I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1012 

To strengthen Federal consumer protection and product traceability with 

respect to commercially marketed seafood, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 6, 2013 

Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. JONES, Mr. BONNER, Mrs. CAPPS, Mr. TIERNEY, and Mr. KEATING) introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Ways and Means, 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 strengthen Federal consumer protection and product 

traceability with respect to commercially marketed seafood, 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 ‘‘Safety And Fraud En5 forcement for Seafood Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SEAFOOD SAFETY. 

2 (a) INTERAGENCY AGREEMENT.—Not later than 180 

3 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec4 retary of Commerce and the Secretary of Health and 

5 Human Services shall execute a memorandum of under6 standing to improve interagency cooperation on seafood 

7 safety and seafood fraud prevention, building upon any 

8 agreement under section 421(c) of the Federal Food, 

9 Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 350j(c)), or any other 

10 prior agreement. The memorandum shall include provi11 sions, performance metrics, and timelines as appropriate 

12 to improve such cooperation (acting under provisions of 

13 law other than this subsection) to— 

14 (1) identify and execute specific procedures for 

15 using authorities granted under the FDA Food Safe16 ty Modernization Act (Public Law 111–353) to en17 sure and improve the safety of commercially mar18 keted seafood in the United States; 

19 (2) maximize the effectiveness of limited per20 sonnel and resources by ensuring that— 

21 (A) inspections of seafood shipments and 

22 seafood processing and production facilities by 

23 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admin24 istration and the Food and Drug Administra25 tion are not duplicative; and 


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1 (B) information resulting from examina2 tions, testing, and inspections conducted by the 

3 Department of Commerce is considered in mak4 ing risk-based determinations, including the es5 tablishment of inspection priorities for domestic 

6 and foreign facilities and the examination and 

7 testing of domestic and imported seafood; 

8 (3) create a process— 

9 (A) by which data collected by all seafood 

10 inspectors and authorized officers of the Na11 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

12 authorized to conduct inspections of seafood 

13 shipments, or inspections of facilities that proc14 ess or sell seafood, will be utilized by the Food 

15 and Drug Administration beginning no later 

16 than one year after the enactment of this Act; 

17 (B) by which data collected by either of 

18 these agencies is shared to maximize efficiency 

19 and enforcement of seafood safety efforts; and 

20 (C) which may include increased training 

21 of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis22 tration agents through the existing Food and 

23 Drug Administration programs; 

24 (4) create a process by which— 


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1 (A) data collected by inspectors and offi2 cers of other Federal, State, or local agencies 

3 authorized to conduct inspections of seafood, or 

4 inspections of facilities that process or sell sea5 food, will be utilized by the Food and Drug Ad6 ministration; and 

7 (B) data collected by these inspectors and 

8 officials is shared with the National Oceanic 

9 and Atmospheric Administration and the Food 

10 and Drug Administration to maximize efficiency 

11 and enforcement of seafood safety efforts; and 

12 (5) ensure that the National Oceanic and At13 mospheric Administration’s Seafood Inspection Pro14 gram is fully utilized as a third-party auditor pursu15 ant to section 808 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 

16 Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 384d) to inspect imported 

17 seafood or seafood offered for import originating 

18 from any country or exporter. 

19 (b) COORDINATION.— 

20 (1) NATIONAL SEA GRANT COLLEGE PRO21 GRAM.—The Administrator of the National Oceanic 

22 and Atmospheric Administration shall ensure that 

23 the Administration’s seafood inspection activities are 

24 coordinated with the national sea grant college proVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:31 Mar 08, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1012.IH H1012

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1 gram to provide outreach to the States, consumers, 

2 and the seafood industry on seafood safety. 

3 (2) INSPECTING TO PREVENT SEAFOOD

4 FRAUD.—The Secretary of Commerce and the Sec5 retary of Health and Human Services shall, to the 

6 maximum extent practicable, ensure that inspections 

7 and tests for seafood safety also collect information 

8 for seafood fraud prevention. 

9 (c) LIST OF OFFENDERS.—The Secretary of Health 

10 and Human Services, in consultation with the Secretary 

11 of Commerce, shall develop, maintain, and post on the 

12 public Web site of the Department of Health and Human 

13 Services a list that— 

14 (1) includes, by country, each exporter whose 

15 seafood is imported or offered for import into the 

16 United States; and 

17 (2) for each such exporter, tracks the timing, 

18 type, and frequency of violations of Federal law re19 lating to seafood safety. 

20 (d) IMPACT ON EXISTING FOOD SAFETY AUTHOR21 ITY.—Nothing in this section limits the authority of the 

22 Secretary of Health and Human Services to execute or 

23 enforce food safety laws, including the FDA Food Safety 

24 Modernization Act (Public Law 111–353). 


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1 SEC. 3. SEAFOOD IDENTIFICATION. 

2 (a) LIST OF STANDARDIZED NAMES FOR SEA3 FOOD.— 

4 (1) UPDATE.—Beginning not later than 180 

5 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

6 Secretary of Health and Human Services, in con7 sultation with the Secretary of Commerce, shall 

8 maintain and update as appropriate its ‘‘Guide to 

9 Acceptable Market Names for Seafood Sold in Inter10 state Commerce’’ as a list of standardized names for 

11 identification of seafood at the distribution, mar12 keting, and retail stages. 

13 (2) CONTENTS.—The list maintained under 

14 paragraph (1) shall— 

15 (A) include scientific names, acceptable 

16 market names, and common or regional names 

17 for all seafood species distributed in interstate 

18 commerce in the United States, and indicate 

19 clearly— 

20 (i) which of those names may be used 

21 to identify seafood; and 

22 (ii) examples of names which con23 stitute mislabeling in violation of Federal 

24 law; 


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1 (B) take into account taxonomy, inter2 national law and custom, market information, 

3 and naming precedence; 

4 (C) identify names for seafood as appro5 priate only if the Secretary of Commerce deter6 mines the names are not likely to confuse or 

7 mislead consumers; and 

8 (D) include information regarding any con9 sumption advisory that has been issued for the 

10 seafood. 

11 (3) AVAILABILITY.—The list maintained under 

12 paragraph (1) shall be— 

13 (A) made available to the public on the 

14 Web sites of the Department of Health and 

15 Human Services and the Department of Com16 merce; and 

17 (B) updated annually based on the best 

18 available scientific and market information. 

19 (4) PUBLIC INPUT.—The Secretary of Health 

20 and Human Services shall use its existing citizen pe21 tition process in accepting petitions to amend the 

22 list maintained under paragraph (1). 

23 (b) SEAFOOD TRACEABILITY REQUIREMENTS.—Be24 ginning on the date that is 180 days after the date of 

25 the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce, in 


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1 consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human 

2 Services, shall implement the following requirements with 

3 respect to seafood imported into the United States or oth4 erwise distributed or offered for sale in interstate com5 merce: 

6 (1) In addition to disclosure of the United Na7 tions Food and Agriculture Organization Major 

8 Fishing Area, or a more specific location, in which 

9 the fish was caught, of the information required to 

10 be submitted to the Secretary of Commerce under 

11 section 303(a)(5) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

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

13 1853(a)(5)), at a minimum the following informa14 tion shall be displayed on the packaging of, or other15 wise accompany, seafood through processing, dis16 tribution, and final sale: 

17 (A) The acceptable market name and sci18 entific name for the seafood species, as speci19 fied in the list maintained under subsection 

20 (a)(1). 

21 (B) The method of harvest of the seafood 

22 including gear type as listed in section 600.725 

23 of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations and de24 fined in section 600.10 of such title. 

25 (C) The date of the catch. 


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1 (D) The weight or number, as appropriate, 

2 of product for an individual fish or lot. 

3 (2) If seafood has been previously frozen, treat4 ed with any substance (other than ice or water) that 

5 may affect the true weight of the seafood, or proc6 essed in a country other than that in which it was 

7 landed or harvested, by any harvester, processor, 

8 distributor, or retailer, such information shall be in9 cluded in the labeling of, or otherwise accompany, 

10 the seafood through processing, distribution, and 

11 final sale. 

12 (3) If the seafood was farm-raised, that infor13 mation, along with information regarding the coun14 try of cultivation, the location of the aquaculture 

15 production area, and the method of cultivation, shall 

16 be included in the labeling of, or otherwise accom17 pany, the seafood through processing, distribution, 

18 and final sale. 

19 (4) With respect to any information required by 

20 paragraph (1) or (2) to be included in the labeling 

21 of, or otherwise accompany, seafood, an importer, 

22 processor, distributor, or retailer (including a res23 taurant) may satisfy such requirement by making 

24 the information available upon request— 

25 (A) to anyone purchasing the seafood; and 


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1 (B) to any Federal, State, or local official 

2 authorized to conduct inspections of— 

3 (i) seafood; or 

4 (ii) any facility that processes or sells 

5 seafood. 

