168 
(c) SCIENTIFIC ADVICE.—Section 302(g)(1)(B) (16 
U.S.C. 1852(g)(1)(B)) is further amended— 
(1) in clause (ii), as added by this Act, by strik-
ing ‘‘and’’; 
(2) in clause (iii), as added by this Act, by strik-
ing the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(iv) maintaining a sufficient abundance, 
diversity, and localized distribution of forage fish 
populations to support the role of such popu-
lations in marine ecosystems.’’. 
(d) COUNCIL FUNCTIONS.— 
(1) RESEARCH PRIORITIES.—Section 302(h)(7) 
(16 U.S.C. 1852(h)(7)) is further amended by insert-
ing ‘‘forage fish populations and distribution,’’ after 
‘‘habitats,’’. 
(2) UNMANAGED FORAGE FISH.—Section 302(h) 
(16 U.S.C. 1852(h)) is further amended by inserting 
after paragraph (11), as redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(12) develop and submit to the Secretary for 
approval a list of unmanaged forage fish occurring in 
the area under its authority for which the develop-
ment of any new directed forage fish fishery is pro-
hibited until the Council has— 
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169 
‘‘(A) considered the best scientific informa-
tion available and evaluated the potential im-
pacts of forage fish harvest on existing fisheries, 
fishing communities, and the marine ecosystem; 
‘‘(B) determined whether conservation and 
management of the forage fish fishery is needed; 
‘‘(C) if a determination is made that con-
servation and management is needed, prepared 
and submitted to the Secretary a fishery man-
agement plan or amendment consistent with sec-
tion 303; and 
‘‘(D) received final, approved regulations 
from the Secretary pursuant to section 304(b)(3); 
and’’. 
(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 
by this subsection shall take effect 2 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act. 
(e) CONTENTS OF FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLANS.— 
(1) FORAGE FISH MANAGEMENT.—Section 303(a) 
(16 U.S.C. 1853(a)) is further amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(18) when setting annual catch limits for forage 
fish fisheries, assess, specify, and reduce such limits 
by the diet needs of fish species and other marine 
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170 
wildlife, such as marine mammals and birds, for 
which forage fish is a significant part of their diet.’’. 
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall take effect 5 years after the date 
of enactment of this Act. 
(f) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.—Section 304 (16 
U.S.C. 1854) is further amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(l) FORAGE FISH MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 
after the date of enactment of the Sustaining Amer-
ica’s Fisheries for the Future Act of 2022, the Sec-
retary shall establish by regulation guidelines to as-
sist the Councils in implementing sections 302(h)(12) 
and 303(a)(18). 
‘‘(2) WORKSHOPS.—In developing the guidelines 
under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall conduct 
workshops with Councils and other scientific, fish-
eries, and conservation interests. 
‘‘(m) FORAGE FISH PROHIBITION.—In accordance 
with section 302(h)(12), the Secretary shall prohibit the de-
velopment of any new directed forage fish fishery.’’. 
(g) RIVER HERRING AND SHAD.— 
(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
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171 
(A) RIVER HERRING.—The term ‘‘river her-
ring’’ means blueback herring (Alosa aestivalis) 
and alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus). 
(B) SHAD.—The term ‘‘shad’’ means Amer-
ican shad (Alosa sapidissima) and hickory shad 
(Alosa mediocris). 
(2) AMENDMENTS
OF
PLANS.—Not later than 
180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Commerce shall— 
(A) amend the fishery management plans 
for the Atlantic Herring and Atlantic Mackerel, 
Squid, and Butterfish fisheries for the New Eng-
land and Mid-Atlantic Regions to add shad and 
river herring as managed stocks in such plans 
consistent with section 302(h)(1) of the Magnu-
son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage-
ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(h)(1)); 
(B) initiate additional fishery management 
plan amendments to be completed in not more 
than one year from the date of the addition of 
the species identified in paragraph (1) in order 
to develop and implement all required conserva-
tion and management measures for such stocks 
consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Fisheries 
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Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1801 et seq.), and all other applicable law; and 
(C) notwithstanding any other law, rule, or 
fishery management plan provision, including 
conservation and management measures under 
section 303(a)(11) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish-
ery Conservation and Management Act (16 
U.S.C. 1853(a)(11)), reallocate existing resources 
to ensure accurate and precise catch accounting 
on an ongoing basis within any fishery using 
mid-water trawl or paired mid-water trawl fish-
ing gear in the Atlantic herring and Atlantic 
mackerel fisheries through the use of human or 
electronic on-board observation. 
(h) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section 
shall be construed as— 
(1) extending or diminishing the jurisdiction or 
authority of any State within its boundaries; or 
(2) affecting— 
(A) section 306 of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 
U.S.C. 1856); or 
(B) the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Coopera-
tive Management Act (16 U.S.C. 5107 et seq.). 
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