1.This Act may be cited as the
Imported Seafood Safety Standards
Act
.
2.Ensuring the safety of imported
seafood
(a)Chapter VIII of the Federal Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 381 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
805.Safety of imported seafood
(a)Requirement of equivalence
(1)Standards for exporting
countryNo seafood may be
imported into the United States from a foreign country unless the Secretary
certifies that the seafood imported from such country is maintained through a
program using reliable analytical methods to ensure compliance with the United
States standards for seafood manufacturing, processing, and holding.
(2)Inspection of exporting
facilitiesIn accordance with
the procedures described under section 704, officers and employees duly
designated by the Secretary shall conduct not less than 1 inspection on an
annual basis of each foreign facility that exports seafood to the United States
to ensure that each such foreign facility maintains a program using reliable
analytical methods to ensure compliance with the United States standards for
seafood manufacturing, processing, and holding. In addition to such annual
inspection, such officers and employees shall conduct periodic follow-up
inspections of such foreign facilities as determined necessary by the
Secretary.
(b)
(1)The Secretary shall inspect and test not
less than 20 percent of all seafood imported or offered for import into the
United States each year.
(2)Notwithstanding any other provision of this
Act, the first 15 shipments of seafood imported or offered for import into the
United States from an exporter shall be inspected and tested by the
Secretary.
(3)Failure to pass inspection
(A)If a shipment of seafood imported or
offered for import into the United States by an exporter fails to meet an
inspection or test requirements, each subsequent shipment of seafood from such
exporter shall be inspected and tested by the Secretary, until 15 consecutive
shipments pass inspection and testing.
(B)
(i)If more than 3 shipments of seafood
imported or offered for import into the United States by an exporter fail to
meet inspection or tests requirements during any 1-year period, no shipments
from such exporter may be imported or offered for import into the United States
for the following 1-year period. Following such 1-year period when no shipments
may be so imported or offered, such exporter shall not be permitted to offer
imports to the United States unless the Secretary certifies that such exporter
is maintaining a program using reliable analytical methods to ensure compliance
with the United States standards for seafood manufacturing, processing, and
holding.
(ii)Determination by SecretaryShipments of seafood imported or offered
for import into the United States by an exporter that has been subject to a
1-year suspension period and a certification under clause (i) shall be
inspected at a rate determined appropriate by the Secretary for a period of
time as determined appropriate by the Secretary.
(C)If the Secretary determines that shipments
of seafood imported or offered for import into the United States from a
particular country repeatedly fail to meet inspection or testing requirements,
all shipments of seafood from such country shall be refused entry into the
United States until the Secretary makes a certification described under
subsection (a).
(D)The testing and inspections procedures used
under this paragraph shall be carried out in accordance with section
801.
(4)The Secretary shall by regulation impose
such fees on exporters in such amounts as may be necessary to provide, equip,
and maintain an adequate and efficient inspection service to carry out this
subsection. Receipts from such fees shall be covered into the Treasury and
shall be available to the Secretary for expenditures incurred in carrying out
the purposes of this subsection, including expenditures for salaries of
additional inspectors when necessary to supplement the number of inspectors for
whose salaries Congress has appropriated.
(c)Effect of shipments that fail To meet
requirements
(1)Notwithstanding section 801, if a shipment
of seafood imported or offered for import into the United States fails to meet
safety standards established by the Secretary, such shipment shall be detained
or destroyed unless the imported shipment meets criteria for re-export, as
determined by the Secretary.
(2)If a shipment of seafood has been refused
admission under paragraph (1), other than such a shipment that is required to
be destroyed, the Secretary shall require the owner or consignee of the
shipment to affix to the container of the seafood a label that clearly and
conspicuously bears the statement: UNITED STATES: REFUSED
ENTRY
.
(3)Exporting to foreign countryIf the appropriate authority of a foreign
country notifies the Secretary, not later than 45 days after the shipment is
rejected under paragraph (1), that the shipment will be accepted in that
country, such shipment may be released to the importer for exportation to such
foreign country.
(4)If the Secretary deems that a shipment
rejected under paragraph (1), if it were to have been allowed entry, could have
caused significant health risks if consumed by humans, the shipment shall be
destroyed notwithstanding the receipt of a notification under paragraph
(3).
(5)Notification to ports of
entryThe Secretary shall
notify ports of entry not later than 5 days after a shipment described in
paragraph (1)—
(A)was determined to fail to meet safety
standards established by the Secretary under such paragraph; or
(B)was detained or destroyed.
(d)
(1)Notwithstanding any other provision of this
chapter, seafood may be imported or offered for import at only those ports of
entry into the United States that have the personnel trained to conduct the
applicable testing and inspection of seafood, as certified by the Secretary
under paragraph (2).
(2)The Secretary shall certify which ports of
entry into the United States have the personnel trained to conduct the
applicable testing and inspection of seafood.
(3)Effect of certification
requirementIf a port of
entry—
(A)was, on the day before the date of
enactment of this section, a port of entry that accepted seafood imported or
offered for import into the United States; and
(B)does not meet the requirements for
certification under paragraph (2),
the Secretary shall, as soon as
practicable after the date of enactment of this section, provide proper
personnel levels and training to enable such port to be certified under
paragraph (2).(e)On an annual basis, the Secretary shall
submit to Congress a report that describes the implementation of this section,
including—
(1)summary data relating to inspections and
testing under this section, and any noncompliance with the applicable
provisions of this Act; and
(2)recommendations of any improvements or
other modifications to this section determined necessary by the
Secretary.
(f)Authorization of
appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this
section.
.
(b)Prohibited act; penaltiesChapter III of the Federal Food, Drug, and
Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 331 et seq.) is amended—
(1)in section 301, by adding at the end the
following:
(uu)The making of a knowingly false statement
with respect to a test or inspection carried out under section 805, or
knowingly misbranding any seafood imported under such
section.
;
and
(2)in section 303, by adding at the end the
following:
(h)(1)Any person who violates section 301(uu)
shall be subject to a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $250,000 for
each such violation, and not to exceed $1,100,000 for all such violations after
the second conviction in any 3-year period.
(2)Paragraphs (5), (6), and (7) of subsection
(f) shall apply to a civil penalty assessment under this subsection in the same
manner as such paragraphs apply to a civil penalty assessment under subsection
(f)(1).
.
3.Cooperation with States to conduct
inspectionsChapter VIII of
the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 381 et seq.), as amended by
section 2, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
805A.Cooperation with States to conduct seafood
inspections
(a)Establishment of cooperative inspection
programThe Secretary may
establish a program under which a State may conduct inspection, testing, and
certification of seafood imported or offered for import into the United
States.
(b)Under the program established under
subsection (a)—
(1)the Secretary shall—
(A)provide training to State officials to
enable such officials to carry out inspection, testing, and certification, in
accordance with Federal requirements and safety standards, of seafood imported
or offered for import into the United States; and
(B)certify such State officials as authorized
agents of the Federal Government to carry out such inspections, testing, and
certification; and
(2)a State that receives a grant under
subsection (c) shall—
(A)comply with all requirements of the
Secretary with respect to the training and certification of State officials
described under paragraph (1);
(B)inspect, test, and certify, in accordance
with Federal requirements and safety standards, seafood imported or offered for
import into the United States; and
(C)carry out any other activities as
determined necessary by the Secretary to ensure the safety of seafood imported
or offered for import into the United States.
(c)
(1)The Secretary shall award grants to States
to carry out the cooperative seafood inspection program established under
subsection (a).
(2)To be eligible to receive a grant under
paragraph (1), a State shall submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may
require.
(d)Authorization of
appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this
section.
.