Title: South Pacific Tuna Act of 2022
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
South Pacific Tuna Act of 2022
This bill revises federal requirements for U.S. commercial fishing vessels operating in the South Pacific.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9538 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9538

      To amend the South Pacific Tuna Act (16 U.S.C. 973 et seq.).


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 14, 2022

  Mr. Case (for himself and Mrs. Radewagen) introduced the following 
     bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
      To amend the South Pacific Tuna Act (16 U.S.C. 973 et seq.).

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``South Pacific Tuna 
Act of 2022''.
    (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.
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. 18. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENT OF SOUTH PACIFIC TUNA ACT.

     Except as otherwise expressly provided, wherever in this title an 
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal 
of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to 
be made to a section or other provision of the South Pacific Tuna Act 
(16 U.S.C. 973 et seq.).

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) Applicable National Law.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended 
by striking ``described in paragraph 1(a) of Annex I of'' in paragraph 
(4) of section 2, and inserting in its place: ``noticed and in effect 
in accordance with''.
    (b) Closed Area.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended by striking 
``of the closed areas identified in Schedule 2 of Annex I of'' in 
paragraph (5) of section 2, and inserting in its place: ``area within 
the jurisdiction of a Pacific Island Party that is closed to vessels 
pursuant to that Party's national laws, and is noticed and in effect in 
accordance with''.
    (c) Fishing.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended by--
            (1) inserting ``for any purpose'' after ``harvesting of 
        fish'' at the end of paragraph (6)(C) of section 2;
            (2) striking ``aircraft'' at the beginning of paragraph 
        (6)(F) of section 2;
            (3) striking ``, relating to the activities'' in paragraph 
        (6)(F) of section 2, and inserting in its place: ``of any other 
        vessel, vehicle, aircraft or hovercraft, for any activity'';
            (4) striking ``flights in'' after ``except for'' in 
        paragraph (6)(F) of section 2;
            (5) inserting ``the'' after ``health or safety of'' in 
        paragraph (6)(F) of section 2; and
            (6) striking ``members'' after ``crew'' in paragraph (6)(F) 
        of section 2.
    (d) Fishing Vessel.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended by--
            (1) inserting ``purse seine'' after ``used for commercial'' 
        in paragraph (7) of section 2; and
            (2) inserting ``for tuna'' after ``purse seine fishing'' in 
        paragraph (7) of section 2, as so amended.
    (e) Licensing Area.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended by 
striking ``in the Treaty Area except for'' and all that follows, 
including subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), in paragraph (8) of section 
2, and inserting in its place: ``under the jurisdiction of the Pacific 
Island Parties except for internal waters, territorial seas, 
archipelagic waters and any Closed Area.''.
    (f) Limited Area.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended by--
            (1) striking paragraph (10) of section 2; and
            (2) redesignating existing paragraphs (11) through (14) of 
        section 2 as paragraphs (10) through (13), respectively.
    (g) Regional Terms and Conditions.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is 
amended by inserting after paragraph (13) of section 2, as so 
redesignated, the following new paragraph--
            ``(14) The term `regional terms and conditions' means any 
        of the terms or conditions attached by the Administrator to the 
        license issued by the Administrator, as notified by the 
        Secretary.''.
    (h) Treaty Area.--Section 2 (16 U.S.C. 973) is amended by striking 
paragraph (18) of section 2.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITED ACTS.

