II 

Calendar No. 291 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 267 

[Report No. 113–132] 

To prevent, deter, and eliminate illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing 

through port State measures. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 11, 2013 

Mr. ROCKEFELLER (for himself, Mr. BEGICH, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. SCHATZ, 

MS. CANTWELL, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. WYDEN, MS. HIRONO, Mr. 

MERKLEY, Mr. NELSON, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, and Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

JANUARY 8, 2014 

Reported by Mr. ROCKEFELLER, without amendment 

A BILL 

To prevent, deter, and eliminate illegal, unreported, and 

unregulated fishing through port State measures. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Pirate Fishing Elimination Act’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Purpose. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. Application. 

Sec. 5. Duties of the Secretary. 

Sec. 6. Advance notice of vessel arrival, authorization, or denial of port entry. 

Sec. 7. Denial of port services. 

Sec. 8. Inspections. 

Sec. 9. Prohibited acts. 

Sec. 10. Enforcement. 

Sec. 11. International cooperation and assistance. 

Sec. 12. Relationship to other laws. 

Sec. 13. Authorization of appropriations. 

3 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

4 The purpose of this Act is to implement the Agree5 ment on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and 

6 Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, 

7 done at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the 

8 United Nations in Rome, Italy on November 22, 2009. 

9 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this Act: 

11 (1) AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘Agreement’’ 

12 means the Agreement on Port State Measures to 

13 Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported 

14 and Unregulated Fishing, done at the Food and Ag15 riculture Organization of the United Nations in 

16 Rome, Italy on November 22, 2009. 

17 (2) AUTHORIZED OFFICER.—The term ‘‘author18 ized officer’’ means— 


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1 (A) any commissioned, warrant, or petty 

2 officer of the United States Coast Guard; 

3 (B) any special agent or fishery enforce4 ment officer of National Marine Fisheries Serv5 ice; or 

6 (C) any officer designated by the head of 

7 any Federal or State agency that has entered 

8 into an agreement with the Secretary to enforce 

9 the provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

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

11 1801 et seq.), or any other statute administered 

12 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad13 ministration. 

14 (3) CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT MEAS15 URES.—The term ‘‘conservation and management 

16 measures’’ means binding measures to conserve and 

17 manage living marine resources adopted by an 

18 RFMO. 

19 (4) CONTAINER VESSEL.—The term ‘‘container 

20 vessel’’ means a self-propelled ocean-going vessel 

21 constructed or adapted primarily to carry ocean 

22 freight containers. 

23 (5) FAO.—The term ‘‘FAO’’ means the Food 

24 and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 


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1 (6) FISH.—The term ‘‘fish’’ includes all species 

2 of living marine resources, whether processed or not. 

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

4 searching for, attracting, locating, catching, taking, 

5 or harvesting fish or any activity which can reason6 ably be expected to result in the attracting, locating, 

7 catching, taking, or harvesting of fish. 

8 (8) FISHING-RELATED ACTIVITY.—The term 

9 ‘‘fishing-related activity’’ means any operation in 

10 support of, or in preparation for, fishing, includ11 ing— 

12 (A) the landing, packaging, processing, 

13 transshipping, or transporting of fish that have 

14 not been previously landed at a port or place; 

15 and 

16 (B) the provision of personnel, fuel, gear, 

17 and other supplies at sea. 

18 (9) FOREIGN VESSEL.—The term ‘‘foreign ves19 sel’’ means any vessel except for a vessel of the 

20 United States. 

21 (10) ILLEGAL, UNREPORTED, AND UNREGU22 LATED FISHING OR IUU FISHING.—The term ‘‘ille23 gal, unreported, and unregulated fishing’’ or ‘‘IUU 

24 fishing’’ means any activity— 


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1 (A) conducted by a national or foreign ves2 sel in waters under the jurisdiction of a nation 

3 without the permission of that nation, or in 

4 contravention of its laws and regulations, in5 cluding an activity that has not been reported 

6 or has been misreported to the relevant national 

7 authority of that nation in contravention of its 

8 laws and regulations; 

9 (B) conducted by a vessel flying the flag of 

10 a nation that is a member of an RFMO in con11 travention of the conservation and management 

12 measures adopted by the RFMO and by which 

13 that nation is bound, including an activity that 

14 has not been reported or has been misreported 

15 in contravention of the reporting requirements 

16 of that RFMO; 

17 (C) conducted by a vessel flying the flag of 

18 a nation that is a cooperating non-member of 

19 an RFMO that is inconsistent with the commit20 ments undertaken by that nation as a cooper21 ating non-member of that RFMO, including an 

22 activity that has not been reported or has been 

23 misreported in a manner that is inconsistent 

24 with those commitments; or 


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1 (D) conducted in the area of application of 

2 an RFMO by a vessel without nationality, or by 

3 a vessel flying the flag of a nation that is not 

4 a member nor a cooperating non-member of 

5 that RFMO and that undermines the effective6 ness of the conservation and management meas7 ures of that RFMO. 

