23 necessary or desirable for the protection and 

24 conservation of the natural and cultural re25 sources of the Refuge; 
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1 (C) in cooperation with the National Ocean 

2 Service, recommend to the Secretary such revi3 sions of the endangered species list and threat4 ened species list, critical habitat designations, 

5 and conservation measures pursuant thereto as 

6 may be appropriate; and 

7 (D) recommend to the Secretary, other ap8 propriate Federal officials, and the Congress, 

9 such additional measures as it considers nec10 essary or desirable to further the purposes and 

11 policies of this Act, including provisions for the 

12 protection and exercise of the traditional prac13 tices of Native Hawaiians. 

14 (3) VOTING MEMBERS.—The voting members of 

15 the Advisory Council shall include the following: 

16 (A) Two Native Hawaiian representatives, 

17 including one Native Hawaiian elder with expe18 rience or knowledge regarding Native Hawaiian 

19 subsistence, cultural, religious, or other prac20 tices in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. 

21 (B) Three representatives from the science 

22 community with experience specific to the 

23 Northwestern Hawaiian Islands and with exper24 tise in at least one of the following areas: 

25 (i) Marine mammal science. 
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1 (ii) Coral reef ecology. 

2 (iii) Native marine flora and fauna of 

3 the Hawaiian Islands. 

4 (iv) Oceanography. 

5 (v) Any other scientific discipline the 

6 Secretary determines to be appropriate. 

7 (C) Two representatives from nongovern8 mental wildlife, marine life, environmental, or 

9 conservation organizations with a demonstrated 

10 interest in conservation and protection of refuge 

11 resources. 

12 (4) NONVOTING MEMBERS.—The nonvoting 

13 members of the Advisory Council shall include the 

14 following: 

15 (A) One representative from the State of 

16 Hawaii appointed by the Governor. 

17 (B) One representative from each of the 

18 Department of the Interior, the Coast Guard, 

19 the National Marine Sanctuary Program, and 

20 the Marine Mammal Commission. 

21 (5) COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES.—The vot22 ing members of the Advisory Council who are not 

23 employed by the Federal Government or any State 

24 or local government shall receive compensation at 

25 the daily rate or the daily equivalent rate for step 
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1 7 of GS–15 of the General Schedule under section 

2 5332 of title 5, United States Code, when engaged 

3 in the actual performance of duties for the Council. 

4 The voting members of the Council shall be reim5 bursed for actual expenses incurred in the perform6 ance of their duties, including travel expenses and 

7 per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by sec8 tion 5703 of title 5, United States Code for persons 

9 in Government service employed intermittently. Non10 voting members and Council staff members may be 

11 reimbursed for actual expenses. 

12 (6) STAFFING AND ASSISTANCE.—The Sec13 retary may make available to the Council any staff, 

14 information, administrative services, or assistance 

15 the Secretary determines are reasonably required to 

16 enable the Council to carry out its functions. 

17 (7) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AND PROCEDURAL

18 MATTERS.—The following guidelines apply with re19 spect to the conduct of business meetings of the 

20 Council: 

21 (A) Each meeting should be open to the 

22 public, and interested persons should be per23 mitted to present oral or written statements on 

24 items on the agenda. 
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1 (B) Emergency meetings may be held at 

2 the call of the chairman or presiding officer. 

3 (C) Minutes of each meeting should be 

4 kept and contain a summary of the attendees 

5 and matters discussed. 

6 SEC. 7. PROTECTION AND CONSERVATION MEASURES. 

7 (a) VESSEL REQUIREMENT.—Any United States8 flagged vessel over 25 feet in length traveling through or 

9 in the Refuge— 

10 (1) shall be inspected for and certified to be 

11 free of any species alien to the NWHI, including any 

12 hull-encrusting organisms, by an inspector author13 ized by the head of ONMSR within no more than 14 

14 days before entering the Refuge; 

15 (2) shall carry an approved and active vessel 

16 monitoring system; 

17 (3) shall carry a Federal Government observer; 

18 (4) shall post a $1,000,000 vessel-grounding 

19 bond, or carry an equivalent amount of vessel 

20 grounding insurance; and 

21 (5) shall notify the Refuge manager by tele22 phone, radio, or other electronic means when enter23 ing and leaving the Refuge. 

