I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3128 
To establish the American Fisheries Advisory Committee to assist in the 
awarding of fisheries research and development grants, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 11, 2021 
Mr. YOUNG (for himself and Mrs. RADEWAGEN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To establish the American Fisheries Advisory Committee to 
assist in the awarding of fisheries research and develop-
ment grants, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘American Fisheries 
Advisory Committee Act of 2021’’. 
SEC. 2. AMERICAN FISHERIES ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Section 2 of the Act of Au-
gust 11, 1939 (15 U.S.C. 713c–3), is amended— 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
(1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub-
section (f); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(e) 
AMERICAN
FISHERIES
ADVISORY
COM-
MITTEE.— 
‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 
‘‘(A) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘Committee’ 
means the American Fisheries Advisory Com-
mittee established under paragraph (2). 
‘‘(B) FISHING
COMMUNITY.—The term 
‘fishing community’ means harvesters, market-
ers, growers, processors, recreational fishermen, 
charter fishermen, and persons providing them 
with goods and services. 
‘‘(C) MARKETING AND PROMOTION.—The 
term ‘marketing and promotion’ means an ac-
tivity aimed at encouraging the consumption of 
seafood or expanding or maintaining commer-
cial markets for seafood. 
‘‘(D) PROCESSOR.—The term ‘processor’ 
means any person in the business of preparing 
or packaging seafood (including seafood of the 
processor’s own harvesting) for sale. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
‘‘(E) 
SEAFOOD.—The 
term 
‘seafood’ 
means farm-raised and wild-caught fish, shell-
fish, or marine algae harvested in the United 
States or by a United States flagged vessel for 
human consumption. 
‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days 
after the date of the enactment of the American 
Fisheries Advisory Committee Act of 2021, the Sec-
retary shall establish 6 regions within the American 
Fisheries Advisory Committee as follows: 
‘‘(A) Region 1 shall consist of Alaska, Ha-
waii, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar-
iana Islands, and the Territories of Guam and 
American Samoa. 
‘‘(B) Region 2 shall consist of Maine, New 
Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and 
Connecticut. 
‘‘(C) Region 3 shall consist of Texas, Ala-
bama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Arkan-
sas, Puerto Rico, and the Territory of the Vir-
gin Islands of the United States. 
‘‘(D) Region 4 shall consist of California, 
Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
‘‘(E) Region 5 shall consist of New Jersey, 
New York, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, 
North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. 
‘‘(F) Region 6 shall consist of Michigan, 
Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, 
and Pennsylvania. 
‘‘(3) MEMBERSHIP.—The Committee shall be 
composed of the following members: 
‘‘(A) REGIONAL REPRESENTATION.—Each 
of the regions listed in subparagraphs (A) 
through (F) of paragraph (2) shall be rep-
resented on the Committee by 3 members— 
‘‘(i) who are appointed by the Sec-
retary; 
‘‘(ii) who reside in a State or territory 
in the region that the member will rep-
resent; 
‘‘(iii) of which— 
‘‘(I) one shall have experience as 
a seafood harvester or processor; 
‘‘(II) one shall have experience as 
recreational or commercial fisher or 
have experience growing seafood; and 
‘‘(III) one shall be an individual 
who represents the fisheries science 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
graphs (A) and (B), the Secretary shall seek to 
maximize on the Committee, to the extent prac-
ticable, a balanced representation of expertise 
in United States fisheries, seafood production, 
and science. 
‘‘(4) MEMBER TERMS.—The term for a member 
of the Committee shall be 3 years, except that the 
Secretary shall designate staggered terms for the 
members initially appointed to the Committee. 
‘‘(5) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Committee shall 
be responsible for— 
‘‘(A) identifying needs of the fishing com-
munity that may be addressed by a project 
funded with a grant under subsection (c); 
‘‘(B) developing the request for proposals 
for such grants; 
‘‘(C) 
reviewing 
applications 
for 
such 
grants; and 
‘‘(D) selecting applications for approval 
under subsection (c)(2)(B). 