8 (11) LANDING.—The term ‘‘landing’’ means to 

9 begin to offload fish or to offload fish from any ves10 sel in port or at a dock, berth, beach seawall or 

11 ramp, but does not include transshipment. 

12 (12) LISTED IUU VESSEL.—The term ‘‘listed 

13 IUU vessel’’ means a vessel that is included in a list, 

14 adopted by a regional fisheries management organi15 zation, of vessels having engaged in IUU fishing or 

16 fishing-related activities in support of IUU fishing. 

17 (13) PARTY.—The term ‘‘Party’’ means a gov18 ernment or regional economic integration organiza19 tion for which the Agreement is in force. 

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

21 individual (whether or not a citizen or national of 

22 the United States), corporation, partnership, asso23 ciation, or other entity (whether or not organized or 

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1 eral, State, local, or foreign government or any enti2 ty of any such government. 

3 (15) PORT.—The term ‘‘port’’ includes a 

4 roadstead, an offshore terminal, and any other in5 stallation or place for landing, transshipping, pack6 aging, processing, refueling, or resupplying. 

7 (16) PREVIOUSLY LANDED.—The term ‘‘pre8 viously landed’’ means landed in a port or at a dock, 

9 berth, beach seawall, or ramp and subsequently load10 ed onto a container or other carrier vessel. 

11 (17) PROCESSING.—The term ‘‘processing’’ 

12 means the preparation or packaging of fish to render 

13 the fish suitable for human consumption, retail sale, 

14 industrial uses, export, or long-term storage, includ15 ing cooking, canning, smoking, salting, drying, 

16 filleting, packaging, freezing, or rendering into meal 

17 or oil. 

18 (18) REGIONAL FISHERIES MANAGEMENT OR19 GANIZATION OR RFMO.—The term ‘‘regional fish20 eries management organization’’ or ‘‘RFMO’’ means 

21 an intergovernmental fisheries organization or ar22 rangement, as appropriate, that has the competence 

23 to establish conservation and management measures. 


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1 (19) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

2 means the Secretary of Commerce or the Secretary 

3 of Commerce’s designee. 

4 (20) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

5 the several States, the District of Columbia, the 

6 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, 

7 the Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Is8 lands, and any other Commonwealth, territory, or 

9 possession of the United States. 

10 (21) TRANSSHIPMENT.—The term ‘‘trans11 shipment’’ means to offload and onload or otherwise 

12 transfer fish or a fish product from one vessel to an13 other vessel. 

14 (22) VESSEL.—The term ‘‘vessel’’ means any 

15 vessel, ship, or boat used, equipped, or intended for 

16 fishing or a fishing-related activity. 

17 (23) VESSEL OF THE UNITED STATES.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘vessel of the 

19 United States’’ means— 

20 (i) a vessel documented under chapter 

21 121 of title 46, United States Code, or 

22 numbered in accordance with chapter 123 

23 of title 46, United States Code; or 

24 (ii) a vessel owned in whole or in part 

25 by— 


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1 (I) the United States; 

2 (II) a State or political subdivi3 sion of a State; 

4 (III) a citizen or national of the 

5 United States; or 

6 (IV) a corporation created under 

7 the laws of the United States or any 

8 State. 

9 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘vessel of 

10 the United States’’ does not include a vessel 

11 that has been granted the nationality of a for12 eign nation consistent with international law 

13 and a claim of nationality or registry for the 

14 vessel has been made by the master or indi15 vidual in charge at the time of the enforcement 

16 action by an officer or employee of the United 

17 States authorized to enforce applicable provi18 sions of the United States law. 

19 SEC. 4. APPLICATION. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—This Act shall apply to— 

21 (1) each foreign vessel seeking entry to or in a 

22 port subject to the jurisdiction of the United States; 

23 (2) each vessel of the United States seeking 

24 entry to or in a port subject to the jurisdiction of 

25 another Party to the Agreement; and 


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1 (3) each person subject to the jurisdiction of 

2 the United States. 

3 (b) EXCLUSIONS.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), 

4 this Act shall not apply to— 

5 (1) a container vessel that is not carrying fish; 

6 or 

7 (2) a container vessel that— 

8 (A) is carrying only fish that have been 

9 previously landed; and 

10 (B) the Secretary has no clear grounds to 

11 suspect has been engaged in IUU fishing or 

12 fishing-related activities in support of IUU fish13 ing. 