    (a) Section 5(a) (16 U.S.C. 973c) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``Except as provided in section 973d of this 
        title, it'' at the beginning of section 5(a), and inserting in 
        its place: ``It'';
            (2) striking paragraphs (3) and (4);
            (3) redesignating existing paragraphs (5) through (13) as 
        paragraphs (3) through (11), respectively;
            (4) inserting ``, except in accordance with an agreement 
        pursuant to the Treaty'' after ``Closed Area'' at the end of 
        paragraph (3), as so redesignated;
            (5) striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (10), as so 
        redesignated;
            (6) striking ``.'' at the end of paragraph (11), as so 
        resdesignated, and inserting in its place ``;''; and
            (7) inserting after paragraph (11), as so redesignated, the 
        following new paragraphs--
            ``(12) to violate any of the regional terms and conditions; 
        or
            ``(13) to violate any limit on authorized fishing effort or 
        catch.''.
    (b) Section 5(b) (16 U.S.C. 973c) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``Except as provided in section 973d of this 
        title, it'' at the beginning of section 5(b), and inserting in 
        its place: ``It'';
            (2) striking paragraph (5); and
            (3) redesignating existing paragraphs (6) and (7) as 
        paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively.

SEC. 5. EXCEPTIONS.

    (a) Section 6 (16 U.S.C. 973d) is amended by striking section 6, 
including the section heading of section 6 and subsections (a) and (b), 
and inserting in its place: ``[Reserved]''.

SEC. 6. CRIMINAL OFFENSES.

    (a) Prohibited Acts.--Section 7(a) (16 U.S.C. 973e) is amended by 
striking ``section 973c(a)(8), (10), (11), or (12)'', and inserting in 
its place: ``section 973c(a)(6), (8), (9), or (10)''.

SEC. 7. CIVIL PENALTIES.

    (a) Determination of Liability; Amount; Participation by Secretary 
of State in Assessment Proceeding.--Section 8(a) (16 U.S.C. 973f) is 
amended by--
            (1) striking ``Code'' after ``liable to the United 
        States''; and
            (2) striking ``Except for those acts prohibited by section 
        973c(a)(4), (5), (7), (8), (10), (11), and (12), and section 
        973c(b)(1), (2), (3), and (7) of this title, the'', and 
        inserting in its place: ``The''.
    (b) Waiver of Referral to Attorney General.--Section 8(g) (16 
U.S.C. 973f) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``(8), (9),'' after ``(5), (6), (7),'' at the 
        beginning of paragraph (g), and inserting in its place: ``(11), 
        (12), or''; and
            (2) striking ``, all Limited Areas closed to fishing,'' 
        after ``outside of the Licensing Area'' in paragraph (2).

SEC. 8. LICENSES.

    (a) Forwarding and Transmittal of Vessel License Application.--
Section 9(b) (16 U.S.C. 973g) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``Except as provided in subsections'' at the 
        beginning of section 9(b), and inserting in its place: ``In 
        accordance with subsection'';
            (2) inserting ``and except as provided in subsection'' 
        after ``In accordance with subsection (e),'' at the beginning 
        of section 9(b), as so amended;
            (3) striking ``, and (g)'' at the beginning of section 
        9(b);
            (4) striking ``to the Secretary of State for transmittal''; 
        and
            (5) striking ``, includes a complete application form as 
        required by Annex II of the Treaty, and is accompanied by the 
        required license fee'' at the end of section 9(b).
    (b) Fees and Schedules.--Section 9(c) (16 U.S.C. 973g) is amended 
by--
            (1) striking ``and fee schedules'' in the section heading 
        of section 9(c);
            (2) striking paragraph (1);
            (3) striking ``(2) After such initial year, fees for vessel 
        licenses'' of paragraph (2), and inserting in its place: ``Fees 
        required under the Treaty'';
            (4) striking ``fee schedules established under Annex II 
        of''; and
            (5) striking ``published by the Secretary'' at the end of 
        section 9(c), and inserting in its place: ``any procedures 
        established by the Secretary''.
    (c) Minimum Fees Required To Be Received in Initial Year of 
Implementation for Forwarding and Transmittal of License 
Applications.--Section 9(f) (16 U.S.C. 973g) is amended by--
            (1) striking section 9(f); and
            (2) redesignating existing sections 9(g) and 9(h) as 
        sections 9(f) and 9(g), respectively.
    (d) Grounds for Denial of Forwarding of License Application.--
Section 9(f) (16 U.S.C. 973g), as so redesignated, is amended by 
striking ``chapter'' at the end of paragraph (4), and inserting in its 
place: ``title''.
    (e) Grandfathering of Vessels Documented Before November 3, 1995.--
Section 9(g) (16 U.S.C. 973g), as so redesignated, is amended by--
            (1) in paragraph (1), replacing ``12108'' with ``12113'';
            (2) striking ``Treaty'' after ``may fish for tuna in the'' 
        in paragraph (3) and inserting in its place: ``Licensing'';
            (3) striking ``including those waters subject to the 
        jurisdiction of the United States'' in paragraph (3) and 
        inserting in its place: ``and on the high seas and in waters 
        subject to the jurisdiction of the United States west of 146 
        W. longitude and east of 129.5 E longitude'';
            (4) striking ``treaty and'' after ``subject to the 
        provisions of the'' in paragraph (3), and inserting in its 
        place: ``Treaty,'';
            (5) inserting ``and other applicable law,'' in paragraph 
        (3) after ``this chapter,'';
            (6) striking ``fishing in the Treaty Area'' after 
        ``provided that no such vessel'' in paragraph (3); and
            (7) striking ``under the provisions of the Treaty or this 
        chapter'' at the end of paragraph (3).

