Sec. 101. Process for allocation review for South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico 
mixed-use fisheries. 
Sec. 102. Alternative fishery management. 
Sec. 103. Moratorium on limited access privilege programs for mixed-use fish-
eries. 
Sec. 104. Rebuilding overfished and depleted fisheries. 
Sec. 105. Modifications to the annual catch limit requirement. 
Sec. 106. Exempted fishing permits. 
TITLE II—RECREATION FISHERY INFORMATION, RESEARCH, AND 
DEVELOPMENT 
Sec. 201. Cooperative data collection. 
Sec. 202. Recreational data collection. 
SEC. 2. REFERENCES TO THE MAGNUSON-STEVENS FISH-
ERY CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT ACT. 
Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in 
this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 
of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi-
sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a 
section or other provision of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish-
ery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 
et seq.). 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
(a) RECREATIONAL
FISHING.—Section 2(a) (16 
U.S.C. 1801(a)) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(13) While both provide significant cultural 
and economic benefits to the Nation, recreational 
fishing and commercial fishing are fundamentally 
different activities, therefore requiring management 
approaches adapted to the characteristics of each 
sector.’’. 
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(b) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 2(a)(3) (16 
U.S.C. 1801(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(3) Commercial and recreational fishing con-
stitute major sources of employment and contributes 
significantly to the economy of the Nation. Many 
coastal areas are dependent upon fishing and related 
activities.’’. 
TITLE I—CONSERVATION AND 
MANAGEMENT 
SEC. 101. PROCESS FOR ALLOCATION REVIEW FOR SOUTH 
ATLANTIC AND GULF OF MEXICO MIXED-USE 
FISHERIES. 
(a) STUDY OF ALLOCATIONS IN MIXED-USE FISH-
ERIES.—Not later than 60 days after the date of enact-
ment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall enter 
into an arrangement with the National Academy of 
Sciences to conduct a study of the South Atlantic and Gulf 
of Mexico mixed-use fisheries— 
(1) to provide guidance to the South Atlantic 
Fishery Management Council and Gulf of Mexico 
Fishery Management Council on criteria that could 
be used for allocating fishing privileges, including 
consideration of the conservation and socioeconomic 
benefits of the commercial, recreational, and charter 
components of a fishery, to a Regional Fishery Man-
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agement Council established under section 302 of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852) in the prepara-
tion of a fishery management plan under that Act; 
(2) to identify sources of information that could 
reasonably support the use of such criteria in alloca-
tion decisions; and 
(3) to develop procedures for allocation reviews 
and potential adjustments in allocations based on 
the guidelines and requirements established by this 
section. 
(b) REPORT.—Pursuant to subsection (a), not later 
than 1 year after the date an arrangement is entered into, 
the National Academy of Sciences shall submit a report 
on the study to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Nat-
ural Resources of the House of Representatives. 
(c) PROCESS FOR ALLOCATION REVIEW AND ESTAB-
LISHMENT.—The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 
Council and South Atlantic Fishery Management Council 
shall— 
(1) notwithstanding the report required pursu-
ant to this section, and any other provision of law, 
shall each— 
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(A) within 2 years after the date of enact-
ment of this Act, perform an initial review of 
the allocations to the commercial fishing sector 
and the recreational fishing sector of all appli-
cable fisheries in the Councils’ respective juris-
dictions; and 
(B) every 3 years thereafter, perform a re-
view of such allocations; and 
(2) consider the conservation and socioeconomic 
benefits of each of the commercial fishing sector and 
the recreational fishing sector in any allocation deci-
sions. 
SEC. 102. ALTERNATIVE FISHERY MANAGEMENT. 
(a) REPEAL.—Section 407(d) (16 U.S.C. 1883), and 
the corresponding reference in the table of contents, are 
repealed. 
(b) MANAGEMENT.—Section 302(h) (16 U.S.C. 
1852(h)) is amended by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semi-
colon at the end of paragraph (7), by redesignating para-
graph (8) as paragraph (9), and by inserting the following 
after paragraph (7): 
‘‘(8) have the authority to use alternative fish-
ery management measures in a recreational fishery 
(or the recreational component of a mixed-use fish-
ery) in developing a fishery management plan, plan 
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amendment, or proposed regulations, which may in-
clude extraction rates, fishing mortality targets, har-
vest control rules, or traditional or cultural practices 
of native communities; and’’. 
(c) SUMMARY.—Within 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall 
transmit a summary to Congress that describes actions 
to implement this subsection. 
SEC. 103. MORATORIUM ON LIMITED ACCESS PRIVILEGE 
PROGRAMS FOR MIXED-USE FISHERIES. 
For areas under the jurisdiction of the Gulf of Mexico 
Fishery Management Council or the South Atlantic Fish-
ery Management Council, there shall be a moratorium on 
the development or consideration of any new limited access 
privilege program for any mixed-use fisheries consisting 
of both commercial and recreational fishing sectors. 
