SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Commercial Seafood 
Consumer Protection Act’’. 
SEC. 2. SEAFOOD SAFETY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce shall, 
in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services and other appropriate Federal agencies, establish 
a program to strengthen Federal activities for ensuring 
that commercially distributed seafood in the United States 
meets the food quality and safety requirements of Federal 
law. 
(b) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.—The Sec-
retary of Commerce and the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services shall enter into an agreement within 180 
days after enactment of this Act to strengthen cooperation 
on seafood safety. The agreement shall include provisions 
for— 
(1) cooperative arrangements for examining and 
testing seafood imports; 
(2) coordination of inspections of foreign facili-
ties; 
(3) technical assistance and training of foreign 
facilities for marine aquaculture, technical assistance 
for foreign governments concerning United States 
regulatory requirements, and appropriate informa-
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tion transfer arrangements between the United 
States and foreign governments; 
(4) developing a process for expediting imports 
of seafood into the United States from foreign coun-
tries and exporters that consistently adhere to the 
highest standards for ensuring seafood safety; 
(5) establishing a system to track shipments of 
seafood in the distribution chain within the United 
States; 
(6) labeling requirements to assure species iden-
tity and prevent fraudulent practices; 
(7) a process by which officers and employees 
of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis-
tration and National Marine Fisheries Service may 
be commissioned by the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services for seafood examinations and inves-
tigations conducted under section 801 of the Federal 
Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 381); 
(8) the sharing of information concerning ob-
served non-compliance with United States food re-
quirements domestically and in foreign countries and 
new regulatory decisions and policies that may affect 
regulatory outcomes; and 
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(9) conducting joint training on subjects that 
affect and strengthen seafood inspection effective-
ness by Federal authorities. 
SEC. 3. CERTIFIED LABORATORIES. 
Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall increase 
the number of laboratories certified to the standards of 
the Food and Drug Administration in the United States 
and in countries that export seafood to the United States 
for the purpose of analyzing seafood and ensuring that 
it complies with Federal law. Such laboratories may in-
clude Federal, State, and private facilities. The Secretary 
of commerce shall publish in the Federal Register a list 
of certified laboratories, and shall update the list, and pub-
lish the updated list, no less frequently than annually. 
SEC. 4. NOAA LABORATORIES. 
In any fiscal year beginning after the date of enact-
ment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce may increase 
the number and capacity of laboratories operated by the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in-
volved in carrying out testing and other activities under 
this Act to the extent the Secretary determines that in-
creased laboratory capacity is necessary to carry out the 
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provisions of this Act and as provided for in appropria-
tions Acts. 
SEC. 5. INSPECTION TEAMS. 
The Secretary of Commerce, in cooperation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, may send 1 or 
more inspectors to a country or exporter from which sea-
food exported to the United States originates. The inspec-
tion team will assess practices and processes being used 
in connection with the farming, cultivation, harvesting, 
preparation for market, or transportation of such seafood 
and provide technical assistance related to the require-
ments established under the Federal Food, Drug, and 
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.). The inspection team 
shall prepare a report for the Secretary with its findings. 
The Secretary of Commerce shall make a copy of the re-
port available to the country or exporter that is the subject 
of the report and provide a 30-day period during which 
the country or exporter may provide a rebuttal or other 
comments on the findings of the Secretary. The Secretary 
of Commerce shall cause the report, together with any 
comments submitted to the Secretary by the country or 
exporter, to be published in the Federal Register not later 
than 60 days after the inspection team makes its final re-
port. 
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SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated for each of 
fiscal years 2009 through 2013, for purposes of carrying 
out the provisions of this Act, $15,000,000. 
Æ 
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