I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2106 

To provide exclusive funding to support fisheries and the communities that 

rely upon them, to clear unnecessary regulatory burdens and streamline 

Federal fisheries management, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 29, 2015 

Mr. GUINTA (for himself and Mr. KEATING) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To provide exclusive funding to support fisheries and the 

communities that rely upon them, to clear unnecessary 

regulatory burdens and streamline Federal fisheries management, 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 ‘‘Fisheries Investment 

5 and Regulatory Relief Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 Section 2(a) of the Act of August 11, 1939 (com3 monly known as the ‘‘Saltonstall-Kennedy Act’’) (15 

4 U.S.C. 713c–3(a)), is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating paragraph (1) as para6 graph (2); 

7 (2) by inserting before paragraph (2), as redes8 ignated, the following: 

9 ‘‘(1) The term ‘fishery investment committee’ 

10 means a committee of a regional fishery manage11 ment council established under subsection (c)(1).’’; 

12 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), (4), 

13 and (5) as paragraphs (4), (5), (6), and (7), respec14 tively; 

15 (4) by inserting before paragraph (4), as redes16 ignated, the following: 

17 ‘‘(3) The term ‘regional fishery investment 

18 plan’ means a plan developed by a fishery invest19 ment committee under subsection (c)(2).’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(8) The applicable definition under section 3 

22 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

23 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802), shall apply to 

24 any term used in this Act that is not defined under 

25 this subsection.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. REGIONAL FISHERIES INVESTMENT GRANT PRO2 GRAM. 

3 (a) REGIONAL FISHERIES INVESTMENT GRANT PRO4 GRAM AND FISHERY INVESTMENT PLANS.—Section 2 of 

5 the Act of August 11, 1939 (commonly known as the 

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

7 amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(c) STRENGTHENING REGIONAL FISHERIES MAN9 AGEMENT.— 

10 ‘‘(1) FISHERY INVESTMENT COMMITTEES.— 

11 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—Each Council 

12 shall establish and maintain, under the author13 ity of section 302(g) of the Magnuson-Stevens 

14 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

15 U.S.C. 1852(g)), a fishery investment com16 mittee. Each fishery investment committee shall 

17 be comprised of not more than 13 individuals. 

18 ‘‘(B) AUTHORITY.—Each fishery invest19 ment committee shall— 

20 ‘‘(i) develop a regional fishery invest21 ment plan under subsection (c)(2); 

22 ‘‘(ii) review grant applications and 

23 projects to implement its regional fishery 

24 investment plan; and 

25 ‘‘(iii) make recommendations, based 

26 on its findings, to the Council on grant apVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 May 11, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2106.IH H2106

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1 plications and projects to implement its re2 gional fishery investment plan. 

3 ‘‘(C) MEMBERSHIP.— 

4 ‘‘(i) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each member 

5 of a fishery investment committee shall be 

6 an individual who, by reason of the individ7 ual’s occupational experience or other expe8 rience, scientific expertise, or training, is 

9 knowledgeable of the conservation and 

10 management of, or the commercial or rec11 reational catch of, the fishery resources of 

12 the geographical area concerned. 

13 ‘‘(ii) NOMINATIONS.—Each member 

14 of a fishery investment committee— 

15 ‘‘(I) shall be nominated and 

16 elected by the applicable Council dur17 ing a public meeting of the Council; 

18 ‘‘(II) shall serve for a 3-year 

19 term; and 

20 ‘‘(III) may be re-elected for an 

21 additional 3-year consecutive term. 

22 ‘‘(iii) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—A 

23 member of a fishery investment committee 

24 shall recuse himself or herself from consid25 ering any grant application that the memVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 May 11, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2106.IH H2106

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1 ber has a financial interest that would re2 quire disclosure under section 302(j)(2) of 

3 the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva4 tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 

5 1852(j)(2)). 

