Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority Act

To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to transfer to States the authority to manage red snapper fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority Act 2. Transfer to States of management of red snapper fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico (a) In general The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act ( 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. V Transfer to States of Management of Red Snapper Fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico 501. Definitions In this title: (1) Coastal waters The term coastal waters (A) shoreward of the baseline from which the territorial sea of the United States is measured; and (B) seaward from the baseline described in subparagraph (A) to the outer boundary of the exclusive economic zone. (2) Gulf coastal State The term Gulf coastal State (A) Alabama. (B) Florida. (C) Louisiana. (D) Mississippi. (E) Texas. (3) Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council The term Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (4) Gulf of Mexico red snapper The term Gulf of Mexico red snapper (5) Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority The term Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority GSRSMA (6) Red snapper fishery management plan The term red snapper fishery management plan (7) Reef Fish Federal fishery management plan The term Reef Fish Federal fishery management plan (8) State territorial waters The term State territorial waters 502. Management of Gulf of Mexico red snapper (a) Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority (1) Requirement to establish Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this title, the Secretary shall establish a Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority that consists of the principal fisheries manager of each of the Gulf coastal States. (2) Duties The duties of the GSRSMA are as follows: (A) To review and approve red snapper fishery management plans, as set out in the Act. (B) To provide standards for each Gulf coastal State to use in developing fishery management measures to sustainably manage Gulf of Mexico red snapper in the coastal waters adjacent to such State. (C) To the maximum extent practicable, make scientific data, stock assessments and other scientific information upon which fishery management plans are based available to the public for inspection prior to meetings described in paragraph (c)(2). (b) Requirement for plans (1) Deadline for submission of plans The GSRSMA shall establish a deadline for each Gulf coastal State to submit to the GSRSMA a red snapper fishery management plan for such State. (2) Consistency with Federal fishery management plans To the extent practicable, the Gulf Coastal States fishery management plans shall be consistent with the requirements in section 303(a) of the Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 ( 16 U.S.C. 1853(a) (c) Review and approval of plans (1) In general Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this title and not more than 60 days after one or more Gulf coastal States submits a red snapper fishery management plan and annually thereafter, the GSRSMA shall review and approve by majority vote the red snapper fishery management plan if such plan meets the requirements of this title. (2) Public participation Prior to approving a red snapper fishery management plan submitted by one or more Gulf coastal States, the GSRSMA shall provide an adequate opportunity for public participation, including— (A) at least 1 public hearing held in each respective Gulf coastal State; and (B) procedures for submitting written comments to GSRSMA on the fishery management plan. (3) Plan requirements A red snapper fishery management plan submitted by one or more Gulf coastal States shall— (A) contain standards and procedures for the long-term sustainability of Gulf of Mexico red snapper based on the best available science; (B) comply with the standards described in subsection (a)(2)(B); and (C) determine quotas for the red snapper fishery in the coastal waters adjacent to such Gulf coastal State or States, respectively, based on stock assessments, and— (i) any recommendation by the GSRSMA to reduce quota apportioned to the commercial sector by more than 10 percent shall be reviewed and approved by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council; (ii) during the 3-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this title and consistent with subsection (d), the GSRSMA shall not determine a quota apportioned to the commercial sector; and (iii) nothing in this Act shall be construed to change the individual quota shares currently in place in the commercial sector of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery. (4) Review and approval Not later than 60 days after the date the GSRSMA receives a red snapper fishery management plan from one or more Gulf coastal State or States, the GSRSMA shall review and approve such plan if such plan satisfies the requirements of subsection (b). (d) Continued management by the Secretary During the 3-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this title, the Secretary, in coordination with the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, shall continue to manage the commercial sector of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery. (e) Reporting requirements (1) Reports by Gulf coastal States Each Gulf coastal State shall submit to the GSRSMA an annual report on the status of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery in coastal waters adjacent to such State. (2) Report by the GSRSMA Not less often than once every 5 years, the GSRSMA shall use the information submitted in the annual reports required by paragraph (1) to prepare and submit to the Secretary a report on the status of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery. 503. State implementation of the red snapper fishery management plans (a) Allocation of management to the Gulf States (1) Certification of approved plans The GSRSMA shall certify to the Secretary that a red snapper fishery management plan is approved under section 502 for each of the Gulf coastal States. (2) Transfer of management Upon receipt of the certification described in paragraph (1) and subject to section 502(d), the Secretary shall— (A) publish a notice in the Federal Register revoking the regulations and portions of the Reef Fish Federal fishery management plan that are in conflict with any red snapper fishery management plan approved by the GSRSMA; and (B) transfer management of Gulf of Mexico red snapper to the GSRSMA. (b) Implementation (1) In general Upon the transfer of management described in subsection (a)(2)(B) and subject to section 502(d), each Gulf coastal State shall implement and enforce the red snapper fishery management plans approved under section 502 for the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery in the coastal waters adjacent to each Gulf coastal State. (2) Failure to transfer management If the certification described in subsection (a)(1) is not made the transfer of management described in subsection (a)(2)(B) may not be accomplished and the Secretary shall remain responsible for management