Short title

This Act may be cited as the

American Angler Preservation Act

Improving scientific review

Section 302 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852) is amended— (1)in subsection (g)(1)(B)— (A)by inserting (i) after (B); (B)by inserting risk neutral before scientific advice; and (C)by adding at the end the following:

(i)A scientific and statistical committee may not provide a recommendation to increase or decrease an annual catch limit by 20 percent or greater unless the recommendation has been approved in a peer review process conducted exclusively by non-governmental entities.

; and

(2)in subsection (h)(7)— (A)by striking and after the semicolon at the end of subparagraph (B); and (B)by adding at the end the following:

(D)be submitted to Congress; and

Extension of time period for rebuilding certain overfished fisheries

Section 304(e) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1854(e)(4)) is amended— (1)in paragraph (4)(A)— (A)in clause (i), by striking possible and inserting practicable; and (B)by amending clause (ii) to read as follows:

(ii)not exceed 10 years, except in cases where— (I)the biology of the stock of fish, other environmental conditions, or management measures under an international agreement in which the United States participates dictate otherwise; (II)the Secretary determines that such 10-year period should be extended because the cause of the fishery decline is outside the jurisdiction of the Council or the rebuilding program cannot be effective only by limiting fishing activities; (III)the Secretary determines that such 10-year period should be extended to provide for the sustained participation of fishing communities or to minimize the economic impacts on such communities, provided that there is evidence that the stock of fish is on a positive rebuilding trend; (IV)the Secretary determines that such 10-year period should be extended for one or more stocks of fish of a multi-species fishery, provided that there is evidence that those stocks are on a positive rebuilding trend; (V)the Secretary determines that such 10-year period should be extended because of a substantial change to the biomass rebuilding target for the stock of fish concerned after the rebuilding plan has taken effect; or (VI)the Secretary determines that such 10-year period should be extended because the biomass rebuilding target exceeds the highest abundance of the stock of fish in the 25-year period preceding and there is evidence that the stock is on a positive rebuilding trend;

; and

(2)in paragraph (7), in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting after the first sentence the following: In evaluating progress to end overfishing and to rebuild overfished stocks of fish, the Secretary shall review factors, other than commercial fishing and recreational fishing, that may contribute to a stock of fish’s overfished status, such as commercial, residential, and industrial development of, or agricultural activity in, coastal areas and their impact on the marine environment, predator/prey relationships of target and related species, and other environmental and ecological changes to the marine conditions.; and (3)by adding at the end the following:

(8)If the Secretary determines that extended rebuilding time is warranted under subclause (III), (IV), (V), or (VI) of paragraph (4)(A)(ii), the maximum time allowed for rebuilding the stock of fish concerned may not exceed the sum of the following time periods: (A)The initial 10-year rebuilding period. (B)The expected time to rebuild the stock absent any fishing mortality and under prevailing environmental conditions. (C)The mean generation time of the stock. (9)In this subsection the term on a positive rebuilding trend means that the biomass of the stock of fish has shown a substantial increase in abundance since the implementation of the rebuilding plan.

Deadline for disaster declarations

Section 312(a)(1) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1861a) is amended— (1)by inserting (A) after (1); (2)by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through (C), respectively, as clauses (i) through (iii); and (3)by adding at the end the following:

(B)When acting on the request of the Governor of an affected State or a fishing community, the Secretary shall make the determination not later than 60 days after the date on which the Secretary receives the request.

Approval of limited access privilege programs

(a)

Initiation by eligible fishermen

Section 303A(c)(6)(D) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853a(c)(6)) is amended to read as follows:

(D)

New England, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Gulf initiation

(i)

In general

In the case of a fishery under the authority of the New England, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, or Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, a fishery management plan or an amendment to a fishery management plan that would establish a limited access privilege program to harvest fish may not take effect unless— (I)a petition requesting development of such a program is submitted in accordance with clause (ii) and certified under clause (iii); and (II)the proposed plan or amendment has been approved by a vote of two-thirds of eligible fishermen in the fishery for which the program would be established. (ii)

Petition

A group of fishermen constituting more than 50 percent of eligible fishermen in a fishery may submit a petition to the Secretary requesting the development of a limited access privilege program for the fishery. Any such petition shall clearly state the fishery to which the limited access privilege program would apply. (iii)

Certification by Secretary

Upon the receipt of any such petition, the Secretary shall review all of the signatures on the petition and, if the Secretary determines that the signatures on the petition are those of more than 50 percent of eligible fishermen in the fishery for which the program would be established, the Secretary shall certify the petition. (iv)

Definition of eligible fishermen

For purposes of this subparagraph, the term eligible fishermen means holders of permits issued under a fishery management plan.

(b)

Termination after five years

Section 303A of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853a) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(j)

Termination

A limited access privilege program for a fishery under the authority of the New England, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, or Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council shall terminate at the end of the five-year period beginning on the date that the program is established unless at least two-thirds of eligible fishermen (as defined in subsection (c)(6)) in the fishery to which the program applies approve the continuation of the program.

Certification required for fishery closure

(a)

Secretarial requirements

(1)

Certification requirement

Section 303 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1853) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(d)

Certification required for fishery closure

(1)The Secretary may not implement a closure of a fishery that would have a direct or indirect affect of at least $50,000 on each of more than 25 small businesses that do business related to the recreational, charter, or commercial fishing industries involved in the fishery being closed, unless the Secretary certifies that— (A)the closure is the only option available for maintaining the fishery at a sustainable level; (B)the stock assessment for the fishery has been updated and peer reviewed within the preceding 3-year period; and (C)the stock assessment was developed using at least 2 models that were subjected to outside peer review by non-governmental entities prior to such use. (2)In this subsection, the term small business means any business that has had gross revenues of less than $500,000 per year for a minimum of three years.

(2)

Application to existing closures

The Secretary shall— (A)review any fishery closure for which notice was published in the Federal Register within the 2-year period preceding the date of enactment of this Act, and— (i)within the 60-day period beginning on such date of enactment, make the certification described in the amendment made by subsection (a)(1) with respect to such closure; or (ii)within the 90-day period beginning on such date of enactment, review and implement options other than closure for maintaining the fishery at a sustainable level; (B)review the effects of each such closure on coastal communities, including— (i)the direct and indirect impact of the closure on all affected small businesses in such communities; (ii)the job losses as a result of the closure that have already occurred in such communities; and (iii)the job losses as a result of the closure that are expected to occur in such communities within the 1-year period beginning on the date the review is initiated; and (C)report to Congress on the actions taken under the amendment made by subsection (a)(1) or this paragraph for each such closure. (b)

Report to Congress

The Secretary shall report to Congress by not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act on— (1)the number of fishery closures that were established within the 5-year period preceding such date of enactment; (2)the reason for each such closure; (3)the duration of each such closure; (4)the impact of each such closure on coastal communities; and (5)the expected duration of each such closure. (c)

Definitions

In this section: (1)

Fishery

The term fishery has the meaning given that term in section 3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802). (2)

Secretary

The term Secretary means the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (3)

Small business

The term small business means any business that has had gross revenues of less than $500,000 per year for a minimum of three years.