‘‘(6) CHAIR.—The Committee shall elect a chair 
by a majority of those voting, if a quorum is 
present. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
‘‘(7) QUORUM.—A simple majority of members 
of the Committee shall constitute a quorum, but a 
lesser number may hold hearings. 
‘‘(8) MEETINGS.— 
‘‘(A) FREQUENCY.—The Committee shall 
meet not more than 2 times each year. 
‘‘(B) LOCATION.—The meetings of the 
Committee shall rotate between the geographic 
regions described under paragraph (2). 
‘‘(C) MINIMIZING COSTS.—The Committee 
shall seek to minimize the operational costs as-
sociated with meetings, hearings, or other busi-
ness of the Committee, including through the 
use of video or teleconference. 
‘‘(9) DESIGNATION OF STAFF MEMBER.—The 
Secretary shall designate a staff member to coordi-
nate the activities of the Committee and to assist 
with administrative and other functions as requested 
by the Committee. 
‘‘(10) PER DIEM AND EXPENSES AND FUND-
ING.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—A member of the 
Committee shall serve without compensation, 
but shall be reimbursed in accordance with sec-
tion 5703 of title 5, United States Code, for 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
reasonable travel costs and expenses incurred in 
performing duties as a member of the Com-
mittee. 
‘‘(B) FUNDING.—The costs of reimburse-
ments under subparagraph (A) and the other 
costs associated with the Committee shall be 
paid from funds made available to carry out 
this section (which may include funds described 
in subsection (f)(1)(B)), except that no funds 
allocated for grants under subsection (f)(1)(A) 
shall be expended for any purpose under this 
subsection. 
‘‘(11) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—The conflict of 
interest and recusal provisions set out in section 
302(j) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva-
tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(j)) shall 
apply to any decision by the Committee and to all 
members of the Committee as if each member of the 
Committee is an affected individual within the mean-
ing of such section 302(j), except that in addition to 
the disclosure requirements of section 302(j)(2)(C) 
of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(j)(2)(C)), each member 
of the Committee shall disclose any financial interest 
or relationship in an organization or with an indi-
vidual that is applying for a grant under subsection 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
(c) held by the member of the Committee, including 
an interest as an officer, director, trustee, partner, 
employee, contractor, agent, or other representative. 
‘‘(12) TECHNICAL REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Prior to review of an 
application for a grant under subsection (c) by 
the Committee, the Secretary shall obtain an 
independent written technical evaluation from 3 
or more appropriate Federal, private, or public 
sector experts (such as industry, academia, or 
governmental experts) who— 
‘‘(i) have subject matter expertise to 
determine the technical merit of the pro-
posal in the application; 
‘‘(ii) shall independently evaluate each 
such proposal; and 
‘‘(iii) shall certify that the expert does 
not have a conflict of interest concerning 
the application that the expert is review-
ing. 
‘‘(B) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of the American 
Fisheries Advisory Committee Act of 2021, the 
Secretary shall issue guidance related to car-
rying out the technical evaluations under sub-
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
paragraph (A). Such guidance shall include cri-
teria for the elimination by the National Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Administration of appli-
cations that fail to meet a minimum level of 
technical merit as determined by the review de-
scribed in subparagraph (A).’’. 
(b) ROLE
IN
APPROVAL
OF
GRANTS.—Section 
2(c)(3) of the Act of August 11, 1939 (15 U.S.C. 713c– 
3(c)(3)), is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(3)(A) No application for a grant under this sub-
section may be approved unless the Secretary— 
‘‘(i) is satisfied that the applicant has the req-
uisite technical and financial capability to carry out 
the project; and 
‘‘(ii) based on the recommendations of the 
American Fisheries Advisory Committee established 
in subsection (e), evaluates the proposed project as 
to— 
‘‘(I) soundness of design; 
‘‘(II) the possibilities of securing produc-
tive results; 
‘‘(III) minimization of duplication with 
other 
fisheries 
research 
and 
development 
projects; 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:15 Jun 11, 2021
Jkt 019200
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3128.IH
H3128
kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS