II

Calendar No. 678

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1911

[Report No. 106–339]

To conserve Atlantic highly migratory species of fish, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

NOVEMBER 10, 1999

Mr. BREAUX (for himself, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. HOLLINGS, Mr. SHELBY, Mr.

KERRY, Mr. SESSIONS, Ms. LANDRIEU, and Mrs. HUTCHISON) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

JULY 12, 2000

Reported by Mr. MCCAIN, with an amendment

[Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To conserve Atlantic highly migratory species of fish, 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 ‘‘Atlantic Highly Migra5 tory Species Conservation Act of 1999’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

2 The Congress makes the following findings:

3 (1) Highly migratory species of fish, including

4 North Atlantic swordfish, species of Atlantic billfish,

5 and Atlantic large coastal sharks, are overfished and

6 require greater conservation as confirmed by recent

7 scientific assessments. In its most recent analysis,

8 the Standing Committee on Research and Statistics

9 (SCRS) of the International Commission for the

10 Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) estimated

11 that a number of key stocks of highly migratory spe12 cies have less than the biomass needed to produce

13 their respective maximum sustainable yields. The

14 1999 SCRS stock assessment estimated that the

15 North Atlantic swordfish stock was at 65 percent of

16 the necessary biomass to produce maximum sustain17 able yield (MSY). The 1997 SCRS stock assessment

18 estimated that the Atlantic blue marlin stock was at

19 24 percent and the Atlantic white marlin stock was

20 at 23 percent of the necessary biomass to produce

21 MSY. In its most recent stock assessment for Atlan22 tic sailfish/spearfish, the SCRS estimated these

23 stocks were at 62 percent of the necessary biomass

24 to produce MSY. Also, the National Marine Fish25 eries Service has identified North Atlantic swordfish,

26 Atlantic blue marlin, Atlantic white marlin, Atlantic
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1 sailfish/spearfish, and other highly migratory species

2 of fish as overfished.

3 (2) A reduction in the mortality of juvenile

4 swordfish will contribute substantially to the rebuild5 ing of North Atlantic swordfish as confirmed by a

6 1998 SCRS report that expressed ‘‘concern about

7 the high catches (landings plus discards) of small

8 swordfish’’ and ‘‘emphasized that gains in the yield

9 could accrue if fishing mortality on small fish could

10 be further reduced’’.

11 (3) In 1998, ICCAT adopted a resolution di12 recting the SCRS to develop options for rebuilding

13 North Atlantic swordfish to levels that would

14 produce the maximum sustainable yield, including

15 alternative methods for reducing small fish mor16 tality, for consideration at the ICCAT meeting in

17 1999.

18 (4) Reducing the mortality of species of Atlan19 tic billfish, including Atlantic blue marlin, Atlantic

20 white marlin, and Atlantic sailfish/spearfish, will

21 contribute substantially to the rebuilding of these

22 stocks.

23 (5) In 1990, ICCAT encouraged its member

24 states to take appropriate measures within their na-
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1 tional jurisdictions to protect small swordfish, in2 cluding the establishment of time and area closures.

3 (6) Significant reductions in the mortality of ju4 venile swordfish, species of Atlantic billfish, species

5 of Atlantic large coastal sharks, and other highly mi6 gratory species of fish within the exclusive economic

7 zone of the United States can be achieved by the de8 sign and implementation of discrete, scientifically9 based time-area closures for pelagic longline fishing.

10 (7) Conflicts between the commercial pelagic

11 longline fishery and the recreational fishery for high12 ly migratory species exist in certain areas of the

13 U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone in the Atlantic Ocean

14 and Gulf of Mexico and can be substantially reduced

15 by the design and implementation of discrete, sci16 entifically-based time-area closures for pelagic

17 longline fishing.

18 (8) A credible, scientifically-based time-area clo19 sure for pelagic longline fishing that would achieve

20 reductions in the bycatch and mortality of overfished

21 highly migratory species within the United States

22 Exclusive Economic Zone will provide a model for

23 applying the same conservation concept more broad24 ly in international waters through ICCAT in further
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1 pursuit of the goal of rebuilding the stocks of these

2 species.

3 (9) The time-area closures for pelagic longline

4 fishing within the United States Exclusive Economic

5 Zone that will contribute to achieving the conserva6 tion objectives for swordfish, billfish, and large

7 coastal sharks in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of

8 Mexico and that will reduce conflicts between com9 mercial and recreational fishermen will result in sub10 stantial adverse economic impacts on United States

11 commercial fishermen who engage in pelagic longline

12 fishing, as well as their families and communities.

13 Such adverse economic impacts can be minimized by

14 a fair and equitable buyout of the permits and li15 censes of certain pelagic longline fishing vessels.

16 (10) The commercial fishermen who sustain

17 substantial adverse economic impacts from such

18 time-area closures and who should be eligible to par19 ticipate in such a government buyout include those

20 who, according to the National Marine Fisheries

21 Service data, have—

22 (A) reported that at least 35 percent of

23 their vessel’s annual fishing sets were conducted

24 in the proposed closed areas in any one year

25 from 1992 through 1997;
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1 (B) reported that they conducted at least

2 25 pelagic longline gear sets during their quali3 fying year;

4 (C) reported that at least 50 percent of

5 their landings for the 1995–1997 period were

6 comprised of pelagic longline target species, in7 cluding swordfish, tunas, mahi-mahi, escolar,

8 and oceanic sharks; and

9 (D) qualified for a Directed Swordfish Ini10 tial Limited Access Permit.

11 (11) There is a great need for the National Ma12 rine Fisheries Service to conduct additional scientific

13 research, in cooperation with pelagic longline fishing

14 vessels, to identify the uses and configurations of pe15 lagic longline fishing gear that are most effective in

16 reducing bycatch.

17 SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

18 The purposes of this Act are—

19 (1) to contribute to the conservation and re20 building of overfished stocks of highly migratory spe21 cies, including North Atlantic swordfish, species of

22 Atlantic billfish, and Atlantic large coastal sharks,

23 through reductions in mortality and the protection

24 of those nursery and spawning areas that may occur

25 within the exclusive economic zone of the United
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1 States, to levels that will produce maximum sustain2 able yield, in compliance with United States obliga3 tions under the International Convention for the

4 Conservation of Atlantic Tunas and consistent with

5 National Standard (1) and section 304 of the Mag6 nuson-Stevens Act;

7 (2) to minimize adverse socio-economic impacts

8 on United States commercial fishermen and their

9 families, small fishing business entities, and fishing

10 communities consistent with National Standard (8)

11 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and the requirements

12 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, resulting from the

13 conservation actions taken under this Act;

14 (3) to enhance both the socio-economic viability

15 of the remaining United States pelagic longline fish16 ing industry and recreational fishing opportunities

17 for highly migratory species;

18 (4) to minimize bycatch, including regulatory

19 discards, consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act

20 and the international obligations of the United

21 States;

22 (5) to support and encourage the United States

23 Government’s efforts to obtain international agree24 ments that provide for effective fishery conservation

25 and management consistent with the policies set
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1 forth in section 2(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act

2 and to provide the necessary leadership for achieving

3 greater international conservation of highly migra4 tory species;

5 (6) to reduce conflicts within the exclusive eco6 nomic zone of the United States between the pelagic

7 longline and recreational fisheries for highly migra8 tory species; and

9 (7) to expand the scientific knowledge and un10 derstanding of Atlantic highly migratory species and

11 the fisheries of the United States.

12 SEC. 4. POLICY.

13 It is declared to be the policy of the Congress in this

14 Act and the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act of 1975 that,

15 consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, all United

16 States fishermen shall be treated fairly and equitably in

17 achieving national and international fishery conservation

18 and management objectives and obligations for highly mi19 gratory species of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico.

20 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

21 In this Act, the following definitions apply:

22 (1) AFFECTED STATE.—The term ‘‘affected

23 State’’ means one of the following States: South

24 Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi,

25 Louisiana, and Texas.
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1 (2) BILLFISH.—The term ‘‘billfish’’ means blue

2 marlin, spearfish, sailfish and white marlin.

3 (3) BYCATCH.—The term ‘‘bycatch’’ means fish

4 which are harvested in a fishery, but which are not

5 sold or kept for personal use, and includes economic

6 discards and regulatory discards. The term does not

7 include fish released alive under a recreational catch

8 and release fishery management program.

9 (4) ELIGIBLE PERMIT HOLDER.—The term ‘‘el10 igible permit holder’’ means the person or group of

11 persons who, on the date of enactment of this Act,

12 holds the Directed Swordfish Limited Access Permit

13 that was issued based on the landings of an eligible

14 vessel.

15 (5) COMMERCIAL FISHING.—The term ‘‘com16 mercial fishing’’ means fishing in which the fish har17 vested, either in whole or in part, are intended to

18 enter commerce or enter commerce through sale,

19 barter, or trade.

20 (6) ELIGIBLE VESSEL.—The term ‘‘eligible ves21 sel’’ means each vessel listed in section 7(a) of this

22 Act.

23 (7) FISH.—The term ‘‘fish’’ means finfish, mol24 lusks, crustaceans, and all other forms of marine
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1 animal and plant life other than marine mammals

2 and birds.

3 (8) FISHING.—The term ‘‘fishing’’ means—

4 (A) the catching, taking, or harvesting of

5 fish;

6 (B) the attempted catching, taking, or har7 vesting of fish;

8 (C) any other activity which can reason9 ably be expected to result in the catching, tak10 ing, or harvesting of fish; or

11 (D) any operations at sea in support of, or

12 in preparation for, any activity described in

13 subparagraphs (A) through (C).

14 The term does not include any scientific research ac15 tivity that is authorized by the Secretary.

16 (9) FISHING VESSEL.—The term ‘‘fishing ves17 sel’’ means any vessel, boat, ship, or other craft

18 which is used for, equipped to be used for, or of a

19 type which is normally used for—

20 (A) fishing; or

21 (B) aiding or assisting one or more vessels

22 at sea in the performance of any activity relat23 ing to fishing, including but not limited to prep24 aration, supply, storage, refrigeration, transpor25 tation, or processing.
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1 (10) GEODESIC.—The term ‘‘geodesic’’ means

2 the shortest line between two points that lies on the

3 surface of the Earth.

4 (11) HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES.—The term

5 ‘‘highly migratory species’’ means tuna species, bill6 fish, oceanic sharks, and swordfish.

7 (12) MAGNUSON-STEVENS ACT.—The term

8 ‘‘Magnuson-Stevens Act’’ means the Magnuson-Ste9 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16

10 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.).

11 (13) PELAGIC LONGLINE FISHING.—The term

12 ‘‘pelagic longline fishing’’ means a method of fishing

13 that uses any fishing gear consisting of a length of

14 line suspended horizontally in the water above the

15 bottom from lines attached to surface floats and to

16 which gangions and hooks are attached.

17 (14) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means any

18 individual, corporation, partnership, association, or

19 other entity (whether or not organized or existing

20 under the laws of any State).

21 (15) RECREATIONAL FISHING.—The term ‘‘rec22 reational fishing’’ means fishing for sport or pleas23 ure.

24 (16) RECORD ADDRESS.—The term ‘‘record ad25 dress’’ means the address of record for each permit
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1 holder and swordfish dealer as maintained in the

2 National Marine Fisheries Service’s databases.

3 (17) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’

4 means the Secretary of Commerce.

