American Fisheries Advisory Committee Act

II Calendar No. 179 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 494 [Report No. 116–77] To establish the American Fisheries Advisory Committee to assist in the awarding of fisheries research and development grants, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES FEBRUARY 14, 2019 Mr. SULLIVAN (for himself, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Ms. WARREN, Ms. CANTWELL, and Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation AUGUST 16, 2019 Reported under authority of the order of the Senate of August 1, 2019, by Mr. WICKER, without amendment A BILL To establish the American Fisheries Advisory Committee to assist in the awarding of fisheries research and develop- ment grants, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 494 RS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘American Fisheries 2 Advisory Committee Act’’. 3 SEC. 2. AMERICAN FISHERIES ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Section 2 of the Act of Au- 5 gust 11, 1939 (15 U.S.C. 713c–3), is amended— 6 (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub- 7 section (f); and 8 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol- 9 lowing: 10 ‘‘(e) AMERICAN FISHERIES ADVISORY COM- 11 MITTEE.— 12 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 13 ‘‘(A) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘Committee’ 14 means the American Fisheries Advisory Com- 15 mittee established under paragraph (2). 16 ‘‘(B) FISHING COMMUNITY.—The term 17 ‘fishing community’ means harvesters, market- 18 ers, growers, processors, recreational fishermen, 19 charter fishermen, and persons providing them 20 with goods and services. 21 ‘‘(C) MARKETING AND PROMOTION.—The 22 term ‘marketing and promotion’ means an ac- 23 tivity aimed at encouraging the consumption of 24 seafood or expanding or maintaining commer- 25 cial markets for seafood. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 494 RS ‘‘(D) PROCESSOR.—The term ‘processor’ 1 means any person in the business of preparing 2 or packaging seafood (including seafood of the 3 processor’s own harvesting) for sale. 4 ‘‘(E) SEAFOOD.—The term ‘seafood’ 5 means farm-raised and wild-caught fish, shell- 6 fish, or marine algae harvested in the United 7 States or by a United States flagged vessel for 8 human consumption. 9 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days 10 after the date of the enactment of the American 11 Fisheries Advisory Committee Act, the Secretary 12 shall establish 6 regions within the American Fish- 13 eries Advisory Committee as follows: 14 ‘‘(A) Region 1 shall consist of Alaska, Ha- 15 waii, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mar- 16 iana Islands, and the Territories of Guam and 17 American Samoa. 18 ‘‘(B) Region 2 shall consist of Maine, New 19 Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and 20 Connecticut. 21 ‘‘(C) Region 3 shall consist of Texas, Ala- 22 bama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Arkan- 23 sas, Puerto Rico, and the Territory of the Vir- 24 gin Islands of the United States. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 494 RS ‘‘(D) Region 4 shall consist of California, 1 Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. 2 ‘‘(E) Region 5 shall consist of New Jersey, 3 New York, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, 4 North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. 5 ‘‘(F) Region 6 shall consist of Michigan, 6 Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, 7 and Pennsylvania. 8 ‘‘(3) MEMBERSHIP.—The Committee shall be 9 composed of the following members: 10 ‘‘(A) REGIONAL REPRESENTATION.—Each 11 of the regions listed in subparagraphs (A) 12 through (F) of paragraph (2) shall be rep- 13 resented on the Committee by 3 members— 14 ‘‘(i) who are appointed by the Sec- 15 retary; 16 ‘‘(ii) who reside in a State or territory 17 in the region that the member will rep- 18 resent; 19 ‘‘(iii) of which— 20 ‘‘(I) one shall have experience as 21 a seafood harvester or processor; 22 ‘‘(II) one shall have experience as 23 recreational or commercial fisher or 24 have experience growing seafood; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 494 RS ‘‘(III) one shall be an individual 1 who represents the fisheries science 2 community or the relevant Regional 3 Fishery Management Council; and 4 ‘‘(iv) that are selected so that the 5 members of the Committee have experience 6 or expertise with as many seafood species 7 as practicable. 