SEC. 104. REBUILDING OVERFISHED AND DEPLETED FISH-
ERIES. 
Section 304(e)(4)(A) (16 U.S.C. 1854(e)(4)(A)) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(A) specify a time period for rebuilding 
the fishery that— 
‘‘(i) shall be as short as practicable, 
taking into account the status and biology 
of any overfished stock of fish, the needs 
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‘‘(m) CONSIDERATIONS FOR MODIFICATIONS TO AN-
NUAL CATCH LIMIT REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) CONSIDERATION OF ECOSYSTEM AND ECO-
NOMIC IMPACTS.—In establishing annual catch lim-
its a Council may, consistent with subsection (h)(6), 
consider changes in an ecosystem and the economic 
needs of fishing communities. 
‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS
TO
ANNUAL
CATCH
LIMIT 
REQUIREMENT FOR SPECIAL FISHERIES.—Notwith-
standing subsection (h)(6), a Council is not required 
to develop an annual catch limit for— 
‘‘(A) an ecosystem-component species; 
‘‘(B) a fishery for a species that has a life 
cycle of approximately 1 year, unless the Sec-
retary has determined the fishery is subject to 
overfishing; 
‘‘(C) a stock of fish for which— 
‘‘(i) fishing mortality is below the 
fishing mortality target; and 
‘‘(ii) a peer-reviewed stock survey and 
stock assessment have not been performed 
during the preceding 5-year period; 
‘‘(D) the Secretary determines that over-
fishing is not occurring; or 
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‘‘(E) for a sector of a fishery that is not 
monitored by a data collection system deter-
mined by the Secretary to be adequate for the 
development, implementation, and enforcement 
of annual catch limits specific to that sector, 
based on the evaluation recommended by the 
National Academy of Sciences in its report enti-
tled ‘Review of the Marine Recreational Infor-
mation Program (2017)’ of whether the design 
of a Marine Recreational Information Program 
for the purposes of stock assessment and the 
determination of stock management reference 
points is compatible with the needs of in-season 
management of annual catch limits. 
‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION FOR MULTISPECIES COM-
PLEXES AND MULTIYEAR ANNUAL CATCH LIMITS.— 
For purposes of subsection (h)(6), a Council may es-
tablish— 
‘‘(A) an annual catch limit for a stock 
complex; or 
‘‘(B) annual catch limits for each year in 
any continuous period that is not more than 
three years in duration. 
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‘‘(4) ECOSYSTEM-COMPONENT
SPECIES
DE-
FINED.—In this subsection the term ‘ecosystem-com-
ponent species’ means— 
‘‘(A) a stock of fish that is a non-target, 
incidentally harvested stock of fish in a fishery; 
or 
‘‘(B) a nontarget, incidentally harvested 
stock of fish that a Council or the Secretary 
has determined— 
‘‘(i) is not subject to overfishing, ap-
proaching a depleted condition, or de-
pleted; and 
‘‘(ii) is not likely to become subject to 
overfishing or depleted in the absence of 
conservation and management measures.’’. 
SEC. 106. EXEMPTED FISHING PERMITS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Before the approval and issuance 
of any new exempted fishing permit under section 600.745 
of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor 
regulations, the Secretary of Commerce shall— 
(1) conduct a joint peer review of the proposed 
exempted fishing permit by the appropriate regional 
fisheries science center and State marine fisheries 
commission; and 
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(2) certify that the regional fishery manage-
ment council or Federal agency with jurisdiction 
over the affected fishery determined that— 
(A) the fishing activity conducted under 
the proposed exempted fishing permit would be 
consistent with any management measures or 
conservation objectives included within existing 
fishery management plans or amendments; 
(B) the social and economic impacts in 
both dollar amounts and loss of fishing oppor-
tunities on all participants in each sector of the 
fishery expected to occur as a result of the pro-
posed exempted fishing permit would be mini-
mal; 
(C) the information collected through fish-
ing activity conducted under the proposed ex-
empted fishing permit will have a positive and 
direct impact on the conservation, assessment, 
or management of the fishery; and 
(D) the Governor of each State, any part 
of which is located within 100 nautical miles of 
the proposed activity under the exempted fish-
ing permit has been consulted on the proposed 
exempted fishing permit. 
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(b) DURATION AND RENEWAL.—Any exempted fish-
ing permit— 
(1) shall expire at the end of the 12-month pe-
riod beginning on the date the permit is issued; and 
(2) may be renewed consistent with this section. 
TITLE II—RECREATION FISHERY 
INFORMATION, 
RESEARCH, 
AND DEVELOPMENT 
SEC. 201. COOPERATIVE DATA COLLECTION. 
(a) IMPROVING DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS.— 
Section 404 (16 U.S.C. 1881c) is amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(e) IMPROVING DATA COLLECTION
AND ANAL-
YSIS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta-
tion with the science and statistical committees of 
the Councils established under section 302(g) and 
the Marine Fisheries Commissions, shall develop and 
submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
Natural Resources of the House of Representatives 
by not later than 1 year after the date of the enact-
ment of the Modernizing Recreational Fisheries 
Management Act of 2017 a report on facilitating 
greater incorporation of data, analysis, stock assess-
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ments, and surveys from State agencies and non-
governmental sources described in paragraph (2) 
into fisheries management decisions. 
