[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 110 (Wednesday, July 30, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8294-S8311]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM ACT
Mr. McCAIN. I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to
the consideration of S. 39 as under the consent agreement.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 39) to amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 to support the International Dolphin Conservation
Program in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, and for other
purposes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate
consideration of the bill?
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
bill, which had been reported from the Committee on Commerce, Science,
and Transportation, with an amendment to strike all after the enacting
clause and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the
``International Dolphin Conservation Program Act''.
(b) References to Marine Mammal Protection Act.--Except as
otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to,
or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference
shall be considered to be made to a section or other
provision of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16
U.S.C. 1361 et seq.).
SEC. 2. PURPOSE AND FINDINGS.
(a) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to give effect to the Declaration of Panama, signed
October 4, 1995, by the Governments of Belize, Colombia,
Costa Rica, Ecuador, France, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Spain,
the United States of America, Vanuatu, and Venezuela,
including the establishment of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program, relating to the protection of dolphins
and other species, and the conservation and management of
tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean;
(2) to recognize that nations fishing for tuna in the
eastern tropical Pacific Ocean have achieved significant
reductions in dolphin mortality associated with that fishery;
and
(3) to eliminate the ban on imports of tuna from those
nations that are in compliance with the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.
(b) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
(1) the nations that fish for tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean have achieved significant reductions in dolphin
mortality associated with the purse seine fishery from
hundreds of thousands annually to fewer than 5,000 annually;
(2) the provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 that impose a ban on imports from nations that fish for
tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean have served as an
incentive to reduce dolphin mortalities;
(3) tuna canners and processors of the United States have
led the canning and processing industry in promoting a
dolphin-safe tuna market; and
(4) 12 signatory nations to the Declaration of Panama,
including the United States, agreed under that Declaration to
require that the total annual dolphin mortality in the purse
seine fishery for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean not exceed 5,000 animals, with a commitment and
objective to progressively reduce dolphin mortality to a
level approaching zero through the setting of annual limits
with the goal of eliminating dolphin mortality.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1362) is amended by adding at the end
the following new paragraphs:
``(28) The term `International Dolphin Conservation
Program' means the international program established by the
agreement signed in LaJolla, California, in June, 1992, as
formalized, modified, and enhanced in accordance with the
Declaration of Panama, that requires--
``(A) that the total annual dolphin mortality in the purse
seine fishery for yellow fin tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean shall not exceed 5,000 animals with a
commitment and objective to progressively reduce dolphin
mortality to a level approaching zero through the setting of
annual limits;
``(B) the establishment of a per stock per year dolphin
mortality limit at a level between 0.2 percent and 0.1
percent of the minimum population estimate to be in effect
through calendar year 2000;
``(C) the establishment of a per stock per year dolphin
mortality limit at a level less than or equal to 0.1 percent
of the minimum population estimate beginning with the
calendar year 2001;
``(D) that if a dolphin mortality limit is exceeded under--
``(i) subparagraph (A), all sets on dolphins shall cease
for the applicable fishing year; and
``(ii) subparagraph (B) or (C), all sets on the stocks
covered under subparagraph (B) or (C) and any mixed schools
that contain any of those stocks shall cease for the
applicable fishing year;
``(E) a scientific review and assessment to be conducted in
calendar year 1998 to--
``(i) assess progress in meeting the objectives set for
calendar year 2000 under subparagraph (B); and
``(ii) as appropriate, consider recommendations for meeting
these objectives;
``(F) a scientific review and assessment to be conducted in
calendar year 2000--
``(i) to review the stocks covered under subparagraph (C);
and
``(ii) as appropriate to consider recommendations to
further the objectives set under that subparagraph;
``(G) the establishment of a per vessel maximum annual
dolphin mortality limit consistent with the established per-
year mortality limits, as determined under subparagraphs (A)
through (C); and
``(H) the provision of a system of incentives to vessel
captains to continue to reduce dolphin mortality, with the
goal of eliminating dolphin mortality.
``(29) The term `Declaration of Panama' means the
declaration signed in Panama City, Republic of Panama, on
October 4, 1995.''.
SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE I.
(a) Section 101(a)(2) (16 U.S.C. 1371(a)(2)) is amended--
(1) by inserting after the first sentence ``Such
authorizations may be granted under title III with respect to
purse seine fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean, subject to regulations prescribed
under that title by the Secretary without regard to section
103'' before the period; and
(2) by striking the semicolon in the second sentence and
all that follows through ``practicable''.
(b) Section 101(a)(2) (16 U.S.C. 1371(a)(2)) is amended--
(1) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the
following:
``(B) in the case of yellowfin tuna harvested with purse
seine nets in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, and
products therefrom, to be exported to the United States,
shall require that the government of the exporting nation
provide documentary evidence that--
``(i)(I) the tuna or products therefrom were not banned
from importation under this paragraph before the effective
date of the International Dolphin Conservation Program Act;
or
``(II) the tuna or products therefrom were harvested after
the effective date of the International Dolphin Conservation
Program Act by vessels of a nation which participates in the
International Dolphin Conservation Program, and such
harvesting nation is either a member of the Inter-American
Tropical Tuna Commission or has initiated (and within 6
months thereafter completed) all steps required of applicant
nations, in accordance with article V, paragraph 3 of the
Convention establishing the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission, to become a member of that organization;
``(ii) such nation is meeting the obligations of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program and the
obligations of membership in the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission, including all financial obligations; and
``(iii) the total dolphin mortality limits, and per stock
per year dolphin mortality limits permitted for that nation's
vessels under the International Dolphin Conservation Program
do not exceed those levels determined for 1996, or in any
year thereafter, consistent with a commitment and objective
to progressively reduce dolphin mortality to a level
approaching zero through the setting of annual limits and the
goal of eliminating dolphin mortality, and requirements of
the International Dolphin Conservation Program; and''
(2) by redesignating subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E) as
subparagraphs (D), (E), and (F), respectively;
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
``(C) the Secretary shall not accept such documentary
evidence if--
``(i) the government of the harvesting nation does not
provide directly or authorize the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission to release complete and accurate information
to the Secretary in a timely manner to allow determination of
compliance with the International Dolphin Conservation
Program; or
``(ii) the government of the harvesting nation does not
provide directly or authorize the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission to release complete and accurate information
to the Secretary in a timely manner for the purposes of
tracking and verifying compliance with the minimum
requirements established by the Secretary in regulations
promulgated under subsection (f) of the Dolphin Protection
Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(f)); or
``(iii) after taking into consideration this information,
findings of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, and
any other relevant information, including information that a
nation is consistently failing to take enforcement actions on
violations which diminish the effectiveness of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program, the Secretary, in
consultation
[[Page S8295]]
with the Secretary of State, finds that the harvesting nation
is not in compliance with the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.''; and
(4) by striking ``subparagraph (E)'' in the matter after
subparagraph (F), as redesignated by paragraph (2) of this
subsection, and inserting ``subparagraph (F)''.
(c) Section 101 (16 U.S.C. 1371) is amended by adding at
the end the following new subsection:
``(d) Act Not To Apply to Incidental Takings by United
States Citizens Employed on Foreign Vessels Outside the
United States EEZ.--The provisions of this Act shall not
apply to a citizen of the United States who incidentally
takes any marine mammal during fishing operations outside the
United States exclusive economic zone (as defined in section
3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management
Act (16 U.S.C. 1802) when employed on a foreign fishing
vessel of a harvesting nation which is in compliance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program.''.
(d) Section 104(h) (16 U.S.C. 1374(h)) is amended to read
as follows:
``(h) General Permits.--
``(1) Consistent with the regulations prescribed pursuant
to section 103 of this title and to the requirements of
section 101 of this title, the Secretary may issue an annual
permit to a United States purse seine fishing vessel for the
taking of such marine mammals, and shall issue regulations to
cover the use of any such annual permits.
``(2) Such annual permits for the incidental taking of
marine mammals in the course of commercial purse seine
fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific
Ocean shall be governed by section 304 of this Act, subject
to the regulations issued pursuant to section 302 of this
Act.''.
(e) Section 108(a)(2) (16 U.S.C. 1378(a)(2)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (A);
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
``(C) negotiations to revise the Convention for the
Establishment of an Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission
(1 U.S.T. 230; TIAS 2044) which will incorporate--
``(i) the conservation and management provisions agreed to
by the nations which have signed the Declaration of Panama
and in the Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish
Stocks Agreement, as opened for signature on December 4,
1995; and
``(ii) a revised schedule of annual contributions to the
expenses of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission that
is equitable to participating nations; and
``(D) discussions with those countries participating, or
likely to participate, in the International Dolphin
Conservation Program, for the purpose of identifying sources
of funds needed for research and other measures promoting
effective protection of dolphins, other marine species, and
the marine ecosystem;''.
(f) Section 110(a) (16 U.S.C. 1380(a)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``(1)'' in paragraph (1); and
(2) by striking paragraph (2).
(g) Subsection (d)(1) of the Dolphin Protection Consumer
Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(d)(1)) is amended to read as
follows:
``(1) It is a violation of section 5 of the Federal Trade
Commission Act for any producer, importer, exporter,
distributor, or seller of any tuna product that is exported
from or offered for sale in the United States to include on
the label of that product the term 'Dolphin Safe' or any
other term or symbol that falsely claims or suggests that the
tuna contained in the product was harvested using a method of
fishing that is not harmful to dolphins if the product
contains--
``(A) tuna harvested on the high seas by a vessel engaged
in driftnet fishing;
``(B) tuna harvested in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean
by a vessel using purse seine nets which do not meet the
requirements of being considered dolphin safe under
paragraph (2);
``(C) tuna harvested outside the eastern tropical Pacific
Ocean by a vessel using purse seine nets which do not meet
the requirements for being considered dolphin safe under
paragraph (3); or
``(D) tuna harvested by a vessel engaged in any fishery
identified by the Secretary pursuant to paragraph (4) as
having a regular and significant incidental mortality of
marine animals.''.
(h) Subsection (d)(2) of the Dolphin Protection Consumer
Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(d)(2)) is amended to read as
follows:
``(2) For purposes of paragraph (1)(B), a tuna product that
contains tuna harvested in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean
by a vessel using purse seine nets is dolphin safe if--
``(A) the vessel is of a type and size that the Secretary
has determined, consistent with the International Dolphin
Conservation Program, is not capable of deploying its purse
seine nets on or to encircle dolphins; or
``(B)(i) the product is accompanied by a written statement
executed by the captain of the vessel which harvested the
tuna certifying that no dolphins were killed or seriously
injured during the sets in which the tuna were caught;
``(ii) the product is accompanied by a written statement
executed by--
``(I) the Secretary or the Secretary's designee;
``(II) a representative of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission; or
``(III) an authorized representative of a participating
nation whose national program meets the requirements of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program,
which states that there was an observer approved by the
International Dolphin Conservation Program on board the
vessel during the entire trip and that such observer
documented that no dolphins were killed or seriously injured
during the sets in which the tuna in the tuna product were
caught; and
``(iii) the statements referred to in clauses (i) and (ii)
are endorsed in writing by each exporter, importer, and
processor of the product; and
``(C) the written statements and endorsements referred to
in subparagraph (B) comply with regulations promulgated by
the Secretary which would provide for the verification of
tuna products as dolphin safe.''.
(i) Subsection (d) of the Dolphin Protection Consumer
Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(d)) is amended further by
adding the following new paragraphs:
``(3) For purposes of paragraph (1)(C), tuna or a tuna
product that contains tuna harvested outside the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean by a fishing vessel using purse seine
nets is dolphin safe if--
``(A) it is accompanied by a written statement executed by
the captain of the vessel certifying that no purse seine net
was intentionally deployed on or to encircle dolphins during
the particular voyage on which the tuna was harvested; or
``(B) in any fishing in which the Secretary has determined
that a regular and significant association occurs between
marine mammals and tuna, it is accompanied by a written
statement executed by the captain of the vessel and an
observer, certifying that no purse seine net was
intentionally deployed on or to encircle marine mammals
during the particular voyage on which the tuna was harvested.
``(4) For purposes of paragraph (1)(D), tuna or a tuna
product that contains tuna harvested in a fishery identified
by the Secretary as having a regular and significant
incidental mortality or serious injury of marine mammals is
dolphin safe if it is accompanied by a written statement
executed by the captain of the vessel and, where determined
to be practicable by the Secretary, an observer participating
in a national or international program acceptable to the
Secretary certifying that no marine mammals were killed or
seriously injured in the course of the fishing operation or
operations in which the tuna were caught.
``(5) No tuna product may be labeled with any reference to
dolphins, porpoises, or marine mammals, except as dolphin
safe in accordance with this subsection.''.
(j) Subsection (f) of the Dolphin Protection Consumer
Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(f)) is amended to read as
follows:
``(f) Regulations.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the
Secretary of the Treasury, shall issue regulations to
implement this section not later than 6 months after the
effective date of the International Dolphin Conservation
Program Act.
``(2) Tracking Regulations.--Within 3 months after the date
of enactment of the International Dolphin Conservation
Program Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the
Secretary of the Treasury, shall issue regulations to
establish a domestic tracking and verification program that
provides for the effective tracking of tuna labeled under
subsection (d). In the development of these regulations, the
Secretary shall establish appropriate procedures for ensuring
the confidentiality of proprietary information the submission
of which is voluntary or mandatory. The regulations shall
include provisions that address each of the following items:
``(1) the use of weight calculation for purposes of
tracking tuna caught, landed, processed, and exported;
``(2) additional measures to enhance current observer
coverage, including the establishment of criteria for
training, and for improving monitoring and reporting
capabilities and procedures;
``(3) the designation of well location, procedures for
sealing holds, procedures for monitoring and certifying both
above and below deck, or through equally effective methods,
the tracking and verification of tuna labeled under
subsection (d);
``(4) the reporting, receipt, and database storage of radio
and facsimile transmittals from fishing vessels containing
information related to the tracking and verification of tuna,
and the definition of set;
``(5) the shore-based verification and tracking throughout
the fishing, transshipment, and canning process by means of
Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission trip records or
otherwise;
``(6) the use of periodic audits and spot checks for
caught, landed, and processed tuna products labeled in
accordance with subsection (d); and
``(7) the provision of timely access to data required under
this subsection by the Secretary from harvesting nations to
undertake the actions required in paragraph (6) of this
subsection.
The Secretary may make such adjustments as may be appropriate
to the regulations promulgated under this subsection to
implement an international tracking and verification program
that meets or exceeds the minimum requirements established by
the Secretary under this subsection.''.
SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE III.
(a) The heading of title III is amended to read as follows:
``TITLE III--INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM''.
(b) Section 301 (16 U.S.C. 1411) is amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (4) of subsection (a) and
inserting the following:
``(4) Nations harvesting yellowfin tuna in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean have demonstrated their willingness to
participate in appropriate multilateral agreements to reduce
dolphin mortality progressively to a level approaching zero
through the setting of annual limits, with the goal of
eliminating, dolphin mortality
[[Page S8296]]
in that fishery. Recognition of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program will assure that the existing trend of
reduced dolphin mortality continues; that individual stocks
of dolphins are adequately protected; and that the goal of
eliminating all dolphin mortality continues to be a
priority.''; and
(2) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (b)
and inserting the following:
``(2) support the International Dolphin Conservation
Program and efforts within the Program to reduce, with the
goal of eliminating, the mortality referred to in paragraph
(1);
``(3) ensure that the market of the United States does not
act as an incentive to the harvest of tuna caught with
driftnets or caught by purse seine vessels in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean not operating in compliance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program;''.