8 ‘‘(B) AT-LARGE MEMBERS.—The Secretary 9 shall appoint to the Committee at-large mem- 10 bers as follows: 11 ‘‘(i) One individual with experience in 12 food distribution, marketing, retail, or food 13 service. 14 ‘‘(ii) One individual with experience in 15 the recreational fishing industry supply 16 chain, such as fishermen, manufacturers, 17 retailers, and distributors. 18 ‘‘(iii) One individual with experience 19 in the commercial fishing industry supply 20 chain, such as fishermen, manufacturers, 21 retailers, and distributors. 22 ‘‘(iv) One individual who is an em- 23 ployee of the National Marine Fisheries 24 Service with expertise in fisheries research. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •S 494 RS ‘‘(C) BALANCED REPRESENTATION.—In 1 selecting the members described in subpara- 2 graphs (A) and (B), the Secretary shall seek to 3 maximize on the Committee, to the extent prac- 4 ticable, a balanced representation of expertise 5 in United States fisheries, seafood production, 6 and science. 7 ‘‘(4) MEMBER TERMS.—The term for a member 8 of the Committee shall be 3 years, except that the 9 Secretary shall designate staggered terms for the 10 members initially appointed to the Committee. 11 ‘‘(5) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Committee shall 12 be responsible for— 13 ‘‘(A) identifying needs of the fishing com- 14 munity that may be addressed by a project 15 funded with a grant under subsection (c); 16 ‘‘(B) developing the request for proposals 17 for such grants; 18 ‘‘(C) reviewing applications for such 19 grants; and 20 ‘‘(D) selecting applications for approval 21 under subsection (c)(2)(B). 22 ‘‘(6) CHAIR.—The Committee shall elect a chair 23 by a majority of those voting, if a quorum is 24 present. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •S 494 RS ‘‘(7) QUORUM.—A simple majority of members 1 of the Committee shall constitute a quorum, but a 2 lesser number may hold hearings. 3 ‘‘(8) MEETINGS.— 4 ‘‘(A) FREQUENCY.—The Committee shall 5 meet not more than 2 times each year. 6 ‘‘(B) LOCATION.—The meetings of the 7 Committee shall rotate between the geographic 8 regions described under paragraph (2). 9 ‘‘(C) MINIMIZING COSTS.—The Committee 10 shall seek to minimize the operational costs as- 11 sociated with meetings, hearings, or other busi- 12 ness of the Committee, including through the 13 use of video or teleconference. 14 ‘‘(9) DESIGNATION OF STAFF MEMBER.—The 15 Secretary shall designate a staff member to coordi- 16 nate the activities of the Committee and to assist 17 with administrative and other functions as requested 18 by the Committee. 19 ‘‘(10) PER DIEM AND EXPENSES AND FUND- 20 ING.— 21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A member of the 22 Committee shall serve without compensation, 23 but shall be reimbursed in accordance with sec- 24 tion 5703 of title 5, United States Code, for 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •S 494 RS reasonable travel costs and expenses incurred in 1 performing duties as a member of the Com- 2 mittee. 3 ‘‘(B) FUNDING.—The costs of reimburse- 4 ments under subparagraph (A) and the other 5 costs associated with the Committee shall be 6 paid from funds made available to carry out 7 this section (which may include funds described 8 in subsection (f)(1)(B)), except that no funds 9 allocated for grants under subsection (f)(1)(A) 10 shall be expended for any purpose under this 11 subsection. 12 ‘‘(11) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.—The conflict of 13 interest and recusal provisions set out in section 14 302(j) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conserva- 15 tion and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(j)) shall 16 apply to any decision by the Committee and to all 17 members of the Committee as if each member of the 18 Committee is an affected individual within the mean- 19 ing of such section 302(j), except that in addition to 20 the disclosure requirements of section 302(j)(2)(C) 21 of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1852(j)(2)(C)), each member 22 of the Committee shall disclose any financial interest 23 or relationship in an organization or with an indi- 24 vidual that is applying for a grant under subsection 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •S 494 RS (c) held by the member of the Committee, including 1 an interest as an officer, director, trustee, partner, 2 employee, contractor, agent, or other representative. 