14 SEC. 5. DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY. 

15 (a) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may promulgate 

16 such regulations, in accordance with section 553 of title 

17 5, United States Code, as may be necessary to carry out 

18 the purposes of this Act. 

19 (b) PROCEDURES.—The Secretary, in consultation 

20 with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the de21 partment in which the Coast Guard is operating, shall de22 velop procedures for making determinations and notifica23 tions as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of 

24 this Act. 

25 (c) FOREIGN VESSEL ENTRY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary (in consulta2 tion with the Secretary of Homeland Security or if 

3 the Coast Guard is not operating in the Department 

4 of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Sec5 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard 

6 is operating) may designate and publicize each port 

7 to which a vessel described in section 4 may seek 

8 entry. The Secretary shall not designate a port 

9 under this subsection unless the port is designated 

10 as a port of entry for customs reporting purposes 

11 under section 433 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 

12 U.S.C. 1433). 

13 (2) LIST OF DESIGNATED PORTS.—The Sec14 retary shall provide a list of each port designated 

15 under paragraph (1) to FAO. 

16 (d) ELECTRONIC EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION.—In 

17 order to implement the requirements of the Agreement re18 garding electronic exchange of information, the Secretary 

19 is authorized to designate a point of contact and notify 

20 FAO of that designation. The Secretary may cooperate, 

21 including by providing financial assistance, in efforts to 

22 establish an information-sharing mechanism and to facili23 tate the exchange of information with existing databases 

24 relevant to the Agreement. 


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1 (e) INFORMATION ON AVAILABLE RECOURSE.—The 

2 Secretary shall maintain information regarding any legal 

3 remedy available to a person who is affected by an action 

4 under this Act. The Secretary shall make the information 

5 publicly accessible and, upon written request, shall provide 

6 the information to the owner, operator, master, or rep7 resentative of a vessel. 

8 SEC. 6. ADVANCE NOTICE OF VESSEL ARRIVAL, AUTHOR9 IZATION, OR DENIAL OF PORT ENTRY. 

10 (a) ADVANCE NOTICE OF VESSEL ARRIVAL.—Each 

11 vessel described in section 4(a) shall submit to the Sec12 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard is op13 erating information required under the Agreement in ad14 vance of the vessel’s arrival in a port. The Secretary shall, 

15 in consultation with the Secretary of the Department in 

16 which the Coast Guard is operating and the Secretary of 

17 State, promulgate regulations to establish a procedure 

18 that requires each foreign vessel seeking entry into a U.S. 

19 port to submit, at a minimum, the information required 

20 under the Agreement in advance of the vessel’s arrival in 

21 a port. The procedure shall utilize, to the maximum extent 

22 possible, existing reporting mechanisms maintained and 

23 operated by the department in which the Coast Guard is 

24 operating. 

25 (b) AUTHORIZATION OR DENIAL OF PORT ENTRY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—In conformance with the 

2 procedures under section 5(b) the Secretary shall— 

3 (A) decide whether to authorize or deny 

4 port entry; and 

5 (B) communicate the decision to the vessel 

6 or its representative in accordance with the pro7 cedure under subsection (a). 

8 (2) DENIAL OF ENTRY.—The Secretary may 

9 deny entry to— 

10 (A) any listed IUU vessel; 

11 (B) any vessel that the Secretary has rea12 sonable grounds to believe has engaged in IUU 

13 fishing or fishing-related activities in support of 

14 IUU fishing; or 

15 (C) any vessel that the Secretary has rea16 sonable grounds to believe has violated this Act. 

17 (3) PERMISSIBLE ENTRY.—Notwithstanding 

18 paragraph (2), the Secretary may allow a vessel 

19 entry into port— 

20 (A) for the purpose of rendering assistance 

21 to a vessel or person in danger or distress; 

22 (B) for the scrapping of the vessel, as ap23 propriate; or 

24 (C) for inspection or other enforcement ac25 tion. 


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1 (c) NOTICE.—If entry is denied under subsection (b), 

2 the Secretary shall provide notice of the decision to the 

3 flag nation of the vessel and, as appropriate, to each rel4 evant coastal nation, RFMO, and other international orga5 nization. 