5 (18) SWORDFISH DEALER.—The term ‘‘sword6 fish dealer’’ means any person who purchases, trades

7 for, or barters for the receipt of any Atlantic sword8 fish (whether imported or domestic and regardless of

9 origin) for any commercial purpose (including sell10 ing, trading, or bartering such swordfish to others).

11 SEC. 6. HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES CONSERVATION

12 ZONES.

13 (a) ATLANTIC CONSERVATION ZONE FOR HIGHLY

14 MIGRATORY SPECIES.—No person may engage in pelagic

15 longline fishing in the Atlantic Conservation Zone For

16 Highly Migratory Species, which is the area, seaward of

17 the baseline from which the territorial sea is measured,

18 that is enclosed by a series of geodesics connecting in suc19 cession the points at the following coordinates:

20 (1) 26 degrees 30 minutes north latitude, 82

21 degrees 0 minutes west longitude;

22 (2) 24 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 82 de23 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

24 (3) 24 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 81 de25 grees 08 minutes west longitude;
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1 (4) seaward extension of the Exclusive Eco2 nomic Zone;

3 (5) 28 degrees 17 minutes north latitude, 79

4 degrees 0 minutes west longitude;

5 (6) 31 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 78 de6 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

7 (7) 32 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 78 de8 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

9 (8) 32 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 77 de10 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

11 (9) 33 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 77 de12 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

13 (10) 33 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 78

14 degrees 0 minutes west longitude; and

15 (11) 33 degrees 51 minutes north latitude, 78

16 degrees 33 minutes west longitude.

17 (b) GULF OF MEXICO CONSERVATION ZONE FOR

18 SWORDFISH.—Every year, during the period of January

19 1 through Memorial Day, no person may engage in pelagic

20 longline fishing in the Gulf Of Mexico Conservation Zone

21 For Swordfish, which is the area enclosed by a series of

22 geodesics connecting in succession the points at the fol23 lowing coordinates:

24 (1) 30 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 87 de25 grees 30 minutes west longitude;
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1 (2) 30 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 86 de2 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

3 (3) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 86 de4 grees 0 minutes west longitude; and

5 (4) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 87 de6 grees 30 minutes west longitude.

7 (c) GULF OF MEXICO CONSERVATION ZONE FOR

8 HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES.—During the period that

9 begins on the first Memorial Day after the date of enact10 ment of this Act and continues through Labor Day of the

11 same calendar year, and during the period of Memorial

12 Day through Labor Day in each of the next four calendar

13 years, no person may engage in pelagic longline fishing

14 in the Gulf Of Mexico Conservation Zone For Highly Mi15 gratory Species, which is the area, seaward of the baseline

16 from which the territorial sea is measured, that is enclosed

17 by a series of geodesics connecting in succession the points

18 at the following coordinates:

19 (1) 26 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 97 de20 grees 10 minutes west longitude (at approximately

21 the border between the United States and Mexico);

22 (2) 26 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 96 de23 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

24 (3) 27 degrees 30 minutes north latitude, 94

25 degrees 30 minutes west longitude;
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1 (4) 27 degrees 30 minutes north latitude, 90

2 degrees 0 minutes west longitude;

3 (5) 28 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 90 de4 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

5 (6) 28 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 89 de6 grees 30 minutes west longitude;

7 (7) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 87 de8 grees 30 minutes west longitude;

9 (8) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 86 de10 grees 0 minutes west longitude; and

11 (9) 29 degrees 40 minutes north latitude, 85

12 degrees 20 minutes west longitude (at Cape San

13 Blas, Florida).

14 (d) SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH EXCEPTION.—The re15 strictions under this section on fishing do not apply to pe16 lagic longline fishery research authorized by the Secretary.

17 No fish caught under the research program may be sold

18 unless authorized by the Secretary.

19 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall be effective

20 on the 165th day after the date of enactment of this Act,

21 except that subsection (c) shall be effective on the first

22 Memorial Day after the date of enactment of this Act.
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1 SEC. 7. PELAGIC LONGLINE FISHING VESSEL PERMIT

2 HOLDER COMPENSATION PROGRAM.

3 (a) VOLUNTARY COMPENSATION PROGRAM.—The

4 Secretary shall conduct a voluntary Pelagic Longline Ves5 sel Permit Holder Compensation Program. Except as pro6 vided in subsection (b), the following vessels are eligible

7 for the Compensation Program:

8 (1) ALEX JAMES, United States official num9 ber 593864.

10 (2) AMANDA KAY, United States official

11 number 691398.

12 (3) BEAU, United States official number

13 647878.

14 (4) BETTE BOOP, United States official num15 ber 673527.

16 (5) BETTY B, United States official number

17 689987.

18 (6) BIGEYE, United States official number

19 628300.

20 (7) BLACK JACK ONE, United States official

21 number 592219.

22 (8) BONNEY ANNE, United States official

23 number 666686.

24 (9) BUCKAROO, United States official number

25 576503.
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1 (10) CANDACE, United States official number

2 673556.

3 (11) CAPT. BOB, United States official num4 ber 929813.

5 (12) CAROL ANN, United States official num6 ber 609121.

7 (13) CHARLESTON STAR, United States of8 ficial number 591301.

9 (14) CHRISTOPHER JOE, United States offi10 cial number 608436.

11 (15) CHRISTY, United States official number

12 933833.

13 (16) CLAYTON REED, United States official

14 number 683286.

15 (17) CORAL LADY, United States official

16 number 649372.

17 (18) DAKOTA, United States official number

18 956008.

19 (19) ERICA-LYNN, United States official

20 number 611243.

21 (20) EXPLORER, United States official num22 ber 643055.

23 (21) FATHER & SON, United States official

24 number 611056.
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1 (22) GINA D, United States official number

2 602788.

3 (23) GRAND CRU, United States official num4 ber 508393.

5 (24) HAPPY NIGHT TONIGHT, United

6 States official number 632057.

7 (25) ITALIAN STALLION, United States offi8 cial number 603239.

9 (26) JACQUELINE L., United States official

10 number 551612.

11 (27) JANICE ANN, United States official

12 number 646506.

13 (28) JOAN MARIE, United States official

14 number 599408.

15 (29) JOSHUA NICOLE, United States official

16 number 912738.

17 (30) JUST RIGHT, United States official

18 number 692184.

19 (31) KELLY ANN, United States official num20 ber 633432.

21 (32) KRISTIN LEE, United States official

22 number 656259.

23 (33) LADY LAURA, State of Florida registra24 tion number FL2054GY.
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1 (34) LINDSEY JEANETTE, United States of2 ficial number 618472.

3 (35) LINNEA C, United States official number

4 665962.

5 (36) LISA ANN, United States official number

6 659897.

7 (37) LORI MARIE, United States official num8 ber 674417.

9 (38) MAR JACK, United States official num10 ber 640008.

11 (39) MARION FRANCES, United States offi12 cial number 541694.

13 (40) MARY ANN, United States official num14 ber 596805.

15 (41) MGB, United States official number

16 656564.

17 (42) MISS DANIELLE, United States official

18 number 697038.

19 (43) MISS MANDY, United States official

20 number 636385.

21 (44) MISS MELISSA, United States official

22 number 593587.

23 (45) MISS SUZANNE, United States official

24 number 510728.
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1 (46) MISS TAKE, United States official num2 ber 667970.

3 (47) MISS-SHELL, United States official

4 number 637883.

5 (48) OUTLAW, United States official number

6 643282.

7 (49) PEACEFUL LADY, United States official

8 number 918933.

9 (50) PROUD MARY ELLEN, United States

10 official number 615810.

11 (51) PROVIDER, United States official num12 ber 602041.

13 (52) PROVIDER II, United States official

14 number 648979.

15 (53) R&R, United States official number

16 945535.

17 (54) RAW DAWG, United States official num18 ber 677230.

19 (55) REBECCA PAGE, United States official

20 number 684131.

21 (56) REBEL LADY, United States official

22 number 628471.

23 (57) ROYAL LADY, United States official

24 number 615626.
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1 (58) RUTH-ANNE, United States official num2 ber 598591.

3 (59) SEA ANGEL, United States official num4 ber 926754.

5 (60) SEVEN ARROWS, United States official

6 number 611304.

7 (61) SHERRIE ANN II, State of Florida reg8 istration number FL3716JU.

9 (62) SOUTHERN GALE, United States offi10 cial number 588452.

11 (63) STRAIGHT FLUSH, United States offi12 cial number 663691.

13 (64) SUSAN II, United States official number

14 594618.

15 (65) SYLVIA JEAN, United States official

16 number 609788.

17 (66) TRI LINER, United States official num18 ber 624323.

19 (67) TRIPLE THREAT, United States official

20 number 646718.

21 (68) UNCLOUDY DAY, United States official

22 number 950979.

23 (b) INELIGIBILITY DUE TO PERMIT OR VESSEL

24 TRANSFER AFTER NOVEMBER 10, 1999.—A vessel listed

25 under subsection (a) shall not be eligible if the vessel or
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1 any Federal fishing permit or license applicable to that

2 vessel is transferred to a different person after November

3 10, 1999.

4 (c) COMPENSATION NOTIFICATION.—No later than

5 the 15th calendar day after the date of enactment of this

6 Act, the Secretary shall, by certified mail return receipt

7 requested, addressed to each permit holder at its record

8 address, notify each permit holder of—

9 (1) the compensation provisions of this Act; and

10 (2) any other compensation instructions or

11 guidance that the Secretary may (but not by regula12 tion or further notice of any other kind) establish.

13 (d) COMPENSATION AMOUNT.—The compensation

14 amount shall include, a permit package payment of

15 $125,000 per eligible permit holder plus, either—

16 (1) zero for any eligible permit holder that did

17 not report any landings of highly migratory species

18 by the associated eligible vessel to the National Ma19 rine Fisheries Service for the period beginning on

20 January 1, 1999, and ending on October 1, 1999;

21 or

22 (2) for every other eligible permit holder, a

23 landing payment that the Secretary determines in

24 accordance with subsection (e).
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1 (e) LANDING PAYMENT DETERMINATION.—The Sec2 retary’s determinations of all landing payments shall be

3 final and in accordance with the following:

4 (1) BASIS.—The basis for each landing pay5 ment shall be the gross ex-vessel value of all fish (re6 gardless of species) landed by the eligible vessel dur7 ing any one calendar year in the period beginning

8 with the calendar year 1992 and ending with cal9 endar year 1998.

10 (2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of each

11 landing payment shall be 100 percent of such basis

12 not to exceed $325,000.

13 (3) HOLDER TO ADVISE SECRETARY.—No later

14 than the 75th calendar day after the date of enact15 ment of this Act each permit holder who desires to

16 be compensated under this Act shall—

17 (A) advise the Secretary which single cal18 endar year from 1992 through 1998 the permit

19 holder chooses as the basis for the permit hold20 er’s landing payment; and

21 (B) submit to the Secretary the permit

22 holder’s documentation for the gross ex-vessel

23 value of all fish (regardless of species) landed

24 by the eligible vessel during the basis year cho25 sen; or
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1 (C) advise the Secretary that the permit

2 holder does not possess adequate documentation

3 and, consequently elects to have the Secretary

4 calculate a default landing payment.