3 ‘‘(12) TECHNICAL REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.— 4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Prior to review of an 5 application for a grant under subsection (c) by 6 the Committee, the Secretary shall obtain an 7 independent written technical evaluation from 3 8 or more appropriate Federal, private, or public 9 sector experts (such as industry, academia, or 10 governmental experts) who— 11 ‘‘(i) have subject matter expertise to 12 determine the technical merit of the pro- 13 posal in the application; 14 ‘‘(ii) shall independently evaluate each 15 such proposal; and 16 ‘‘(iii) shall certify that the expert does 17 not have a conflict of interest concerning 18 the application that the expert is review- 19 ing. 20 ‘‘(B) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 180 days 21 after the date of enactment of the American 22 Fisheries Advisory Committee Act, the Sec- 23 retary shall issue guidance related to carrying 24 out the technical evaluations under subpara- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •S 494 RS graph (A). Such guidance shall include criteria 1 for the elimination by the National Oceanic and 2 Atmospheric Administration of applications that 3 fail to meet a minimum level of technical merit 4 as determined by the review described in sub- 5 paragraph (A).’’. 6 (b) ROLE IN APPROVAL OF GRANTS.—Section 7 2(c)(3) of the Act of August 11, 1939 (15 U.S.C. 713c– 8 3(c)(3)), is amended to read as follows: 9 ‘‘(3)(A) No application for a grant under this sub- 10 section may be approved unless the Secretary— 11 ‘‘(i) is satisfied that the applicant has the req- 12 uisite technical and financial capability to carry out 13 the project; and 14 ‘‘(ii) based on the recommendations of the 15 American Fisheries Advisory Committee established 16 in subsection (e), evaluates the proposed project as 17 to— 18 ‘‘(I) soundness of design; 19 ‘‘(II) the possibilities of securing produc- 20 tive results; 21 ‘‘(III) minimization of duplication with 22 other fisheries research and development 23 projects; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •S 494 RS ‘‘(IV) the organization and management of 1 the project; 2 ‘‘(V) methods proposed for monitoring and 3 evaluating the success or failure of the project; 4 and 5 ‘‘(VI) such other criteria as the Secretary 6 may require. 7 ‘‘(B) If the Secretary fails to provide funds to a grant 8 selected by the American Fisheries Advisory Committee, 9 the Secretary shall provide a written document to the 10 Committee justifying the decision.’’. 11 SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF SPECIFIED PURPOSES OF FISH- 12 ERIES RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 13 PROJECTS GRANTS PROGRAM TO INCLUDE 14 FISHERIES RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 15 PROJECTS. 16 Section 2(c)(1) of the Act of August 11, 1939 (15 17 U.S.C. 713c–3(c)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘fisheries 18 science, recreational fishing,’’ before ‘‘harvesting,’’. 19 SEC. 4. PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF GRANTS PROPOSALS. 20 Section 2(c) of the Act of August 11, 1939 (15 21 U.S.C. 713c–3(c)), is amended by adding at the end the 22 following: 23 ‘‘(6) Any person awarded a grant under this 24 subsection shall make publicly available a title and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •S 494 RS abstract of the project to be carried out by the grant 1 funds that serves as the public justification for fund- 2 ing the project that includes a statement describing 3 how the project serves to enhance United States 4 fisheries, including harvesting, processing, mar- 5 keting, and associated infrastructures, if applica- 6 ble.’’. 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS Calendar No. 179 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 494 [Report No. 116–77] A BILL To establish the American Fisheries Advisory Com- mittee to assist in the awarding of fisheries re- search and development grants, and for other purposes. AUGUST 16, 2019 Reported without amendment VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Aug 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6651 Sfmt 6651 E:\BILLS\S494.RS S494 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS