[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1431 Introduced in House (IH)]






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 
                               Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 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.

    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 ``Fisheries Science and Management 
Enhancement Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. VOTING MEMBERS OF REGIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCILS.

    (a) Appointment of Members.--Section 302(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
Fishery Conservation and Management 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 interests 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 Secretary, 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 subparagraph (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 
                        active'';
                            (ii) by striking the period at the end of 
                        the first sentence and inserting the following: 
                        ``and representatives of the public interest in 
                        marine fish conservation who are knowledgeable 
                        regarding the conservation and management of 
                        the fishery resources of the geographic area 
                        concerned. Such representatives of the public 
                        interest in marine conservation may not include 
                        individuals 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 
                        organizations'' after ``commercial and 
                        recreational 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 commercial 
                        fishing industry sector, the recreational 
                        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. Candidates 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 commercial or recreational fishing.''; and
                            (iii) in the fifth sentence (after the 
                        amendment made by clause (ii) of this 
                        subparagraph) by striking ``such requirements'' 
                        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 section 307(2)''
    (b) Training of Appointed Members.--
            (1) In general.--Section 302(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens 
        Fishery Conservation and Management 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 
                        economics;
                            ``(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 Administrative 
                        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 member of a Council 
                to whom the Secretary is required to provide training 
                under this paragraph may not vote on any decision of 
                the Council before the date the member completes such 
                training.
                    ``(C) Training available to the public.--The 
                Secretary may provide training offered 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 
                member 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 applicable.--
                Subparagraph (B) of paragraph (7) of section 307(b) of 
                the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
                Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(b)), as amended by this 
                subsection, shall not apply to a member of a Regional 
                Fishery Management Council to whom the Secretary is 
                required to provide training under subparagraph (A) of 
                this paragraph.

SEC. 3. REGIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT COUNCIL COMMITTEES AND PANELS.

    (a) Science and Statistical Committees.--Section 302(g)(1) of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1852(g)(1)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(1) Science and statistical committees.--
                    ``(A) Requirement to establish.--Each Council shall 
                establish and maintain a science and statistical 
                committee to assist the Council in the development, 
                collection, and evaluation of such statistical, 
                biological, economic, social, and other scientific 
                information as is relevant to the Council's development 
                and amendment of any fishery management plan. The 
                members of the science and statistical committee shall 
                consist of qualified Federal, State, academic, or 
                independent scientists, and shall be appointed and paid 
                a stipend by the Secretary.
                    ``(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 subcommittee.
                    ``(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 
                        information available, determine for the 
                        Council--
                                    ``(I) biological catch (including 
                                bycatch) limits, including annual 
                                limits, that will prevent overfishing, 
                                rebuild 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 
                                Council'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 subcommittee's 
                        determinations and create a public record of 
                        such input and the subcommittee's response to 
                        such input;
                            ``(iii) publish its determinations in the 
                        Federal Register; and
                            ``(iv) review all conservation and 
                        management measures developed by the Council 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 recommend 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 Recommendations.--Section 302(g)(5) of 
the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 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 committees pursuant to paragraph 
(1)(C)(i),'' after ``under this subsection''.
    (c) Effect of Decisions and Recommendations.--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 independent 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 economics 
                        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 Fishery 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 individual 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 financial 
                interest.--At the request of an affected individual or 
                a member of the public, or upon the initiative of the 
                appropriate designated official, the designated 
                official shall make a determination for the record 
                whether a Council decision would have an effect on the 
                financial interest of an affected individual referred 
                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 review any determination by the 
                designated official 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 decision before the Secretary 
                has completed a review under subparagraph (C), the 
                eventual ruling by the Secretary in the review shall be 
                treated as a cause for invalidation or reconsideration 
                by the Secretary of such decision, if the Secretary 
                determines that the Council decision had an effect on 
                the financial interest of an affected 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 promulgate regulations that--
                            ``(i) prohibit an affected individual from 
                        voting in accordance with subparagraph (A); and
                            ``(ii) allow for the making of 
                        determinations 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 individual is in compliance with the regulations 
        prescribed 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 subparagraph (C), and by 
        adding at the end the following:
                    ``(D) in the case of a plan developed by a Council, 
                at least as stringent as (or more stringent than) the 
                matters determined under section 302(g)(1)(C)(i) by the 
                fishery and marine science subcommittee of the 
                Council;''; and
            (3) by amending paragraph (14) to read as follows:
            ``(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 Conservation 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 section 
                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 request for review under that 
        paragraph, shall not affect any requirement that a Council 
        implement a determination 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 Conservation 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 fishing 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 unavoidable 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 Agriculture 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 
collected under the customs laws on fishery products (including 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 purpose of 
        carrying out fisheries research and development projects 
        approved under subsection (c);
            ``(2) to implement the national fisheries research 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 capacity 
        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 Magnuson-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 following:
``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 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 
                Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(k)).''.
                                 <all>