Title: DESCEND Act of 2019
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Direct Enhancement of Snapper Conservation and the Economy through Novel Devices Act of 2019 or the DESCEND Act of 2019
This bill addresses the use of descending devices to release reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico. (A descending device is an instrument that will release fish at a depth sufficient for the fish to be able to recover from the effects of barotrauma.)
Specifically, the bill requires

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2960 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2960

   To require individuals fishing for Gulf reef fish to use certain 
              descending devices, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            December 2, 2019

Mr. Cassidy (for himself and Mr. Jones) introduced the following bill; 
    which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 
                      Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To require individuals fishing for Gulf reef fish to use certain 
              descending devices, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Direct Enhancement of Snapper 
Conservation and the Economy through Novel Devices Act of 2019'' or the 
``DESCEND Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. REQUIRED POSSESSION OF DESCENDING DEVICES.

    (a) Required Gear in the Gulf Reef Fish Fishery.--Title III of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1851 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 321. REQUIRED POSSESSION OF DESCENDING DEVICES.

    ``(a) Require Gear in the Gulf Reef Fish Fishery.--It shall be 
unlawful for a person on board a commercial or recreational vessel to 
fish for Gulf reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico Exclusive Economic Zone 
without possessing on board the vessel a venting tool or a descending 
device that is rigged and ready for use while fishing is occurring.
    ``(b) Savings Clause.--No provision of this section shall be 
interpreted to affect any program or activity carried out by the Gulf 
Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council established under section 311(t) of 
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1321(t)), or any 
project contained in an approved Restoration Plan developed by any 
Natural Resources Damage Assessment Trustee Implementation Group to 
reduce post-release mortality from barotrauma in Gulf of Mexico Reef 
Fish Recreational Fisheries.
    ``(c) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Descending device.--The term `descending device' 
        means an instrument that--
                    ``(A) will release fish at a depth sufficient for 
                the fish to be able to recover from the effects of 
                barotrauma;
                    ``(B) is a weighted hook, lip clamp, or box that 
                will hold the fish while it is lowered to depth, or 
                another device determined to be appropriate by the 
                Secretary; and
                    ``(C) is capable of--
                            ``(i) releasing the fish automatically;
                            ``(ii) releasing the fish by actions of the 
                        operator of the device; or
                            ``(iii) allowing the fish to escape on its 
                        own.
            ``(2) Venting tool.--The term `venting tool' has the 
        meaning given to it by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 
        Council.
            ``(3) Gulf reef fish.--The term `Gulf reef fish' means any 
        fish chosen by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council 
        that is in the reef Fishery Management Plan for the purposes of 
        this Act.
    ``(d) Sunset.--The requirements under this section shall expire on 
the date that is 5 years after the date of enactment of the Direct 
Enhancement of Snapper Conservation and the Economy through Novel 
Devices Act of 2019.''.
    (b) Civil Penalties.--Section 308(a) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1858(a)) is 
amended--
            (1) by inserting ``or section 321'' after ``section 307''; 
        and
            (2) by adding at the end the following: ``The authorization 
        under this subsection for a penalty for a violation of section 
        321 shall expire on the date that is 5 years after the date of 
        enactment of the Direct Enhancement of Snapper Conservation and 
        the Economy through Novel Devices Act of 2019.''
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this Act shall take 
effect 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. IMPROVING DISCARD MORTALITY DATA.

    (a) Agreement.--Within 60 days of the date of enactment this Act, 
the Secretary of Commerce shall enter into an agreement with the 
National Academy of Sciences to conduct a study and produce a report on 
discard mortality in the Gulf of Mexico reef fish fisheries. Such study 
shall include--
            (1) assessment of gaps and biases in reporting of discards 
        and associated discard mortality;
            (2) assessment of uncertainty and likely impacts of such 
        uncertainty in discard mortality;
            (3) assessment of the effectiveness and usage rates of 
        barotrauma reducing devices;
            (4) recommendations for future research priorities; and
            (5) recommendations for standardized reporting and 
        quantification of discards for fisheries under the Gulf of 
        Mexico Reef Fish Fishery Management Plan.
    (b) Deadline.--The National Academy of Sciences shall complete the 
study described in subsection (a) and transmit the final report to the 
Secretary of Commerce within 2 years of the date of enactment of this 
Act. The Secretary of Commerce shall, within 3 months of receiving such 
study and report, submit such study and report to the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee 
on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives.
    (c) Plan.--Within 1 year of receiving the study and report 
described in subsection (a), the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 
Council and the Secretary of Commerce shall--
            (1) develop guidance for minimum standards for quantifying 
        and reporting discards and associated mortality in the Gulf of 
        Mexico Reef Fish Fishery Management Plan; and
            (2) develop a plan to assess and monitor the effectiveness 
        and usage of barotrauma reducing devices and the impact on 
        discard mortality rates in Gulf of Mexico reef fish fisheries.
    (d) Follow-Up Report.--Within 3 years of developing minimum 
standards and developing the assessment and monitoring plan in 
subsection (c), the Secretary of Commerce shall provide a detailed 
report on implementation to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of 
the House of Representatives.
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