16 U.S.C. § 1826i

Current through P.L. 118-106 (published on www.congress.gov on 10/04/2024)

Section 1826i - Action to strengthen international fishery management organizations

(a) In general

The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State, and in cooperation with relevant fishery management councils and any relevant advisory committees, shall take actions to improve the effectiveness of international fishery management organizations, or arrangements made pursuant to an international fishery agreement, in conserving and managing fish stocks under their jurisdiction. These actions shall include-

(1) urging international fishery management organizations to which the United States is a member-

(A) to incorporate multilateral market-related measures against member or nonmember governments whose vessels engage in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing;

(B) to seek adoption of lists that identify fishing vessels and vessel owners engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing that can be shared among all members and other international fishery management organizations;

(C) to seek international adoption of a centralized vessel monitoring system in order to monitor and document capacity in fleets of all nations involved in fishing in areas under an international fishery management organization's jurisdiction;

(D) to increase use of observers and technologies needed to monitor compliance with conservation and management measures established by the organization, including vessel monitoring systems and automatic identification systems;

(E) to seek adoption of stronger port state controls in all nations, particularly those nations in whose ports vessels engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing land or transship fish; and

(F) to adopt shark conservation measures, including measures to prohibit removal of any of the fins of a shark (including the tail) and discarding the carcass of the shark at sea;

(2) urging international fishery management organizations to which the United States is a member, as well as all members of those organizations, to adopt and expand the use of market-related measures to combat illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing, including-

(A) import prohibitions, landing restrictions, or other market-based measures needed to enforce compliance with international fishery management organization measures, such as quotas and catch limits;

(B) import restrictions or other market-based measures to prevent the trade or importation of fish caught by vessels identified multilaterally as engaging in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing; and

(C) catch documentation and certification schemes to improve tracking and identification of catch of vessels engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing, including advance transmission of catch documents to ports of entry;

(3) seeking to enter into international agreements that require measures for the conservation of sharks, including measures to prohibit removal of any of the fins of a shark (including the tail) and discarding the carcass of the shark at sea, that are comparable to those of the United States, taking into account different conditions; and

(4) urging other nations at bilateral, regional, and international levels, including the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora and the World Trade Organization to take all steps necessary, consistent with international law, to adopt measures and policies that will prevent fish or other living marine resources harvested by vessels engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing from being traded or imported into their nation or territories.

(b) Disclosure of information

(1) In general

The Secretary, subject to the data confidentiality provisions in section 402 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1881a) except as provided in paragraph (2), may disclose, as necessary and appropriate, information, including information collected under joint authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) and the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act of 1975 ( 16 U.S.C. 71 et seq.), the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act (16 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.), any other statute implementing an international fishery agreement, to any other Federal or State government agency, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, or the secretariat or equivalent of an international fishery management organization or arrangement made pursuant to an international fishery agreement, if such government, organization, or arrangement, respectively, has policies and procedures to protect such information from unintended or unauthorized disclosure.

(2) Exceptions

The data confidentiality provisions in section 402 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1881a) shall not apply with respect to this Act-

(A) for obligations of the United States to share information under a regional fisheries management organization (as that term is defined by the United Nation's¹ Food and Agriculture Organization Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing) of which the United States is a member; or

(B) to any information collected by the Secretary regarding foreign vessels.

(c) IUU vessel lists

The Secretary may-

(1) develop, maintain, and make public a list of vessels and vessel owners engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing or fishing-related activities in support of illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing, including vessels or vessel owners identified by an international fishery management organization or arrangement made pursuant to an international fishery agreement, that-

(A) the United States is party to; or

(B) the United States is not party to, but whose procedures and criteria in developing and maintaining a list of such vessels and vessel owners are substantially similar to such procedures and criteria adopted pursuant to an international fishery agreement to which the United States is a party; and

(2) take appropriate action against listed vessels and vessel owners, including action against fish, fish parts, or fish products from such vessels, in accordance with applicable United States law and consistent with applicable international law, including principles, rights, and obligations established in applicable international fishery management agreements and trade agreements.

(d) Regulations

The Secretary may promulgate regulations to implement this section.

¹So in original.

16 U.S.C. § 1826i

Pub. L. 104-43, title VI, §608, as added Pub. L. 109-479, title IV, §403(a), Jan. 12, 2007, 120 Stat. 3627; amended Pub. L. 111-348, title I, §102(a), Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 3668; Pub. L. 114-81, title I, §101(b), Nov. 5, 2015, 129 Stat. 653.

EDITORIAL NOTES

REFERENCES IN TEXTThe Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), is Pub. L. 94-265, Apr. 13, 1976, 90 Stat. 331, which is classified principally to chapter 38 (§1801 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1801 of this title and Tables.The Atlantic Tunas Convention Act of 1975, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), is Pub. L. 94-70, Aug. 5, 1975, 89 Stat. 385, which is classified generally to chapter 16A (§971 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 971 of this title and Tables.The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), is Pub. L. 109-479, 120 Stat. 3635, which is classified generally to chapter 88 (§6901 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 6901 of this title and Tables.This Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(2), probably means title VI of Pub. L. 104-43, 109 Stat. 391, known as the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act, which is classified generally to sections 1826d to 1826k of this title. For complete classification of title VI to the Code, see Short Title of 1995 Amendment note set out under section 1801 of this title and Tables.

CODIFICATIONSection was enacted as part of the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act, and also as part of the Fisheries Act of 1995, and not as part of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act which comprises this chapter.

AMENDMENTS2015- Pub. L. 114-81 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a), inserted heading and ",or arrangements made pursuant to an international fishery agreement," after "organizations" in introductory provisions, and added subsecs. (b) to (d). 2011-Par. (1)(F). Pub. L. 111-348, §102(a)(1), added subpar. (F).Par. (2)(C). Pub. L. 111-348, §102(a)(2), struck out "and" at end.Par. (3). Pub. L. 111-348, §102(a)(4), added par. (3). Former par. (3) redesignated (4).Par. (4). Pub. L. 111-348, §102(a)(3), redesignated par. (3) as (4).

STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES

CONSTRUCTION Pub. L. 111-348, title I, §104, as added by Pub. L. 115-228, §2(1), Aug. 2, 2018, 132 Stat. 1628, provided that: "Nothing in this title [see Short Title of 2011 Amendment note set out under section 1801 of this title] or the amendments made by this title shall be construed as affecting, altering, or diminishing in any way the authority of the Secretary of Commerce to establish such conservation and management measures as the Secretary considers necessary and appropriate under sections 302(a)(3) and 304(g) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(a)(3), 1854(g))." [Another section 104 of Pub. L. 111-348 amended section 4107 of this title, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 115-228, §2(1), Aug. 2, 2018, 132 Stat. 1628.]

Secretary: The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Commerce or his designee.
State: The term "State" means each of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and any other Commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United States.
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.
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.
fishing: The term "fishing" means-(A) the catching, taking, or harvesting of fish;(B) the attempted catching, taking, or harvesting of fish;(C) any other activity which can reasonably be expected to result in the catching, taking, or harvesting of fish; or(D) any operations at sea in support of, or in preparation for, any activity described in subparagraphs (A) through (C).Such term does not include any scientific research activity which is conducted by a scientific research vessel.
high seas: The term "high seas" means all waters beyond the territorial sea of the United States and beyond any foreign nation's territorial sea, to the extent that such sea is recognized by the United States.
international fishery agreement: The term "international fishery agreement" means any bilateral or multilateral treaty, convention, or agreement which relates to fishing and to which the United States is a party.