16 U.S.C. § 1811

Current through P.L. 118-40 (published on www.congress.gov on 03/01/2024)
Section 1811 - United States sovereign rights to fish and fishery management authority
(a) In the exclusive economic zone

Except as provided in section 1812 of this title, the United States claims, and will exercise in the manner provided for in this chapter, sovereign rights and exclusive fishery management authority over all fish, and all Continental Shelf fishery resources, within the exclusive economic zone.

(b) Beyond the exclusive economic zone

The United States claims, and will exercise in the manner provided for in this chapter, exclusive fishery management authority over the following:

(1) All anadromous species throughout the migratory range of each such species beyond the exclusive economic zone; except that that management authority does not extend to any such species during the time they are found within any waters of a foreign nation.
(2) All Continental Shelf fishery resources beyond the exclusive economic zone.

16 U.S.C. § 1811

Pub. L. 94-265, title I, §101, Apr. 13, 1976, 90 Stat. 336; Pub. L. 99-659, title I, §101(b), Nov. 14, 1986, 100 Stat. 3706; Pub. L. 101-627, title I, §102(b), Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 4438; Pub. L. 102-251, title III, §301(c), Mar. 9, 1992, 106 Stat. 62.

Amendment of Section Pub. L. 102-251, title III, §§301(c), Mar. 9, 1992, 308, Mar. 9, 1992, 106 Stat. 62, 66, provided that, effective on the date on which the Agreement between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Maritime Boundary, signed June 1, 1990, enters into force for the United States, with authority to prescribe implementing regulations effective Mar. 9, 1992, but with no such regulation to be effective until the date on which the Agreement enters into force for the United States, subsection (a) is amended by inserting "and special areas" before the period at the end and subsection (b) is amended by inserting after paragraph (2) the following new paragraph: (3) All fishery resources in the special areas.

EDITORIAL NOTES

REFERENCES IN TEXTThis chapter, referred to in text, was in the original "this Act", meaning Pub. L. 94-265, Apr. 13, 1976, 90 Stat. 331, known as the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1801 of this title and Tables.

AMENDMENTS1990-Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 101-627 substituted "any waters of a foreign nation" for "any foreign nation's territorial sea or exclusive economic zone (or the equivalent), to the extent that that sea or zone is recognized by the United States".1986- Pub. L. 99-659 amended section generally. Prior to amendment, section read as follows: "There is established a zone contiguous to the territorial sea of the United States to be known as the fishery conservation zone. The inner boundary of the fishery conservation zone is a line coterminous with the seaward boundary of each of the coastal States, and the outer boundary of such zone is a line drawn in such a manner that each point on it is 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the territorial sea is measured."

STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES

EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1992 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 102-251 effective on date on which Agreement between United States and Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Maritime Boundary, signed June 1, 1990, enters into force for United States, with authority to prescribe implementing regulations effective Mar. 9, 1992, but with no such regulation to be effective until date on which Agreement enters into force for United States, see section 308 of Pub. L. 102-251 set out as a note under section 773 of this title.

Continental Shelf fishery resources
The term "Continental Shelf fishery resources" means the following:
anadromous species
The term "anadromous species" means species of fish which spawn in fresh or estuarine waters of the United States and which migrate to ocean waters.
conservation and management
The term "conservation and management" refers to all of the rules, regulations, conditions, methods, and other measures (A) which are required to rebuild, restore, or maintain, and which are useful in rebuilding, restoring, or maintaining, any fishery resource and the marine environment; and (B) which are designed to assure that-(i) a supply of food and other products may be taken, and that recreational benefits may be obtained, on a continuing basis;(ii) irreversible or long-term adverse effects on fishery resources and the marine environment are avoided; and(iii) there will be a multiplicity of options available with respect to future uses of these resources.
exclusive economic zone
The term "exclusive economic zone" means the zone established by Proclamation Numbered 5030, dated March 10, 1983. For purposes of applying this chapter, the inner boundary of that zone is a line coterminous with the seaward boundary of each of the coastal States.
fish
The term "fish" means finfish, mollusks, crustaceans, and all other forms of marine animal and plant life other than marine mammals and birds.
fishery
The term "fishery" means-(A) one or more stocks of fish which can be treated as a unit for purposes of conservation and management and which are identified on the basis of geographical, scientific, technical, recreational, and economic characteristics; and(B) any fishing for such stocks.
special areas
The term "special areas" means the areas referred to as eastern special areas in Article 3(1) of the Agreement between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Maritime Boundary, signed June 1, 1990. In particular, the term refers to those areas east of the maritime boundary, as defined in that Agreement, that lie within 200 nautical miles of the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea of Russia is measured but beyond 200 nautical miles of the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea of the United States is measured.
waters of a foreign nation
The term "waters of a foreign nation" means any part of the territorial sea or exclusive economic zone (or the equivalent) of a foreign nation, to the extent such territorial sea or exclusive economic zone is recognized by the United States.1 See Codification note below.