(c) Section 302 (16 U.S.C. 1412) is amended to read as
follows:
``SEC. 302. AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.
``(a) Regulations.--
``(1) The Secretary shall issue regulations to implement
the International Dolphin Conservation Program.
``(2)(A) Not later than 3 months after the effective date
of the International Dolphin Conservation Program Act, the
Secretary shall issue regulations to authorize and govern the
taking of marine mammals in the eastern tropical Pacific
Ocean, including any species of marine mammal designated as
depleted under this Act but not listed as endangered or
threatened under the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531
et seq.), by vessels of the United States participating in
the International Dolphin Conservation Program.
``(B) Regulations issued under this section shall include
provisions--
``(i) requiring observers on each vessel;
``(ii) requiring use of the backdown procedure or other
procedures equally or more effective in avoiding mortality of
marine mammals in fishing operations;
``(iii) prohibiting intentional sets on stocks and schools
in accordance with the International Dolphin Conservation
Program;
``(iv) requiring the use of special equipment, including
dolphin safety panels in nets, monitoring devices as
identified by the International Dolphin Conservation Program
to detect unsafe fishing conditions that may cause high
incidental dolphin mortality before nets are deployed by a
tuna vessel, operable rafts, speedboats with towing bridles,
floodlights in operable condition, and diving masks and
snorkels;
``(v) ensuring that the backdown procedure during sets of
purse seine net on marine mammals is completed and rolling of
the net to sack up has begun no later than 30 minutes before
sundown;
``(vi) banning the use of explosive devices in all purse
seine operations;
``(vii) establishing per vessel maximum annual dolphin
mortality limits, total dolphin mortality limits and per-
stock per-year mortality limits in accordance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program;
``(viii) preventing the making of intentional sets on
dolphins after reaching either the vessel maximum annual
dolphin mortality limits, total dolphin mortality limits, or
per-stock per-year mortality limits;
``(ix) preventing the fishing on dolphins by a vessel
without an assigned vessel dolphin mortality limit;
``(x) allowing for the authorization and conduct of
experimental fishing operations, under such terms and
conditions as the Secretary may prescribe, for the purpose of
testing proposed improvements in fishing techniques and
equipment that may reduce or eliminate dolphin mortality or
do not require the encirclement of dolphins in the course of
commercial yellowfin tuna fishing;
``(xi) authorizing fishing with the area covered by the
International Dolphin Conservation Program by vessels of the
United States without the use of special equipment or nets if
the vessel takes an observer and does not intentionally
deploy nets on, or encircle, dolphins, under such terms and
conditions as the Secretary may prescribe; and
``(xii) containing such other restrictions and requirements
as the Secretary determines are necessary to implement the
International Dolphin Conservation Program with respect to
vessels of the United States.
``(C) Adjustments to requirements.--The Secretary may make
such adjustments as may be appropriate to requirements of
subparagraph (B) that pertain to fishing gear, vessel
equipment, and fishing practices to the extent the
adjustments are consistent with the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.
``(b) Consultation.--In developing any regulation under
this section, the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary
of State, the Marine Mammal Commission and the United States
Commissioners to the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission
appointed under section 3 of the Tuna Conventions Act of 1950
(16 U.S.C. 952).
``(c) Emergency Regulations.--
``(1) If the Secretary determines, on the basis of the best
scientific information available (including research
conducted under subsection (d) and information obtained under
the International Dolphin Conservation Program) that the
incidental mortality and serious injury of marine mammals
authorized under this title is having, or is likely to have,
a significant adverse effect on a marine mammal stock or
species, the Secretary shall--
``(A) notify the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission of
his or her findings, along with recommendations to the
Commission as to actions necessary to reduce incidental
mortality and serious injury and mitigate such adverse
impact; and
``(B) prescribe emergency regulations to reduce incidental
mortality and serious injury and mitigate such adverse
impact.
``(2) Before taking action under subparagraph (A) or (B) of
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary
of State, the Marine Mammal Commission, and the United States
Commissioners to the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission.
``(3) Emergency regulations prescribed under this
subsection--
``(A) shall be published in the Federal Register, together
with an explanation thereof;
``(B) shall remain in effect for the duration of the
applicable fishing year; and
``(C) may be terminated by the Secretary at an earlier date
by publication in the Federal Register of a notice of
termination if the Secretary determines that the reasons for
the emergency action no longer exist.
``(4) If the Secretary finds that the incidental mortality
and serious injury of marine mammals in the yellowfin tuna
fishery in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean is continuing
to have a significant adverse impact on a stock or species,
the Secretary may extend the emergency regulations for such
additional periods as may be necessary.
``(5) Within 120 days after the Secretary notifies the
United States Commissioners to the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission of the Secretary's findings under paragraph
(1)(A), the United States Commissioners shall call for a
special meeting of the Commission to address the problem
described in the findings. The Commissioners shall report the
results of the special meeting in writing to the Secretary
and to the Secretary of State. In their report, the
Commissioners shall--
``(A) include a description of the actions taken by the
harvesting nations or under the International Dolphin
Conservation Program to reduce the incidental mortality and
serious injury and measures to mitigate the adverse impact on
the marine mammal species or stock;
``(B) indicate whether, in their judgment, the actions
taken address the problem adequately; and
``(C) if they indicate that the actions taken do not
address the problem adequately, include recommendations of
such additional action to be taken as may be necessary.
``(d) Research.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall, in cooperation with
the nations participating in the International Dolphin
Conservation Program and with the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission, undertake or support appropriate scientific
research to further the goals of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.
``(2) Specific areas of research.--Research carried out
under paragraph (1)--
``(A) may include projects to devise cost-effective fishing
methods and gear so as to reduce, with the goal of
eliminating, the incidental mortality and serious injury of
marine mammals in connection with commercial purse seine
fishing in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean;
``(B) may include projects to develop cost-effective
methods of fishing for mature yellowfin tuna without setting
nets on dolphins or other marine mammals;
``(C) may include projects to carry out stock assessments
for those marine mammal species and marine mammal stocks
taken in the purse seine fishery for yellowfin tuna in the
eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, including species or stocks
not within waters under the jurisdiction of the United
States;
``(D) shall include projects to study the effect of chase
and encirclement on the health and biology of dolphin and
dolphin populations incidentally taken in the course of purse
seine fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean; and
``(E) may include projects to determine the extent to which
the incidental take of nontarget species, including juvenile
tuna, occurs in the course of purse seine fishing for
yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, the
geographic location of the incidental take, and the impact of
that incidental take on tuna stocks, and nontarget species.
``(3) Authorization of appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $8,000,000 to
be used by the Secretary, acting through the National Marine
Fisheries Service, to carry out the research described in
paragraph (2)(D).
``(4) Report.--Within 5 years after the date of enactment
of the International Dolphin Conservation Program Act, the
Secretary shall complete and submit a report containing the
results of the research described in paragraph (2)(D),
together with any recommendations the Secretary may have to
offer on the basis of the study, to the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the
Committee on Commerce of the House of Representatives, and to
the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission. The Secretary
shall include a description of the annual activities and
results of research carried out under this subsection in the
report required under section 303.''.
(d) Section 303 (16 U.S.C. 1413) is hereby repealed.
(e) Section 304 (16 U.S.C. 1414) is amended to read as
follows:
``SEC. 303. REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.
``Notwithstanding section 103(f), the Secretary shall
submit annual reports to the Congress which include--
``(1) results of research conducted pursuant to section
302;
``(2) a description of the status and trends of stocks of
tuna;
``(3) a description of the efforts to assess, avoid,
reduce, and minimize the bycatch of juvenile yellowfin tuna
and bycatch of nontarget species;
``(4) a description of the activities of the International
Dolphin Conservation Program and of
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the efforts of the United States in support of the Program's
goals and objectives, including the protection of dolphin
populations in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, and an
assessment of the effectiveness of the Program;
``(5) actions taken by the Secretary under section
101(a)(2)(B) and section 101(d);
``(6) copies of any relevant resolutions and decisions of
the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, and any
regulations promulgated by the Secretary under this title;
and
``(7) any other information deemed relevant by the
Secretary.''.
(f) Section 305 (16 U.S.C. 1415) is hereby repealed.
(g) Section 306 (16 U.S.C. 1416) is amended to read as
follows:
``SEC. 304. PERMITS.
``(a) In General.--
``(1) Consistent with the regulations issued pursuant to
section 302, the Secretary shall issue a permit to a vessel
of the United States authorizing participation in the
International Dolphin Conservation Program and may require a
permit for the person actually in charge of and controlling
the fishing operation of the vessel. The Secretary shall
prescribe such procedures as are necessary to carry out this
subsection, including requiring the submission of--
``(A) the name and official number or other identification
of each fishing vessel for which a permit is sought, together
with the name and address of the owner thereof; and
``(B) the tonnage, hold capacity, speed, processing
equipment, and type and quantity of gear, including an
inventory of special equipment required under section 302,
with respect to each vessel.
``(2) The Secretary is authorized to charge a fee for
granting an authorization and issuing a permit under this
section. The level of fees charged under this paragraph may
not exceed the administrative cost incurred in granting an
authorization and issuing a permit. Fees collected under this
paragraph shall be available to the Under Secretary of
Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere for expenses incurred in
granting authorizations and issuing permits under this
section.
``(3) After the effective date of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program Act, no vessel of the United States
shall operate in the yellowfin tuna fishery in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean without a valid permit issued under
this section.
``(b) Permit Sanctions.--
``(1) In any case in which--
``(A) a vessel for which a permit has been issued under
this section has been used in the commission of an act
prohibited under section 305;
``(B) the owner or operator of any such vessel or any other
person who has applied for or been issued a permit under this
section has acted in violation of section 305; or
``(C) any civil penalty or criminal fine imposed on a
vessel, owner or operator of a vessel, or other person who
has applied for or been issued a permit under this section
has not been paid or is overdue,
the Secretary may--
``(i) revoke any permit with respect to such vessel, with
or without prejudice to the issuance of subsequent permits;
``(ii) suspend such permit for a period of time considered
by the Secretary to be appropriate;
``(iii) deny such permit; or
``(iv) impose additional conditions or restrictions on any
permit issued to, or applied for by, any such vessel or
person under this section.
``(2) In imposing a sanction under this subsection, the
Secretary shall take into account--
``(A) the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the
prohibited acts for which the sanction is imposed; and
``(B) with respect to the violator, the degree of
culpability, any history of prior offenses, and other such
matters as justice requires.
``(3) Transfer of ownership of a vessel, by sale or
otherwise, shall not extinguish any permit sanction that is
in effect or is pending at the time of transfer of ownership.
Before executing the transfer of ownership of a vessel, by
sale or otherwise, the owner shall disclose in writing to the
prospective transferee the existence of any permit sanction
that will be in effect or pending with respect to the vessel
at the time of transfer.
``(4) In the case of any permit that is suspended for the
failure to pay a civil penalty or criminal fine, the
Secretary shall reinstate the permit upon payment of the
penalty or fine and interest thereon at the prevailing rate.
``(5) No sanctions shall be imposed under this section
unless there has been a prior opportunity for a hearing on
the facts underlying the violation for which the sanction is
imposed, either in conjunction with a civil penalty
proceeding under this title or otherwise.''.
(h) Section 307 (16 U.S.C. 1417) is hereby redesignated as
section 305, and amended--
(1) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection
(a) and inserting the following:
``(1) for any person to sell, purchase, offer for sale,
transport, or ship, in the United States, any tuna or tuna
product unless the tuna or tuna product is either dolphin
safe or has been harvested in compliance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program by a country that
is a member of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission or
has initiated and within 6 months thereafter completed all
steps required of applicant nations in accordance with
Article V, paragraph 3 of the Convention establishing the
Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, to become a member
of that organization;
(B) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting in lieu thereof
the following:
``(2) except as provided for in subsection 101(d), for any
person or vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United
States intentionally to set a purse seine net on or to
encircle any marine mammal in the course of tuna fishing
operations in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean except in
accordance with this title and regulations issued under
pursuant to this title; and
``(3) for any person to import any yellowfin tuna or
yellowfin tuna product or any other fish or fish product in
violation of a ban on importation imposed under section
101(a)(2);'';
(2) by inserting ``(a)(5) or'' before ``(a)(6)'' in
subsection (b)(2); and
(3) by striking subsection (d).
(i) Section 308 (16 U.S.C. 1418) is redesignated as section
306, and amended by striking ``303'' and inserting in lieu
thereof ``302(d)''.
(j) Clerical Amendments.--The table of contents in the
first section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 is
amended by striking the items relating to title III and
inserting in lieu thereof the following:
``TITLE III--INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM
``Sec. 301. Findings and policy.
``Sec. 302. Authority of the Secretary.
``Sec. 303. Reports by the Secretary.
``Sec. 304. Permits.
SEC. 6. AMENDMENTS TO THE TUNA CONVENTIONS ACT.
(a) Section 3(c) of the Tuna Conventions Act (16 U.S.C.
952(c)) is amended to read as follows:
``(c) at least one shall be either the Administrator, or an
appropriate officer, of the National Marine Fisheries
Service; and''.
(b) Section 4 of the Tuna Conventions Act (16 U.S.C. 953)
is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 4. GENERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY
SUBCOMMITTEE.
``(a) Appointments; Public Participation; Compensation.--
The Secretary, in consultation with the United States
Commissioners, shall--
``(1) appoint a General Advisory Committee which shall be
composed of not less than 5 nor more than 15 persons with
balanced representation from the various groups participating
in the fisheries included under the conventions, and from
nongovernmental conservation organizations;
``(2) appoint a Scientific Advisory Subcommittee which
shall be composed of not less than 5 nor more than 15
qualified scientists with balanced representation from the
public and private sectors, including nongovernmental
conservation organizations;
``(3) establish procedures to provide for appropriate
public participation and public meetings and to provide for
the confidentiality of confidential business data; and
``(4) fix the terms of office of the members of the General
Advisory Committee and Scientific Advisory Subcommittee, who
shall receive no compensation for their services as such
members.
``(b) Functions.--
``(1) General advisory committee.--The General Advisory
Committee shall be invited to have representatives attend all
nonexecutive meetings of the United States sections and shall
be given full opportunity to examine and to be heard on all
proposed programs of investigations, reports,
recommendations, and regulations of the Commission. The
General Advisory Committee may attend all meetings of the
international commissions to which they are invited by such
commissions.
``(2) Scientific advisory subcommittee.--
``(A) Advice.--The Scientific Advisory Subcommittee shall
advise the General Advisory Committee and the Commissioners
on matters including--
``(i) the conservation of ecosystems;
``(ii) the sustainable uses of living marine resources
related to the tuna fishery in the eastern Pacific Ocean; and
``(iii) the long-term conservation and management of stocks
of living marine resources in the eastern tropical Pacific
Ocean.
``(B) Other functions and assistance.--The Scientific
Advisory Subcommittee shall, as requested by the General
Advisory Committee, the United States Commissioners, or the
Secretary, perform functions and provide assistance required
by formal agreements entered into by the United States for
this fishery, including the International Dolphin
Conservation Program. These functions may include--
``(i) the review of data from the Program, including data
received from the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission;
``(ii) recommendations on research needs, including
ecosystems, fishing practices, and gear technology research,
including the development and use of selective,
environmentally safe and cost-effective fishing gear, and on
the coordination and facilitation of such research;
``(iii) recommendations concerning scientific reviews and
assessments required under the Program and engaging, as
appropriate, in such reviews and assessments;
``(iv) consulting with other experts as needed; and
``(v) recommending measures to assure the regular and
timely full exchange of data among the parties to the Program
and each nation's National Scientific Advisory Committee (or
its equivalent).
