I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4742 

To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

to provide flexibility for fishery managers and stability for fishermen, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 23, 2014 

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

Management Act to provide flexibility for fishery managers and stability for fishermen, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Strengthening Fishing 

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

7 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

8 The table of contents for this Act is the following: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 


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TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE MAGNUSON-STEVENS FISHERY 

CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT ACT 

Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. References. 

Sec. 103. Flexibility in rebuilding fish stocks. 

Sec. 104. Modifications to the annual catch limit requirement. 

Sec. 105. Distinguishing between overfished and depleted. 

Sec. 106. Transparency and public process. 

Sec. 107. Limitation on future catch share programs. 

Sec. 108. Report on fee. 

Sec. 109. Data collection and data confidentiality. 

Sec. 110. Cooperative research and management program. 

Sec. 111. Council jurisdiction for overlapping fisheries. 

Sec. 112. Gulf of Mexico fisheries cooperative research and red snapper management. 

Sec. 113. North Pacific fishery management clarification. 

Sec. 114. Ensuring consistent management for fisheries throughout their range. 

Sec. 115. Limitation on harvest in North Pacific directed pollock fishery. 

Sec. 116. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE II—REVITALIZING THE ECONOMY OF FISHERIES IN THE 

PACIFIC 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Findings; purpose. 

Sec. 203. Refinancing of Pacific Coast groundfish fishing capacity reduction 

loan. 

1 TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE 

2 MAGNUSON-STEVENS FISH3 ERY CONSERVATION AND 

4 MANAGEMENT ACT 

5 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

6 Any term used in this title that is defined in section 

7 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

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

9 meaning such term has under that section. 

10 SEC. 102. REFERENCES. 

11 Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in 

12 this title an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

13 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a provision, the refVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:36 May 23, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4742.IH H4742

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1 erence shall be considered to be made to a provision of 

2 the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage3 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). 

4 SEC. 103. FLEXIBILITY IN REBUILDING FISH STOCKS. 

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

6 U.S.C. 1854(e)) is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (4)— 

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

9 ‘‘possible’’ and inserting ‘‘practicable’’; 

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

11 read as follows: 

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

13 stock would be rebuilt without fishing oc14 curring plus one mean generation, except 

15 in a case in which— 

16 ‘‘(I) the biology of the stock of 

17 fish, other environmental conditions, 

18 or management measures under an 

19 international agreement in which the 

20 United States participates dictate oth21 erwise; 

22 ‘‘(II) the Secretary determines 

23 that the cause of the stock being de24 pleted is outside the jurisdiction of the 

25 Council or the rebuilding program 


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1 cannot be effective only by limiting 

2 fishing activities; 

3 ‘‘(III) the Secretary determines 

4 that one or more components of a 

5 mixed-stock fishery is depleted but 

6 cannot be rebuilt within that time7 frame without significant economic 

8 harm to the fishery, or cannot be re9 built without causing another compo10 nent of the mixed-stock fishery to ap11 proach a depleted status; 

12 ‘‘(IV) the Secretary determines 

13 that recruitment, distribution, or life 

14 history of, or fishing activities for, the 

15 stock are affected by informal trans16 boundary agreements under which 

17 management activities outside the ex18 clusive economic zone by another 

19 country may hinder conservation and 

20 management efforts by United States 

21 fishermen; and 

22 ‘‘(V) the Secretary determines 

23 that the stock has been affected by 

24 unusual events that make rebuilding 

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1 probable without significant economic 

2 harm to fishing communities;’’; 

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

4 at the end of subparagraph (B), by redesig5 nating subparagraphs (B) and (C) as subpara6 graphs (C) and (D), and by inserting after sub7 paragraph (A) the following: 

8 ‘‘(B) take into account environmental con9 dition including predator/prey relationships;’’; 

10 and 

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

12 subparagraph (D) (as so redesignated) and in13 serting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding at the end the 

14 following: 

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

16 rebuilding targets, evaluating environmental im17 pacts on rebuilding progress, and evaluating 

18 progress being made toward reaching rebuilding 

19 targets.’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(8) A fishery management plan, plan amend22 ment, or proposed regulations may use alternative 

23 rebuilding strategies, including harvest control rules 

24 and fishing mortality-rate targets to the extent they 

25 are in compliance with the requirements of this Act. 


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

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

3 and statistical committee determines and the Sec4 retary concurs that the original determination that 

5 the fishery was depleted was erroneous, either— 

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

7 the effective date a fishery management plan, 

8 plan amendment, or proposed regulation for a 

9 fishery under this subsection takes effect; or 

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

11 of the next stock assessment after such deter12 mination.’’. 

13 (b) EMERGENCY REGULATIONS AND INTERIM MEAS14 URES.—Section 305(c)(3)(B) (16 U.S.C. 1855(c)(3)(B)) 

15 is amended by striking ‘‘180 days after’’ and all that fol16 lows through ‘‘provided’’ and inserting ‘‘1 year after the 

17 date of publication, and may be extended by publication 

18 in the Federal Register for one additional period of not 

19 more than 1 year, if’’. 