6 (5) No importer, processor, distributor, or re7 tailer may be found to be in violation of the require8 ments under this subsection for unknowingly selling 

9 a product that was already mislabeled upon receipt, 

10 provided that the importer, processor, distributor, or 

11 retailer can provide the required product traceability 

12 documentation. 

13 (c) REFUSAL OF ADMISSION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (3) 

15 and (4), all seafood imported or offered for import 

16 originating from an exporter shall be refused admis17 sion if— 

18 (A) the Secretary of Commerce finds that 

19 any shipment of such seafood appears to be in 

20 violation of subsection (b); or 

21 (B) the Secretary of Health and Human 

22 Services finds that any shipment of such sea23 food appears to be in violation of this Act or 

24 other applicable Federal laws or regulations. 


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1 (2) IMPORT CERTIFICATION.—For any exporter 

2 whose seafood products are refused admission under 

3 paragraph (1) based on a prior shipment, the Sec4 retary of Health and Human Services shall deter5 mine whether to require, as a condition of granting 

6 admission into the United States to an article of 

7 seafood originating from such exporter, that such 

8 seafood be accompanied by a certification or other 

9 assurance under section 801(q) of the Federal Food, 

10 Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 381(q)). 

11 (3) ALLOWANCE OF INDIVIDUAL SHIPMENTS.— 

12 Paragraph (1) does not apply with respect to an in13 dividual shipment of seafood originating from an ex14 porter whose products must otherwise be refused ad15 mission under such paragraph if the exporter pre16 sents evidence to the Secretary of Health and 

17 Human Services or the Secretary of Commerce from 

18 a laboratory accredited under section 422 of the 

19 Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 

20 350k), or other equivalent evidence, documenting 

21 that the shipment is in compliance with the provi22 sions of subsection (b) and other applicable Federal 

23 laws or regulations prohibiting seafood fraud. 

24 (4) TERMINATION OF INDIVIDUAL SHIPMENT

25 SCREENING REQUIREMENT.—Paragraph (1) shall 


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1 cease to prohibit the admission of seafood origi2 nating from an exporter based on a prior shipment 

3 if the Secretary of Health and Human Services or 

4 the Secretary of Commerce determines that— 

5 (A) each prior shipment whose appearance 

6 triggered the application of such paragraph was 

7 in fact in compliance with the provisions of sub8 section (b) and other applicable Federal laws or 

9 regulations, including those prohibiting seafood 

10 fraud; or 

11 (B) during the preceding 12 months, no 

12 shipment of seafood originating from the ex13 porter has triggered the application of para14 graph (1). 

15 (d) PENALTIES.—The Secretary of Commerce shall 

16 prevent any person from violating this Act, or any Act to 

17 which this section applies, in the same manner, by the 

18 same means, and with the same jurisdiction, powers, and 

19 duties as though sections 308 through 311 of the Magnu20 son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

21 (16 U.S.C. 1858 through 1861) were incorporated into 

22 and made a part of and applicable to this Act. 

23 (e) LIST OF OFFENDERS.—The Secretary of Com24 merce, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and 

25 Human Services, shall develop, maintain, and post on the 


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1 public Web site of the Department of Commerce a list 

2 that— 

3 (1) includes, by country, each exporter whose 

4 seafood is imported or offered for import into the 

5 United States; and 

6 (2) for each such exporter, tracks the timing, 

7 type, and frequency of violations of Federal law re8 lating to seafood fraud. 

9 (f) INSPECTIONS.—The Secretary of Commerce, in 

10 consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human 

11 Services, shall— 

12 (1) increase, as resources allow, the number of 

13 foreign and domestic seafood shipments that are in14 spected for seafood fraud by National Oceanic and 

15 Atmospheric Administration inspectors and author16 ized officers, including verification of compliance 

17 with the traceability requirements of subsection (b); 

18 (2) ensure that the percentage of seafood ship19 ments inspected during a given year is not lower 

20 than the percentage inspected during the previous 

21 year; and 

22 (3) to the maximum extent practicable, ensure 

23 that inspections and tests for seafood fraud preven24 tion also collect information to support the Secretary 

25 of Health and Human Services in implementing the 


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1 seafood safety requirements of the FDA Food Safety 

2 Modernization Act (Public Law 111–353). 

3 (g) IMPACT ON EXISTING FOOD SAFETY AUTHOR4 ITY.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit 

5 the authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Serv6 ices to execute or enforce food safety laws or regulations 

7 that may be adopted pursuant to the FDA Food Safety 

8 Modernization Act (Public Law 111–353). 

9 SEC. 4. AUTHORITY OF STATES. 

10 Whenever the attorney general of a State, or an offi11 cial or agency designated by a State, has reason to believe 

12 that any person has engaged or is engaging in a pattern 

13 or practice of seafood fraud in violation of subsection (b) 

14 or (c) of section 3, the State may bring a civil action on 

15 behalf of its residents to enjoin fraud, an action to recover 

16 for actual monetary loss or receive $10,000 in damages 

17 for each violation, or both such actions. If the court finds 

18 the defendant willfully or knowingly violated this Act, the 

19 court may, in its discretion, increase the amount of the 

20 award to an amount equal to not more than 3 times the 

21 amount available under the preceding sentence. Nothing 

22 in this section shall preclude an individual from bringing 

23 a civil action. 


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1 SEC. 5. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

2 Beginning 18 months after the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act, and every two years thereafter, the Secretary 

4 of Commerce and the Secretary of Health and Human 

5 Services, in consultation with the Chairman of the Federal 

6 Trade Commission and the heads of other relevant Fed7 eral agencies, shall submit jointly a report to the Congress 

8 including— 

9 (1) findings with respect to— 

10 (A) the extent and severity of violations of 

11 Federal, State, and local law relating to seafood 

12 safety and seafood fraud; and 

13 (B) the health and financial impacts of 

14 these violations on United States consumers 

15 and the United States fishing industry; 

16 (2) an analysis of the lists required to be devel17 oped and maintained under sections 2(c) and 3(e); 

18 (3) an analysis of the effectiveness of the 

19 memorandum of understanding required by section 

20 2(a) in ensuring that the Department of Commerce 

21 and the Department of Health and Human Services 

22 work to ensure seafood safety, including an assess23 ment of achieving identified performance metrics 

24 and timelines established to reduce duplication of ef25 fort and increase collection and integration of in26 spections data; 


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1 (4) an assessment of the technological assets 

2 available for addressing seafood safety and fraud, in3 cluding traceability, and an assessment of the tech4 nological gaps and needs that exist; 

5 (5) information related to the implementation 

6 of any agreement entered into pursuant to section 2 

7 of this Act or section 421 of the Federal Food, 

8 Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 350j); 

9 (6) detailed information on the inspection, en10 forcement, and consumer outreach activities, includ11 ing the number of inspections, enforcement actions, 

12 consumer outreach activities, personnel, and re13 sources utilized by the National Oceanic and Atmos14 pheric Administration, the Food and Drug Adminis15 tration, and the Federal Trade Commission to carry 

16 out this Act, including the degree of coordination of 

17 actions to address seafood safety and seafood fraud; 

18 and 

19 (7) recommendations on any additional authori20 ties, budget, or personnel necessary to improve sea21 food safety and prevent seafood fraud. 

22 SEC. 6. PREEMPTION. 

23 Nothing in this Act preempts the authority of a State 

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1 food safety and preventing seafood fraud that are con2 sistent with the requirements of this Act. 

3 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) The term ‘‘other applicable Federal laws 

6 and regulations’’ means Federal statutes, regula7 tions, and international agreements (other than this 

8 Act) pertaining to the importation, exportation, 

9 transportation, sale, harvest, processing, or trade of 

10 seafood, including the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

11 Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 

12 et seq.), the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 (16 

13 U.S.C. 3371 et seq.), the Federal Food, Drug, and 

14 Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.), the FDA 

15 Food Safety Modernization Act (Public Law 111– 

16 353), the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (15 

17 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.), subtitle D of the Agricultural 

18 Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1638 et seq.), 

19 parts 60 and 65 of title 7, Code of Federal Regula20 tions (or any successor regulations), and part 123 of 

21 title 21, Code of Federal Regulations (or any suc22 cessor regulations). 

23 (2) The term ‘‘seafood’’ means fish, shellfish, 

24 and processed fish or shellfish products. 


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1 (3) The term ‘‘seafood fraud’’ means the 

2 mislabeling or misrepresentation of the information 

3 required under this Act or other applicable Federal 

4 laws and regulations. 

Æ 


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