HR 531 RFS
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘South Pacific Tuna Treaty Act of 2025’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Amendment of South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
Sec. 4. Prohibited acts. 
Sec. 5. Exceptions. 
Sec. 6. Criminal offenses. 
Sec. 7. Civil penalties. 
Sec. 8. Licenses. 
Sec. 9. Enforcement. 
Sec. 10. Findings by Secretary. 
Sec. 11. Reporting requirements; disclosure of information. 
Sec. 12. Closed Area stowage requirements. 
Sec. 13. Observers. 
Sec. 14. Technical assistance. 
Sec. 15. Arbitration. 
Sec. 16. Disposition of fees, penalties, forfeitures, and other moneys. 
Sec. 17. Additional agreements. 
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT OF SOUTH PACIFIC TUNA ACT OF 1988. 
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 South Pacific Tuna Act 
of 1988 (16 U.S.C. 973 et seq.). 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) APPLICABLE NATIONAL LAW.—Section 2(4) (16 
U.S.C. 973(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘described in para-
graph 1(a) of Annex I of’’ and inserting ‘‘noticed and in 
effect in accordance with’’. 
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(b) CLOSED AREA.—Section 2(5) (16 U.S.C. 973(5)) 
is amended by striking ‘‘of the closed areas identified in 
Schedule 2 of Annex I of’’ and inserting ‘‘area within the 
jurisdiction of a Pacific Island Party that is closed to ves-
sels pursuant to a national law of that Pacific Island Party 
and is noticed and in effect in accordance with’’. 
(c) FISHING.—Section 2(6) (16 U.S.C. 973(6)) is 
amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (C), by inserting ‘‘for any 
purpose’’ after ‘‘harvesting of fish’’; and 
(2) by amending subparagraph (F) to read as 
follows: 
‘‘(F) use of any other vessel, vehicle, air-
craft, or hovercraft, for any activity described 
in this paragraph except for emergencies involv-
ing the health or safety of the crew or the safe-
ty of a vessel.’’. 
(d) FISHING VESSEL.—Section 2(7) (16 U.S.C. 
973(7)) is amended by striking ‘‘commercial fishing’’ and 
inserting ‘‘commercial purse seine fishing for tuna’’. 
(e) LICENSING AREA.—Section 2(8) (16 U.S.C. 
973(8)) is amended by striking ‘‘in the Treaty Area’’ and 
all that follows and inserting ‘‘under the jurisdiction of 
a Pacific Island Party, except for internal waters, terri-
torial seas, archipelagic waters, and any Closed Area.’’. 
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(f) LIMITED AREA; PARTY; TREATY AREA.—Section 
2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraphs (10), (13), and (18); 
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (11) and (12) 
as paragraphs (10) and (11), respectively; 
(3) by redesignating paragraph (14) as para-
graph (12); and 
(4) by redesignating paragraphs (15) through 
(17) as paragraphs (14) through (16), respectively. 
(g) REGIONAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Section 2 
(16 U.S.C. 973) is amended by inserting after paragraph 
(12), as so redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(13) The term ‘regional terms and conditions’ 
means any of the terms or conditions attached by 
the Administrator to the license issued by the Ad-
ministrator, as notified by the Secretary.’’. 
SEC. 4. PROHIBITED ACTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5(a) (16 U.S.C. 973c(a)) 
is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘Except as provided in section 
6 of this Act, it’’ at the beginning and inserting 
‘‘It’’; 
(2) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4); 
(3) by redesignating paragraphs (5) through 
(13) as paragraphs (3) through (11), respectively; 
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(4) in paragraph (3), as so redesignated, by in-
serting ‘‘, except in accordance with an agreement 
pursuant to the Treaty’’ after ‘‘Closed Area’’; 
(5) in paragraph (10), as so redesignated, by 
striking ‘‘or’’ at the end; 
(6) in paragraph (11), as so redesignated, by 
striking the period at the end and inserting a semi-
colon; and 
(7) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(12) to violate any of the regional terms and 
conditions; or 
‘‘(13) to violate any limit on authorized fishing 
effort or catch.’’. 
(b) IN
THE LICENSING AREA.—Section 5(b) (16 
U.S.C. 973c(b)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘Except as provided in section 
6 of this Act, it’’ and inserting ‘‘It’’; 
(2) by striking paragraph (5); and 
(3) by redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as 
paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively. 
SEC. 5. EXCEPTIONS. 
Section 6 (16 U.S.C. 973d) is repealed. 
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SEC. 6. CRIMINAL OFFENSES. 
Section 7(a) (16 U.S.C. 973e(a)) is amended by 
striking ‘‘section 5(a) (8), (10), (11), or (12)’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘paragraphs (6), (8), (9), or (10) of section 5(a)’’. 
SEC. 7. CIVIL PENALTIES. 
(a) DETERMINATION OF LIABILITY; AMOUNT; PAR-
TICIPATION BY SECRETARY OF STATE IN ASSESSMENT 
PROCEEDING.—Section 8(a) (16 U.S.C. 973f(a)) is 
amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘Code’’ after ‘‘liable to the 
United States’’; and 
(2) by striking ‘‘Except for those acts prohib-
ited by section 5(a) (4), (5), (7), (8), (10), (11), and 
(12), and section 5(b) (1), (2), (3), and (7) of this 
Act, the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’. 
(b) WAIVER
OF REFERRAL
TO ATTORNEY GEN-
ERAL.—Section 8(g) (16 U.S.C. 973f(g)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘section 5(a)(1), (2), (3), (4), 
(5), (6), (7), (8), (9), or (13)’’ and inserting ‘‘para-
graphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (11), (12), or 
(13) of section 5(a)’’; and 
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘, all Limited 
Areas closed to fishing,’’ after ‘‘outside of the Li-
censing Area’’. 
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SEC. 8. LICENSES. 
(a) FORWARDING AND TRANSMITTAL OF VESSEL LI-
CENSE APPLICATION.—Section 9(b) (16 U.S.C. 973g(b)) 
is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(b) In accordance with subsection (e), and except 
as provided in subsection (f), the Secretary shall forward 
a vessel license application to the Administrator whenever 
such application is in accordance with application proce-
dures established by the Secretary.’’. 
(b) FEES AND SCHEDULES.—Section 9(c) (16 U.S.C. 
973g(c)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(c) Fees required under the Treaty shall be paid in 
accordance with the Treaty and any procedures estab-
lished by the Secretary.’’. 
(c) MINIMUM FEES REQUIRED TO BE RECEIVED IN 
INITIAL YEAR OF IMPLEMENTATION FOR FORWARDING 
AND TRANSMITTAL OF LICENSE APPLICATIONS.—Section 
9 (16 U.S.C. 973g) is amended— 
(1) by striking subsection (f); 
(2) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as 
subsections (f) and (g), respectively; 
(3) by amending subsection (f), as so redesig-
nated, to read as follows: 
‘‘(f) The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary 
of State, may determine that a license application should 
not be forwarded to the Administrator if— 
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