6 SEC. 7. DENIAL OF PORT SERVICES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—A vessel that has been granted 

8 authorization to enter port under section 6 or that is oth9 erwise in a port subject to the jurisdiction of the United 

10 States shall be denied, by the Secretary, the use of the 

11 port for landing, transshipment, packaging and processing 

12 of fish, refueling, resupplying, maintenance, and 

13 drydocking, if— 

14 (1) the vessel entered port without authoriza15 tion under section 6; 

16 (2) the vessel is a listed IUU vessel; 

17 (3) the Secretary has reasonable grounds to be18 lieve that the vessel lacks valid authorizations to en19 gage in fishing or fishing-related activities as re20 quired by its flag nation or the relevant coastal na21 tion; 

22 (4) the Secretary has reasonable grounds to be23 lieve that the fish on board the vessel were taken in 

24 violation of foreign law or in contravention of any 

25 conservation and management measures; 


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1 (5) the Secretary requested confirmation from 

2 the flag nation that the fish on board were taken in 

3 accordance with applicable conservation and man4 agement measures, and the flag nation failed to pro5 vide confirmation in accordance with regulations 

6 promulgated under this Act; or 

7 (6) the Secretary has reasonable grounds to be8 lieve that the vessel has engaged in IUU fishing or 

9 fishing-related activities in support of IUU fishing, 

10 including in support of a listed IUU vessel, unless 

11 the vessel can establish that— 

12 (A) the vessel was acting in a manner con13 sistent with applicable conservation and man14 agement measures; or 

15 (B) in the case of the provision of per16 sonnel, fuel, gear, and other supplies at sea, the 

17 vessel provisioned was not, at the time of provi18 sioning, a listed IUU vessel. 

19 (b) PERMISSIBLE USE OF PORT SERVICES.—Not20 withstanding subsection (a), the Secretary may allow the 

21 use of port services—– 

22 (1) if the vessel has established that the serv23 ices are essential to the safety or health of the crew 

24 or safety of the vessel; 


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1 (2) for the scrapping of the vessel, as appro2 priate; or 

3 (3) for inspection or other enforcement action. 

4 (c) NOTICE.—If use of port services is denied under 

5 subsection (a), the Secretary, acting through the Secretary 

6 of State, shall provide notice of the decision to the flag 

7 nation of the vessel and, as appropriate, to each relevant 

8 coastal nation, RFMO, and other international organiza9 tion. 

10 (d) WITHDRAWAL OF DENIAL.—The Secretary shall 

11 withdraw denial of the use of port services if the Secretary 

12 determines that the grounds on which the use was denied 

13 were inadequate, erroneous, or no longer applicable. The 

14 Secretary shall provide notification of the withdrawal 

15 promptly to each person that was notified under sub16 section (c). 

17 SEC. 8. INSPECTIONS. 

18 (a) INSPECTIONS.—The Secretary and the Secretary 

19 of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating 

20 shall conduct vessel inspections, as necessary, for the pur21 poses of the Agreement and this Act. In conducting a ves22 sel inspection, the Secretary may utilize by agreement, on 

23 a reimbursable or nonreimbursable basis, the personnel 

24 services, equipment (including aircraft and vessels), and 

25 facilities of any other Federal agency (including all eleVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:05 Jan 08, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S267.RS S267

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1 ments of the Department of Defense), and of any State 

2 agency. The Secretary shall prioritize vessel inspections 

3 based on— 

4 (1) whether a vessel has been denied entry or 

5 use of a port in accordance with the Agreement; 

6 (2) a request from another relevant Party, 

7 State, or RFMO that a certain vessel be inspected, 

8 particularly if the request is supported by evidence 

9 of IUU fishing or fishing-related activities in sup10 port of IUU fishing by the vessel in question; and 

11 (3) whether there are clear grounds to suspect 

12 that a vessel has engaged in IUU fishing or fishing13 related activities in support of IUU fishing. 

14 (b) TRANSMITTAL OF INSPECTION RESULTS.—The 

15 Secretary shall transmit the results of an inspection under 

16 this Act to the flag nation of the inspected vessel and, 

17 as appropriate, to— 

18 (1) each relevant Party and nation, including a 

19 relevant coastal nation and the nation of which the 

20 vessel’s master is a national; 

21 (2) each relevant RFMO; 

22 (3) the FAO; and 

23 (4) any other relevant international organiza24 tion. 


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1 (c) ACTIONS FOLLOWING INSPECTION.—If, following 

2 an inspection, the Secretary has reasonable grounds to be3 lieve that a foreign vessel has engaged in IUU fishing or 

4 fishing-related activities in support of IUU fishing— 

5 (1) the Secretary may take enforcement action 

6 under this Act or other applicable law; and 

7 (2) the Secretary shall— 

8 (A) acting through the Secretary of State, 

9 promptly notify the flag nation of the vessel 

10 and, as appropriate, each relevant coastal na11 tion, RFMO, and other international organiza12 tion, and the nation of which the vessel’s mas13 ter is a national; and 

14 (B) deny the vessel the use of port serv15 ices, in accordance with section 7. 