24 (b) PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES.—Except as authorized 

25 by a permit under subsection (d), it shall be unlawful for 
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1 any person to take, injure, destroy, cause the loss of, or 

2 disturb any Refuge resource, including the following acts: 

3 (1) To possess, sell, offer for sale, purchase, im4 port, export, deliver, carry, transport, or ship by any 

5 means any Refuge resource taken in violation of this 

6 section. 

7 (2) To anchor in any area of the Refuge that 

8 contains available mooring buoys, or to anchor out9 side an available anchoring area if such area has 

10 been designated by the Secretary. 

11 (3) To touch living coral or live rock in the Ref12 uge. 

13 (4) To anchor a vessel in the Refuge on any liv14 ing coral or live rock with an anchor, an anchor 

15 chain, or an anchor rope when visibility is such that 

16 the seabed can be seen. 

17 (5) To explore for, develop, or produce oil, gas, 

18 or any mineral in the Refuge. 

19 (6) To drill into, dredge, or otherwise alter the 

20 seabed in the Refuge. 

21 (7) To construct, place, or abandon any struc22 ture, material, or other matter on the seabed in the 

23 Refuge. 
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1 (8) To discard plastic in the Refuge, including 

2 any synthetic rope, synthetic fishing net, or plastic 

3 garbage bag. 

4 (9) To discard rags, glass, metal, bottles, crock5 ery, paper products, dunnage, lining, or packing ma6 terial in the Refuge that will float, or any similar 

7 refuse. 

8 (10) To discharge or deposit any material or 

9 other matter in the Refuge, or to discharge or de10 posit any material or other matter outside the Ref11 uge that subsequently enters the Refuge and injures 

12 any resource of the Refuge, except the following may 

13 be discharged or deposited by permit only: 

14 (A) Fish parts used in and during oper15 ations authorized under this Act. 

16 (B) Biodegradable effluent incident to ves17 sel use and generated by a marine sanitation 

18 device in accordance with section 312 of the 

19 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

20 1322). 

21 (C) Water generated by routine vessel op22 erations, including water from deck washdown 

23 and gray water as defined in section 312 of the 

24 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
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1 1322), but excluding oily wastes from bilge 

2 pumping. 

3 (D) Cooling water from vessels or engine 

4 exhaust. 

5 (11) To interfere with the enforcement of this 

6 Act by— 

7 (A) refusing to allow any officer authorized 

8 to enforce this Act to board a vessel that is sub9 ject to such person’s control, other than a vessel 

10 operated by the Department of Defense or the 

11 Coast Guard, for the purposes of conducting 

12 any search or inspection in connection with the 

13 enforcement of this Act; 

14 (B) resisting, opposing, impeding, intimi15 dating, harassing, bribing, interfering with, or 

16 forcibly assaulting any person authorized by the 

17 Secretary to implement this Act or any such 

18 authorized officer in the conduct of any search 

19 or inspection performed under this Act; 

20 (C) knowingly and willfully submitting 

21 false information to the Secretary or any officer 

22 authorized to enforce this Act in connection 

23 with any search or inspection conducted under 

24 this Act; or 
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1 (D) violating any provision of this Act or 

2 any regulation or permit issued pursuant to this 

3 Act. 

4 (c) COMPENSATION FOR DISPLACED FISHERMEN.— 

5 Any person who, on the date of the enactment of this Act, 

6 holds a valid Federal permit that authorizes fishing in a 

7 NWHI or Refuge fisher and is actively engaged in fishing 

8 under such permit during the 1-year period preceding the 

9 date of the enactment of this Act shall be eligible for fish10 eries disaster relief under section 312(a) of the Magnuson11 Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

12 U.S.C. 1861a(a)). 

13 (d) PERMITS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce, 

15 acting through the National Ocean Service, may 

16 issue permits only for activities in the Refuge that 

17 are consistent with this Act. In issuing such permits, 

18 the Secretary shall apply the precautionary ap19 proach, particularly in any case in which there is a 

20 lack of information regarding the potential impacts 

21 of any activity. 

22 (2) PERMITABLE ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary 

23 may issue permits under this subsection for— 

24 (A) research for the purposes of assessing 

25 and monitoring the health of Refuge eco-
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1 systems, which may include extraction of a 

2 small amount of natural resources otherwise 

3 prohibited by subsection (b); 

4 (B) Native Hawaiian subsistence practices; 

5 (C) sustenance fishing for pelagic and 

6 bottomfish species using pole and line, trolling 

7 and handline methods within the Refuge, except 

8 where specifically prohibited; 

9 (D) marine debris removal; and 

10 (E) other activities in furtherance of the 

11 purposes and policies of this Act. 

12 SEC. 8. ENFORCEMENT. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct such 

14 enforcement activities as are necessary and reasonable to 

15 carry out this Act. 

16 (b) POWERS OF AUTHORIZED OFFICERS.—Any per17 son who is authorized to enforce this act may— 

18 (1) board, search, inspect, and seize any vessel 

19 suspected of being used to violate this Act or any 

20 regulation or permit issued under this Act and any 

21 equipment, stores, and cargo of such vessel; 

22 (2) seize wherever found any Refuge resource 

23 taken or retained in violation of this Act or any reg24 ulation or permit issued under this Act; 
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1 (3) seize any evidence of a violation of this Act 

2 or of any regulation or permit issued under this Act; 

3 (4) execute any warrant or other process issued 

4 by any court of competent jurisdiction; 

5 (5) exercise any other lawful authority; and 

6 (6) arrest any person, if there is reasonable 

7 cause to believe that such person has committed an 

8 act prohibited by section 8(b)(11). 

9 (c) CRIMINAL OFFENSES.— 

10 (1) OFFENSES.—A person is guilty of an of11 fense under this subsection if the person commits 

12 any act prohibited by section 8(b)(11) of this Act. 

13 (2) PUNISHMENT.—Any person that is guilty of 

14 an offense under this subsection— 

15 (A) except as provided in subparagraph 

16 (B), shall be fined under title 18, United States 

17 Code, imprisoned for not more than 6 months, 

18 or both; or 

19 (B) in the case of a person who in the 

20 commission of such an offense uses a dangerous 

21 weapon, engages in conduct that causes bodily 

22 injury to any person authorized to enforce this 

23 Act or any person authorized to implement the 

24 provisions of this Act, or places any such per25 son in fear of imminent bodily injury, shall be 
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1 fined under title 18, United States Code, im2 prisoned for not more than 10 years, or both. 

3 (d) CIVIL PENALTIES.— 

4 (1) CIVIL PENALTY.—Any person subject to the 

5 jurisdiction of the United States who violates this 

6 Act or any regulation or permit issued under this 

7 Act shall be liable to the United States for a civil 

8 penalty of not more than $100,000 for each such 

9 violation, to be assessed by the Secretary. Each day 

10 of a continuing violation shall constitute a separate 

11 violation. 

12 (2) NOTICE.—No penalty shall be assessed 

13 under this subsection until after the person charged 

14 has been given notice and an opportunity for a hear15 ing. 

16 (3) IN REM JURISDICTION.—A vessel used in 

17 violating this Act or any regulation or permit issued 

18 under this Act shall be liable in rem for any civil 

19 penalty assessed for such violation. Such penalty 

20 shall constitute a maritime lien on the vessel and 

21 may be recovered in an action in rem in the district 

22 court of the United States having jurisdiction over 

23 the vessel. 

24 (4) REVIEW OF CIVIL PENALTY.—Any person 

25 against whom a civil penalty is assessed under this 
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1 subsection may obtain review in the United States 

2 district court for the appropriate district by filing a 

3 complaint in such court not later than 30 days after 

4 the date of such order. 

