I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1431 
To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
to modify requirements for the appointment and training of members 
of Regional Fishery Management Councils, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 17, 2005 
Mr. RAHALL (for himself, Mr. FARR, Mr. KIND, Mr. LEACH, and Mr. SHAYS) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Re-
sources 
A BILL 
To amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act to modify requirements for the appoint-
ment and training of members of Regional Fishery Man-
agement Councils, 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 ‘‘Fisheries Science and 
Management Enhancement Act of 2005’’.
SEC. 2. VOTING MEMBERS OF REGIONAL FISHERY MAN-
AGEMENT COUNCILS. 
(a) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.—Section 302(b) of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage-
ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(b)) is amended as follows: 
(1) In paragraph (1)(A) by adding at the end 
the following: ‘‘Such official shall represent the in-
terests of the general public of such State.’’. 
(2) In paragraph (2)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A)— 
(i) in the first sentence by inserting 
before the period the following: ‘‘, and 
must not have been found by the Sec-
retary, after notice and an opportunity for 
a hearing in accordance with section 554 
of title 5, United States Code, to have 
committed an act prohibited by subpara-
graph (D), (E), (F), (H), (I), or (L) of 
section 307(1) or section 307(2).’’; and 
(ii) in the second sentence by striking 
‘‘Fishery Conservation Amendments of 
1990’’ and inserting ‘‘Fisheries Science 
and Management Enhancement Act of 
2005’’; 
(B) in subparagraph (B)—
(i) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘of 
the active’’ and inserting ‘‘among the ac-
tive’’; 
(ii) by striking the period at the end 
of the first sentence and inserting the fol-
lowing: ‘‘and representatives of the public 
interest in marine fish conservation who 
are knowledgeable regarding the conserva-
tion and management of the fishery re-
sources of the geographic area concerned. 
Such representatives of the public interest 
in marine conservation may not include in-
dividuals who derive any of their annual 
income from commercial or recreational 
fishing or who are employed by any person 
who derives any of their annual income 
from commercial or recreational fishing.’’; 
and 
(iii) by striking ‘‘Merchant Marine 
and Fisheries’’ and inserting ‘‘Resources’’; 
and 
(C) in subparagraph (C)— 
(i) in the second sentence by inserting 
‘‘and representatives of conservation orga-
nizations’’ after ‘‘commercial and rec-
reational fishing interests’’; 
(ii) by striking the third sentence and 
inserting the following: ‘‘Each list shall 
consist of a broad slate of candidates for 
each vacancy, shall include at least two 
representatives from each of the commer-
cial fishing industry sector, the rec-
reational fishing sector, and the marine 
fish conservation public interest sector, and 
shall consist solely of individuals who are 
knowledgeable regarding the conservation 
and management of the fishery resources 
of the geographical area concerned. Can-
didates from the marine fish conservation 
public interest sector may not derive any of 
their annual income from fishing and may 
not be employed by anyone who derives 
any of their annual income from commer-
cial or recreational fishing.’’; and 
(iii) in the fifth sentence (after the 
amendment made by clause (ii) of this sub-
paragraph) by striking ‘‘such require-
ments’’ and inserting ‘‘the requirements of 
subparagraph (A)’’.
(3) In paragraph (3)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘1986’’ and inserting 
‘‘2005’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘consecutive’’ each place it 
appears. 
(4) In paragraph (6) by striking ‘‘section 
307(1)(O)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (D), (E), 
(F), (H), (I), (L), or (O) of section 307(1) or sec-
tion 307(2)’’ 
(b) TRAINING OF APPOINTED MEMBERS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 302(b) of the Mag-
nuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage-
ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(b)) is amended by adding 
at the end the following: 
‘‘(7) TRAINING OF APPOINTED MEMBERS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
provide to each member of a Council appointed 
by the Secretary under this subsection, by not 
later than 6 months after the date the member 
is first appointed, training in matters relating 
to the functions of the Council, including— 
‘‘(i) fishery science and basic fish 
stock assessment; 
‘‘(ii) basic instruction in ecological 
principles;
‘‘(iii) social science and fishery eco-
nomics; 
‘‘(iv) the requirements of this Act, the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969, chapter 5 of title 5, United States 
Code (popularly known as the Administra-
tive Procedures Act), and other relevant 
statutes or regulations; 
‘‘(v) conflict of interest policies that 
apply to Council members; and 
‘‘(vi) the public process for developing 
fishery management plans. 
