[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1304 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1304

 To make funds available to reimburse certain fishermen for legal fees 
  and costs incurred in connection with improper fines and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 29, 2011

   Mr. Kerry introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To make funds available to reimburse certain fishermen for legal fees 
  and costs incurred in connection with improper fines 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 Fee Fairness Act of 
2011''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate legal fees and costs.--The term 
        ``appropriate legal fees and costs'' means the legal fees and 
        costs incurred by a covered person--
                    (A) that the Secretary determines were 
                appropriately incurred by the covered person in 
                association with challenging a fisheries enforcement 
                penalty that was directed to be remitted to the covered 
                person; and
                    (B) prior to the date that is 30 days after such a 
                fisheries enforcement penalty was directed to be 
                remitted to the covered person by the Secretary.
            (2) Covered person.--The term ``covered person'' means--
                    (A) a person that the Secretary directed be 
                remitted a fisheries enforcement penalty in the 
                Decision Memorandum; or
                    (B) a person that--
                            (i) received a Notice of Violation and 
                        Assessment for a fisheries enforcement penalty 
                        issued on or after March 17, 1994, that was 
                        settled or otherwise resolved prior to February 
                        3, 2010;
                            (ii) paid a civil penalty for such 
                        fisheries enforcement penalty;
                            (iii) submitted a complaint prior to May 7, 
                        2011, seeking remittance of such civil penalty; 
                        and
                            (iv) the Secretary directs receive such 
                        remittance or a portion of such remittance.
            (3) Decision memorandum.--The term ``Decision Memorandum'' 
        means the Secretarial Decision Memorandum issued by the 
        Secretary on May 17, 2011, entitled Decisions regarding Certain 
        NOAA Fisheries Enforcement Cases Based on Special Master 
        Swartwood's Report and Recommendations.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Commerce.

SEC. 3. AUTHORITY TO REIMBURSE LEGAL FEES AND COSTS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
Secretary may use sums made available under section 311(e)(1) of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 
1861(e)(1)) to reimburse appropriate legal fees and costs to covered 
persons.
    (b) Timing.--
            (1) Submission of request.--A covered person seeking 
        reimbursement of appropriate legal fees and costs under 
        subsection (a) shall submit to the Secretary a request for such 
        reimbursement--
                    (A) in the case the covered person is described in 
                section 2(2)(A), not later than 1 year after the date 
                of the enactment of this Act; or
                    (B) in the case of a covered person described in 
                section 2(2)(B), not later than 1 year after the date 
                the Secretary directs such covered person receive a 
                remittance of a fisheries enforcement penalty.
            (2) Determination.--Not later than 90 days after receiving 
        an application under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall make a 
        final determination on whether to provide such reimbursement 
        and the amount of any such reimbursement.
    (c) Maximum Reimbursement.--The Secretary may not provide more than 
$200,000 in reimbursement of appropriate legal fees and costs under 
subsection (a) to a covered person.
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