5 (5) COLLECTION OF PENALTIES.—If any per6 son fails to pay an assessment of a civil penalty 

7 under this section after it has become a final and 

8 unappealable order, or after the appropriate court 

9 has entered final judgment in favor of the Secretary, 

10 the Secretary shall refer the matter to the Attorney 

11 General, who shall recover the amount assessed in 

12 any appropriate district court of the United States. 

13 In such action, the validity and appropriateness of 

14 the final order imposing the civil penalty shall not 

15 be subject to review. 

16 (6) COMPROMISE OR OTHER ACTION BY SEC17 RETARY.—The Secretary may compromise, modify, 

18 or remit, with or without conditions, any civil pen19 alty which is or may be imposed under this section. 

20 (e) FORFEITURE.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any vessel (including the 

22 vessel’s equipment, stores, and cargo) and other 

23 item used, and any Refuge resource taken or re24 tained, in any manner, in connection with or as a re25 sult of any violation of this Act or of any regulation 
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1 or permit issued under this Act shall be subject to 

2 forfeiture to the United States pursuant to a civil 

3 proceeding under this subsection. The proceeds from 

4 forfeiture actions under this subsection shall con5 stitute a separate recovery in addition to any 

6 amounts recovered as civil penalties under this sec7 tion or as civil damages under section 10. None of 

8 those proceeds shall be subject to setoff. 

9 (2) APPLICATION OF THE CUSTOMS LAWS.— 

10 The Secretary may exercise the authority of any 

11 United States official granted by any relevant cus12 toms law relating to the seizure, forfeiture, con13 demnation, disposition, remission, and mitigation of 

14 property in enforcing this Act. 

15 (3) DISPOSAL OF REFUGE RESOURCES.—Any 

16 Refuge resource seized pursuant to this Act may be 

17 disposed of pursuant to an order of the appropriate 

18 court, or, if perishable, in a manner prescribed by 

19 regulations promulgated by the Secretary. Any pro20 ceeds from the sale of such Refuge resource shall for 

21 all purposes represent the Refuge resource so dis22 posed of in any subsequent legal proceedings. 

23 (4) PRESUMPTION.—For the purposes of this 

24 section there is a rebuttable presumption that all 

25 Refuge resources found on board a vessel that are 
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1 used or seized in connection with a violation of this 

2 Act or of any regulation or permit issued under this 

3 Act were taken or retained in violation of this Act 

4 or of a regulation or permit issued under this Act. 

5 (f) PAYMENT OF STORAGE, CARE, AND OTHER

6 COSTS.— 

7 (1) EXPENDITURES.— 

8 (A) RETENTION OF PENALTIES, FORFEIT9 URES, AND COSTS.—Notwithstanding any other 

10 law, amounts received by the United States as 

11 civil penalties, forfeitures of property, and costs 

12 imposed under paragraph (2) shall be retained 

13 by the Secretary in the manner provided for in 

14 section 107(f)(1) of the Comprehensive Envi15 ronmental Response, Compensation and Liabil16 ity Act (42 U.S.C. 9607 (f)(1)). 

17 (B) USE OF FORFEITURES AND COSTS.— 

18 Amounts received under this section for forfeit19 ures and costs imposed under paragraph (2) 

20 shall be used to pay the reasonable and nec21 essary costs incurred by the Secretary to pro22 vide temporary storage, care, maintenance, and 

23 disposal of any Refuge resource or other prop24 erty seized in connection with a violation of this 
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1 Act or any regulation or permit issued under 

2 this Act. 

3 (C) USE OF CIVIL PENALTIES AND RE4 MAINING AMOUNTS.—Amounts received under 

5 this section as civil penalties and any amounts 

6 remaining after the operation of subparagraph 

7 (B) shall be used, in order of priority, to— 

8 (i) manage and improve the Refuge 

9 with respect to which the violation oc10 curred that resulted in the penalty or for11 feiture; and 

12 (ii) pay a reward to any person who 

13 furnishes information leading to an assess14 ment of a civil penalty, or to a forfeiture 

15 of property, for a violation of this Act or 

16 any regulation or permit issued under this 

17 Act. 

18 (2) LIABILITY FOR COSTS.—Any person as19 sessed a civil penalty for a violation of this Act or 