``(3) Attendance at meetings.--The Scientific Advisory
Subcommittee shall be invited to have representatives attend
all nonexecutive meetings of the United States sections and
the General Advisory Subcommittee and shall be given full
opportunity to examine and to be heard on all proposed
programs of scientific investigation, scientific reports, and
scientific recommendations of the commission. Representatives
of the Scientific Advisory Subcommittee may attend meetings
of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission in accordance
with the rules of such Commission.''.
(c) Bycatch Reduction.--The Tuna Conventions Act (16 U.S.C.
951 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end thereof the
following:
[[Page S8298]]
``SEC. 15. REDUCTION OF BYCATCH IN THE EASTERN TROPICAL
PACIFIC OCEAN.
``The Secretary of State, acting through the United States
Commissioners, shall take the necessary steps to establish
standards and measures for a bycatch reduction program for
vessels fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean. The bycatch reduction program shall include
measures--
``(1) to require, to the maximum extent practicable, that
sea turtles and other threatened species and endangered
species are released alive;
``(2) to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the
harvest of nontarget species;
``(3) to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the
mortality of nontarget species; and
``(4) to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the
mortality of juveniles of the target species.''.
SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATES.
(a) Amendments To Take Effect When IDCP in Effect.--
Sections 3 through 6 of this Act shall become effective upon
certification by the Secretary of State to Congress that a
binding resolution of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission or other legally binding instrument establishing
the International Dolphin Conservation Program has been
adopted and is in effect.
(b) Special Effective Date.--Notwithstanding subsection
(a), subsection (f)(2) of the Dolphin Protection Consumer
Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(f)(2)), as added by section
4(j) of this Act takes effect on the date of enactment of
this Act.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, we have an agreement to move forward on
the tuna-dolphin legislation, S. 39, the Snowe-Breaux-Stevens-Kerry, et
al., legislation.
This legislation would implement the International Dolphin
Conservation Program. Senator Snowe, who is responsible for this
legislation, will soon offer a managers' amendment that will make
several changes to the bill. As I stated last week, my consent to
modifications was with the stipulation that any changes would not
undermine the International Dolphin Conservation Program by causing the
signatory nations to dissolve the agreement.
With the assurances we have received from the President's National
Security Adviser that these changes meet that stipulation, I support
strongly the managers' amendment.
Again, Mr. President, this legislation is supported by Greenpeace,
the National Wildlife Federation, the World Wild Life Fund, the
Environmental Defense Fund and the Center for Marine Conservation.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record at this time
letters from these organizations and from the President endorsing this
legislation.
There being no objection, the letters were ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
July 17, 1997.
Hon. John McCain,
Chairman, Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation,
U.S. Senate, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington,
DC.
Dear Senator McCain, The Center for Marine Conservation,
Environmental Defense Fund, Greenpeace, National Wildlife
Federation and the World Wildlife Fund, representing more
than 10 million supporters in the United States strongly
support passage of S. 39, The International Dolphin
Conservation Program Act. We urge you to support S. 39, seek
prompt consideration of the bill by the full Senate, and to
oppose any procedural moves which would delay consideration
of the bill.
Not only does the bill strengthen the Marine Mammal
Protection Act, protection for dolphins in the Eastern
Tropical Pacific (ETP) but it also protects the ecosystem by
reducing the bycatch of endangered sea turtles, sharks,
billfish and juvenile tuna. Additionally, the Act is an
important step in solidifying the voluntary program presently
in place in the ETP which has reduced dolphin mortality from
423,678 in 1972 to 2,700 in the last year. Enactment of S.39
and the development of the new international standards it
prescribes will bring the conservation community
significantly closer to the goal of eliminating dolphin
deaths altogether.
We applaud your efforts to bring S. 39 to the floor for
consideration. The amendments passed by the Senate Committee
on Commerce, Science and Transportation have strengthened the
bill considerably. Significantly, these changes directly
address concerns about truth in labeling, because they
prohibit the use of the of ``Dolphin Safe'' label on tuna if
a single dolphin died or suffered serious injury during the
fishing operation. That change means that the ``Dolphin
Safe'' label will provide greater protection for dolphins
than ever before. In addition, the bill as amended now
provides numerous fail-safe measures to protect the dolphin
populations in the ETP. The amended bill gives the Secretary
of Commerce emergency powers to re-impose the trade embargoes
if a detrimental change in the dolphin population is
observed. While there is no indication in the current science
that chase and encirclement adversely affects dolphins
populations the bill, as amended provides that a five year
study be done to determine the effects of chase and
encirclement on those dolphin populations. If at any time the
study shows adverse impact on the populations, the bill
provides the Secretary of Commerce emergency powers to
protect dolphins. In short, S. 39 offers a powerful and
effective means of protecting dolphins, the Eastern Tropical
Pacific ecosystem, and the American consumer.
This bill is supported by environmentalists, the fishing
industry, and the Seafarers Union. It is based on sound
science, and has been the subject of Congressional
consideration for two full legislative sessions. Delay in
enactment of S. 39 would mean sacrificing this important
opportunity to strengthen the protection of dolphins and the
ecosystem in which they live. We strongly urge you to seek
prompt consideration of S. 39 by the full Senate and to
oppose any procedural moves which would delay its prompt
enactment.
Sincerely,
Roger McManus,
President, Center for Marine Conservation.
Barbara Dudley,
Executive Director, Greenpeace.
Kathryn Fuller,
President, World Wildlife Fund.
Fred Krupp,
Executive Director, Environmental Defense Fund.
Mark Van Putten,
President, National Wildlife Federation.
____
The White House,
Washington, July 15, 1997.
Hon. Trent Lott,
Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Leader: I urge the Senate to consider and pass S.
39, the International Dolphin Conservation Program Act.
The House of Representatives recently passed counterpart
legislation with wide bipartisan support and it is my hope
that the Senate will act similarly. As you know, this
legislation has recovered the support of environmental
organizations in addition to our nation's fishing industry.
If enacted, S. 39 will allow the United States to implement
the Panama Declaration, a strong international program needed
to protect dolphins and other marine life in the Eastern
Tropical Pacific Ocean.
I hope that the Senate acts in our national interest and
passes this measure, which will permit the United States to
maintain its leadership role in promoting better stewardship
of our oceans and their valuable resources.
Sincerely,
Bill Clinton.
Mr. McCAIN. The bill, which was approved in the House last year and
again last May by overwhelming majorities, would implement the
International Dolphin Conservation Program by making basically two
changes to U.S. law. First, when the IDCP agreement is officially
concluded, it permits the importation of tuna from the Eastern Tropical
Pacific as long as dolphin-safe fishing practices are adhered to.
Second, it will permit the labeling of tuna from this area as dolphin
safe as long as no dolphin were killed or seriously injured during the
catch and that science shows no significant adverse impact on dolphins.
Failure to enact this bill would be a devastating blow to our efforts
to protect the marine environment. Without this implementing
legislation, current fishing practices will continue, practices which
scientists have learned have an adverse impact not only on dolphin but
a host of other marine life including sea turtles and bill fish.
Foreign fishing companies no longer bound by the international treaty
may well resume even more harmful fishing practices which would spell
disaster for dolphin. The impact of tuna fishing on dolphin is an
international problem which demands an international response. Passage
of this legislation will ensure the cooperation of the need to provide
meaningful and sustainable protection for dolphin and other marine
life.
Mr. President, I want to again thank Senator Snowe, the chairman of
the Ocean and Fisheries Subcommittee, Senator Stevens, Senator Breaux,
and Senator Kerry of Massachusetts. They have been working on this
legislation for 2 years. Senator Snowe has held numerous hearings, has
agreed to a number of compromises, and a number of amendments, and I
would like to again congratulate her for her success in reaching
agreement on this very difficult and controversial legislation. The
enactment of this legislation is a great victory for the environment
and the environmental communities and
[[Page S8299]]
they deserve enormous credit and gratitude.
I thank the other Senators without whose cooperation passage of this
bill would not be possible. I would like to yield to Senator Snowe for
her comments including a description of the managers' amendment.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
Ms. SNOWE addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Santorum). The Senator from Maine.
Ms. SNOWE. I thank Senator McCain, who, as chairman of the Commerce
Committee, has shown tremendous leadership, and I congratulate him for
getting this contentious bill to the floor.
Before beginning, I ask unanimous consent that Kate Wing, a Sea Grant
fellow from the Subcommittee on Ocean and Fisheries, be given floor
privileges during consideration of S. 3 9.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I would also like to commend the original
sponsors of this legislation, Senator Stevens and Senator Breaux, for
their stellar efforts on the bill before us today. They have spent a
tremendous amount of time and energy over the past year and a half to
get this bill to this point, and they have made every effort to
accommodate the concerns of Senators with opposing views.
I would also like to thank Senator Kerry, the ranking member of the
subcommittee, and Senators Hollings, Boxer, and Biden who have been
instrumental in helping us reach agreement on this bill, and I
appreciate their efforts.
S. 39, the International Dolphin Conservation Program Act, will make
the changes in U.S. law necessary to implement the Declaration of
Panama, which was signed by the United States and 11 other countries in
1995. Under Panama, these nations agreed to conclude a binding
agreement to protect dolphins in the Eastern Tropical Pacific tuna
fishery, and to adhere to broadly sustainable methods of harvesting
this tuna.
This bill enjoys a tremendous amount of public support. The Clinton
administration, which negotiated the agreement, strongly supports this
bill. As Senator McCain indicated, a number of environmental groups are
champions of this legislation as well. The World Wildlife Fund,
National Wildlife Federation, Center for Marine Conservation,
Environmental Defense Fund, and Greenpeace have all strongly supported
this bill.
The bill is also strongly supported by the National Fisheries
Institute, the U.S. tuna fishing industry, and the Seafarer's
International Union.
The Panama Declaration and S. 39 represent a landmark international
effort to achieve two critical objectives: to protect dolphins in the
ETP, and to protect the entire marine ecosystem of this vast region.
They do this by requiring the nations fishing in the ETP to meet
exceedingly strict limitations on the mortality and serious injury of
dolphins. In exchange for the other nations agreeing to this stringent
conservation regime, the United States will lift its embargoes of tuna
from other nations, and permit fishermen that set purse seine nets
around dolphins to use the U.S. dolphin-safe label if they do not kill
or seriously injure any dolphins.
This is the most effective and responsible way to achieve our dual
objectives of protecting dolphins and the ecosystem of the ETP, and the
reasons are twofold. While dolphin setting was once very deadly for
dolphins, refinements to the practice in recent years have yielded
tremendous gains. The graph behind me shows dolphin mortality per
dolphin set, and we can see how successful fishermen have been in
reducing mortality to dolphins in each set--99 percent since 1986.
These mortality reductions per set have in turn led to a precipitous
decline in total dolphin mortality in the ETP, as this other graph
behind me indicates as well. Overall dolphin mortality has plummeted 99
percent since 1986, even though the rate of dolphin setting has
remained stable during that period.
At the same time, it has become apparent that the alternatives to
dolphin setting--log and school setting--are very damaging to many
other species. The table behind me shows the relative amounts of
bycatch for each of the three harvesting methods.
I ask unanimous consent the table be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the table was ordered to be printed in the
Record, as follows:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dolphin
Number of Total Mortality sets as a
Year Dolphin dolphin per set percent of
sets mortality total sets
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1986........................................................ 10,507 133,174 5.34 59.82
1987........................................................ 12,538 99,177 12.67 62.00
1988........................................................ 10,571 81,593 7.91 47.75
1989........................................................ 12,580 97,046 7.72 56.34
1990........................................................ 10,571 52,531 7.71 51.95
1991........................................................ 9,482 27,292 4.97 55.32
1992........................................................ 10,326 15,550 2.88 56.16
1993........................................................ 6,953 3,716 1.51 40.27
1994........................................................ 7,804 4,095 0.53 50.00
1995........................................................ 7,209 3,276 0.52 47.00
1996........................................................ 7,353 2,766 0.45 52.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Data from the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Association.
Ms. SNOWE. Mahi-mahi, for instance, a fish popular in white
tablecloth restaurants in the United States, suffers far higher bycatch
rates in log and school sets than in dolphin sets. Looking at blacktip
sharks, we see a similar problem. The same is true for every other
nondolphin species in the ETP. If you look at Mahi-mahi, you are
talking about losing 30,000 Mahi-mahi fish for every 1,000 pounds of
tuna caught in the eastern tropical pacific.
Mr. President, the basic intent of the Panama Declaration and S. 39
is to lock the nations that fish in the ETP into a very strict
conservation regime that will require them to continue the progress
made to date and eventually reduce dolphin mortality to a level near
zero. And it is also to recognize a fishing method that causes very
little harm to dolphins, but which is also the safest possible fishing
method for all of the other species that live in the ETP.
Mr. President, as we know, some Senators have been concerned that
dolphin setting may be causing unseen harm to dolphins, and they
objected to the immediate change in the dolphin safe label contained in
S. 39 as reported by the committee. The latest compromise that we all
reached last week, and that is contained in the manager's amendment
that was offered by Senator McCain.
It requires the expeditious commencement of research to further study
the effect of dolphin setting on dolphins. Tuna caught by dolphin sets
may not be labeled dolphin safe until at least March 1999, at which
time the Secretary of Commerce must review the preliminary results of
the study, and make a determination as to whether or not dolphin
setting is causing significant adverse impacts to depleted dolphin
stocks in the ETP. If the Secretary finds no significant impact, then
the label changes to permit tuna caught with dolphin sets to be labeled
dolphin safe, as long as no dolphins were killed or seriously injured
during harvest.
Between July 1, 2001, and December 31, 2002, the Secretary will
review the completed results of the study, and make another
determination. If significant adverse impacts to dolphins are found at
that time, he must prohibit the labeling of tuna caught with dolphin
sets as dolphin safe.
Mr. President, I think this compromise reasonably addresses the
concerns on both sides, and it resolves what has been a very
contentious issue. I urge my colleagues to support the
[[Page S8300]]
manager's amendment to S. 39, and the bill as amended.
I reserve the remainder of my time, Mr. President.
Mr. President, may I ask how much time I have remaining?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maine has 5 minutes and 28
second.
Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I yield 3 minutes to the Senator from
Louisiana.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Louisiana is recognized for 3
minutes.
Mr. BREAUX. I thank the Senator and start by congratulating her on
the effort she has made in this regard, and Senator Stevens from Alaska
for the work he has done along with Senator Kerry, and also acknowledge
Senator Barbara Boxer's longstanding commitment on doing what is
necessary to preserve and protect dolphins.
As we bring this legislation to the floor, it is very, very
significant, for we have been working on this for 25 years to try to
improve on a program that I think has made great progress in preserving
the ability for the tuna industry in the United States, one of the most
popular fishing resources in the entire world, to be able to continue
to operate in a manner that does not cause death or mortality or
serious harm to dolphin, which conflict, many times, with the tuna fish
themselves. This industry, I think, is to be commended because they
have made tremendous strides in trying to preserve their industry, at
the same time protecting dolphins. So they are to be congratulated for
the great work they have done. This legislation hopefully will be an
improvement. I commend all of those who have had a chance to be
involved in it.
One concern that I do have is directly related to the labeling issue.