6 ‘‘(D) COMPOSITION.—Each fishery invest7 ment committee shall be multi-disciplinary, re8 flect the geographic balance of the Council, and 

9 include at least 1 representative of— 

10 ‘‘(i) the commercial fishing commu11 nity; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the private recreational angling 

13 community; 

14 ‘‘(iii) the for-profit charter fishing 

15 community; 

16 ‘‘(iv) the public interest in marine 

17 conservation who— 

18 ‘‘(I) does not derive an annual 

19 income from commercial or rec20 reational fishing; and 

21 ‘‘(II) is not employed by any per22 son who derives an annual income 

23 from commercial or recreational fish24 ing; 


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1 ‘‘(v) each State government in the re2 gion; 

3 ‘‘(vi) relevant interstate commissions; 

4 ‘‘(vii) federally recognized tribes, 

5 where applicable; and 

6 ‘‘(viii) research institutions. 

7 ‘‘(2) REGIONAL FISHERY INVESTMENT

8 PLANS.—Each fishery investment committee shall 

9 develop a regional fishery investment plan that iden10 tifies critical research, conservation, and manage11 ment needs and corresponding actions to facilitate 

12 rebuilding and maintaining healthy fish populations 

13 and sustainable fisheries over a 5-year period. Each 

14 plan shall— 

15 ‘‘(A) be consistent with the current 5-year 

16 research priority plans developed under section 

17 302(h)(7) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

18 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 

19 1852(h)(7)); 

20 ‘‘(B) include areas of investment that are 

21 critical for rebuilding and maintaining healthy 

22 United States fish populations and promoting 

23 sustainable fisheries, including— 

24 ‘‘(i) stock surveys, stock assessments 

25 and analysis, and cooperative fishery reVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:26 May 11, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2106.IH H2106

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1 search, in conjunction with the National 

2 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

3 involving fishery participants, academic in4 stitutions, and other interested parties; 

5 ‘‘(ii) efforts to improve the collection 

6 and accuracy of fishery catch data, includ7 ing— 

8 ‘‘(I) expanding the use of, and 

9 research and development on, catch 

10 monitoring and reporting programs 

11 and technology, both at-sea and shore12 side, including the use of electronic 

13 monitoring devices and satellite track14 ing systems; and 

15 ‘‘(II) improving data collection 

16 for recreational fisheries, including 

17 improvements to the Marine Rec18 reational Fishery Statistics Survey in 

19 accordance with section 401(g)(3) of 

20 the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con21 servation and Management Act (16 

22 U.S.C. 1881(g)(3)); 

23 ‘‘(iii) analyzing the social and eco24 nomic impacts of fishery management deci25 sions; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) providing financial assistance to, 

2 and investment in, fishermen and fishing 

3 communities through— 

4 ‘‘(I) fishing capacity reduction, 

5 including vessel, permit, and gear 

6 buybacks; and 

7 ‘‘(II) investment in permit banks 

8 or trusts and other entities, including 

9 community fishing associations and 

10 projects designed to help sustain fish11 ery dependent communities and small12 scale fisheries; 

13 ‘‘(v) development of methods or tech14 nologies to improve the quality and value 

15 of fish landed; 

16 ‘‘(vi) research and development of 

17 conservation engineering technologies and 

18 methods in both commercial and rec19 reational fisheries; and 

20 ‘‘(vii) habitat restoration and protec21 tion; 

22 ‘‘(C) be revised by the regional fishery in23 vestment committee and approved by the Coun24 cil at least once every 5 years; 


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1 ‘‘(D) be submitted to the Secretary for re2 view to ensure the plan is consistent with the 

3 requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

4 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 

5 1801 et seq.), and this section; 

6 ‘‘(E) be published in the Federal Register 

7 and made available for public comment; and 

8 ‘‘(F) become effective not later than 60 

9 days after the date of receipt unless the Sec10 retary makes a negative consistency finding. 

11 ‘‘(3) NEGATIVE CONSISTENCY FINDING.—If the 

12 Secretary makes a negative consistency finding 

13 under paragraph (2)(F), each portion of the plan 

14 that is the subject of the negative consistency find15 ing shall not be effective until it is made consistent 

16 by the regional fishery investment committee and 

17 the Council. 