20 SEC. 104. MODIFICATIONS TO THE ANNUAL CATCH LIMIT 

21 REQUIREMENT. 

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

23 at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(m) CONSIDERATIONS FOR MODIFICATIONS TO AN25 NUAL CATCH LIMIT REQUIREMENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) CONSIDERATION OF ECOSYSTEM AND ECO2 NOMIC IMPACTS.—In establishing annual catch lim3 its a Council may, consistent with section 302(h)(6), 

4 consider changes in an ecosystem and the economic 

5 needs of the fishing communities. 

6 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS TO ANNUAL CATCH LIMIT

7 REQUIREMENT FOR SPECIAL FISHERIES.—Notwith8 standing subsection (h)(6), a Council is not required 

9 to develop an annual catch limit for— 

10 ‘‘(A) an ecosystem component species; 

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

12 cycle of approximately 1 year, unless the Sec13 retary has determined the fishery is subject to 

14 overfishing; or 

15 ‘‘(C) a stock for which— 

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

17 class will complete their life cycle in less 

18 than 18 months; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) fishing mortality will have little 

20 impact on the stock. 

21 ‘‘(3) RELATIONSHIP TO INTERNATIONAL FISH22 ERY EFFORTS.—Each annual catch limit may, con23 sistent with section 302(h)(6), take into account— 


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1 ‘‘(A) management measures under inter2 national agreements in which the United States 

3 participates; and 

4 ‘‘(B) informal transboundary agreements 

5 under which fishery management activities by 

6 another country outside the exclusive economic 

7 zone may hinder conservation efforts by United 

8 States fishermen for a fish species for which 

9 any of the recruitment, distribution, life history, 

10 or fishing activities are transboundary. 

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

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

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

16 complex; or 

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

18 any continuous period that is not more than 

19 three years in duration. 

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


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

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

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

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

8 SEC. 105. DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN OVERFISHED AND DE9 PLETED. 

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

11 amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (34), by striking ‘‘and ‘over13 fished’ mean’’ and inserting ‘‘means’’; and 

14 (2) by inserting after paragraph (8) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(8a) The term ‘depleted’ means, with respect 

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

18 or stock complex has a biomass that has declined 

19 below a level that jeopardizes the capacity of the 

20 stock or stock complex to produce maximum sustain21 able yield on a continuing basis.’’. 

22 (b) SUBSTITUTION OF TERM.—The Magnuson-Ste23 vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

24 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) is amended by striking ‘‘overfished’’ 

25 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘depleted’’. 


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1 (c) CLARITY IN ANNUAL REPORT.—Section 

2 304(e)(1) (16 U.S.C. 1854(e)(1)) is amended by adding 

3 at the end the following: ‘‘The report shall distinguish be4 tween fisheries that are depleted (or approaching that con5 dition) as a result of fishing and fisheries that are depleted 

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

7 than fishing. The report shall state, for each fishery iden8 tified as depleted or approaching that condition, whether 

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

10 SEC. 106. TRANSPARENCY AND PUBLIC PROCESS. 

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

12 1852(g)(1)(B)) is amended by adding at the end the fol13 lowing: ‘‘Each scientific and statistical committee shall de14 velop such advice in a transparent manner and allow for 

15 public involvement in the process.’’. 

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

17 1852(i)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

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

19 Internet Web site of the Council— 

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

21 an audio recording, or a live broadcast of each 

22 meeting of the Council, and of the Council Co23 ordination Committee established under sub24 section (l), that is not closed in accordance with 

25 paragraph (3); and 


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

2 person or by video conference), or a searchable 

3 audio or written transcript of each meeting of 

4 the Council and of the meetings of committees 

5 referred to in section 302(g)(1)(B) of the Coun6 cil by not later than 30 days after the conclu7 sion of the meeting. 

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

9 available to the public an archive of Council and sci10 entific and statistical committee meeting audios, vid11 eos, and transcripts made available under clauses (i) 

12 and (ii) subparagraph (G).’’. 

13 (c) FISHERY IMPACT STATEMENTS.— 

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

15 1853) is amended— 

16 (A) in subsection (a), by striking para17 graph (9) and redesignating paragraphs (10) 

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

19 respectively; and 

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

21 ‘‘(d) FISHERY IMPACT STATEMENT.— 

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

23 management plan amendment) prepared by any 

24 Council or by the Secretary pursuant to subsection 

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


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

2 impact statement which shall assess, specify and 

3 analyze the likely effects and impact of the proposed 

4 action on the quality of the human environment. 