As many of you know, the debate on the tuna-dolphin issue has a long
and tortuous history. It was our own industry, primarily the U.S.
canners, who started the dolphin-safe movement by voluntarily adopting
that label back in 1990. It took several years and many millions of
dollars to educate the American consumer about what the dolphin-safe
label means. It was because of the industry's efforts and congressional
backing that we still have that label today.
But today, when we pass S. 39, the Congress will establish criteria
by which to evaluate the appropriateness of the dolphin-safe label. The
definition of the label may change, based upon further scientific
studies.
But let us not fool ourselves that there are some people who will
oppose this change at all costs. One way to do this is through the use
of alternative labels.
The existence of alternative labels alone is not problematic, but the
misuse of those labels to deceive or mislead the American public is a
problem. The original version of S. 39 recognized this fact and
prohibited other labels that referred to dolphins or other marine
mammals on a can of tuna. It made sense from a practical point of
view--if the Congress is establishing very strict criteria for a
Government dolphin-safe label, then it should be the only such label.
Opponents to this provision would argue on the right to free
commercial speech. We must remember that commercial speech is not given
the same degree of protection as individual speech. If a significant
Government interest exists, then the Government can regulate such
commercial speech. I believe that the conservation goals of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program are such a significant
Government interest. But in the spirit of compromise, I was willing to
allow alternative labels under some strict conditions.
Alternative labels can exist if they meet the minimum standards of
the dolphin-safe label, including the no mortality or serious injury
standard as well as the support of a tracking and verification program
similar to that found in S. 39. If you want to claim that you are as
safe as dolphin safe, then you must be able to prove it. Alternative
labels are subject to all applicable labeling, marketing and
advertising laws and regulations of the Federal Trade Commission Act--
this only makes sense.
But the concern on the misuse of alternative labels continues to
exist. Our compromise would address this concern by forbidding any
campaign or effort to mislead or deceive consumers about the level of
protection afforded dolphins under the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.
Finally, we ask the Secretary of Commerce to monitor the situation.
If alternative labels are used in such a way to undermine the
conservation goals of the International Dolphin Conservation Program,
then the Secretary will make a report to the Congress. If our efforts
here today, and over the past 2 years, are being thwarted by a campaign
to undercut the label or International Dolphin Conservation Program,
then we should know and we should take action to eliminate this
problem.
Mr. President, I hope these safeguards are sufficient in dealing with
the misuse of alternative labels. I can only support this bill if I
know that our efforts and the goals of the binding international
program are not being undone by a campaign which uses alternative
labels to cerate market distinctions for the purpose of customer
confusion or deception. I believe that we addressed this concern with
our compromise. If not, I am sure that we shall visit this issue again.
In closing, Mr. President, I would like to acknowledge the leadership
of my friend from Alaska, Senator Stevens, who has helped guide this
bill through to this day. I also would like to note the efforts of
Senators Snowe and McCain who took a personal interest in protecting
dolphins through an international agreement. My colleague from
Massachusetts, Senator Kerry, helped to forge the compromise agreement
which we stand to implement today. Of course, Senators Biden and Boxer
should be noted for their continuing concern for dolphin protection--I
am glad that our common interests were merged into common legislation.
I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of S. 39.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
Mr. STEVENS. Will the Senator yield to me?
Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I am more than happy to yield the remainder
of my time to Senator Stevens, who is a major sponsor of this
legislation along with Senator Breaux. I thank the Senator for his
leadership on this issue.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator is recognized for 2 minutes and 22
seconds.
Privilege of the Floor
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Jean Toal and
Tom Richey be granted the privilege of the floor for this debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. BREAUX. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent my staff person,
Paul Deveau, be granted the privilege of the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from Alaska.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I introduced S. 39, the International
Dolphin Conservation Program Act, in January of this year at the
request of the administration.
The bill would implement the international conservation agreement
called the Panama Declaration, which was signed on October 4, 1995, by
the 12 nations that fish for tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean
[the ETP].
These countries include: Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador,
France, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Spain, Vanuatu, and Venezuela.
The President and Vice President strongly support the bill, as do
Greenpeace, the Center for Marine Conservation, the Environmental
Defense Fund, the National Wildlife Federation, the World Wildlife
Fund, the American Sportfishing Association, U.S. labor unions, and the
U.S. tuna industry.
The House of Representatives has passed measures similar to S. 39
twice--in both the 104th and 105th Congresses, by large bipartisan
majorities.
Under the Panama Declaration and S. 39, a binding international
agreement to reduce dolphin mortality and conserve fishery resources in
the ETP will be created.
This binding agreement will cap dolphin mortality in the ETP at no
more than 5,000 dolphins annually, with the goal of reducing the
mortality of dolphins to zero.
[[Page S8301]]
It will also create binding observer, bycatch, and other conservation
and management measures in the ETP similar to those we just enacted in
our domestic fisheries in the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
These important conservation measures are contingent on specific
changes to U.S. law.
The key changes include: A change to allow tuna caught in compliance
with the Panama Declaration--including through the encirclement of
dolphins--to be imported into the United States; and a change so that
dolphin safe will mean tuna in the ETP caught in a set in which dolphin
mortality occurred.
Under the agreement we have reached with Senators Boxer, Biden, and
Breaux, the second of these changes will be delayed.
Tuna caught by encircling dolphins in the ETP will only be able to be
labeled as dolphin safe beginning in March 1999.
Before this happens, the Secretary of Commerce must determine--as we
believe he will based on the scientific data we have already seen--that
encirclement is not having a significant adverse impact on depleted
dolphin stocks.
I have strong doubts about whether this delay is necessary, but the
Latin American countries who signed the Panama Declaration with the
United States have agreed to the delay.
It is appropriate that in 1997--the 25th anniversary of the passage
of the Marine Mammal Protection Act--we are making improvements with
respect to the protection of dolphins, a primary focus in our enactment
of the original MMPA.
Since passage of the MMPA in 1972, dolphin mortality in the ETP has
been reduced from over 400,000 per year, to below 5,000.
This decrease in dolphin mortality is primarily due to the
development of a practice called the back-down technique, in which
dolphin are safely allowed to escape from the net.
Our bill today acknowledges the vast improvements that have been made
in this encirclement fishing method.
S. 39 will allow tuna caught through this method to be imported into
the United States and thereby discouraged alternative methods--log
sets--which we have learned have extremely high levels of bycatch.
We spent the last 3 years working on the new measures to curb bycatch
in our domestic fisheries--this year's S. 39 will help with the
situation in the ETP.
I thank Senator Breaux for his work on the matter, along with Senator
Kerry, and I want to acknowledge the leadership of Senator Snowe in
working out the final version of this bill.
I thank the staff: Trevor McCabe, of my office; Paul Deveau, from
Senator Breaux's staff; Clark LeBlanc, with Senator Snowe and Senator
McCain; Kate Wing, from Senator McCain's staff; Penny Dalton, along
with Jean Toal, from Senator Hollings' staff; Margaret Cummisky, from
Senator Inouye's staff; and Kate English and Tom Richey, from Senator
Kerry's staff. It has been an excellent staff job.
Mr. KERRY addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts is recognized.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I yield myself 5 minutes.
I would like to also thank all of those involved in this effort,
which has been a very long, very complicated, sometimes difficult
effort, but I think, nevertheless, an extremely important one, which is
resulting in a very important conservation bill being passed.
I particularly thank Senator McCain, Senator Stevens, Senator
Hollings, Senator Breaux, Senator Snowe, Senator Boxer, Senator Biden,
Senator Daschle, Senator Inouye, and Senator Smith, all of whom have
been involved in the negotiations and effort to reach this point. I
thank the representative from the White House, Katie McGinty, and the
State Department, and the Department of Commerce who have all been part
of these negotiations, and particularly the staff on both sides, the
staff on the majority side that Senator Stevens mentioned and also
particularly Kate English and Penny Dalton, Tom Richey and Jean Toal on
our side who have really spent hour upon hour upon hour trying to find
a compromise.
I fought for this compromise because it includes the critical element
missing from the original bill: enhanced protection for depleted
dolphin stocks on the basis of sound science before any changes are
made to U.S. law to ease restrictions on fishing procedures that could
jeopardize dolphins. This was my key concern: sound science first.
In addition, the compromise strengthens the bill by adding a bycatch
reduction program, mandating a research study, guaranteeing funding
costs for its initiation, and strengthening the authority for the
emergency regulatory provisions. Finally, tied to the conclusions of
the research study, the compromise resolves perhaps the key concern
over the timing of, and the process for, changing the definition of
what constitutes ``dolphin-safe'' when that term is employed to label
tuna products.
What this debate was and is about is the impact that fishing for
yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean [ETP] has had on
the two depleted dolphin stocks placed at risk as a result of this
fishing effort: the eastern spinner and northeastern offshore spotted
dolphins. The authors of legislation that established the dolphin-safe
label--Senators Boxer and Biden--intended the label as one method to
bring attention to the plight of these quickly declining dolphin stocks
due to the unsafe fishing practices of catching yellowfin tuna by
setting nets on dolphins that swim with tuna.
Since the creation of the label and the embargo of tuna products from
countries that do not use the dolphin-safe fishing methods, dolphin
mortality has dropped significantly. This decline in mortality has been
attributed to the attention that the United States brought to this
issue through the dolphin-safe label, and to the efforts of nations
which participate in the dolphin conservation program under the La
Jolla agreement of 1992.
I think there is consensus that the La Jolla agreement and its
successor agreement, the Panama Declaration, are very important to
dolphin conservation. That is why I and Senators Boxer and Biden and
others have continued to struggle to reach a compromise on this
legislation which will move the Panama Declaration further along the
path to creating an international treaty on dolphin protection.
The outstanding concern with the bill originally reported by the
Commerce Committee was that it altered the international conservation
regime, before the safety of those alterations were scientifically
known to be safe for depleted dolphin stocks. This concern applied
particularly to changing the definition of the dolphin-safe label as
required by the Panama Declaration. In my judgement, a decision to
change the criteria for use of the dolphin-safe label could only be
made responsibly after the U.S. Government would authoritatively answer
the question, ``What is the current health and abundance of these two
dolphin stocks?''
We know that 10 years ago over 80,000 dolphins were killed each year
in the ETP through the practice of setting on dolphins to catch giant
yellowfin tuna. While the Technique has been modified, the practice
still exists today.
The National Marine Fisheries Service, our Government agency charged
with fisheries research and regulation, has not conducted a dolphin
population study since 1987.
Proponents of the bill as reported by committee claim that empirical
data provided by the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission [IATTC]
provides enough information for them to feel comfortable that the
dolphin stocks are safe and that no further study is needed. They
conclude that IATTC observer data indicate that dolphin populations are
either stable or increasing and that, taking into account the added
number of boats fishing in the ETP since 1988, dolphin recovery is
suggested.
bycatch versus dolphin
Supporters of S. 39 argue that, from a broader conservation
perspective, catching yellowfin tuna by methods other than setting on
dolphin results in the higher catch levels of juvenile yellowfin and
bycatch including sea turtles, sharks, and marlin. I share their
conservation concerns about bycatch and I support the bycatch reduction
program added to S. 39.
However, I don't believe that we should address the bycatch problem
at the expense of the two depleted dolphin stocks at risk in the ETP.
That is why I have pushed so hard to ensure that
[[Page S8302]]
any changes made to Federal law regarding fishing agreements that
impact these two dolphin stocks must be based on sound scientific
knowledge regarding the dolphin populations. If we all could agree that
the dolphin stocks are recovering and that the new fishing practices
developed over that last 10 years are now safe for dolphins, then there
would be agreement on lifting the embargo and revisiting the precept of
the dolphin-safe label. The dolphin research study included in this
compromise will provide the necessary knowledge to support or refute
this conclusion.
history of tuna-dolphin debate
I would like to briefly describe the history of dolphin conservation
and why this compromise is so important to it continued success. Since
the enactment of the Marine Mammal Protection Act in 1972 there has
been a dramatic decrease in the dolphin deaths from American fishing
practices. However, in the early years of the MMPA, foreign nations had
become a far more serious source of dolphin mortality. During the
1980's amendments to the MMPA required foreign nations to accept
dolphin protection requirements comparable to those imposed on U.S.
tuna fishermen, or become subject to a U.S. ban on tuna imports. Those
protections include a ban on encircling dolphin using purse seine nets
when fishing in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean [ETP].
In 1990, following a voluntary prohibition on the purchase of tuna
caught in association with dolphin by canned tuna companies, the U.S.
implemented legislation to require a dolphin-safe tuna label which
remains in use-today. The labeling law specifies that tuna caught in
driftnets could not qualify as dolphin safe. That same year, the United
States embargoed tuna imports from Mexico, Venezuela, and Vanuatu for
failure to meet the MMPA requirements.
In 1992, the MMPA was further amended by the International Dolphin
Conservation Act, giving the Secretary of State authority to enter into
international agreements to establish a global moratorium on the
practice of setting nets on dolphins and established a dolphin-safe
market in the United States in 1994.
In 1992, the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission [IATTC] adopted
a voluntary international agreement--the La Jolla agreement--
establishing a multilateral program to reduce dolphin mortalities in
the ETP. This agreement contains the goal of reducing dolphin deaths to
less than 5,000 annually. Currently, 11 nations including the United
States, participate in this voluntary program. While Mexico had been a
participant in the program, they recently announced that they were
suspending their formal participation in the voluntary program.
During the summer of 1995, five environmental groups and six Latin
American nations negotiated the Panama Declaration, a new initiative to
strengthen the IATTC dolphin protection program in exchange for
eliminating the current United States ban on tuna that is not dolphin
safe.
This brings us to today, where our efforts are focused on enacting
the necessary legislation for implementing the Panama Declaration, and
the requirements that we revise United States dolphin protections laws.
Thanks to the efforts of so many Senators, their staffs and others,
the bill we are about to vote on now includes: a label change provision
that accommodates our international obligations as laid out in the
Panama Declaration, while providing enhanced protection for dolphins,
and sound science for future conservation efforts.
The compromise reflected in S. 39 as amended, provides for a $12
million over 3 years to fully fund a study on the practice of chase and
encirclement and its impact on depleted dolphin stocks. The bill
requires a preliminary finding on the results of this study to be made
in March, 1999. Unless the Secretary of Commerce finds that intentional
encirclement has a significant adverse impact on depleted dolphin
stocks, then the definition of the ``dolphin-safe'' label immediately
changes to allow for the encirclement of dolphin--as long as no dolphin
were killed or seriously injured in the process--as a legitimate
fishing practice in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. Conversely, if
the Secretary of Commerce finds that intentional encirclement does not
have a significant adverse impact on depleted stocks, then the dolphin-
safe label does not change at that time.
This compromise provides, further, for a second and final finding to
be made by the Secretary of Commerce at the conclusion of the 3-year
study, between July 2001 and December 2002, as to whether or not the
intentional encirclement of dolphins has a significant adverse impact
on depleted dolphin stocks or is preventing the recovery of such
stocks. The Secretary of Commerce shall use the same threshold for this
second determination.
In closing, Mr. President, this compromise is an important step
forward for both continued dolphin protection and enhanced ecosystem
protection. The agreement we reached accommodates our international
obligations as laid out in the Panama Declaration, while providing
enhanced protection for dolphins, and sound science for future
conservation efforts. This bill also continues to protect consumers by
maintaining the dolphin-safe standards. S. 39 represents a serious,
well-vetted effort to bridge legitimate differences on how best to
protection dolphins. I, therefore, encourage my colleagues to vote for
its swift passage.
