[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 3 (Thursday, January 9, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S159-S160]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. BOXER (for herself, Mr. Biden, Mr. Hollings, Mr. Kerry, 
        and Ms. Cantwell):
  S. 130. A bill to amend the labeling requirements of the Dolphin 
Protection Consumer Information Act, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, today I am introducing the ``Truth in Tuna 
Labeling Act.'' This important legislation

[[Page S160]]

will ensure that the fishing of tuna labeled ``dolphin safe'' does not 
kill, harm or attack dolphins, and that consumers are given accurate 
information on how the tuna they purchase is caught. My bill will 
guarantee that tuna products labeled ``dolphin safe'' will be truly 
safe for dolphins.
  In 1990, the Dolphin Protection Consumer Information Act, introduced 
by myself in the House and Senator Biden in the Senate, created a 
``dolphin safe'' label for consumers. This legislation was passed with 
overwhelming bipartisan support, and it allowed American consumers to 
buy tuna bearing the ``dolphin safe'' label with confidence, knowing 
that their purchase did not trade dolphin mortalities for tuna fishing 
profit.
  Dolphin and yellowfin tuna tend to run together in some waters. 
Dolphin swim closer to the surface to breathe. Under the destructive 
``chase and encirclement'' practice, helicopters spot the schools of 
dolphin. Speedboats deliberately encircle the dolphins and cast a mile-
wide net, knowing that the tuna will be below. While the tunas are to 
be harvested, the hope is that the dolphins will escape the edges of 
the net and suffocation or capture. This practice is termed ``purse 
seine netting.''
  According to the annual reports of the Marine Mammal Commission and 
the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, dolphin mortality in the 
eastern tropical Pacific alone has decreased from more than 100,000 
dolphin kills each year to fewer than 2,000 kills each year since the 
passage of the ``dolphin safe'' label in 1990.
  Unfortunately, on New Year's Eve, the Commerce Department announced 
its plans to make the labeling standard largely meaningless by changing 
the definition of ``dolphin safe'' tuna to allow the label to be put on 
tuna harvested through deadly purse seine netting.
  This flies in the face of all available scientific information.
  According to the Marine Mammal Commission, ``. . . the results of the 
[National Marine Fisheries] Service's research program . . . provide 
evidence that the practice of chasing and encircling dolphins is having 
adverse effects on the recover of depleted dolphin stocks and that the 
magnitude of those effects, at both the individual and population 
levels, may be significant.''
  The report prepared by the Commerce Department reached a similar 
conclusion. It said, ``. . . despite considerable effort by fishery 
scientists, there is little evidence of recovery, and concerns remain 
that the practice of chasing and circling dolphins somehow is adversely 
affecting the ability of those depleted stocks to recover.''
  The new rule completely undermines the integrity of the ``dolphin 
safe'' label, allowing ``dolphin safe'' labels to be placed on dolphin 
deadly tuna, and misleading the public. These changes fly in the face 
of the bipartisan legislation that was enacted in response to public 
outcry and consumer demand.
  As one who fought in the past to protect dolphins and inform 
consumers, I believe that the effectiveness of the label will be 
severely undermined by the change and will allow the continued 
deterioration of dolphin populations. This administration has once 
again continued its attack on the environment by weakening protections 
for marine mammals, ignoring science, and providing yet another favor 
to industry.
  Therefore, I am introducing the ``Truth in Tuna Labeling Act'' to 
reinstate the original ``dolphin safe'' label.
                                 ______