SEC. 9. ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) Notice Requirements to Pacific Island Party Concerning 
Institution and Outcome of Legal Proceedings.--Section 10(c) (16 U.S.C. 
973h) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``paragraph 8 of Article 4 of'' after ``notify 
        the Pacific Island Party in accordance with'' in paragraph (1); 
        and
            (2) striking ``Article 10 of'' after ``effective date of 
        the notice under'' at the end of paragraph (1).
    (b) Searches and Seizures by Authorized Officers; Limitations on 
Power.--Section 10(d) (16 U.S.C. 973h) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (1)(A)(ii); and
            (2) inserting ``or'' at the end of paragraph (1)(A)(iii).

SEC. 10. FINDINGS BY SECRETARY.

    (a) Order of Vessel To Leave Waters Upon Failure To Submit to 
Jurisdiction of Pacific Island Party; Procedure Applicable.--Section 
11(a) (16 U.S.C. 973i) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``, all Limited Areas,'' after ``leave 
        immediately the Licensing Area'' in section 11(a);
            (2) striking ``paragraph 2 of Article 3 of'' after ``and 
        that under'' in paragraph (1)(A);
            (3) striking ``within the Treaty Area'' after ``final 
        determination deriving from a violation in waters'' in 
        paragraph (1)(C), and inserting in its place: ``under the 
        jurisdiction'';
            (4) striking ``(a)(5),'' after ``section 973c(a)(4),'' in 
        paragraph (2)(A);
            (5) striking ``(7)'' after ``section 973c(b)'' in paragraph 
        (2)(B), and inserting in its place: ``(6)''; and
            (6) striking ``(7)'' after ``section 973c(b)'' in paragraph 
        (2)(C), and inserting in its place: ``(6)''.
    (b) Order of Vessel To Leave Waters Where Pacific Island Party 
Investigating Alleged Treaty Infringement.--Section 11(b) (16 U.S.C. 
973i) is amended by striking ``paragraph 7 of Article 5 of'' after 
``Parties has been made under''.

SEC. 11. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS; DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.