I ask unanimous consent that a letter from Kathleen McGinty at the
White House be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the letter was ordered to be printed in the
Record, as follows:
Executive Office of the President, Council on
Environmental Quality,
Washington, DC, July 29, 1997.
Hon. Ted Stevens
Chairman, Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: As you know, members of the Senate and
the Administration have reached a compromise on S. 39, the
International Dolphin Conservation Act. A key component of
this compromise is a comprehensive dolphin population
abundance study and stress study to be undertaken by the
National Marine Fisheries Service commencing in Fiscal Year
1998 and continuing through Fiscal Years 1999, 2000, and
2001. The Administration strongly supports this study and
will work with Congress to obtain the necessary funding to
initiate it in 1998. To ensure that the study achieves its
scientific objectives, as laid out in the compromise, the
Administration will seek the funds necessary to continue the
study in Fiscal Years 1999 and 2000 and to complete it in
Fiscal Year 2001.
Sincerely,
Kathleen A. McGinty,
Chair.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I yield to the Senator from California 5
minutes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California is recognized for
5 minutes.
Mrs. BOXER. Thank you very much, Mr. President. I thank Senator
Kerry, and I will say more about him in a moment.
Mr. President, we have travelled a very difficult route to get to
this day. There are so many people I wish to thank. I will start off by
thanking my colleagues, Senator Joe Biden and Senator Bob Smith, for
their constant support over the last several years on this issue.
Senator Biden was the Senate author of the 1990 dolphin-safe label law
that I authored in the House at that time. Senator Smith has, time and
time again, proven that he is a champion of dolphin protection. Getting
this compromise worked out has been very difficult--and Senator John
Kerry was a master negotiator. When many of us on all sides of the
issue thought we would never reach agreement, he stuck with it. We are
here today in great part due to the dedication of Senator Kerry. He
knows this issue, he was persistent, and he never quit.
I also thank Senator Hollings, the distinguished ranking member of
the Commerce Committee, for his leadership and, of course, Senator John
McCain, the chair of the committee, for coming to the table, as well as
Senator Snowe, Senator Stevens and Senator Breaux.
One more thank you, Mr. President, to the 45 Senators from both sides
of the aisle who stood with us in this fight. The only reason we got
here today is they refused to vote for cloture on this bill. They made
promises on it to their constituents, and they kept those promises. I
feel, I have to say, that without them, we would not be here either.
Senator Daschle, the Democratic leader, stood with us the entire time.
[[Page S8303]]
I think we have saved dolphin lives as a result of this compromise,
and we have protected American consumers.
Mr. President, the whole argument over this bill really revolved
around one issue: What is the definition of ``dolphin safe''? In 1990,
we decided that if you want to get a dolphin-safe label, you have to
fish for tuna in such a way as to not harm the dolphin. That is, you
may not chase or encircle dolphin with purse seine nets on that fishing
trip. There are those who believe there are new ways to use the purse
seine nets that no longer harm the dolphin.
Many of us believe there is no proof of that. Senator Biden and I,
Senator Smith, the other Senators, and 85 environmental and consumer
groups said we can't change the definition until we have a scientific
study that tells us it is safe for dolphins. That is what this debate
is all about.
Eleven countries put tremendous pressure on this Government to change
the definition of ``dolphin safe'' before there was even a study. We
believed that our position was the right position; there should be a
study.
We did have to give on this. We wanted a 3-year study, and we did not
want any change in the label until that 3-year study was analyzed. We
did not win that point.
Essentially, the way the compromise works, in 18 months when the
preliminary results come in on the study, if--if--the Secretary of
Commerce believes that those preliminary results indicate that chasing
and setting nets on dolphins is safe for dolphins then the definition
of ``dolphin safe,'' will be changed. And if the study does not show
that, the bill we are passing today says we will have no change in the
definition.
So, yes, this is clearly a compromise. We have won 18 months of the
status quo; 18 months when consumers know that the dolphin-safe label
means just that, and after that, we will live to see the preliminary
results of that study, I hope, and we can have a new debate at that
time. But this is what compromise is all about.
I want to make one further statement, Mr. President, because there is
a disturbing element in all of this to me, and it doesn't just come
into being with respect to this issue; it is an overall issue. And that
is, I have a very straightforward opinion that American laws should be
made by Americans; that, in fact, our environmental laws, all of our
laws, our labor laws, ought to be made by the people who are sent here
to fight out those issues. American laws should not be made by other
countries.
I was disturbed in the course of this debate that, in fact, there was
tremendous influence from other countries. I think there are many
Senators who feel that is appropriate, and I think this debate shall
continue, but we have a very good law on the books and I am proud to
say it is going to stand for 18 months.
I look forward to making sure that the bill we are passing today
comes back after conference in just this format, and it can be signed
into law. Thank you very much, Mr. President. I reserve my side's time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired. Who yields
time?
Mr. KERRY addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts is recognized
for 3 minutes 18 seconds.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from California, and I
thank her particularly for her comments about me. I am very
appreciative of that. I thank her for her extraordinary tenacity in
this effort and willingness to fight for what she believes in, which
she did.
I also want to emphasize that I believe this was a fair compromise
arrived at by a lot of people who wanted to do what was in the best
interest. I thank Senator Snowe and Senator McCain for their patience
in this effort. It was trying at times and sometimes there were some
difficulties along the way. They have been very gracious and very
decent in arriving at this. I think a compromise is a compromise.
Everybody agrees to settle, and they do so because it is in the best
interests ultimately of the issue, and that is what has happened here.
I yield back the remainder of my time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maine.
Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There is a sufficient second.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
Amendment No. 1045
(Purpose: To make changes in the bill as reported by committee)
Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I send an amendment to the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The bill clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Maine [Ms. Snowe], for herself, Mr.
Breaux, Mr. Stevens, and Mr. McCain, proposes an amendment
numbered 1045.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the reading of
the amendment be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
(The text of the amendment is printed in today's Record under
``Amendments Submitted.'')
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the amendment.
The amendment (No. 1045) was agreed to.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote by which the
amendment was agreed to.
Mrs. BOXER. I move to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Mr. BREAUX. Mr. President, I would like to engage the bill managers
and Senator Stevens in a colloquy.
As a chief cosponsor of S. 39, my understanding is that the
appropriate standard of judicial review that would apply to the
Secretarial findings in section 5 on whether dolphin encirclement is
having a significant adverse impact on dolphin stocks in the standard
under the Administrative Procedures Act. Is that the understanding of
the bill managers and the sponsor of the bill?
Ms. SNOWE. Yes, the Senator is correct on that point. The Secretarial
determinations to which you refer are included in S. 39 as an amendment
to the Dolphin Consumer Protection Information Act. That act does not
specify any alternative standard of review, and therefore the standard
under the Administrative Procedures Act would apply. Furthermore, the
bill managers intend that such standard will apply to the Secretarial
findings in section 5 of S. 39. this standard involves a review of the
administrative record, and a determination of whether the Secretary
acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner.
Mr. STEVENS. I concur with Senator Snowe. As the original sponsor of
the bill, it is my intent that the Secretarial findings in section 5 be
subject only to the scope of judicial review in the Administrative
Procedures Act. That is clearly the appropriate standard, and I think
we all agree on that.
Mr. KERRY. I concur with Senator Snowe and Senator Stevens on this
point.
Mr. BREAUX. I thank the Senators for clarifying that point.
Mr. CHAFEE. Mr. President, I commend the efforts of the Senator from
Alaska Senator Stevens, and the Senator from Maine Senator Snowe, for
bringing this much-needed legislation to the floor. It has been nearly
2 years since legislation was first introduced in the Senate to
implement the Panama Declaration, an international agreement which will
promote marine conservation in the Pacific Ocean. I recognize that the
opponents of this measure have strong convictions, and am pleased that
the two sides were able to work out a compromise that, most
importantly, is consistent with the international agreement which the
United States signed.
Let me first state my view that eliminating dolphin mortality must
remain a top priority as the Senate considers this bill. Like so many
Americans, I will not soon forget the tragedy that occurred in the
1970's, when hundreds of thousands of dolphins were killed annually
from tuna fishing in the Eastern Tropical Pacific [ETP]. In 1972 alone,
more than 420,000 dolphins were killed there. While we can all applaud
the tremendous progress that has been made in reducing dolphin
mortality in recent years, Congress must be vigilant in working toward
complete elimination.
[[Page S8304]]
But dolphins are not the only species adversely impacted by tuna
fishing in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, sometimes called ETP. New
fishing methods have resulted in significant bycatch of nondolphin
species, including juvenile tuna. These other marine species in this
ecosystem must also be protected, and legislation should address this
larger goal.
The question before the Senate today is how do we best achieve
sustained conservation in the ETP tuna fishery? We must first
acknowledge that much progress has been made in reducing dolphin
mortality through new fishing techniques such as the back down
procedure. Through this technique, the back edge of the purse seine
fishing net sinks below the surface, allowing dolphins to swim out. In
1996, dolphin mortality in the ETP is currently estimated at a record
low of less than 3,000, down from record highs of more than 400,000 in
the 1970's. That's a 99-percent reduction.
International cooperation in conserving this resource, particularly
through the voluntary measures of the La Jolla agreement of 1992, has
also been a primary factor in achieving this great success. Among other
things, this landmark agreement, which was signed by 10 nations,
established strict dolphin mortality limits and required observers to
be present aboard tuna fishing boats in the ETP.
In order to continue this tremendous progress, the United States must
continue to work with our neighbors on multilateral efforts to conserve
this resource. This involves enacting the legislation before the Senate
today, S. 39, which implements the Panama Declaration.
Contrary to much of what has been said in the 2 years since it was
signed, the Panama Declaration represents the best in international
conservation. It would retain--and in many cases, enhance--the
provisions of the La Jolla agreement that have been so successful in
reducing dolphin mortality and protecting the tuna fishery. Let me be
clear: the Panama Declaration will not threaten the dolphin population
in the Eastern Tropical Pacific.
Unlike the voluntary La Jolla Agreement, the Panama Declaration is
binding upon its signatories. Among its many stringent requirements are
reductions in the annual overall limit on dolphin mortalities that were
established by the La Jolla agreement. These limits include per-stock
mortality limits to protect all dolphin populations.
The Panama Declaration also increases enforcement and monitoring
efforts to protect dolphins, including mandatory observers on all tuna
fishing vessels. In addition, it sets as an agreed goal the elimination
of all dolphin mortality in the ETP tuna fishery. And the Panama
Declaration has teeth: if foreign nations do not comply, then the
United States can reimpose our tuna embargo.
Opponents of S. 39 have been concerned over its change in the
definition of dolphin safe, as mandated by the Panama Declaration. It
is important to note that the new definition of dolphin safe is not
weaker than current law. Let me explain.
When the current definition was adopted in 1990, the dolphin safe
label was intended to prevent the import of tuna into the United States
that were caught by encircling dolphins. This definition made good
sense in 1990 since, historically, fishing methods that encircled
dolphins caused high mortality rates. But as I've stated, recent
modifications to the encirclement method of tuna fishing have resulted
in reduced dolphin mortality.
A more sensible definition of dolphin safe should mean no dolphins
were killed during the tuna fishing, rather than no dolphins were
encircled. Under the new definition, if even one dolphin is killed in
the process, that tuna cannot be labeled dolphin safe. Proponents of
the old definition want truth in labeling. I agree with this. But,
don't consumers expect that dolphin safe means no dolphins were killed?
The Panama Declaration and S. 39 would do just that.
In any event, so as to be absolutely sure that these new encirclement
techniques do not adversely affect dolphin stocks in the ETP, the
compromise before us today delays the label change until NOAA conducts
a preliminary survey of these stocks. This slight delay should not
threaten United States participation in the Panama Declaration,
allowing its strong conservation requirements to be implemented.
The Panama Declaration also recognizes the importance of protecting
nondolphin marine life in the ETP that has been harmed by tuna fishing.
The controversy over dolphin mortality has encouraged tuna fishermen to
utilize alternative methods to encirclement--namely school sets and log
sets. These techniques, while more protective of dolphins, are well
known to cause destruction of nondolphin marine life, including sea
turtles, billfish, sharks, and juvenile yellowfin tuna.
NOAA scientists have warned repeatedly that the high bycatch of
juvenile tuna, associated with these two fishing methods, might
actually imperial tuna stocks in the future--to say nothing of their
impact on other species. As envisioned by the Panama Declaration, S. 39
requires the United States to implement a program to reduce bycatch of
all marine life in the ETP, not just dolphins.
Mr. President, today the United States confronts a choice that must
be made soon on how best to conserve marine life in the Pacific Ocean.
Negotiators have worked out a compromise that will allow the United
States to choose the best option. This option entails joining our
neighbors in implementing a binding, carefully crafted international
agreement that includes strong mandates that will protect dolphins and
other species.
Another option involved going it alone, sacrificing what little
leverage we have in an increasingly foreign fishery. Keep in mind that
the ETP is completely outside the jurisdiction of the United States. We
cannot simply go in and tell others how to fish.
Instead, our best chance of promoting conservation is through a
multilateral, rather than a unilateral, forum. But other signatories to
the Panama Declaration will not wait forever while the United States
Congress continues to debate this issue. The time to act is now.
If we had chosen to go it alone, dolphins would not necessarily have
been saved. Indeed, more dolphins may well be killed if the United
States rejects the Panama Declaration, as fishermen will likely abandon
the voluntary provisions of the La Jolla agreement. What incentive
would these fishermen have to conserve if the largest consumer of tuna
maintains an embargo on their product and refuses to participate in
international conservation efforts?
Because the Panama Declaration offers the best hope for marine
conservation in the ETP, S. 39 has been endorsed by Greenpeace,
National Wildlife Federation, Center for Marine Conservation,
Environmental Defense Fund, and World Wildlife Fund. These groups
recognize the merits of this multilateral approach.
I again commend the tireless efforts of the authors of this
legislation, and urge my colleagues to support S. 39.
Mr. HOLLINGS. Mr. President, the manager's amendment before us today
is the product of many hours of work on the part of a number of my
colleagues. I would like to express my personal appreciation to my
friend, the chairman of the Commerce Committee, Senator McCain, and the
chair of the Subcommittee on Oceans and Fisheries, Senator Snowe, for
their personal efforts and willingness to delay consideration of this
legislation until interested parties could work out an agreement.
In addition, I particularly would like to acknowledge the effort of
the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, Senator Kerry for his
commitment to reaching a compromise. The Senator from Massachusetts
made the mistake at our hearing on this legislation of volunteering to
find a middle ground between the proponents and opponents of S. 39.
Since that time, he has spent hours listening to and trying to
accommodate the concerns of all sides in this contentious issue.
Without his tireless effort, we would not be standing here today.
My own interest in this legislation has always been: to ensure sound
conservation of marine mammals; to provide consumers with the
information they need when purchasing tuna; and to ensure U.S. tuna
fishermen a level playing field on which to compete.
[[Page S8305]]
The bill before us now is a far better bill. It addresses many of the
concerns of Senators Boxer and Biden as well as others. These two
Senators have been leaders in the area of dolphin protection--they
wrote the dolphin-safe labeling law and have legitimate concerns about
changing the dolphin-safe label without the scientific research to
ensure that the tuna fishing methods allowed by S. 39 are safe for
dolpins. The compromise before us today ensures that there will be a
study of the effect of chasing and encircling dolpins and bases a
change in the meaning of ``dolphin safe'' on the results of that study.