of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper. 504. Oversight of Gulf of Mexico red snapper management (a) Implementation and enforcement of fishery management plans Not later than December 1 of the year following the transfer of management described in section 503(a)(2), and at any other time the GSRSMA considers appropriate after that date, the GSRSMA shall determine if— (1) each Gulf coastal State has fully adopted and implemented the red snapper fishery management plan approved under section 502 for such State; (2) each such plan continues to be in compliance with the standards for sustainability provided by the GSRSMA pursuant to section 502(a)(2); and (3) the enforcement of the plan by each Gulf coastal State is satisfactory to maintain the long-term sustainability and abundance of Gulf of Mexico red snapper. (b) Overfishing and rebuilding plans (1) Certification If the Gulf of Mexico red snapper in the coastal waters adjacent to a Gulf coastal State is experiencing overfishing or is subject to a rebuilding plan, such Gulf coastal State shall submit a certification to the GSRSMA showing that such State has implemented the necessary measures to end overfishing or rebuild the fishery. (2) Notification to Secretary If, after such time as determined by the GSRSMA, a Gulf coastal State that submitted a certification under paragraph (1) has not implemented the measures and requirements described in such paragraph, the GSRSMA shall vote on whether to notify the Secretary of a recommendation of closure of the red snapper fishery in the waters adjacent to the State territorial waters of the Gulf coastal State. (c) Closure of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery (1) Conditions for closure Not later than 60 days after the receipt of a notice under subsection (b)(2) for a Gulf coastal State, the Secretary may declare a closure of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery within the waters adjacent to the State territorial waters of the Gulf coastal State. (2) Considerations Prior to making a declaration under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall consider the comments of such Gulf coastal State and the GSRSMA. (3) Actions prohibited during closure During a closure of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery under paragraph (1), it is unlawful for any person— (A) to engage in fishing for Gulf of Mexico red snapper within the waters adjacent to the State territorial waters of the Gulf coastal State covered by the closure; (B) to land, or attempt to land, the Gulf of Mexico red snapper in the area of the closure; or (C) to fail to return to the water any Gulf of Mexico red snapper caught in the area of the closure that are incidental to commercial harvest or in the recreational fisheries. (4) Construction Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to allow the Secretary to close the red snapper fishery in the State territorial waters of a Gulf coastal State. 505. Prohibition on Federal funding No Federal funds are authorized to be appropriated to or used for the GSRSMA or its members to carry out management actions of red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico. 506. No effect on management of shrimp fisheries in Federal waters (a) Bycatch reduction devices Nothing in this title may be construed to effect any requirement related to the use of Gulf of Mexico red snapper bycatch reduction devices in the course of shrimp trawl fishing activity. (b) Bycatch of red snapper Nothing in this title shall be construed to apply to or affect in any manner the Federal management of commercial shrimp fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico, including any incidental catch of red snapper. . (b) Conforming amendments (1) Data collection Section 401(g)(3)(C) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act ( 16 U.S.C. 1881(g)(3)(C) and ; and (vi) in the case of each fishery in the Gulf of Mexico, taking into consideration all data collection activities related to fishery effort that are undertaken by the marine resources division of each relevant State of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. . (2) Gulf State territorial waters Section 306(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act ( 16 U.S.C. 1856(b) (4) Notwithstanding section 3(11) and subsection (a) of this section, for purposes of carrying out activities pursuant to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico, the seaward boundary of a coastal State in the Gulf of Mexico is a line three marine leagues seaward from the baseline from which the territorial sea of the United States is measured. . (c) Clerical amendment The table of contents in the first section of such Act is amended by adding at the end the following: Title V—Transfer to States of Management of Red Snapper Fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico Sec. 501. Definitions. Sec. 502. Management of Gulf of Mexico red snapper. Sec. 503. State implementation of the red snapper fishery management plans. Sec. 504. Oversight of Gulf of Mexico red snapper management. Sec. 505. Prohibition on Federal funding. Sec. 506. No effect on management of shrimp fisheries in Federal waters. . December 8, 2016 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed

Summary: Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority Act (Sec.2)This bill amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to direct the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)to establish a Gulf States Red Snapper Management Authority (GSRSMA) that consists of the principal fisheries manager of each of the five Gulf of Mexico coastal states: Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. The GSRSMA must: establish a deadline for each Gulf coastal state to submit to the GSRSMA a fishery management plan for the long-term sustainability of Gulf of Mexico red snapper, review those plans and approve them if they meet the requirements of this bill, provide standards for each Gulf coastal state to use in developing fishery management measures to sustainably manage the Gulf of Mexico red snapper in the coastal waters adjacent to the state, and provide an opportunity for public participation before approving a plan. For three years, the NMFS must continue to manage the commercial sector of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery in coordination with the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. The bill establishes a plan certification process. After the three-year period and once a plan is certified, the NMFS must transfer management of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper to the GSRSMA. Each Gulf coastal state must then implement and enforce approved plans for the fishery in the coastal waters adjacent to it. If the Gulf of Mexico red snapper in the coastal waters adjacent to a Gulf coastal state is experiencing overfishing or is subject to a rebuilding plan, the state must certify to the GSRSMA that it has implemented the necessary measures to end overfishing or rebuild the fishery and has implemented a harvest monitoring program. A process is established for closing a red snapper fishery within the waters adjacent to the state territorial waters of the Gulf coastal state if those measures have not been implemented.