    (a) Section 12(a) (16 U.S.C. 973j) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``Holders of licenses'' at the beginning of 
        section 12(a), and inserting in its place: ``Operators''; and
            (2) striking ``of part 4 of Annex I to the Treaty'' at the 
        end of section 12(a), and inserting in its place: ``established 
        by the Secretary''.
    (b) Section 12(b) (16 U.S.C. 973j) is amended by--
            (1) striking section 12(b), and inserting the following new 
        paragraphs in its place--
    ``(b) The following information shall be confidential and shall not 
be disclosed, except in accordance with subsection (c) below--
            ``(1) information provided to the Secretary by the 
        Administrator that the Administrator has designated 
        confidential;
            ``(2) observer information; and
            ``(3) any information submitted to the Secretary by any 
        person in compliance with the requirements of this title.
    ``(c) The Secretary may disclose information described in 
subsection (b):
            ``(1) if disclosure is required under court order;
            ``(2) if the information is used by Federal employees for 
        enforcement, or in support of the Coast Guard's homeland and 
        national security missions as defined in 6 U.S.C. 468;
            ``(3) if the information is used by Federal employees or 
        Fishery Management Council employees for Treaty administration 
        or fishery management and monitoring;
            ``(4) to the Administrator, in accordance with the 
        requirements of the Treaty and this title;
            ``(5) to the secretariat or equivalent of an international 
        fisheries management organization of which the United States is 
        a member, in accordance with its requirements or decisions, and 
        insofar as possible, in accordance with an agreement that 
        prevents public disclosure of the business or identity of any 
        person; or
            ``(6) if the Secretary has obtained written authorization 
        from the person providing such information, and release does 
        not violate other requirements of this title.
    ``(d) Notwithstanding subsections (b) and (c) above, the Secretary 
may, by regulations, prescribe such procedures as may be necessary to 
preserve the confidentiality of information described in subsection 
(b), except that the Secretary may release or make public any such 
information in any aggregate or summary form, which does not directly 
or indirectly disclose the identity or business of any person 
submitting such information.''.

SEC. 12. CLOSED AREA STOWAGE REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Section 13 (16 U.S.C. 973k) is amended by striking ``. In 
particular, the boom shall be lowered'' and all that follows, and 
inserting in its place: ``and in accordance with any requirements 
established by the Secretary.''.

SEC. 13. OBSERVERS.

    (a) Section 14 (16 U.S.C. 973l) is amended by striking the text of 
section 14, including subsections (a), (b), and (c), and paragraphs 
(1), (2), (3), and (4) of subsection (a), and inserting in its place: 
``Operators shall comply with the requirements established by the 
Secretary regarding vessel observers.''.

SEC. 14. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Section 15 (16 U.S.C. 973m) is amended by striking the text of 
section 15, and inserting the following new paragraph in its place--
    ``The Secretary and the Secretary of State may assist the Pacific 
Island Parties to achieve their objective of maximizing benefits to the 
Pacific Island Parties from the development of their fisheries 
resources and the operation of fishing vessels that are licensed 
pursuant to the Treaty. This may include the provision of technical 
assistance, training and capacity building opportunities, facilitation 
of the implementation of private sector activities or partnerships, and 
other activities as appropriate.''.

SEC. 15. ARBITRATION.

    (a) Section 16 (16 U.S.C. 973n) is amended by--
            (1) striking ``Article 6 of'' after ``arbitral tribunal 
        under''; and
            (2) striking ``paragraph 3 of that Article'', and inserting 
        in its place: ``the Treaty, shall determine the location of the 
        arbitration''.

SEC. 16. DISPOSITION OF FEES, PENALTIES, FORFEITURES, AND OTHER MONEYS.

    (a) Section 17 (16 U.S.C. 973o) is amended by striking ``Article 4 
of''.

SEC. 17. ADDITIONAL AGREEMENTS.

    (a) Section 18 (16 U.S.C. 973p) is amended by striking the text of 
section 18, and inserting in its place: ``The Secretary may establish 
procedures for review of any agreements for additional fishing access 
entered into pursuant to the Treaty.''.

SEC. 18. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) Section 20(a) (16 U.S.C. 973r) is amended by striking section 
20(a), including paragraphs (1) and (2), and inserting in its place: 
``(a) There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary for carrying out the purposes and provisions of the Treaty 
and this title.''.
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