Furthermore, the compromise addresses the concerns of Senator Inouye.
It allows alternative labels on tuna but makes sure that the claims on
those labels are true and can be verified.
Again, I thank the primary sponsors of the bill, Senators Stevens and
Breaux, and all of the parties who worked on the manager's amendment
for their efforts to improve this legislation.
Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, when the President signs the
International Dolphin Conservation Program Act, the United States will
have joined the rest of the tuna-fishing nations in the Eastern Pacific
in pledging that, in the future, no dolphins will be killed in the
harvesting of tuna. Further, the transition to better fishing methods
will result in a significant reduction in by-catch waste in that
portion of the ocean. This is a remarkable achievement.
My colleagues from Alaska and Louisiana, Senators Stevens and Breaux,
have pressed on for 2 years to see that this agreement is ratified.
Their perseverance should be recognized and appreciated. Finally, this
bill would likely have never become law had the subcommittee chairman,
Senator Snowe, not gathered the various parties to work out a
compromise that would assure passage of this implementing legislation.
She is to be commended for her skill and stamina in seeing this measure
to its successful conclusion.
I yield the floor.
Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, I am pleased to rise in support of the
compromise amendment to S. 39--the so-called tuna-dolphin bill.
In forging this bipartisan agreement, we have struck a proper balance
between resolving the market access problems now faced by other
countries and keeping the faith with American consumers. It is a fair
deal.
In short, the bill implements an international dolphin protection
regime--known as the Panama Declaration--while maintaining the current
dolphin-safe label during the pendency of a study on the impacts on
dolphins from purse net tuna fishing.
In March 1999--after scientists have preliminary determined whether
purse net tuna fishing harms dolphin stocks--the Secretary of Commerce
is to make a determination as to the appropriate dolphin-safe label,
whether that be the current one that Senator Boxer and I wrote into law
in 1990, or another protective version. This decision will be reviewed
in the year 2001.
Also included in the bill are provisions requiring Latin and South
American countries tuna fishing the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean to
enroll in an expanded dolphin protection program, which includes on-
board observers. This will enable us to lock-in and improve upon the
tremendous gains that we have already made in decreasing dolphin
mortalities.
This amendment represents a compromise on process, not a cave-in on
principles. Again, we retain for every letter of the current dolphin-
safe label. In 2 years' time the question will be if the label should
be changed--not when it should be changed.
I would also note that I do have some reservations regarding the
adequacy of the data that will form the basis of the March 1999 label
review. Only one population survey will be available at that time; this
will not be an abundance of information upon which to make an informed
and unbiased decision. I urge the Secretary of Commerce to err on the
side of caution during the preliminary review and not make science
conform to political will.
I would like to recognize and publicly thank my colleagues who worked
so hard in crafting this agreement, particularly Senator Boxer, Senator
Kerry, Senator Breaux, Senator Snowe, Senator McCain, and Senator
Stevens. Each spent a great deal of personal time trying to bridge the
gap in this debate, and I am grateful for their efforts.
In closing, this agreement continues to protect dolphins while
keeping our faith with the American people. It is environmentally and
economically the right thing to do, and I urge its passage.
Funding for Dolphin Research
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, an agreement has been reached to address
concerns with S. 39, the International Dolphin Conservation Program
Act. The agreement is contained in the manager's amendment to S. 39
offered by Senator Snowe. Under the agreement, the Secretary of
Commerce is required to conduct a multi-year study on dolphin and
dolphin stocks taken incidentally in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean
(ETP) purse seine fishery. The Secretary will use the information from
this study to make two separate findings that will determine whether or
not tuna caught in the ETP by intentionally encircling dolphins can be
labeled as dolphin safe in the United States. Senator Snowe's amendment
authorizes appropriations of $4 million in fiscal year 1998, $3 million
in fiscal year 1999, $4 million in fiscal year 2000, and $1 million in
fiscal year 2001 to complete the study. These amounts are based on
National Marine Fisheries Service estimates for the costs for the
study. I have received a letter from the White House indicating that
the administration will request funds for the study in fiscal years
1999, 2000, and 2001. If the administration follows through on its
commitment to request these funds, I will do everything I can to ensure
they are appropriated.
Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I am supportive of the effort to appropriate
the funds necessary for the study outlined in the manager's amendment
to S. 39, beginning in fiscal year 1998. In fact, it is my
understanding that the manager's amendment is written so that a number
of sections in S. 39 will become effective only after funding for the
first year of the study has been provided. It is clear to me that full
funding for this research is a critical element of the agreement on S.
39.
Mr. GREGG. Recognizing the importance of this study to the compromise
reached on S. 39, funds were added to the fiscal year 1998 Commerce,
Justice, State appropriations bill in the Senate to complete the first
year of work. We will work together to protect this appropriation in
conference. I, too, encourage the administration to follow through on
its commitment to include the funds for fiscal year 1999, 2000, and
2001 in its budget requests, and will work to include the funds in
appropriations if they are requested.
Mr. HOLLINGS. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in supporting
appropriations for the completion of the dolphin study. The manager's
amendment to S. 39 developed by the Commerce Committee is written so
that most of the operative provisions of bill will become effective
only if funding for the fist year of the study has been provided. The
White House has expressed support for the appropriation mentioned by
Senator Gregg for fiscal year 1998, and has indicated that funding will
be requested to complete the study in fiscal year 1999, 2000, and 2001.
Together with Senators Stevens, Byrd, and Gregg, I support the fiscal
year 1998 appropriation for the first year of the study, and will
support funds in years to come to complete the study.
Mr. DASCHLE addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Hutchinson). The Democratic leader.
Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I appreciate very much your recognizing
me prior to the time we go to third reading. I will be very brief. I am
not sure we have any time left. If we don't, I will just use leader
time.
I just want to say how much I appreciate the effort made by the
Senators who are on the floor to bring us to this point. This has been
a 2-year-long debate. Obviously, there have been good intentions on
both sides, and negotiations have resulted in a compromise that brings
us to a point that will allow us to address this issue in a meaningful
way.
I congratulate the administration and those who worked with us to
accomplish this within the administration. But I particularly want to
thank
[[Page S8306]]
Senators Boxer and Biden who pioneered the establishment of the dolphin
safe label all the way back to 1990, who recognized the importance of
this issue and dedicated themselves to solving it as they did back
then.
I thank Senator Hollings, the ranking member of the Commerce
Committee, Senator Snowe, the chair of the Oceans and Fisheries
Subcommittee, for her work, Senator McCain, Senator Stevens, and
Senator Breaux, who developed and introduced the legislation to
implement the Panama Declaration, and perhaps a special thanks goes to
Senator John Kerry, the ranking member of the Oceans and Fisheries
Subcommittee whose patience and guidance and leadership was critical to
bringing all sides together in reaching this agreement.
So this is a very good moment for us. It is another opportunity to
demonstrate the commitment that we have in working together to face
these serious questions in a meaningful way. So, to all of those
involved, especially Senators Boxer, Biden, and Kerry, my thanks. I
hope we can address this matter now by an overwhelming vote here in the
Senate.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the committee
amendment in the nature of a substitute, as amended.
The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute, as amended,
was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on the engrossment and third
reading of the bill.
The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, and was
read the third time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The bill having been read the third time, the
question is, Shall the bill pass? The yeas and nays have been ordered.
The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk called the roll.
Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina [Mr.
Faircloth] is necessarily absent.
The result was announced--yeas 99, nays 0, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 207 Leg.]
YEAS--99
Abraham
Akaka
Allard
Ashcroft
Baucus
Bennett
Biden
Bingaman
Bond
Boxer
Breaux
Brownback
Bryan
Bumpers
Burns
Byrd
Campbell
Chafee
Cleland
Coats
Cochran
Collins
Conrad
Coverdell
Craig
D'Amato
Daschle
DeWine
Dodd
Domenici
Dorgan
Durbin
Enzi
Feingold
Feinstein
Ford
Frist
Glenn
Gorton
Graham
Gramm
Grams
Grassley
Gregg
Hagel
Harkin
Hatch
Helms
Hollings
Hutchinson
Hutchison
Inhofe
Inouye
Jeffords
Johnson
Kempthorne
Kennedy
Kerrey
Kerry
Kohl
Kyl
Landrieu
Lautenberg
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
Lott
Lugar
Mack
McCain
McConnell
Mikulski
Moseley-Braun
Moynihan
Murkowski
Murray
Nickles
Reed
Reid
Robb
Roberts
Rockefeller
Roth
Santorum
Sarbanes
Sessions
Shelby
Smith (NH)
Smith (OR)
Snowe
Specter
Stevens
Thomas
Thompson
Thurmond
Torricelli
Warner
Wellstone
Wyden
NOT VOTING--1
Faircloth
The bill (S. 39), as amended, was passed as follows:
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the
``International Dolphin Conservation Program Act''.
(b) References to Marine Mammal Protection Act.--Except as
otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to,
or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference
shall be considered to be made to a section or other
provision of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (16
U.S.C. 1361 et seq.).
SEC. 2. PURPOSES AND FINDINGS.
(a) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to give effect to the Declaration of Panama, signed
October 4, 1995, by the Governments of Belize, Colombia,
Costa Rica, Ecuador, France, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Spain,
the United States of America, Vanuatu, and Venezuela,
including the establishment of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program, relating to the protection of dolphins
and other species, and the conservation and management of
tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean;
(2) to recognize that nations fishing for tuna in the
eastern tropical Pacific Ocean have achieved significant
reductions in dolphin mortality associated with that fishery;
and
(3) to eliminate the ban on imports of tuna from those
nations that are in compliance with the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.
(b) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
(1) the nations that fish for tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean have achieved significant reductions in dolphin
mortality associated with the purse seine fishery from
hundreds of thousands annually to fewer than 5,000 annually;
(2) the provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 that impose a ban on imports from nations that fish for
tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean have served as an
incentive to reduce dolphin mortalities;
(3) tuna canners and processors of the United States have
led the canning and processing industry in promoting a
dolphin-safe tuna market; and
(4) 12 signatory nations to the Declaration of Panama,
including the United States, agreed under that Declaration to
require that the total annual dolphin mortality in the purse
seine fishery for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean not exceed 5,000 animals, with the objective of
progressively reducing dolphin mortality to a level
approaching zero through the setting of annual limits and
with the goal of eliminating dolphin mortality.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
Section 3 (16 U.S.C. 1362) is amended by adding at the end
the following new paragraphs:
``(28) The term `International Dolphin Conservation
Program' means the international program established by the
agreement signed in LaJolla, California, in June, 1992, as
formalized, modified, and enhanced in accordance with the
Declaration of Panama.
``(29) The term `Declaration of Panama' means the
declaration signed in Panama City, Republic of Panama, on
October 4, 1995.''.
SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE I.
(a) Exceptions to Moratorium.--Section 101(a)(2) (16 U.S.C.
1371(a)(2)) is amended--
(1) by inserting after the first sentence ``Such
authorizations may be granted under title III with respect to
purse seine fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean, subject to regulations prescribed
under that title by the Secretary without regard to section
103.''; and
(2) by striking the semicolon in the second sentence and
all that follows through ``practicable''.
(b) Documentation Required.--Section 101(a)(2) (16 U.S.C.
1371(a)(2)) is further amended--
(1) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the
following:
``(B) in the case of yellowfin tuna harvested with purse
seine nets in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, and
products therefrom, to be exported to the United States,
shall require that the government of the exporting nation
provide documentary evidence that--
``(i)(I) the tuna or products therefrom were not banned
from importation under this paragraph before the effective
date of section 4 of the International Dolphin Conservation
Program Act; or
``(II) the tuna or products therefrom were harvested after
the effective date of section 4 of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program Act by vessels of a nation which
participates in the International Dolphin Conservation
Program, and such harvesting nation is either a member of the
Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission or has initiated (and
within 6 months thereafter completed) all steps required of
applicant nations, in accordance with article V, paragraph 3
of the Convention establishing the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission, to become a member of that organization;
``(ii) such nation is meeting the obligations of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program and the
obligations of membership in the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission, including all financial obligations; and
``(iii) the total dolphin mortality limits, and per-stock
per-year dolphin mortality limits permitted for that nation's
vessels under the International Dolphin Conservation Program
do not exceed the limits determined for 1997, or for any year
thereafter, consistent with the objective of progressively
reducing dolphin mortality to a level approaching zero
through the setting of annual limits and the goal of
eliminating dolphin mortality, and requirements of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program;'';
(2) by redesignating subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E) as
subparagraphs (D), (E), and (F), respectively;
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
``(C) shall not accept such documentary evidence if--
``(i) the government of the harvesting nation does not
provide directly or authorize the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission to release complete and accurate information
to the Secretary in a timely manner--
``(I) to allow determination of compliance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program; and
[[Page S8307]]
``(II) for the purposes of tracking and verifying
compliance with the minimum requirements established by the
Secretary in regulations promulgated under subsection (f) of
the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C.
1385(f)); or
``(ii) after taking into consideration such information,
findings of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, and
any other relevant information, including information that a
nation is consistently failing to take enforcement actions on
violations which diminish the effectiveness of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program, the Secretary, in
consultation with the Secretary of State, finds that the
harvesting nation is not in compliance with the International
Dolphin Conservation Program.''; and
(4) by striking ``subparagraph (E)'' in the matter after
subparagraph (F), as redesignated by paragraph (2) of this
subsection, and inserting ``subparagraph (F)''.
(c) Certain Incidental Takings.--Section 101 (16 U.S.C.
1371) is further amended by adding at the end the following
new subsection:
``(e) Act Not to Apply to Incidental Takings by United
States Citizens Employed on Foreign Vessels Outside the
United States EEZ.--The provisions of this Act shall not
apply to a citizen of the United States who incidentally
takes any marine mammal during fishing operations outside the
United States exclusive economic zone (as defined in section
3 of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management
Act (16 U.S.C. 1802)) when employed on a foreign fishing
vessel of a harvesting nation which is in compliance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program.''.
(d) Permits.--Section 104(h) (16 U.S.C. 1374(h)) is amended
to read as follows:
``(h) General Permits.--
``(1) Consistent with the regulations prescribed pursuant
to section 103 of this title and to the requirements of
section 101 of this title, the Secretary may issue an annual
permit to a United States purse seine fishing vessel for the
taking of such marine mammals, and shall issue regulations to
cover the use of any such annual permits.
``(2) Such annual permits for the incidental taking of
marine mammals in the course of commercial purse seine
fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific
Ocean shall be governed by section 306 of this Act, subject
to the regulations issued pursuant to section 303 of this
Act.''.
(e) International Negotiations.--Section 108(a)(2) (16
U.S.C. 1378(a)(2)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (A);
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
``(C) negotiations to revise the Convention for the
Establishment of an Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission
(1 U.S.T. 230; TIAS 2044) which will incorporate--
``(i) the conservation and management provisions agreed to
by the nations which have signed the Declaration of Panama
and in the Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish
Stocks Agreement, as opened for signature on December 4,
1995; and
``(ii) a revised schedule of annual contributions to the
expenses of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission that
is equitable to participating nations; and
``(D) discussions with those countries participating, or
likely to participate, in the International Dolphin
Conservation Program, for the purpose of identifying sources
of funds needed for research and other measures promoting
effective protection of dolphins, other marine species, and
the marine ecosystem;''.
(f) Research Grants.--Section 110(a) (16 U.S.C. 1380(a)) is
amended--
(1) by striking ``(1)'' in paragraph (1); and
(2) by striking paragraph (2).
SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO DOLPHIN PROTECTION CONSUMER INFORMATION
ACT.
(a) Labeling Standard.-- Subsection (d) of the Dolphin
Protection Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(d)) is
amended to read as follows:
``(d) Labeling Standard.--
``(1) It is a violation of section 5 of the Federal Trade
Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) for any producer, importer,
exporter, distributor, or seller of any tuna product that is
exported from or offered for sale in the United States to
include on the label of that product the term `dolphin safe'
or any other term or symbol that falsely claims or suggests
that the tuna contained in the product were harvested using a
method of fishing that is not harmful to dolphins if the
product contains tuna harvested--
``(A) on the high seas by a vessel engaged in driftnet
fishing;
``(B) outside the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean by a
vessel using purse seine nets--
``(i) in a fishery in which the Secretary has determined
that a regular and significant association occurs between
dolphins and tuna (similar to the association between
dolphins and tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean),
unless such product is accompanied by a written statement,
executed by the captain of the vessel and an observer
participating in a national or international program
acceptable to the Secretary, certifying that no purse seine
net was intentionally deployed on or used to encircle
dolphins during the particular voyage on which the tuna were
caught and no dolphins were killed or seriously injured in
the sets in which the tuna were caught; or
``(ii) in any other fishery (other than a fishery described
in subparagraph (D)) unless the product is accompanied by a
written statement executed by the captain of the vessel
certifying that no purse seine net was intentionally deployed
on or used to encircle dolphins during the particular voyage
on which the tuna was harvested;
``(C) in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean by a vessel
using a purse seine net unless the tuna meet the requirements
for being considered dolphin safe under paragraph (2); or
``(D) by a vessel in a fishery other than one described in
subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) that is identified by the
Secretary as having a regular and significant mortality or
serious injury of dolphins, unless such product is
accompanied by a written statement executed by the captain of
the vessel and an observer participating in a national or
international program acceptable to the Secretary that no
dolphins were killed or seriously injured in the sets or
other gear deployments in which the tuna were caught,
provided that the Secretary determines that such an observer
statement is necessary.
``(2) For purposes of paragraph (1)(C), a tuna product that
contains tuna harvested in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean
by a vessel using purse seine nets is dolphin safe if--
``(A) the vessel is of a type and size that the Secretary
has determined, consistent with the International Dolphin
Conservation Program, is not capable of deploying its purse
seine nets on or to encircle dolphins; or
``(B)(i) the product is accompanied by a written statement
executed by the captain providing the certification required
under subsection (h);
``(ii) the product is accompanied by a written statement
executed by--
``(I) the Secretary or the Secretary's designee;
``(II) a representative of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission; or
``(III) an authorized representative of a participating
nation whose national program meets the requirements of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program,
which states that there was an observer approved by the
International Dolphin Conservation Program on board the
vessel during the entire trip and that such observer provided
the certification required under subsection (h); and
``(iii) the statements referred to in clauses (i) and (ii)
are endorsed in writing by each exporter, importer, and
processor of the product; and
``(C) the written statements and endorsements referred to
in subparagraph (B) comply with regulations promulgated by
the Secretary which provide for the verification of tuna
products as dolphin safe.
``(3)(A) The Secretary of Commerce shall develop an
official mark that may be used to label tuna products as
dolphin safe in accordance with this Act.
``(B) A tuna product that bears the dolphin safe mark
developed under subparagraph (A) shall not bear any other
label or mark that refers to dolphins, porpoises, or marine
mammals.
``(C) It is a violation of section 5 of the Federal Trade
Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to label a tuna product with
any label or mark that refers to dolphins, porpoises, or
marine mammals other than the mark developed under
subparagraph (A) unless--
``(i) no dolphins were killed or seriously injured in the
sets or other gear deployments in which the tuna were caught;
``(ii) the label is supported by a tracking and
verification program which is comparable in effectiveness to
the program established under subsection (f); and
``(iii) the label complies with all applicable labeling,
marketing, and advertising laws and regulations of the
Federal Trade Commission, including any guidelines for
environmental labeling.
``(D) If the Secretary determines that the use of a label
referred to in subparagraph (C) is substantially undermining
the conservation goals of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program, the Secretary shall report that
determination to the United States Senate Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the United States
House of Representatives Committees on Resources and on
Commerce, along with recommendations to correct such
problems.
``(E) It is a violation of section 5 of the Federal Trade
Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) willingly and knowingly to use
a label referred to in subparagraph (C) in a campaign or
effort to mislead or deceive consumers about the level of
protection afforded dolphins under the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.''.
(b) Tracking Regulations.--Subsection (f) of the Dolphin
Protection Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(f)) is
amended to read as follows:
``(f) Regulations.--The Secretary, in consultation with the
Secretary of the Treasury, shall issue regulations to
implement this Act, including regulations to establish a
domestic tracking and verification program that provides for
the effective tracking of tuna labeled under subsection (d).
In the development of these regulations, the Secretary shall
establish appropriate procedures for ensuring the
confidentiality of proprietary information the submission of
which is voluntary or mandatory. The regulations shall
address each of the following items:
``(1) The use of weight calculation for purposes of
tracking tuna caught, landed, processed, and exported.
[[Page S8308]]
``(2) Additional measures to enhance current observer
coverage, including the establishment of criteria for
training, and for improving monitoring and reporting
capabilities and procedures.
``(3) The designation of well location, procedures for
sealing holds, procedures for monitoring and certifying both
above and below deck, or through equally effective methods,
the tracking and verification of tuna labeled under
subsection (d).
``(4) The reporting, receipt, and database storage of radio
and facsimile transmittals from fishing vessels containing
information related to the tracking and verification of tuna,
and the definition of set.
``(5) The shore-based verification and tracking throughout
the fishing, transshipment, and canning process by means of
Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission trip records or
otherwise.
``(6) The use of periodic audits and spot checks for
caught, landed, and processed tuna products labeled in
accordance with subsection (d).
``(7) The provision of timely access to data required under
this subsection by the Secretary from harvesting nations to
undertake the actions required in paragraph (6) of this
paragraph.
The Secretary may make such adjustments as may be appropriate
to the regulations promulgated under this subsection to
implement an international tracking and verification program
that meets or exceeds the minimum requirements established by
the Secretary under this subsection.''.
(c) Findings Concerning Impact on Depleted Stocks.--The
Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385)
is amended by striking subsections (g), (h), and (i) and
inserting the following:
``(g) Secretarial Findings.--(1) Between March 1, 1999, and
March 31, 1999, the Secretary shall, on the basis of the
research conducted before March 1, 1999, under section 304(a)
of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, information
obtained under the International Dolphin Conservation
Program, and any other relevant information, make an initial
finding regarding whether the intentional deployment on or
encirclement of dolphins with purse seine nets is having a
significant adverse impact on any depleted dolphin stock in
the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. The initial finding shall
be published immediately in the Federal Register and shall
become effective upon a subsequent date determined by the
Secretary.
``(2) Between July 1, 2001, and December 31, 2002, the
Secretary shall, on the basis of the completed study
conducted under section 304(a) of the Marine Mammal
Protection Act of 1972, information obtained under the
International Dolphin Conservation Program, and any other
relevant information, make a finding regarding whether the
intentional deployment on or encirclement of dolphins with
purse seine nets is having a significant adverse impact on
any depleted dolphin stock in the eastern tropical Pacific
Ocean. The finding shall be published immediately in the
Federal Register and shall become effective upon a subsequent
date determined by the Secretary.
``(h) Certification by Captain and Observer.--
``(1) Unless otherwise required by paragraph (2), the
certification by the captain under subsection (d)(2)(B)(i)
and the certification provided by the observer as specified
in subsection (d)(2)(B)(ii) shall be that no dolphins were
killed or seriously injured during the sets in which the tuna
were caught.
``(2) The certification by the captain under subsection
(d)(2)(B)(i) and the certification provided by the observer
as specified under subsection (d)(2)(B)(ii) shall be that no
tuna were caught on the trip in which such tuna were
harvested using a purse seine net intentionally deployed on
or to encircle dolphins, and that no dolphins were killed or
seriously injured during the sets in which the tuna were
caught, if the tuna were caught on a trip commencing--
``(A) before the effective date of the initial finding by
the Secretary under subsection (g)(1);
``(B) after the effective date of such initial finding and
before the effective date of the finding of the Secretary
under subsection (g)(2), where the initial finding is that
the intentional deployment on or encirclement of dolphins is
having a significant adverse impact on any depleted dolphin
stock; or
``(C) after the effective date of the finding under
subsection (g)(2), where such finding is that the intentional
deployment on or encirclement of dolphins is having a
significant adverse impact on any such depleted stock.''.
SEC. 6. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE III.
(a) Change of Title Heading.--The heading of title III is
amended to read as follows:
``TITLE III--INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM''.
(b) Additional Findings.--Section 301 (16 U.S.C. 1411) is
amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (4) of subsection (a) and
inserting the following:
``(4) Nations harvesting yellowfin tuna in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean have demonstrated their willingness to
participate in appropriate multilateral agreements to reduce
dolphin mortality progressively to a level approaching zero
through the setting of annual limits, with the goal of
eliminating dolphin mortality in that fishery. Recognition of
the International Dolphin Conservation Program will assure
that the existing trend of reduced dolphin mortality
continues; that individual stocks of dolphins are adequately
protected; and that the goal of eliminating all dolphin
mortality continues to be a priority.''; and
(2) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (b)
and inserting the following:
``(2) support the International Dolphin Conservation
Program and efforts within the Program to reduce, with the
goal of eliminating, the mortality referred to in paragraph
(1);
``(3) ensure that the market of the United States does not
act as an incentive to the harvest of tuna caught with
driftnets or caught by purse seine vessels in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean not operating in compliance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program;''.
(c) Title III (16 U.S.C. 1411 et seq.) is amended by
striking sections 302 through 306 (16 U.S.C. 1412 through
1416) and inserting the following:
``SEC. 302. INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM.
``The Secretary of State, in consultation with the
Secretary, shall seek to secure a binding international
agreement to establish an International Dolphin Conservation
Program that requires--
``(1) that the total annual dolphin mortality in the purse
seine fishery for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean shall not exceed 5,000 animals with a
commitment and objective to progressively reduce dolphin
mortality to a level approaching zero through the setting of
annual limits;
``(2) the establishment of a per-stock per-year dolphin
mortality limit, to be in effect through calendar year 2000,
at a level between 0.2 percent and 0.1 percent of the minimum
population estimate, as calculated, revised, or approved by
the Secretary;
``(3) the establishment of a per-stock per-year dolphin
mortality limit, beginning with the calendar year 2001, at a
level less than or equal to 0.1 percent of the minimum
population estimate as calculated, revised, or approved by
the Secretary;
``(4) that if a dolphin mortality limit is exceeded under--
``(A) paragraph (1), all sets on dolphins shall cease for
the applicable fishing year; and
``(B) paragraph (2) or (3), all sets on the stocks covered
under paragraph (2) or (3) and any mixed schools that contain
any of those stocks shall cease for the applicable fishing
year;
``(5) a scientific review and assessment to be conducted in
calendar year 1998 to--
``(A) assess progress in meeting the objectives set for
calendar year 2000 under paragraph (2); and
``(B) as appropriate, consider recommendations for meeting
these objectives;
``(6) a scientific review and assessment to be conducted in
calendar year 2000--
``(A) to review the stocks covered under paragraph (3); and
``(B) as appropriate to consider recommendations to further
the objectives set under that paragraph;
``(7) the establishment of a per vessel maximum annual
dolphin mortality limit consistent with the established per-
year mortality limits, as determined under paragraphs (1)
through (3); and
``(8) the provision of a system of incentives to vessel
captains to continue to reduce dolphin mortality, with the
goal of eliminating dolphin mortality.
``SEC. 303. REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.
``(a) Regulations.--
``(1) The Secretary shall issue regulations, and revise
those regulations as may be appropriate, to implement the
International Dolphin Conservation Program.
``(2)(A) The Secretary shall issue regulations to authorize
and govern the taking of marine mammals in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean, including any species of marine
mammal designated as depleted under this Act but not listed
as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act
(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), by vessels of the United States
participating in the International Dolphin Conservation
Program.
``(B) Regulations issued under this section shall include
provisions--
``(i) requiring observers on each vessel;
``(ii) requiring use of the backdown procedure or other
procedures equally or more effective in avoiding mortality
of, or serious injury to, marine mammals in fishing
operations;
``(iii) prohibiting intentional sets on stocks and schools
in accordance with the International Dolphin Conservation
Program;
``(iv) requiring the use of special equipment, including
dolphin safety panels in nets, monitoring devices as
identified by the International Dolphin Conservation Program
to detect unsafe fishing conditions that may cause high
incidental dolphin mortality before nets are deployed by a
tuna vessel, operable rafts, speedboats with towing bridles,
floodlights in operable condition, and diving masks and
snorkels;
``(v) ensuring that the backdown procedure during sets of
purse seine net on marine mammals is completed and rolling of
the net to sack up has begun no later than 30 minutes before
sundown;
``(vi) banning the use of explosive devices in all purse
seine operations;
``(vii) establishing per vessel maximum annual dolphin
mortality limits, total dolphin mortality limits and per-
stock per-year mortality limits in accordance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program;
[[Page S8309]]
``(viii) preventing the making of intentional sets on
dolphins after reaching either the vessel maximum annual
dolphin mortality limits, total dolphin mortality limits, or
per-stock per-year mortality limits;
``(ix) preventing the fishing on dolphins by a vessel
without an assigned vessel dolphin mortality limit;
``(x) allowing for the authorization and conduct of
experimental fishing operations, under such terms and
conditions as the Secretary may prescribe, for the purpose of
testing proposed improvements in fishing techniques and
equipment that may reduce or eliminate dolphin mortality or
serious injury do not require the encirclement of dolphins in
the course of commercial yellowfin tuna fishing;
``(xi) authorizing fishing within the area covered by the
International Dolphin Conservation Program by vessels of the
United States without the use of special equipment or nets if
the vessel takes an observer and does not intentionally
deploy nets on, or encircle, dolphins, under such terms and
conditions as the Secretary may prescribe; and
``(xii) containing such other restrictions and requirements
as the Secretary determines are necessary to implement the
International Dolphin Conservation Program with respect to
vessels of the United States.
``(C) Adjustments to requirements.--The Secretary may make
such adjustments as may be appropriate to requirements of
subparagraph (B) that pertain to fishing gear, vessel
equipment, and fishing practices to the extent the
adjustments are consistent with the International Dolphin
Conservation Program.
``(b) Consultation.--In developing any regulation under
this section, the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary
of State, the Marine Mammal Commission, and the United States
Commissioners to the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission
appointed under section 3 of the Tuna Conventions Act of 1950
(16 U.S.C. 952).
``(c) Emergency Regulations.--
``(1) If the Secretary determines, on the basis of the best
scientific information available (including research
conducted under section 304 and information obtained under
the International Dolphin Conservation Program) that the
incidental mortality and serious injury of marine mammals
authorized under this title is having, or is likely to have,
a significant adverse impact on a marine mammal stock or
species, the Secretary shall--
``(A) notify the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission of
his or her determination, along with recommendations to the
Commission as to actions necessary to reduce incidental
mortality and serious injury and mitigate such adverse
impact; and
``(B) prescribe emergency regulations to reduce incidental
mortality and serious injury and mitigate such adverse
impact.