5 ‘‘(2) The fishery impact statement shall de6 scribe— 

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

8 ‘‘(B) the environmental impact of the pro9 posed action; 

10 ‘‘(C) any adverse environmental effects 

11 which cannot be avoided should the proposed 

12 action be implemented; 

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

14 the proposed action; 

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

16 use of fishery resources and the enhancement of 

17 long-term productivity; 

18 ‘‘(F) the cumulative conservation and man19 agement effects; and 

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

21 proposed action on— 

22 ‘‘(i) participants in the fisheries and 

23 fishing communities affected by the pro24 posed action; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) participants in the fisheries con2 ducted in adjacent areas under the author3 ity of another Council, after consultation 

4 with such Council and representatives of 

5 those participants; and 

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

7 including whether and to what extent such 

8 measures may affect the safety of partici9 pants in the fishery. 

10 ‘‘(3) A substantially complete fishery impact 

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

12 available not less than 14 days before the beginning 

13 of the meeting at which a Council makes its final de14 cision on the proposal (for plans, plan amendments, 

15 or proposed regulations prepared by a Council pur16 suant to subsection (a) or (c)). Availability of this 

17 fishery impact statement will be announced by the 

18 methods used by the council to disseminate public 

19 information and the public and relevant government 

20 agencies will be invited to comment on the fishery 

21 impact statement. 

22 ‘‘(4) The completed fishery impact statement 

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1 tion 304(a), as well as the transmittal of proposed 

2 regulations as specified in section 304(b). 

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

4 the Secretary, establish criteria to determine actions 

5 or classes of action of minor significance regarding 

6 subparagraphs (A), (B), (D), (E), and (F) of para7 graph (2), for which preparation of a fishery impact 

8 statement is unnecessary and categorically excluded 

9 from the requirements of this section, and the docu10 mentation required to establish the exclusion. 

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

12 the Secretary, prepare procedures for compliance 

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

14 concise analysis that is useful to decisionmakers and 

15 the public, reduce extraneous paperwork and effec16 tively involve the public, including— 

17 ‘‘(A) using Council meetings to determine 

18 the scope of issues to be addressed and identi19 fying significant issues related to the proposed 

20 action; 

21 ‘‘(B) integration of the fishery impact 

22 statement development process with preliminary 

23 and final Council decisionmaking in a manner 

24 that provides opportunity for comment from the 


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1 public and relevant government agencies prior 

2 to these decision points; and 

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

4 legal advice at an early stage of the develop5 ment of the fishery impact statement to ensure 

6 timely transmittal and Secretarial review of the 

7 proposed fishery management plan, plan 

8 amendment, or regulations to the Secretary. 

9 ‘‘(7) Actions taken in accordance with the pro10 cedures of this section shall constitute fulfillment of 

11 the requirements the National Environmental Policy 

12 Improvement Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4371 et seq.) 

13 and all related implementing regulations.’’. 

14 (2) EVALUATION OF ADEQUACY.—Section 

15 304(a)(2) (16 U.S.C. 1854(a)(2)) is amended by 

16 striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end of sub17 paragraph (B), striking the period at the end of sub18 paragraph (C) and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and by adding 

19 at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(D) evaluate the adequacy of the accom21 panying fishery impact statement as basis for 

22 fully considering the environmental impacts of 

23 implementing the fishery management plan or 

24 plan amendment.’’. 


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

2 (16 U.S.C. 1854(b)) is amended by striking so much 

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

4 inserting the following: 

5 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF REGULATIONS.— 

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

7 Secretary of proposed regulations prepared under 

8 section 303(c), the Secretary shall immediately ini9 tiate an evaluation of the proposed regulations to de10 termine whether they are consistent with the fishery 

11 management plan, plan amendment, this Act and 

12 other applicable law. The Secretary shall also imme13 diately initiate an evaluation of the accompanying 

14 fishery impact statement as a basis for fully consid15 ering the environmental impacts of implementing the 

16 proposed regulations. Within 15 days of initiating 

17 such evaluation the Secretary shall make a deter18 mination and—’’. 

19 (4) EFFECT ON TIME REQUIREMENTS.—Section 

20 305(e) (16 U.S.C. 1855(e)) is amended by inserting 

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

22 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.),’’ after ‘‘the Regulatory Flexi23 bility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.)’’. 


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1 SEC. 107. LIMITATION ON FUTURE CATCH SHARE PRO2 GRAMS. 

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

4 1802) is amended by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(2a) The term ‘catch share’ means any fishery 

7 management program that allocates a specific per8 centage of the total allowable catch for a fishery, or 

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

10 community, processor, representative of a commer11 cial sector, or regional fishery association established 

12 in accordance with section 303A(c)(4), or other enti13 ty.’’. 