5 (4) DOCUMENTATION.—Documentation under

6 paragraph (3)(C) shall be in the form of trip tickets

7 (or other landing documentation issued by the first

8 ex-vessel fish buyer or buyers) for the eligible vessel

9 that clearly establishes on their face the identity and

10 location of the first fish buyer, the vessel from whom

11 the fish was bought, the date the fish was bought,

12 how many pounds of each species of fish was

13 bought, and how much per pound the landing vessel

14 was paid for each species of fish bought (no other

15 documentation shall be acceptable)

16 (5) CALCULATION OF AMOUNT.—If the permit

17 holder submits adequate documentation the Sec18 retary shall use it to calculate the landing payment.

19 If the permit holder elects to have the Secretary cal20 culate a default landing payment (or submits inad21 equate documentation), the Secretary shall calculate

22 a default payment by applying average ex-vessel

23 prices (where possible, for each month of landing

24 and state or area of landing as maintained in the

25 National Marine Fisheries Service’s databases) to
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1 each pound of species of fish landed by the permit

2 holder’s eligible vessel during the basis year that the

3 permit holder chooses.

4 (f) COMPENSATION OFFER.—No later than the 135th

5 calendar day after the date of enactment of this Act, the

6 Secretary shall, by certified mail return receipt requested,

7 addressed to each eligible permit holder at its record ad8 dress, offer each eligible permit holder compensation for

9 an amount determined in accordance with this section.

10 The Secretary’s offer shall be final and not subject to ne11 gotiation or counteroffer.

12 (g) COMPENSATION OFFER ACCEPTANCE.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible permit holder

14 who desires to be compensated in accordance with

15 this Act must accept the Secretary’s compensation

16 offer no later than the 165th calendar day after the

17 date of enactment of this Act.

18 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The acceptance—

19 (A) must be in writing signed by the per20 mit holder or permit holder’s duly authorized

21 representative and delivered to the Chief, Fi22 nancial Services Division, National Marine

23 Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway,

24 Silver Spring, MD 20910–3282, and include di25 rect wire transfer instructions;
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1 (B) shall constitute the permit holder’s ir2 revocable consent for all other restrictions that

3 this Act permanently requires with respect to

4 the eligible vessel and all such restrictions shall

5 immediately be in effect; and

6 (C) shall be accompanied by all commercial

7 fishing permits and licenses held by the permit

8 holder that are applicable to the eligible vessel.

9 (3) FORM OF DELIVERY.—

10 (A) If the acceptance is mailed, it must be

11 mailed by certified mail return receipt re12 quested. The Secretary shall consider the date

13 of acceptance to be the date on which it was

14 mailed.

15 (B) If the acceptance is delivered by any

16 other means, the Secretary shall consider the

17 date of acceptance to be the date on which the

18 Secretary first received the acceptance. The

19 Secretary’s determinations regarding the timeli20 ness of the acceptance shall be final.

21 (h) COMPENSATION PAYMENT.—No later than the

22 195th calendar day after the date of enactment of this

23 Act, the Secretary shall, in accordance with this section,

24 pay compensation in full to each permit holder whose ac25 ceptance of the Secretary’s offer was timely.
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1 (i) FEDERAL LOAN.—Under the authority of sections

2 1111 and 1112 of title XI of the Merchant Marine Act,

3 1936 (46 U.S.C. App. 1279f and 1279g), the Secretary

4 shall provide up to $10,000,000 through a direct loan obli5 gation for any payments authorized under this section that

6 are not fully paid for by funds appropriated under sub7 section (j) of this section. For purposes of such sections

8 1111 and 1112, these payments shall be treated as pay9 ments under a fishing capacity reduction program estab10 lished under section 312 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16

11 U.S.C. 1861a). Notwithstanding subsection (b)(4) of such

12 section 1111, the debt obligation under this subsection

13 shall have a maturity of 30 years.

14 (j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

15 shall be authorized to be appropriated $100,000 for the

16 costs required by the Federal Credit Reform Act for the

17 $10,000,000 direct loan authorized under this section and

18 $15,000,000 for the balance of the compensation pay19 ments authorized under this Act.

20 SEC. 8. RESTRICTIONS ON VESSELS.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—

22 (1) All commercial fishing permits or licenses

23 held by an eligible permit holder accepting com24 pensation under section 7 shall be revoked upon re-
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1 ceipt by the Secretary of the letter of acceptance

2 under section 7(g).

3 (2) For each eligible vessel for which an eligible

4 permit holder whose commercial fishing permits and

5 licenses have been revoked and who accepted a land6 ing payment, such vessel shall never again be used

7 by any person anywhere in the world (regardless of

8 the national status of such person) for commercial

9 fishing.

10 (b) INELIGIBILITY FOR FISHERIES ENDORSE11 MENT.—Section 12108(d) of title 46, United States Code,

12 is amended by inserting ‘‘, or a vessel whose commercial

13 fishing permits and licenses have been revoked under sec14 tion 8(a)(2) of the Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Con15 servation Act of 1999,’’ before ‘‘is not eligible’’.

16 (c) TRANSFER TO FOREIGN OWNERSHIP OR REG17 ISTRY PROHIBITED.—

18 (1) PROHIBITED TRANSFER.—No person may—

19 (A) sell, lease, charter, deliver, or in any

20 manner transfer, or agree to sell, lease, charter,

21 deliver, or in any manner transfer, to a person

22 not a citizen of the United States, any interest

23 in or control of a vessel whose commercial fish24 ing permits and licenses have been revoked; or
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1 (B) place that vessel under foreign registry

2 or operate that vessel under the authority of a

3 foreign country.

4 (2) VOID EFFECT.—Any charter, sale, or trans5 fer of a vessel, or interest in or control of that ves6 sel, in violation of this subsection is void.

7 (d) PENALTIES.—

8 (1) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Any person that

9 knowingly charters, sells, or transfers a vessel (or in10 terest in or control of that vessel) in violation of this

11 section, or knowingly uses that vessel for commercial

12 fishing in violation of this section, or knowingly sub13 mits false documentation for the landing payment

14 under section 7 shall be fined under title 18, United

15 States Code, imprisoned for not more than 5 years,

16 or both.

17 (2) FORFEITURE.—A vessel (including its fish18 ing gear, furniture, appurtenances, stores, and

19 cargo) may be seized by, and forfeited to, the United

20 States Government if—

21 (A)(i) the vessel is placed under foreign

22 registry or operated under the authority of a

23 foreign country in violation of this section;
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1 (ii) a person knowingly charters, sells, or

2 transfers a vessel, or interest or control in that

3 vessel, in violation of this section;

4 (B) the vessel is used for commercial fish5 ing in violation of this section

6 (C) the permit holder submits false docu7 mentation for the landing payment under sec8 tion 7.

9 (3) CIVIL PENALTY.—A person that charters,

10 sells, or transfers a vessel (or an interest in or con11 trol of a vessel) in violation of this section, uses a

12 vessel for commercial fishing in violation of this sec13 tion, or submits false documentation for the landing

14 payment under section 7 is liable to the United

15 States Government for a civil penalty of not more

16 than $10,000 for each violation.

17 (e) VESSEL IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM.—The Sec18 retary of Transportation shall ensure that, for each vessel

19 whose commercial fishing permits and licenses have been

20 revoked, information is recorded and maintained in the

21 vessel identification system established under chapter 125

22 of title 46, United States Code, stating that the vessel is

23 forbidden under this Act from engaging in commercial

24 fishing anywhere in the world, that the vessel is not eligi25 ble for any commercial fishing permit or license (regard-
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1 less of whether the permit or license is issued by the Fed2 eral Government, or a State government or political sub3 division thereof), and that use of the vessel in any com4 mercial fishing operation may result in Federal civil and

5 criminal penalties and forfeiture of the vessel and its cargo

6 and equipment.

7 SEC. 9. REPAYMENT OF DIRECT LOAN.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established a fishery con9 servation fee system, to be administered by the Secretary,

10 for repayment of the direct loan made under section 7(f),

11 with the commercial share to be repaid under subsection

12 (b) of this section and the recreational share to be repaid

13 under subsection (c) of this section. Fees under this sec14 tion are established notwithstanding the requirements of

15 section 304 or 312 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16

16 U.S.C. 1854 and 1861a).

17 (b) COMMERCIAL SHARE.—

18 (1) DESCRIPTION.—The commercial share of

19 the fishery conservation fee system shall be 50 per20 cent of the original principal amount of the loan plus

21 all interest accruing on that 50 percent of the prin22 cipal amount.

23 (2) METHOD OF PAYMENT.—The Secretary

24 shall, for the repayment of the commercial share of
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1 the loan obligation, plus associated interest, estab2 lish a fee, which—

3 (A) shall be an amount determined by the

4 Secretary to be sufficient to amortize the com5 mercial share over the loan term of 30 years,

6 not to exceed five cents, for each pound of all

7 Atlantic swordfish sold by swordfish dealers;

8 (B) shall be collected beginning on the

9 365th day after the date of enactment of this

10 Act and continue without interruption, regard11 less of the loan’s maturity until such commer12 cial share is fully paid; and

13 (C) shall be deducted by the swordfish

14 dealer from all proceeds received from the sale

15 by the dealer of all Atlantic swordfish and ac16 counted for and forwarded by the dealer to the

17 Secretary in the following manner:

18 (i) The fee for all proceeds received

19 during each month shall be forwarded by

20 not later than the 15th calendar day of

21 each month immediately following the

22 month for which the fees were collected

23 and fee payments shall be late if not re24 ceived at the lock box by the 20th calendar
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1 day of each such immediately following

2 month.

3 (ii) All fees forwarded shall include a

4 settlement sheet that establishes the total

5 proceeds received during the previous

6 month, the total pounds of all Atlantic

7 swordfish sold upon which such receipts

8 were based, and the total fee forwarded.

9 (iii) All fees shall be forwarded to a

10 lock box account that the Secretary shall

11 designate by a letter to each swordfish

12 dealer holding a swordfish dealer’s permit

13 at its record address.

14 (iv) All fee matters shall be in accord15 ance with such other conditions as the Sec16 retary shall establish, and amend from

17 time to time by a letter (but not by regula18 tion or any other form of notice) sent to

19 each swordfish dealer holding a swordfish

20 dealer’s permit at its record address.

21 (3) DUTY OF PROMPT NOTIFICATION.—The

22 Secretary shall immediately notify swordfish dealers

23 and swordfish limited access permit holders when

24 the commercial share has been fully repaid and the

25 collection requirement terminates. This shall be ac-
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1 complished by the Secretary’s letter sent to each

2 swordfish dealer, holding a swordfish dealer’s permit

3 and each swordfish limited access permit holder at

4 its record address.

5 (4) AUDIT.—The Secretary may at reasonable

6 times and places conduct audits of swordfish dealer’s

7 books and records to determine compliance with this

8 section. Swordfish dealers shall furnish such books

9 and records as the Secretary may reasonably require

10 for the conduct of such audits.

11 (5) PENALTY INTEREST ON LATE FEE PAY12 MENTS.—Swordfish dealers shall pay penalty inter13 est equal to one and one-half percent the full

14 amount of each late fee payment for each month, or

15 portion thereof, in which a late fee payment remains

16 unpaid.