‘‘(2) 
NONGOVERNMENTAL
SOURCES.—Non-
governmental sources referred to in paragraph (1) 
are the following: 
‘‘(A) Fishermen. 
‘‘(B) Fishing communities. 
‘‘(C) Universities. 
‘‘(D) Research institutions. 
‘‘(3) CONTENT.—The report under paragraph 
(1) shall— 
‘‘(A) identify types of data and analysis, 
especially concerning recreational fishing, that 
can be reliably used for purposes of this Act 
and the basis for establishing conservation and 
management measures as required by section 
303(a)(1), including setting standards for the 
collection and use of that data and analysis in 
stock assessments and surveys and for other 
purposes; 
‘‘(B) provide specific recommendations for 
collecting data and performing analyses identi-
fied as necessary to reduce uncertainty in and 
improve the accuracy of future stock assess-
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ments, including whether such data and anal-
ysis could be provided by nongovernmental 
sources, including fishermen, fishing commu-
nities, universities, and research institutions; 
‘‘(C) consider the extent to which it is pos-
sible to establish a registry of persons providing 
such information; and 
‘‘(D) consider the extent to which the ac-
ceptance and use of data and analyses identi-
fied in the report in fishery management deci-
sions is practicable.’’. 
(b) NAS REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Sec-
retary of Commerce shall take into consideration and, to 
the extent feasible, implement the recommendations of the 
National Academy of Sciences in its report entitled ‘‘Re-
view of the Marine Recreational Information Program 
(2017)’’, including— 
(1) prioritizing the evaluation of electronic data 
collection for the Fishing Effort Survey, including 
smartphone apps, electronic diaries for prospective 
data collection, and an Internet website option for 
all or just panel members; and 
(2) evaluating whether the design of the Marine 
Recreational Information Program for the purposes 
of stock assessment and the determination of stock 
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management reference points is compatible with the 
needs of in-season management of annual catch lim-
its and, if such program is incompatible with such 
needs, determining an alternative method for in-sea-
son management. 
SEC. 202. RECREATIONAL DATA COLLECTION. 
(a) 
FEDERAL-STATE
PARTNERSHIPS.—Section 
401(g) (16 U.S.C. 1881(g)) is amended by redesignating 
paragraph (4) as paragraph (5), and by inserting after 
paragraph (3) the following: 
‘‘(4) FEDERAL-STATE PARTNERSHIPS.— 
‘‘(A) 
ESTABLISHMENT.—The 
Secretary 
shall establish partnerships with States to de-
velop best practices for implementation of State 
programs established pursuant to paragraph 
(2). 
‘‘(B) GUIDANCE.—The Secretary shall de-
velop guidance, in cooperation with the States, 
that details best practices for administering 
State programs pursuant to paragraph (2), and 
provide such guidance to the States. 
‘‘(C) BIENNIAL
REPORT.—The Secretary 
shall submit to the Congress and publish bien-
nial reports that include— 
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‘‘(i) the estimated accuracy of the reg-
istry program established under paragraph 
(1) and of State programs that are ex-
empted under paragraph (2); 
‘‘(ii) priorities for improving rec-
reational fishing data collection; and 
‘‘(iii) an explanation of any use of in-
formation collected by such State programs 
and by the Secretary, including a descrip-
tion of any consideration given to the in-
formation by the Secretary. 
‘‘(D) STATES GRANT PROGRAM.—The Sec-
retary shall make grants to States to improve 
implementation of State programs consistent 
with this subsection. The Secretary shall 
prioritize such grants based on the ability of the 
grant to improve the quality and accuracy of 
such programs. 
‘‘(E) FUNDING.—A portion of the funds 
appropriated to the Marine Recreational Infor-
mation Program shall be provided for imple-
mentation of this section.’’. 
(b) ACTION BY SECRETARY.—The Secretary of Com-
merce shall— 
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(1) within 90 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, enter into an agreement with the Na-
tional Academy of Sciences to evaluate, in the form 
of a report, whether the design of the Marine Rec-
reational Information Program, for the purposes of 
stock assessment and the determination of stock 
management reference points, is compatible with the 
needs of in-season management of annual catch lim-
its under section 303(a)(15) of the Magnuson-Ste-
vens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 
U.S.C. 1853(a)(1)), including whether in-season 
management of annual catch limits is appropriate 
for all recreational fisheries; and 
(2) within 6 months after receiving the report 
under paragraph (1), submit to Congress rec-
ommendations of changes to be made to the Marine 
Recreational Information Program to make the pro-
gram compatible with in-season management of an-
nual catch limits and other requirements under such 
section for those recreational fisheries for which in- 
season management of annual catch limits is appro-
priate. 
Æ 
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