18 ‘‘(4) REGIONAL FISHERY INVESTMENT GRANT

19 PROGRAM.—Not later than 30 days after the date of 

20 enactment of the Fisheries Investment and Regu21 latory Relief Act of 2015, the Secretary shall estab22 lish an annual competitive grant program to provide 

23 funds for projects, activities, and research that ad24 vance the regional priorities that are included in the 

25 regional fishery investment plans. 


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1 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.—State, Fed2 eral, regional, or private entities or persons 

3 shall be eligible for funding with preference 

4 given to public-private partnerships. 

5 ‘‘(B) AWARDS.—The Secretary may only 

6 award a grant for a project, activity, or re7 search that— 

8 ‘‘(i) implements regional fishery in9 vestment plans; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) has been recommended for fund11 ing by the respective regional fishery in12 vestment committee and approved by the 

13 Council.’’. 

14 (b) NATIONAL FISHERIES INVESTMENT PROGRAM.— 

15 Section 2(d) of the Act of August 11, 1939 (commonly 

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

17 713c–3(d)), is amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘research and 

19 development addressed to such aspects of United 

20 States fisheries (including, but not limited to, har21 vesting, processing, marketing, and associated infra22 structures) if not adequately covered by projects as23 sisted under subsection (c), as the Secretary deems 

24 appropriate’’ and inserting ‘‘fisheries research and 

25 investment that supports rebuilding and maintaining 


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1 healthy United States fish populations and promotes 

2 sustainable fisheries. The program shall address 

3 fisheries needs and problems described under sub4 section (e)(1)(B).’’; and 

5 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘, after consultation with 

7 appropriate representatives of the fishing indus8 try,’’; 

9 (B) by striking ‘‘Merchant Marine and 

10 Fisheries’’ and inserting ‘‘Natural Resources’’; 

11 (C) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘de12 velopment goals and funding priorities under 

13 paragraph (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘investment pri14 orities’’; 

15 (D) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘all 

16 pending projects assisted under subsection (c)’’ 

17 and all that follows and inserting ‘‘the projects 

18 funded by the Secretary under this subsection; 

19 and’’; and 

20 (E) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘each 

21 project assisted’’ and all that follows and insert22 ing ‘‘how well the project met the fisheries 

23 needs described in subsection (e)(1).’’. 

24 (c) DIVISION OF RESOURCES.—Section 2(e) of the 

25 Act of August 11, 1939 (commonly known as the 


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1 ‘‘Saltonstall-Kennedy Act’’) (15 U.S.C. 713c–3(e)), is 

2 amended— 

3 (1) by striking ‘‘moneys’’ each place it appears 

4 and inserting ‘‘monies’’; 

5 (2) by striking ‘‘purpose of promoting’’ and in6 serting ‘‘purposes of investing in’’; 

7 (3) by inserting ‘‘or diverted’’ following ‘‘shall 

8 be transferred’’; and 

9 (4) by striking subparagraph (A) and all the 

10 follows, and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(A) The Secretary shall allocate 70 per12 cent of these funds available at the beginning of 

13 each fiscal year to the 8 Council regions and 

14 the Secretary in accordance with the following 

15 formula pursuant to subsection (c): 

16 ‘‘(i) One-half allocated equally among 

17 the Council regions. 

18 ‘‘(ii) One-half allocated proportionally 

19 among the Council regions based on the 

20 combined economic impact of commercial 

21 landings and recreational fishing in each 

22 region. 

23 ‘‘(B) Twenty percent of these funds shall 

24 be available to the Secretary under subsection 

25 (d) for projects addressing fisheries needs and 


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1 problems, as identified by the Secretary, as fol2 lows: 

3 ‘‘(i) Up to one-fifth shall be allocated 

4 to, and apportioned as the Secretary deems 

5 appropriate among, the Atlantic States 

6 Marine Fisheries Commission, the Gulf 

7 States Marine Fisheries Commission, and 

8 the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Com9 mission. 