14 (b) CATCH SHARE REFERENDUM PILOT PRO15 GRAM.— 

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

17 U.S.C. 1853a(c)(6)(D)) is amended to read as fol18 lows: 

19 ‘‘(D) CATCH SHARE REFERENDUM PILOT

20 PROGRAM.— 

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

22 South Atlantic, and Gulf of Mexico Coun23 cils may not submit a fishery management 

24 plan or amendment that creates a catch 

25 share program for a fishery, and the Sec26 retary may not approve or implement such 


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1 a plan or amendment submitted by such a 

2 Council or a secretarial plan or amendment 

3 under section 304(c) that creates such a 

4 program, unless the final program has 

5 been approved, in a referendum in accord6 ance with this subparagraph, by a majority 

7 of the permit holders eligible to participate 

8 in the fishery. For multispecies permits in 

9 the Gulf of Mexico, any permit holder with 

10 landings from within the sector of the fish11 ery being considered for the catch share 

12 program within the 5-year period pre13 ceding the date of the referendum and still 

14 active in fishing in the fishery shall be eli15 gible to participate in such a referendum. 

16 If a catch share program is not approved 

17 by the requisite number of permit holders, 

18 it may be revised and submitted for ap19 proval in a subsequent referendum. 

20 ‘‘(ii) The Secretary may, at the re21 quest of the New England Fishery Man22 agement Council, allow participation in 

23 such a referendum for a fishery under the 

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1 members who derive a significant portion 

2 of their livelihood from such fishing. 

3 ‘‘(iii) The Secretary shall conduct a 

4 referendum under this subparagraph, in5 cluding notifying all permit holders eligible 

6 to participate in the referendum and mak7 ing available to them— 

8 ‘‘(I) a copy of the proposed pro9 gram; 

10 ‘‘(II) an estimate of the costs of 

11 the program, including costs to par12 ticipants; 

13 ‘‘(III) an estimate of the amount 

14 of fish or percentage of quota each 

15 permit holder would be allocated; and 

16 ‘‘(IV) information concerning the 

17 schedule, procedures, and eligibility 

18 requirements for the referendum proc19 ess. 

20 ‘‘(iv) For the purposes of this sub21 paragraph, the term ‘permit holder eligible 

22 to participate’ only includes the holder of 

23 a permit for a fishery under which fishing 

24 has occurred in 3 of the 5 years preceding 

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1 ness, injury, or other unavoidable hardship 

2 prevented the permit holder from engaging 

3 in such fishing. 

4 ‘‘(v) The Secretary may not imple5 ment any catch share program for any 

6 fishery managed exclusively by the Sec7 retary unless first petitioned by a majority 

8 of those permit holders eligible to partici9 pate in the fishery.’’. 

10 (2) LIMITATION ON APPLICATION.—The amend11 ment made by paragraph (1) shall not apply to a 

12 catch share program that is submitted to, or pro13 posed by, the Secretary of Commerce before the date 

14 of enactment of this Act. 

15 (3) REGULATIONS.—Before conducting a ref16 erendum under the amendment made by paragraph 

17 (1), the Secretary of Commerce shall issue regula18 tions implementing such amendment after providing 

19 an opportunity for submission by the public of com20 ments on the regulations. 

21 SEC. 108. REPORT ON FEE. 

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

23 by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(D) The Secretary shall report annually 

25 on the amount collected under this paragraph 


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1 from each fishery and detail how the funds were 

2 spent in the prior year on a fishery-by-fishery 

3 basis, to— 

4 ‘‘(i) Congress; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) each Council from whose fish6 eries the fee under this paragraph were 

7 collected.’’. 

8 SEC. 109. DATA COLLECTION AND DATA CONFIDENTIALITY. 

9 (a) ELECTRONIC MONITORING.— 

10 (1) ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS.— 

11 (A) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary shall 

12 issue regulations governing the use of electronic 

13 monitoring for the purposes of monitoring fish14 eries that are subject to the Magnuson-Stevens 

15 Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 

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

17 (B) CONTENT.—The regulations shall— 

18 (i) distinguish between monitoring for 

19 data collection and research purposes and 

20 monitoring for compliance and enforcement 

21 purposes; and 

22 (ii) include minimum criteria, objec23 tives, or performance standards for elec24 tronic monitoring. 


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1 (C) PROCESS.—In issuing the regulations 

2 the Secretary shall— 

3 (i) consult with the Councils and fish4 ery management commissions; 

5 (ii) publish the proposed regulations; 

6 and 

7 (iii) provide an opportunity for the 

8 submission by the public of comments on 

9 the proposed regulations. 

10 (2) IMPLEMENTATION OF MONITORING.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara12 graph (B), and after the issuance of the final 

13 regulations, a Council, or the Secretary for fish14 eries referred to in section 302(a)(3) of the 

15 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

16 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(a)(3)), may, 

17 in accordance with the regulations, on a fishery18 by-fishery basis and consistent with the existing 

19 objectives and management goals of a fishery 

20 management plan and the Act for a fishery 

21 issued by the Council or the Secretary, respec22 tively, amend such plan— 

23 (i) to incorporate electronic moni24 toring as an alternative tool for data col25 lection and monitoring purposes or for 


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1 compliance and enforcement purposes (or 

2 both); and 

3 (ii) to allow for the replacement of a 

4 percentage of on-board observers with elec5 tronic monitoring. 

6 (B) COMPARABILITY.—Subparagraph (A) 

7 shall apply to a fishery only if the Council or 

8 Secretary, respectively, determines that such 

9 monitoring will yield comparable data collection 

10 and compliance results. 

11 (3) PILOT PROJECTS.—Before the issuance of 

12 final regulations, a Council, or the Secretary for 

13 fisheries referred to in section 302(a)(3), may, sub14 ject to the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens 

15 Fishery Conservation and Management Act, on a 

16 fishery-by-fishery basis, and consistent with the ex17 isting objectives and management goals of a fishery 

18 management plan for a fishery issued by the Council 

19 or the Secretary, respectively, conduct a pilot project 

20 for the use of electronic monitoring for the fishery. 

21 (4) DEADLINE.—The Secretary shall issue final 

22 regulations under this subsection by not later than 

23 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act. 

24 (b) VIDEO AND ACOUSTIC SURVEY TECH25 NOLOGIES.—The Secretary shall work with the Regional 


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1 Fishery Management Councils and nongovernmental enti2 ties to develop and implement the use pursuant to the 

3 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage4 ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) of video survey tech5 nologies and expanded use of acoustic survey technologies. 

6 (c) CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 402(b) (16 U.S.C. 

8 1881a(b)) is amended— 

9 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

10 (i) by amending subparagraph (B) to 

11 read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(B) to State or Marine Fisheries Commis13 sion employees as necessary for achievement of 

14 the purposes of this Act, subject to a confiden15 tiality agreement between the State or Commis16 sion, respectively, and the Secretary that pro17 hibits public disclosure of the identity of any 

18 person and of confidential information;’’; 

19 (ii) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

20 ‘‘limited access’’ and inserting ‘‘catch 

21 share’’; and 

22 (iii) in subparagraph (G), by striking 

23 ‘‘limited access’’ and inserting ‘‘catch 

24 share’’; 

25 (B) in paragraph (2)— 


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1 (i) in the matter preceding subpara2 graph (A), by inserting ‘‘, and information 

3 obtained through a vessel monitoring sys4 tem or other technology used onboard a 

5 fishing vessel for enforcement or data col6 lection purposes,’’ after ‘‘information;’’; 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘or’’ after the semi8 colon at the end of subparagraph (B); and 

9 (iii) by striking subparagraph (C) and 

10 inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(C) as authorized by any regulations 

12 issued under paragraph (6) allowing the collec13 tion of observer information, pursuant to a con14 fidentiality agreement between the observers, 

15 observer employers, and the Secretary prohib16 iting disclosure of the information by the ob17 servers or observer employers, in order— 

18 ‘‘(i) to allow the sharing of observer 

19 information among observers and between 

20 observers and observer employers as nec21 essary to train and prepare observers for 

22 deployments on specific vessels; or 

23 ‘‘(ii) to validate the accuracy of the 

24 observer information collected; or 


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1 ‘‘(D) to other persons if the Secretary has 

2 obtained written authorization from the person 

3 who submitted such information or from the 

4 person on whose vessel the information was col5 lected, to release such information for reasons 

6 not otherwise provided for in this subsection.’’; 

7 (C) by redesignating and moving para8 graph (3) to be paragraph (6); and 

9 (D) by striking paragraphs (4) and (5) 

10 and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(3) Any information submitted to the Sec12 retary, a State fisheries management agency, or a 

13 Marine Fisheries Commission by any person in com14 pliance with the requirements of this Act, including 

15 confidential information, may only be used for pur16 poses of fisheries management and monitoring and 

17 enforcement under this Act. 

18 ‘‘(4) The Secretary may enter into a memo19 randum of understanding with the heads of other 

20 Federal agencies for the sharing of confidential in21 formation to ensure safety of life at sea or for fish22 eries enforcement purposes, including information 

23 obtained through a vessel monitoring system or 

24 other electronic enforcement and monitoring sys25 tems, if— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the Secretary determines there is a 

2 compelling need to do so; and 

3 ‘‘(B) the heads of the other Federal agen4 cies agree— 

5 ‘‘(i) to maintain the confidentiality of 

6 the information in accordance with the re7 quirements that apply to the Secretary 

8 under this section; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) to use the information only for 

10 the purposes for which it was shared with 

11 the agencies. 

12 ‘‘(5) The Secretary may not provide any vessel13 specific or aggregate vessel information from a fish14 ery that is collected for monitoring and enforcement 

15 purposes to any person for the purposes of coastal 

16 and marine spatial planning under Executive Order 

17 13547, unless the Secretary has obtained written au18 thorization to release such information from the per19 son on whose vessel the information was collected.’’. 

20 (2) CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION DEFINED.— 

21 Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1802) is further amended by 

22 inserting after paragraph (4) the following: 

23 ‘‘(4a) The term ‘confidential information’ 

24 means— 

25 ‘‘(A) trade secrets; 


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1 ‘‘(B) proprietary information; 

2 ‘‘(C) observer information; and 

3 ‘‘(D) commercial or financial information 

4 the disclosure of which is likely to result in 

5 harm to the competitive position of the person 

6 that submitted the information to the Sec7 retary.’’. 

8 (d) INCREASED DATA COLLECTION AND ACTIONS TO

9 ADDRESS DATA-POOR FISHERIES.—Section 404 (16 

10 U.S.C. 1881c) is amended by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(e) USE OF THE ASSET FORFEITURE FUND FOR

13 FISHERY INDEPENDENT DATA COLLECTION.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

15 ‘‘(A) The Secretary, subject to appropria16 tions, may obligate for data collection purposes 

17 in accordance with prioritizations under para18 graph (3) a portion of amounts received by the 

19 United States as fisheries enforcement pen20 alties. 

21 ‘‘(B) Amounts may be obligated under this 

22 paragraph only in the fishery management re23 gion with respect to which they are collected. 

24 ‘‘(2) INCLUDED PURPOSES.—The purposes re25 ferred to in paragraph (1) include— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the use of State personnel and re2 sources, including fishery survey vessels owned 

3 and maintained by States to survey or assess 

4 data-poor fisheries for which fishery manage5 ment plans are in effect under this Act; and 

6 ‘‘(B) cooperative research activities author7 ized under section 318 to improve or enhance 

8 the fishery independent data used in fishery 

9 stock assessments. 

10 ‘‘(3) DATA-POOR FISHERIES PRIORITY LISTS.— 

11 Each Council shall— 

12 ‘‘(A) identify those fisheries in its region 

13 considered to be data-poor fisheries; 

14 ‘‘(B) prioritize those fisheries based on the 

15 need of each fishery for up-to-date information; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(C) provide those priorities to the Sec18 retary. 

19 ‘‘(4) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

20 ‘‘(A) The term ‘data-poor fishery’ means a 

21 fishery— 

22 ‘‘(i) that has not been surveyed in the 

23 preceding 5-year period; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) for which a fishery stock assess2 ment has not been performed within the 

3 preceding 5-year period; or 

4 ‘‘(iii) for which limited information on 

5 the status of the fishery is available for 

6 management purposes. 

7 ‘‘(B) The term ‘fisheries enforcement pen8 alties’ means any fine or penalty imposed, or 

9 proceeds of any property seized, for a violation 

10 of this Act or of any other marine resource law 

11 enforced by the Secretary. 

12 ‘‘(5) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

13 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec14 retary for each fiscal year to carry out this sub15 section up to 80 percent of the fisheries enforcement 

16 penalties collected during the preceding fiscal year.’’. 

17 SEC. 110. COOPERATIVE RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT 

18 PROGRAM. 

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

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

21 the first sentence, and by adding at the end the fol22 lowing: 

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

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1 sultation with the Councils, the Secretary shall publish a 

2 plan for implementing and conducting the program estab3 lished in paragraph (1). Such plan shall identify and de4 scribe critical regional fishery management and research 

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

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

7 and updated every 5 years, and updated plans shall in8 clude a brief description of projects that were funded in 

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

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

11 (2) in subsection (c)— 

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

13 and inserting ‘‘PRIORITIES’’; and 

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

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

16 on the next line by the following: 

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

18 or other marine technology; 

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

20 reporting programs and technology; and 

21 ‘‘(C) improving monitoring and observer 

22 coverage through the expanded use of electronic 

23 monitoring devices.’’. 


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1 SEC. 111. COUNCIL JURISDICTION FOR OVERLAPPING 

2 FISHERIES. 

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

4 (1) in subparagraph (A), in the second sen5 tence— 

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

7 and 

8 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

9 end ‘‘and a liaison who is a member of the Mid10 Atlantic Fishery Management Council to rep11 resent the interests of fisheries under the juris12 diction of such Council’’; and 

13 (2) in subparagraph (B), in the second sen14 tence— 

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

16 and 

17 (B) by inserting before the period at the 

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

19 England Fishery Management Council to rep20 resent the interests of fisheries under the juris21 diction of such Council’’. 

22 SEC. 112. GULF OF MEXICO FISHERIES COOPERATIVE RE23 SEARCH AND RED SNAPPER MANAGEMENT. 

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

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

26 the first section, are repealed. 


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1 (b) REPORTING AND DATA COLLECTION PRO2 GRAM.—The Secretary of Commerce shall— 

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

4 Mexico Fishery Management Council, and the rec5 reational fishing sectors, develop and implement a 

6 real-time reporting and data collection program for 

7 the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery using avail8 able technology; and 

9 (2) make implementation of this subsection a 

10 priority for funds received by the Secretary and allo11 cated to this region under section 2 of the Act of 

12 August 11, 1939 (commonly known as the 

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

14 (c) FISHERIES COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PRO15 GRAM.—The Secretary of Commerce— 

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

17 Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission and the 

18 Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, the 

19 Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic Fishery Manage20 ment Councils, and the commercial, charter, and 

21 recreational fishing sectors, develop and implement a 

22 cooperative research program authorized under sec23 tion 318 for the fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico and 

24 South Atlantic regions, giving priority to those fish25 eries that are considered data-poor; and 


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1 (2) may, subject to the availability of appropria2 tions, use funds received by the Secretary under sec3 tion 2 of the Act of August 11, 1939 (commonly 

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

5 713c–3) to implement this subsection. 

6 (d) STOCK SURVEYS AND STOCK ASSESSMENTS.— 

7 The Secretary of Commerce, acting through the National 

8 Marine Fisheries Service Regional Administrator of the 

9 Southeast Regional Office, shall for purposes of the Mag10 nuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

11 (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.)— 

12 (1) develop a schedule of stock surveys and 

13 stock assessments for the Gulf of Mexico Region and 

14 the South Atlantic Region for the 5-year period be15 ginning on the date of the enactment of this Act and 

16 for every 5-year period thereafter; 

17 (2) direct the Southeast Science Center Direc18 tor to implement such schedule; and 

19 (3) in such development and implementation— 

20 (A) give priority to those stocks that are 

21 commercially or recreationally important; and 

22 (B) ensure that each such important stock 

23 is surveyed at least every 5 years. 

24 (e) USE OF FISHERIES INFORMATION IN STOCK AS25 SESSMENTS.—The Southeast Science Center Director 


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1 shall ensure that fisheries information made available 

2 through fisheries programs funded under Public Law 

3 112–141 is incorporated as soon as possible into any fish4 eries stock assessments conducted after the date of the 

5 enactment of this Act. 

6 (f) STATE FISHERIES MANAGEMENT IN THE GULF

7 OF MEXICO WITH RESPECT TO RED SNAPPER.—Section 

8 306(b) (16 U.S.C. 1856(b)) is amended by adding at the 

9 end the following: 

10 ‘‘(3) Notwithstanding section 3(11), for the purposes 

11 of managing the recreational sector of the Gulf of Mexico 

12 red snapper fishery, the seaward boundary of a coastal 

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

14 the baseline from which the territorial sea of the United 

15 States is measured.’’. 

16 SEC. 113. NORTH PACIFIC FISHERY MANAGEMENT CLARI17 FICATION. 

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

19 amended— 

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

21 and 

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


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1 SEC. 114. ENSURING CONSISTENT MANAGEMENT FOR FISH2 ERIES THROUGHOUT THEIR RANGE. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

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

5 seq.) is amended by inserting after section 4 the following: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 5. ENSURING CONSISTENT FISHERIES MANAGEMENT 

7 UNDER CERTAIN OTHER FEDERAL LAWS. 

8 ‘‘(a) NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES ACT AND AN9 TIQUITIES ACT OF 1906.—In any case of a conflict be10 tween this Act and the National Marine Sanctuaries Act 

11 (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.) or the Antiquities Act of 1906 

12 (16 U.S.C. 431 et seq.), this Act shall control. 

13 ‘‘(b) FISHERIES RESTRICTIONS UNDER ENDAN14 GERED SPECIES ACT OF 1973.—To ensure transparency 

15 and consistent management of fisheries throughout their 

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

17 exclusive economic zone that is necessary to implement a 

18 recovery plan under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

19 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) shall be implemented— 

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

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

22 schedules required under this Act.’’. 

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

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

25 relating to section 4 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 5. Ensuring consistent fisheries management under other Federal laws.’’. 


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1 SEC. 115. LIMITATION ON HARVEST IN NORTH PACIFIC DI2 RECTED POLLOCK FISHERY. 

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

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

5 note) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(1) HARVESTING.— 

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

9 through a fishery cooperative or otherwise, a 

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

13 this paragraph by the North Pacific Council. 

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

17 available to be harvested in the directed Pollock 

18 fishery.’’. 

19 SEC. 116. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

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

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

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

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

24 ‘‘each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018’’. 


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1 TITLE II—REVITALIZING THE 

2 ECONOMY OF FISHERIES IN 

3 THE PACIFIC 

4 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Revitalizing the Econ6 omy of Fisheries in the Pacific Act’’ or the ‘‘REFI Pacific 

7 Act’’. 

8 SEC. 202. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 

9 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find10 ings: 

11 (1) In 2000, the Secretary of Commerce de12 clared the West Coast groundfish fishery a Federal 

13 fisheries economic disaster due to low stock abun14 dance, an overcapitalized fleet, and historically over15 fished stocks. 

16 (2) Section 212 of the Department of Com17 merce and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 

18 2003 (title II of division B of Public Law 108–7; 

19 117 Stat. 80) was enacted to establish a Pacific 

20 Coast groundfish fishing capacity reduction pro21 gram, also known as a buyback program, to remove 

22 excess fishing capacity. 

23 (3) In 2003, Congress authorized the 

24 $35,700,000 buyback loan, creating the Pacific 

25 Coast groundfish fishing capacity reduction program 


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1 through the National Marine Fisheries Service fish2 eries finance program with a term of 30 years. The 

3 interest rate of the buyback loan was fixed at 6.97 

4 percent and is paid back based on an ex-vessel fee 

5 landing rate not to exceed 5 percent for the loan. 

6 (4) The groundfish fishing capacity reduction 

7 program resulted in the removal of limited entry 

8 trawl Federal fishing permits from the fishery, rep9 resenting approximately 46 percent of total landings 

10 at the time. 

11 (5) Because of an absence of a repayment 

12 mechanism, $4,243,730 in interest accrued before 

13 fee collection procedures were established in 2005, 

14 over 18 months after the groundfish fishing capacity 

15 reduction program was initiated. 

16 (6) In 2011, the West Coast groundfish fishery 

17 transitioned to an individual fishing quota fishery, 

18 which is a type of catch share program. 

19 (7) By 2015, West Coast groundfish fisher20 men’s expenses are expected to include fees of ap21 proximately $450 per day for observers, a 3-percent 

22 cost recovery fee as authorized by the Magnuson23 Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 

24 (16 U.S.C. 1801) for catch share programs, and a 

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1 ment, which could reach 18 percent of their total 

2 gross revenue. 

3 (8) In 2012, the West Coast groundfish limited 

4 entry trawl fishery generated $63,000,000, an in5 crease from an average of $45,000,000 during the 

6 years 2006 to 2011. This revenue is expected to con7 tinue to increase post-rationalization. 

8 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this title is to refi9 nance the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery fishing capacity 

10 reduction program to protect and conserve the West Coast 

11 groundfish fishery and the coastal economies in California, 

12 Oregon, and Washington that rely on it. 

13 SEC. 203. REFINANCING OF PACIFIC COAST GROUNDFISH 

14 FISHING CAPACITY REDUCTION LOAN. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce, upon 

16 receipt of such assurances as the Secretary considers ap17 propriate to protect the interests of the United States, 

18 shall issue a loan to refinance the existing debt obligation 

19 funding the fishing capacity reduction program for the 

20 West Coast groundfish fishery implemented under section 

21 212 of the Department of Commerce and Related Agen22 cies Appropriations Act, 2003 (title II of division B of 

23 Public Law 108–7; 117 Stat. 80). 

24 (b) APPLICABLE LAW.—Except as otherwise provided 

25 in this section, the Secretary shall issue the loan under 


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1 this section in accordance with subsections (b) through (e) 

2 of section 312 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva3 tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1861a) and sections 

4 53702 and 53735 of title 46, United States Code. 

5 (c) LOAN TERM.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

7 53735(c)(4) of title 46, United States Code, a loan 

8 under this section shall have a maturity that expires 

9 at the end of the 45-year period beginning on the 

10 date of issuance of the loan. 

11 (2) EXTENSION.—Notwithstanding paragraph 

12 (1) and if there is an outstanding balance on the 

13 loan after the period described in paragraph (1), a 

14 loan under this section shall have a maturity of 45 

15 years or until the loan is repaid in full. 

16 (d) LIMITATION ON FEE AMOUNT.—Notwithstanding 

17 section 312(d)(2)(B) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

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

19 1861a(d)(2)(B)), the fee established by the Secretary with 

20 respect to a loan under this section shall not exceed 3 per21 cent of the ex-vessel value of the harvest from each fishery 

22 for where the loan is issued. 

23 (e) INTEREST RATE.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

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1 nual rate of interest an obligor shall pay on a direct 

2 loan obligation under this section is the percent the 

3 Secretary must pay as interest to borrow from the 

4 Treasury the funds to make the loan. 

5 (2) SUBLOANS.—Each subloan under the loan 

6 authorized by this section— 

7 (A) shall receive the interest rate described 

8 in paragraph (1); and 

9 (B) may be paid off at any time notwith10 standing subsection (c)(1). 

11 (f) EX-VESSEL LANDING FEE.— 

12 (1) CALCULATIONS AND ACCURACY.—The Sec13 retary shall set the ex-vessel landing fee to be col14 lected for payment of the loan under this section— 

15 (A) as low as possible, based on recent 

16 landings value in the fishery, to meet the re17 quirements of loan repayment; 

18 (B) upon issuance of the loan in accord19 ance with paragraph (2); and 

20 (C) on a regular interval not to exceed 

21 every 5 years beginning on the date of issuance 

22 of the loan. 

23 (2) DEADLINE FOR INITIAL EX-VESSEL LAND24 INGS FEE CALCULATION.—Not later than 60 days 

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1 tion, the Secretary shall recalculate the ex-vessel 

2 landing fee based on the most recent value of the 

3 fishery. 

4 (g) AUTHORIZATION.—There is authorized to be ap5 propriated to the Secretary of Commerce to carry out this 

6 section an amount equal to 1 percent of the amount of 

7 the loan authorized under this section for purposes of the 

8 Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661 et seq.). 

Æ 


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