16 SEC. 9. PROHIBITED ACTS. 

17 It is unlawful for any person— 

18 (1) to violate any provision of this Act or any 

19 regulation promulgated thereunder; 

20 (2) to refuse to permit an authorized officer to 

21 board, search, or inspect any vessel, conveyance, or 

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1 forcement of this Act or any regulation promulgated 

2 thereunder; 

3 (3) to forcibly assault, resist, oppose, impede, 

4 intimidate, or interfere with any authorized officer 

5 in the conduct of any search, investigation, or in6 spection described in paragraph (2); 

7 (4) to resist a lawful arrest for any act prohib8 ited by this Act; 

9 (5) to interfere with, delay, or prevent, by any 

10 means, the apprehension, arrest, or detection of an11 other person, knowing that such person has com12 mitted any act prohibited by this section; 

13 (6) to submit any false information pursuant to 

14 any requirement under this Act or any regulation 

15 promulgated under this Act; 

16 (7) to forcibly assault, resist, oppose, impede, 

17 intimidate, sexually harass, bribe, or interfere with 

18 any observer or any data collector employed or 

19 under contract to carry out responsibilities under 

20 this Act or any Act administered by the Secretary; 

21 (8) to import, export, transport, sell, receive, 

22 acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign com23 merce any fish or fish product taken, possessed, 

24 transported, or sold in violation of any foreign law 

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1 ment of living marine resources, or any conservation 

2 and management measures (as defined in section 3); 

3 or 

4 (9) to make or submit any incomplete, invalid, 

5 or false record, account, or label for, or any false 

6 identification of, any fish or fish product (including 

7 false identification of the species, harvesting vessel 

8 or nation, or the date or location where harvested) 

9 that has been, or is intended to be imported, ex10 ported, transported, sold, offered for sale, purchased, 

11 or received in interstate or foreign commerce except 

12 where such making or submission is prohibited by 

13 section 307(1)(I) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

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

15 1857(1)(I)). 

16 SEC. 10. ENFORCEMENT. 

17 (a) RESPONSIBILITY.—The Secretary and the Sec18 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard is op19 erating shall enforce the provisions of this Act. In enforc20 ing this Act, the Secretary and the Secretary of the de21 partment in which the Coast Guard is operating may uti22 lize, by agreement and on a reimbursable or nonreimburs23 able basis the personnel, services, equipment (including 

24 aircraft and vessels), and facilities of any other Federal 

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1 fense), or of any State agency. The Secretary and the Sec2 retary of the department in which the Coast Guard is op3 erating shall authorize officers to enforce the provisions 

4 of this Act (including any regulation promulgated under 

5 this Act). The head of any Federal or State agency that 

6 has entered into an agreement with either the Secretary 

7 or the Secretary of the department in which the Coast 

8 Guard is operating under this section may (if the agree9 ment so provides) authorize officers to enforce the provi10 sions of this Act (including any regulation promulgated 

11 under this Act). 

12 (b) POWERS OF AUTHORIZED OFFICERS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—An authorized officer under 

14 subsection (a) may, with or without a warrant or 

15 other process— 

16 (A) arrest a person if the officer has prob17 able cause that the person has committed an 

18 act prohibited under section 9; 

19 (B) board and search or inspect any vessel 

20 that is subject to this Act; 

21 (C) seize any vessel (together with its fish22 ing gear, furniture, appurtenances, stores, and 

23 cargo) used or employed in, or with respect to 

24 which it reasonably appears that such vessel 

25 was used or employed in, the violation of any 


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1 provision of this Act (including any regulation 

2 promulgated under this Act); 

3 (D) seize any fish (wherever found) im4 ported, exported, transported, sold, received, ac5 quired, or purchased in any manner, in connec6 tion with or as a result of the violation of any 

7 provision of this Act; 

8 (E) seize any other evidence related to any 

9 violation of any provision of this Act (including 

10 any regulation promulgated under this Act); 

11 (F) search or inspect any facility or con12 veyance used or employed in, or which reason13 ably appears to be used or employed in, the 

14 storage, processing, transport, or trade of fish 

15 or fish products; 

16 (G) inspect records pertaining to the stor17 age, processing, transport, or trade of fish or 

18 fish products; 

19 (H) detain, for a period not to exceed 14 

20 days, any shipment of fish or fish products that 

21 is related to any violation of any provision of 

22 this Act (including any regulations promulgated 

23 under this Act) and that was imported into, 

24 landed on, introduced into, exported from, or 

25 transported within the jurisdiction of the 


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1 United States, or, if such fish or fish product 

2 is deemed to be perishable, sell and retain the 

3 proceeds for a period not to exceed 14 days; 

4 (I) search and seize, in accordance with 

5 any guidelines issued by the Attorney General; 

6 (J) execute and serve any subpoena, arrest 

7 warrant, search warrant issued in accordance 

8 with rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal 

9 Procedure, or other warrant or civil or criminal 

10 process issued by any officer or court of com11 petent jurisdiction; 

12 (K) access, directly or indirectly, for en13 forcement purposes any data or information re14 quired to be provided under this Act (including 

15 any regulations promulgated under this Act), 

16 including data from vessel monitoring systems, 

17 automatic identification systems, long-range 

18 identification and tracking systems, or any 

19 similar system; and 

20 (L) exercise any other lawful authority. 