10 ‘‘(ii) Up to one-fifth shall be allocated 

11 to seafood promotion and sustainable cer12 tification efforts. 

13 ‘‘(iii) Up to one-fifth shall be allocated 

14 to improve fisheries’ management through 

15 research, monitoring or evaluation, and 

16 modification of regulations and procedures. 

17 ‘‘(iv) Up to one-fifth shall be allocated 

18 to fisheries’ disasters, and shoreside infra19 structure and access needs. 

20 ‘‘(v) Up to one-fifth shall be allocated 

21 to other special needs, including manage22 ment of highly migratory species and inter23 national fisheries. 

24 ‘‘(C) Any amounts remaining after the an25 nual fiscal year allocations made pursuant to 


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1 subparagraph (B) shall remain available to the 

2 Secretary without fiscal year limitation for fu3 ture such allocations. 

4 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Not more than 10 percent 

5 of these funds may be used to offset receipts for the 

6 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 

7 Operations, Research, and Facilities account. 

8 ‘‘(3) ANNUAL NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary 

9 shall notify annually each Council of funds available 

10 for grants in its region. 

11 ‘‘(4) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Prior to the al12 location of funds under paragraph (1), the Sec13 retary— 

14 ‘‘(A) may reserve up to 3 percent of the 

15 funds available in a fiscal year for the adminis16 tration of the grant program; and 

17 ‘‘(B) shall distribute 3 percent of the funds 

18 available in a fiscal year equally among each of 

19 the 8 Councils for the development and imple20 mentation of fishery investment plans and 

21 grant review. 

22 ‘‘(5) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—Except as 

23 provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary may not re24 duce or eliminate funding for any research, survey, 

25 monitoring, or assessment activities necessary to 


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1 meet the conservation and management require2 ments of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva3 tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) 

4 as a result of funding provided under this section.’’. 

5 SEC. 4. FOCUSING ASSETS FOR IMPROVED FISHERIES OUT6 COMES. 

7 Section 2(b) of the Act of August 11, 1939 (com8 monly known as the ‘‘Saltonstall-Kennedy Act’’) (15 

9 U.S.C. 713c–3(b)), is amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘(1)’’; 

11 (2) by striking ‘‘and ending on June 30, 

12 1957,’’; 

13 (3) by striking ‘‘moneys’’ the first place it ap14 pears and inserting ‘‘monies’’; and 

15 (4) by striking ‘‘shall be maintained in a sepa16 rate fund only for’’ and all that follows and inserting 

17 ‘‘and shall only be used for the purposes described 

18 under subsection (c).’’. 

19 SEC. 5. REGULATION AND PROCEDURE STREAMLINING. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—For the 2 fiscal years following 

21 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Com22 merce shall use funds available under section 2(e)(2) of 

23 the Act of August 11, 1939 (commonly known as the 

24 ‘‘Saltonstall-Kennedy Act’’) (15 U.S.C. 713c–3), to con25 duct a review of the regulations and procedures used to 


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1 implement title III of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con2 servation and Management Act (90 Stat. 346). 

3 (b) REVIEW REQUIREMENTS.—The review under 

4 subsection (a) shall— 

5 (1) identify redundant and inefficient regula6 tions and procedures; 

7 (2) make recommendations for streamlining 

8 such regulations and procedures, including rec9 ommendations to eliminate unnecessary paperwork, 

10 reduce bureaucratic restrictions, and speed the inclu11 sion of new information into management decisions; 

12 and 

13 (3) ensure that any recommended modifications 

14 to regulations or procedures are consistent with the 

15 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Man16 agement Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), and any 

17 other applicable law. 

18 SEC. 6. PROMULGATION OF REGULATIONS. 

19 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

20 of this Act, the Secretary shall promulgate regulations to 

21 implement the requirements of this Act. 

Æ 


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