17 (6) ENFORCEMENT.—The Secretary shall col18 lect all unpaid fees by such manner as the Secretary

19 considers appropriate, including bringing collection

20 enforcement actions at law and attaching and liqui21 dating swordfish dealers’ assets.

22 (7) CONTINUING OBLIGATION.—Notwith23 standing that the commercial share of the loan is

24 not paid in full by the loan’s maturity date, the fee
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1 shall continue without interruption until such time

2 as the commercial share is paid in full.

3 (c) RECREATIONAL SHARE.—

4 (1) DESCRIPTION.—The recreational share of

5 the fishery conservation fee system shall be 50 per6 cent of the original principal amount of the loan plus

7 all interest accruing on 50 percent of the principal

8 amount.

9 (2) METHODS OF PAYMENT.—The recreational

10 share of the loan obligation, plus associated interest,

11 shall be repaid through payment by affected States

12 under paragraph (3), and by the sale of fishery con13 servation permits issued under paragraph (4).

14 (3) PAYMENT BY AFFECTED STATE.—A vessel

15 registered in an affected State will not be required

16 to purchase a Federal fishery conservation permit if

17 the State, no later than the 240th calendar day after

18 the date of enactment of this Act, makes a binding,

19 legally enforceable agreement with the United States

20 Government to pay fully, within 4 years after the

21 date of enactment of this Act, the State’s rec22 reational share allocation, plus associated interest.

23 The allocations for each affected State shall not ex24 ceed 40 percent for any affected States and will be

25 based on the State’s percentage of the total length
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1 of coastline adjacent to any area closed under sec2 tion 6 and the total number of marine anglers for

3 all 7 States. Such allocations are as follows:

4 (A) South Carolina—9.4 percent;

5 (B) Georgia—4.3 percent;

6 (C) Florida—40.0 percent;

7 (D) Alabama—3.2 percent;

8 (E) Mississippi—2.6 percent;

9 (F) Louisiana—14.6 percent; and

10 (G) Texas—19.9 percent.

11 (4) FISHERY CONSERVATION PERMITS.—

12 (A) ISSUANCE AND SALE.—On or about

13 one year after the date of enactment of this Act

14 and thereafter until the recreational share is

15 fully repaid, the Secretary shall issue for $25

16 each an annual fishery conservation permit to

17 vessels over 18 feet in length wishing to engage

18 in recreational fishing for highly migratory spe19 cies in any area closed under section 6. For ves20 sels registered in a State electing to pay the

21 recreational share, the Secretary shall issue the

22 permit free of charge.

23 (B) MEANS OF SALE OR ISSUANCE.—The

24 Secretary—
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1 (i) may, to the extent practicable, au2 thorize the permits to be issued or sold by

3 a variety of persons, including state agen4 cies, retail dealers, and through convenient

5 means, including the Internet and toll-free

6 telephone numbers; and

7 (ii) may establish procedures for such

8 persons to account for and forward the

9 proceeds of sale to the Secretary.

10 (C) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may not

11 issue such permits after the repayment of the

12 recreational share of the loan obligation.

13 (D) VESSELS REGISTERED IN AFFECTED

14 STATES.—Vessels registered in affected States

15 agreeing to pay the recreational share shall ob16 tain a fishery conservation permit from the Sec17 retary or the affected State where the vessel is

18 registered.

19 (5) PROHIBITION.—After the 240th day after

20 the date of enactment of this Act until the rec21 reational share is fully repaid under this Act, no per22 son may engage in recreational fishing for highly mi23 gratory species in any closed area from a vessel of

24 18 feet or more in length, unless the vessel has been

25 issued a valid fishery conservation permit. Such per-
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1 mit must be retained on the vessel. It shall be a re2 buttable presumption that any 18 foot or larger rec3 reational vessel with gear aboard capable of catching

4 HMS species shall be presumed to be fishing for

5 HMS species. Once the recreational share has been

6 fully repaid this prohibition shall be null and void.

7 (6) DUTY OF PROMPT NOTIFICATION.—The

8 Secretary shall immediately notify the Coast Guard,

9 the heads of the agencies of the affected States that

10 have responsibility for marine fishery law enforce11 ment, retail dealers and others who sell fishery con12 servation permits under this subsection, and the

13 public when: payment of the recreational share be14 gins, and the recreational share has been fully re15 paid. This shall be accomplished by a Federal Reg16 ister notice, direct communication, and such other

17 means as the Secretary determines are effective and

18 appropriate.

19 (7) REPAYMENT.—Money received under sub20 sections (3) and (4), shall be accounted for and paid

21 by the Secretary into the subaccount of the Treasury

22 established for the repayment of the direct loan

23 made under section 7(i).
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1 SEC. 10. PROHIBITED ACT UNDER MAGNUSON-STEVENS

2 ACT.

3 A person who violates this Act shall, in addition to

4 any other penalties provided in this Act or elsewhere, be

5 considered to have committed an act prohibited under sec6 tion 307(1)(A) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C.

7 1857(1)(A)).

8 SEC. 11. BILLFISH BYCATCH MORTALITY REDUCTION RE9 SEARCH PROGRAM.

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—There is estab11 lished within the National Marine Fisheries Service at the

12 Southeast Fisheries Science Center a Pelagic Longline

13 Billfish Bycatch and Mortality Reduction Research Pro14 gram. The Program shall identify and test a variety of

15 pelagic longline fishing gear configurations and uses and

16 determine which of those configurations and uses are the

17 most effective in reducing billfish bycatch mortality in the

18 pelagic longline fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico and in the

19 exclusive economic zone north of the Atlantic Conservation

20 Zone established under section 6. The program shall also

21 include provision for observers to be placed on pelagic

22 longline fishing vessels for the purposes of monitoring the

23 fishery and participating in the research program.

24 (b) PROGRAM DESIGN.—The Program design shall

25 be developed through a scientific workshop organized and

26 convened by the Southeast Fisheries Science Center of the
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1 National Marine Fisheries Service. Knowledgeable mem2 bers of the pelagic longline fishing sector and the rec3 reational billfish sector, along with scientists associated

4 with each such industry, shall be invited to participate on

5 the workshop design team. The Center shall make its best

6 efforts to ensure that each such sector is fairly represented

7 on the design team. The program design shall be sub8 mitted to the Secretary no later than the 120th calendar

9 day after the date of enactment of this Act and shall in10 clude a scientifically-based recommendation for the level

11 of observer coverage on pelagic longline fishing vessels

12 that is necessary to monitor the fishery effectively and

13 participate in the research program.

14 (c) MONITOR AND REPORT.—The Secretary is di15 rected to aggressively monitor the mid-Atlantic bight dur16 ing the months of June, July, and August to determine

17 if there has been a substantial net increase in the number

18 of vessels or effort from the remaining pelagic longline

19 fleet and whether that net increase is causing significant

20 negative impact on the recreational billfish catch. In the

21 event the Secretary so finds, the Secretary shall imme22 diately report the finding to the Committee on Commerce,

23 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Com24 mittee on Resources of the House of Representatives along

25 with his recommendations to address the impact.
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1 (d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—No later than the 90th

2 calendar day after the third year of closure of the Gulf

3 Of Mexico Conservation Zone For Highly Migratory Spe4 cies under section 6(c), the Secretary shall submit a report

5 on the Program’s determinations to the Committee on

6 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and

7 the Committee on Resources of the House of Representa8 tives. The report shall include any recommendations for

9 legislation that may be appropriate prior to the expiration

10 of the closure of the Gulf Of Mexico Conservation Zone

11 For Highly Migratory Species.

12 SEC. 12. INTERIM REGULATIONS.

13 (a) INTERIM REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may not

14 propose, approve, or implement before a date that is either

15 one year after the date on which the Secretary submits

16 the report to Congress on the results of the Billfish By17 catch Mortality Reduction Research Program under sec18 tion 11(c) or 4 years after the date of enactment of this

19 Act, whichever is later, any rules or regulations that have

20 the effect of establishing any time-area closures for pelagic

21 longline fishing in the Atlantic by United States fishing

22 vessels that are in addition to, or otherwise expand, those

23 time-area closures established under this Act.

24 (b) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition set forth in sub25 section (a) shall not apply—
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1 (1) to rules or regulations necessary to imple2 ment any future recommendation of ICCAT or Act

3 of Congress;

4 (2) to strictly technical and conforming correc5 tions to those time-area closures established under

6 this Act that the Secretary finds are necessary for

7 public safety and enforcement of this Act; or

8 (3) if the Secretary, after consultation with the

9 Commissioners appointed under the Atlantic Tunas

10 Convention Act of 1975, finds that—

11 (A) fishing by United States pelagic

12 longline fishing vessels is causing an emergency

13 with respect to the conservation of an Atlantic

14 highly migratory species of fish;

15 (B) such emergency can not or will not be

16 addressed by the International Commission for

17 the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas in a timely

18 manner; and

19 (C) time-area closures for pelagic longline

20 fishing in the Atlantic by United States fishing

21 vessels that are in addition to, or otherwise ex22 pand, those time-area closures established

23 under this Act are necessary to address such

24 emergency and there are no other practicable

25 means available to address such emergency.
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1 SEC. 13. VESSEL MONITORING DEVICE.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.— After the 165th day of enactment

3 of this Act, no pelagic longline vessel shall operate within

4 the Atlantic HMS fishery without a vessel monitoring de5 vice approved by the Secretary.

6 (b) NOT REQUIRED TO CARRY MONITORING DE7 VICE.—No vessel accepting the buyout under section 7 will

8 be required to carry a vessel monitoring device.

9 (c) COSTS.—Any costs attributable to the purchase

10 and installation of vessel monitoring devices on any pelagic

11 longline vessel fishing in the Atlantic HMS fishery that

12 is required to carry such a device under this section shall

13 be the responsibility of the Secretary.

14 SEC. 14. NULLIFICATION.

15 In the event Congress fails to appropriate funds ade16 quate to complete the buyout under section 7 then no pro17 vision of this Act shall be effective. In the event Congress

18 fails to appropriate funds adequate to place vessel moni19 toring devices on vessels, then the requirement to carry

20 such devices shall have no effect.

21 SEC. 15. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

22 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec23 retary $250,000 per year as the cost of carrying out the

24 compensation program; $2,250,000 for vessel monitoring

25 devices; $3,000,000 for research; plus such other sums as

26 may be necessary for carrying out all other functions in
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1 the Act. In addition, there are authorized to be appro2 priated to the Secretary not more than $400,000 for the

3 Southeast Fisheries Science Center to conduct additional

4 research on billfish and swordfish.

5 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

6 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Atlantic Highly Migra7 tory Species Conservation Act of 1999’’.