21 (2) FELONIES.—An authorized officer under 

22 subsection (a) may carry, in accordance with any 

23 guidelines issued by the Attorney General, firearms 

24 and may make an arrest for any offense under the 

25 laws of the United States committed in the officer’s 


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1 presence or for the commission of any felony under 

2 the laws of the United States if the officer has prob3 able cause that the person to be arrested has com4 mitted or is committing a felony. 

5 (c) ISSUANCE OF CITATIONS.—If an authorized offi6 cer under subsection (a) finds that a person or vessel is 

7 engaging or has been engaged in a violation of any provi8 sion of this Act, the officer may issue a citation to the 

9 owner or operator of the vessel in lieu of proceeding under 

10 subsection (f), (g), or (i). The Secretary shall maintain 

11 a record of all citations issued under this subsection. 

12 (d) SUBPOENAS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of con14 ducting any investigation or hearing under this Act, 

15 or any other Act administered by the Secretary, the 

16 Secretary may— 

17 (A) issue subpoenas for the attendance and 

18 testimony of witnesses and the production of 

19 relevant papers, photographs, records, books, 

20 and documents in any form, including those in 

21 electronic, optical, or magnetic form; and 

22 (B) administer oaths. 

23 (2) WITNESS FEES.—Witnesses summoned 

24 shall be paid the same fees and mileage that are 

25 paid to witnesses in the courts of the United States. 


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1 (3) CONTEMPT.—In case of contempt or refusal 

2 to obey a subpoena served upon any person under 

3 this subsection, the district court of the United 

4 States for any district in which such person is 

5 found, resides, or transacts business, upon applica6 tion by the United States and after notice to such 

7 person, shall have jurisdiction to issue an order re8 quiring such person to appear and give testimony 

9 before the Secretary or to appear and produce docu10 ments before the Secretary, or both, and any failure 

11 to obey such order of the court may be punished by 

12 such court as a contempt thereof. 

13 (e) DISTRICT COURT JURISDICTION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The several district courts of 

15 the United States shall have jurisdiction over any 

16 actions arising under this section. For the purpose 

17 of this section, for Hawaii or any possession of the 

18 United States in the Pacific Ocean, the appropriate 

19 court is the United States District Court for the 

20 District of Hawaii, except— 

21 (A) in the case of Guam and Wake Island, 

22 the appropriate court is the United States Dis23 trict Court for the District of Guam; and 

24 (B) in the case of the Northern Mariana 

25 Islands, the appropriate court is the United 


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1 States District Court for the District of the 

2 Northern Mariana Islands. 

3 (2) EACH VIOLATION SEPARATE OFFENSE.— 

4 Each violation shall be a separate offense. The of5 fense shall be deemed to have been committed not 

6 only in the district where the violation first occurred, 

7 but also in any other district as authorized by law. 

8 (3) OFFENSES NOT COMMITTED IN ANY DIS9 TRICT.—Any offense not committed in any district is 

10 subject to the venue provisions of section 3238 of 

11 title 18, United States Code. 

12 (f) CIVIL ENFORCEMENT.— 

13 (1) CIVIL ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any person who is 

15 found by the Secretary (after notice and oppor16 tunity for a hearing in accordance with section 

17 554 of title 5, United States Code) to have 

18 committed an act prohibited under section 9 

19 shall be liable to the United States for a civil 

20 penalty. The amount of the civil penalty shall 

21 not exceed $250,000 for each violation. Each 

22 day of a continuing violation shall constitute a 

23 separate offense. The amount of such civil pen24 alty shall be assessed by the Secretary, by writ25 ten notice. In determining the amount of such 


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1 penalty, the Secretary shall take into account 

2 the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity 

3 of the prohibited act committed and, with re4 spect to the violator, the degree of culpability, 

5 any history of prior offenses, and other matters 

6 as justice may require. In assessing such pen7 alty the Secretary may also consider any infor8 mation provided by the violator relating to the 

9 ability of the violator to pay if the information 

10 is served on the Secretary not later than 30 

11 days prior to an administrative hearing. 

12 (B) COMPROMISE OR OTHER ACTION BY

13 SECRETARY.—The Secretary may compromise, 

14 modify, or remit, with or without conditions, 

15 any civil administrative penalty which is or may 

16 be imposed under this subsection and that has 

17 not been referred to the Attorney General for 

18 further enforcement action. 

19 (2) CIVIL JUDICIAL PENALTIES.—Any person 

20 who violates any provision of this Act (including any 

21 regulation promulgated or permit issued thereunder) 

22 shall be subject to a civil judicial penalty not to ex23 ceed $300,000 for each such violation. Each day of 

24 a continuing violation shall constitute a separate vio25 lation. The Attorney General, upon the request of 


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1 the Secretary, may commence a civil action in an ap2 propriate district court of the United States. The 

3 district court shall have jurisdiction to award civil 

4 penalties and such other relief as justice may re5 quire. In determining the amount of a civil penalty, 

6 the district court shall take into account the nature, 

7 circumstances, extent, and gravity of the prohibited 

8 act committed and, with respect to the violator, the 

9 degree of culpability, any history of prior violations, 

10 and such other matters as justice may require. In 

11 imposing such penalty, the district court may also 

12 consider information related to the ability of the vio13 lator to pay. 

14 (3) IN REM JURISDICTION.—A vessel (including 

15 its fishing gear, furniture, appurtenances, stores, 

16 and cargo) used in the commission of an act prohib17 ited by section 9 shall be liable in rem for any civil 

18 penalty assessed for such violation under this section 

19 and may be proceeded against in any district court 

20 of the United States having jurisdiction thereof. 

21 Such penalty shall constitute a maritime lien on 

22 such vessel. The maritime lien on the vessel may be 

23 recovered in an action in rem in the district court 

24 of the United States having jurisdiction over the ves25 sel. 


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1 (4) COLLECTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE PEN2 ALTIES.—If a person fails to pay an assessment of 

3 a civil penalty under paragraph (1) after it has be4 come a final and unappealable order, the Secretary 

5 shall refer the matter to the Attorney General. The 

6 Attorney General shall recover the amount assessed 

7 (plus interest at current prevailing rates from the 

8 date of the final order) in any appropriate district 

9 court of the United States. In such action, the valid10 ity and appropriateness of the final order imposing 

11 the civil penalty shall not be subject to review. Any 

12 person who fails to pay, on a timely basis, the 

13 amount of an assessment of a civil penalty shall be 

14 required to pay (in addition to such amount and in15 terest, attorney’s fees, and costs for collection pro16 ceedings) a quarterly nonpayment penalty for each 

17 quarter during which such failure to pay persists. 

18 Such nonpayment penalty shall be in an amount 

19 equal to 20 percent of the aggregate amount of such 

20 person’s penalties and nonpayment penalties that 

21 are unpaid as of the beginning of such quarter. 

22 (g) FORFEITURE.— 

23 (1) CRIMINAL FORFEITURE.—A person who is 

24 convicted of an offense in violation of this Act shall 

25 forfeit to the United States— 


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1 (A) any property, real or personal, consti2 tuting or traceable to the gross proceeds taken, 

3 obtained, or retained, in connection with or as 

4 a result of the offense, including, without limi5 tation, any fish (or the fair market value there6 of); and 

7 (B) any property, real or personal, used or 

8 intended to be used, in any manner, to commit 

9 or facilitate the commission of the offense, in10 cluding, without limitation, any vessel (includ11 ing the vessel’s equipment, stores, catch and 

12 cargo), vehicle, aircraft, or other means of 

13 transportation. Pursuant to section 2461(c) of 

14 title 28, United States Code, the provisions of 

15 section 413 of the Controlled Substances Act 

16 (21 U.S.C. § 853) except for subsection (d) of 

17 that Act shall apply to criminal forfeitures 

18 under this section. 

19 (2) CIVIL FORFEITURE.—The property set forth 

20 below shall be subject to forfeiture to the United 

21 States in accordance with the provisions of chapter 

22 46 of title 18, United States Code, and no property 

23 right shall exist in it: 

24 (A) Any property, real or personal, consti25 tuting or traceable to the gross proceeds taken, 


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1 obtained, or retained in connection with, or as 

2 a result of, a violation of this Act, including, 

3 without limitation, any fish (or the fair market 

4 value thereof). 

5 (B) Any property, real or personal, used or 

6 intended to be used, in any manner, to commit 

7 or facilitate the commission of a violation of 

8 this Act, including, without limitation, any ves9 sel (including the vessel’s equipment, stores, 

10 catch, and cargo), vehicle, aircraft, or other 

11 means of transportation. 