``(2) Before taking action under subparagraph (A) or (B) of
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary
of State, the Marine Mammal Commission, and the United States
Commissioners to the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission.
``(3) Emergency regulations prescribed under this
subsection--
``(A) shall be published in the Federal Register, together
with an explanation thereof;
``(B) shall remain in effect for the duration of the
applicable fishing year; and
``(C) may be terminated by the Secretary at an earlier date
by publication in the Federal Register of a notice of
termination if the Secretary determines that the reasons for
the emergency action no longer exist.
``(4) If the Secretary finds that the incidental mortality
and serious injury of marine mammals in the yellowfin tuna
fishery in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean is continuing
to have a significant adverse impact on a stock or species,
the Secretary may extend the emergency regulations for such
additional periods as may be necessary.
``(5) Within 120 days after the Secretary notifies the
United States Commissioners to the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission of the Secretary's determination under
paragraph (1)(A), the United States Commissioners shall call
for a special meeting of the Commission to address the
actions necessary to reduce incidental mortality and serious
injury and mitigate the adverse impact which resulted in the
determination. The Commissioners shall report the results of
the special meeting in writing to the Secretary and to the
Secretary of State. In their report, the Commissioners
shall--
``(A) include a description of the actions taken by the
harvesting nations or under the International Dolphin
Conservation Program to reduce the incidental mortality and
serious injury and measures to mitigate the adverse impact on
the marine mammal species or stock;
``(B) indicate whether, in their judgment, the actions
taken address the problem adequately; and
``(C) if they indicate that the actions taken do not
address the problem adequately, include recommendations of
such additional action to be taken as may be necessary.
``SEC. 304. RESEARCH.
``(a) Required Research.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall, in consultation
with the Marine Mammal Commission and the Inter-American
Tropical Tuna Commission, conduct a study of the effect of
intentional encirclement (including chase) on dolphins and
dolphin stocks incidentally taken in the course of purse
seine fishing for yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical
Pacific Ocean. The study, which shall commence on October 1,
1997, shall consist of abundance surveys as described in
paragraph (2) and stress studies as described in paragraph
(3), and shall address the question of whether such
encirclement is having a significant adverse impact on any
depleted dolphin stock in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean.
``(2) Population abundance surveys.--The abundance surveys
under this subsection shall survey the abundance of such
depleted stocks and shall be conducted during each of the
calendar years 1998, 1999, and 2000.
``(3) Stress studies.--The stress studies under this
subsection shall include--
``(A) a review of relevant stress-related research and a 3-
year series of necropsy samples from dolphins obtained by
commercial vessels;
``(B) a 1-year review of relevant historical demographic
and biological data related to dolphins and dolphin stocks
referred to in paragraph (1); and
``(C) an experiment involving the repeated chasing and
capturing of dolphins by means of intentional encirclement.
``(4) Report.--No later than 90 days after publishing the
finding under subsection (g)(2) of the Dolphin Protection
Consumer Information Act, the Secretary shall complete and
submit a report containing the results of the research
described in this subsection to the United States Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the
United States House of Representatives Committees on
Resources and on Commerce, and to the Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission.
``(b) Other Research.--
``(1) In general.--In addition to conducting the research
described in subsection (a), the Secretary shall, in
consultation with the Marine Mammal Commission and in
cooperation with the nations participating in the
International Dolphin Conservation Program and the Inter-
American Tropical Tuna Commission, undertake or support
appropriate scientific research to further the goals of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program.
``(2) Specific areas of research.--Research carried out
under paragraph (1) may include--
``(A) projects to devise cost-effective fishing methods and
gear so as to reduce, with the goal of eliminating, the
incidental mortality and serious injury of marine mammals in
connection with commercial purse seine fishing in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean;
``(B) projects to develop cost-effective methods of fishing
for mature yellowfin tuna without setting nets on dolphins or
other marine mammals;
``(C) projects to carry out stock assessments for those
marine mammal species and marine mammal stocks taken in the
purse seine fishery for yellowfin tuna in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean, including species or stocks not
within waters under the jurisdiction of the United States;
and
``(D) projects to determine the extent to which the
incidental take of nontarget species, including juvenile
tuna, occurs in the course of purse seine fishing for
yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, the
geographic location of the incidental take, and the impact of
that incidental take on tuna stocks and nontarget species.
``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) There are authorized to be appropriated to the
Secretary the following amounts, to be used by the Secretary
to carry out the research described in subsection (a):
``(A) $4,000,000 for fiscal year 1998.
``(B) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 1999.
``(C) $4,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.
``(D) $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2001.
``(2) In addition to the amount authorized to be
appropriated under paragraph (1), there are authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary for carrying out this section
$3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1998, 1999, 2000, and
2001.
``SEC. 305. REPORTS BY THE SECRETARY.
``Notwithstanding section 103(f), the Secretary shall
submit annual reports to the Congress which include--
``(1) results of research conducted pursuant to section
304;
``(2) a description of the status and trends of stocks of
tuna;
``(3) a description of the efforts to assess, avoid,
reduce, and minimize the bycatch of juvenile yellowfin tuna
and bycatch of nontarget species;
``(4) a description of the activities of the International
Dolphin Conservation Program and of the efforts of the United
States in support of the Program's goals and objectives,
including the protection of dolphin stocks in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean, and an assessment of the
effectiveness of the Program;
``(5) actions taken by the Secretary under section
101(a)(2)(B) and section 101(d);
``(6) copies of any relevant resolutions and decisions of
the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, and any
regulations promulgated by the Secretary under this title;
and
``(7) any other information deemed relevant by the
Secretary.
``SEC. 306. PERMITS.
``(a) In General.--
``(1) Consistent with the regulations issued pursuant to
section 303, the Secretary shall issue a permit to a vessel
of the United States authorizing participation in the
International Dolphin Conservation Program
[[Page S8310]]
and may require a permit for the person actually in charge of
and controlling the fishing operation of the vessel. The
Secretary shall prescribe such procedures as are necessary to
carry out this subsection, including requiring the submission
of--
``(A) the name and official number or other identification
of each fishing vessel for which a permit is sought, together
with the name and address of the owner thereof; and
``(B) the tonnage, hold capacity, speed, processing
equipment, and type and quantity of gear, including an
inventory of special equipment required under section 303,
with respect to each vessel.
``(2) The Secretary is authorized to charge a fee for
granting an authorization and issuing a permit under this
section. The level of fees charged under this paragraph may
not exceed the administrative cost incurred in granting an
authorization and issuing a permit. Fees collected under this
paragraph shall be available to the Under Secretary of
Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere for expenses incurred in
granting authorizations and issuing permits under this
section.
``(3) After the effective date of the International Dolphin
Conservation Program Act, no vessel of the United States
shall operate in the yellowfin tuna fishery in the eastern
tropical Pacific Ocean without a valid permit issued under
this section.
``(b) Permit Sanctions.--
``(1) In any case in which--
``(A) a vessel for which a permit has been issued under
this section has been used in the commission of an act
prohibited under section 307;
``(B) the owner or operator of any such vessel or any other
person who has applied for or been issued a permit under this
section has acted in violation of section 307; or
``(C) any civil penalty or criminal fine imposed on a
vessel, owner or operator of a vessel, or other person who
has applied for or been issued a permit under this section
has not been paid or is overdue,
the Secretary may--
``(i) revoke any permit with respect to such vessel, with
or without prejudice to the issuance of subsequent permits;
``(ii) suspend such permit for a period of time considered
by the Secretary to be appropriate;
``(iii) deny such permit; or
``(iv) impose additional conditions or restrictions on any
permit issued to, or applied for by, any such vessel or
person under this section.
``(2) In imposing a sanction under this subsection, the
Secretary shall take into account--
``(A) the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the
prohibited acts for which the sanction is imposed; and
``(B) with respect to the violator, the degree of
culpability, any history of prior offenses, and other such
matters as justice requires.
``(3) Transfer of ownership of a vessel, by sale or
otherwise, shall not extinguish any permit sanction that is
in effect or is pending at the time of transfer of ownership.
Before executing the transfer of ownership of a vessel, by
sale or otherwise, the owner shall disclose in writing to the
prospective transferee the existence of any permit sanction
that will be in effect or pending with respect to the vessel
at the time of transfer.
``(4) In the case of any permit that is suspended for the
failure to pay a civil penalty or criminal fine, the
Secretary shall reinstate the permit upon payment of the
penalty or fine and interest thereon at the prevailing rate.
``(5) No sanctions shall be imposed under this section
unless there has been a prior opportunity for a hearing on
the facts underlying the violation for which the sanction is
imposed, either in conjunction with a civil penalty
proceeding under this title or otherwise.''.
(d) Section 307 (16 U.S.C. 1417) is amended--
(1) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection
(a) and inserting the following:
``(1) for any person to sell, purchase, offer for sale,
transport, or ship, in the United States, any tuna or tuna
product unless the tuna or tuna product is either dolphin
safe or has been harvested in compliance with the
International Dolphin Conservation Program by a country that
is a member of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission or
has initiated and within 6 months thereafter completed all
steps required of applicant nations in accordance with
Article V, paragraph 3 of the Convention establishing the
Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, to become a member
of that organization;
``(2) except as provided for in subsection 101(d), for any
person or vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United
States intentionally to set a purse seine net on or to
encircle any marine mammal in the course of tuna fishing
operations in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean except in
accordance with this title and regulations issued pursuant to
this title; and
``(3) for any person to import any yellowfin tuna or
yellowfin tuna product or any other fish or fish product in
violation of a ban on importation imposed under section
101(a)(2);'';
(2) by inserting ``(a)(5) or'' before ``(a)(6)'' in
subsection (b)(2); and
(3) by striking subsection (d).
(e) Section 308 (16 U.S.C. 1418) is repealed.
(f) Clerical Amendments.--The table of contents in the
first section of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 is
amended by striking the items relating to title III and
inserting in lieu thereof the following:
``TITLE III--INTERNATIONAL DOLPHIN CONSERVATION PROGRAM
``Sec. 301. Findings and policy.
``Sec. 302. International Dolphin Conservation Program.
``Sec. 303. Regulatory authority of the Secretary.
``Sec. 304. Research.
``Sec. 305. Reports by the Secretary.
``Sec. 306. Permits.
``Sec. 307. Prohibitions.''.
SEC. 7. AMENDMENTS TO THE TUNA CONVENTIONS ACT.
(a) Section 3(c) of the Tuna Conventions Act (16 U.S.C.
952(c)) is amended to read as follows:
``(c) at least one shall be either the Administrator, or an
appropriate officer, of the National Marine Fisheries
Service; and''.
(b) Section 4 of the Tuna Conventions Act (16 U.S.C. 953)
is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 4. GENERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY
SUBCOMMITTEE.
``(a) Appointments; Public Participation; Compensation.--
The Secretary, in consultation with the United States
Commissioners, shall--
``(1) appoint a General Advisory Committee which shall be
composed of not less than 5 nor more than 15 persons with
balanced representation from the various groups participating
in the fisheries included under the conventions, and from
nongovernmental conservation organizations;
``(2) appoint a Scientific Advisory Subcommittee which
shall be composed of not less than 5 nor more than 15
qualified scientists with balanced representation from the
public and private sectors, including nongovernmental
conservation organizations;
``(3) establish procedures to provide for appropriate
public participation and public meetings and to provide for
the confidentiality of confidential business data; and
``(4) fix the terms of office of the members of the General
Advisory Committee and Scientific Advisory Subcommittee, who
shall receive no compensation for their services as such
members.
``(b) Functions.--
``(1) General advisory committee.--The General Advisory
Committee shall be invited to have representatives attend all
nonexecutive meetings of the United States sections and shall
be given full opportunity to examine and to be heard on all
proposed programs of investigations, reports,
recommendations, and regulations of the Commission. The
General Advisory Committee may attend all meetings of the
international commissions to which they are invited by such
commissions.
``(2) Scientific Advisory Subcommittee.--
``(A) Advice.--The Scientific Advisory Subcommittee shall
advise the General Advisory Committee and the Commissioners
on matters including--
``(i) the conservation of ecosystems;
``(ii) the sustainable uses of living marine resources
related to the tuna fishery in the eastern Pacific Ocean; and
``(iii) the long-term conservation and management of stocks
of living marine resources in the eastern tropical Pacific
Ocean.
``(B) Other functions and assistance.--The Scientific
Advisory Subcommittee shall, as requested by the General
Advisory Committee, the United States Commissioners, or the
Secretary, perform functions and provide assistance required
by formal agreements entered into by the United States for
this fishery, including the International Dolphin
Conservation Program. These functions may include--
``(i) the review of data from the Program, including data
received from the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission;
``(ii) recommendations on research needs, including
ecosystems, fishing practices, and gear technology research,
including the development and use of selective,
environmentally safe and cost-effective fishing gear, and on
the coordination and facilitation of such research;
``(iii) recommendations concerning scientific reviews and
assessments required under the Program and engaging, as
appropriate, in such reviews and assessments;
``(iv) consulting with other experts as needed; and
``(v) recommending measures to assure the regular and
timely full exchange of data among the parties to the Program
and each nation's National Scientific Advisory Committee (or
its equivalent).
``(3) Attendance at meetings.--The Scientific Advisory
Subcommittee shall be invited to have representatives attend
all nonexecutive meetings of the United States sections and
the General Advisory Subcommittee and shall be given full
opportunity to examine and to be heard on all proposed
programs of scientific investigation, scientific reports, and
scientific recommendations of the commission. Representatives
of the Scientific Advisory Subcommittee may attend meetings
of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission in accordance
with the rules of such Commission.''.
(c) Bycatch Reduction.--The Tuna Conventions Act (16 U.S.C.
951 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end thereof the
following:
``SEC. 15. REDUCTION OF BYCATCH IN THE EASTERN TROPICAL
PACIFIC OCEAN.
``The Secretary of State, in consultation with the
Secretary of Commerce and acting through the United States
Commissioners, shall seek, in cooperation with other nations
whose vessel fish for tuna in the eastern
[[Page S8311]]
tropical Pacific Ocean, to establish standards and measures
for a bycatch reduction program for vessels fishing for
yellowfin tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. The
bycatch reduction program shall include measures--
``(1) to require, to the maximum extent practicable, that
sea turtles and other threatened species and endangered
species are released alive;
``(2) to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the
harvest of nontarget species;
``(3) to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the
mortality of nontarget species; and
``(4) to reduce, to the maximum extent practicable, the
mortality of juveniles of the target species.''.
SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATES.
(a) Amendments to Take Effect When IDCP in Force.--Sections
3 through 7 of this Act (except for section 304 of the Marine
Mammal Protection Act of 1972 as added by section 6 of this
Act) shall become effective upon--
(1) certification by the Secretary of Commerce that--
(A) sufficient funding is available to complete the first
year of the study required under section 304(a) of the Marine
Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as so added; and
(B) the study has commenced; and
(2) certification by the Secretary of State to Congress
that a binding resolution of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna
Commission or other legally binding instrument establishing
the International Dolphin Conservation Program has been
adopted and is in force.
(b) Special Effective Date.--Notwithstanding subsection
(a), the Secretary of Commerce may issue regulations under--
(1) subsection (f)(2) of the Dolphin Protection Consumer
Information Act (16 U.S.C. 1385(f)(2)), as added by section
5(b) of this Act;
(2) section 303(a) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of
1972 (16 U.S.C. 1413(a)), as added by section 6(c) of this
Act,
at any time after the date of enactment of this Act.
____________________