(b) PENALTIES.—(1) Any person who is found by the 
Secretary of Commerce after notice and an opportunity 
for a hearing in accordance with section 554 of title 5, 
United States Code, to have committed an act that is un-
lawful under subsection (a), is liable to the United States 
for a civil penalty. The amount of the civil penalty may 
not exceed $1,000 for each violation. Each day of con-
tinuing violation constitutes a separate offense. The 
amount of the civil penalty shall be assessed by the Sec-
retary of Commerce by written notice. In determining the 
amount of the penalty, the Secretary of Commerce shall 
take into account the nature, circumstances, extent, and 
gravity of the prohibited act committed and, with respect 
to the violator, the degree of culpability, any history of 
prior violations, ability to pay, and such other matters as 
justice may require. 
(2) Subsections (b) through (e) of section 308 of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage-
ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1858(b)–(e); relating to review of 
civil penalties; acting upon failure to pay assessment, com-
promise, and subpoenas) shall apply to penalties assessed 
under paragraph (1) to the same extent and in the same 
manner as if those penalties were assessed under sub-
section (a) of such section. 
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(c) CIVIL FORFEITURES.—(1) Any vessel (including 
its gear, equipment, appurtenances, stores, and cargo) 
used, and any fish (or the fair market value thereof) taken 
or retained, in any manner, in connection with, or the re-
sult of, the commission of any act that is unlawful under 
subsection (a), is subject to forfeiture to the United 
States. All or part of the vessel may, and all such fish 
(or the fair market value thereof) shall, be forfeited to the 
United States under a civil proceeding described in para-
graph (2). The district courts of the United States have 
jurisdiction over proceedings under this subsection. 
(2) Subsections (c) through (e) of section 310 of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage-
ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1860(c)–(e); relating to judgment, 
procedure, and rebuttable presumptions) shall apply with 
respect to proceedings for forfeiture commenced under 
this subsection to the same extent and in the same manner 
as if the proceeding were commenced under subsection (a) 
of such section. 
(d) ENFORCEMENT.—A person authorized by the 
Secretary of Commerce or the Secretary of the department 
in which the Coast Guard is operating may take any action 
to enforce this section that an officer authorized under 
section 311 of the Magnuson Act (16 U.S.C. 1861) may 
take to enforce that Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.). Either 
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such Secretary may, by agreement, on a reimbursable 
basis or otherwise, utilize the personnel, services, equip-
ment (including aircraft and vessels), and facilities of any 
other Federal department or agency and of any agency 
of a State in carrying out that enforcement. 
SEC. 2. ACTION BY ATLANTIC STATES MARINE FISHERIES 
COMMISSION. 
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission 
shall promptly take action to amend the Interstate Fishery 
Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden Amendment 1, 
dated July 2001, to take into account the prohibition es-
tablished under section 2 on the commercial harvesting of 
menhaden in coastal waters. 
SEC. 3. REPORT. 
Not later than 5 years after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries 
Commission, in cooperation with the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, shall submit to Congress a 
report on— 
(1) the progress the Commission has made to-
ward understanding the structure of the Atlantic 
menhaden population on the Atlantic Coast of the 
United States and in the Chesapeake Bay; 
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(2) the role of such population as a filter feeder 
and prey species for predatory fish in the Chesa-
peake Bay and in coastal ecosystems; 
(3) the impact on the Atlantic coastal and 
Chesapeake Bay ecosystems of commercial har-
vesting of menhaden for reduction; and 
(4) its recommendations for future sustainable 
management of such harvesting. 
SEC. 4. COASTAL WATERS DEFINED. 
As used in this Act, the term ‘‘coastal waters’’ has 
the meaning that term has in section 3 of the Atlantic 
Striped Bass Conservation Act (Public Law 98–613; 16 
U.S.C. 1851 note), as in effect on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act. 
Æ 
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