[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 70 (Thursday, April 22, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E446]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                SHARK FIN SALES ELIMINATION ACT OF 2021

                                 ______
                                 

                  HON. GREGORIO KILILI CAMACHO SABLAN

                    of the northern mariana islands

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 22, 2021

  Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, on Earth Day 2021, together with Rep. 
McCaul and 103 other original cosponsors, I am reintroducing the Shark 
Fin Sales Elimination Act.
  The Act bans the buying and selling of shark fins in the United 
States and passed in the 116th Congress with bipartisan support and, 
ultimately, 287 cosponsors. It was the largest number of cosponsors for 
any ocean conservation bill in the previous Congress.
  The Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act has such strong bipartisan 
support, because it is an effective way to remove the United States 
from the devastating global trade in shark fins, at no cost. And 
because it does so without stopping those who want to fish for sharks 
and use them whole.
  Madam Speaker, sharks are absolutely critical to life in the ocean. 
As apex predators, they help maintain balance by keeping prey 
populations in check. They are also critical to the tourism economy of 
our coastal communities. In Florida alone, tourists, who go diving to 
see sharks, generate more than 200 times the value of the trade in 
shark fins for our entire country.
  Despite their importance ecologically and economically, sharks are in 
serious trouble. Each year, fins from up to 73 million sharks are 
sliced off and sold in the global marketplace. And, largely due to this 
demand for fins, some shark species have now declined by more than 90 
percent.
  Our nation has wisely banned the inhumane practice of finning sharks 
and throwing them back into the ocean to die. Yet, we still allow fins 
to be bought and sold here. And many of the fins we are buying and 
selling come from countries that simply do not have the same level of 
protection the U.S. gives sharks.
  Now is time for us to take that next step. Only by banning the shark 
fin trade once and for all within our borders can we ensure we are no 
longer supporting an unsustainable use of ocean resources.
  Recognizing this unsustainability, the Northern Mariana Islands, my 
home, was the very first U.S. insular area to ban the trade of shark 
fins in 2011. As an island culture 3,000 years old, the people of the 
Marianas understand and respect the important role that sharks play in 
maintaining the life of our oceans.
  We are not alone. Thirteen U.S. states and three territories have 
also passed their own shark fin bans. But this patchwork of state laws 
can be challenging to enforce. That is why we need a federal ban on the 
shark fin trade in the United States.
  A ban on the shark fin trade is supported by 45 domestic and 
international airlines, by 22 shipping companies, 15 major 
corporations, and nearly 700 U.S. businesses and organizations. A 2020 
national poll found 4 of 5 American voters support a national ban on 
the buying and selling of shark fins. Hundreds of scientists, chefs, 
fishers, and dive and surf businesses have written to Congress 
requesting passage of a national shark fin ban.
  I want, especially, to thank Oceana, the Humane Society Legislative 
Fund, and the Animal Welfare Institute for those environmental 
organizations' work to build legislative support for the Shark Fin 
Sales Elimination Act.
  I look forward to quick action in the House on the Shark Fin Sales 
Elimination Act of 2021.

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