8 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

9 The Congress makes the following findings:

10 (1) Highly migratory species of fish, including

11 North Atlantic swordfish, species of Atlantic billfish,

12 and Atlantic large coastal sharks, are overfished and

13 require greater conservation as confirmed by recent

14 scientific assessments. In its most recent analysis, the

15 Standing Committee on Research and Statistics

16 (SCRS) of the International Commission for the Con17 servation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) estimated that

18 a number of key stocks of highly migratory species

19 have less than the biomass needed to produce their re20 spective maximum sustainable yields. The 1999

21 SCRS stock assessment estimated that the North At22 lantic swordfish stock was at 65 percent of the nec23 essary biomass to produce maximum sustainable yield

24 (MSY). The 1997 SCRS stock assessment estimated

25 that the Atlantic blue marlin stock was at 24 percent
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1 and the Atlantic white marlin stock was at 23 percent

2 of the necessary biomass to produce MSY. In its most

3 recent stock assessment for Atlantic sailfish/spearfish,

4 the SCRS estimated these stocks were at 62 percent

5 of the necessary biomass to produce MSY. Also, the

6 National Marine Fisheries Service has identified

7 North Atlantic swordfish, Atlantic blue marlin, At8 lantic white marlin, Atlantic sailfish/spearfish, and

9 other highly migratory species of fish as overfished.

10 (2) A reduction in the mortality of juvenile or

11 undersized swordfish will contribute substantially to

12 the rebuilding of North Atlantic swordfish as con13 firmed by a 1998 SCRS report that expressed ‘‘con14 cern about the high catches (landings plus discards)

15 of small swordfish’’ and ‘‘emphasized that gains in

16 the yield could accrue if fishing mortality on small

17 fish could be further reduced’’.

18 (3) In 1998, ICCAT adopted a resolution direct19 ing the SCRS to develop options for rebuilding North

20 Atlantic swordfish to levels that would produce the

21 maximum sustainable yield, including alternative

22 methods for reducing small fish mortality, for consid23 eration at the ICCAT meeting in 1999.

24 (4) Reducing the mortality of species of Atlantic

25 billfish, including Atlantic blue marlin, Atlantic
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1 white marlin, and Atlantic sailfish/spearfish, will

2 contribute substantially to the rebuilding of these

3 stocks.

4 (5) In 1990, ICCAT encouraged its member

5 states to take appropriate measures within their na6 tional jurisdictions to protect small swordfish, includ7 ing the establishment of time and area closures.

8 (6) Significant reductions in the mortality of ju9 venile swordfish, species of Atlantic billfish, species of

10 Atlantic large coastal sharks, and other highly migra11 tory species of fish within the exclusive economic zone

12 of the United States can be achieved by the design

13 and implementation of discrete, scientifically-based

14 time-area closures for pelagic longline fishing.

15 (7) Conflicts between the commercial pelagic

16 longline fishery and the recreational fishery for highly

17 migratory species exist in certain areas of the U.S.

18 Exclusive Economic Zone in the Atlantic Ocean and

19 Gulf of Mexico and can be substantially reduced by

20 the design and implementation of discrete, scientif21 ically-based time-area closures for pelagic longline

22 fishing.

23 (8) A credible, scientifically-based time-area clo24 sure for pelagic longline fishing that would achieve

25 real and significant reductions in the bycatch and
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1 mortality of overfished highly migratory species with2 in the United States Exclusive Economic Zone will

3 provide a model for applying the same conservation

4 concept more broadly in international waters through

5 ICCAT in further pursuit of the goal of rebuilding the

6 stocks of these species.

7 (9) The time-area closures for pelagic longline

8 fishing within the United States Exclusive Economic

9 Zone that will contribute to achieving the conserva10 tion objectives for swordfish, billfish, and large coastal

11 sharks in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico and

12 that will reduce conflicts between commercial and rec13 reational fishermen will result in substantial adverse

14 economic impacts on United States commercial fish15 ermen who engage in pelagic longline fishing, as well

16 as their families and communities. Such adverse eco17 nomic impacts can be minimized by a fair and equi18 table buyout of the permits and licenses of certain pe19 lagic longline fishing vessels.

20 (10) To ensure its effectiveness and equity, the

21 design of such a governmental buyout should be con22 sistent with the standards set for capacity reduction

23 programs under section 312(b) of the Magnuson-Ste24 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16

25 U.S.C. 1861 a).
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1 (11) The commercial fishermen who sustain sub2 stantial adverse economic impacts from such time3 area closures and who should be eligible to participate

4 in such a government buyout include those who, ac5 cording to the National Marine Fisheries Service

6 data, have—

7 (A) reported that at least 35 percent of their

8 vessel’s annual fishing sets were conducted in the

9 proposed closed areas in any one year from 1992

10 through 1997;

11 (B) reported that they conducted at least 25

12 pelagic longline gear sets during their qualifying

13 year;

14 (C) reported that at least 50 percent of their

15 landings for the 1995–1997 period were com16 prised of pelagic longline target species, includ17 ing swordfish, tunas, mahi-mahi, escolar, and

18 oceanic sharks; and

19 (D) qualified for a Directed Swordfish Ini20 tial Limited Access Permit.

21 (12) There is a great need for the National Ma22 rine Fisheries Service to conduct additional scientific

23 research, in cooperation with pelagic longline fishing

24 vessels, to identify the uses and configurations of pe-
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1 lagic longline fishing gear that are most effective in

2 reducing bycatch.

3 SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

4 The purposes of this Act are—

5 (1) to contribute to the conservation and rebuild6 ing of overfished stocks of highly migratory species,

7 including North Atlantic swordfish, species of Atlan8 tic billfish, and Atlantic large coastal sharks, through

9 reductions in mortality and the protection of those

10 nursery and spawning areas that may occur within

11 the exclusive economic zone of the United States, to

12 levels that will produce maximum sustainable yield,

13 in compliance with United States obligations under

14 the International Convention for the Conservation of

15 Atlantic Tunas and consistent with National Stand16 ard (1) and section 304 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act;

17 (2) to minimize adverse socio-economic impacts

18 on United States commercial fishermen and their

19 families, small fishing business entities, and fishing

20 communities consistent with National Standard (8) of

21 the Magnuson-Stevens Act and the requirements of the

22 Regulatory Flexibility Act, resulting from the con23 servation actions taken under this Act;

24 (3) to enhance both the socio-economic viability

25 of the remaining United States pelagic longline fish-
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1 ing industry and recreational fishing opportunities

2 for highly migratory species;

3 (4) to minimize and, to the extent practicable, to

4 prevent displacement of fishing effort resulting from

5 the conservation actions taken under this Act;

6 (5) to minimize bycatch, including regulatory

7 discards, consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act

8 and the international obligations of the United

9 States;

10 (6) to support and encourage the United States

11 Government’s efforts to obtain international agree12 ments that provide for effective fishery conservation

13 and management consistent with the policies set forth

14 in section 2(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and to

15 provide the necessary leadership for achieving greater

16 international conservation of highly migratory spe17 cies;

18 (7) to reduce conflicts within the exclusive eco19 nomic zone of the United States between the pelagic

20 longline and recreational fisheries for highly migra21 tory species; and

22 (8) to expand the scientific knowledge and un23 derstanding of Atlantic highly migratory species and

24 the fisheries of the United States.
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1 SEC. 4. POLICY.

2 It is declared to be the policy of the Congress in this

3 Act and the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act of 1975 that,

4 consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, all United States

5 fishermen shall be treated fairly and equitably in achieving

6 national and international fishery conservation and man7 agement objectives and obligations for highly migratory spe8 cies of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico.

9 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

10 In this Act, the following definitions apply:

11 (1) AFFECTED STATE.—The term ‘‘affected

12 State’’ means one of the following States: South Caro13 lina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Lou14 isiana, and Texas.

15 (2) BILLFISH.—The term ‘‘billfish’’ means blue

16 marlin, spearfish, sailfish and white marlin.

17 (3) BYCATCH.—The term ‘‘bycatch’’ means fish

18 which are harvested in a fishery, but which are not

19 sold or kept for personal use, and includes economic

20 discards and regulatory discards. The term does not

21 include fish released alive under a recreational catch

22 and release fishery management program.

23 (4) ELIGIBLE PERMIT HOLDER.—The term ‘‘eli24 gible permit holder’’ means the person or group of

25 persons who, on the date of enactment of this Act,

26 holds the Directed Swordfish Limited Access Permit
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1 that was issued based on the landings of an eligible

2 vessel.

3 (5) COMMERCIAL FISHING.—The term ‘‘commer4 cial fishing’’ means fishing in which the fish har5 vested, either in whole or in part, are intended to

6 enter commerce or enter commerce through sale, bar7 ter, or trade.

8 (6) ELIGIBLE VESSEL.—The term ‘‘eligible ves9 sel’’ means each vessel listed in section 7(a) of this

10 Act.

11 (7) FISH.—The term ‘‘fish’’ means finfish, mol12 lusks, crustaceans, and all other forms of marine ani13 mal and plant life other than marine mammals and

14 birds.

15 (8) FISHING.—The term ‘‘fishing’’ means—

16 (A) the catching, taking, or harvesting of

17 fish;

18 (B) the attempted catching, taking, or har19 vesting of fish;

20 (C) any other activity which can reasonably

21 be expected to result in the catching, taking, or

22 harvesting of fish; or

23 (D) any operations at sea in support of, or

24 in preparation for, any activity described in

25 subparagraphs (A) through (C).
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1 The term does not include any scientific research ac2 tivity that is authorized by the Secretary.

3 (9) FISHING VESSEL.—The term ‘‘fishing vessel’’

4 means any vessel, boat, ship, or other craft which is

5 used for, equipped to be used for, or of a type which

6 is normally used for—

7 (A) fishing; or

8 (B) aiding or assisting one or more vessels

9 at sea in the performance of any activity relat10 ing to fishing, including but not limited to prep11 aration, supply, storage, refrigeration, transpor12 tation, or processing.

13 (10) GEODESIC.—The term ‘‘geodesic’’ means the

14 shortest line between two points that lies on the sur15 face of the Earth.

16 (11) HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES.—The term

17 ‘‘highly migratory species’’ means tuna species, bill18 fish, oceanic sharks, and swordfish.

19 (12) MAGNUSON-STEVENS ACT.—The term ‘‘Mag20 nuson-Stevens Act’’ means the Magnuson-Stevens

21 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16

22 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.).

23 (13) PELAGIC LONGLINE FISHING.—The term

24 ‘‘pelagic longline fishing’’ means a method of fishing

25 that uses any fishing gear consisting of a length of
54

•S 1911 RS

1 line suspended horizontally in the water above the

2 bottom from lines attached to surface floats and to

3 which gangions and hooks are attached.

4 (14) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means any

5 individual, corporation, partnership, association, or

6 other entity (whether or not organized or existing

7 under the laws of any State).

8 (15) RECREATIONAL FISHING.—The term ‘‘rec9 reational fishing’’ means fishing for sport or pleasure.

10 (16) RECORD ADDRESS.—The term ‘‘record ad11 dress’’ means the address of record for each permit

12 holder and swordfish dealer as maintained in the Na13 tional Marine Fisheries Service’s databases.

14 (17) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

15 the Secretary of Commerce.

16 (18) SWORDFISH DEALER.—The term ‘‘swordfish

17 dealer’’ means any person who purchases, trades for,

18 or barters for the receipt of any Atlantic swordfish

19 (whether imported or domestic and regardless of ori20 gin) for any commercial purpose (including selling,

21 trading, or bartering such swordfish to others).

22 SEC. 6. HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES CONSERVATION

23 ZONES.

24 (a) ATLANTIC CONSERVATION ZONE FOR HIGHLY MI25 GRATORY SPECIES.—No person may engage in pelagic
55

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1 longline fishing in the Atlantic Conservation Zone For

2 Highly Migratory Species, which is the area, seaward of

3 the baseline from which the territorial sea is measured, that

4 is enclosed by a series of geodesics connecting in succession

5 the points at the following coordinates:

6 (1) 26 degrees 30 minutes north latitude, 82 de7 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

8 (2) 24 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 82 de9 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

10 (3) 24 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 81 de11 grees 08 minutes west longitude;

12 (4) seaward extension of the Exclusive Economic

13 Zone;

14 (5) 27 degrees 52 minutes north latitude, 79 de15 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

16 (6) 31 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 79 de17 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

18 (7) 32 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 78 de19 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

20 (8) 32 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 77 de21 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

22 (9) 33 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 77 de23 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

24 (10) 33 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 78 de25 grees 0 minutes west longitude; and
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•S 1911 RS

1 (11) 33 degrees 51 minutes north latitude, 78 de2 grees 33 minutes west longitude.

3 (b) GULF OF MEXICO CONSERVATION ZONE FOR

4 SWORDFISH.—Every year, during the period of January

5 1 through Memorial Day, no person may engage in pelagic

6 longline fishing in the Gulf Of Mexico Conservation Zone

7 For Swordfish, which is the area enclosed by a series of

8 geodesics connecting in succession the points at the fol9 lowing coordinates:

10 (1) 30 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 87 de11 grees 30 minutes west longitude;

12 (2) 30 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 86 de13 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

14 (3) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 86 de15 grees 0 minutes west longitude; and

16 (4) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 87 de17 grees 30 minutes west longitude.

18 (c) GULF OF MEXICO CONSERVATION ZONE FOR

19 HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES.—During the period that be20 gins on the first Memorial Day after the date of enactment

21 of this Act and continues through Labor Day of the same

22 calendar year, and during the period of Memorial Day

23 through Labor Day in each of the next four calendar years,

24 no person may engage in pelagic longline fishing in the

25 Gulf Of Mexico Conservation Zone For Highly Migratory
57

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1 Species, which is the area, seaward of the baseline from

2 which the territorial sea is measured, that is enclosed by

3 a series of geodesics connecting in succession the points at

4 the following coordinates:

5 (1) 26 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 97 de6 grees 10 minutes west longitude (at approximately the

7 border between the United States and Mexico);

8 (2) 26 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 96 de9 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

10 (3) 27 degrees 30 minutes north latitude, 94 de11 grees 30 minutes west longitude;

12 (4) 27 degrees 30 minutes north latitude, 90 de13 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

14 (5) 28 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 90 de15 grees 0 minutes west longitude;

16 (6) 28 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 89 de17 grees 30 minutes west longitude;

18 (7) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 87 de19 grees 30 minutes west longitude;

20 (8) 29 degrees 0 minutes north latitude, 86 de21 grees 0 minutes west longitude; and

22 (9) 29 degrees 40 minutes north latitude, 85 de23 grees 20 minutes west longitude (at Cape San Blas,

24 Florida).
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1 (d) SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH EXCEPTION.—The restric2 tions under this section on fishing do not apply to pelagic

3 longline fishery research authorized by the Secretary. No

4 fish caught under the research program may be sold unless

5 authorized by the Secretary.

6 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall be effective

7 on the 165th day after the date of enactment of this Act,

8 except that subsection (c) shall be effective on the first Me9 morial Day after the date of enactment of this Act.

10 SEC. 7. PELAGIC LONGLINE FISHING VESSEL PERMIT HOLD11 ER COMPENSATION PROGRAM.

12 (a) VOLUNTARY COMPENSATION PROGRAM.—The Sec13 retary shall conduct a voluntary Pelagic Longline Vessel

14 Permit Holder Compensation Program. Except as provided

15 in subsection (b), the following vessels are eligible for the

16 Compensation Program:

17 (1) ALEX JAMES, United States official num18 ber 593864.

19 (2) AMANDA KAY, United States official num20 ber 691398.

21 (3) BEAU, United States official number

22 647878.

23 (4) BETTE BOOP, United States official num24 ber 673527.
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1 (5) BETTY B, United States official number

2 689987.

3 (6) BIGEYE, United States official number

4 628300.

5 (7) BLACK JACK ONE, United States official

6 number 592219.

7 (8) BONNEY ANNE, United States official

8 number 666686.

9 (9) BUCKAROO, United States official number

10 576503.

11 (10) CANDACE, United States official number

12 673556.

13 (11) CAPT. BOB, United States official number

14 929813.

15 (12) CAROL ANN, United States official num16 ber 609121.

17 (13) CHARLESTON STAR, United States offi18 cial number 591301.

19 (14) CHRISTOPHER JOE, United States offi20 cial number 608436.

21 (15) CHRISTY, United States official number

22 933833.

23 (16) CLAYTON REED, United States official

24 number 683286.
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1 (17) CORAL LADY, United States official num2 ber 649372.

3 (18) DAKOTA, United States official number

4 956008.

5 (19) ERICA-LYNN, United States official num6 ber 611243.

7 (20) EXPLORER, United States official number

8 643055.

9 (21) FATHER & SON, United States official

10 number 611056.

11 (22) GINA D, United States official number

12 602788.

13 (23) GRAND CRU, United States official num14 ber 508393.

15 (24) HAPPY NIGHT TONIGHT, United States

16 official number 632057.

17 (25) ITALIAN STALLION, United States offi18 cial number 603239.

19 (26) JACQUELINE L., United States official

20 number 551612.

21 (27) JANICE ANN, United States official num22 ber 646506.

23 (28) JOAN MARIE, United States official num24 ber 599408.
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1 (29) JOSHUA NICOLE, United States official

2 number 912738.

3 (30) JUST RIGHT, United States official num4 ber 692184.

5 (31) KELLY ANN, United States official num6 ber 633432.

7 (32) KRISTIN LEE, United States official

8 number 656259.

9 (33) LADY LAURA, State of Florida registra10 tion number FL2054GY.

11 (34) LINDSEY JEANETTE, United States offi12 cial number 618472.

13 (35) LINNEA C, United States official number

14 665962.

15 (36) LISA ANN, United States official number

16 659897.

17 (37) LORI MARIE, United States official num18 ber 674417.

19 (38) MAR JACK, United States official number

20 640008.

21 (39) MARION FRANCES, United States official

22 number 541694.

23 (40) MARY ANN, United States official number

24 596805.
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1 (41) MGB, United States official number

2 656564.

3 (42) MISS DANIELLE, United States official

4 number 697038.

5 (43) MISS MANDY, United States official num6 ber 636385.

7 (44) MISS MELISSA, United States official

8 number 593587.

9 (45) MISS SUZANNE, United States official

10 number 510728.

11 (46) MISS TAKE, United States official number

12 667970.

13 (47) MISS-SHELL, United States official num14 ber 637883.

15 (48) OUTLAW, United States official number

16 643282.

17 (49) PEACEFUL LADY, United States official

18 number 918933.

19 (50) PROUD MARY ELLEN, United States of20 ficial number 615810.

21 (51) PROVIDER, United States official number

22 602041.

23 (52) PROVIDER II, United States official num24 ber 648979.
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1 (53) R&R, United States official number

2 945535.

3 (54) RAW DAWG, United States official number

4 677230.

5 (55) REBECCA PAGE, United States official

6 number 684131.

7 (56) REBEL LADY, United States official num8 ber 628471.

9 (57) ROYAL LADY, United States official num10 ber 615626.

11 (58) RUTH-ANNE, United States official num12 ber 598591.

13 (59) SEA ANGEL, United States official num14 ber 926754.

15 (60) SEVEN ARROWS, United States official

16 number 611304.

17 (61) SHERRIE ANN II, State of Florida reg18 istration number FL3716JU.

19 (62) SOUTHERN GALE, United States official

20 number 588452.

21 (63) STRAIGHT FLUSH, United States official

22 number 663691.

23 (64) SUSAN II, United States official number

24 594618.
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1 (65) SYLVIA JEAN, United States official num2 ber 609788.

3 (66) TRI LINER, United States official number

4 624323.

5 (67) TRIPLE THREAT, United States official

6 number 646718.

7 (68) UNCLOUDY DAY, United States official

8 number 950979.

9 (b) INELIGIBILITY DUE TO PERMIT OR VESSEL

10 TRANSFER AFTER NOVEMBER 10, 1999.—A vessel listed

11 under subsection (a) shall not be eligible if the vessel or any

12 Federal fishing permit or license applicable to that vessel

13 is transferred to a different person after November 10, 1999.

14 (c) COMPENSATION NOTIFICATION.—No later than the

15 15th calendar day after the date of enactment of this Act,

16 the Secretary shall, by certified mail return receipt re17 quested, addressed to each eligible permit holder at its

18 record address, notify each eligible permit holder of—

19 (1) the compensation provisions of this Act; and

20 (2) any other compensation instructions or guid21 ance that the Secretary may (but not by regulation

22 or further notice of any other kind) establish.

23 (d) COMPENSATION AMOUNT.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The compensation amount

2 shall include, a permit package payment of $125,000

3 per eligible permit holder plus, either—

4 (A) zero for any eligible permit holder that

5 did not report any landings of highly migratory

6 species by the associated eligible vessel to the Na7 tional Marine Fisheries Service for the period be8 ginning on January 1, 1999, and ending on Oc9 tober 1, 1999; or

10 (B) for every other eligible permit holder, a

11 landing payment that the Secretary determines

12 in accordance with subsection (e).

13 (2) REDUCTION.—The compensation amount de14 termined under paragraph (1) shall be reduced by the

15 amount of any lien, judgement, or other such final ob16 ligation due the United States from the eligible per17 mit holder. Before making payment under this sec18 tion, the Secretary shall identify all such outstanding

19 obligations with respect to an eligible permit holder

20 and notify that person of the amount of the reduction

21 under this paragraph and the obligations taken into

22 account.

23 (e) LANDING PAYMENT DETERMINATION.—The Sec24 retary’s determinations of all landing payments shall be
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1 final, not subject to review under U.S.C. 551 et seq., and

2 in accordance with the following:

3 (1) BASIS.—The basis for each landing payment

4 shall be the gross ex-vessel value of all fish (regardless

5 of species) landed by the eligible vessel during any one

6 calendar year in the period beginning with the cal7 endar year 1992 and ending with calendar year 1998.

8 (2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of each

9 landing payment shall be 100 percent of such basis

10 not to exceed $325,000.

11 (3) HOLDER TO ADVISE SECRETARY.—No later

12 than the 75th calendar day after the date of enact13 ment of this Act each permit holder who desires to be

14 compensated under this Act shall—

15 (A) advise the Secretary which single cal16 endar year from 1992 through 1998 the permit

17 holder chooses as the basis for the permit holder’s

18 landing payment; and

19 (B) submit to the Secretary the permit hold20 er’s documentation for the gross ex-vessel value of

21 all fish (regardless of species) landed by the eligi22 ble vessel during the basis year chosen; or

23 (C) advise the Secretary that the permit

24 holder does not possess adequate documentation
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1 and, consequently elects to have the Secretary

2 calculate a default landing payment.

3 (4) DOCUMENTATION.—Documentation under

4 paragraph (3)(C) shall be in the form of trip tickets

5 (or other landing documentation issued by the first

6 ex-vessel fish buyer or buyers) for the eligible vessel

7 that clearly establishes on their face the identity and

8 location of the first fish buyer, the vessel from whom

9 the fish was bought, the date the fish was bought, how

10 many pounds of each species of fish was bought, and

11 how much per pound the landing vessel was paid for

12 each species of fish bought (no other documentation

13 shall be acceptable)

14 (5) CALCULATION OF AMOUNT.—If the permit

15 holder submits adequate documentation the Secretary

16 shall use it to calculate the landing payment. If the

17 permit holder elects to have the Secretary calculate a

18 default landing payment (or submits inadequate doc19 umentation), the Secretary shall calculate a default

20 payment by applying average ex-vessel prices (where

21 possible, for each month of landing and state or area

22 of landing as maintained in the National Marine

23 Fisheries Service’s databases) to each pound of species

24 of fish landed by the permit holder’s eligible vessel

25 during the basis year that the permit holder chooses.
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1 (f) COMPENSATION OFFER.—No later than the 135th

2 calendar day after the date of enactment of this Act, the

3 Secretary shall, by certified mail return receipt requested,

4 addressed to each eligible permit holder at its record ad5 dress, offer each eligible permit holder compensation for an

6 amount determined in accordance with this section. The

7 Secretary’s offer shall be final and not subject to negotiation

8 or counteroffer.

9 (g) COMPENSATION OFFER ACCEPTANCE.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible permit holder

11 who desires to be compensated in accordance with this

12 Act must accept the Secretary’s compensation offer no

13 later than the 165th calendar day after the date of en14 actment of this Act.

15 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The acceptance—

16 (A) must be in writing signed by the permit

17 holder or permit holder’s duly authorized rep18 resentative and delivered to the Chief, Financial

19 Services Division, National Marine Fisheries

20 Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver

21 Spring, MD 20910-3282, and include direct wire

22 transfer instructions;

23 (B) shall constitute the eligible permit hold24 er’s irrevocable consent for all other restrictions

25 that this Act permanently requires with respect
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1 to the eligible vessel and all such restrictions

2 shall immediately be in effect; and

3 (C) shall be accompanied by all commercial

4 fishing permits and licenses held by the eligible

5 permit holder that are or were applicable to the

6 eligible vessel.

7 (3) FORM OF DELIVERY.—

8 (A) If the acceptance is mailed, it must be

9 mailed by certified mail return receipt requested.

10 The Secretary shall consider the date of accept11 ance to be the date on which it was mailed.

12 (B) If the acceptance is delivered by any

13 other means, the Secretary shall consider the

14 date of acceptance to be the date on which the

15 Secretary first received the acceptance. The Sec16 retary’s determinations regarding the timeliness

17 of the acceptance shall be final.

18 (h) COMPENSATION PAYMENT.—No later than the

19 195th calendar day after the date of enactment of this Act,

20 the Secretary shall, in accordance with this section, pay

21 compensation in full to each permit holder whose acceptance

22 of the Secretary’s offer was timely.

23 (i) FEDERAL LOAN.—Under the authority of sections

24 1111 and 1112 of title XI of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936

25 (46 U.S.C. App. 1279f and 1279g), the Secretary shall pro-
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1 vide up to $10,000,000 through a direct loan obligation for

2 any payments authorized under this section that are not

3 fully paid for by funds appropriated under subsection (j)

4 of this section. For purposes of such sections 1111 and 1112,

5 these payments shall be treated as payments under a fishing

6 capacity reduction program established under section 312

7 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1861a). Notwith8 standing subsection (b)(4) of such section 1111, the debt ob9 ligation under this subsection shall have a maturity of 30

10 years.

11 (j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There shall

12 be authorized to be appropriated $100,000 for the costs re13 quired by the Federal Credit Reform Act for the $10,000,000

14 direct loan authorized under this section and $15,000,000

15 for the balance of the compensation payments authorized

16 under this Act.

17 (k) BLENDED FUNDING SOURCE.—All funds appro18 priated under subsection (j) shall be available for the pay19 ments authorized under this section and shall be applied

20 so as to ensure that 40 percent of the cost of such payments

21 is derived from the direct loan authorized under this section

22 and 60 percent of the cost of such payments is derived from

23 funds appropriated for payment under this section. If any

24 amounts appropriated remain unexpended and unobligated

25 after all payments are made under this section, the remain-
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1 der of such amounts shall be availabe for obligation and

2 expenditure for the research program established under sec3 tion 11.

4 SEC. 8. RESTRICTIONS ON VESSELS.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—

6 (1) All commercial fishing permits or licenses

7 held by an eligible permit holder accepting compensa8 tion under section 7 shall be revoked upon receipt by

9 the Secretary of the letter of acceptance under section

10 7(g).

11 (2) For each eligible vessel for which an eligible

12 permit holder whose commercial fishing permits and

13 licenses have been revoked and who accepted a land14 ing payment, such vessel shall never again be used by

15 any person anywhere in the world (regardless of the

16 national status of such person) for commercial fish17 ing.

18 (b) INELIGIBILITY FOR FISHERIES ENDORSEMENT.—

19 Section 12108(d) of title 46, United States Code, is amend20 ed by inserting ‘‘, or a vessel whose commercial fishing per21 mits and licenses have been revoked under section 8(a)(2)

22 of the Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Conservation Act

23 of 1999,’’ before ‘‘is not eligible’’.

24 (c) TRANSFER TO FOREIGN OWNERSHIP OR REGISTRY

25 PROHIBITED.—
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1 (1) PROHIBITED TRANSFER.—No person may—

2 (A) sell, lease, charter, deliver, or in any

3 manner transfer, or agree to sell, lease, charter,

4 deliver, or in any manner transfer, to a person

5 not a citizen of the United States, any interest

6 in or control of a vessel whose commercial fish7 ing permits and licenses have been revoked; or

8 (B) place that vessel under foreign registry

9 or operate that vessel under the authority of a

10 foreign country.

11 (2) VOID EFFECT.—Any charter, sale, or transfer

12 of a vessel, or interest in or control of that vessel, in

13 violation of this subsection is void.

14 (d) PENALTIES.—

15 (1) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Any person that know16 ingly charters, sells, or transfers a vessel (or interest

17 in or control of that vessel) in violation of this sec18 tion, or knowingly uses that vessel for commercial

19 fishing in violation of this section, or knowingly sub20 mits false documentation for the landing payment

21 under section 7 shall be fined under title 18, United

22 States Code, imprisoned for not more than 5 years,

23 or both.

24 (2) FORFEITURE.—A vessel (including its fishing

25 gear, furniture, appurtenances, stores, and cargo)
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1 may be seized by, and forfeited to, the United States

2 Government if—

3 (A)(i) the vessel is placed under foreign reg4 istry or operated under the authority of a foreign

5 country in violation of this section;

6 (ii) a person knowingly charters, sells, or

7 transfers a vessel, or interest or control in that

8 vessel, in violation of this section;

9 (B) the vessel is used for commercial fishing

10 in violation of this section

11 (C) the permit holder submits false docu12 mentation for the landing payment under section

13 7.

14 (3) CIVIL PENALTY.—A person that charters,

15 sells, or transfers a vessel (or an interest in or control

16 of a vessel) in violation of this section, uses a vessel

17 for commercial fishing in violation of this section, or

18 submits false documentation for the landing payment

19 under section 7 is liable to the United States Govern20 ment for a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for

21 each violation.

22 (e) VESSEL IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM.—The Secretary

23 of Transportation shall ensure that, for each vessel whose

24 commercial fishing permits and licenses have been revoked,

25 information is recorded and maintained in the vessel iden-
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1 tification system established under chapter 125 of title 46,

2 United States Code, stating that the vessel is forbidden

3 under this Act from engaging in commercial fishing any4 where in the world, that the vessel is not eligible for any

5 commercial fishing permit or license (regardless of whether

6 the permit or license is issued by the Federal Government,

7 or a State government or political subdivision thereof), and

8 that use of the vessel in any commercial fishing operation

9 may result in Federal civil and criminal penalties and for10 feiture of the vessel and its cargo and equipment.

11 SEC. 9. REPAYMENT OF DIRECT LOAN.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established a fishery con13 servation fee system, to be administered by the Secretary,

14 for repayment of the direct loan made under section 7(f),

15 with the commercial share to be repaid under subsection

16 (b) of this section and the recreational share to be repaid

17 under subsection (c) of this section. Fees under this section

18 are established notwithstanding the requirements of section

19 304 or 312 of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1854

20 and 1861a).

21 (b) COMMERCIAL SHARE.—

22 (1) DESCRIPTION.—The commercial share of the

23 fishery conservation fee system shall be 50 percent of

24 the original principal amount of the loan plus all in-
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1 terest accruing on that 50 percent of the principal

2 amount.

3 (2) METHOD OF PAYMENT.—The Secretary shall,

4 for the repayment of the commercial share of the loan

5 obligation, plus associated interest, establish a fee,

6 which—

7 (A) shall be an amount determined by the

8 Secretary to be sufficient to amortize the com9 mercial share over the loan term of 30 years, not

10 to exceed five cents, for each pound of all Atlan11 tic swordfish sold by swordfish dealers;

12 (B) shall be collected beginning on the 365th

13 day after the date of enactment of this Act and

14 continue without interruption, regardless of the

15 loan’s maturity until such commercial share is

16 fully paid; and

17 (C) shall be deducted by the swordfish dealer

18 from all proceeds received from the sale by the

19 dealer of all Atlantic swordfish and accounted

20 for and forwarded by the dealer to the Secretary

21 in the following manner:

22 (i) The fee for all proceeds received

23 during each month shall be forwarded by

24 not later than the 15th calendar day of each

25 month immediately following the month for
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1 which the fees were collected and fee pay2 ments shall be late if not received at the lock

3 box by the 20th calendar day of each such

4 immediately following month.

5 (ii) All fees forwarded shall include a

6 settlement sheet that establishes the total

7 proceeds received during the previous

8 month, the total pounds of all Atlantic

9 swordfish sold upon which such receipts

10 were based, and the total fee forwarded.

11 (iii) All fees shall be forwarded to a

12 lock box account that the Secretary shall

13 designate by a letter to each swordfish deal14 er holding a swordfish dealer’s permit at its

15 record address.

16 (iv) All fee matters shall be in accord17 ance with such other conditions as the Sec18 retary shall establish, and amend from time

19 to time by a letter (but not by regulation or

20 any other form of notice) sent to each

21 swordfish dealer holding a swordfish deal22 er’s permit at its record address.

23 (3) DUTY OF PROMPT NOTIFICATION.—The Sec24 retary shall immediately notify swordfish dealers and

25 swordfish limited access permit holders when the com-
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1 mercial share has been fully repaid and the collection

2 requirement terminates. This shall be accomplished by

3 the Secretary’s letter sent to each swordfish dealer,

4 holding a swordfish dealer’s permit and each sword5 fish limited access permit holder at its record address.

6 (4) AUDIT.—The Secretary may at reasonable

7 times and places conduct audits of swordfish dealer’s

8 books and records to determine compliance with this

9 section. Swordfish dealers shall furnish such books

10 and records as the Secretary may reasonably require

11 for the conduct of such audits.

12 (5) PENALTY INTEREST ON LATE FEE PAY13 MENTS.—Swordfish dealers shall pay penalty interest

14 equal to one and one-half percent the full amount of

15 each late fee payment for each month, or portion

16 thereof, in which a late fee payment remains unpaid.

