IB 
Union Calendar No. 431 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5126 
[Report No. 116–531] 
To require individuals fishing for Gulf reef fish to use certain descending 
devices, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 15, 2019 
Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana (for himself, Mr. HUFFMAN, and Mr. PALAZZO) in-
troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Nat-
ural Resources 
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 
Additional sponsors: Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Mr. ROONEY of Florida, Mr. VEASEY, 
and Mr. WEBSTER of Florida 
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on November 15, 2019] 
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A BILL 
To require individuals fishing for Gulf reef fish to use certain 
descending devices, and for other purposes. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Direct Enhancement of 
Snapper Conservation and the Economy through Novel De-
vices Act of 2020’’ or the ‘‘DESCEND Act of 2020’’. 
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that commercial and rec-
reational fishermen (which, for the purpose of this Act shall 
include charter fishing) for Gulf reef fish are expected to 
use a venting tool or a descending device required for posses-
sion under section 3 when releasing fish that are exhibiting 
signs of barotrauma. The Secretary of Commerce (referred 
to in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’), in coordination with the 
Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, should de-
velop and disseminate to fishermen education and outreach 
materials related to proper use of venting tools and descend-
ing devices, and strongly encourage their use by commercial 
and recreational fishermen when releasing fish that are ex-
hibiting signs of barotrauma. 
SEC. 3. REQUIRED POSSESSION OF DESCENDING DEVICES. 
(a) REQUIRED GEAR IN THE GULF REEF FISH FISH-
ERY.—Title III of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva-
tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1851 et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘SEC. 321. REQUIRED POSSESSION OF DESCENDING DE-
VICES. 
‘‘(a) REQUIRE GEAR IN THE GULF REEF FISH FISH-
ERY.—It shall be unlawful for a person on board a commer-
cial or recreational vessel to fish for Gulf reef fish in the 
Gulf of Mexico Exclusive Economic Zone without possessing 
on board the vessel a venting tool or a descending device 
that is rigged and ready for use while fishing is occurring. 
‘‘(b) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—No provision of this section 
shall be interpreted to affect any program or activity car-
ried out by the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council 
established by the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, 
Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf 
Coast States Act of 2012 (33 U.S.C. 1321 note), or any 
project contained in an approved Restoration Plan devel-
oped by any Natural Resources Damage Assessment Trustee 
Implementation Group to reduce post-release mortality 
from barotrauma in Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Recreational 
Fisheries. 
‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) DESCENDING DEVICE.—The term ‘descend-
ing device’ means an instrument that— 
‘‘(A) will release fish at a depth sufficient 
for the fish to be able to recover from the effects 
of barotrauma; 
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‘‘(B) is a weighted hook, lip clamp, or box 
that will hold the fish while it is lowered to 
depth, or another device determined to be appro-
priate by the Secretary; and 
‘‘(C) is capable of— 
‘‘(i) releasing the fish automatically; 
‘‘(ii) releasing the fish by actions of the 
operator of the device; or 
‘‘(iii) allowing the fish to escape on its 
own. 
‘‘(2) VENTING
TOOL.—The term ‘venting tool’ 
has the meaning given to it by the Gulf of Mexico 
Fishery Management Council. 
‘‘(3) GULF REEF FISH.—The term ‘Gulf reef fish’ 
means any fish chosen by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery 
Management Council that is in the reef Fishery Man-
agement Plan for the purposes of this Act.’’. 
(b) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Section 308(a) of the Magnu-
son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 
U.S.C. 1858(a)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or section 321’’ 
after ‘‘section 307’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this 
Act shall take effect 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act. 
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(d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Title III of the table 
of contents of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1851 et seq.) is amended 
by striking the item relating to section 305 and all that 
follows through the end of the items relating to such title 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘Sec. 305. Other requirements and authority. 
‘‘Sec. 306. State jurisdiction. 
‘‘Sec. 307. Prohibited acts. 
‘‘Sec. 308. Civil penalties and permit sanctions. 
‘‘Sec. 309. Criminal offenses. 
‘‘Sec. 310. Civil forfeitures. 
‘‘Sec. 311. Enforcement. 
‘‘Sec. 312. Transition to sustainable fisheries. 
‘‘Sec. 313. North Pacific fisheries conservation. 
‘‘Sec. 314. Northwest Atlantic Ocean fisheries reinvestment program. 
‘‘Sec. 315. Regional Coastal Disaster Assistance, Transition, and Recovery Pro-
gram. 
‘‘Sec. 316. Bycatch Reduction Engineering Program. 
‘‘Sec. 317. Shark Feeding. 
‘‘Sec. 318. Cooperative Research and Management Program. 
‘‘Sec. 319. Herring Study. 
‘‘Sec. 320. Restoration Study. 
‘‘Sec. 321. Required possession of descending devices.’’. 
(e) SUNSET.—Five years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1851 et seq.) is amended— 
(1) in the table of contents, by striking the item 
relating to section 321; 
(2) in section 308(a), by striking ‘‘or section 
321’’; and 
(3) by striking section 321. 
SEC. 4. IMPROVING DISCARD MORTALITY DATA. 
(a) AGREEMENT.—Within 60 days of the date of enact-
ment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter into an agree-
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ment with the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a 
study and produce a report on discard mortality in the Gulf 
of Mexico reef fish fisheries. Such study shall include— 
(1) assessment of gaps and biases in reporting of 
discards and associated discard mortality; 
(2) assessment of uncertainty and likely impacts 
of such uncertainty in discard mortality; 
(3) assessment of the effectiveness and usage rates 
of barotrauma-reducing devices; 
(4) recommendations for future research prior-
ities; and 
(5) recommendations for standardized reporting 
and quantification of discards in the same metric as 
landings for fisheries under the Gulf of Mexico Reef 
Fish Fishery Management Plan. 
(b) DEADLINE.—The National Academy of Sciences 
shall complete the study described in subsection (a) and 
transmit the final report to the Secretary within 2 years 
of the date of enactment of this Act. The Secretary shall, 
within 3 months of receiving such study and report, submit 
such study and report in (a) to the Committee on Com-
merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 
Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Represent-
atives. 
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(c) PLAN.—Within 1 year of receiving the study and 
report in described in subsection (a), the Gulf of Mexico 
Fishery Management Council and the Secretary shall— 
(1) develop guidance for minimum standards for 
quantifying and reporting discards and associated 
mortality in the Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Fishery 
Management Plan; and 
(2) develop a plan to assess and monitor the ef-
fectiveness and usage of barotrauma-reducing devices 
and the impact on discard mortality rates in Gulf of 
Mexico reef fish fisheries. 
(d) FOLLOW-UP REPORT.—Within 3 years of devel-
oping minimum standards and developing the assessment 
and monitoring plan in subsection (c), the Secretary shall 
provide a detailed report on implementation to the Com-
mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the 
House of Representatives. 
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Union Calendar No. 431 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5126 
[Report No. 116–531] 
A BILL 
To require individuals fishing for Gulf reef fish to 
use certain descending devices, and for other 
purposes. 
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed 
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