20 of any regulation or permit issued under this Act, 

21 and any claimant in a forfeiture action brought for 

22 such a violation, shall be liable for the reasonable 

23 costs incurred by the Secretary in storage, care, and 

24 maintenance of any Refuge resource or other prop25 erty seized in connection with the violation. 
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1 (g) SUBPOENAS.—In the case of any hearing under 

2 this section which is determined on the record in accord3 ance with the procedures provided for under section 554 

4 of title 5, United States Code, the Secretary may issue 

5 subpoenas for the attendance and testimony of witnesses 

6 and the production of relevant papers, books, electronic 

7 files, and documents, and may administer oaths. 

8 (h) USE OF RESOURCES OF STATE AND OTHER FED9 ERAL AGENCIES.—The Secretary shall, whenever appro10 priate, use by agreement the personnel, services, and fa11 cilities of State and other Federal departments, agencies, 

12 and instrumentalities, on a reimbursable or nonreimburs13 able basis, to carry out the Secretary’s responsibilities 

14 under this section. 

15 (i) COAST GUARD AUTHORITY NOT LIMITED.—Noth16 ing in this section shall be considered to limit the authority 

17 of the Coast Guard to enforce this or any other Federal 

18 law under section 89 of title 14, United States Code. 

19 (j) INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—If the Secretary deter20 mines that there is an imminent risk of destruction or loss 

21 of or injury to a Refuge resource, or that there has been 

22 actual destruction or loss of, or injury to a Refuge re23 source that may give rise to liability under section 10, the 

24 Attorney General, upon request of the Secretary, shall 

25 seek to obtain such relief as may be necessary to abate 
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1 such risk or actual destruction, loss, or injury, or to re2 store or replace the Refuge resource, or both. The district 

3 courts of the United States shall have jurisdiction in such 

4 a case to order such relief as the public interest and the 

5 equities of the case may require. 

6 (k) AREA OF APPLICATION AND ENFORCEABILITY.— 

7 The area of application and enforceability of this Act in8 cludes the territorial sea of the United States, as described 

9 in Presidential Proclamation 5928 of December 27, 1988, 

10 and the United States exclusive economic zone, consistent 

11 with international law. 

12 (l) NATIONWIDE SERVICE OF PROCESS.—In any ac13 tion by the United States under this Act, process may be 

14 served in any district where the defendant is found, re15 sides, transacts business, or has appointed an agent for 

16 the service of process. 

17 SEC. 9. DESTRUCTION OR LOSS OF, OR INJURY TO, REFUGE 

18 RESOURCES. 

19 (a) LIABILITY.— 

20 (1) LIABILITY TO UNITED STATES.—Any per21 son who destroys, causes the loss of, or injures any 

22 Refuge resource is liable to the United States for an 

23 amount equal to the sum of— 
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1 (A) the amount of response costs and dam2 ages resulting from the destruction, loss, or in3 jury; and 

4 (B) interest on that amount calculated in 

5 the manner described under section 1005 of the 

6 Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2705). 

7 (2) LIABILITY IN REM.—Any vessel used to de8 stroy, cause the loss of, or injure any Refuge re9 source shall be liable in rem to the United States for 

10 response costs and damages resulting from such de11 struction, loss, or injury. The amount of that liabil12 ity shall constitute a maritime lien on the vessel and 

13 may be recovered in an action in rem in any district 

14 court of the United States that has jurisdiction over 

15 the vessel. 

16 (3) DEFENSES.—A person is not liable under 

17 this subsection if that person establishes that— 

18 (A) the destruction or loss of, or injury to, 

19 the Refuge resource was caused solely by an act 

20 of God, an act of war, or an act or omission of 

21 a third party, and the person acted with due 

22 care; 

23 (B) the destruction, loss, or injury was 

24 caused by an activity authorized by Federal or 

25 State law; or 
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1 (C) the destruction, loss, or injury was 

2 negligible. 

3 (4) LIMITS TO LIABILITY.—Nothing in sections 

4 4281 through 4289 of the Revised Statutes of the 

5 United States or section 3 of the Act of February 

6 13, 1893, shall limit the liability of any person 

7 under this Act. 

8 (b) RESPONSE ACTIONS AND DAMAGE ASSESS9 MENT.— 

10 (1) RESPONSE ACTIONS.—The Secretary may 

11 undertake or authorize all necessary actions to pre12 vent or minimize the destruction or loss of, or injury 

13 to, Refuge resources, or to minimize the imminent 

14 risk of such destruction, loss, or injury. 

15 (2) DAMAGE ASSESSMENT.—The Secretary 

16 shall assess damages to Refuge resources in accord17 ance with section 4(6). 

18 (c) CIVIL ACTIONS FOR RESPONSE COSTS AND DAM19 AGES.— 

20 (1) COMMENCEMENT.—The Attorney General, 

21 upon request of the Secretary, may commence a civil 

22 action against any person or vessel who may be lia23 ble under subsection (a) for response costs and dam24 ages. The Secretary, acting as trustee for Refuge re25 sources, shall submit a request for such an action to 
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1 the Attorney General whenever a person may be lia2 ble for such costs or damages. 

3 (2) VENUE.—An action under this subsection 

4 may be brought in the United States district court 

5 for any district in which— 

6 (A) the defendant is located, resides, or is 

7 doing business, in the case of an action against 

8 a person; 

9 (B) the vessel is located, in the case of an 

10 action against a vessel; or 

11 (C) the destruction of, loss of, or injury to 

12 a refuge resource occurred. 

13 (d) USE OF RECOVERED AMOUNTS.—Response costs 

14 and damages recovered by the Secretary under this section 

15 shall be retained by the Secretary in the manner provided 

16 for in section 107(f)(1) of the Comprehensive Environ17 mental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (42 

18 U.S.C. 9607 (f)(1)), and used as follows: 

19 (1) RESPONSE COSTS.—amounts recovered by 

20 the United States for costs of response actions and 

21 damage assessments under this section shall be 

22 used, as the Secretary considers appropriate— 

23 (A) to reimburse the Secretary or any 

24 other Federal or State agency that conducted 

25 those activities; and 
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1 (B) after reimbursement of such costs, to 

2 restore, replace, or acquire the equivalent of 

3 any refuge resource. 

4 (2) OTHER AMOUNTS.—All other amounts re5 covered shall be used, in order of priority— 

6 (A) to restore, replace, or acquire the 

7 equivalent of the Refuge resources that were 

8 the subject of the action, including for costs of 

9 monitoring and the costs of curation and con10 servation of archeological, historical, and cul11 tural Refuge resources; and 

12 (B) to restore degraded Refuge resources 

13 that were the subject of the action. 

14 (3) FEDERAL-STATE COORDINATION.—Amounts 

15 recovered under this section with respect to Refuge 

16 resources lying within the jurisdiction of the State 

17 shall be used under paragraph (2) in accordance 

18 with the court decree or settlement agreement and 

19 an agreement entered into by the Secretary and the 

20 Governor of the State. 

21 (e) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—An action for re22 sponse costs or damages under subsection (c) shall be 

23 barred unless the complaint is filed within 3 years after 

24 the date on which the Secretary completes a damage as-
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1 sessment and restoration plan for the Refuge resources 

2 to which the action relates. 

3 SEC. 10. REPEAL OF SUPERSEDED PROVISIONS. 

4 (a) NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES ACT.—Section 

5 304(f)(3) of the National Marine Sanctuaries Act (16 

6 U.S.C. 1434(f)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘documents 

7 for’’ and all that follows through the period and inserting 

8 ‘‘documents for a Thunder Bay National Marine Sanc9 tuary.’’. 

10 (b) NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES AMENDMENTS

11 ACT OF 2000.—Subsection (g) of section 6 of the National 

12 Marine Sanctuaries Amendments Act of 2000 (Public Law 

13 106–513; 114 Stat 2385) is repealed. 

14 SEC. 11. IMPLEMENTATION. 

15 The Secretary shall issue any regulations necessary 

16 to implement this Act within 6 months after the date of 

17 its enactment. 

Æ