17 (6) ENFORCEMENT.—The Secretary shall collect

18 all unpaid fees by such manner as the Secretary con19 siders appropriate, including bringing collection en20 forcement actions at law and attaching and liqui21 dating swordfish dealers’ assets.

22 (7) CONTINUING OBLIGATION.—Notwithstanding

23 that the commercial share of the loan is not paid in

24 full by the loan’s maturity date, the fee shall continue
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1 without interruption until such time as the commer2 cial share is paid in full.

3 (c) RECREATIONAL SHARE.—

4 (1) DESCRIPTION.—The recreational share of the

5 fishery conservation fee system shall be 50 percent of

6 the original principal amount of the loan plus all in7 terest accruing on 50 percent of the principal

8 amount.

9 (2) METHODS OF PAYMENT.—The recreational

10 share of the loan obligation, plus associated interest,

11 shall be repaid through payment by affected States

12 under paragraph (3), and by the sale of fishery con13 servation permits issued under paragraph (4).

14 (3) PAYMENT BY AFFECTED STATE.—A vessel

15 registered in an affected State will not be required to

16 purchase a Federal fishery conservation permit if the

17 State, no later than the 240th calendar day after the

18 date of enactment of this Act, makes a binding, le19 gally enforceable agreement with the United States

20 Government to pay fully, within 4 years after the

21 date of enactment of this Act, the State’s recreational

22 share allocation, plus associated interest. The alloca23 tions for each affected State shall not exceed 40 per24 cent for any affected States and will be based on the

25 State’s percentage of the total length of coastline adja-
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1 cent to any area closed under section 6 and the total

2 number of marine anglers for all 7 States. Such allo3 cations are as follows:

4 (A) South Carolina—9.4 percent;

5 (B) Georgia—4.3 percent;

6 (C) Florida—40.0 percent;

7 (D) Alabama—3.2 percent;

8 (E) Mississippi—2.6 percent;

9 (F) Louisiana—14.6 percent; and

10 (G) Texas—19.9 percent.

11 (4) FISHERY CONSERVATION PERMITS.—

12 (A) ISSUANCE AND SALE.—On or about one

13 year after the date of enactment of this Act and

14 thereafter until the recreational share is fully re15 paid, the Secretary shall issue for $25 each an

16 annual fishery conservation permit to vessels

17 over 18 feet in length wishing to engage in rec18 reational fishing for highly migratory species in

19 any area closed under section 6. For vessels reg20 istered in a State electing to pay the recreational

21 share, the Secretary shall issue the permit free of

22 charge.

23 (B) MEANS OF SALE OR ISSUANCE.—The

24 Secretary—
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1 (i) may, to the extent practicable, au2 thorize the permits to be issued or sold by

3 a variety of persons, including state agen4 cies, retail dealers, and through convenient

5 means, including the Internet and toll-free

6 telephone numbers; and

7 (ii) may establish procedures for such

8 persons to account for and forward the pro9 ceeds of sale to the Secretary.

10 (C) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may not

11 issue such permits after the repayment of the rec12 reational share of the loan obligation.

13 (D) VESSELS REGISTERED IN AFFECTED

14 STATES.—Vessels registered in affected States

15 agreeing to pay the recreational share shall ob16 tain a fishery conservation permit from the Sec17 retary or the affected State where the vessel is

18 registered.

19 (5) PROHIBITION.—After the 240th day after the

20 date of enactment of this Act until the recreational

21 share is fully repaid under this Act, no person may

22 engage in recreational fishing for highly migratory

23 species in any closed area from a vessel of 18 feet or

24 more in length, unless the vessel has been issued a

25 valid fishery conservation permit. Such permit must
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1 be retained on the vessel. It shall be a rebuttable pre2 sumption that any 18 foot or larger recreational ves3 sel with gear aboard capable of catching HMS species

4 shall be presumed to be fishing for HMS species. Once

5 the recreational share has been fully repaid this pro6 hibition shall be null and void.

7 (6) DUTY OF PROMPT NOTIFICATION.—The Sec8 retary shall immediately notify the Coast Guard, the

9 heads of the agencies of the affected States that have

10 responsibility for marine fishery law enforcement, re11 tail dealers and others who sell fishery conservation

12 permits under this subsection, and the public when:

13 payment of the recreational share begins, and the rec14 reational share has been fully repaid. This shall be

15 accomplished by a Federal Register notice, direct

16 communication, and such other means as the Sec17 retary determines are effective and appropriate.

18 (7) REPAYMENT.—Money received under sub19 sections (3) and (4), shall be accounted for and paid

20 by the Secretary into the subaccount of the Treasury

21 established for the repayment of the direct loan made

22 under section 7(i).
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1 SEC. 10. PROHIBITED ACT UNDER MAGNUSON-STEVENS

2 ACT.

3 A person who violates this Act shall, in addition to

4 any other penalties provided in this Act or elsewhere, be

5 considered to have committed an act prohibited under sec6 tion 307(1)(A) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C.

7 1857(1)(A)).

8 SEC. 11. HIGHLY MIGRATORY SPECIES BYCATCH MOR9 TALITY REDUCTION RESEARCH PROGRAM.

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—There is estab11 lished within the National Marine Fisheries Service at the

12 Southeast Fisheries Science Center a Pelagic Longline

13 Highly Migratory Species Bycatch and Mortality Reduc14 tion Research Program. The Program shall identify and

15 test a variety of pelagic longline fishing gear configurations

16 and uses and determine which of those configurations and

17 uses are the most effective in reducing highly migratory spe18 cies bycatch mortality in the pelagic longline fisheries in

19 the exclusive economic zone of the Gulf of Mexico and the

20 Atlantic Ocean. The program shall also evaluate impacts

21 of gear changes on protected species and include provision

22 for observers to be placed on pelagic longline fishing vessels

23 for the purposes of monitoring the fishery and participating

24 in the research program.

25 (b) PROGRAM DESIGN.—The Program design shall be

26 developed through a scientific workshop organized and con-
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1 vened by the Southeast Fisheries Science Center of the Na2 tional Marine Fisheries Service. Knowledgeable members of

3 the pelagic longline fishing sector and the recreational fish4 ing sector, and conservation community, along with sci5 entists associated with each such industry, shall be invited

6 to participate on the workshop design team. The Center

7 shall make its best efforts to ensure that each such sector

8 is fairly represented on the design team. The program de9 sign shall be submitted to the Secretary no later than the

10 120th calendar day after the date of enactment of this Act

11 and shall include a scientifically-based recommendation for

12 the level of observer coverage on pelagic longline fishing ves13 sels that is necessary to monitor the fishery effectively and

14 participate in the research program.

15 (c) MONITOR AND REPORT.—The Secretary is directed

16 to aggressively monitor the mid-Atlantic bight during the

17 months of June, July, and August to determine if there has

18 been a substantial net increase in the number of vessels or

19 effort from the remaining pelagic longline fleet and whether

20 that net increase is causing significant negative impact on

21 the recreational billfish catch. In the event the Secretary

22 so finds, the Secretary shall immediately report the finding

23 to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor24 tation of the Senate and the Committee on Resources of the
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1 House of Representatives along with his recommendations

2 to address the impact.

3 (d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—No later than the 90th

4 calendar day after the third year of closure of the Gulf Of

5 Mexico Conservation Zone For Highly Migratory Species

6 under section 6(c), the Secretary shall submit a report on

7 the Program’s determinations to the Committee on Com8 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the

9 Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives.

10 The report shall include any recommendations for legisla11 tion that may be appropriate prior to the expiration of the

12 closure of the Gulf Of Mexico Conservation Zone For Highly

13 Migratory Species.

14 SEC. 12. INTERIM REGULATIONS.

15 (a) INTERIM REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may not

16 propose, approve, or implement before a date that is either

17 one year after the date on which the Secretary submits the

18 report to Congress on the results of the Pelagic Longline

19 Highly Migratory Species Bycatch Mortality Reduction Re20 search Program under section 11(c) or 4 years after the date

21 of enactment of this Act, whichever is later, any rules or

22 regulations that have the effect of establishing any time-area

23 closures for pelagic longline fishing in the Atlantic by

24 United States fishing vessels that are in addition to, or oth-
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1 erwise expand, those time-area closures established under

2 this Act.

3 (b) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition set forth in sub4 section (a) shall not apply—

5 (1) to rules or regulations necessary to imple6 ment any future recommendation of ICCAT;

7 (2) to strictly technical and conforming correc8 tions to those time-area closures established under this

9 Act that the Secretary finds are necessary for public

10 safety and enforcement of this Act; or

11 (3) if the Secretary, after consultation with the

12 Commissioners appointed under the Atlantic Tunas

13 Convention Act of 1975, finds that—

14 (A) fishing by United States pelagic

15 longline fishing vessels is causing an emergency

16 with respect to the conservation of an Atlantic

17 highly migratory species of fish;

18 (B) such emergency can not or will not be

19 addressed by the International Commission for

20 the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas in a timely

21 manner; and

22 (C) time-area closures for pelagic longline

23 fishing in the Atlantic by United States fishing

24 vessels that are in addition to, or otherwise ex25 pand, those time-area closures established under
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1 this Act are necessary to address such emergency

2 and there are no other practicable means avail3 able to address such emergency.

4 (4) to any action taken under either the Marine

5 Mammal Protection Act or the Endangered Species

6 Act.

7 SEC. 13. VESSEL MONITORING DEVICE.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.— After the 165th day of enactment

9 of this Act, no pelagic longline vessel shall operate within

10 the Atlantic HMS fishery without a vessel monitoring de11 vice approved by the Secretary.

12 (b) NOT REQUIRED TO CARRY MONITORING DE13 VICE.—No vessel accepting the buyout under section 7 will

14 be required to carry a vessel monitoring device.

15 (c) COSTS.—Any costs attributable to the purchase and

16 installation of vessel monitoring devices on any pelagic

17 longline vessel fishing in the Atlantic HMS fishery that is

18 required to carry such a device under this section shall be

19 the responsibility of the Secretary.

20 SEC. 14. NULLIFICATION.

21 (1) In the event Congress fails to appropriate

22 funds adequate to complete the buyout under section

23 7 and establish the research program under section 3,

24 then no provision of this Act shall be effective.
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1 (2) In the event Congress fails to appropriate

2 funds adequate to place vessel monitoring devices on

3 vessels, then the requirement in section 13 to carry

4 such devices shall have no effect.

5 (3) In the event that the nullification provided

6 in subsection (1) or (2) becomes effective the nullifica7 tion does not affect the authority of the Secretary to

8 take action under any other authority.

9 SEC. 15. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

10 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec11 retary $250,000 per year as the cost of carrying out the

12 compensation program; $2,250,000 for vessel monitoring

13 devices; $3,000,000 for research; plus such other sums as

14 may be necessary for carrying out all other functions in

15 the Act. In addition, there are authorized to be appro16 priated to the Secretary not more than $400,000 for the

17 Southeast Fisheries Science Center to conduct additional re18 search on billfish and swordfish.
Calendar No. 678

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1911

[Report No. 106–339]

A BILL

To conserve Atlantic highly migratory species of

fish, and for other purposes.

JULY 12, 2000

Reported with an amendment