‘‘(B) RESTRICTION ON VOTING.—A mem-
ber of a Council to whom the Secretary is re-
quired to provide training under this paragraph 
may not vote on any decision of the Council be-
fore the date the member completes such train-
ing. 
‘‘(C) TRAINING AVAILABLE TO THE PUB-
LIC.—The Secretary may provide training of-
fered under this paragraph, or comparable 
training, to interested members of the public.’’. 
(2) APPLICATION TO CURRENT MEMBERS.— 
(A) REQUIREMENT TO PROVIDE TRAINING 
UPON REQUEST.—The Secretary of Commerce
is not required to provide training under the 
amendment made by paragraph (1) to a mem-
ber of a Regional Fishery Management Council 
appointed before the date of the enactment of 
this Act, unless such member requests such 
training. Upon such a request, the Secretary 
shall provide such training within 6 months 
after the date of the request. 
(B) RESTRICTION ON VOTING NOT APPLI-
CABLE.—Subparagraph (B) of paragraph (7) of 
section 307(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish-
ery Conservation and Management Act (16 
U.S.C. 1852(b)), as amended by this sub-
section, shall not apply to a member of a Re-
gional Fishery Management Council to whom 
the Secretary is required to provide training 
under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph. 
SEC. 3. REGIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCIL COM-
MITTEES AND PANELS. 
(a) SCIENCE AND STATISTICAL COMMITTEES.—Sec-
tion 302(g)(1) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con-
servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(g)(1)) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(1) SCIENCE
AND
STATISTICAL
COMMIT-
TEES.—
‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT
TO
ESTABLISH.— 
Each Council shall establish and maintain a 
science and statistical committee to assist the 
Council in the development, collection, and eval-
uation of such statistical, biological, economic, 
social, and other scientific information as is rel-
evant to the Council’s development and amend-
ment of any fishery management plan. The 
members of the science and statistical com-
mittee shall consist of qualified Federal, State, 
academic, or independent scientists, and shall 
be appointed and paid a stipend by the Sec-
retary. 
‘‘(B) ESTABLISHMENT
OF
FISHERY
AND 
MARINE
SCIENCE
SUBCOMMITTEE.—Each 
science and statistical committee established by 
a Council under this paragraph shall include a 
fishery and marine science subcommittee that— 
‘‘(i) is composed of members of the 
science and statistical committee who have 
demonstrated scientific expertise in fishery 
biological science or marine ecology; and 
‘‘(ii) includes balanced representation 
of both such disciplines on the sub-
committee.
‘‘(C) FUNCTIONS OF FISHERY AND MARINE 
SCIENCE SUBCOMMITTEE.—In the development 
by a Council of any fishery management plan or 
amendment to a fishery management plan, and 
in the taking by a Council of any other action 
that prescribes an authorized fishing mortality 
level or rate, the fishery and marine science 
subcommittee of the Council shall— 
‘‘(i) based on the best scientific infor-
mation available, determine for the Coun-
cil— 
‘‘(I) biological catch (including 
bycatch) limits, including annual lim-
its, that will prevent overfishing, re-
build overfished stocks, achieve, on a 
continuing basis, the optimum yield 
for such fishery, and that consider 
predator-prey relationships and other 
ecological factors; 
‘‘(II) specific habitat types and 
areas in need of protection from the 
adverse effects of fishing identified 
pursuant to section 303(a)(7); and 
‘‘(III) any additional protections 
required for species under the Coun-
cil’s jurisdiction that are listed as 
threatened 
species 
or 
endangered 
under section 4 of the Endangered 
Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
1533); 
‘‘(ii) allow an opportunity for public 
input on the development of the sub-
committee’s determinations and create a 
public record of such input and the sub-
committee’s response to such input; 
‘‘(iii) publish its determinations in the 
Federal Register; and 
‘‘(iv) review all conservation and man-
agement measures developed by the Coun-
cil to determine whether such measures are 
at least as stringent as the subcommittee’s 
determinations made under clause (i). 
‘‘(D) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Each fishery 
and marine science subcommittee may rec-
ommend to the associated Council conservation 
and management measures that are based on 
and consistent with the determinations made by 
the subcommittee under subparagraph (C)(i).’’. 
(b) EFFECT
OF DECISIONS
AND RECOMMENDA-
TIONS.—Section 302(g)(5) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish-
ery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1852(g)(5)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, except decisions 
and recommendations made by the fisheries and marine 
science subcommittees of the science and statistical com-
mittees pursuant to paragraph (1)(C)(i),’’ after ‘‘under 
this subsection’’. 
(c) EFFECT
OF DECISIONS
AND RECOMMENDA-
TIONS.—Section 302(g) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(g)) 
is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(6) For the purposes of this subsection, the 
term ‘qualified Federal, State, academic, or inde-
pendent scientists’ means individuals who— 
‘‘(A) through publication of peer-reviewed 
scientific literature and academic training, 
have— 
‘‘(i) demonstrated scientific expertise 
in fisheries science or marine ecology; or 
‘‘(ii) demonstrated expertise in eco-
nomics or social science as it relates to 
fisheries management; and 
‘‘(B) have no direct financial interest, or 
are not employed by any person with a direct 
financial interest, in any fishery.’’.
(d) DISCLOSURE
OF FINANCIAL INTEREST
AND 
RECUSAL.—Section 302(j) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fish-
ery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1852(j)) is amended by striking paragraphs (6) and (7) 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘(6) PROHIBITION ON VOTING.— 
‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—An affected indi-
vidual shall not vote on a Council decision that 
would have an effect on a financial interest that 
the individual is required to disclose under 
paragraph (2). 
‘‘(B) DETERMINATION OF EFFECT ON FI-
NANCIAL INTEREST.—At the request of an af-
fected individual or a member of the public, or 
upon the initiative of the appropriate des-
ignated official, the designated official shall 
make a determination for the record whether a 
Council decision would have an effect on the fi-
nancial interest of an affected individual re-
ferred to in subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(C) REVIEW
OF
DETERMINATION.—Any 
Council member or member of the public may 
submit a written request to the Secretary to re-
view any determination by the designated offi-
cial under subparagraph (B), within 10 days
after such determination. Such review shall be 
completed within 30 days after receipt of the 
request. 
‘‘(D) TREATMENT
OF
DECISION
MADE 
PENDING REVIEW.—If the Council makes a de-
cision before the Secretary has completed a re-
view under subparagraph (C), the eventual rul-
ing by the Secretary in the review shall be 
treated as a cause for invalidation or reconsid-
eration by the Secretary of such decision, if the 
Secretary determines that the Council decision 
had an effect on the financial interest of an af-
fected individual and the affected individual’s 
vote decided the Council action. 
‘‘(E) The Secretary, in consultation with 
the Councils and by not later than one year 
after the date of enactment of the Fisheries 
Management Reform Act of 2005, shall promul-
gate regulations that— 
‘‘(i) prohibit an affected individual 
from voting in accordance with subpara-
graph (A); and 
‘‘(ii) allow for the making of deter-
minations under subparagraphs (B) and 
(C).
‘‘(7) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAW.—Section 
208 of title 18, United States Code, does not apply 
to an affected individual referred to in paragraph 
(1)(A)(ii) during any time during which the indi-
vidual is in compliance with the regulations pre-
scribed under paragraph (5).’’. 
SEC. 4. REQUIRED PROVISIONS IN FISHERY MANAGEMENT 
PLANS. 
Section 303(a) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853(a)) 
is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1)(A) by inserting ‘‘and the 
associated ecosystem’’ before the semicolon at the 
end; 
(2) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after 
the semicolon at the end of subparagraph (B), by 
adding ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end of sub-
paragraph (C), and by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(D) in the case of a plan developed by a 
Council, at least as stringent as (or more strin-
gent than) the matters determined under sec-
tion 302(g)(1)(C)(i) by the fishery and marine 
science subcommittee of the Council;’’; and
(3) by amending paragraph (14) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(14) allocate any quotas or other conservation 
and management measures fairly and equitably 
among the commercial, recreational, and charter 
fishing sectors in the fishery, and allow individual 
sectors of the fishery to develop allocation plans that 
are subject to the approval of the Council.’’. 
SEC. 5. PEER REVIEW. 
Section 304 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con-
servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1854) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(i) PEER REVIEW.— 
‘‘(1) REVIEW REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary, 
using qualified independent scientists, shall— 
‘‘(A) periodically conduct peer reviews of 
determinations 
made 
under 
section 
302(g)(1)(C)(i) by each fishery and marine 
science subcommittee of a Council’s science and 
statistical committee; and 
‘‘(B) upon request by a Council, conduct a 
peer review of a determination made under sec-
tion 302(g)(1)(C)(i) by a fishery and marine 
science subcommittee of the Council’s science 
and statistical committee.
‘‘(2) IMPLEMENTATION
OF
DETERMINATION 
NOT
AFFECTED.—Paragraph (1)(B), and any re-
quest for review under that paragraph, shall not af-
fect any requirement that a Council implement a de-
termination that is the subject of such a request.’’. 
SEC. 6. COOPERATIVE RESEARCH, DATA COLLECTION, AND 
GEAR MODIFICATION PROGRAM. 
Section 305 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Con-
servation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1855) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(j) COOPERATIVE RESEARCH, DATA COLLECTION, 
AND GEAR MODIFICATION PROGRAM.—In cooperation 
with the Councils, the fishing industry, the conservation 
community, and interested academics, the Secretary shall 
carry out a cooperative research, data collection, and gear 
modification program to— 
‘‘(1) conduct conservation engineering projects 
designed to avoid bycatch, minimize the mortality of 
unavoidable bycatch, or minimize fishery impacts on 
essential fish habitat through modifications of fish-
ing gear and practices; 
‘‘(2) identify ecosystem effects of fishing, to 
monitor marine ecosystem trends and dynamics;
‘‘(3) collect information on the status of stocks 
of fish and the life history of managed species of 
fish; 
‘‘(4) provide financial assistance to fishermen to 
offset the costs of modifying fishing practices and 
gear to meet the requirements of this Act; 
‘‘(5) provide financial assistance to States for 
programs to improve recreational fishing data; and 
‘‘(6) provide financial or other incentives for 
fishermen to develop and utilize fishing gear and 
practices that avoid bycatch, the mortality of un-
avoidable bycatch, and adverse impacts on essential 
fish habitat.’’. 
SEC. 7. AMENDMENTS TO SALTONSTALL-KENNEDY ACT. 
(a) USE OF TRANSFERRED AMOUNTS.—Section 2(b) 
of the Act of August 11, 1939 (15 U.S.C. 713c–3(b)), 
popularly known as the Saltonstall-Kennedy Act, is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(b) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—The Secretary of Agri-
culture shall transfer to the Secretary each fiscal year 
from moneys made available to carry out the provisions 
of section 32 of such Act of August 24, 1935, an amount 
equal to 30 percent of the gross receipts from duties col-
lected under the customs laws on fishery products (includ-
ing fish, shellfish, mollusks, crustacea, aquatic plants and
animals, and any products thereof, including processed 
and manufactured products), which shall be maintained 
in a separate fund only for use by the Secretary— 
‘‘(1) to provide financial assistance for the pur-
pose of carrying out fisheries research and develop-
ment projects approved under subsection (c); 
‘‘(2) to implement the national fisheries re-
search and development program provided for under 
subsection (d); 
‘‘(3) to implement the Northwest Atlantic 
Ocean Fisheries Reinvestment Program established 
under section 314 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1863); 
‘‘(4) to fund the Federal share of a fishing ca-
pacity reduction program established under section 
312 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation 
and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1861a); and 
‘‘(5) to implement section 305(j) of the Magnu-
son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management 
Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(j)).’’. 
(b) ALLOCATION
OF
FUND
MONEYS.—Section 
2(e)(1) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 713c–3(e)) is amended—
(1) in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘and such 
other purposes as are authorized by this Act’’ after 
‘‘provisions of this section’’; 
(2) by inserting after the first sentence the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘Amounts available for allocation under this subsection 
shall be in addition to amounts appropriated for National 
Marine Fisheries Service operations.’’; 
(3) in paragraph (1)(A) by striking ‘‘no less 
than 60 per centum $5,000,000 of such moneys’’ 
and inserting ‘‘$5,000,000’’; and 
(4) by amending paragraph (1)(B) to read as 
follows: 
‘‘(B) The Secretary shall use the balance 
of the moneys in the fund to finance activities 
carried out under section 305(k) of the Magnu-
son-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Manage-
ment Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(k)).’’. 
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