12 (3) APPLICATION OF THE CUSTOMS LAWS.—All 

13 provisions of law relating to seizure, summary judg14 ment, and judicial forfeiture and condemnation for 

15 violation of the customs laws, the disposition of the 

16 property forfeited or condemned or the proceeds 

17 from the sale thereof, the remission or mitigation of 

18 such forfeitures, and the compromise of claims shall 

19 apply to seizures and forfeitures incurred, or alleged 

20 to have been incurred, under the provisions of this 

21 Act, insofar as applicable and not inconsistent with 

22 the provisions hereof. For seizures and forfeitures of 

23 property under this section by the Secretary, such 

24 duties as are imposed upon the customs officer or 

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1 feiture of property under the customs law may be 

2 performed by such officers as are designated by the 

3 Secretary or, upon request of the Secretary, by any 

4 other agency that has authority to manage and dis5 pose of seized property. 

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

7 section there is a rebuttable presumption that all 

8 fish, or components thereof, found on board a vessel 

9 that is used or seized in connection with a violation 

10 of this Act (including any regulation promulgated 

11 under this Act) were taken, obtained, or retained as 

12 a result of IUU fishing or fishing-related activities 

13 in support of IUU fishing. 

14 (h) CRIMINAL ENFORCEMENT.— 

15 (1) Any person (other than a foreign govern16 ment agency, or entity wholly owned and controlled 

17 by a foreign government) who knowingly commits 

18 any act prohibited by section 9 of this Act shall be 

19 imprisoned for not more than 5 years or fined not 

20 more than $500,000 for individuals or $1,000,000 

21 for an organization, or both; except that if in the 

22 commission of any such offense the individual uses 

23 a dangerous weapon, engages in conduct that causes 

24 bodily injury to any officer authorized to enforce the 

25 provisions of this Act, or places any such officer in 


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1 fear of imminent bodily injury, the maximum term 

2 of imprisonment is not more than 10 years. 

3 (2) Any person (other than a foreign govern4 ment agency, or entity wholly owned and controlled 

5 by a foreign government) who violates paragraph 

6 (2), (3), (4), (5) or (6) of section 9, and who, in the 

7 exercise of due care should know that such person’s 

8 conduct violates such subsections, shall be fined 

9 under title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned 

10 not more than 1 year, or both. 

11 (i) PAYMENT OF STORAGE, CARE, AND OTHER

12 COSTS.—Any person assessed a civil penalty for, or con13 victed of, any violation of this Act (including any regula14 tion promulgated under this Act) and any claimant in a 

15 forfeiture action brought for such a violation, shall be lia16 ble for the reasonable costs incurred by the Secretary in 

17 storage, care, and maintenance of any property seized in 

18 connection with the violation. 

19 SEC. 11. INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AND ASSISTANCE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—To the greatest extent possible, 

21 consistent with existing authority and the availability of 

22 funds, the Secretary shall provide appropriate assistance, 

23 including grants, to developing nations and international 

24 organizations of which such nations are members to assist 


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1 those nations in meeting their obligations under the 

2 Agreement. 

3 (b) USE OF RESOURCES.—In carrying out subsection 

4 (a), the Secretary may, by agreement, on a reimbursable 

5 or nonreimbursable basis, utilize the personnel, services, 

6 equipment, and facilities of any individual, corporation, 

7 partnership, association, or other entity, and any Federal, 

8 State, local, or foreign government or any entity of any 

9 such government. 

10 (c) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—The Secretary is author11 ized to transfer funds, subject to the limits of available 

12 appropriations, to any foreign government and any inter13 national, non-governmental, or intergovernmental organi14 zation for purposes related to carrying out the inter15 national responsibilities of subsection (a) or any statute 

16 administered by the Secretary. 

17 SEC. 12. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS. 

18 (a) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

19 Act shall be construed to displace any requirements im20 posed by the customs laws of the United States or any 

21 other laws or regulations enforced or administered by the 

22 Secretary of Homeland Security. Where more stringent re23 quirements regarding port entry or access to port services 

24 exist under other Federal law, the more stringent require25 ments shall apply. Nothing in this Act shall affect a vesVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:05 Jan 08, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S267.RS S267

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1 sel’s entry into port, in accordance with international law, 

2 for reasons of force majeure or distress. 

3 (b) STATUTORY INTERPRETATION.—This Act shall 

4 be interpreted and applied in accordance with United 

5 States obligations under international law. 

6 SEC. 13. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

7 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec8 retary such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal years 

9 2013 through 2017 to carry out the provisions of this Act. 


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Calendar No. 291 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 267 

[Report No. 113–132] 

A BILL 

To prevent, deter, and eliminate illegal, unreported, 

measures. and unregulated fishing through port State 

JANUARY 8, 2014 

Reported without amendment 


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